Pages 19-30 (1.2mb) - Mr Bridge

Jeremy Dhondy SaysDon’t Fight Partnerin the AuctionIt is your turn to bid and it seems that,no matter how many times you bidyour hand, partner does not get themessage! The problem is that he isthinking the same thing. Suppose theauction goes like this:West1♠2♠3♠East2♦3♦4♦If you are North-South, do you smileinwardly? Do you wonder whether East-West will stop before the seven level?Do you think they are having a sensibleauction? Before you laugh too much,consider whether this could actually beyour auction, when you and yourpartner do not have a fit.This auction is the classic fight with aone suiter. You are East and hold:NW ES♠ Void♥ 7 5 2♦ K Q J 10 9 8 7♣ K 9 3Partner opens 1♠ and you respond 2♦.After partner rebids 2♠, what do youdo? At this point, partner could have afive-card suit, maybe not a great one atthat. It is clear to bid 3♦. This is notforcing but partner can go on with avery suitable hand. He might hold, forexample, a hand with ♦A-x and othertop cards. Now a pot at 3NT might beright. All too often, partner bids 3NTwhen holding a hand like:♠ K J 10 9 4 3♥ Q 9 3♦ Void♣ A Q 7 2NW ESIf partner has this hand, it is 100% clearto pass after you have bid 3♦. To bid3NT shows a distrust of your biddingand a desire to go for a penalty. Notethat, on that pair of hands, 3♦ will makeand 3NT will certainly go down andmay go several down. At least nobodyhas doubled – yet.If you keep bidding your suit and itbreaks badly, then eventually you willfind that the doubling starts.♠ 8 3♥ 6 2♦ A Q 10 9 6 5 3♣ K 8♠ 7 5 ♠ K Q 9 2♥ K Q 10 4 N ♥ 8 7♦ 7W ES ♦ K J 8 4 2♣ A J 10 6 3 2 ♣ 9 5♠ A J 10 6 4♥ A J 9 5 3♦ Void♣ Q 7 4West North East South1♠2♣ 2♦ Pass 2♥Pass 3♦ Pass 3♥Pass 4♦ Dbl 4♥Dbl 4♠ Dbl EndNorth has been guilty of bidding hisdiamonds too many times. He shouldhave bid 3♠ over 3♥ – he had alreadydenied having three spades by bidding3♦. Likewise, South is just insulting hispartner with his 4♥ bid. He has only twofive-card suits yet he insists in playingin one of them, despite the messagefrom North that there is no fit. At theend of the carnage, South is likely to goat least three down.What should you not do when partnerpre-empts? It is frequently a mistake tofight. Partner opens 3♠ and you hold:♠ Void♥ A Q 6 5♦ K J 10 9 4 3♣ A J 7Are you tempted to bid? If so. what? Apoor player will bid 3NT. If you findpartner with the ♦A, the ♦Q is onsideand the lead is kind, you might make it,but the odds are much against this. Ifyou pass 3♠ and let partner play, it maywell go down but you will have escapedbefore the doubling starts.The worst form of fighting comesfrom the player who wants to announcehis hand twice. We have all come acrossthis type. You hold these West cards:♠ 5♥ 3 2♦ K J 10 9 5♣ A J 7 6 5NW ESNW ESWest North East South1♥2NT Pass 4♠ Pass?You have bid 2NT to show the minorsand heard partner jump to 4♠. If you bidagain, you may have to find a newpartner! You have shown 5-5 in theminors, which is just what you have.Partner knows this, yet has bid 4♠. Hewill have at least seven of them and itwill be a good suit. Not only do youhave one, but you have an ace as well.It is rarely right to keep bidding with amisfit. A good rule is to be a touchconservative when you diagnose a misfitand, if you overrule your partner, itshould be only with a good suit. Ifpartner knows your distribution andcontinues to bid, respect his decision. ■Page 19

Ask Julian PottageHow ShouldOne Calculatethe Odds?QWith reference toyour recent articleon odds, pleasecan you explain why a 1-1break is more likely than a2-0 break? Assuming thetwo cards missing are theking and the two of spades,there are four possibleholding for one defender:(i) K-2, (ii) K, (iii) 2, and(iv) a void.In half the split is 1-1; inhalf the split is 2-0.John Hinde, Esher, Surrey.AIn isolation, a 1-1and a 2-0 splitwould appear to beequally likely. However,bridge players have a finitenumber of cards, thirteen.The more cards they have inone suit, the fewer they canhave in the other suits. Tocalculate the odds of varioussplits, one needs to takeaccount of this. A playerwith one spade has twelvenon-spades. A player withtwo spades has eleven nonspades.Suppose the ace of spadesis in dummy. You lead aspade from hand and Westfollows with the two. Younow know the exact locationof all the spades bar theking, excluding cases (ii) and(iv) above.You also know one ofWest’s cards but none ofEast’s. This means West hastwelve other cards and Easthas thirteen. This meansEast should be a 13:12favourite to hold the king ofspades. This is indeed thecase as this is the same52%:48% ratio that a 1-1split is the favouritecompared to the 2-0.Mathematics confirms theabove logic. If East-Westhave two spades, they have24 non-spades. There are2,704,156 ( 24 C12) ways Westcan have 12 non-spades and2,496,144 ( 24 C11) ways Westcan have 11 non-spades.These figures are again inthe ratio 13:12.