Mir ''Mir'' (russian: Мир, ; ) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to&n ...

Zia Mahmood (born 7 January 1946) is a Pakistani-American professional

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 is a

World Bridge Federation The World Bridge Federation (WBF) is the international governing body of contract bridge. The WBF is responsible for world championship competitions, most of which are conducted at a few multi-event meets on a four-year cycle. The most prestigiou ...

and

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 ...

Grand Life Master. As of April 2011 he was the 10th-ranked World Grand Master.

Biography

Zia was born in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, now Pakistan. Zia was educated in England from the age of six to twenty-one. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant of the Institute of England and Wales and spent three years running a family business in Pakistan. He also spent eighteen months in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

developing business interests. Mahmood is married to Lady Emma, his wife since February 2001. She is the daughter of

Neil Primrose, 7th Earl of Rosebery Neil Archibald Primrose, 7th Earl of Rosebery, 3rd Earl of Midlothian (born 11 February 1929), styled Lord Primrose between 1931 and 1974, is a Scottish nobleman. He was a member of the House of Lords from 1974 to 1999. His son and heir is Harry ...

. They have two sons: Zain and Rafi.

Bridge

Mahmood achieved international bridge fame, almost overnight, during one fortnight in 1981 when he led Pakistan to a second-place finish in the

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 ...

tournament. The Bermuda Bowl is the most important

open Open or OPEN may refer to: Music * Open (band), Australian pop/rock band * The Open (band), English indie rock band * ''Open'' (Blues Image album), 1969 * ''Open'' (Gotthard album), 1999 * ''Open'' (Cowboy Junkies album), 2001 * ''Open'' (YF ...

world championship, and that was the first participation by anyone from the World Bridge Federation geographic zone "Asia and the Middle East". It also tied

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

for the best finish by anyone from outside Europe and the United States. It is now the second best finish from outside Europe and the United States, after

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

won the tournament in 1989. Five years later, Zia led a short-handed team from Pakistan to second place in the 1986

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 ...

tournament, which is the open world championship in even-number non-Olympic years. That remains tied for best finish by anyone from outside Europe and the United States. The event is transnational, but none of the nine winning teams has included a single player from outside Europe and the United States. Zia Mahmood is the author of ''Bridge My Way'', an autobiography, and has hosted many TV shows. For many years his regular partner was Masood Salim (deceased), followed by

Michael Rosenberg Michael Rosenberg (born March 7, 1954) is an American bridge player. Rosenberg was born in New York City, moved to Scotland as a child, and returned to New York in 1978. He lived in New York State with his wife Debbie, also a top player, from 1 ...

, and now

Bob Hamman Robert David "Bob" Hamman (born August 6, 1938 in Pasadena, California) is an American professional bridge player, among the greatest players of all time. He is from Dallas, Texas. Hamman and Bobby Wolff played as partners for nearly three deca ...

—as members of

Nick Nickell Frank T. "Nick" Nickell (born 1947) is an American bridge player. He graduated from the University of North Carolina, and lived in Raleigh, North Carolina, as of 1994. Nickell was inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 2008. At the time he lived i ...

's professional team through spring 2012. Beginning 2012/2013,The current cycle for major professional teams in the United States covers 2011 and 2012 world championships, which are contested in the second half of the calendar year. New commitments begin in July but do not interfere with the world stage of the previous cycle
"Rosenberg-Willenken Joining Fleisher in 2012"
by Martin Fleisher (13 July 2011). Bridge Winners. Retrieved 15 July 2011. See the clarification by Fleisher in the comments. Nickell has replaced Hamman and Zia with

Bobby Levin Robert J. (Bobby) Levin (born November 19, 1957) is an American professional bridge player, from Aventura, Florida. He was the youngest winner of the Bermuda Bowl world championship for national teams from 1981 until 2015, when 19-year old Michal K ...

–

Steve Weinstein Steve Weinstein (born 1964) is an American people, American professional Contract bridge, bridge and poker player. He is known best as the youngest winner of the American Contract Bridge League, ACBL Von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs, Life Master Pa ...

