35. YLM: Joel Wooldridge, Sam & Dan Hirschman, and Steve Cochran

The Setting Trick: Conversations with World Class Bridge Players

The third and possibly final episode of the Youngest Life Master series has touched down! In this episode, we caught up with four former youngest Life Masters: Joel Wooldrige, brothers Sam and Dan Hirschman, and Steven Cochran. Joel is now a world-class expert and is one of the world's best players. Sam and Dan continue to celebrate their former record with the annual “The Party”. Steven was an absolutely wild teenager; he once woke up in the ocean while traveling across the country to play bridge, without his parents. At the age of 14. It really amazes me how different are the paths that people take!

Episode Highlights:

2:55- 11 year old Joel Wooldrige

3:55- How Joel learned to play bridge

5:25- How Sam Hirschman’s father played a role in getting his son’s record beaten

8:55- Joel was in the Guinness Book of World Records!

11:15- The real reason why Dan had to take back the YLM record for the Hirschman family

18:15- Sam and Dan Hirschman

20:30- Father Hirschman = Most Valuable Motivator

26:25- Sam was featured in Sports Illustrated magazine!

28:10- Bridge lost Dan to Magic: the Gathering

28:49- Dan was featured on the Leno show, the People Magazine, and NYT

32:19- The last times Sam and Dan can flex their former record

34:05- The annual “Dan Hirschman Youngest Life Master KO Teams” where 25 teams onced showed up to play at the Hirschman house

40:35- How Sam ended up on Sports Illustrated magazine

44:30- The decline of bridge’s cultural relevance

46:50- Meet Steven Cochran

49:25- Steven learned bridge at NASA

52:35- Steven taught his entire college fraternity to play bridge

- 14 year old Steven spent a whole summer traveling US and Canada to play bridge

59:48- Steven excels at declaring

1:01:35- Unfortunately, Steven couldn’t measure up for the attractive girl

1:02:35- Waking up in the ocean

1:07:40- Steven once was a professional soccer player

1:09:09- No fanfare for Steven becoming part of the first two-person ACBL Kings and Queens of Bridge

1:12:50- Played against a typical nobody: Omar Sharif