♣♦♥♠QWhat should Irebid on thishand?1♠?♠ A K Q J 6 5♥ 8 6 3♦ Void♣ A Q 5 22NT (limit)If I bid 4♠, we miss apossible slam; if I bid 3♠,partner may pass, which isworse.John Eagle, Chelsea.AI agree that a slammight make.Although partner islikely to have some diamondwastage, this hand ispossible:♠ 7 4♥ A 7 4♦ K 10 6 4♣ K 10 6 4A 3♣ rebid from you isforcing – it is a new suit atthe three level in aconstructive auction. Ifpartner does not have a clubfit, a slam is less likely, sobidding 3♣ is a good ideaanyway.Why might a club fit becrucial? For one thing, afourth club in partner’s handis likely to mean your fourthclub will be a winner ratherthan a loser. For another, adiamond ruff in your hand(with clubs as trumps) couldbe the twelfth trick.♣♦♥♠QMy local club nowuses a Duplimatemachine. Somepeople say they find thehands challenging andhave commented that oneis constantly trying tooutguess the machine.I understand the handsare random but notice few‘average’ hands and manyskewed deals.Barbara Hill by email.AIf the members findthe deals achallenge, this goesto prove that they did notshuffle properly previously.Once players get used tonormal deals – the ones thata computer produces – ratherthan the abnormally flat onesthey had before – I suspectyou will find any adversecomments will disappear.Many people underestimatehow shapely normal dealsare. Suppose your side hastwo 8-card fits – hardly anunusual occurrence. Thechance in either suit of a 3-2split is 68%. The chanceboth suits split 3-2 is thus68% of 68%, which comesto 46%. In other words, 54%of the time – a majority ofthe time – one or other ofthose 8-card fits will notsplit 3-2.Let us look at anothercommon situation. Thechance an individual playerpicks up a hand without asingleton or void is about64%. However, on any deal,there are four players, any ofwhom might hold a shortsuit. If you multiply 64% byitself for four players, youget about 17%. While thisslightly underestimates thefrequency of deals with nosingleton or void, you get thepicture. Deals on whichnobody holds a singleton orvoid are very much aminority.Page 20

Ask Julian continuedQI picked up thefollowing:♠ 10 5♥ A 7♦ A K Q J 10 8 4 3♣ 4Do I open 2♣ or 4♦ as eventhough there are only 14HCP, there are at least 8playing tricks? We play‘weak twos’ in three suits,so 2♦ is not an option.Steve House,Newport Pagnell, Bucks.AI am afraid I do notlike either of thechoices you haveoffered. To open 4♦ with somany high cards would bemisleading and take you past3NT; you also have toomuch playing strength toopen 4♦ – partner expectsyou to be two or three tricksshort of your bid, not to havenine tricks in your hand. 4♦is not close to being the bestopening on the hand. If youare going to pre-empt, 5♦ isbetter than 4♦. Even an offcentregambling 3NT, withthe unexpected ♥A on theside, seems better than 4♦.If you do not have a wayof showing a strong two, it isusual to shade therequirements for an Acol 2♣slightly. I stress the wordslightly. You might open 2♣with four-and-a-half quicktricks rather than thecustomary five. If you havegame in your own hand (thatwould mean eleven playingtricks when your long suit isa minor), you might evenshade it to four quick tricks.Here, you have only threedefensive tricks and youcertainly do not have gamein your own hand, so you arewell short of an Acol 2♣.Given the constraints ofyour system, 1♦ is the bestchoice.♣♦♥♠QIf partner opens1NT and I have 12points with 6clubs, how do I respond?Mrs Williams,Sevenoaks, Kent.AThere are manyhands with 6 clubsand 12 points. Ifyour hand is relatively flat,say a 6322 type, then youwould ignore the clubs andsimply raise 1NT to 3NT.The sixth club is worth atleast one point, if not two,which is why you would gostraight to 3NT. It is unlikelythat a suit contract (5♣) isbetter than 3NT – you wouldhave to make several moretricks playing in the suit forit to be better. If instead youhave 6 clubs and a 4-cardmajor, a raise to 3NT wouldbe wrong; in this case, a suitcontract might well playbetter than 3NT; you wouldgenerally start with Stayman.