.Levin–Weinstein Joining Nickell in 2012
(5 July 2011). Bridge Winners. Retrieved 15 July 2011. Zia has represented the United States in world competition, and thus he won his first major world championship, the 2009 Bermuda Bowl. Although he won the quadrennial Mixed Teams in 2004 with

Sabine Auken Sabine Auken ( Zenkel, born 4 January 1965) is a German bridge player. She has also played as Sabine Zenkel. Sometime prior to the 2014 European and World meets (summer and October), she ranked 24th among 73 Women World Grand Masters by world maste ...

and a French pair. He still considers himself Pakistani, however: "I am proud and happy to be representing America, but my Pakistani identity is in no way submerged. I feel like a Pakistani who is living in America and playing for America." To prove his point, Zia and his American teammates once played their opening match in Pakistani dress. Mahmood spends much of his time in Great Britain and the United States and is very much part of the London bridge scene. He wrote a weekly column for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' newspaper until January 2012, when the paper stopped covering bridge. The

ACBL Hall of Fame This list is a compilation of contract bridge players, writers, administrators and personalities who have been recognized for their skills, achievements or contributions to the game as identified by various specific sources. People recognized by ...

inducted Zia in 2007. According to the citation sometime that year, he was a London resident. Zia won the ACBL's 3-day Life Master Pairs championship in 2000, 2004, and 2007 with three different partners. After placing second in the 85th rendition, July 2014, he is a 3-time winner and 5-time runner-up with seven different partners. Mariusz Puczyński is a Polish bridge player whose greatest achievement has been to win the Bronze Medal in the 2004 European Bridge Championship. His teammates on that occasion included

Cezary Balicki Cezary Jacek Balicki (born 5 August 1958) is a Polish bridge and chess player. After 2014 competition, he ranked 17th among Grand Masters by World Bridge Federation (WBF) masterpoints, five places ahead of his longtime partner Adam Żmudzińsk ...

and

Adam Żmudziński Adam Artur Żmudziński (born 18 January 1956) is a Polish bridge player. After 2014 competition, he ranked 22nd among Grand Masters by World Bridge Federation (WBF) masterpoints, five places behind his longtime partner Cezary Balicki. They ran ...

, for many years known as Poland's strongest pair and as one of the strongest pairs in the world. During the 2015 bridge cheating scandals, Puczyński satisfied himself that his former teammates had not been playing honestly, and returned his medal to the

European Bridge League The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...

because he no longer wanted it. In early 2019, Puczyński had by chance the opportunity to partner Zia in a tournament in Poland. Someone told Zia about Puczyński's gesture, and he warmly complimented him for it. On 15 May 2019, Puczyński received a package through the post as a present. It contained the Gold Medal which Zia had won at the 2009 Bermuda Bowl.

Honors

* ACBL Hall of Fame, 2007"Induction by Year"
''Hall of Fame''. ACBL. Retrieved 16 December 2014. * ACBL Honorary Member of the Year 2006

Awards

* ACBL Player of the Year 1991, 1996, 2000, 2005, 2012 *

Mott-Smith Trophy The Mott-Smith Trophy, named for writer and cryptographer Geoffrey Mott-Smith, is awarded to the player with the best overall individual performance in the Spring Nationals, the spring event of the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North Amer ...

1991, 1996 * Herman Trophy 2005, 2012 * IBPA Award (Personality of the Year) 2007 * Le Bridgeur Award (Best Played Hand of the Year) 1984 * Romex Award (Best Bid Hand of the Year) 1983, 1987 * Precision Award (Best Defended Hand of the Year) 1995

Wins

(1) 2009 * World Transnational Mixed Teams (1) 2004 * Gold Cup (1) 2010 *

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 ...

(22) **

von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs The Von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs national bridge championship is held at the summer American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). Usually called simply the "Life Master Pairs" or "LM Pairs", this is a six-ses ...

