BRIDGE

Number One Hundred and Nineteen

SouTh
December 2012

Three fantastic
ProGreSo

BeLiZe
ciTY
PuerTo
corTÉS monTeGo
AmericAn
BAY
SAn BLAS
iSLAnDS cArTAGenA
adventures with
PuerTo
Limon
Voyager
BALBoA
See page 2 for details
mAnTA
Quito
Galapagos
Islands SAnTiAGo De
GuAYAQuiL

SALAVerrY

cALLAo
GenerAL SAn mArTin
AricA

coQuimBo

VALPArAiSo
BuenoS
AireS

PuerTo monTT PuerTo

mADrYn
PuerTo
chAcABuco

PorT
STAnLeY

PunTA
ArenAS uShuAiA

 01483 489961 for brochures and bookings

www.bridgecruises.co.uk
Voyager explores Exclus
Fares
ive

South America
with

YOUR VOYAGE INCLUDES

All Voyager cruises will have an exclusive group on
board. For passengers that opt to pay the £30 bridge supplement; • All meals, entertainment and
there is duplicate bridge every evening, seminars every morning gratuities on board
and afternoon bridge when at sea. The bridge is a fully optional • Lecture and guest speaker
programme. Singles are most welcome and will always be programme
accommodated. If space allows, any bridge playing passengers • Captain’s cocktail parties and
will be able to participate in the afternoon bridge session gala dinners
however, priority will always be given to passengers • Flights and transfers to and from
who have paid the supplement. the ship

QUITO

GALAPAGOS MANTA
ISLANDS
SANTIAGO DE
PROGRESO VALPARAISO
MONTEGO BAY GUAYAQUIL
BUENOS AIRES
BELIZE CITY
SAN BLAS SALAVERRY
PUERTO
PUERTO CORTÉS ISLANDS CALLAO MONTT
PUERTO LIMON GENERAL SAN MARTIN
PANAMA
PUERTO MADRYN
CANAL
ARICA PUERTO CHACABUCO
BALBOA CARTAGENA

PORT
STANLEY
QUITO

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS PUNTA ARENAS

MANTA
COQUIMBO
USHUAIA
VALPARAISO

A Tapestry of South America’s Natural Wonders

Central America Pacific Shore of Latin America
4th – 24th January 2013 21st January – 7th February 2013 5th – 26th February 2013
21 days from £2,449pp 18 Days from £1,949pp 22 days from £2,349pp
Where the Caribbean merges with the The Galapagos islands – Darwin’s Santiago raises the curtain on a voyage
Pacific, the heartlands of the Maya and ‘Laboratory of Nature’, the snowcapped where centre stage and stealing the
Aztec civilisations. Central America Andean Mountains and majestic limelight are the breathtaking works of
promises a tantalising mix of colonial colonial Quito. Visit myth and mist Mother Nature. Visit Chile’s very own
legacies, culture rich history, vast shrouded Machu Picchu, sophisticated Lake District, Patagonia’s vast sweeps
tracts of wilderness and jungle-clad Santiago, UNSECO-listed Valparaiso of pristine beauty and Ushuaia – the
ruins still shrouded in mystery. The and mysterious Nazca Lines etched into city billed as the most southerly in the
awe-inspiring Panama Canal slices the desert floor. An almost endless list of world. Cruise beneath skies that echo to
though this narrow isthmus to where exciting discovery opportunities wait on the cries of countless seabirds and across
Ecuador offers the chance to visit the this marvellous voyage where you will vast ocean landscapes home to seals and
extraordinary Galapagos. step ashore in Ecuador, Peru and Chile whales. The remote Falkland Islands
– each with their own distinctive vintage promise a memorable experience before
Discovery club members and South American flavour. your cruise finishes in Buenos Aires – a
save an aDDitional 5% European cocktail laced with Latin
energy.
01483 489961 for brochures and bookings
www.bridgecruises.co.uk
All fares shown are per person, based on two people sharing the lowest twin bedded cabin category currently available, are for new bookings only, include all applicable discounts and cannot be
combined with any other discount, excluding Discovery Club Discount for past passengers. Cabin number may not be given at time of booking. All fares are correct at time of going to print, are subject
to availability and may be changed or withdrawn at any time. Terms and conditions apply. To be part of the Mr Bridge group a supplement of £30pp will be charged at time of booking. Only bookings
made through the Mr Bridge office are eligible to be part of the Mr Bridge Group. See brochure for full terms and conditions. Voyages of Discovery is the trading name of All Leisure Holidays Ltd.
 FEATURES 5 Just Duplicate Events

BRIDGE
Ryden Grange
5 Mr Bridge
11 David Stevenson
Answers Your
6 Christmas in Vietnam
and South East Asia
7 Christmas 2012
Cheltenham
Regency
Hotel
Questions and New Year 2013
Knaphill, Surrey
GU21 2TH 15 Julian Pottage 8 Tunisia 2013 Cheltenham GL51 0ST
Answers Your
( 01483 489961 Questions
8 Haslemere 2013
e-mail: 9 Mail Order Form
21 The Diaries of
bridge@mrbridge.co.uk
Wendy Wensum 9 Bridge Event
website: Booking Form
21 Lead Quiz
www.mrbridge.co.uk
by Andrew Kambites 10 Bridge Events at:
Publisher and 24 Bidding Quiz
Chatsworth House
Managing Editor Queensferry Hotel
by Bernard Magee
Blunsdon House Hotel
Mr Bridge
25 Bernard Magee at The Olde Barn Hotel
Associate Editors Haslemere DVDs BRIDGE
12 Duplicate Bridge
Bernard Magee reviewed by June Booty
Rules Simplified EVENTS 2013
Julian Pottage 26 Bidding Quiz Answers 15-17 February
14 Cruise India to Luxor
by Bernard Magee
Technical Consultant with Voyages Chris Williams
to Antiquity Hand Evaluation – £215
Tony Gordon 27 Defence Quiz
by Julian Pottage 5-7 April
Proof Readers 16 Bernard Magee at
Haslemere 2011/2012 Just Bridge – £199
Tony & Jan Richards 27 Colin Bamberger
17-19 May
Danny Roth 28 Defence Quiz Answers 19 Bridge Events at:
Ardington Hotel Just Bridge – £199
Catrina Shackleton by Julian Pottage
Elstead Hotel
Richard Wheen 29 Declarer Play Quiz
12-14 July
Bernard Magee
Hugh Williams by David Huggett 20 Bridge Events at:
Thinking Defence – £245
Staverton Park
Office Manager 30 Declarer Play Answers Denham Grove 26-28 July
Jane Cavell by David Huggett
Just Bridge – £199
22 Voyages of Discovery
Events & Cruises 32 Lead Quiz Answers Voyager 2013 Cruises 9-11 August
by Andrew Kambites
( 01483 489961 24 Bridge Events
Just Bridge – £199
Rosie Baker 33 The A to Z of with Bernard Magee 6-8 September
Jessica Galt Bridge: P Just Bridge – £199
by Julian Pottage 26 Bridge Events at
Rachel Everett The Inn on the Prom 13-15 September
Megan Riccio 41 Readers’ Letters Just Bridge – £199
29 Charity Bridge Events
Sophie Pierrepont 45 Catching Up 11-13 October
by Sally Brock 29 S R Bridge Tables
Clubs & Charities Just Bridge – £199
Maggie Axtell 46 Seven Days 30 Begin Bridge, Acol
25-27 October
by Sally Brock Version with
maggie@mrbridge.co.uk Just Bridge – £199
Bernard Magee
Address Changes ADVERTISEMENTS 1-3 November
31 Club Plugs Further into
Elizabeth Bryan 2 Voyager Explores
40 Rubber Bridge Events the Auction – £215
South America
( 01483 485342
42 Global Travel Insurance 29 Nov – 1 Dec
elizabeth@mrbridge.co.uk 3 Bridge Events at the
Declarer Play – £215
Cheltenham Regency 44 Stamps
All correspondence should 6-8 December
be addressed to Mr Bridge. 4 South America with 48 Tutorial Software Just Bridge – £199
Please make sure that all Mr Bridge onboard
letters, e-mails and faxes Voyager 48 QPlus Offer Full Board
carry full postal addresses No Single Supplement
and telephone numbers. The views expressed in this publication are not Booking Form on page 9.
necessarily those of the publisher or its Managing Editor.

Page 3
Join Mr & Mrs Bridge as they discover
South America’s
Coast Limite
of outs
d num
ide cab
ber
ins at
NO SIN
SUPPL GLE
EMENT
South America’s Discovery Coast
24th february – 13th March 2013 – 18 days from £1,949pp
All Voyager cruises will have an
RECIFE exclusive group on
board. All clients will
SALVADOR DE BAHIA be invited to the drinks parties.
For passengers that opt to pay the
PARATY £30 bridge supplement; there is
ILHABELA
RIO DE JANEIRO duplicate bridge every evening,
SANTOS
seminars every morning and
afternoon bridge each day the ship
MONTEVIDEO
is at sea and one of Bernard Magee’s Vibrant rio de Janeiro is the centrepiece on this
BUENOS AIRES
bidding quizzes. voyage that opens in Buenos Aires to sultry sounds
of the tango. uruguay’s rolling savannahs and
The bridge is a fully optional
cattle strewn grasslands are in absolute contrast to
programme and you may participate
Your VoYAge iNCluDeS Sao Paulo’s sea of skyscrapers. then ilhabela –
as much or as little as you wish.
Brazil’s island idyll. the colonial charm of Paraty
Singles are most welcome and will
soon gives way to the sounds of the samba and
• All meals, entertainment and always be accommodated. If space
Salvador – capital of Bahia ‘land of the Drum’.
gratuities on board allows any bridge playing
finally recife – a crucible of cultures epitomising
• Comprehensive lecture and passengers will be able to participate
the spirit of this land of passionate rhythms.
guest speaker programme in the afternoon bridge session
however, priority will always be
• Captain’s cocktail parties and HigHligHtS of tHe CruiSe
gala dinners given to passengers.

• flights and transfers to and Don’t miss out on this opportunity • overnight stay in exciting rio de Janeiro
from the ship to travel with Mr and Mrs Bridge on
• Delightful Paraty, a showcase of colonial
this exciting voyage of discovery. architecture
• Stunning landscapes of ilhabela
• South American capitals of Buenos Aires
and Montevideo
• fascinating culture of Salavador de Bahia
• Baroque architecture of olinda

Discovery club members

save an aDDitional 5%

01483 489961 for brochures and bookings

www.bridgecruises.co.uk

The fare shown is per person, based on two people sharing the lowest twin bedded cabin category currently available, is for new bookings only, includes all applicable discounts and cannot be
combined with any other discount, excluding Discovery Club Discount for past passengers. Cabin number may not be given at time of booking. All fares are correct at time of going to print, are subject
to availability and may be changed or withdrawn at any time. To be part of the Mr Bridge group a supplement of £30pp will be charged at the time of booking. Terms and conditions apply. Only bookings
made through the Mr Bridge office are eligible to be part of the Mr Bridge Group. See brochure for full terms and conditions. Voyages of Discovery is the trading name of All Leisure Holidays Ltd.
 FAREWELL
Discovery goes out of
service this month and into
dry dock after nine
continuous years. Sixty-five
bridge tables and all the
boards, bidding boxes and
other paraphernalia are
being transported back to
the UK as I write. Very
much the end of an era.
However, most of the
officers, crew and cabin
staff are being transferred
to Voyager. Hooray.
VOYAGER
Mrs Bridge and I are taking
our first full voyage on this
ship in February, sailing
from Buenos Aires up the
South American coast via
Rio to Recife. Voyager is a
more compact ship than
Discovery so the active
bridge party has to be kept
to sixty. Still, I have an
allocation of cabins for
single occupation without
supplement. I do hope that
some of you will join us on
this interesting trip.
DIARIES
Red or navy blue standard
covers, £6.95 or 10 for £35.
Bottle green or navy blue
luxury covers, £14.95 each
or 5 for £45. See mail order
form on page 9.
PRIZE QUIZ
Prizes were awarded to all
correct entries to the quiz
in BRIDGE 117. The answer
was 1NT. Well done and
congratulations to all
successful entrants.
Try the new quiz. Holding
the hand below and playing
Acol 12-14 no-trump,
neither side vulnerable.
What would you bid?
Answers before
20 December 2012, please.
♠ A K Q 5
♥ Q J 6 5 4
♦ Q 10 9
♣ 3
JUST BRIDGE
Another year, another try
at making this format
work. I am still trying,
perhaps too hard, to spread
my enthusiasm for
duplicate bridge.
Alongside this column is a
list of venues and dates to
provide you and your
friends with just the
weekend to suit you.
Six sessions, play in as
many or as few as you wish.
No prizes, just competitive
but friendly duplicate. One
thing they all have in
common: full board
includes the ever-popular
Sunday Roast. In addition,
there will be a full team of
helpers to ensure partners
for all those coming as
singles, making certain
there are no half tables and
that the event is hosted by a
non-playing director.
PRESENT
This year, my Christmas
present for you is £50 off
any of the already keenly-
priced Just Duplicate
events, if booked with a
deposit by 20 December.
Page 5
JUST DUPLICATE 2013
11-13 January Elstead Hotel £199
25-27 January Ardington Hotel £199
1-3 February Elstead Hotel £199
8-10 February Ardington Hotel £199
22-24 February Elstead Hotel £199
22-24 February The Olde Barn £169
1-3 March Blunsdon House £199
8-10 March Staverton Park £169
15-17 March The Olde Barn £169
22-24 March Ardington Hotel £199
5-7 April Cheltenham Regency £199
5-7 April Staverton Park £169
12-14 April Ardington Hotel £199
17-19 May Cheltenham Regency £199
17-19 May The Olde Barn £169
31 May – 2 June The Olde Barn £169
7-9 June Staverton Park £169
14-16 June Chatsworth Hotel £199
14-16 June Elstead Hotel £199
14-16 June Staverton Park £169
21-23 June The Olde Barn £169
12-14 July Inn on the Prom £169
12-14 July Staverton Park £169
19-21 July The Olde Barn £169
19-21 July Staverton Park £169
26-28 July Cheltenham Regency £199
2-4 August Staverton Park £169
9-11 August Cheltenham Regency £199
9-11 August Staverton Park £169
16-18 August Inn on the Prom £169
6-8 September Cheltenham Regency £199
6-8 September The Olde Barn £169
13-15 September Cheltenham Regency £199
4-6 October Staverton Park £169
11-13 October Cheltenham Regency £199
18-20 October The Olde Barn £169
25-27 October Cheltenham Regency £199
1-3 November The Olde Barn £169
8-10 November Elstead Hotel £199
15-17 November Staverton Park £169
22-24 November Elstead Hotel £199
22-24 November The Olde Barn £169
6-8 December Cheltenham Regency £199
Please note there are no seminars or set hands at these events.
Full Board – No Single Supplement
Booking Form on page 9.
 CHRISTMAS CRUISE
VIETNAM & THE JEWELS OF
SOUTHEAST ASIA

NO
SINGLE
SUPPLEMENT †
Join us on this celebration voyage Thailand
Bangkok Vietnam
Nha Trang
from Singapore to Bangkok, and enjoy Cambodia Ho Chi Minh City
a Christmas you’ll never forget! Sihanoukville

Fly to Singapore and enjoy time to explore and an included excursion of Gulf of
this dynamic City. Cruise to the beautiful island of Borneo and the Sultanate Thailand Kota Kinabalu
of Brunei, with its magnificent Royal Palace, and Kota Kinabalu in the state Bandar Brunei
Seri Begawan
of Sabah. Relax on board as we celebrate Christmas Day sailing the South Singapore BoRNEO/
China Sea to Vietnam. Visit Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City where a malaysia
warm welcome, fascinating history and spectacular scenery await. Your final
destination is exotic Bangkok where you arrive in style as Aegean Odyssey DECEMBER 18, 2012 – 15 days from £2,850
sails up the Chao Phraya River to berth in the heart of the city.
DATE PORT ARRIVE DEPART
Aegean Odyssey – cruise in comfort, relax in style DEC 18 Depart UK
Carrying around 350 passengers, the atmosphere DEC 19 Arrive SINGAPORE overnight hotel
on board is relaxed with plenty of passenger space, a DEC 20 SINGAPORE
Embark Aegean Odyssey 6.00pm
choice of restaurants (with open-seating dining) and DEC 21/22 At Sea
generously-sized accommodations, plus the comfort DEC 23 BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN 7.00am
and attentive service of boutique-style cruising. Brunei, Borneo 8.00pm
DEC 24 KOTA KINABALU Borneo 7.00am 5.00pm
Add more time in Bangkok and visit Angkor Wat in Cambodia DEC 25 Christmas Day at Sea
An optional 4-night package is available offering 3 nights in a 5-star hotel DEC 26 NHA TRANG Vietnam 1.00pm 6.00pm
in Bangkok and 1 night in Siem Reap, Cambodia for a once-in-a-lifetime DEC 27 HO CHI MINH CITY Vietnam 6.00pm overnight
opportunity to see the magnificent temple complex at Angkor Wat. DEC 28 HO CHI MINH CITY Vietnam 6.00pm
DEC 29 At Sea
Details on request.
DEC 30 SIHANOUKVILLE Cambodia 6.00am 8.00pm
FARES INCLUDE: DEC 31 New Year’s Eve at Sea
SIGHTSEEING EXCURSIONS AT ALL PORTS JAN 1 ’13 BANGKOK Thailand 7.00am
Disembark Aegean Odyssey and
EXPERT LECTURE PROGRAMME transfer to airport for flight home
WINE WITH DINNER & GRATUITIES ON BOARD
EXCLUSIVE MR BRIDGE COCKTAIL PARTY ACCOMPANIED BY MR BRIDGE HOST

SCHEDULED AIR & TRANSFERS

MR BRIDGE FARES*
PLUS MR BRIDGE SPECIAL FARES
Standard Inside £2,850pp Superior Outside from £3,595pp
Superior Inside from £3,095pp Deluxe Outside from £4,150pp
CALL ON 01483 489 961 Standard Outside £3,450pp Deluxe Balcony from £4,895pp

ADD THAILAND, MALAYSIA & BURMA!
Begin your voyage on our preceding sailing on
December 6 and cruise to Kuala Lumpur, Phuket,
Yangon (Rangoon), Penang and Malacca. This makes
a magnificent 32-day Grand Voyage offering remarkable
value and even greater savings. Please ask for details
* Prices shown are per person, single or double occupancy, include MR BRIDGE SPECIAL
SAVINGS. †Limited availability on cabins with no single supplement. This offer is subject
to availability, is capacity controlled and may be withdrawn at any time.
BRIDGE PLAYERS: The bridge programme is completely optional and Mr Bridge
passengers can participate as much, or as little as they wish. There is a supplement
of £100 for those wishing to participate in the duplicate bridge programme.
Singles are made especially welcome and a playing partner will always be found.

