Glendale Senior Citizens Club Promoting Sheepshead Tournament

GLENDALE (SENIOR CITIZENS CLUB) PROMOTING SHEEPSHEAD

The Glendale Senior Citizens Club and the Nicolet Recreation Department, is sponsoring a Sheepshead Tournament on Saturday, April 2, 2011. It will be held at Nicolet High School – 7601 North Jean Nicolet Road, Glendale, Wisconsin. The tournament will start at 12 Noon, with registration beginning at 10:30 AM.

Wisconsin is the hub of Sheepshead, where immigrants brought the game from Germany in the 1800s. In fact, Sheepshead (Schafskopf – in German) has been declared as “Milwaukee’s Official Card Game” by the City of Milwaukee Common Council – on October 24, 1983.” Mr. Sheepshead” (Robert Strupp) received the award – on behalf of Sheepshead players everywhere. Sheepshead is known to be Wisconsin’s GEMUTLICHKEIT” game, meaning “congeniality, good times, fun, friendship, and laughter.”

This is the largest Sheepshead Tournament in Wisconsin, and actually - in the World. It started in 1994 with 20 participants, coordinated by the Glendale Recreation Department. Last year, there were 190 players. This year, the committee is planning for 275 participants. It has grown every year, both in numbers, and in prizes. Since 1999, the Nicolet Recreation Department has administered the tournament. The Glendale Senior Citizens Club has been involved from the beginning. The Tournament is a wonderful community event, bringing people in from all over the state.

Tournament flyers are available through the Recreation Department at Nicolet High School. The cost of the tournament is $20. Participants will play 3 rounds of 15 hands, with the person with the highest score receiving a plaque and a cash prize. There will be 15 prizes. Food will be available, starting at 10:15 AM.

The Tournament Coordinator, Dennis Staral, learned to play Sheepshead when he was 5 years old. He used to watch his mother play cards when she and Dennis’ father visited with the relatives on the family farm near Kewaunee, WI. This is the game that was played regularly when relatives met. There was some visiting going on, but mostly the game of Sheepshead was played. Along with the clinking of beer bottles, you could hear words, such as: “schmeer, mauerer, kibitzing, loner, table talk”, etc.

For more information on the tournament (April 2, 2011), contact the Nicolet Recreation Department @ 351-7566.