Charles Coon (June 2, 1931 – January 18, 2003) was an American

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

player. He finished second in two world championships and won six

North American Bridge Championships North American Bridge Championships (NABC) are three annual bridge tournaments sponsored by the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL). The "Spring", "Summer", and "Fall" NABCs are usually scheduled in March, July, and November for about eleven da ...

(NABC). A son of

Carleton Coon Carleton Stevens Coon (June 23, 1904 – June 3, 1981) was an American anthropologist. A professor of anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania, lecturer and professor at Harvard University, he was president of the American Association of ...

, Coon was from

Gloucester, Massachusetts Gloucester () is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It sits on Cape Ann and is a part of Massachusetts's North Shore. The population was 29,729 at the 2020 U.S. Census. An important center of the fishing industry and a ...

. He graduated from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

and served in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Then he "devoted himself to playing bridge" but " like other top players, he spent nearly all his time playing for money in clubs and earning himself a modest income." He was manager of the Boston Chess Club as of March 1961. He died in Staten Island at age 71 in 2003. Coon's first "national"-level victory in the

American Contract Bridge League The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) is a governing body for contract bridge in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda. It is the largest such organization in North America having the stated mission ''"to promote, grow and sustain th ...

was his greatest. He was one of "four young bridge experts led by Robert F. Jordan" who won the annual

Vanderbilt Cup The Vanderbilt Cup was the first major trophy in American auto racing. History An international event, it was founded by William Kissam Vanderbilt II in 1904 and first held on October 8 on a course set out in Nassau County, New York, Nassa ...

in 1961, when it was contested in a 64- double-elimination tournament. Jordan played with Arthur Robinson, also of Philadelphia, and Coon played with Eric Murray of Toronto. Coon–Murray went on to qualify for the 6-man North America team in the 1962 Bermuda Bowl where they finished second to Italy's Blue Team.

Bridge accomplishments

Awards

Herman Trophy The Goren Trophy (formerly the Herman Trophy) is awarded to the player who wins the greatest number of masterpoints at the fall American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). History The Herman Trophy was do ...

(1) 1966

Wins

(6) **

Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs The Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs national bridge championship is held at the spring American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs is a four session matchpoint (MP) pairs eve ...

(1) 2000 **

Wernher Open Pairs The Wernher Open Pairs national bridge championship is held at the summer American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). Typically starting on the Tuesday of the NABC, the Wernher Open Pairs is a four session ma ...

(1) 1989 **

Blue Ribbon Pairs The Edgar Kaplan Blue Ribbon Pairs (or simply the Blue Ribbon Pairs) is a national bridge championship held at the fall American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The event is restricted to those that have wo ...

(1) 1966 **

Nail Life Master Open Pairs The Nail Life Master Open Pairs is a North American bridge championship held at the fall American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The championship is a Matchpoints pairs event restricted to players with a ...

(1) 1964 ** Vanderbilt (1) 1961 **

Chicago Mixed Board-a-Match The Mixed Board-a-Match Teams is a bridge competition held at the summer American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). From 2010 the event is officially the Freeman Mixed Board-a-Match Teams, as it is contested ...

(1) 1962

Runners-up

Bermuda Bowl The Bermuda Bowl is a biennial contract bridge world championship for national . It is contested every odd-numbered year under the auspices of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), alongside the Venice Cup (women), the d'Orsi Senior Bowl and the Wuh ...

(1) 1962 *

Rosenblum Cup Rosenblum Cup is an Open Teams event held every four years as part of the World Bridge Championships. The event was added to the world championships in New Orleans in 1978 to commemorate Julius Rosenblum, who served as president of the World Bridge ...

(1) 1990 *

(3) **

Mitchell Board-a-Match Teams The Mitchell Board-a-Match Teams national bridge championship is held at the fall American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championships, North American Bridge Championship (NABC). It is an open four session board-a-match event ...

(2) 1964, 1968 **

Reisinger The Reisinger national bridge championship is held at the fall American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The Reisinger is a board-a-match event. History The event is contested for the Reisinger Trophy ( ...

(1) 1961

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coon, Charles 1931 births 2003 deaths American contract bridge players Bermuda Bowl players Sportspeople from Gloucester, Massachusetts Harvard College alumni