10093
V OYAGES TO A NTIQUITY
www.voyagestoantiquity.com ABTA No.Y2206
 SOLD OUT
With both the Inaugural
and Christmas cruises sold
out on Voyager, readers
wanting a Festive Season
Cruise can still join
Aegean Odyssey and sail
from Singapore to
Bangkok via Borneo,
Vietnam and Cambodia;
see the facing page. There
are no single supplements
but now I’ve mentioned it,
it is not likely to stay that
way for very long. Ring
and I will hold a cabin, for
up to seven days, while you
wait for the brochure to
arrive. Dally and you may
well be disappointed.
BERNARDS PARTIES
Bernard Magee will host a
festive party at The
Chatsworth Hotel over the
weekend 28-30 December
for those of you who have
withdrawal symptoms,
common around this time
of year. The focus of his
seminars is on Better
Defence. He has a full
team to assist with
supervised play and the
duplicate sessions.
IN FEBRUARY
On the 4th Bernard flies to
Bangkok in Thailand, to
host another party on
Aegean Odyssey, visiting
Cambodia, Vietnam,
Borneo, Malaysia, Brunei
and ending up in
Singapore. Do ask for a
brochure, reserving your
single cabin without
supplement, before they
are all gone.
QPLUS
QPlus is the best Acol
playing software on the
market. The graphics are
clear and as computer
software goes, it is more or
less foolproof.
However, some of you have
difficulty with software
products so here is what I
recommend for any
misbehaving program.
Delete the offending
program. Then, having
done that, go to
START/MY COMPUTER
and then go into the hard
drive and delete the
program from the games
folder. After this,
you should shut the
computer down and switch
it off. Then turn the
computer back on and
reinstall your disc. Lastly,
use your password from the
booklet in the usual way
and, hey presto, everything
should be back up working.
PLEASE
Don’t just leave your
wonderful software unused
and unloved when it could
be giving you so much fun.
The same applies, with
variations, to any of the
Bernard Magee software
programmes, as and when
you upgrade your PC or
laptop. You should be able
to make use of the patches
and upgrades provided free
on the QPlus website. Go
now to: www.q-plus.com
Good clean second-hand
copies of QPlus could make
useful Christmas presents
for grandchildren or even a
bridge partner, while
supporting Little Voice, the
charity with a school house
in Adis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Just make your selection.
QPlus 7, 8 or 9. Suggested
donation £10, £16 or £25.
Please send your cheque for
the CD of your choice,
Page 7
made payable to L.U.C.I.A.
Little Voice with two 2nd
class stamps to cover the Christmas
cost of posting it to you.
& New Year
BETTER BRIDGE 2012/13
The first CD with six
chapters, each with twenty Duplicate Bridge
hands and matching the six
subjects covered by the Denham Grove
Near Uxbridge, UB9 5DU
DVDs at the 2011
Haslemere Festival is now
on sale. Bernard Magee at
his very best. A must have
Christmas present.
FESTIVE EVENTS
In the adjacent strip
advertisement, I list all my
24-27 Dec £455
Christmas, Twixmas and
Just Bridge
New Year events. As I
have increased the number Jo Walch
(with a small separate
from previous years, there section for rubber / Chicago
is still availability at all of hosted by Diana Holland)
them at the moment.
27-29 Dec £215
Please don’t leave your
booking until the last Game Tries
minute if you can help it. Gary Conrad
29 Dec – 1 Jan £445
COLIN BAMBERGER Finding Slams
Colin’s sudden death was a Gary Conrad
shock to his family and his
friends as well as to Little
The Olde Barn
Voice and me. His work Marston, Lincs NG32 2HT
over three years raised
several thousand pounds
and I miss his inspiring
boundless energy and
enthusiasm. Please go to
page 27 for a short
thumbnail sketch of his
life provided by Claude
Stokes, one of his several
bridge partners. 24-27 Dec £455
Just Bridge
ALL CHANGE Val Passmore
Some of you have been 27-29 Dec £215
using the same tutorial Doubles
software for more than ten Patrick Dunham
years. Send in your old 29 Dec – 1 Jan £445
tutorial CD and a cheque
for £39 and choose from
Losing Trick Count
the list on the mail order Patrick Dunham
page. You know the fun you
have already had from your ( 01483 489961
old software. Now you can jessica@mrbridge.co.uk
have the same experience www.holidaybridge.com
all over again.
 SEE TUNISIA GIFT IDEAS Mr Bridge
Mr Bridge Bernard Magee and his With Christmas coming, Bernard
AT THE team once again take out a suitable gifts are always Magee
party to the Royal Kenz. If hard to think of. How
ROYAL KENZ you haven’t been with about a bone china mug at
TUNISIA Bernard and his team with any one of the three Haslemere
before, you will be really designs. It’s Only A Game
pleased and if you have, as illustrated below: Hall
Two-week you will know what to Haslemere, Surrey
half-board expect and get it.
duplicate 14-16 May 2013
bridge holiday 18% DISCOUNT
Tuesday
14 May
or the Mystery Man or the
Morning Session:
XXXX Bidding Sequence. 11.00 – 12.30
They are all great fun. Thinking Defence
Another Afternoon Session:
Just a quick plug for my
suggestion is my 14.30 – 16.00
most faithful sponsor. His
new design Mr Pre-emptive Bidding
support helps pay for this
Bridge tie. Some
free magazine.
might think it a
( 0208 422 4906
bit loud, but it’s
Clive.goff@londonrugby.com
ideal to be worn Wednesday
Value supplied in two at Christmas
stamps combined to make parties. 15 May
up the 50p 2nd class rate,
Finally, playing cards are Morning Session:
2nd class to you, 41p. 1st
always useful and a boxed 11.00 – 12.30
24 Feb – 10 March 2013 class 60p, only 50p to you. Splinters & Cue Bids
pair of packs will always be
Golf available Available in lots of 100.
Bernard Magee welcome. £10. Afternoon Session:
and his team 14.30 – 16.00
UNBELIEVABLE Play & Defence at
£799* STOP PRESS
Now that members are Duplicate Pairs
Congratula-
suing club committees for
3-17 November 2013 tions to
alleged damage to their
Golf available Voyages to
human rights and any
Antiquity on
Tony and Jan Richards subsequent psychological
being voted
Thursday
£769* damage, not being insured
Best Specialist 16 May
is as daft as these claims.
*per person half-board sharing Cruise Line at
£60 per year covers a club Morning Session:
a twin-bedded room and is the 2012 Cruise 11.00 – 12.30
inclusive of bridge fees. Single
supplement £6 per night. with up to a hundred Awards. Hand Evaluation
These prices are based on air members for all sorts of (without a fit)
travel from Heathrow to Tunis. I can tell you
eventualities. A small price
Flights from other UK airports from my own experience Afternoon Session:
are available at a supplement. to pay for peace of mind.
Prices for seven-night stays are that the award is 14.30 – 16.00
Ring John Pilsbury at
available on application. thoroughly deserved and I Avoidance Play
Pay £70 per fortnight per person brokers Moore Stephens on
am proud to be involved.
extra and have a pool-facing ( 0207 515 5270.
room, tea & coffee making
£12 per ticket
facilities, bath robe and a bowl of Note. Over 500 British HASLEMERE 2013
seasonal fruit. For advanced
bridge clubs and teachers
Dates, times and subject booking, please call
These holidays have been organised
renew their club policy
for Mr Bridge by Tunisia First Limited,
matter of the 2013 Haslemere Hall
ATOL 5933, working in association with this scheme every
with Thomas Cook Tour Haslemere Festival are all Box Office
Operations Limited, ATOL 1179. year. Thank you all for your
continued support which listed in the adjacent ( 01428 642161
helps to keep the cost of column.
DETAILS & BOOKINGS Please note that all sessions
this service as low as it will be filmed.
( 01483 489961 currently is. All good wishes

