Story by Sajiv K. Menon (BBO: sajiv)

This story took root nearly half a century ago. Four young teenagers, Sajiv, Balki, Srikar, and Kannan, arrived from different corners of India to study engineering at the Regional Engineering College (REC) in Tiruchirappalli (known as Trichinopoly to the British, a city famous for its cigars, which were reportedly supplied to Winston Churchill).

Tucked away in the middle of nowhere, the college required students to live in the hostels. Our visionary principal held a remarkably liberal philosophy: if a student skipped class, he wasn’t to blame. The professor simply hadn’t made the lecture interesting enough! With the freedom to pick and choose which lectures to attend, we found ourselves with plenty of free time alongside our studies.

The principal was also a passionate supporter of sports, fully funding college teams to compete in tournaments. While games like Rummy and Flash thrived in the hostel rooms, Bridge held a special allure. As luck would have it, one of our hostel mates was the son of Mr. B. Krishnan, then captain of the Indian Bridge team. Being a senior and a passionate bridge player himself, he, along with other seniors, introduced us to the intricacies of the game.

Before long, the four of us formed the core of the college Bridge team, sharpening our skills in tournaments and forging a lifelong bond over endlessly shuffled decks.

Five years flew by. Graduation sent us down separate paths, across different cities and distant countries. Reunions were rare, but whenever we did cross paths, a game of Bridge was inevitable.

Then, about two decades ago, Bridge Base Online (BBO) changed everything.

Reconnected online, we regrouped and planted the seeds of Team TRECkers (Trichy Regional Engineering College). What began as hostel card games evolved into creditable performances in tournaments across India, and even an unforgettable clean sweep at a sectional tournament in Reno, Nevada!