(3) 2000, 2004, 2007 **

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) 1998 **

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 The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) is a governing body for contract bridge in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and ...

(5) 1990, 1991, 2005, 2007, 2012 **

Jacoby Open Swiss Teams The Jacoby Open Swiss Teams national bridge championship is held at the spring American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The Jacoby Open Swiss Teams is a four session Swiss Teams event with two qualifying a ...

(1) 2009 ** Vanderbilt (3) 1994, 1996, 2015 **

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 ...

(4) 1991, 1996, 2006, 2008 **

Chicago Mixed Board-a-Match The Mixed Board-a-Match Teams is a bridge competition held at the summer 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 ...

(1) 1999 **

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 ( ...

(5) 1987, 1989, 1996, 2008, 2009 **

Spingold The Spingold national bridge championship is held at the summer American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The Spingold is a knock-out team event that attracts the top contract bridge players in the world. T ...

(2) 1991, 2003 * United States Bridge Championships (3) ** Open Team Trials (3) 1997, 1999, 2006 * Asia & the Middle East Championships (5) ** Open Teams (5) 1981, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1991 * Other notable wins: **

Buffett Cup The Buffett Cup is a bridge trophy which is awarded biennially in an event between teams from Europe and the United States. The tournament is modeled on the Ryder Cup golf competition and is held in the week preceding the golf event at a nearby l ...

(1) 2006 ** Richard Lederer Memorial Trophy (7) 1978, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2006 ** Cavendish Invitational Teams (1) 1986 ** Staten Bank World Top Invitational Pairs (1) 1988 ** Cap Gemini Pandata World Top Invitational Pairs (1) 1992 ** Cap Volmac World Top Invitational Pairs (1) 1995 ** Cap Gemini World Top Invitational Pairs (2) 1998, 2000 ** Cap Gemini Ernst & Young World Top Invitational Pairs (1) 2001 ** Politiken World Pairs (1) 1995 ** Omar Sharif Individual (1) 1990 ** Portland Club Individual (1) 1990

Runners-up

(2) 1981, 2007 World Team Championship Winners
/ref> *

(2) 1986, 2010 Rosenblum Cup Winners
/ref> *

World Open Pairs Championship The World Open Pairs Championship is a contract bridge competition initiated in 1962 and held as part of the World Bridge Series Championships every four years. Open to all pairs without any quota restrictions on nationality, the championship is wi ...

(1) 2002 *

(1) 2008 * Cavendish Invitational Pairs (1) 1998 * Gold Cup (1) 1982 *

(27) **

(3) 1992, 2010, 2014 **

(1) 2004 **

(2) 2000, 2001 **

(3) 2002, 2003, 2005 **

Roth Open Swiss Teams The Roth Open Swiss Teams is a national bridge championship Swiss Teams event held at the summer American Contract Bridge League The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) is a governing body for contract bridge in the United States, Canada, M ...

(1) 2013 **

Silodor Open Pairs The Silodor Open Pairs national bridge championship is held at the spring American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championship (NABC). The Silodor Open Pairs is a four session matchpoint (MP) pairs event with two qualifying ...

(4) 1991, 1994, 2006, 2007 **

(3) 1993, 1995, 2011 ** Vanderbilt (4) 1988, 1990, 1991, 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) 1987 **

(5) 1992, 2005, 2011, 2012, 2014 * United States Bridge Championships (5) ** Open Team Trials (5) 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005 * Other notable 2nd places: ** Forbo-Krommenie International Teams (1) 1997 ** Cavendish Invitational Teams (2) 1995, 2006

Notes

References

External links

* – with video interviews * *
Nickell Team
at the United States Bridge Federation (2009?) – with player profiles
Zia Mahmood
at Bridge Winners * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mahmood, Zia 1946 births Pakistani contract bridge players American contract bridge players Bermuda Bowl players Pakistani emigrants to the United States Pakistani expatriates in the United Kingdom Contract bridge writers Living people Recipients of the Pride of Performance Game players from Karachi