♣♦♥♠QIf my partneropens one of a suitand then makes asimple rebid of that suit,should I assume that thesuit contains 6 cards?What should my partnerrebid, if the suit containedonly 5 cards, with a (12-14point) balanced hand? Onesurely does not have toopen 1NT when holding agood 5-card major.Michael Wilson,Radnage, Bucks.AWhether a rebid ofopener’ suitsuggests a six-cardsuit very much depends onthe actual suits bid.Suppose the bidding starts1♠-2♥-2♠. In this case,opener might have a 4-cardor even 5-card holding in oneof the minors but be unableto show it with a minimumhand. The response in thesuit that ranks just below thesuit opened reduces opener’soptions. Opener will oftenbid this way with only fivespades.There are only six simpleauctions on which you canbe more or less certain thatopener has six cards in thesuit opened. Two of these are1♣-1♦-2♣ and 1♦-1♥-2♦. Inthese cases, opener had aneasy chance to show asecond suit and undoubtedlywould have either opened orrebid 1NT with a 5332 type.The other four auctions are1x-1NT-2x: having openedwith a 5332 shape, openerwould happily pass 1NT.As you point out, openermight prefer to open a strong5-card major in preference to1NT. In this case, after a suitresponse, the inference isless strong than when theopening is a minor. After1♠-2♣-2♠, opener is likelyto have six spades but it isnot a certainty.In summary, the moreeconomical the response, thelikelier it is that a rebid ofthe suit opened shows six,especially when the openingis in a minor.♣♦♥♠QOne side bids1♦-1♥-2♦-2♥-End.Does 2♥ showabject weakness? Theprinciple that one shouldstop bidding on a misfitrather than fight partnersuggests it should not.J V Hartley by email.AIn normal Acol, the2♥ rebid is mildlyencouraging. Onceopener has rebid 2♦,promising six diamonds onthis particular sequence,responder should pass 2♦with a bare minimumresponse. I accept thatsometimes at duplicate pairsyou might wish to correct 2♦to 2♥ in the hope of getting110 rather than 90. It is fineif you want to play 2♥ as asign off – so long as youagree this with your partner.♣♦♥♠QOn the handbelow, East-Westmissed 6♠ (1♣-1♥-1♠-2♦-3♣-4♠). How shouldthey get there and howshould East show the heartcontrol?West East♠ A Q 8 6 ♠ K J 4 3♥ K Q J 2 ♥ Void♦ K J 10 3 ♦ Q 4 2♣ 7 ♣ A K Q 9 6 5Peter Marrison by email.AUp to the pointWest bid 4♠, thebidding wasreasonable. West correctlyjudged that the hand was toogood simply to raise 1♠ to4♠. However, having set upa forcing auction by goingthrough the fourth suit, Westundid the good work byjumping to 4♠. West shouldfollow up with 3♠, forcing,agreeing spades andallowing a cue biddingsequence to start. I am notsure that East does show theheart control. One does notusually cue bid a shortage inpartner’s suit. Perhaps Eastbids 4♣ over 3♠ and, uponhearing a return cue bid of4♦, jumps to 5♠ to ask Westfor good trumps.Since 6♦ might be onwhen East has diamonds butis too weak to reverse, Westmight have responded 1♦rather than 1♥. This is not tosay 1♥ is without merit,especially at pairs, whenmaking an extra trick if youfinish in 3NT (if you get alead into one of your tenaces)could be important.Page 22

Ask Julian continuedQAs East-West, wereached 5♣,making anovertrick. How should webid a slam?♠ 9 8 6 5 3♥ 10 8 3♦ 10 8 7 2♣ 7♠ K ♠ 7 2♥ K J 9 7 N ♥ A 2♦ A J 5W ES♦ K Q 9 6 4♣ A K 10 6 3 ♣ Q J 4 2♠ A Q J 10 4♥ Q 6 5 4♦ 3♣ 9 8 5Dr Tim Honey, London W13.AHere is onepossibility:West North East South1♦ 1♠2♣ 1 3♠ 2 4♣ 3 Pass4NT 4 Pass 5♦ Pass6♣ End1Being strong enough for aresponder’s reverse, this isbetter than a negative double.2Some might bid all the way to4♠. Any jump raise is pre-emptive.3The usual rule is to stretch onelevel in the face of competitivebidding if you have a bid thatdescribes your hand well.4Unlikely that two aces aremissing but West checks anyway.If North bids 4♠ rather than3♠, East would not raiseclubs straight away. Westwould reopen with a doubleand East would then bid 5♣.After that, it would be moreof a gamble for West to bidthe slam – it might welldepend upon a finesse.QI do notunderstand acouple of points in‘Preference is Different toSupport’ in BRIDGE 99;they concern the West-Eastsequence 1♣-1♠-2♣-2♥-2♠.You say that East’s 2♥ isforcing for one round; Ithought one reason forWest not to reverse intohearts unless she has astrong hand is that she canrely on her partner to bidout a 5-4 spade-heart shapeeven with a minimumresponding hand.Secondly, can West reallyhold only two spades onthis sequence? How aboutthe hand:♠ A 5 4♥ 6♦ A 6♣ Q J 10 9 7 5 3This seems perfect for thissequence.Dick Heasman, Fareham.ABidding is not anexact science. Youcannot guarantee tofind a 4-4 fit every time youhave one. Most people open1NT holding a 4-card majorknowing that sometimesresponder will be too weakto use Stayman. It is similarhere. Following my advice,you will never miss game inhearts – either opener will bestrong enough to reverse orresponder will be goodenough to show both suits.Your example hand is notconsistent with the sequence.Holding three spades and asingleton, opener would givejump preference to 3♠. Since2♥ is forcing for one roundonly, opener needs to dosomething extra to indicatesuch great suitability for aspade contract. ■E-mail your questions for Julian to:julianpottage@mrbridge.co.ukRUBBER / CHICAGOHosted by Diana Holland16-18 November 2010 (Tue-Thu)The Beach Hotel, Worthing BN11 3QJ11-13 March 2011 (Fri-Sun)Ardington Hotel, Worthing BN11 3DZPlease note there are no seminars or set hands at these events£199 – Full-board – No Single Supplement_ _ _ _ _ _ _ BOOKING FORM_ _ _ _ _ _ _Please book me for .... places, Single .... Double .... Twin ....for the Rubber/Chicago event(s) of ..................................at ........................................................................................Mr/Mrs/Miss .....................................................................Address...........................................................................................................................................................................Postcode ............................................................................