Handbook - International Bridge Press Association

Caio Rossi
THE 1976 SOLOMON AWARD
FOR THE HAND OF THE YEAR
Tim Seres (AUS)
Journalist: Denis Howard (AUS)
The Charles Solomon Award for 'Hand of the Year'
went to a hand played by Australia's Tim Seres and
reported by Denis Howard in his 'Nation Review'
column. (See Bulletin 146, page 6.) Howard receives
the cash – $100 – for his write-up, the wistful Seres an
IBPA plaque.
A candidate for the next “Hand of Year” Award appeared
in Denis Howard’s “Nation Review” column.
Dlr: East ♠ 9 7 4
Vul: None A 6 2
K Q 10 4
♣ Q 10 4
♠ 10 5 3 ♠ A J
Q 10 7 3 K 9 4
J 9 2 8 7 5 3
♣ 9 7 5 ♣ A 8 6 2
♠ K Q 8 6 2
J 8 5
A 6
♣ K J 3
The bidding:
South West North East
1♣
1♠ Pass 2♠ Pass
4♠ All Pass
After posing the East hand as a defensive problem
Howard continues: So much for an eminently reasonable
analysis of the defensive chances. However,
when Tim Seres held the South cards a week, or so
ago, he won West's lead of the ♣7 with the ace and,
after the briefest of pauses, played K!
Declarer deduced from the opening bid and the
switch to K, that East held K-Q. Wouldn't anyone?
With J up his sleeve, declarer was lured into a
false sense of security. He could have played three
rounds of diamonds and thrown a heart, but that is not
free of risk; for example, the diamonds could break 5-
2, or East could promote a second trump trick by later
taking ♠A, cash one heart and playing the fourth
diamond.
The sensible thing to do vas to win A and play a
spade from dummy at trick 3, and declarer did just
that. Whammy!
The raptorial Seres pounced on the spade and laid
9 on the table. Declarer had barely time to murmur
‘moriturus te saluto’ before West had wrapped up two
heart tricks.
Declarer, numbed to further pain, sat quietly while
West then played the thirteenth heart. East hit that
with ♠J (known in the trade as an uppercut) and ♠10
became: a trick in West’s hand. Two down in an icecold
contract, but who would blame the hapless declarer.
This is an enlightening hand because it illustrates
the buccaneering insight that can transmute defeat
into victory in any competitive arena. One imagines
that dear old Attila won a few battles that way.
Seres recently wrote a BoIs bridge tip for the IBPA
Bulletin. His theme was that the defence should always
be alert to present declarer with choice of plays
and thus hope to induce error, when with no choice
there could be no error. The above hand is a brilliant
practical application of that thesis.
THE 1977 SOLOMON AWARD
FOR THE HAND OF THE YEAR
Harold Ogust (USA)
Journalist; Charles Goren (USA)
For the thoughtful and elegant play of Hand No.88 in
Charles Goren's 100 Challenging Bridge Hands' reviewed
in the Supplement to BULLETIN 163 of December
1976. Mr Ogust receives IBPA's plaque.
A SPECIAL AWARD has been made to Professor
Roy Po Kerr of New Zealand for his imaginative and
successful play of the hand reported on page 4 of
BULLETIN 157, played in the New Zealand vs. Argentina
match at the Olympiads. Other hands gaining
special mention are the hand which won Ran Klinger
the BOLS Brilliancy Prize, the fine defence by Stig
Werdelin and Steen Møller, and Gabriel Chagas's play
against Turkey, all reported in BULLETIN 157 as
BOLS Brilliancy Prize entries.
IBPA Handbook 2010 35