The contest was renamed the North American Pairs in deference to the participation of all country members of the ACBL.
The trophy is presented in memory of Col. Russell J. Baldwin (1889–1969), a U.S. Army officer and expert on tournament procedure who was ACBL Honorary Member of the Year in 1943.
Known as the Golder North American Pairs - Flight B, the first stage of the event is also conducted at the local club level with qualifiers advancing to unit competition.
The trophy is presented in memory of Benjamin M. Golder (1894–1946) of Philadelphia, who died the day before the close of his term as 1946 ACBL president.
As in the other two flights, Flight C competition begins each summer at the local club level and qualifiers advance to unit and district competitions with three pairs from each district – more, depending upon attendance – qualifying for the North American final.