( ......................................................................................Special requirements (these cannot be guaranteed)...........................................................................................Please send a non-returnable deposit of £50 per person per place bycheque, payable to Mr Bridge. An invoice for the balance will besent with your booking confirmation. On receipt of your finalpayment, 28 days before the event, a programme and full detailswill be sent together with a map. Cancellations are not refundable.Should you require insurance, you should contact your owninsurance broker. (Sea view £30 supplement, Beach Hotel only.), Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH( 01483 489961 Fax 01483 797302e-mail: jessica@mrbridge.co.ukwebsite: www.holidaybridge.comPage 23

ARDINGTON HOTELWorthing BN11 3DZNEWVENUEDECLARERPLAYQUIZby David Huggett(Answers on page 44)You are South as declarer playing teams or rubber bridge.In each case, what is your play strategy?2011 Weekends14 - 16 January £215Signals & DiscardsNed Paul21-23 January £215Suit EstablishmentAlex Davoud25-27 February £215DoublesNed Paul11-13 March £199Rubber & Chicago(no seminars or set hands)Diana Holland25-27 March £215Pre-emptive BiddingCrombie McNeilFull-board – No Single SupplementSee pages 38 &39 for programme and booking form., Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH( 01483 489961 Fax 01483 797302e-mail: jessica@mrbridge.co.ukwebsite: www.holidaybridge.com1. ♠ Q 10 7 5 3♥ A 10 9 3♦ A 6 3♣ 5NW ES♠ A 9 8 6 4♥ 7♦ K Q J 4♣ A 6 3You are declarer in 6♠ andWest leads the ♣K. Howdo you plan the play?2. ♠ 8 6♥ A 7 5♦ 8 7 6 4♣ A Q J 6NW ES♠ A Q 5♥ K 9 2♦ K Q J♣ 10 9 8 2You are declarer in 3NTand West leads the ♠4.East plays the ♠J. How doyou plan the play?3. ♠ A Q 7 3♥ Q 9 5♦ 6 5 3♣ Q 10 7NW ES♠ J 10 9 8 2♥ A K♦ A 7 4♣ K J 2You are declarer in 4♠ andWest leads the ♦Q. Howdo you plan the play?4. ♠ 9 7 5♥ K 10♦ K 9 7♣ A Q J 6 4NW ES♠ K Q 3♥ A 9 5 2♦ A 10 3♣ 5 3 2You are declarer in 3NT.West leads the ♠6, Eastplaying the ♠J. How doyou plan the play?Page 26

David Gold SaysBid Weak OverStrong andStrong Over WeakNobody is vulnerable and RHOdeals and opens 3♥. What doyou do with this?♠ K Q J 7 6 5 4♥ 3♦ 7 6 5♣ 9 8You have a hand on which you wouldhappily open 3♠ non-vulnerable but youshould not overcall 3♠ because theyopened with a weak bid. Say you bid 3♠and LHO raises to 4♥, which partnerdoubles (cards, not strict penalties) –what now?Have a look at the full deal:♠ 2♥ A 8 4♦ Q J 10 8 3♣ K 7 6 5♠ A 10 8 3 ♠ 9N♥ J 2 ♥ K Q 10 9 7 6 5W E♦ A K 9 S ♦ 4 2♣ A Q J 10 ♣ 4 3 2♠ K Q J 7 6 5 4♥ 3♦ 7 6 5♣ 9 8If you bid 4♠ at this point, you will bedoubled and lose six tricks (twodiamonds and a ruff, two spades and oneclub) costing 500.If you pass, you will concede 4♥+1for minus 690. Yet partner surely wasentitled to double because youovercalled at the three level and he had10 points with a singleton in your suit.The point is that, when the opponentsmake a weak bid, then your side shouldbid constructively hoping to reach game(or sometimes a slam).Do not make the mistake of biddingon a weak hand over their weak bid. (Iremember learning: ‘don’t pre-emptover a pre-empt’!)Another example:♠ 2♥ A Q 10 7 6 5♦ J 7 4 2♣ 7 4RHO opens 2♠ (weak) at game all. Donot make the mistake of overcalling 3♥.If you do, this could be the layout.♠ A J 3♥ 8 2♦ A 8 5 3♣ K 10 9 2♠ 8 6 4 ♠ K Q 10 9 7 5♥ K J 9 4 N ♥ 3♦ Q 6W ES ♦ K 10 9♣ A Q J 3 ♣ 8 6 5♠ 2♥ A Q 10 7 6 5♦ J 7 4 2♣ 7 4Partner will try 3NT and with someconfidence! West will double and youwill go for 500 on a soft defence andpossibly 800 or 1100, yet partner couldhardly pass 3♥. Remember it isimportant when bidding over a weak bidthat partner can trust that you will not beweak too.The opposite is true when biddingover a strong bid. You do not want to bidon a good hand and tell them where thecards are or concede a penalty when youhad enough to beat them. Now your aimis not to get to game but to obstruct theopponents’ bidding or, occasionally, tofind a good sacrifice.For example:♠ 9 8 2♥ K J 10 7 6 5 