B. Jay Becker

B. Jay Becker (1904 - October 9, 1987) was an American lawyer and bridge champion.

He was born and raised in Philadelphia where he trained as a lawyer at Temple Law School, graduating in 1929; he lived there until 1937. Turning to a career in contract bridge, he became a top player, columnist and teacher, twice winning world championships in the Bermuda Bowl events of 1951 and 1953. After playing on the Vanderbilt Trophy-winning team at age 81 in 1976, he was both the oldest player to win the Vanderbilt teams tournament and the winner of the greatest number of "national" (North American) team championships.

A conservative bidder, Becker had a careful style, avoided most bidding conventions and relied instead on his technical skills and judgment; he was admired and respected for his quiet demeanor at the table.

Over the years, Becker managed three New York bridge clubs (the Cavendish 1942-47, the New York Bridge Whist 1948-50 and the Regency 1951-56) and for thirty years was a nationally syndicated columnist. A contributor to The Bridge World and the ACBL Bulletin, he was a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of The Official Encyclopedia of Bridge and a member of the ACBL Laws Commission.

Becker was inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 1995.

• Check Pinochle: official rules and conventions, Morton Wild and Becker (New York Bridge Whist Club, 1950), pamphlet(?), OCLC 8457430, LCCN 50-12782
• Becker on Bridge (Grosset & Dunlap, 1971), 127 pp., LCCN 73-145738

Honors

• ACBL Hall of Fame, 1995

Awards

• Fishbein Trophy (1) 1972

Wins

• Bermuda Bowl (2) 1951, 1953
• North American Bridge Championships (31)
  • Masters Individual (2) 1937, 1948
  • von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs (2) 1935, 1964
  • Wernher Open Pairs (1) 1938
  • Blue Ribbon Pairs (1) 1963
  • Open Pairs (1928-1962) (2) 1946, 1962
  • Vanderbilt (8) 1944, 1945, 1951, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1981
  • Masters Team of 4 (1) 1936
  • Reisinger (8) 1932, 1939, 1942, 1943, 1950, 1953, 1954, 1956
  • Spingold (6) 1938, 1944, 1947, 1952, 1957, 1972

Runners-up

• Bermuda Bowl (2) 1958, 1965
• North American Bridge Championships
  • Masters Individual (4) 1934, 1941, 1949, 1955
  • Hilliard Mixed Pairs (1) 1932
  • Open Pairs (1928-1962) (1) 1949
  • Vanderbilt (7) 1937, 1938, 1941, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1964
  • Spingold (1) 1932
  • Mitchell Board-a-Match Teams (2) 1959, 1963
  • Chicago Mixed Board-a-Match (5) 1936, 1958, 1960, 1967, 1972
  • Reisinger (3) 1933, 1944, 1951
  • Spingold (7) 1941, 1943, 1950, 1955, 1960, 1965, 1968

• "Induction by Year". Hall of Fame. ACBL. Retrieved 2014-11-13.
• ^ "List of Previous Winners". American Contract Bridge League. 
• "List of Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-06-18. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• "Wernher Open Pairs Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-22. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• "Blue Ribbon Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-03. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• ^ "List of Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-03-24. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• ^ "List of Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-21. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• ^ "Reisinger Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-06. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• "Mitchell BAM Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-01. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16. 
• "List of Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-24. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-16.