Page 8
✄

✄
Mr Bridge MAIL ORDER
PLAY SOFTWARE
QPlus 10 £86.00 .........
TUTORIAL DVDs
Haslemere 2011 – £25 each
BRIDGE 
BREAKS
QPlus 10 Ruffing for Extra Tricks .........
Trade-in £35.00 ......... Competitive Auctions .........
Bridge Baron Making the
Mac compatible £63.00 ......... Most of High Cards .........
Bridge Baron Identifying & ♦ Full-board ♦ Two seminars*
Trade-in £36.00 ......... Bidding Slams .........
♦ All rooms with ♦ Two supervised
TUTORIAL SOFTWARE Play & Defence of en-suite facilities play sessions*
1NT Contracts .........
Begin Bridge
Doubling & Defence ♦ No single supplement ♦ Four bridge sessions**
Acol Version £66.00 .........
to Doubled Contracts .........
Acol Bidding £66.00 .........
All 6 DVDs Please book ..... places for me at £....... per person,
Advanced
as a boxed set £100.00 .........
Acol Bidding £96.00 .........
Haslemere 2012 – £25 each
Single .... Double .... Twin ....
Declarer Play £76.00
Advanced Leads .........
Name of Hotel/Centre.............................................................
Declarer Play £81.00 Losing Trick Count .........
Defence £76.00 ......... Making a Plan Date(s) ....................................................................................
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Page 10
 David Stevenson answers your questions on Laws and Ethics
Q
My partner
was dealer.
Second hand
was director. After the
previous hand, I had
gone to get coffees.
After what may or may
not have been a long
time, my partner passed.
Second hand (director)
then passed. As I put
my bid of 1♦ down, the
director announced that
I was not able to bid
because my partner had
taken a long time to
pass and this implied he
had some values. Given
this ruling, the hand
was a pass out and my
18-point hand went to
waste. Partner had 11
points on a flat hand and
game was makeable.
It was only later that
I realised that the
director had accepted my
partner’s bid by placing
down the pass card.
How would you rule?
Richard Moss by email.
A
Sadly, your director
seems to have
no idea of the
laws whatever. Perhaps it
is time the club sent him
on a directing course.
However long your
partner has taken to bid,
there is no law allowing
Can You Bid
After a
Hesitation?
the director to bar you
from bidding. He appears
to be making laws up that
are nowhere in the game
of bridge and, worryingly,
laws that benefit his side.
My advice is either to
approach the club about
the director or to find a club
with a director who reads
laws from the law book.
♣♦♥♠
Q
If a player puts a
card on the table
from his hand,
can he then pick it up
and return it to his hand?
Mrs D Ridgley, Salisbury.
A
No, once a player
puts it on the
table, it becomes
a played card.
♣♦♥♠
Q
In a competitive
auction, my
partner had
overcalled 4♠ with 5♥.
After a long hesitation,
my RHO doubled and
commented, ‘I shall
leave my partner to
decide whether to leave
the double in or bid 5♠.’
Taken aback by this
remark, my partner and
I suggested that my LHO
Page 11
should not bid again
after such a suggestive
remark from her partner.
We went down doubled
in 5♥, yet even 4♠ was
going off. Had we not
suggested that my LHO
ought to pass, she might
well have bid 5♠.
I did not call the
director and we scored
a zero on the board. I
was left wondering what
action (if any) I should
have taken, as my action
seems to have given us
a zero, rather unfairly.
Could you offer your help
and advice please in
case a similar situation
arises in future?
Peter Scott, Dunstable.
♣♦♥♠
A
I would have
called the director
immediately after
the remark and let the
director deal with it. Too
many people, I am afraid,
seem to do the director’s
job for him; only he can
warn players about using
unauthorised information.
When told what happened,
the director will admonish
the player for his remark,
warn his partner about
the consequences of
unauthorised information,
and invite you to call
him back at the end of
the hand if you have
any worries whatever.
What you did do was try
to give a ruling at the table,
which was both wrong and
inappropriate. His partner
is not barred from bidding,
and you must not say so. His
partner must do his absolute
best to not gain from the
unauthorised information –
but that is a different matter.
♣♦♥♠
Q
My partner, after
many years of
ingrained habit,
alerted my Blackwood
enquiry of 4NT. Was
this either necessary or
at least permissible?
David Fairbairn by email.
A
Alerting Regulations
have the force of
law; since there is no
alerting of bids above 3NT,
you are forbidden to alert
above 3NT.
David Stevenson answers all
queries based on the facts
supplied by the letter writer.
Neither Mr Bridge nor
David Stevenson has any way
of knowing whether those
facts are correct or complete.
 Ask David continued
Q
How does a
playing director
deal with a
ruling on a hand he
has yet to play?
Gerald Makeham, Lewes.
A Q
The way a playing
director deals with
a ruling on a hand
he has yet to play differs
from director to director.
The only absolute rule is
that he has to deal with
it some way or other.
Where a judgement ruling
is not involved, for example
a lead out of turn, or a
call out of turn, he would
normally deal with it without
it affecting whether he can
play the board subsequently.
There are some matters
that can be deferred, for
example, an apparent
mistake on a traveller, which
he can leave until after
he has played it. It is also
sometimes possible to ask
someone else to rule who has
played the board already.
Sometimes he does need
to see the hand to give a
ruling. Most players will then
trust the director to decide
whether he can play it later:
if not, he gives his opponents
average plus. Opinions
differ as to whether he gives
himself average or average
plus: I give myself average.
I have heard cases of
DUPLICATE BRIDGE  should keep out
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(otherwise known as the Yellow Book)
by John Rumbelow and
revised by David Stevenson
Available from Mr Bridge ( 01483 489961
directors who have refused
to rule because they have
not played the board yet.
This is unacceptable: when
they accept the job of
director, even if voluntary,
they must accept the
responsibilities that go with it.
♣♦♥♠
One player, who
had phoned to
say he would be
late, duly arrived late
for the first round.
The table played two
of the three scheduled
boards for the round.
The director said that
there might have to be
an adjusted score
(average plus) given
to North/South, his
opponents, on the
unplayed board.
After five rounds,
during the tea break,
the director asked the
four players to reconvene
and play the unplayed
board. North/South
were reluctant to play,
but agreed to do so
for the sake of peace.
What was the correct
way of handling this?
Iain Graham by email.
A
I think the director
handled it badly.
If he wants the
players to play the board
in the tea break, he should
say so, not that they might
get average plus.
only
£5 95
Page 12
In any case, it seems
unfair that the pair not at
fault should lose their tea
break. While some clubs do
allow people to play boards
later, normal practice is only
to do so if all four players
agree. Since North/South
did not want to, I am very
surprised; the director should
have awarded average
plus/average minus. Tea
breaks are for having a nice
cup of tea and a chat, not
playing boards because
an opponent was late.
♣♦♥♠
Q
What can dummy
do if a dispute
arises about
the number of tricks
declarer has taken?
One day, when
we were under time
pressure (we have the
hall for a strict three
hours), a dispute arose.
Declarer said, ‘one
off.’ The defenders
said, ‘two off.’ The
director ruled that the
players should take an
average. Is this right?
Would it be better if
dummy follows which
direction players
have pointed their
played cards and
draws attention to
whenever players put
them in a way that
indicates a dispute?
G T Birchall,
Bexleyheath, Kent.
A
During the play of
the hand, dummy
of it. He may not interfere
even if he sees something
wrong. It would be very
wrong for him to do so.
When the hand is over,
dummy has a perfect right
to make comments, because
he is no longer dummy, so
he can express his views.
It is the director’s job
to sort out disputes. I am
afraid, time pressure or not,
she is not doing her job
if she makes a table take
an average when there is
a difference of opinion.
That is what she is there
for: she must sort it out.
Finally, whether a dummy
keeps track of what is going
on, or just sits there thinking
about football, or how he
or his partner misplayed
the slam two hands ago,
or anything else, is up to
the individual dummy.
♣♦♥♠
Q
I was on lead
against 4♠. I led
the ♣10 from a
holding of ♣K-10-9-5-3.
My opponents accused
me of making an unusual
lead without it being on
my convention card or
an alert by my partner.
Am I guilty of infringing
the rules? My usual lead
is the fourth highest
from an honour card.
Frank Bardsley,
Southampton.
A
This is just ignorance
from your opponents.
First, the ten is
the normal lead from this
holding: honour leads are
different. Second, there
is no alerting of leads.
Third, while it should be on
your convention card, that
is true, it is the standard
lead from the holding so
it should be what your
opponents expect. Fourth,
did your opponents call
the director? No? I thought
not: they were just being
unnecessarily awkward.
Sadly, some people believe
the whole world should play
their way. They are often
poor players, sometimes with
very strange ideas: take no
notice of them.
 Ask David continued
Q
Can you open
a Benjamin
2♣ on an
unbalanced hand with
fewer than 16 HCP?
Godfrey Chasmer by email.
A
As I have mentioned
a few times, it is
legal to open an
artificial two-level opening if
it satisfies one or more of the
following three requirements:
1. It has at least sixteen
high-card points.
2. It has at least 25
Opening Points, also
referred to as satisfying
the Rule of 25. Opening
Points are high-card points
plus the number of cards
in the two longest suits.
3. It has at least opening
values, plus at least eight
clear-cut tricks, subject to
adequate disclosure. Clear-
cut tricks are the number
of tricks that are certain to
make in each suit if partner
was void in the suit and there
was the second-best suit
break. In Wales, opening
values is at least eleven
high-card points. In England,
directors generally assume
opening values is at least
eleven high-card points even
though there is no official
rule laid down. This is subject
to adequate disclosure.
The reference to adequate
disclosure means that you
must describe the bid in such
a way that the strength of
the hand does not surprise
your opponents. So, if you
play that you might open 2♣
with 11+ points and eight
clear-cut tricks, then calling
it ‘Benjamin’ or ‘strong’ is
insufficient. If you do that,
you are likely to be ruled
against for misinformation.
If you play it that way, you
should describe the bid as,
‘Benjamin, but could be
weak in top cards with good
distribution,’ or something.
Examples of contenders
for the type 3 opening:
♠ A 8 7 6 5 4
♥ 5
♦ Q J 10 9 8
♣ A
This has only six clear-
cut tricks – spades have
no more than two tricks
opposite a void with a 5-2
break – so is well short of
the strength required.
♠ K Q J 10 9 8 7 6
♥ 3
♦ A 9 8 7
♣ Void
This has eight clear-
cut tricks but does not
have eleven points.
♠ K Q J 10 9 8 7 6
♥ 3
♦ A J 10 7
♣ Void
This is a perfectly good type 3
hand, so it is legal so long as
you warn your opponents that
your 2♣ opening may include
low point-count hands.
♣♦♥♠
Q
When playing
rubber bridge,
does the use
of stops and alerts
vary at all from
duplicate bridge?
John Avery by email.
A
The rules for stops
and alerts are
regulations applied
by the duplicate bridge
authorities, so really there is
Page 13
no reason to have stops and
alerts at all at rubber bridge.
There are often private
rules in rubber bridge,
introduced by the players
themselves, or their circle
or club. Some of them,
especially if they often play
duplicate bridge as well,
might introduce such rules.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Is there anything
untoward in
this bidding
sequence?
West North East South
1NT1 Pass 2♦2 Pass
2♥ Pass 3♣ Pass
3♦ All Pass
1
announced as 12-14
2
announced as a transfer
The bidders’ hands were:
♠ K J 6 3 ♠ A 4
♥ K 10 5 N ♥ 7 3
W E
♦ Q 9 5 S ♦ K J 8 4 2
♣ A 8 5 ♣ Q J 9 2
Norman Scott, Crook,
Co Durham.
A
It may be that E/W
have an agreement
by which 2♦ is
either hearts or diamonds,
dependent on the rebid.
This is a legal agreement,
since any response to 1NT is
legal, but it is not a transfer:
West must not announce
it as a transfer but must
alert it. If asked, he should
say, ‘2♦ asks me to bid 2♥;
it shows either hearts or
diamonds, dependent on
what partner does next.’
More likely in my view, E/W
have no such agreement:
East just had no idea how
E-mail your questions on bridge laws to:
davidstevenson@mrbridge.co.uk
to bid his hand. He bid his
longest suit with a pious
hope that somehow it would
come all right. After 2♥, he
bid his second suit. West,
who did not realise that
players take this as hearts
and clubs, was confused
and bid 3♦ to see what was
happening. I am afraid this
sort of confused bidding does
happen from time to time
in a club. In that case, you
can do little about it: E/W
will have no idea they have
done anything strange at all.
Of course, N/S should
call the director, who should
ask East why he bid 2♦ and
West why he bid 3♦. From
the answers, the director will
know which scenario applies.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Defending a 2NT
contract, I found
myself on lead
with four cards to go. The
situation was such that,
however anyone played,
my last four cards were
outright winners. I
could have claimed, I
realise, but decided to
play on. Unfortunately,
my partner revoked
on one of my winners;
consequently, the
director docked us a
trick. Is this correct?
Herbert Potts,
Bramhall, Stockport.
A
Certainly, it is correct.
Following suit is vital
to this game; it is very
reasonable to penalise when
someone does not. It does
not matter whether the trick
could be lost or not. Perhaps
you will claim next time: this
is a courteous thing to do
and saves valuable time. ■
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10093
V OYAGES TO A NTIQUITY
www.voyagestoantiquity.com ABTA No.Y2206
 Julian Pottage answers your bridge questions
O
ne of my part-
ners tells me
to open 1NT on
12 to 14 with a five-
card suit unless I have
4-5 in the majors or
an easy rebid. Another
partner says some-
thing different. What
do you recommend?
Marie Taylor, Fromebridge,
Gloucestershire (similar
from John Strudwick).
A
With a 5332 shape,
it is usual to open
1NT if the 5-card
suit is any strength minor
or a weak 5-card major.
Some authorities recom-
mend opening 1NT on any
5332 shape (even with a
good 5-card major), though
that is often in the context of
playing a strong no-trump
and 5-card Stayman.
With a 5422 shape, it is
usual to open the 5-card
suit. On some hands, with
honours concentrated in
the doubletons and long
suits that you do not expect
to be able to describe
because you are too weak
to reverse, it can be a good
idea to open 1NT. However,
probably 90+% of 5422
hands would not really be
suitable for a 1NT opening,
so for simplicity I suggest
How Off Shape
Can You be to
Open 1NT?
you always open the long
suit with a 5422 shape.
♣♦♥♠
Q
My partner
opened a Ben-
jamin 2♣ with
the following hand,
claiming that it had
8 playing tricks:
♠ 4
♥ A K 8 7 4
♦ A Q J 5
♣ A J 5
I thought it was only
seven playing tricks. How
many would you count?
Emma Jones by email.
A
Sometimes counting
playing tricks is not
an exact science. If
you have a suit with K-Q-J-
10-9-8-x, that is obviously 6
playing tricks in the suit. With
the actual hand, it is a bit
more subjective. You might or
might not make long hearts.
You might or might not make
a long diamond. You might
make three diamond tricks
even without a long card.
I would count 3½ in hearts,
2½ in diamonds and 1 in
clubs. I thus make the total 7,
Page 15
the same as you have. While
I often play Benjamin, I would
open 1♥ on your partner’s
hand. With a three-suited
hand, which your partner’s
hand more or less is, many
people would not open
a Benjamin 2♣ whatever
the playing strength.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Do you have
any advice on
which is the bet-
ter rule: the rule of 19
or 20? Should vulner-
ability come into it?
Kevin Dickson, Northampton.
A
I do not use either
the rule of 19 or 20
for deciding when
to open; I prefer the more
accurate rule of 21 and 22
(you count defensive tricks
as well as high cards and the
length of your two longest
suits). However, given that the
rule of 21 and 22 allows you
to open with a fraction less
when non-vulnerable, there
is a logic in using the rule
of 19 non-vulnerable and
rule of 20 when vulnerable.
When you are vulnerable,
it is more expensive to go
down, which is one reason
why you might need a slightly
better hand to open when
vulnerable. Another reason,
at teams or rubber bridge,
is that partner is more likely
to push for the game bonus
when you are vulnerable.
♣♦♥♠
Q
What should
you open on
this hand?
♠ A K 7 5 2
♥ Void
♦ A K 8 7
♣ A K 10 8
At the table, North
opened 1♠ and everyone
passed. 7♦ was cold
because South had
♦Q-x-x-x-x-x and ♣Q-x-x.
Sheila Beringer, Backwell,
North Somerset.
A
With first- and
second-round control
in every suit, I would
definitely open 2♣. You
might at least find 6♦ then.
The traditional Acol
requirement for a 2♣
opening includes game going
hands with five quick tricks.
This hand has six quick tricks
(each A-K combination is two
quick tricks), not to mention
the void.
BERNARD MAGEE
Filmed Live at Haslemere Festival
2011
1 Ruffing for Extra Tricks
This seminar deals with declarer’s use of ruffing
to generate extra tricks and then looks at how the
defenders might counteract this.
2 Competitive Tricks
This seminar focuses on competitive auctions from the
perspective of the overcalling side to start with and
then from the perspective of the opening side in the
second part.
3 Making the Most of High Cards
This seminar helps declarer to use his high cards more
carefully and then looks at how defenders should care
for their precious high cards.
4 Identifying & Bidding Slams
The first half of this seminar is about identifying when
a slam might be on – one of the hardest topics
to teach. The second half covers some of the
techniques used to bid slams.
5 Play & Defence of 1NT Contracts
This seminar looks at the most common and
yet most feared of contracts: 1NT. The first half
looks at declaring the contract and the second
part puts us in the defenders’ seats.
6 Doubling & Defence
against Doubled Contracts
The first half of this seminar explores penalty
doubles and the second half discusses the
defence against doubled contracts.
DVDs
Each £25. Boxed Set of 6 £100
Make your cheque payable to Mr Bridge and send to: Mr Bridge, Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
( 01483 489961 www.mrbridge.co.uk/mrbridge-shop
2012
7 Leads
Bernard takes you through all the basic leads and the
importance of your choice of lead. If you start to think
not just about your hand, but about your partner’s too,
then you will get much better results.
8 Losing Trick Count
A method of hand evaluation for when you find a fit.
Bernard deals with the basics of the losing trick count
then looks at advanced methods to hone your bidding.
9 Making a Plan as Declarer
Bernard explains how to make a plan then expands on
how to make the most of your long suits. The first half
deals with no-trumps, the second with suit contracts.
10 Responding to 1NT
This seminar deals with Transfers and Stayman in
detail. The 1NT opening comes up frequently, so having
a good, accurate system of responses is paramount.
11 Signals & Discards
This seminar deals with Count, Attitude
and Suit-preference signals: aiming to get
you working as a partnership in defence.
12 Endplays
Bernard takes you through the basics of the
technique before showing some magical hands
where you take extra tricks from defenders. In the
second half, Bernard looks at how to avoid being
endplayed as a defender.
DVDs
Each £25. Boxed Set of 6 £100
Fax 01483 797302
 Ask Julian continued
Q A
I understand
that you can
overcall a suit
opening at the one
level with 8+ points (a
5-card suit with two
honours), and at the two
level with 10+ points.
If the auction opens
with 1NT, can I overcall
at the two level with
10+ points, as long as
I have a 5-card suit
with two honours?
Audrey Budding,
Whitchurch, Cardiff.
A
Usually, you need
a six-card suit to
overcall at the
two level. This applies
whether the opponents have
opened a suit or 1NT.
If you play Astro or one of
its variants, you are never
going to need to overcall
1NT on a 5-card suit.
Playing Landy, as Bernard
and I recommend, some
hands do justify bidding
two of a suit with a 5-card
suit. However, you would
need opening values
(12/13+, not 10+) and
a strong 5-card suit (not
J-10-x-x-x as the minimum
you cite would permit).
With a weaker hand or
weaker suit, you should pass
first time around. You may
get the chance to show the
suit on the second round
of bidding if the opponents
appear to be subsiding below
two of your 5-card suit.
♣♦♥♠
Q
When you
make a 1NT
overcall, does
this guarantee two
stoppers in the suit
opened? If yes, what
do you bid when you
hold a 4432 15-17 but
only one stopper?
Mr W B Coffey by email.
If your doubleton
is in the suit
opened, it is usual
to double for takeout. The
problem comes when the
doubleton lies elsewhere.
While it is nice to have a
double stopper – or at least
sufficiently good spot cards
to give you a chance of a
double stopper – sometimes
you have no sensible
alternative. If, for example,
your shape is 2-4-3-4,
you are not going to want
to double anything other
than 1♠ if you can help it.
♣♦♥♠
Q
East opened 1♦
and South held:
♠ A 9 8 7 2
♥ K 10
♦ K
♣ Q 10 5 4 2
Remembering the
SQOT guideline, South
passed. N/S defended
1♦ making when most of
the room were in 4♠+1.
Do you agree with this
action (or inaction)?
John Collins by email.
A
The Suit Quality
Overcall Test says
that you add your
honours in a suit to the
length of the suit. The total
tells you the level at which
you can bid. While I admit
that A-9-8-7-x- gives a SQOT
of 6, surely the suit is as good
as A-10-4-3-2, which would
give a SQOT of 7. In any
case, when you have opening
values, you cannot afford
to stay out of the bidding
even when your main suit
is poor. I would definitely
Page 17
overcall on the South hand.
I (like most players) do not
have a bid available to show
both black suits, so I would
simply overcall 1♠. If you are
playing Ghestem or a variant
thereof, you make whatever
bid shows both black suits.
Double and pass are not
in the running. Double
suggests three suits, not two.
Pass is a big underbid.
♣♦♥♠
Q
With a weak
no-trump and
transfers in use
by both sides, West faced
the following problem:
♠ A 6 5
♥ A J
♦ A K 9 6
♣ K 9 7 4
West North East South
1NT Pass 2♥
? partner did not read.
In the event, West bid 3♦,
going down three. In the
discussion afterwards,
people suggested 2NT,
pass and double.
Richard Lockyer,
Bournemouth.
A
3♦ is a poor
choice. The hand
is too flat for
a bid that suggests a
single-suited hand.
If you play that double
shows 15+ (i.e. a hand
that would have doubled
1NT), you should double.
This is what I would do.
Many people play that
a double shows hearts,
in which case you cannot
double. You could pass
first time and reopen with
a double. The trouble is
that partner will (a) expect
you to have heart support
and (b) expect you to have
a weaker hand. If double is
not available, 2NT seems the
best of a bad lot. Whether
partner reads you for the
minors or a big balanced
hand, you just about have it.
♣♦♥♠
Q
You are
defending
against 6♠.
Partner leads a club and
you hold a singleton club.
Declarer wins and leads
a trump from dummy
(you hope partner has
the ♠A). What do you
play from ♠9-8-2 to
encourage partner
to continue clubs?
I played the 9 starting
a trump peter to show
interest in ruffing.
Partner read this and I
got my ruff. At another
table, after the same
club lead, the defender
signalled suit preference
with the two, which his
Which signal do
you recommend in
this position?
Simon Gottschalk,
Pendoylan, Glamorgan.
A
It seems to be a
matter of partnership
agreement. The
traditional meaning of a
trump peter is to indicate
a desire for a ruff. Some
pairs prefer to use suit-
preference signals. Some
use both, though you need
a good understanding
of when each applies.
I tend to play that suit
preference applies if you
lead trumps yourself (which
you are unlikely to do if you
are looking for a ruff) or if
the strength of the opposing
trumps makes it obvious that
declarer can draw them.
Otherwise, the traditional
meaning of high-low to ask
for a ruff applies.
 Ask Julian continued
Q
On the deal
below from a
social game,
what should the
bidding have been?
Dealer North. Love All.
♠ 9
♥ 7 6
♦ K J 10 9 7 6 2
♣ A J 7
♠ K J ♠ A Q 10 8
7 6 5 3
♥ A Q J 8 5 3 2 ♥ 9
N
♦ 8 5 W E ♦ Q 4 3
♣ 10 6 S ♣ 3
♠ 4 2
♥ K 10 4
♦ A
♣ K Q 9 8 5 4 2
West North East South
3♦ 3♠ 4♣
4♥ 5♣ 5♠ End
Incidentally, what is
the chance that all four
players have seven or
more cards in a suit?
Mrs Sue Bonfield,
Waterford, Hertfordshire.
A
Your actual auction
does not seem
wildy unreasonable.
Perhaps East should
pass over 5♣ because
the singleton heart
indicates a misfit, which
suggests defending. At
rubber bridge, however,
there is little difference
between +50 and -50.
The chance that an
individual player has a
seven-card suit or longer is
almost exactly 4% (1 in 25).
An exact calculation of the
chance that all four players
do so would take more time
to work out than I have.
A rough approximation is
0.000256% (1 in 390,625).
In practice, the chance is
somewhat higher than that
because the chance of having
a long suit yourself increases
marginally when other
players have a long suit.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Opener has
15-19 points in a
balanced hand.
You open your longest
suit with a planned rebid
of 1NT with 15-16, 2NT
with 17-18 and 3NT
with 19 points.
1. If the bidding goes
1♠-Pass-2♣-Pass, what
do you bid next with
15-16 and 17-18 points?
2. If the bidding goes
1♦-Pass-1♠-2♣, what do
you rebid after the
overcall with 15-16 and
17-18 points?
Ron Turner, Alton.
A
Bernard and I both
recommend a more
modern system of
rebids with balanced hands
after a one-level response.
We recommend that 1NT
shows 15-17 and 2NT
shows 18-19. This avoids the
space consuming double
jump to 3NT with 19. If you
played in a tournament,
you would find that nearly
everyone is using 18-19
for the 2NT jump rebid.
After the two-level
response, you have only
two options (2NT and 3NT).
However, in the light of
what I have said above, this
is no real restriction. You
could simply play 2NT =
15-17 and 3NT = 18-19,
i.e. bidding a level higher
than you would have after
a one-level response.
Indeed, I believe this is what
Bernard recommends. If
you played in a tournament,
you would find that some
people play 2NT as wide-
ranging (15-19) with some
Page 18
mechanism to discover how
strong opener is after that.
When the fourth player
overcalls at the two level,
the usual treatment is to
keep the 2NT rebid up to
strength and to double
on hands that would have
rebid 1NT i.e. double =
15-17 and 2NT =18-19.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Dummy (North)
has no side
entry and
holds A-J-10-9-x in its
one strong suit. South
leads a small card.
What should West play
when holding Q-x-x?
Keith Boothby, Buxton.
A
The right play
depends upon what
declarer holds. If
a small doubleton, playing
the queen restricts declarer
to a single trick. Playing the
queen is not so clever of
course if declarer has K-x-x-x
or partner has the singleton
king. It is also sub-optimal if
declarer holds a singleton. If
the suit is a major, you can
generally assume that the
opponents do not have a
5-4 fit because they would
be playing in the suit if they
did. Thus, when the suit is a
major and dummy has no
side entry, it is usually a good
idea to play the queen.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Last week, my
partner played
with ten trumps
between the two hands.
The outstanding 3 cards
split 3-0; I said this must
be a 25% chance since
there are three ways of
arriving at 2-1 and one
way of having 3-0. When
I got home I looked
up the official figures
and found them to be
3-0=22%; 2-1=78%. I
then checked up on the
probabilities for other
distributions and got
close using:
N
C r=N!/(r!.[N-r]!) but
never exact. What
am I missing?
Caroline Richards by email.
A
The reason why it
is not 25% is that
players have a finite
number of cards in their
hands, so length in one suit
affects the length in other
suits. The 22% and 78% you
quote are exact figures.
You cannot match some
of the other figures because
published figures are often
rounded to the nearest
whole percentage point.
For example, the chance of
a 3-3 break with 6 cards
missing is not an exact 36%
but actually 35.528%.
♣♦♥♠
Q
When playing
a strong no-
trump and
5-card majors, I play
support doubles. What
is opener’s priority rebid
with a 5431 type, to show
a new suit or three cards
in partner’s major?
♠ A Q 5
♥ K J 4 3 2
♦ K Q 4 3
♣ 4
West North East South
1♥ Pass 1♠ 2♣
?
Keith Rickson by email.
A
The priority, if you
play support doubles,
is to double to show
the 3-card support. If you
rebid 2♦, that would deny
3-card spade support.
 Ask Julian continued
Q
You hold 10
points and a flat
hand with no
4-card major or 5-card
minor after partner opens
1♥ or 1♠ (5-card suit).
Which response do you
recommend, 1NT, 2NT, or
(with 3 cards in partner’s
suit) a 2- or 3-level raise?
Geoffrey Cassen, Honiton.
A
Although you have
said you are play-
ing 5-card majors,
you have not said what
1NT opening you are play-
ing. This is material.
If you are playing a strong
no-trump, it is normal to
respond 1NT with up to 10
points: partner will either
have a hand too weak to
open a 15-17 1NT (when
you will have at most 24
points between you) or
enough shape to bid again.
If you are playing a weak
no-trump, it is normal to
respond two of a minor
because you do not want
to play in 1NT with 10
points facing 15 or 16. It
is unusual to make a jump
raise with 3-card support
even playing 5-card majors.
♣♦♥♠
Q
In the 2/1 system,
when partner
opens 1♥ and
responder has 13+ HCP
and 5+ spades, how does
the bidding proceed?
Mike Ball, Exmouth.
A
When responder’s
long suit is spades,
it does not mat-
ter whether you are play-
ing 2/1 or not. The auction
will be much the same
in any standard system.
You start with a simple 1♠
Ardington Hotel
response and wait to see
how the auction develops.
You do not respond 2♣
or 2♦ just because you Worthing BN11 3DZ
have game-forcing values.
Doing so would mislead
your partner about your
shape. If you respond 2♣
and later bid 2♠ followed
by 3♠, partner will think you
are 5-6 in the black suits.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Playing Precision,
I (West) held: BRIDGE EVENTS 2013
25-27 January Just Bridge £ 199
8-10 February Just Bridge £ 199
22-24 February Signals & Discards £ 215
♠ J 3
♥ J 8 6 5 4 2
15-17 March Doubles £ 215
♦ K 2 22-24 March Just Bridge £ 199
♣ 7 3 2 12-14 April Just Bridge £ 199
17-19 May Stayman & Transfers £ 215
7-9 June Suit Establishment £ 215
West North East South
1♣1 1♠ Full Board – No Single Supplement
Dble2 2♠ End Booking Form on page 9.
1
16+, any shape 25-7 points
Elstead Hotel
After the opponents went
one down, we noted that
we could have made 3♥. I
asked partner why he did Bournemouth BH1 3QP
not double 2♠ (takeout)
since we held the balance
of points. He replied that
I should have responded
hearts initially since this
was more descriptive
than the double.
However, a direct bid of
2♥ shows 8+ points and a
heart suit – rather a long
way from my actual hand.
Robert Watson, Grantham. BRIDGE EVENTS 2013
11-13 January Just Bridge £ 199
A
Having limited your 1-3 February Just Bridge £ 199
hand with your initial
double, I would have 22-24 February Just Bridge £ 199
thought you could bid 3♥ 17-19 May Rubber/Chicago £ 199
on the second round. Your
14-16 June Just Bridge £ 199
partner has already shown a
good hand by opening 1♣ 8-10 November Just Bridge £ 199
and so has no need to double 22-24 November Just Bridge £ 199
2♠ to tell you. As you are
playing 2♥ over 1♠ as a posi- Full Board – No Single Supplement
tive response, it would seem Booking Form on page 9.
an overbid to do that.
Page 19
 Staverton Park
Ask Julian continued
Staverton, Daventry NN11 6JT
Q
My partner and
I, having played
strong twos (8
playing tricks) for the
past 40 years or so, have
converted to weak twos
(6 cards and 6-10 HCP).
This means that with
BRIDGE EVENTS 2013 weak hands we open
8-10 March Just Bridge £169 at the two level (not
5-7 April Just Bridge £169 2♣) with a six-card suit,
7-9 June Just Bridge £169 at the three level with
14-16 June Just Bridge £169 a seven-card suit and
at the four level with
12-14 July Just Bridge £169
an eight-card suit.
19-21 July Just Bridge £169
1. Is it good to have
2-4 August Just Bridge £169
so many pre-empts?
9-11 August Just Bridge £169
2. How should you
13-15 September Rubber/Chicago £199
bid strong hands?
4-6 October Just Bridge £169
F A Records,
15-17 November Just Bridge £169
Binstead, Isle of Wight.
Full Board – No Single Supplement
A
Booking Form on page 9. 1. The more trumps
you have the more
tricks you can make
and the keener you will
Denham Grove be to buy the contract.
This is why it makes sense
Denham, Buckinghamshire, UB9 5DG to bid hands with six-card
suits differently from hands
with a seven-card suit and
differently again from hands
with an eight-card suit.
2. If, as you seem to
be playing, you use weak
twos in three suits, your
only opening bid for very
strong hands is 2♣.
This does make the range
for a one-level opening
quite wide. Most people
seem to be able to live with
BRIDGE EVENTS 2013 this. As responder, you
15-17 March Game Tries £215 should strain to keep the
bidding open a little more
22-24 March Leads & Defence £215 than you used to. As opener,
4-6 October Doubles £215 there are a variety of forcing
rebids available, such as
25-27 October Finding Slams £215 a jump in a new suit or a
8-10 November Hand Evaluation £215
Full Board – No Single Supplement E-mail your questions for Julian to:
Booking Form on page 9. julianpottage@mrbridge.co.uk
Page 20
reverse, so you can open
at the one level with some
quite strong hands. Only if
you have game in your own
hand, or very nearly so,
should you open 2♣. It is not
a good idea to weaken the
2♣ opening significantly.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Would it be rea-
sonable to open
1♥ on this hand
in first or second seat?
♠ J 10
♥ K Q 10 9
♦ J 10 3
♣ K J 9 7
Most of my friends,
who have been playing
longer than I have, say
that you should pass.
Francis Palmer,
Banstead, Surrey.
A
Some people would
open your hand –
some would pass – it
is question of style and may
depend upon the vulner-
ability. It would be normal
to add something on for
the good intermediates and
to take something off for
the unguarded honours in
spades. I might pass if vul-
nerable, but would definitely
open 1NT if non-vulnerable.
Most people play 4-card
majors and a weak no-
trump, or 5-card majors
and a strong no-trump.
If the former, you open
1NT or pass; if the latter,
you open 1♣ or pass.
You would have to be in a
different seat or playing an
uncommon system for 1♥ to
be a sensible opening. ■
 The Diaries of Wendy Wensum
Episode 10:
Don’t Count Chickens, Count Tricks
I
nspired by our recent
holiday on Rhodes,
Millie and I decided that
we would like to play more
team events, so we invited
Kate and Jo to join us and
entered the local Riverside
bridge league.
On the first evening,
with so many new faces
from other clubs, Kate and
Jo seemed more nervous
than usual, so the four of
us ventured into the bar
to brace ourselves for the
encounters ahead.
We were more confident,
but possibly less competent,
on our arrival in the bridge
room some twenty minutes
later.
I think we all know that
computer-dealt hands can
produce a wide range of dis-
tributions, sometimes flat,
sometimes unbalanced, but
nearly always instructive.
This was such a board
played against a very
pleasant, but rather intense
all-male team. North was
dealer:
♠ 9 8 6 5 3
♥ 10 7
♦ A K 5
♣ A K 7 I asked Millie what had led
Jo Kate North South
♠ K Q J N ♠ A 10 7 4 2
W E
♥ 5 4 S ♥ J 6 3 2
♦ J 10 7 4 ♦ Q 9
♣ Q 9 6 3 ♣ J 8
♠ Void
♥ A K Q 9 8
♦ 8 6 3 2
♣ 10 5 4 2
At our other table, North
opened 1NT (12-14) and
South responded 2♥ (weak
takeout), which was the
final contract. It was a very
short auction with neither
Kate nor Jo bidding. Jo led
the king of spades which
declarer ruffed in hand. He
then entered dummy by
means of the ace of clubs,
ruffed a spade with the nine
of hearts, cashed his tricks
and made nine tricks for a
score of +140. According to
Kate, much long and earnest
discussion then followed
with the North-South pair
debating a variety of possible
squeezes and throw-in plays
for a tenth trick.
At our table, I was in the
North seat and opened one
spade. Millie responded
two hearts and I found
myself forced to re-bid
two spades. Clearly, I did
not like re-bidding such a
weak suit, and considered
a bid of two no-trumps
or even three clubs as
alternatives. Of course, in
sober retrospect, I realised I
should have opened one no-
trump instead of one spade
thus avoiding my current
dilemma.
The full lamentable
auction was:
Wendy Millie
1♠ 2♥
2♠ 3♣
3NT 4♥
West led the king of spades,
which Millie ruffed in hand.
She led a diamond to the
ace, ruffed a spade in hand,
led another diamond to the
king and ruffed another
spade in hand. Now she
Page 21
Andrew Kambites’
Lead Quiz
You are West in the
auctions below playing
teams or rubber bridge.
It is your lead. (Answers
repeated this procedure in on page 32.)
clubs. She led a club to the
ace, ruffed a spade in hand,
led another club to the king 1 ♠ 10 9 8 3 2
and ruffed the last spade ♥ 8 6 4
N
in hand. Although the ten ♦ A 7 W E
of hearts in dummy lost to ♣ K 8 4 S
the jack, the seven of hearts
gave Millie the tenth trick
and the contract for a score West North East South
of +420. 1NT
During the post-mortem, Pass 3NT End
East-West heatedly dis-
cussed the merits of an ini-
tial trump lead and other
alternative defences.
While this was going on, 2 ♠ K J 10 4 3 2
N
Millie was digging deeply ♥ 8 6 4
W E
into her cavernous handbag. ♦ 7 S
Her trembling hand ♣ K 8 4
emerged with a silver flask,
which I knew would contain
some sustaining brandy. West North East South
She took a surreptitious 1NT
swig of the liquid to calm Pass 3NT End
her shattered nerves.
At this point, I distinctly
heard Millie murmur,
‘That was an extreme case 3 ♠ K 10 9 7 3 2
of dummy reversal.’ We ♥ 8 6 4
N
W E
still lost that match, of ♦ 7 S
course and several others ♣ K 8 4
and finished in relegation
position. Luckily, there
being no lower division, we West North East South
couldn’t be demoted. 1NT
In the hostelry afterwards, Pass 3NT End
her to choose that particular
strategy when playing the
board. ‘Well, dear,’ she said,
‘When we went to bridge 4 ♠ J 10 9 3 2
classes, our tutor always ♥ 8 6 4 N
W E
told us to count our tricks ♦ A 7
S
and not waste our trumps. ♣ 8 6 4
As you know, I always put
into practice what we were
taught. Your round, I think, West North East South
Wendy. Mine’s a brandy. 1NT
Make it a double will you, Pass 3NT End
please?’ ■
Travel on board V OYAGER
a
ll Voyager cruises will have an exclusive
group on board. All clients will be invited to
the drinks parties. For passengers that opt to pay the £30
bridge supplement; there is duplicate bridge every evening,
seminars every morning and afternoon bridge each day the
ship is at sea and one of Bernard Magee’s bidding quizzes.
The bridge is a fully optional programme and you may
participate as much or as little as you wish. Singles are most
welcome and will always be accommodated. If space allows
any bridge playing passengers will be able to participate in
the afternoon bridge session however, priority will always be
given to passengers.

