Peter McLaren


Peter has been a promoter and player in Saskatchewan Bridge-player circles for more than sixty years. One snowed-in day, at 15 years of age, his grandfather taught him how to play. Peter is still playing strongly at 93, and counting! He played many games throughout high school and every noon at the U of S cafeteria while he was getting his degree. Just as he left university, the first official Bridge Club was set up there.

In 1965, on his first day in the office in Prince Albert at coffee Doug Seabach and Ted Johnson asked if he played bridge. Well, of course! They had recently formed the Prince Albert Duplicate Bridge Club (PADBC). They were looking for players! Peter wrote the constitution for the club which has only been amended twice. He also wrote the weekly bridge column for the Prince Albert Daily Herald for many years with a hand and his comments. Peter travelled to many small towns, encouraging players and helping set up clubs in Nipawin, Meota, and St. Isadore-de-Bellevue. Peter was the second person in Saskatchewan to become an accredited ACBL teacher and he taught the Audrey Grant Series several times.

Peter has spent close to 20 years on the North Saskatchewan Unit 575 board. He has been on the PADBC board for 60-plus years and chaired most of the Unit Sectionals at Prince Albert. Peter joined the ACBL in 1969. Shortly after achieving his Life Masters he played in a Saskatchewan Regional Tournament, winning 80 MPS between teams and pairs. In 1985 he achieved Silver Life Master (1000 points) while playing in the Edmonton Regional Tournament, in 2011 he achieved his Gold Life Master (2,500 points), and in 2016 he achieved his Diamond Life Master (5,000 points).

His greatest non-ACBL accomplishment was also the hardest to achieve. He won two Saskatchewan Championships: where you had to win against the sum of all players, both north and south. “We had great players here!” Greatest ACBL accomplishments were placing 10th in the North American Seniors, and when his team placed 17th in North America in the Vanderbilt Teams (which is the qualifier for the World Championship). As a frequent traveller, he also had wins in both China and Mexico.

Few people have worked as hard or as long as Peter to help bridge in Northern Saskatchewan flourish.