4♦ 9♣ 3 2RHO opens 2♣ (game force or 23-24balanced). Your side is at favourablevulnerability. Do not be afraid to get intheir way. Try overcalling 3♥ (‘weakover strong’).Maybe the full deal is something like:♠ Q J 10 7 6 5♥ Q 3♦ 10 8 3♣ J 5♠ 4 ♠ A K 3♥ 8 2 N ♥ A 9♦ A 7 6 5 4W ES♦ K Q J 2♣ Q 10 7 6 4 ♣ A K 9 8♠ 9 8 2♥ K J 10 7 6 5 4♦ 9♣ 3 2Opponents are cold for 7♣ or 7♦ or 7NT.Good luck to them in finding it; theywill struggle even to reach thesmall slam after your 3♥ bid. If youpass, West can respond 2♦ and overEast’s 2NT rebid can bid 3♠ showing aslam try with both minors (a 3♥ transferwould show spades); now they are wellon their way.SummaryThe point is to bid destructively whenthey make a strong bid and to bidconstructively when they make a weakbid. In other words: Bid Weak OverStrong and Strong Over Weak! ■Page 27

An InterestingSpringby Ned PaulBridge is a social game. Biddingand playing your cards to thebest of your ability is important,but just as important is to enjoy thecompany of the other players. Throw ina comfortable placeto play and some -thing nice to eat anddrink and you have,at least for me, theperfect formula. ThisSpring, I had thechance to indulgemyself by organisingseveral inno vativeevents in which thesocial side of thegame came to thefore. These includeda charity club nightand, not one, but two‘Café Bridge Drives’.Charity NightAt The Ruff ClubIf you are a club secretary, you willreceive a fair number of letters duringthe year from different charities askingyou to support their cause. Usuallythere isn’t any organised bridge to backit up; the letter simply suggests youhold a bridge evening and send them adonation. This type of letter is, to put it,well, charitably, pretty open-ended; andin consequence it is very easy to putsuch letters in the bin. This time I didn’t.This particular letter was from theNational Osteoporosis Society (NOS)and urged us to play ‘Bridge for Bones’.The day it arrived was St Patrick’s Dayand pubs everywhere were inviting us tocome out and celebrate our Irish side.Well, as an Englishman, I don’t have anIrish side. Instead, I thought, why not dosomething for St George’s Day? April23rd this year fell on a Friday, whichjust so happens to be duplicate night atthe Ruff Club. Why not, I thought,celebrate St George’s Day with acharity bridge night? I would have aparty and at the same time ask people toget themselves sponsored to playbridge.I let NOS know what I intended doingand they kindly supplied a sponsorform. Getting sponsorship for bridge isapparently something not widely done.But if your kids can ask you for somuch-a-lapfor walking round the parkand your colleagues can sign you on forso-much-a-mile for running marathons,why can’t you get your own back at somuch-a-boardfor bridge?A bridge club party is easy to set up.The club provides a couple of boxes ofwine and the paper plates and theplayers bring a contribution to the table.This is how we run our Christmasparties. And it worked just as well for StGeorge’s Day. Sue brought some StGeorge’s Day bunting; Edd helped hangit up and we soon had the hall in goodshape. People brought lots of goodiesand the buffet tablewas soon groaning.Attendance wasgreat – 50% up onour normal clubevenings – and allthe players reallyentered into the spiritof the occasion withsignificant sums ofmoney being raised.Sheila alone raised£155 of sponsorshipand some of thosewho came brought adonation with them.Some players whocouldn’t come sent adonation anyway. Asfor the bridge, weplayed the normal 24boards. Surprisingly, only one pair bid aslam on this deal (rotated forconvenience):Dealer East. Game All.♠ A 3♥ 9♦ K 9 7 6 4 2♣ 9 7 6 4♠ Q J 9 2 ♠ 10 8 7 6 5 4♥ 8 5 3 2 N ♥ K 10 7♦ Q 10 5W ES ♦ J 3♣ J 2 ♣ K 10♠ K♥ A Q J 6 4♦ A 8♣ A Q 8 5 3Page 28

West North East SouthPass 1♥Pass 2♦ Pass 3♣Pass 4♣ Pass 6♣Well, that’s how the bidding eventuallywent. Edd, North was playing only hissecond ever bridge tournament, havinglearnt bridge the previous month, andinitially passed his partner’s 3♣ bid.Life masters Anne and Colin, sittingEast and West, both sat up and inunison said, ‘You can’t do that,it’s forcing!’, so Edd found a a 4♣raise and Ros, South, bid a slamwithout giving partner anotherchance to pass. Colin led a spadeand, with the help of thefavourable trump position and thediamonds ruffing out, Ros soonwrapped up 13 tricks. ‘Welldone’, said both Anne and Colin.Well, we’re that kind of club,where encouragement of newplayers is just as pleasurable aswinning. I think the slam is a goodslam and should have been bid atmore tables, even after a 1♥-1NTstart. The bidding might continue3♣-4♣-4♦-4♠-6♣.During the evening Jo Ellams ofNOS popped in to say ‘hello’ andwhen all the donations andsponsorship were added up, wehad painlessly raised the magnificenttotal of £868.20.Café BridgeAn Interesting SpringcontinuedSt George’s Day at the Ruff Club wasactually the second charity event of theweek for me. Earlier in the week, I hadhelped run a ‘Café Bridge Drive’ inWandsworth. Café Bridge is an ideafrom Holland and Belgium, countrieswhere the café culture is more stronglyestablished than in Britain. A few yearsago, I had taken part in a café drive inCardiff, organised in part by bridgejournalist Patrick Jourdain. This stirredmy own interest in putting on such anevent.That interest lay dormant until Rexjoined the Ruff Club. Rex joined us onmoving back to London, after retiring asa logistics specialist for NATO inHolland. He had played in several cafédrives and asked me if I had any interestin putting one on. We agreed to try to doso and fixed a date in May this year. Itold the EBU London committee(‘LMBA’) of our plans and this broughtanother offer. Actor James Smith(Glenn Cullen in ‘The Thick of It’) livesin Old Wandsworth, which, like manylocalities in London, has a village-y feelto it. He immediately said we shouldcome and run a drive in Wandsworth inan area known to the locals as ‘TheTonsleys’. James also involved the localcharity, Wandsworth Age Concern. Isigned on as honorary co-organiser andChris Duckworth, long-time mainstayof LMBA, took care of all the eventliterature. For the day, the Monday Clubin Tooting lent us tablecloths and theRuff Club lent bidding boxes.Café Bridge works like this. Theboards are distributed across a numberof different cafés, restaurants or pubs,and the players visit each establishmentin turn. Unlike a normal duplicate, it’sthe boards that stay put. North-Southmove in one direction; East-West in theother. James found us six venues,starting with the Alma pub opposite thestation. In five of these, we had twotables and in the sixth, only one. Wearranged an out and back circuit andthat gave us an 11-table duplicate.Players arrived at the Alma to begiven their starting positions andmovement cards and then walked up theroad to where their starting table waslocated. After four 3-board rounds itwas lunchtime. The entry fee includedlunch at whichever place you were in atthe time. I joined the players for lunchat Brady’s, a fish restaurant where Lukethe owner made a particular effort towelcome us. His fish and chips weredelicious. Four more rounds and it wastime for everyone to make their wayback to the Alma for results and prizes.Rex and Mike had won. Norma Spencefrom Age Concern came along topresent the prizes and draw the raffleand we were able to present her with£320 raised for charity. It made a smallprofit for LMBA as well.Canary WharfBuoyed by the success at theTonsleys, Rex and I pushed aheadwith our own event in the CanaryWharf district of London’s Dock -lands. We chose this area, not onlybecause of the modern develop -ments around the docks andriverfront, but also because wethought it would be quieter at theweekend. In fact, all the bars andcafés get very busy on a Sunday.This time, we had fewer venuesand the players played seven4-board rounds distributed acrossfour different establishments.Two, Café Rouge and HenryAddington, were in the heart ofthe business district overlookingWest India Dock and two, CaféBrera and Zizzi, overlooked theRiver Thames.Cloths came from PutneyBridge Club and bidding boxes from theRuff Club and also my Thursdayimprovers’ group. We had 16 tables inplay. Everyone got a goody bag: MrBridge donated a key ring for eachplayer and Young Chelsea BC gaveeveryone a pen. The winners, Mike andLyn, got a nice £100 prize.It was hard work for three of us – mypartner, Hazelle, joined Rex and me inthe organising team – and there were afew glitches, but on the whole, it wentwell. The players were a more socialcross-section than is usual at EBU-styleweekend events and we were pleased tobe bringing bridge to what has reallyturned out to be a new market sector.Post event feedback has encouraged usto continue and we will be putting onanother Café Bridge Drive soon.If any reader feels something similarcould happen in their own town, do feelfree to contact me for any advice youmight need.■Page 29

