The Club
WABC The Club
The West Australian Bridge Club provides a welcoming, friendly and social experience for all bridge players. We offer a pathway for learning bridge, regular duplicate sessions and competitions for players of all levels.
Mission Statement
To promote and foster the game of bridge among members
To provide and maintain suitable premises for the activities of the Club
To provide amenities for the benefit and entertainment of the members
To do such other things as are incidental or conducive to the above objective
Our Story, Our History
In many respects, the origins of the West Australian Bridge Club commenced in 1939 with the formation of the Western Australian Bridge Association; Dr James Bentley was the first President and his photo is on show in the gallery of past Presidents in our foyer. One of the early ambitions of the Association was to secure its own premises rather than rented rooms in King’s Park Road.
In 1967 the Association became aware of the imminent sale of the Anglican Church Hall in Waratah Avenue, Dalkeith. The price was $40,000 with a $15,000 deposit and the rest payable by instalments to the Anglican Church. Funds were raised by a number of members taking up debentures of $500 to be paid back over five years. The club took possession in 1968. What an enlightened purchase this turned out to be!
In 1974, with the formation of the State’s overarching body – the Bridge Association of WA or BAWA – the Western Australian Bridge Association ceased, and the club was reconstituted as the West Australian Bridge Club (WABC).
The Dalkeith premises had certain disadvantages such as a lack of heating and cooling, as well as difficulties coping with the expanding membership. As the members had the foresight to purchase the building all those years ago, the club now had the wherewithal to fund the building of alternate premises designed to operate specifically as a bridge club. The issue now was where to build. Suggested locations were Point Resolution in Dalkeith, the new multi-use building in Mt Claremont or the old Teacher’s College in Claremont. None of these were deemed suitable for varying reasons. Due largely to the efforts of Presidents Linda Wild, Helen Kemp, Des Cain and their committees, the club is now located in a beautiful area of Swanbourne called Allen Park. Fittingly, WABC moved into its new premises in January 2008, exactly forty years after acquiring its first building.
It's worth taking time to look at some of the former Western Australian Bridge Association honour boards which hang in our clubhouse - alongside the current WABC boards. The photographs of past Presidents also tell a story. We owe much to the vision of our past members in providing one of the largest purpose-built bridge clubs in the southern hemisphere with the excellent facilities we now enjoy.
When you next play in our Anniversary Pairs competition in February, remember it is a celebration of the move to our Swanbourne premises. Several of our founders are current members; feel free to have a chat with them, as we owe them much for what we enjoy today. We have now grown to around 900 members, offering numerous sessions, a world-class professional, and most importantly, a friendly game of bridge.