is pleased to say he is receiving bookings from an

increasing number of non-bridge playing passengers, they
enjoy the opportunity to be part of a group and the social
benefits this gives to those travelling alone.

dinner on board Voyager is open sitting which allows for greater

flexibility. However, we have arranged for clients
to meet up with those in similar circumstances and sit at tables
together. Being part of a group means passengers
should never feel they are alone.

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• Beauty Salon • The Bridge Club visits cities reborn after conflict
and others frozen in time.
• Medical Centre • Internet Centre Explorer Grill

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 RICE

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BRITISH ISLeS MIDNIgHT SUN
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 Bernard Magee’s
Bidding Quiz 2012-2013 BRIDGE EVENTS
You are West in the
auctions below, playing with Bernard Magee
‘Standard Acol’ with a
weak no-trump (12-14
19 – 21 Inn
points) and 4-card majors.
on the Prom
(Answers on page 26.)
£245 Thinking
Defence
1. Dealer North. Love All.
26 –28 The Olde Barn
♠ A 9 7
♥ 10 8 7 5 4 3
N Hotel
W E
♦ Q 4 S £245 Splinters and
♣ A 3 Cue Bids
Chatsworth Hotel Blunsdon House Hotel
Worthing BN11 3DU Swindon SN26 7AS
West North East South
Pass 1♦ Pass DECEMBER 2012 JULY 2013
1♥ Pass 2♦ Pass
2♥ Pass 3♦ Pass 28 – 30 Chatsworth 5 – 7 Blunsdon
? Hotel House Hotel
£245 Better Defence £245 Signals and
Discards
2. Dealer North. Game All.
MARCH 2013
♠ J 10 7 5 4 12 – 14 Cheltenham
22-24 Queensferry
♥ 6 5 Inn on the Prom Regency
N Hotel St Annes-on-Sea FY8 1LU
♦ Q 9 2 W E £245 Thinking
♣ Q 8 5 S
£245 Leads and
Defence
Defence
JUNE 2013 OCTOBER 2013
APRIL 2013
West North East South
7 –9 The Olde Barn 11 – 13 Blunsdon
1♠ Dble Pass 5 – 7 Blunsdon
? Hotel House Hotel
House Hotel
£245 Endplay and £245 Splinters and
£245 Losing Trick
Avoidance Cue Bids
3. Dealer North. Game All. Count

♠ A 8 6 4 3 18 – 20 Chatsworth
12 – 14 Chatsworth
♥ 7 Hotel
N Hotel
♦ Q 9 8 5 2 W E £245 Playing &
♣ J 5 S £245 Declarer Play
Defending 1NT

West North East South

1NT 2♥ Pass
?

Cheltenham Regency Hotel

4. Dealer East. N/S Game. Cheltenham GL51 0ST
♠ Q 9 5 4
♥ Q 9 N
W E
♦ J 7 3 S 14 – 16 Chatsworth
♣ K 9 4 2 The Olde Barn Hotel Hotel Queensferry Hotel
Marston, Lincs NG32 2HT North Queensferry KY11 1HP
£245 Sacrificing
West North East South
1♥ Pass Full Board – No Single Supplement.
1♠ Pass 2♦ Pass
? See booking form on page 9.

Page 24
 ‘Better Bridge with Bernard’ DVDs
reviewed by June Booty
First published in the October 2011 issue of English Bridge and reprinted by kind permission of the EBU.
T
his is a collection of six DVDs,
each one of a series of lectures
which were given by Bernard
Magee as part of the 2011 Haslemere
Festival, totalling eight and a half
hours in all. There are three playing
topics: Ruffing for Extra Tricks, Making
the Most of High Cards, and Play and
Defence of 1NT Contracts; and three
mainly bidding topics: Competitive
Auc­tions, Finding and Bidding Slams,
and Doubling and Defence against
Doubled Contracts. Because the lec-
tures were filmed live there is audience
partici­pation. Often Magee asks the
audience what they think something
means and it is difficult to hear what
they are saying, but he sum­marises
their answers so it is easy to follow.
Often a member of the audience will
ask a question and the camera zooms
in on them. This interaction adds to
the interest of the DVDs. Magee treats
all of the audience comments with
respect, even when he doesn’t agree
with them, and gives comprehensive
answers.
Throughout all of the lectures
Bernard Magee is very knowledgeable
and enthu­ siastic about his subject.
His points are made in a clear and
structured way with plenty of examples
to illustrate his argu­ment. Initially his
arm movements are a little distracting,
as well as his repeated question to his
audience: ‘Can you see what I mean?’,
but the listener soon learns to ignore
these, and the animated enthusiasm
of body and voice helps to enhance
the enjoyment. Magee stands to one
side of a large projection screen upon
which he shows slides to illustrate his
points. These are very clear and help
the viewer to follow the points in the
lecture. It is very easy to follow a deal
that is being played in this way.
The Competitive Auctions DVD
deals with many aspects of competitive
auctions such as Unassuming Cue-
bids, Negative Doubles, and when to
compete and when to double.
One example deal used is:
Love All. Dealer West.
♠ J 9 5 3 2
♥ 7 4 2
♦ A K
♣ K Q 4
♠ A 6 ♠ K 8 4
♥ A K Q 9 N ♥ J 10 8 5
W E
♦ J 9 4 S ♦ Q 10 5 3
♣ J 9 5 3 ♣ 7 2
♠ Q 10 7
♥ 6 3
♦ 8 7 6 2 DVD starts very simply and addresses
♣ A 10 8 6
West North East South and setting up a long suit, and goes on
1♥ 1♠ 2♥ 2♠1 to demonstrate strategies that defend-
Pass2 Pass 3♥3 All Pass
1 This is an example of raising to the level of
the fit, i.e. North has five or more spades
for his overcall and South has three
spades. This makes a total of eight spades
so South bids to make eight tricks.
2 West cannot guarantee that East has four
hearts as partner will often raise with
three-card support in these situations,
and the partnership cannot have enough
points for game, so he will pass and leave
the decision to partner.
3 East knows his side has at least eight
hearts, and that the opposition have at
least eight spades, so is not prepared to
let the opponents play at the two level.
2♥ will make +110 for East-West,
which is the best positive score they
can make, but if North-South bid 2♠ it
will make for minus 110 for East-West.
Once North-South have found this
good score, East-West can sacrifice
in 3♥ which is then only minus 50
for them (minus 100 if the opponents
double); this is a better result for East-
West, especially at pairs. This rather
difficult topic is explained very clearly
step-by-step.
Finding and Bidding Slams covers
many useful conventions. It starts by
explaining when to look for a slam and
then explains Quantitative Bidding,
Page 25
Key-card Blackwood, Cue-bidding
and Splinter Bids.
Doubling and Defence Against
Doubled Contracts starts by explaining
what a penalty double means and
when a double is penalty and when it is
for takeout. It goes on to explain when
not to double.
The subjects covered are suitable for
all standards of players with at least
six months of playing experience, al-
though the Ruffing for Extra Tricks
popular basic playing errors. It ad-
dresses concepts such as ruffing in the
short hand rather than the long hand
ers can employ to stop this. Most of the
other DVDs would require a little more
experience to get the most out of them
and would be suitable for players of all
levels up to average club standard.
Each DVD is in two parts and at the
beginning of each one Magee describes
what is going to be discussed. He goes
on to talk about these topics and also
about related subjects that fit in with
those being covered. It is not obvious
in which order they should be viewed
as on the back of each individual DVD
they are listed in one order while
on the back of the pack of six they
are listed in a different order. In the
Doubling and Defence of 1NT Contracts
Magee says, ‘We did cover this in Com­
petitive Bidding,’ so this would suggest
the order on the back of the DVDs is
correct, rather than on the box.
Bernard Magee’s bidding system
and concepts are extremely good, and
while I did not agree with absolutely
every point he made, everything he
says has merit and builds up to an
excellent thinking strategy.
The DVDs cost £25 each or a boxed
set of all six for £100, post free. Each
DVD lasts just over an hour (the first
few minutes of which have a preamble
showing where the lectures took
place), and is a high-quality and well
presented product. ■
 Answers to Bernard Magee’s
Bidding Quiz on page 24
1. Dealer North. Love All.
♠ A 9 7 ♠ J 5
N
♥ 10 8 7 5 4 3
W E
♥ 6
♦ Q 4 S ♦ A K 10 9 7 6 3
♣ A 3 ♣ K 5 4
West North East South
Pass 1♦ Pass
1♥ Pass 2♦ Pass
2♥ Pass 3♦ Pass
? would normally show four cards.
3NT. The thing to remember here
is that you are on the same side – you
have no interest in your suit winning the
declaration, only in finding the best final
contract. What has your partner shown?
Well, basically, he has a hand that is just
too strong to pre-empt in diamonds – so
perhaps 11 or 12 points with a seven-
card diamond suit.
Have you found your answer yet? Well,
you hope to make seven diamond tricks to
go with two aces in your hand. Yes, 3NT is
the spot – your ♦Q looks very much suited
to that contract – ideal for solidifying your
partner’s suit. You have a stopper in each
of the black suits as well as hearts – so
surely it is worth a try. While it could go
wrong, more often than not you will win.
2. Dealer North. Game All.
♠ J 10 7 5 4 ♠ Void
N
♥ 6 5
W E
♥ K Q J 10
♦ Q 9 2 S ♦ K 6 4 3
♣ Q 8 5 ♣ K J 9 6 4
West North East South
1♠ Dble Pass
? you could contemplate bidding – but
2♣. This is not very nice: partner has
asked you to bid a suit and the only one
you have is spades. Do not be tempted
to pass – you are too weak. Although it
might seem that 1♠ doubled is the best
spot, declarer will most likely cruise
home. So what can you do instead? 1NT
would show 7-10pts, while a suit bid
When in trouble, try to slow the auction
by showing the least number of points –
2♣/♦ promise nothing because partner
is forcing you to make a bid. Best is to
choose the lower suit.
3. Dealer North. Game All.
♠ A 8 6 4 3 ♠ 2
♥ 7 N ♥ A Q J 10 8 5
W E
♦ Q 9 8 5 2 S ♦ 7 4
♣ J 5 ♣ A 9 8 4
West North East South
1NT 2♥ Pass
? 2♠. This leaves you with a choice between
Pass. ‘How come partner always bids
my singleton?’ Think before you act. Your
partner has made a vulnerable overcall
suggesting a reasonable suit. While you
do not know whether 2♥ will be a good
contract, you should try to make it better
only when you have a good suit of your
own. You do not have a good suit. Your
spades are awful and to bid diamonds
would take you to the 3-level. A sixth
spade, or a much better suit and then
not now. Pass and let partner suffer the
consequences. It turns out that he does
have a rather good suit and is likely to
make at least seven tricks in hearts – not
so bad. When you are weak, do not bid
simply because you are short in his suit.
4. Dealer East. N/S Game.
♠ Q 9 5 4 ♠ A 7
N
♥ Q 9
W E
♥ K J 10 5 2
♦ J 7 3 S ♦ Q 8 4 2
♣ K 9 4 2 ♣ Q 3
West North East South
1♥ Pass
1♠ Pass 2♦ Pass
?
2♥. You are weak and your partner may
be quite weak – 2♦ is a simple change of
suit, consistent with a minimum opening
with five hearts and four diamonds. You
do not have enough to bid no-trumps,
nor do you have enough spades to bid
partner’s two suits. Although, at first, it
might seem that you should pass and
let partner play in diamonds, history has
proven that contracts tend to play better
in a 5-2 fit rather than a 4-3 fit. Here, you
should rebid 2♥. This is false preference –
giving preference to the opened suit even
though you have one more card in the
second suit. A contract of 2♥ will be much
more comfortable than one of 2♦. ■

The Inn on the Prom Bridge Events 2013

19-21 April Bernard Magee Thinking Defence £245

12-14 July Just Bridge £169

16-18 August Just Bridge £169

Full Board – No Single Supplement. Booking Form on page 9.