BERNARDMAGEE’SINTERACTIVETUTORIALSACOLBIDDINGl Opening Bids andResponsesl Slams and StrongOpeningsl Support for Partnerl Pre-emptingl Overcallsl No-trumpOpeningsand Responsesl Opener’s andResponder’s Rebidsl Minors and Misfitsl Doublesl CompetitiveAuctions£64MORE(ADVANCED)ACOL BIDDINGl Basicsl AdvancedBasicsl Weak Twosl Strong Handsl Defenceto Weak Twosl Defenceto 1NTl Doubles£94l Two-suited Overcallsl Defences toOther Systemsl Misfits andDistributional HandsDECLARER PLAYl Suit Establishmentin No-trumpsl Suit Establishmentin Suitsl Hold-upsl Ruffing for ExtraTricksl Entriesin Notrumps£74l DelayingDrawing Trumpsl Using the Leadl Trump Controll Endplays &Avoidancel Using the BiddingADVANCEDDECLARER PLAYl Making Overtricksin No-trumpsl Making Overtricksin Suit Contractsl Endplaysl Avoidancel WrongContractl Simple Squeezesl Counting the Handl Trump Reductions& Coupsl Playing DoubledContractsl Safety Plays£79DEFENCEl Lead vs No-trump Contractsl Lead vs Suit Contractsl Partner of Leader vs No-trump Contractsl Partner of Leader vs Suit Contractsl Count Signalsl Attitude Signalsl Discardingl Defensive Planl Stopping Declarerl Counting the Hand£74Sharpen your defence in the course of 20 introductory exercises and 120 complete dealsMake your cheque payable to and send to: Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH( 01483 489961 www.mrbridge.co.uk/mrbridge-shop Fax 01483 797302System Requirements: Windows XP, Vista or 7, 8mb RAM, CD-ROM

Catching Upby Sally BrockIguess the most excitingbridge event since I lastwrote was the Lady Milnein Manchester. If youremember, a little while ago,I played in the England trialswith Susanna Gross and wefinished fourth, qualifying usto be part of the England Bteam for the Lady Milne(women’s home inter -national). Well, this tookplace in the middle of April.It was the weekend after theeruption of the Icelandicvolcano and the Irish teamswere not able to travel toManchester in time for theproposed Friday night start,so the organisers shortenedthe event a little to start on theSaturday instead.The bridge on Saturdaywas unexciting, but wemoved up a gear on theSunday. Susanna played likean Italian Blue Team memberand consequently, we playedthroughout, eventually win -ning the event in somecomfort. Have to confess tofeeling quite pleased withourselves!Early in May, I went toCambridge to play in thePresident’s Teams. I had beengoing to play with Margaretbut she severely dislocatedher ankle after my bridgeparty and had her leg inplaster making traveldifficult. Instead, I playedwith Nicola, with Jon Cookeand Cameron Small asteammates. It took only oneboard to tell me that it wasnot my day!You hold, as East:♠ 10 8 7♥ A Q 9 5♦ 7 5♣ J 10 8 7You hear the bidding go:West North East South1♥ Pass 2♦Pass 2NT Pass 3♣Pass 4♣ Pass 4NTPass 5♣ Pass 6♣Pass Pass ?Well, I fell for it. I thoughtpartner would surely lead aspade that could easily let theslam through.I knew South might retreatto 6♦ but reckoned we couldbeat that too. So I doubled.South bid 6♦ and I doubledthat as well.After a lot of thought,partner led a heart. Declarer(who, to be fair, had arrivedlate and out of breath andbeen confronted with this ashis first board) played thejack from dummy and I wonwith my ace. What should Ireturn?Can you see what a badmistake declarer made byplaying dummy’s jack ofhearts? He now lacks theentries to set up his hearts,provided I take one of themout now, before he hasunblocked his king. All Ineeded to do was switch to aspade and the slam still goesdown. –1540 was not a goodstart.This was the full deal:Dealer North. Game All.North♠ A J 4♥ J 10 7 6 4♦ A♣ K Q 9 6WestEast♠ K Q 9 6 3 2 ♠ 10 8 7♥ 8 3 ♥ A Q 9 5♦ 10 9 8 6 ♦ 7 5♣ 4 ♣ J 10 8 7South♠ 5♥ K 2♦ K Q J 4 3 2♣ A 5 3 2I have to say it takes my badexperiences with Lightnertypedoubles from about 284to 285, with no goodexperience I can everremember to counterbalance!Afterwards, we all enjoyeda splendid formal dinner atJesus College and I wasfortunate enough to stay withJon Cooke and meet hisfamily.The following week, Iwent to Bonn to play in abridge event with Nicola,Heather and Nevena.There is an annual openevent there called theNations Cup to which theEBU had their usualinvitation.Because most of the openplayers were involved inCrockfords final at theweekend, the EBU decidedto give the invitation to usinstead; we were all lookingforward to what wouldperhaps be the higheststandard open event we hadever played in.However, when the timecame, because it was the25th anniversary of theevent, the organisers haddecided to have a parallelwomen’s event and we had toplay in that event instead. Itis quite easy to see why theywould want to do that, and,indeed, it was probablybetter practice for us to playagainst some of our mainrivals for the EuropeanChampionship, but it wasstill a trifle disappointing.Well, that is my excuse forwhy we all played so badly!Still, we had a good time andthe practice will stand us ingood stead in Ostend. ■Contact Sally atsally@sallybrock.comPage 31

