A late starting place still leads to qualification – sixth place at the Hessian team championship
The Gräfenhausen skat players have qualified for the German Team Championship in Magdeburg. Initially, it looked as if the competition was over for the team at the regional level. Only the withdrawal of another team brought the Gräfenhausen players back into contention. At the state championship in Wehrheim, they ultimately achieved sixth place, securing the last qualifying spot.
Back in 2025, the skat players had already attempted to qualify for the German Championship. They reached the state level, but out of 30 teams, they didn't manage to get higher than 27th place. This year, their journey seemed to end even sooner: they initially failed to qualify at the regional level.
A few days before the state team championship on September 5th and 6th, 2026 , a spot became available due to the cancellation of another team. This spot was awarded by lottery – and went to the Skat Club Gräfenhausen.
From 20th place to a qualifying position
In Wehrheim, 32 teams from Hesse competed against each other in six series, each consisting of 48 games. Six starting places were available for the German Championship.
Gräfenhausen's competition started off cautiously. After the first round, the team was in 20th place, and after the second, in 18th. A strong third round then brought the team of Sascha Dechert, Jürgen Führer, Martina Schmidt, Martin Steiger, and Andreas Färber up to fifth place.
On the second day of competition, the outcome remained undecided until the very last round. In the end, the Skat players finished in sixth place with 23,452 points. Their lead over the first non-qualifying spot was therefore narrow.
The Reizenden Haaner from Dreieichenhain became state champions with 25,059 points, ahead of 1. SC Dieburg I with 24,911 points and Reizenden Buben Eppertshausen with 24,279 points. Direkt Energie Eschborn I followed with 23,602 points and Ohne Vieren Borsdorf with 23,478 points. Gräfenhausen completed the group of qualified teams in sixth place.
A unique situation arose even before the tournament: When the participation of the Gräfenhausen team was still uncertain, their friendly club, Die reizenden Haaner, had planned to include a player from Gräfenhausen in their team. The team from Dreieichenhain subsequently won the state championship.
Wolfgang Schroth wins the August ranking
The skat players also reported results from their ongoing club activities. Wolfgang Schroth won the August monthly ranking with 6,885 points, followed by Günther Bayer with 6,290 and Peter Neumann with 6,169 points.
At the 36th club evening, Klaus Klingelhöfer prevailed with 2,188 points ahead of Marcus Schmittel with 1,988 and Martin Steiger with 1,982 points.
The club meetings take place every Wednesday at 7 pm in the Gamebox, Schneppenhäuser Straße 5 in Weiterstadt. Guests are welcome to attend.
(GRÄFENHAUSEN – RED/SKV)
Featured image: Qualification for the German Championship: Martin Steiger, Sascha Dechert, Andreas Färber, Martina Schmidt, Jürgen Führer.