St Annes-on-Sea FY8 1LU

Page 26
 COLIN BAMBERGER
DEFENCE 1927-2012
QUIZ stowe. They had three
sons. Robert and Clive
live close to Zena. Sadly,
by Julian Pottage their third son, Richard,
(Answers overleaf) died from asthma at the
age of 25 and for this rea-
son the family requested
Y ou are West in the defensive positions below. It is your
turn to play. Both sides are using Acol with a 12-14 1NT. that donations should be
made to the National
Asthma Campaign in-
stead of floral tributes.
1. ♠ A K Q 8 3. ♠ A87

I
Colin was a very keen
♥ 8 3 ♥ K 10
♦ K Q J 10 9 ♦ AKQ86
t is with real regret duplicate bridge player
♣ 9 7 ♣ 10 4 2 I report the sudden and represented Suffolk
♠ 6 5 ♠ Q 10 5 death of Colin Bam- at county level into 2012.
♥ K 9 7 6 4 N
♥ J 9 6 2 N berger, who collapsed in He was a regular member
♦ A 8 5 3
W E
♦ 10 7 3
W E his Felixstowe store in of Felixstowe, Colchester
S S
♣ A J ♣ A J 6 early September. Despite and Ipswich duplicate
the efforts by both the Air bridge clubs. He was in
Ambulance and Norfolk the team which won the
West North East South West North East South and Norwich Hospital, he Suffolk Championship
1♥ Dble 3♥ 3♠ 3♠ could not be resuscitated. Teams in 1985 and 1994.
Pass 4♠ End Pass 4♠ End Colin was born in 1927 His team also won the
in the North Devon town Suffolk Premier League in
You lead the ♥6 – ♥3, ♥J You lead the ♥2. Partner of Torrington. His father 2001/2 and 2009/10. Colin
and ♥A. Declarer leads the wins the ♥10 with the was a NAAFI manager supported the bridge
♦2. How do you defend? ♥Q and switches to the and in consequence, Colin Congresses at Clacton-
♣5. What do you do after moved to many different on-Sea and Felixstowe.
taking declarer’s ♣K with parts of the country to the Only last year, he and
the ♣A? extent that he attended his partner won the
Consolation Pairs final.
13 different schools. His
last school was Felixstowe Colin was a proficient
Grammar and it is from golfer and he loved to take
2. ♠ A K Q 8 4. ♠ K 6
there that he progressed holidays in his caravan or
♥ 8 7 2 ♥ J 9 4 3
to Bristol University, on a narrow boat.
♦ K Q 9 8 4 ♦ A J 7 6
where he was awarded Colin will be known to
♣ 4 ♣ K Q 8
♠ 10 5 ♠ A Q J 8
an honours degree in many readers of this mag-
♥ A J 6 N ♥ K 10 6 5 2 N Organic Chemistry. His azine as, with the support
♦ A 7 5 3
W E
♦ Void
W E parents ran a large store in of Mr Bridge, he organ-
S S
♣ Q 9 7 6 ♣ J 9 5 4 Felixstowe and Colin took ised the collection of used
over the management postage stamps, which he
after serving two years in sorted and sold to raise
West North East South West North East South the army. From that time, funds for the Lucia Little
1♦ Pass 1♠ 1♦ Colin remained in the Voice in Addis Ababa. As
Pass 3♠ Pass 4♠ Dble 2NT 1 3♠ 4♦ retail fabric business. It a result, the charity has re-
End 4♠ 5♦ End was perhaps in character ceived over £7,000.
1
sound diamond raise that he died on a Saturday There will be many
You lead the ♣6 – ♣4, ♣K morning, while working in East Anglia who will
and ♣A. Declarer leads the You lead the ♥5 – ♥9, ♥Q at his store. miss Colin. We offer our
♦J. How do you defend? and ♥A. Declarer leads the Colin and Zena, his de- deepest sympathies to
♠7. How do you defend? voted wife, lived for many Zena, Robert and Clive.
years on the edge of Felix- Claude Stokes

Page 27
 Answers to Julian Pottage’s 
Defence Quiz on page 27
West North East South partner with the ace of hearts, it seems
1. ♠ A K Q 8 1♦ Pass 1♠ tempting to go back to hearts. Assuming
♥ 8 3 Pass 3♠ Pass 4♠ the ace of hearts stands up, your side has
♦ K Q J 10 9 End the first three tricks. These plus your sure
♣ 9 7 trump trick will defeat the contract. As the
♠ 6 5 ♠ J 3 You lead the ♣6 – ♣4, ♣K and ♣A. cards lie, playing another heart does not
N
♥ K 9 7 6 4 ♥ Q J 5 2 Declarer leads the ♦J. How do you work. Declarer ruffs, tests the trumps and
W E
♦ A 8 5 3 S ♦ 7 6 4 defend? discards a club on a diamond.
♣ A J ♣ Q 10 5 4 The position is similar to that on the How do you know to lead a club rather
♠ 10 9 7 4 2 previous deal. Unless your side takes than a heart? The clue is East’s five of
♥ A 10 four tricks quickly, you are unlikely ever to clubs. A low card suggests an honour.
♦ 2 make them. With no club tricks available, What is more, as there is only one lower
♣ K 8 6 3 2 you need three heart tricks this time. You club out, it suggests a five-card (or
can make them so long as declarer has shorter) suit. This tells you that partner
at least three hearts and East the king no holds the queen and that it is cashing.
West North East South matter who holds the queen. You take
1♥ Dble 3♥ 3♠ the diamond and lead the six of hearts.
Pass 4♠ End This leaves you with the ace-jack as a
tenace over the queen. 4. ♠ K 6
You lead the ♥6 – ♥3, ♥J and ♥A. How do you know not to try giving ♥ J 9 4 3
Declarer leads the ♦2. How do you partner a diamond ruff (you might have ♦ A J 7 6
defend? asked the same thing on the previous ♣ K Q 8
Since dummy has plenty of entries, deal)? Since declarer could easily have ♠ A Q J 8 ♠ 10 9 5 4 3 2
there is no point in holding up – doing drawn some trumps, you assume that a ♥ K 10 6 5 2 N ♥ Q 8
W E
so would be very dangerous if the two is ruff is not on your way. ♦ Void ♦ K 8 3
S
a singleton. ♣ J 9 5 4 ♣ 7 6
A glance at dummy should tell you that ♠ 7
the best chance of making four tricks is ♥ A 7
via two red tricks and two clubs. The play 3. ♠ A 8 7 ♦ Q 10 9 5 4 2
to the first trick marks partner with the ♥ K 10 ♣ A 10 3 2
queen of hearts – so lead a low heart ♦ A K Q 8 6
and wait for a club back. ♣ 10 4 2
This way, you expect to defeat the ♠ Q 10 5 ♠ Void West North East South
contract if partner has either the queen ♥ J 9 6 2 N ♥ A Q 8 7 5 4 1♦
W E
or the king of clubs. ♦ 10 7 3 ♦ 9 5 Dble 2NT 1 3♠ 4♦
S
♣ A J 6 ♣ Q 9 7 5 3 4♠ 5♦ End
♠ K J 9 6 4 3 2 1
sound diamond raise
♥ 3
2. ♠ A K Q 8 ♦ J 4 2 You lead the ♥5 – ♥9, ♥Q and ♥A.
♥ 8 7 2 ♣ K 8 Declarer leads the ♠7. How do you
♦ K Q 9 8 4 defend?
♣ 4 You should take the ace – you are
♠ 10 5 ♠ 7 3 West North East South making only one spade trick anyway and
N
♥ A J 6 ♥ K 9 5 4 3♠ declarer’s seven may be a singleton. If
W E
♦ A 7 5 3 S ♦ 10 6 2 Pass 4♠ End the seven is a singleton, there is another
♣ Q 9 7 6 ♣ K 10 5 3 danger – declarer threatens to discard a
♠ J 9 6 4 2 You lead the ♥2. Partner wins the ♥10 heart on the king of spades. To counter
♥ Q 10 3 with the ♥Q and switches to the ♣5. this threat, you must cash the king of
♦ J What do you do after taking declarer’s hearts next. You hope that partner takes
♣ A J 8 2 ♣K with the ♣A? the setting trick in trumps (or possibly with
Since the play to the first trick marks a heart ruff if declarer has three hearts).■

Page 28
 CHARITY BRIDGE EVENTS
DECLARER DECEMBER 2012 15 CONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATION
Great Stukeley Branch,
3 ST TERESA’S HOSPICE Great Stukeley Village Hall,

PLAY
Christmas party. 10.00 for 10.30am. £13.50.
1.15pm at St Georges Sheila Stephenson
Bridge Centre, Darlington. ( 01480 457338
Only £5 to include luxury

QUIZ
Kay Brownlow
prizes, festive food ( 01480 880663
and bridge.
Christine Bainbridge MARCH 2013
( 01325 469785
by David Huggett 12 ST NEOTS BOWLING CLUB
JANUARY 2013 (ARC). St Neots, Cambs.
(Answers overleaf) 10.00 for 10.30am. £14.00.
25 CHORAL SOCIETY John Shaw
St Neots Bowling Club, ( 01480 475454

Y ou are South as declarer playing teams or rubber bridge.

In each case, what is your play strategy?
St Neots, Cambs.
10.00 for 10.30am. £14.
Jane Lambert
13 ROTARY CLUB OF WIMBORNE,
Allendale Community
( 01480 861581 Centre, Wimborne. £28 per
table, inc. high tea & prizes.
FEBRUARY 2013 Don Phillips
1. ♠ Q 6 5 3. ♠ A J 9 6 4 ( 01202 891801
2 LEUKAEMIA
♥ K Q 8 ♥ 8 5 & LYMPHOMA RESEARCH
♦ A 6 4 ♦ J 3 APRIL 2013
Bridge drive at Horton
♣ 8 7 5 4 ♣ A 9 7 5 & Chalbury Village Hall, 19 MS THERAPY CENTRE
Wimborne, Dorset. Village Hall, Hemingford
N N 11am to 4.30pm. Abbots. 10.00 for 10.30am.
W E W E £15 per person (table of 4) Tickets £14.00.
S S to include coffee on arrival, Jenny Lea
lunch with wine. Free raffle. ( 01480 455810
♠ A K 7 2 ♠ K Q 10 8 2
♥ A J 10 9 3 ♥ A Q 6 2 E-mail your charity events: maggie@mrbridge.co.uk
♦ 7 5 ♦ A 8
♣ J 2 ♣ K 2

You are declarer in 4♥ and You are declarer in 6♠ and

West leads the ♦K. How West leads the ♦K. How
do you plan the play? do you plan the play?

2. ♠ 6 4 4. ♠ 6
♥ K Q 5 ♥ K J 2
♦ A K J 10 7 5 ♦ K Q 8 5
♣ K 6 ♣ A 9 7 5 4

N
W E
N
W E
Treat yourself to a beautiful
S S
hand-crafted bridge table.
♠ K J 2 ♠ A 8 7 Made in France from specially
♥ 9 7 6 ♥ A 9 3 selected beech our tables will
♦ 8 4 ♦ A J 10 9 4 3 grace any room.
♣ A 8 7 5 2 ♣ 6 Mahogany or cherry finish

Traditional green felt or luxury velour

You are declarer in 3NT
after West opened 1♠ and
East remained silent. West
playing surface.
You are declarer in 7♦.
FREE COLOUR Folds flat. Patented Hinging Device
West leads the ♦2 and East
follows with the ♦7. How
BROCHURE Three different models from £149

leads the ♠5 and East plays do you plan the play? Phone 01483 750611
the ♠Q. How do you plan www.bridge-tables.co.uk
the play?
S R Designs, 1 Hook Hill Park, Woking, GU22 0PX

Page 29
 Answers to David Huggett’s
Play Quiz on page 29
1. ♠ Q 6 5
♥ K Q 8
♦ A 6 4
♣ 8 7 5 4
♠ 10 8 ♠ J 9 4 3
N
♥ 6 4 ♥ 7 5 2
W E
♦ K Q J 8 S ♦ 10 9 3 2
♣ K 10 9 6 3 ♣ A Q Actually, as you need only five diamond
♠ A K 7 2
♥ A J 10 9 3
♦ 7 5
♣ J 2
You are declarer in 4♥ and West leads
the ♦K. How do you plan the play?
With nine tricks on top and with no
hope of making an extra trick in the mi-
nors, it might seem as though spades
have to break 3-3 to give you another
trick there.
There is, in fact, a better line than sim-
ply drawing trumps and hoping for the
best. Draw just two rounds of trumps, with
both defenders following; then play the
top three spades ending in hand. Even
if they break 4-2, you might find that the
defender with the four-card holding has
the outstanding trump; in this case, you
can ruff the fourth round in dummy. If the
suit breaks 3-3 after all, you can simply
draw the last trump.
opened 1♠ and East remained silent.
West leads the ♠5 and East plays the ♠Q.
How do you plan the play?
There is no point in holding up the
spade because West is going to hold
the vast majority of the high cards. At
first sight, it might look right simply to
finesse against the queen of diamonds.
tricks rather than six, it is better to play
off the top two cards in case East started
with queen doubleton: you certainly do
not want that hand to get in and lead a
spade. If you lose the third round of dia-
monds to West, he can do you no harm.
Another spade would give you nine tricks
while a club would enable you to set up a
heart trick: West must hold the ace from
the bidding.
3. ♠ A J 9 6 4
♥ 8 5
♦ J 3
♣ A 9 7 5
♠ 7 ♠ 5 3
N
♥ K J 9 3 ♥ 10 7 4
W E
♦ K Q 10 7 S ♦ 9 6 5 4 2
♣ J 8 6 4 ♣ Q 10 3
♠ K Q 10 8 2
♥ A Q 6 2
♦ A 8
♣ K 2
a heart switch will give you two tricks in
that suit.
4. ♠ 6
♥ K J 2
♦ K Q 8 5
♣ A 9 7 5 4
♠ Q 10 5 3 ♠ K J 9 4 2
N
♥ 8 7 5 W E ♥ Q 10 6 4
♦ 6 2 S ♦ 7
♣ J 10 3 2 ♣ K Q 8
♠ A 8 7
♥ A 9 3
♦ A J 10 9 4 3
♣ 6
You are declarer in 7♦. West leads the ♦2
and East follows with the ♦7. How do you
plan the play?
After ruffing two spades in dummy,
you will have twelve easy tricks; it looks
as though the thirteenth will require the
heart finesse to work. Not at all: as long
as clubs split 4-3, you can set up a long
card in that suit for a heart discard. So
draw trumps and crossruff the black suits
(starting with a club ruff) until dummy’s
last club becomes a winner. If, along the
way, you find that clubs are breaking
badly, you can always fall back upon the
heart finesse. ■

BEGIN 
2. ♠ 6 4 You are declarer in 6♠ and West leads
♥ K Q 5 the ♦K. How do you plan the play?
♦ A K J 10 7 5 A successful heart finesse will see you
♣ K 6
♠ A 10 8 5 3 ♠ Q 9 7
home but you should look for a play that
gives you better odds than that. Instead,
BRIDGE
ACOL  £66
N
♥ A J ♥ 10 8 4 3 2 win the opening lead and draw just one
W E
♦ 9 6 3 S ♦ Q 2 round of trumps, with both defenders
♣ Q J 9
♠ K J 2
♣ 10 4 3 following. Next play two rounds of clubs
ending in dummy and ruff a club high. VERSION
♥ 9 7 6 Enter dummy with a trump and ruff the
♦ 8 4 last club and then exit with a diamond. An Interactive Tutorial
♣ A 8 7 5 2 You know from the lead that West holds CD with Bernard Magee
the queen; when he wins, he will find
himself hopelessly endplayed. A dia- See Mail Order form on page 7.
You are declarer in 3NT after West mond will give a ruff and discard, while

Page 30
 CLUB
PLUGS
WENDOVER
Wendover Bridge Club
meets for duplicate bridge
every Tuesday evening
at 7.30 at the Wendover
Cricket Pavilion, Witchell.
Visitors and new members
are very welcome. Table
money: £2 members, £2.50
visitors, annual sub: £5.
For further details, contact
Chris Peeler, secretary.
( 01296 624089 or email
chrispeeler@ntlworld.com
 
