ESP Biography

ADAM KAPLAN, Stanford freshman and professional bridge player

Major: Undeclared

College/Employer: Stanford

Year of Graduation: 2018

Brief Biographical Sketch:

I am an undeclared Stanford freshman. I am interested in psychology, classics, and physics (in small doses). More importantly, I love bridge. I have been playing since I was 5, and have had both national and international success.

I play and teach bridge professionally, and I am a member of the US under-26 national bridge team. I won a gold medal in international competition last year, and have won multiple silver and bronze medals. I was on a Youth Bridge panel with Bill Gates, and have also beaten him a couple times at the bridge table (and that's the amazing thing about bridge -- I could never dream of beating him anywhere else!)

I love bridge because it provides an awesome challenge and a constant opportunity to learn and improve. No other game offers such a variety of challenges, and certainly no other game has as many cool people who play it!

Past Classes

(Clicking a class title will bring you to the course's section of the corresponding course catalog)

H4201: Introduction to Bridge (by a World Champion!) in Splash Spring 2015 (Apr. 11 - 12, 2015)

Question: What do Bill Gates and Warren Buffet have in common? Answer: They're both billionaires and they both love the card game bridge. If you too aspire to become a bridge-playing billionaire, then the first step is to learn how to play bridge! (Sadly, the second step is not covered in this class.) Bridge is a fun and brainy card game somewhat like hearts and spades. It's played 2 vs 2, so good communication and teamwork are key to victory. (Another benefit of bridge being played 2 vs 2 is that if you ever lose - hypothetically, of course - you've got someone other than yourself to blame!) This class is for anyone and everyone who wants to learn bridge. No experience necessary! ***SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT*** A WORLD CHAMPION and team of bridge-loving Stanford students will be teaching this year! Come rub shoulders with greatness and hope that greatness rubs off on you!

H3870: Introduction to Bridge (by a World Champion!) in Splash Fall 2014 (Nov. 08 - 09, 2014)

Question: What do Bill Gates and Warren Buffet have in common? Answer: They're both billionaires and they both love the card game bridge. If you too aspire to become a bridge-playing billionaire, then the first step is to learn how to play bridge! (Sadly, the second step is not covered in this class.) Bridge is a fun and brainy card game somewhat like hearts and spades. It's played 2 vs 2, so good communication and teamwork are key to victory. (Another benefit of bridge being played 2 vs 2 is that if you ever lose - hypothetically, of course - you've got someone other than yourself to blame!) This class is for anyone and everyone who wants to learn bridge. No experience necessary! ***SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT*** A FORMER WORLD CHAMPION and team of bridge-loving Stanford students will be teaching this year! Come rub shoulders with greatness and hope that greatness rubs off on you!