MondayThe children both have exams.Toby is now on study leavewith GCSEs dotted throughhis calendar until mid-June.Briony mostly has internalend-of-year exams with theodd GCSE paper in amongst.This morning, she has French,one of her favourites.I travel in to London tohave lunch with my friendDebbie who wines and dinesme royally at her flat inTufnell Park. Later, I get thetube to TGR’s for somerubber bridge. I am having aterrible run at the momentand today is no exception. Idon’t think I did a lot wrongso I shall just blame the cardslike everyone else.Later, I have dinner with afriend but manage to miss thelast train home …TuesdaySeven Days… That means I had to get upat 5.30 in order to get home intime to take Briony to school.What a start to the day!Work is quiet just now. Theonly book on the go this weekis Bosnia, but it is beingproject-managed by a neweditor so there are a fewteething problems and thingsdon’t arrive when they should.In the evening, I playbridge with Barry Myers. Weare doing OK until the lastround when we score almostno matchpoints at all. Still, itis fun and good practice forthe weekend (see later).Wednesdayby Sally BrockOnline bridge session withRichard, who lives inLondon, and Gerry, who livesin Toronto (though he wasover here a few weeks agoand became stranded by thevolcanic ash). Once a week, Iplay online against them,giving them practice andgeneral advice. It’s amazinghow well I can play when Ican see all four hands!ThursdayAnother online session today,this time one-to-one. How -ever, my student needs to startlate and I need to leave early(something to do with ferryingkids about for both of us), so itis hardly worth doing.Anyway, we do it for a littlewhile for fun and she bookstwo sessions for next weekwhen life should be easier.FridayI have been looking forwardto today all week. First, I goin to London to meet someold school friends for lunch.Three of us meet regularlybut this time, a fourth hasmanaged to meet with us too.It’s always amazing to methat it’s immediately how itwas when were at school.Everyone seems happy andwilling to discuss the mostpersonal topics with nodifficulty at all.Later, I play with Margaretat the Young Chelsea. She’snot been playing a lotrecently because of her leg(see Catch-up) so it wasreally good to see her andhave a game. We play welltoo, just dropping down intosecond place on the lastboard (still don’t quiteunderstand that because itseems to be the flattest 3NTyou could imagine!).Afterwards, I go back toMargaret’s for dinner, andstay over because of needingto be in London tomorrow …SaturdayThis is the Garden Citiesregional final, which is acompetition for the winners ofeach county’s team-of-eightchampionship. No doubt, youremember references to teamof-eightmatches for NewAmersham in the Berks &Bucks League. Well, we wonthe league, this year withoutlosing a match, and soqualified for the Garden Cities.It is played at RichmondBridge Club this year – whichis an excellent venue. Theweather is glorious and, inperhaps typical English style,there is a bowling matchgoing on outside. 24 boardsbefore tea and then another 24afterwards. Barry and I maynot have played particularlywell in the matches thatresulted in our league win butwe make up for it today. NewAmersham win the event withmore than a match to spare.This is an interestingdefensive hand from thesecond session:Dealer East. E/W Game.♠ A 10♥ 4♦ J 7 3 2♣ A 8 6 4 3 2♠ 9 5 2 N ♠ K J 7 4W ES♥ J 7 6 ♥ Q 9 8 3 2♦ A 10 8 5 ♦ 9 6♣ K Q 5 ♣ J 7♠ Q 8 6 3♥ A K 10 5♦ K Q 4♣ 10 9We bid 1NT (14–16) – 3NT.Personally, I would not lead afour-card minor on thisauction, but here West leads adiamond. Barry wins with theking and runs the ten of clubsto East’s jack. How do youdefend as East?This is a classic example ofa Merrimac Coup. Eastshould switch to the king ofspades in order to knock outthe crucial entry from thedummy before declarer canget the clubs going. Inpractice, he switches to aheart instead. Barry winswith the ace and knocks outWest’s remaining clubstopper. West can still beatthe contract by switching to aspade (the defenders canestablish five tricks beforedeclarer can get nine), but heplays another heart and nowthree no-trumps rolls home.Briony cooks us adelicious chicken risotto,which is waiting for us whenwe get home. Did you noticethe subtle use of the words‘us’ and ‘we’ in that previoussen tence? Yes, romance isdefinitely in the air!SundayAnother glorious day. Ben,Gemma and Hayden come fora barbecue lunch. The planwas to go for a walk beforelunch but they are runninglate and it is a bit hot so we allvote for staying in the gardeninstead. The good thing aboutbarbecues from a femalepoint of view is that you canusually persuade a bloke to dothe cooking. Ben takes chargewith his usual organisationaland culinary skills and wehave a great lunch. At the riskof sounding like a bragginggranny (OK, I am a bragginggranny) this boy – Hayden –is rather extraordinary. He iswalking (well, I’m not quitesure you would really call itwalking, but he has certainlytaken a few steps on a numberof occasions) and he is not yet10 months old.Next week (half-term)Briony and I are going toMalta for a few days. Thenlife will be hectic leading upto the European Champion -ships at the end of June. ■Page 32