BIRKENHEAD
Every Wednesday evening,
Merseyside Bridge Centre,
Birkenhead, offers a ‘Gentle
Duplicate’ session. This
is designed to introduce
duplicate to those who have
recently learnt the game,
or for more experienced
players who have only
played rubber or Chicago.  12:45 for 1pm start. Friendly
Email the club at admin@
merseybridge.org.uk or
phone John Wootton on
( 0151 638 8617.
ALTRINGHAM
The Jubilee Bridge Club in
south Manchester is looking
for new members. We are a
small friendly club averaging
between 6 and 8 tables an
evening. Duplicate bridge
is played on Monday and
Thursday evenings from
7.20pm with tea and coffee
served during the evening.
We play at the Jubilee
Community Centre, The
Firs, Bowdon, Altrincham,
Cheshire. WA14 2TQ.
Contact 0161 904 9775
for more information.
www.jubileebridge.org.uk
OLDHAM
Oakfield Bridge Club,
Uppermill, Oldham.
We are a very new EBU
affiliated club. We meet
on Monday afternoons
at 1pm for a short tuition
session followed by assisted
play. On Tuesday evenings
we have a duplicate pairs
session beginning at 7pm.
Table money is £2.50 for
members. The annual
subscription is £5.00. We
operate a host system to
guarantee everyone a game.
We are a very friendly club,
tea and coffee available.
www.bridgewebs.com
/oakfield
Secretary, Elaine McKinstry.
SEDGLEY B C
We are a small friendly club
who meet every Thursday
duplicate bridge is our aim
and we would welcome new
players, singles or pairs. A
partner can be found by the
secretary and even learners
will be welcomed. Free
lessons can be arranged.
It costs £1.50 per session
(including tea & biscuits).
Come as a guest and try us,
you will be very welcome.
Contact Stanley Tweedale,
Secretary, Sedgley B C
on ( 01902 561908.
ROTHERHAM
Rotherham Bridge Class at
Breck Crescent Community
Centre, Rotherham.
Thursday 10am -12noon.
Progressive Rubber
Bridge at The Club Room,
Broom Valley, Rotherham.
Page 31
Monday 7pm – 10pm.
Duplicate Bridge at
The Club Room, Broom
Valley, Rotherham.
Tuesday 7pm – 10pm.
Contact Mr P. Griffith
on ( 01709 364544.
LUTON
Wardown Bridge Club plays
duplicate bridge at Wardown
Cricket Pavilion on Mondays
and Thursdays at 7.30pm
and Tuesday afternoons (no
partner needed) at 1.30pm.
A partner is needed for
Mon and Thurs but if you
would like to come along on
one of these evenings, please
contact Anna and if possible
a partner will be found.
For more information,
please contact Anna Bartlett.
( 07500 568 142.
anna.bartlett@ntlworld.com
Visit our website: www.
wardownbridgeclub.org.uk
BRIGHOUSE
Brighouse B C meets at The
Assembly Rooms, Brighouse.
Open every day for lessons
– beginners and improvers.
Also 1 to 1 lessons, no extra
charge. We have social
bridge Monday morning,
Tuesday evening and
Wednesday morning. Also
Friendly Duplicate Bridge on
Monday and Friday evenings.
Ring Doreen Adams. Phone
( 01484 387555. www.
brighousebridgeclub.co.uk
BEDFORD
Saturday bridge in Bedford.
We are a small, friendly
group in our 13th year
of playing duplicate on
Saturdays from 7 to 10pm.
Average club standard,
novices by arrangement.
Partners can usually be
supplied by request.
We have a large, modern
church hall at ground level
suitable for all players.
Table money is £2.50 for
all, including refreshments.
There is no subscription.
Please contact Ann Pillinger
on ( 01234 212066 or
ann.pmbridge@
btinternet.com
EVESHAM B C
meets at Badsey Recreation
Club, Brewers Lane, Badsey,
Worcs. WR11 7EU. www.
eveshambridgeclub.org.uk
or email: secretary@
eveshambridgeclub.org.uk
Ring Wendy Marchant
( 01386 41107.
Table Money £2.00
– Visitors £2.50 – Subs. £10
annually. Monday 2-5pm
Chicago (tea & biscuits
during afternoon). Tuesday
7-10pm. Chicago on 1st
& 3rd week, duplicate on
2nd & 4th Week. Thursday
7-10pm duplicate.
NORTHALLERTON
Northallerton Bridge Club
has moved to the lower
hall of the Town Hall. Our
nights are Mondays and
Wednesdays at 6.45 for
7pm, when we play duplicate
bridge. A warm friendly
welcome is assured.
Marwood Graham,
Secretary ( 01677 423963.
GREENWICH
Greenwich & Bexley
Community Hospice Bridge
Club, 185 Bostall Hill,
Abbey Wood, SE2 0GB.
We are a small, friendly
club who meet on the third
Saturday of every month
at 1pm, finishing at about
4.30pm. We play Progressive
Chicago and guarantee a
partner, but do bring one
if at all possible. Table
money is £3 per person.
This covers coffee/tea and
biscuits throughout the
afternoon. We hold a Turn-
of-the-Year wine and food
party, regular raffles and
occasional Silent Auctions.
Contact: Betty Marshall
( 0208 850 5643. ■
 Answers to Andrew Kambites’
Lead Quiz on page 21
Last time, I looked at the modern practice
of leading your second highest card if
your suit has no card higher than a ten.
Another modern idea that fits well with
leading second from bad suits is strong
ten leads. The idea is that if you are lead-
ing from an interior sequence you lead
the ten. Thus, you lead the ten from these
types of holdings: A-J-10-7-3, K-J-10-3,
A-10-9-5-2, K-10-9-6 or Q-10-9-5-2.
The ten thus shows a touching honour
(the jack or the nine) together with at least
one higher card that is non-touching. A
consequence of this is that the lead of a
jack denies a higher honour.
Of course, you still lead ‘top of a
sequence’ in sequences like: Q-J-10-5-
3-2 (the queen) or K-Q-J-10-6 (the king).
For each question, I will give two
answers: the traditional lead and the
‘strong tens’ lead.
1. ♠ 7
♥ A 5 3
♦ Q 10 9
♣ A Q J 10 9 7
♠ 10 9 8 3 2 ♠ A 6 5 spade, this time with more certainty.
N
♥ 8 6 4 ♥ 10 9 7
W E
♦ A 7 S ♦ K J 6 5 2
♣ K 8 4 ♣ 5 3
♠ K Q J 4
♥ K Q J 2
♦ 8 4 3
♣ 6 2
West North East South
1NT
Pass 3NT End
Traditional lead – the ♠10 – the top card
from the sequence. Partner will win with
the ♠A and wonder if you have led from
♠K-10-9-8-3-2. He might return a spade.
Strong tens lead – the ♠9 – second
highest from a poor suit. Partner will
work out the ♠9 cannot be fourth highest
(for example, with ♠K-Q-10-9 you would
have led the ♠K.) Placing declarer with
♠K-Q-J, partner will hope you have the
♦A and try a diamond.
 
Strong tens lead – the ♠10. Now part-
2. ♠ 9 ner can work out that you have led from
♥ A 5 3 ♠K-10-9 or ♠Q-10-9. In this case, it
♦ Q 10 9 makes sense to win with the ♠A and re-
♣ A Q J 10 9 7 turn a spade.
♠ K J 10 4 3 2 ♠ A 6 5
N
♥ 8 6 4 ♥ 10 9 7
W E
♦ 7 S ♦ K J 6 5 2 4. ♠ 7
♣ K 8 4 ♣ 5 3 ♥ A 5 3
♠ Q 8 7 ♦ Q 10 9
♥ K Q J 2 ♣ A Q J 10 9 7
♦ A 8 4 3 ♠ J 10 9 3 2 ♠ A 6 5
N
♣ 6 2 ♥ 8 6 4 ♥ 10 9 7
W E
♦ A 7 S ♦ K J 6 5 2
♣ 8 6 4 ♣ 5 3
West North East South ♠ K Q 8 4
1NT ♥ K Q J 2
Pass 3NT End ♦ 8 4 3
♣ K 2
Traditional lead – the ♠J. Partner will
wonder whether this is from a suit
headed by the K-J-10 or just J-10. He will West North East South
probably return a spade so, luckily, no 1NT
harm done. Pass 3NT End
Strong tens lead – the ♠10. Partner
will see the ♠9 in dummy and realise Traditional lead – the ♠J. Partner will be
you have led from ♠K-J-10. He returns a unable to work out whether this comes
from ♠K-J-10 or just ♠J-10. The former
gives South no spade stopper, while the
latter gives him two stoppers – a big
3. ♠ J difference. In real life, he will take the ♠A
♥ A 5 3 and return a spade.
♦ Q 10 9 Strong tens lead – the ♠J. This denies
♣ A Q J 10 9 7 a higher honour. Knowing that declarer
♠ K 10 9 7 3 2 ♠ A 6 5 has the ♠K-Q, partner must look for an
N
♥ 8 6 4 ♥ 10 9 7 alternative way to develop enough tricks
W E
♦ 7 S ♦ K J 6 5 2 before declarer gets nine. The only rea-
♣ K 8 4 ♣ 5 3 sonable chance is to hope that you have
♠ Q 8 4 the ♦A. He will take his ♠A and switch to
♥ K Q J 2 a diamond.
♦ A 8 4 3 I hope I have convinced you that play-
♣ 6 2 ing second from bad suits and strong ten
leads fit together well and make life far
easier for partner. Just one more thought:
West North East South an alert declarer can also benefit from
1NT the lead. Suppose you are in 3NT on the
Pass 3NT End ♠J lead. Dummy has ♠A-Q-2; you have
♠ 8-7-5. Does it occur to you to ask the
Traditional lead – the ♠10. Partner will defenders about their lead styles? If their
see the ♠J in dummy but will not know jacks deny a higher honour, you should
whether this is from ♠ K-10-9 or just ♠10- not try the ♠Q and be disappointed when
9 – quite a difference really. it loses to the ♠K. ■
Page 32
 A to Z of Bridge
P
PACK
The deck of 52 playing cards.
PAIR
A partnership of two bridge players.
PAIRS’ EVENT
An event in which players compete
as pairs, normally with matchpoint
scoring.
PALOOKA
A poor player.
PAR
The result on a board if both sides had
bid and played to the optimum result.
PAR CONTEST
A contest, usually using preset hands
of great technical difficulty, where
players compare their results with the
par rather than each other.
Usually, on each deal, only one side
has the chance to earn a par with the
other side not involved. The par setters
may specify the bidding or the play to
the first trick or two. Such contests are
rare in the UK.
PARTIAL
A partscore contract, i.e. a contract of
less than game, such as 2♦.
PARTIAL DESIGNATION
An incomplete request for dummy to
play a card. If declarer names only the
suit, dummy must play the lowest card
in the suit. If declarer names only the
rank, dummy must play the card from
the same suit as last led.
For example, if dummy holds
compiled by Julian Pottage
A-9-4-2 of spades and declarer says,
‘spade,’ dummy plays the ♠2. If on
the next trick, declarer says, ‘nine,’
dummy plays the ♠9.
PARTIAL ELIMINATION
A play by which a declarer only
partially eliminates the suits that a
defender may safely lead. Whether
the defender will have to lead to
declarer’s advantage depends on the
distribution.
Here is an example:
♠ K Q 8 2
♥ 7 6 5 3 2
♦ K 7
♣ J 6
♠ 6 ♠ 4 3
♥ K J 4 N ♥ 10 8
♦ J 10 9 6 5 4 W E ♦ A Q 8 3 2
S
♣ 9 5 4 ♣ Q 10 7 2
♠ A J 10 9 7 5
♥ A Q 9
♦ Void
♣ A K 8 3
As South, you arrive in 6♠. West leads
the ♦J, which you ruff. You want to
delay playing on hearts until you have
eliminated the other suits so that, after
finessing, West can only return a heart
or give a ruff and discard. The snag is
that if you draw two rounds of trumps
and ruff two clubs, dummy will be out
of trumps and it will be safe for West
to exit in diamonds. Accordingly, you
draw only one round of trumps. Then,
you cash the top clubs, crossruff the
minors and play a heart to the nine
(or cover East’s card). Since East has
the outstanding trump, the partial
elimination succeeds.
PARTIAL STOPPER
A holding that, if partner has a similar
holding, will prevent the run of the
Page 33
opposing suit. Typical partial stopper
holdings are J-x-x and Q-x. It is the
same as a half stopper.
PARTNER
One of the two members of a
partnership.
PARTNERSHIP RUBBER BRIDGE
Rubber bridge where players retain the
same partner throughout the session
of play.
PARTNERSHIP
UNDERSTANDING
An agreement between members of
a partnership regarding systems in
bidding and play, allowing for efficient
communication. Such agreements,
whether explicit or implicit, must be
fully and freely available to opponents.
PARTSCORE
A trick score of less than 100 points. A
‘partial’ is another name.
PARTSCORE, BIDDING TO THE
Bidding affected by the presence of
a partscore. For example, playing
rubber bridge with a score of 40 below
the line, a 2♥ response to a 1♠ opening
would not be forcing.
PARTSCORE BONUS
If a rubber ends without two games
scored by one side, there is a 100 bonus
for a partscore in an incomplete game.
At Chicago, there is a bonus of 100
for a partscore on the fourth deal. At
duplicate, a 50 bonus applies for any
partscore bid and made.
PASS
Call by which a player indicates that he
does not wish, or is not allowed by the
Laws, to enter the bidding at his turn
to bid. Normally, auctions end when
three consecutive players pass. Using
bidding boxes, the pass card is green.
 A to Z of Bridge continued
PASS OR CORRECT
A bid made after partner has shown
one or more unspecified suits by means
of a conventional bid. It is to play if,
and only if, the bid coincides with one
of partner’s suits. For example:
West North East South
3NT Pass
4♣
Facing the Gambling 3NT opening,
which usually shows a solid minor and
little outside, West decides he has too
few stoppers to pass 3NT. He bids 4♣
expecting East to pass with a long suit
of clubs and otherwise to correct to 4♦.
PASS-OUT
1. A deal is a ‘pass-out’ if all four
players pass at their first turn to
call. At rubber bridge, the deal
passes to the next player, at Chicago
the same player must redeal, and at
duplicate bridge the hands go back
in the board as if played and the
score is zero.
2. To make the third consecutive pass
after someone has bid.
PASS OUT OF TURN
A ‘Pass’ by a player when it is not his
turn to call. The Laws apply.
PASS-OUT SEAT
A player is in the pass-out seat if the
auction would end if he passed.
PASSED HAND
A hand that has passed (and therefore,
if its holder subsequently makes a
bid, that bid is limited in value by his
previous pass).
For example:
West North East South
Pass Pass 1♥ 1♠
Here, both West and North are passed
hands. No matter what they bid
subsequently, their partners will not
place them with great strength.
PASSIVE DEFENCE
A style of defence that attempts to
avoid establishing tricks for declarer,
as opposed to trying actively to
establish defensive tricks.
This style is most likely to be right
when dummy is flat, lacking a source
of tricks. To defend passively, you
would usually play on suits where
your holding is worthless or where the
previous play of the suit has already
determined how many tricks each side
can make in the suit.
♠ K 8 2
♥ K Q 9 3
♦ A 10 7 5
♣ K 9
♠ A 10 4 ♠ J 5
♥ 10 2 N ♥ J 7 6 5
♦ Q 6 4 W E ♦ J 8 2
S
♣ Q 10 7 5 3 ♣ A 8 6 4
♠ Q 9 7 6 3
♥ A 8 4
♦ K 9 3
♣ J 2
South plays in 4♠. West leads the five
of clubs and the ace wins. Returning
a club to dummy’s now bare king
is passive and gives nothing away.
Opening up either red suit would be
highly dangerous.
If declarer plays a spade to the queen,
West takes the ace and, refusing again
to open up one of the red suits, returns
a low spade, thereby continuing the
passive defence.
PASSIVE LEAD
A lead made more in an attempt
to avoid conceding a trick than to
establish one. A lead from a long,
weak suit is usually a passive lead. The
stronger your hand, the more attractive
a passive lead. This is because partner
is less likely to have fitting cards in the
suits in which you have strength. If
the opponents stagger into their final
contract and you sense that the cards
are likely poorly for them, this also
indicates a passive lead.
PATTERN
This is a shape of the hand as expressed
in suits. For example, a hand with
five spades, a singleton heart, four
diamonds and three clubs has a 5-1-4-
3 pattern.
Page 34
PENALTY
1. This is a term for the score that
arises if you fail to make a contract,
especially a doubled contract.
2. The sanction imposed by the Laws,
or by the Tournament Director, for
an irregularity or an infraction.
PENALTY CARD
A card that a defender exposes or plays
wrongly may become a penalty card.
In both duplicate and rubber bridge
some penalty cards are designated
‘minor’ penalty cards, others ‘major’
penalty cards.
The Laws apply.
PENALTY DOUBLE
A double made in the belief that the
opposing contract will not make.
Another name for this is a ‘Business
double’.
For example:
West North East South
1♥ 1NT
Dble 2♠ Dble
West’s double of the 1NT is a penalty
double, as is East’s double of North’s
retreat to 2♠.
Whether a double is a penalty
double is partly a matter of general
bridge knowledge and partly a matter
of partnership agreement.
PENALTY PASS
To pass a takeout or optional double
thus effectively converting it to a
penalty double. For example:
West North East South
3♥
Pass Pass Dble Pass
Pass
East’s double is for takeout, expecting
West to bid something. West’s pass is
a penalty pass, indicating a wish to
defend 3♥ doubled.
You will need a long strong trump
holding to make a penalty pass,
especially if you are under the bidder,
as partner is likely to be short in the
suit.
PERCENTAGE PLAY
The line most likely to succeed based
on mathematical probabilities.
 A to Z of Bridge continued
♠ 8 2
♥ 9 8 3
♦ A K 7 5 4
♣ 9 5 2
♠ J 10 9 4 ♠ A K 5
♥ Q 7 4 2 N ♥ K 6 5
♦ Q 9 W E ♦ J 10 8 2
S
♣ 10 7 4 ♣ 8 6 3
♠ Q 7 6 3
♥ A J 10
♦ 6 3
♣ A K Q J
As South, you play in 3NT. West leads
the jack of spades and you win the
third round with the queen. You have
eight top tricks and chances in the red
suits for more. If diamonds are 3-3,
you can set up the suit by ducking a
round. If East has one or both heart
honours, you can make an extra heart
trick by using the ♦A-K as entries for
finessing. With no apparent way of
combining the chances, you need to
choose between the two.
The chance of a 3-3 diamond break
is about 36%, while the chance that
East holds one or both heart honours
is about 75%. The percentage play is
the one with the higher probability of
success, in this case finessing twice in
hearts.
Note that, in practice, you would
cash some clubs before committing
yourself, though, as the difference in
percentages is so high, it is unlikely
that you would change your mind.
PERMUTATION
Term describing all possible arrange-
ments of a set of objects and, in bridge,
the possible disposition of the cards.
PERSONAL SCORE CARD
The card on which a player may record
all the details of his bridge session,
including the outline of his bidding
system and conventions, as well as
contracts played and results achieved
on each board of the session.
While keeping a personal score card
is not compulsory, it is helpful if at least
one member of the partnership does
so because this will help in resolving
any scoring queries.
PETER
The play by a defender of a high card
on the first round of a suit followed
by a lower card on the second round
to signal to partner, e.g. the seven
followed by the three. Usually, you use
the peter to show that you like the suit
or that you have an even number of
cards in it. Other names for the peter
are a ‘high-low’ signal and, especially
in North America, an ‘echo’.
PHANTOM PAIR
If the number of pairs at a duplicate
event is odd, there will be a table
with only one pair (a half table). In
consequence, on every round one pair
will be due to play the ‘phantom pair’
and will spend that round sitting out
instead.
PHANTOM SACRIFICE
A sacrifice bid when the contract
against which one is sacrificing would
fail. Taking out a phantom sacrifice
is often a costly move, turning a plus
score into a potentially sizeable minus.
Before making a sacrifice therefore,
it is wise to check that you are
confident the opponents can make
their contract.
PHONEY CLUB
A rudimentary system based on a
strong no-trump and five-card suit
openings in diamonds, hearts and
spades, with a (possibly) phoney club
being the first move on other hands.
‘Fishing Club’, ‘Short Club’ and
‘Utility Club’ are similar systems.
PHONEY DIAMOND
An opening of 1♦ used in much
the same way as a phoney 1♣. You
will meet this most commonly in
conjunction with a strong club system
and five-card majors. If opener cannot
start with 1♣ because that would show
16+ or 17+ and cannot start with 1♥ or
1♠ because that would show a five-card
suit, 1♦ will be a common opening. A
‘Loose Diamond’ is another name for
the method.
PICK A SLAM
Some pairs use a bid of 5NT
Page 35
(not preceded by 4NT) when the
partnership has bid more than one
suit to indicate that the values for a
slam are present but doubt remains
about strain. In general, it is a good
idea to establish the trump suit before
embarking on a slam hunt, so the
convention usually occurs only in
highly competitive auctions where the
opposing bidding has prevented the
customary exploration.
PICK UP
To play a suit with minimal loss, or to
capture a particular card (e.g. ‘To play
a small spade to hand picking up the
queen’).
♠ 9 5 3
N
♠ Q W E ♠ 10 6 4 2
S
♠ A K J 8 7
South might ‘pick up’ West’s queen
by cashing the ace and then ‘pick up’
East’s ten by finessing, thereby ‘picking
up’ the whole suit without loss.
PICK UP SLIP
Used in place of a traveller and collected
by a caddy during a competition.
PIN
The lead of an honour to neutralise a
card ranked just below it.
A 10 9 8 7
N
K 6 5
W E J
S
Q 4 3 2
The lead of the queen towards the ace
brings in five tricks when, as here, the
jack is singleton and on the right and
therefore ‘pinned’ by the queen.
PIP
A design on the front of the playing
card showing the card’s rank by the
number of pips, and the suit by the
shape of the pip. Different countries
use different pips: hearts, cloves,
acorns, leaves etc.
 A to Z of Bridge continued
PITCH
To discard.
PIVOT TEAMS
A teams’ contest in which members
of each team change partnerships so
that, by the end of the contest, every
member of each team has played a
proportion of the boards with every
other member of the team as a partner.
PLACING THE CARDS
The diagnosis of the position of key
cards from clues arising from the
bidding or play.
For example:
♠ K 10 8
♥ 8 4 3 2
♦ A 7 3
♣ Q 10 2
♠ Q 7 4 ♠ 5
♥ K 7 N ♥ A Q 9 6 5
♦ Q 10 6 4 W E ♦ 9 8 2
S
♣ A J 7 4 ♣ 9 6 5 3
♠ A J 9 6 3 2
♥ J 10
♦ K J 5
♣ K 8
As South, you play in a spade contract
after West has opened 1NT (12-14) and
East has shown a heart suit.
West leads the king of hearts and
continues with a low one. East wins
with the ace and continues with the
nine. From the bidding, you place
West with a heart shortage (rather
than king-queen of hearts).
Counting the missing points then
enables you to place the rest of the high
cards. You place West with the ♠Q, the
♦Q and the ♣A-J. This tells you to ruff
high, finesse West for the ♠Q and then
finesse in clubs rather than diamonds.
PLAIN SUIT
In a trump contract, any of the three
non-trump suits.
PLAN OF PLAY
The mental process that declarers
should follow in determining their best
line of play to make their contracts.
As declarer, you would usually make
a plan once you see dummy. You may
need to revise your plan as the play
progresses and you find out more
about the layout of the opposing cards.
PLAY
1. The play follows the auction.
During the play, players contribute
their cards to tricks, one card to
each, until they run out of cards.
2. Used to describe an action in the
play, for example, ‘The key play is to
ruff a diamond’.
PLAY OUT OF TURN
The play of a card by a player when it is
another player’s turn to play. The Laws
apply.
Correct play is in rotation, clockwise,
starting with the player who leads
to the trick. West plays after South,
North after West and so on.
PLAYED CARD
A defender plays a card by placing it
face up on the table in front of him.
If a defender places a card in such a
position that the other defender can
see the front of the card, it counts as
played.
Declarer plays a card in a similar
manner and any card placed face up,
on or near the surface of the table, by
declarer counts as played.
Declarer plays dummy’s cards by
either naming them (the correct
procedure in duplicate bridge) or
physically handling them (in rubber
bridge).
PLAYER
One of the four people who participate
in a game of bridge.
PLAYING A KNOWN CARD
If a player has the choice between
cards, it is sometimes better to play the
one that his opponent knows he holds.
For example:
1. A J 4 A card that you can reasonably
N
Q 10 8
W E 532
S
K 9 7 6
Page 36
2. A Q 7 5 3
N
K J 9 4
W E 10 8 2
S
6
In 1, South, as declarer, plays a small
card and successfully finesses the
jack. When the ace is played West
should drop the queen (the card he is
known to hold) presenting South with
a choice of plays, finessing East for the
ten or playing for the even break.
If West follows with the ten on the
second round, declarer will inevitably
play for the even break.
In 2, this is a side suit in a trump
contract. If declarer finesses dummy’s
queen and cashes the ace, West should
drop the king.
Declarer may then fear an overruff
on the third round of the suit. So long
as West retains the king, declarer can
safely ruff low.
PLAYING CARDS
The set of fifty-two cards used for
playing the game of bridge.
The pack consists of four suits,
clubs, diamonds, hearts and
spades (ascending rank order) each
containing thirteen cards: ace, king,
queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2
(descending rank order), the rank
indicated by a pictorial image and/or
the number of pips, the suit indicated
by the shape and colour of the pip.
PLAYING TO THE SCORE
To allow one’s decisions regarding
bidding or play to take account of the
score.
Typically, to underbid at rubber
bridge with a partscore. For example,
if partner opens 1NT showing 12-14
points and you have 13 points, you
would raise to 2NT rather than the
usual 3NT if you have a partscore of
30 or 40.
PLAYING TRICK
expect to win a trick given a normal
distribution of the cards and ignoring
the possibility of losing tricks to ruffs:
A-K-Q-J-x-x is six playing tricks and
K-Q-J-x-x-x-x-x is seven.
 A to Z of Bridge continued
PLUS VALUES
These are small adjustments made
when valuing your cards, typically
when using the honour tricks method
of hand valuation.
POCKET
Part of a duplicate wallet or board
used to hold the cards.
PODI
Method of coping with intervention
after partner’s Blackwood bid. Pass
shows zero (O) aces. Double shows one
(I) ace and the lowest bid two etc. This
method is relatively rare.
POINT-A-BOARD
One scoring method for determining
a winner in a teams-of-four match.
You score each board individually,
getting one point for a win and half a
point for a tie.
In Britain, it is more common to
award two points for a win and one for
a tie.
Tactics are similar to matchpoints
because what counts is whether you
beat the result at the other table rather
than the margin of a difference.
POINT COUNT
A method of hand valuation by points,
the most popular of which is the
Milton Work count: you count four
for an ace, three for a king, two for a
queen, one for a jack.
Some pairs, depending upon the
auction, also count points for length
or shortages.
POINTED SUITS
Diamonds and Spades, so called
because of the shape of their symbols.
Similarly, clubs and hearts are the
‘Rounded Suits’.
POKER BRIDGE
A style of bidding and play that has
an unduly large element of gambling
about it.
PORI
After an opponent doubles a 4NT ace
enquiry, Pass shows zero (O) aces, and
Redouble shows one (I). This method
is common for users of PODI but
otherwise rare.
PORTLAND CLUB, THE
First body to codify the Laws of Bridge
(1895). At rubber bridge, it is still an
important authority in the world of
international bridge and holds the
copyright to the Laws in many parts
of the world.
PORTLAND RULES
Rules the Portland Club has laid down
that include banning the use of any
conventional bids in the club’s rooms.
POSITION
1. The cardinal compass point (North-
South-East-West) of a player is his
position at the table.
2. Position can be a relative term, such
as a player’s position in relation to
the dealer (first hand is the dealer,
second hand is on the dealer’s left
etc.). Position can be in relation to
another player: to sit over/behind
(to be the left-hand opponent) or
under/in front of (to be the right-
hand opponent).
3. The position of a card, e.g. if North
holds the A-Q of spades and West
holds the ♠K, this card is in a
favourable position for North-
South.
POSITIONAL FACTOR
The value of a particular holding may
change as the auction develops, thus
indicating the likely disposition of the
other relevant cards.
For instance, a holding of K-x in a
suit is more valuable if the hand on
your right has bid the suit; it is less
valuable if your left-hand opponent
has bid the suit. Thus, the positional
factor affects its value.
POSITIONAL SQUEEZE
A squeeze that is effective against one
opponent but not the other, i.e. it will
not operate if you interchange the
opponents’ hands.
A common reason why a squeeze
works against one opponent only is
that if both threats are in one hand,
they will need to lie over rather than
under the stoppers.
For example:
Page 37
♠ A J
♥ K
♦ Void
♣ Void
♠ K Q ♠ 9
♥ A N
W E
♥ Q
♦ Void S ♦ Void
♣ Void ♣ 2
♠ 6
♥ 6
♦ Void
♣ A
South leads the ♣A squeezing West in
the majors. If you swap the East-West
cards, the squeeze would fail because
East discards after North and would
discard the same suit as North.
POSITIVE RESPONSE
A constructive response guaranteeing
some conventionally agreed minimum
strength. The term usually applies after
partner has made a forcing opening
bid (when the mere fact of keeping
the bidding open would not promise
strength).
For example, 2♣-pass-2♠ would be a
positive response. Requirements vary
between partnerships. Some allow a
positive response on a four-card suit;
others require a five-card suit or even a
five-card suit headed by two of the top
three honours.
POST MORTEM
The discussion of a bridge deal after
the conclusion of play. Discussing
a deal can be useful in helping
you to learn from any mistakes or
misunderstanding.
The best time to discuss a deal is
at the end of the session, when hand
records can be useful for the purpose.
You should conduct a post mortem
at the table only if you are sure that
you are not holding up the other
players.
POSTING THE SCORE
To place the overall results’ chart of
an event where it is accessible to the
competitors.
POWERHOUSE
A hand of tremendous trick-taking
ability.
 A to Z of Bridge continued
PRECISION
A bidding system that originated
in Taiwan in the 1960s and was the
brainchild of C. C. Wei. It achieved
world attention when the team from
Nationalist China finished second
in both the 1969 and 1970 World
Championships. The system is based
on an artificial 1♣ (16+ points)
opening, five-card majors and a 13-15
1NT. A 2♣ opening is natural while
a 2♦ opening shows a three-suited-
hand short in diamonds; 2♥ and 2♠
openings are weak twos. The range
for the 1♥, 1♠, 2♣ and 2♦ openings is
11-15, i.e. less than the 16 required to
open 1♣.
When opener has a strong hand,
the benefit of the system is that the
partnership can establish a game force
at a low level (any positive response
creates a game force), making it easier
to find the best game or slam. When
opener has a weaker hand, the benefit
is that responder knows opener’s
strength better than in a natural
system.
The disadvantages are that a 1♦
opening occurs commonly and says
little about opener’s hand; in addition,
vigorous competitive bidding can
disrupt sequences that start 1♣.
PRE-DEALING
The dealing of the hands in advance
of the competition. This is common if
a computer does the dealing or if the
competition is a simultaneous pairs.
PRE-EMPTIVE BID
A weak, high-level bid based upon the
playing strength contained in a long
suit, with few outside values. The bid
is purely obstructive in nature and
can make opposing bidding extremely
difficult.
Pre-emptive bids can be opening
bids or overcalls:
West North East South
3♦ three-card club suit to prepare for a
West North East South
1♣
3♦
West North East South
1♣ 1♥ 1♠
4♥
In each case, West’s bid is pre-emptive
in nature. For the first and second
auctions, West might hold:
♠ 8 6 2
♥ 5 N organisers invited experts to submit a
W E
♦ A Q J 10 5 3 2 S hand or two.
♣ 8 3
PRE-EMPTIVE RAISE
A raise based on distributional rather
than high-card values in an attempt to
pre-empt the opponents, rather than
necessarily reach a makeable contract.
For raising partner’s 1♥ opening to 4♥
you might hold:
♠ 7 5
♥ K Q 8 4 3
♦ J 9 6 4 2
♣ 7
PREFERENCE
After partner has bid two suits, put-
ting him back to his first suit or leav-
ing him in his second suit is giving
preference.
For example in the sequence:
1♥-pass-1NT-pass-2♦-pass-2♥, re-
sponder has given preference for
hearts over diamonds. Since opener’s
first suit will invariably be at least as
long as his second suit, responder
would also show ‘preference’ for open-
er’s first suit if his two holdings were of
equal length. Responder would ‘prefer’
the second suit by passing or raising.
In a five-card major system, simple
preference back to opener’s major
often shows only a doubleton because
responder would usually have raised
at once with three-card support.
PREPARED CLUB
An opening bid of 1♣ made on a
balanced hand with possibly only a
no-trump rebid (or even a doubleton
club, though strictly speaking, that is
a short club). Using a prepared club
is quite common in five-card major
Page 38
systems and when the partnership is
playing a mini or strong no-trump.
PREPARED HANDS
In a par contest, competitors play
specially selected hands designed
to test particular skills. Before Mr
Bridge took over its running, the
Charity Challenge simultaneous pairs
event featured prepared hands. The
PREPARED MINOR SUITS
An opening bid of 1♣ or 1♦ made on
a balanced hand with possibly only
a three-card suit to prepare for a no-
trump rebid.
PREPAREDNESS, THE
PRINCIPLE OF
The principle whereby one selects
an opening bid so that one always
has a sound rebid over any possible
response. The principle can also apply
to responding hands if responder
intends to bid twice.
PRESSURE BID
A bid made at a high level due to the
presence of interference bidding. For
example, after a 1♠ opening and 3♣
overcall, responder may have to bid
3♠ with 7-8 points and some spade
support, less than that required for
an uncontested 3♠ bid. Such a bid is
a ‘pressure bid’. If holding full values
for a 3♠ raise, responder would find
another bid to take the pressure off
opener, such as jumping to 4♠. The
usual rule is to allow the opposing
bidding to pressure you into bidding
one level higher than you would have
bid without their bidding.
♠ K 8 5 4
♥ Q 4 N
W E
♦ J 6 S
♣ A Q 9 8 5
West North East South
1♣ Pass 1♠ 3♥/4♥
?
You would have bid only 2♠ if South
had passed, so you should bid 3♠ over
3♥ but not 4♠ over 4♥.
 A to Z of Bridge continued
PRIMARY SUPPORT
At least four-card support for a bid that
promises four or five cards in the suit,
such as a natural opening bid of one of
a suit. Three cards suffice if partner has
shown six or more cards in the suit. If
partner has made a prepared opening
in a minor, you need five cards.
In most systems, showing primary
support for a major fixes the suit as
trumps.
PRIME VALUES
Aces, kings and other cards that stand
a high chance of being useful in the
play.
♠ K Q J 10 6
♥ A K 6
♦ J 6 4
♣ Q 4
In this hand, the ♠K-Q-J-10 and the
♥A-K are prime values. The ♦J and
♣Q, which may or may not contribute
to the hand’s trick-taking potential,
are not.
PROFESSIONAL
A bridge professional is a person
who makes at least some of his living
from the game of bridge, though not
necessarily as a player.
PRINCIPLE OF FAST ARRIVAL
The idea that in a game-forcing
situation, the more quickly you reach
game the less interest you have in
alternative contracts.
West North East South
1NT Pass 2♦* Pass
2♥ Pass 3♣ Pass
4♥
*transfer to hearts
It is common here to play that
West’s 4♥ shows a dead minimum
opening. With a heart fit and any sort
of willingness to co-operate if East
has slam interest, West would bid
3♥ to set the suit and leave room for
investigation.
PRINCIPLE OF 2 cards 1-1 52%
RESTRICTED CHOICE 2-0 48%
This is the idea that if an opponent
makes a particular play, especially PROGRESSIVE SQUEEZE
dropping a high card, this is more A triple squeeze in which you force an
likely to be a forced play rather than a opponent to release control of one suit
chosen play. and then use the newly created winner
in that suit to squeeze him again in the
remaining two suits. For example:
♠ Q 4 2
N
W E ♠ K
S
♥ A J
♠ A K 9 3 ♦ 3
♣ 5
♠ A ♠ Q 3
Suppose you cash the ace and cross ♥ K Q N ♥ 2
to the queen, picking up the jack (or ♦ K Q W E ♦ 8
S
ten) from West on the second round. If ♣ Void ♣ 2
the jack (or ten) is a forced play from a ♠ 5
doubleton honour, you want to finesse ♥ 5
the nine on the third round. Finessing ♦ A J
is normally correct because with ♣ A
J-10-x West might equally have played
the other honour on the second round.
South plays the ♣A forcing West
PROGRESSIVE BRIDGE to relinquish control in one of the
A form of social bridge with several other three suits. South then cashes
tables in play. The winners on a round whichever suit West discards to
move up a table while the losers stay squeeze him again in the other two
put (or vice versa). suits. This type of squeeze can be
automatic but is more commonly
PROBABILITIES OF positional, as here. (East, if holding
DISTRIBUTION West’s cards, could escape the second
The mathematically expected squeeze by discarding a diamond.)
distribution of the opposing cards.
PROMOTION
pponents Division Probability
O The play of one card to promote
hold (to nearest another to winning status. The term
percent) usually applies to covering honours or
8 cards 5-3 47% to a promotion in the trump suit that
4-4 33% occurs through ruffing.
6-2 17%
7-1 3%
7 cards 4-3 62%
♠ Q 9
5-2 31% N
6-1 7% ♠ J 10 8 5 W E ♠ K 7 4 3 2
S
6 cards 4-2 48%
3-3 36% ♠ A 6
5-1 15%
6-0 1%
5 cards 3-2 68% West leads the jack, which the queen
4-1 28% covers. East covers in turn, causing the
5-0 4% promotion of West’s ten to winning
4 cards 3-1 50% rank once South’s ace has gone.
2-2 40%
4-0 10% PROPRIETIES
3 cards 2-1 78% The rules of proper conduct, ethics
3-0 22% and etiquette.
Page 39
 A to Z of Bridge continued
RUBBER /
CHICAGO
2013 PROTECT
1. If you have small cards
to guard an honour in a
suit, you may describe
the honour as ‘protected’.
2. To bid after two
successive passes in order
that partner may have
the opportunity to bid
again. The word protect
comes about in this
Blunsdon context because partner
may have had good
House Hotel values but had the wrong
Swindon SN26 7AS shape (such as length in
12-14 April the opposing suit) to act
on his own.
3. If you prevent an
opponent from leading
through a positional
stopper, you protect the
high card. For example:
864
N
A 9 7 3
W E Q J 10 2
Elstead Hotel S
Bournemouth BH1 3QP K 5
17-19 May
South’s king is safe from
a lead by West, but not by
East. To protect the king,
South might choose a bid
that makes him rather than
North declarer. During the
play, South might arrange to
lose the lead to West rather
than East.
Staverton Park PROTECTION
Daventry NN11 6JT This means taking action
when your side has not been
13-15 September in the bidding and, if you
passed, the auction would
All hosted by end. In common context,
the term is synonymous
Diana Holland with re-opening.
£199 Full Board PROTEST PERIOD
No Single The correction period in
Supplement competitions, usually thirty
minutes after the officials
Booking Form on page 9.
have posted the score,
Page 40
within which a player or
players may request the
correction of any anomaly
in the scoring or may
register an appeal against
a ruling by the tournament
director.
PSEUDO SQUEEZE
A play that leads a defender
to believe that a squeeze
position exists when in fact
none does.
Most defenders are
inexpert at defending when
they have to make a series
of discards, so it is often a
good idea, as declarer, to
run a long suit.
PSYCHIC BID
A bid that deliberately
and grossly misstates the
strength and/or distribu-
tion of a hand. So long as the
bid is as much of a surprise
to your partner as the op-
ponents, psychic bids are a
legitimate part of the game.
For example:
♠ 8 5 4
♥ K 7 3 2
♦ 8 4
N
W E
S
♣ Q 8 5 2
West North East South
3♥ Pass
4NT
Knowing that North-South
certainly have a game on
and possibly a slam, West
feigns a show of strength by
asking for aces.
PUMP
Colloquialism for forcing
declarer to ruff.
PUNCH
To force a player to shorten
his trumps by ruffing.
PUNT
To bid directly to game
or slam when more
constructive and descriptive
bids are available.
The term normally refers
to hands on which you
bid a game or a slam on a
speculative rather than a
sound basis.
PUPPET STAYMAN
A version of Stayman for
five-card and four-card
suits following an opening
bid of 1NT or 2NT.
After 2NT-pass-3♣-pass-
3♦ (denying a five-card
major), responder bids the
major in which he does not
hold four cards.
The main purpose of
bidding the major he does
not hold is that the strong
opening hand will become
declarer if a fit is present.
For example:
♠ K Q J 2 ♠ 10 9 8 4
♥ K 8 5 3 N ♥ 4 2
W E
♦ A Q J S ♦ K 8
♣ A 6 ♣ Q 10 5 4 2
West East
2NT 3♣1
3♦2 3♥3
3♠ 4♠
1
do you have a five-card major?
2
no
3
showing four spades
A heart lead would put
4♠ from the East seat in
jeopardy.
With West as declarer,
there is the chance of
playing three rounds of
diamonds to discard a heart
from the East hand.
PUSH
1. To make an unconstruc-
tive raise in a competitive
situation – usually, the
idea is to encourage the
opponents to bid higher,
to a level where you can
defeat them.
2. A board in a teams’ match
with zero swing (slang). ■
READERS’
LETTERS
RUBBER IN BATH
For the past ten years it has
been my pleasure to host
an Acol rubber bridge circle
at my home, here in Bath.
We play twice a week,
Monday and Friday. Light
refreshment is provided,
no charges are involved,
stakes are 50p a hundred.
Should any experienced
players among your readers,
living within the area, feel
inclined to participate in a
competitive, but social game
of bridge, please telephone.
( 01225 484523.
Dennis Bernard, Bath.
UNLOVED
The subject of arrow
switching seems to come up
periodically, see BRIDGE
116 & 117, ever since
John Manning’s paper
was published. How and
why it works is something
that has taxed bridge
mathematicians, including
myself, for some time, but
we still seem none the wiser.
It all turns on ‘degree of
competition’ which is perfect
with a Howell movement
where all pairs play against
each other, but is only
feasible up to 6 tables at a
normal club evening. With
a Mitchell movement, each
pair play against half of
the field, one with reversed
polarity and the complex
maths makes some sort of
compromise necessary. This
is usually to arrow switch one
set of boards; we do this at
our club on the last round. A
better degree of competition
is achieved by switching
one board on 3 rounds. I
did employ this in earlier
days, but it requires the TD
to keep good control and
issue constant reminders.
Roy Seaman, Potters Bar.
CONSTRUCTED
Much as I enjoy your
delightful magazine, I find
the solutions to the various
quizzes are very much
arranged specifically to
suit the questions. In most
cases, there are a wide
variety of hands that would
apply to the bidding shown
leading to a wide variety of
appropriate bids. Surely the
solution should be general,
based on what the bidder’s
partner is likely to hold in
honour cards and length
with possibly a statistical
analysis of probabilities.
Also, the rigid adherence to
Acol never gives a thought
to other systems, particularly
my favourite ‘phoney club’.
Any chance of it happening?
Bill Dodd,
Polstead, Suffolk.
VERY SUDDEN
We at LUCIA were saddened
and shocked by the news of
Colin Bamberger’s death.
Though we never met him,
we spoke to him and his
wife on the phone several
times and welcomed their
kindness and sincerity.
We very much appreciated
all the work Colin did on
our behalf, sorting and
selling the collectable used
postage stamps. Through
Page 41
his philatelic expertise, he
raised a terrific amount of
money to support LUCIA’s
projects for orphaned
and vulnerable children
in Ethiopia, especially
the Little Voice home and
school. His fundraising has
brought about a lasting
improvement in the lives of
children in one of the poorest
countries of the world.
Jill Russell,
on behalf of LUCIA
Send your used stamps to:
Mr Malcolm Finebaum
8 Mountford House,
Crescent Road, Enfield.
EN2 7BL.
( 0208 245 2587
( 07956 505366
Malcolmroberts72
@hotmail.com
MORE WORDS
I read a letter in the latest
issue of BRIDGE headed
with the title ‘Last Word’. I do
hope not, because I learned
a form of three-handed
bridge about 60 years ago,
taught to me by a lady who
had learned it in India during
the twenties. I found it both
simple and entertaining.
The cards are dealt to all
three players, each getting
17 cards. The last card is
placed face-up on the table
for all to see. Each player
then discards 4 cards from
his/her hand and these are
placed face-down with the
exposed card. These 13 cards
then become the dummy.
Bidding proceeds and the
declarer is decided when his/
her final bid is followed by
two ‘passes’. Play is started
by declarer’s left-hand
opponent leading. Dummy
is now sorted and placed as
normal opposite declarer.
And so on..... Scoring is
normal. I do hope this may
be of interest to your readers.
Mr D C Kennedy,
Eastbourne.
This approach seems to
improve on all the others
so far published.
EXTRA BONUS
I fully sympathise with
Brian Berlanny’s wish to
modernise the game, see
Readers’ Letters, BRIDGE
116, but I do not think
that reducing the score for
overtricks is a good idea.
That would mean it would
be better to bid, say, 5♥
and make it, than to bid 4♥
and make +1. That is no
part of any bridge scoring
system – auction, rubber
or duplicate – and would, I
feel, be a retrograde step. 
A better idea would be to
change the bonus awarded
in duplicate for a part score.
At present, this is a standard
50 points, but it could be
changed to be the value
of the contract bid. So, if,
as in the example quoted,
nine tricks were to be made
in hearts, the total score
would be 90 + 30 = 120 if
only 1♥ had been bid; but it
would be 90 + 60 = 150 if
2♥ had been bid; whilst 3♥
bid and made would receive
90 + 90 = 180 points. This
would bring duplicate closer
to rubber bridge, not farther
away as Mr Berlanny’s
suggestion would do overall.
Of course, one must be
careful what one wishes for.
This – like any other change,
Mr Berlanny’s included –
will not just make for more
accurate bidding, it will
make for different bidding.
Thus, playing a weak
no-trump, in an opening
sequence of, say, 1♥ – 1♠
– 1NT – 2NT, at present
responder’s 2NT would be
invitational, promising 9
points, which opener with
16 points would convert to
game. With such changes it
would show only 8 points,
forcing opener to pass.
John MacLeod,
Wimbledon.
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328STI12
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
ONE OF MANY
Please will you get rid of the
new photo of Bernard. It is
a travesty. Surely I’m not the
only reader to have written.
Philippa Maclean by post.
LIBRARY OF
BRIDGE BOOKS
Is it possible for you to put
me in touch with someone
who would be interested in
purchasing my collection
of books from me?
Frank Grainge
( 01473 213778
frank.grainge
@btconnect.com
Over 250 books – a
marvellous instant bridge
library. The vendor lives
in the Ipswich area.
LETHAL ADVICE
You published a letter from a
‘soap fan’ giving potentially
lethal advice. She suggested
that Sally Brock buy gluten-
free products to ‘clear up’
Barry’s symptoms. Gluten,
a protein found in wheat,
barley and rye, triggers
an immune reaction in
people with coeliac disease.
Untreated coeliac disease
increases the risk of other
illnesses, including some
cancers. It is essential to get
a diagnosis. A blood test can
check for antibodies. The
treatment is a total exclusion
of gluten. This does not
mean buying a few, random,
gluten-free products. It
means NO gluten.
So, no normal beer or
lager, no chips in a
restaurant and many more
restrictions. For general
advice on coeliac disease,
look at www.coeliac.org.uk
For expert dietary advice,
consult a dietitian registered
at www.hpc-uk.org (get his/
her name from your local
hospital or GP). For expert
advice on bridge, read
BRIDGE.
Sheila Merriman RD,
Specialist Intermediate
Services Dietitian, Norfolk.
HAPPY WINNER
Thank you so much for
drawing my entry as one
of the winners in your prize
crossword competition
earlier this year.
I chose The Ardington
Hotel, Worthing on 28
September for the ’Opening
Leads and Defence’
weekend. It was most
enjoyable and informative,
and I would like to express
my thanks to Crombie, Helen,
Pat and Malcolm for their
friendliness, encouragement
and patience. I was most
impressed by The Ardington
Hotel’s hospitality and their
food, which everyone must
tell you is exceptionally good.
I first learnt to play
bridge in the early 1990s.
Then, I had a series of life
changes which meant I
gave up playing, although
I always knew it was
something I would come
back to one day, albeit as
an inexperienced beginner.
However, I continued to take
and enjoy your magazine.
On receipt of your letter
informing me of my win, I
decided immediately I must
start playing again so I could
take full advantage of your
generous prize. Therefore, I
contacted a local club and
started playing regularly
every week. I was made most
welcome there and I really do
wonder why I never made the
effort to join them before.
In effect, I am writing
to say thank you so much
for a lovely weekend,
but also for spurring
me on to take up bridge
again. I shall certainly be
recommending you to others.
Please keep your
competitions running – this
prize made me so happy. I
think my husband will now
have to get used to losing me
on occasional weekends.
Name & address supplied.
THREE HANDED
I felt I had to reply to Bill
Watson’s criticisms (Readers’
Letters, BRIDGE 117): I
would have contacted him
directly had I the address.
The fact that you published
my letter made me think
it had some merit.
I have played bridge since
1949 and so am conversant
with other three player
systems, e.g. Coffins Trio/
Triangle Bridge of 1932. He
has also written a complete
book on the subject. In
most of these variations,
players bid competitively
for the right to play as
declarer with a dummy
which may be concealed
(wholly or partly) or fully
exposed. This is not normal
bridge and Bill’s system
does not appear to differ
fundamentally from them.
My version was devised
when running our U3A
duplicate session. We are
never quite sure how many
will turn up – often (say) five
tables plus three arrive, in
which case I let one of the
three take my place and join
each sit-out pair in turn for
three handed. This doesn’t
seem to cause any problems.
Although the dealer does
see more than one hand,
the other two bid, play and/
or defend in an entirely
normal way without any
prior knowledge of others’
holdings. The initial cursory
’point count survey’ takes 45
seconds at most, often a lot
less. Lacking a photographic
memory, the dealer knows
little more than that
opponents have the majority
of points – something usually
obvious from the bidding
anyway in normal games.
Clearly, as Bill points out,
this is less competitive than
when points are more equally
divided in the normal game,
but it still mirrors closely all
those sessions in which, ’we
never had any good cards.’
Plus the fact that the two
non-dealers are involved in
most of the ’action’, making
it a reasonable teaching
method for beginners.
I can think of one or two
minor improvements, but
doubtless this letter is already
too long for publication.
Mr B Howard, High Peak,
Derbyshire. ■

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Page 44
 Catching Up by Sally Brock
I
n the last issue, I left you
just after the opening
ceremony at the World
Mind Sports in Lille. Well,
as you may well know by
now, we won that in some
comfort. Nicola and I
played particularly well in
the round robin qualifying
round, just dropping off a
bit in the knockout stages.
As the other pairs played
very well then, it all bal-
anced out; we were never
in real danger of losing a
knockout match.
Would you bid on this
hand?
♠ 8 6 4 2
♥ J 10 6
♦ A
♣ Q J 10 7 2
You are at favourable vul-
nerability and the bidding
goes:
West North East South
Pass 1♦ Pass 1♠
? some publicity in the na-
You may not be able to see
a constructive reason to
bid. You are not particularly
bothered about a club lead;
the opponents have already
got together; you are not
taking any of their space
away. Still, there is one very
good reason to bid; it mate-
rialised on this hand. Fiona
bid 2♣; the auction was:
West North East South
Pass 1♦ Pass 1♠
2♣ Dble Pass 3NT
All Pass
Now what would you lead?
Had you not bid 2♣, you
would surely have led the
♣Q with some hope. As it
is, you have heard dummy
double for takeout and
South leap to 3NT. Surely
you would conclude, as Fio-
na did, that the opponents
had clubs well guarded. She
decided to try the ♥J; this
was the full deal:
♠ A K Q
♥ Q 5 4
♦ K Q 9 6 4 2
♣ 9
♠ 8 6 4 2 ♠ 9 5
N
♥ J 10 6 W E ♥ K 9 8 3 2
♦ A S ♦ 10 7 3
♣ Q J 10 7 2 ♣ 5 4 3
♠ J 10 7 3
♥ A 7
♦ J 8 5
♣ A K 8 6
You can see for yourself just
how successful that choice
was. So, one rarely discussed
reason to overcall is to find
out whether or not you
should lead your own suit.
For once, we received
tional press, with articles
about our success in the
Sunday Times, Sunday
Telegraph and Daily Mail.
From what the newspapers
said, it seems that our suc-
cess was down to the lib-
eral application of lavender
oil rather than any special
bridge skills.
While I was in Lille, Bri-
ony went to Cambodia to
work in an orphanage. A
couple of days after I got
home from Lille, she was
back, having thoroughly
enjoyed herself, but look-
ing forward to some Brit-
ish food. We went to my
brother-in-law’s for a family
lunch and then, on the Bank
Page 45
Holiday Monday, started
a week’s holiday on a boat
on the Thames – myself,
Barry, Briony and friend
Sam, and Toby and friend
Tom. Although there was
the odd altercation, which
you might expect with four
teenagers and us cooped up
in a confined space (the loo
blocking every morning did
not help), things generally
went OK. We came back to
a Gold Cup match in Not-
tingham, which we won,
so we are now in the quar-
terfinals, a better run than
I have enjoyed for a long
time. Let us hope we can
progress even further.
Then Nicola and I (with
Barry) went to Omaha for
the Buffett Cup. This is a
Europe versus USA contest
along the lines of the Ry-
der Cup. We played pairs,
teams and an individual
(so we played with all the
European stars, which we
found tremendous fun).
The scoring is complete
point-a-board. You com-
pare with who was at an-
other table and either win,
lose or draw a board. Then
you add up those points and
either win, lose or draw the
match. You can win a board
by 10 points or 1400 – it is
all the same. Although I am
not sure I would like to play
it all the time, it was rather
liberating. When it came to
scoring up, if you had a dis-
aster, you did not even need
to read out the score, you
could just say, ‘Lose,’ and
that was that – nobody even
knew what you had done.
Nicola and I did well in
the pairs and teams, though
pretty badly in the individ-
ual. This was a high spot,
from an early round of the
pairs:
Dealer South. E/W Vul.
♠ Q 8
♥ 5 3
♦ A K 8 3
♣ A K Q 8 6
♠ A K 6 4 ♠ 9 7 3
♥ K 10 9 6 2 ♥ Q 8
♦ J 7 5 W E
N
♦ Q 10 9 6 2
♣ 7 S ♣ 10 9 5
♠ J 10 5 2
♥ A J 7 4
♦ 4
♣ J 4 3 2
West North East South
Pass
1♥ Dble Pass 1♠
Pass 2♣ Pass 2♥
Pass 3♣ Pass 3NT
All Pass
The first problem was what
to bid over West’s 1♥. While
I hate doubling with fewer
than three spades, here it
was reasonably safe. At this
vulnerability, Nicola would
open a Multi with just about
any hand and a five-card
suit, so it was unlikely she
would bid too many spades.
When she bid 1♠, I could
rebid a quiet 2♣ to show
my five-card suit and good
hand. She was always go-
ing to bid game now, so cue
bid to try to find extra in-
formation. I did not think
I had anything more to say
so simply rebid my club suit
and she bid 3NT. I am not
sure how the bidding went
at other tables, but we were
the only pair in 3NT rather
than the failing club game.
The hospitality was spec-
tacular. Every evening Olley
the Trolley (a converted old
trolleybus) came to collect
us and take us to some

Catching Up continued
fabulous, palatial mansion
for dinner. This was except
on the final night, when the
closing dinner took place
in the shark tunnel at the
aquarium.
On the day that we got
back, sadly, Barry’s mother
died, so he and his sister
had to cope with all that.
It was the same day as my
parents’ diamond wedding
anniversary. So I drove to
their place in Wiltshire with
Toby and Briony to meet up
with them as well as Ben
and Hayden (Gemma was
unwell) for a Chinese takea-
way dinner. Then, on the
Sunday, they renewed their
wedding vows in the local
church before hosting lunch
for 50 in their house.
The action on the Mon-
day was for Briony and me
to take Toby up to Brad-
ford University to start his
degree course in medical
engineering. From what
we could see, it all looked
fine – student accommoda-
tion has certainly gone up
a level or two since I went
to university rather more
years ago than I care to
remember. The first week
was freshers’ week; now he
has had some lectures and
seems to find it interesting.
I am pleased with how mo-
tivated he seems to be.
Then Tuesday Septem-
ber 18th was Briony’s 17th
birthday. So finally, after
I had sorted out the in-
surance, she could actu-
ally drive on the road. We
picked out a quiet housing
estate and went for a short
drive. After school, I had ar-
ranged a session at a beauty
salon for us both to have our
nails done and for her to
have a facial. Then we went
out to dinner in Marlow. ■
Seven Days
by Sally Brock
Monday
Every morning is excit-
ing now as we try to leave
a bit early as it takes a little
longer to get to school with
Briony driving. Actually,
I am very impressed. She
seems to be picking it up
very quickly; most journeys
pass without incident. My
Canadian friends go into
London – I think today that
they are going to the Victo-
ria & Albert museum. I get
on with some work – Swazi-
land is the one on the go just
now – pick Briony up from
school and then drive on to
Waitrose to do a food shop.
When we get back, I prepare
a casserole for dinner and
then spend the evening eat-
ing, drinking and gossiping,
Canadian-style.
Tuesday
Today, my house guests are
going to be out until late
because they have tickets to
see a Chelsea football game.
After the usual school run
and some bits and pieces of
work, I start cooking. I have
decided to have a dinner
party tomorrow and want
to get ahead as much as pos-
sible. The dinner party is
only possible because our
London League match has
been cancelled (Yom Kip-
pur), so it turns out that
the only people available
to come (more or less) are
my London League team.
This is not a problem. I am
not sure whether Barry will
be there because it is his
Page 46
mother’s funeral on Thurs-
day. Anyway, I cook my red
cabbage before making ha-
zelnut meringues and some
butterscotch sauce for des-
sert.
After school, Briony and
I just crash in front of the
TV; later, I do some BBO
bidding with Barry. We are
just finishing off at about
11.45pm when John and
Katie return. That seems
an excuse to open some red
wine and chat about our
respective days (Chelsea
won 6-0).
Wednesday
Briony has a half day today
(in fact, she usually does
not have school at all on
Wednesdays – but today
there is some special event
in the morning). I do a bit
of work in the morning,
plus a bit of tidying. Then
I pick her up and we go to
get a few more bits of food.
I need to get well ahead
with the preparations for
the evening because I have
an online session booked
with Richard and Gerry at
3.30pm. This leaves a scant
hour and a half before my
guests are expected. At least
by now John and Katie have
returned from London and
help me get things ready.
The evening goes well.
There are nine of us: Colin
and Juliana Simpson, Kitty
Teltscher, Willie Coyle,
Steve Eginton plus John and
Katie and Barry and me. It
is midnight before everyone
goes.
Thursday
John has work to do today,
so Katie goes into London
by herself. After I pick Bri-
ony up from school, I drive
into London to meet up
with John’s bridge partner
Joey Silver and his other
half, Muriel. We have a
drink in the pub, then an-
other at the Young Chelsea.
Barry has a standing date
on the last Thursday of the
month with Frank To, so we
see him briefly and then go
out to eat: Benito’s Bistro on
Earls’ Court Road. We had a
great meal – and not expen-
sive by London standards
– and would recommend it
unreservedly.
Friday
All healthy eating and ex-
ercise regimes have been
more or less off for the sum-
mer, so I am finding it a bit
of a trial to get back to the
gym. Nevertheless, I drag
myself there after the school
run. Home to shower and
get ready to drive into Lon-
don with John and Katie. I
drop them off at their hotel
(I had to throw them out
tonight because Briony is
having her birthday party –
I hope I am doing the right
thing in trusting her to
host this without me being
there). