Bobby Nail

George Robert Nail (April 21, 1925 – May 25, 1995)[1] was an American bridge player and a club owner and teacher in Houston, Texas.[2][3][4]

Nail was born in Kansas City, Missouri, with the congenital bone disorder osteogenesis imperfecta. In the 1960s he moved to Houston, where he operated Nail's Bridge Center with his wife Betty until his death.[2][3][4] He died of a heart attack on May 25, 1995, survived by his wife and a sister.[2]

Nail won four American Contract Bridge League national championships and placed second eleven times. He represented the United States twice in the Bermuda Bowl, finishing second in 1963.[4] He was inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 2001.[5] The Nail Life Master Open Pairs event is named after him.

Nail and Robert Stucker invented the Big Diamond bidding system and presented it in the 1965 book Revolution in Bridge. A major departure from Standard American bidding concepts of the day, it featured a weak notrump, an unbalanced big 1♦ opening and a 1♣ opening that was forcing but not necessarily strong.[2][6]

Publications

• Revolution in Bridge: Featuring the big diamond and the fantastic no trump, Nail and Robert Stucker (San Antonio: Naylor, 1965), 325 pp.; ASIN B0007IX8GI

Bridge accomplishments

Honors

• ACBL Hall of Fame, 2001[5]

Wins

• North American Bridge Championships (5)
  • von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs (1) 1974 [7]
  • Nail Life Master Open Pairs (1) 1974 [8]
  • Vanderbilt (1) 1967 [9]
  • Marcus Cup (1) 1948
  • Spingold (1) 1953 [10]

Runners-up

• North American Bridge Championships
  • von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs (1) 1979 [7]
  • Silodor Open Pairs (1) 1970 [11]
  • Wernher Open Pairs (1) 1949 [12]
  • Blue Ribbon Pairs (1) 1980 [13]
  • North American Pairs (1) 1989 [14]
  • Jacoby Open Swiss Teams (1) 1988 [15]
  • Vanderbilt (1) 1985 [9]
  • Mitchell Board-a-Match Teams (2) 1961, 1964 [16]
  • Reisinger (1) 1960 [17]
  • Spingold (1) 1962 [10]

References

1. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
2. "G. Robert Nail, 70, Champion at Bridge". The New York Times. May 29, 1995. Page 28. Quote: "died on Thursday in Houston".
3. "Nail, G. Robert". Hall of Fame. ACBL. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
4. Manley, Brent; Horton, Mark; Greenberg-Yarbro, Tracey; Rigal, Barry, eds. (2011). The Official Encyclopedia of Bridge - Biographies and Results (compact disk) (7th ed.). Horn Lake, MS: American Contract Bridge League. p. 41. ISBN 978-0-939460-99-1.
5. "Induction by Year" Archived 2014-12-05 at the Wayback Machine. Hall of Fame. ACBL. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
6. Bourke, Tim; Sugden, John (2010). Bridge Books in English 1886–2010: an annotated bibliography. Cheltenham, England: Bridge Book Buffs. p. 305. ISBN 978-0-9566576-0-2.
7. "von Zedtwitz LM Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-06-18. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
8. "Life Master Open Pairs Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-11-29. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
9. "Vanderbilt Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-03-24. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
10. "Spingold Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-21. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
11. "Silodor Open Pairs Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-27. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
12. "Wernher Open Pairs Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-22. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
13. "Blue Ribbon Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-03. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
14. "NAP Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-03-21. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
15. "Jacoby Open Swiss Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-03-29. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
16. "Mitchell BAM Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-01. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
17. "Reisinger Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-06. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-17.

External links

• Citation at the ACBL Hall of Fame (archived)
• "International record for Robert G. Nail". World Bridge Federation.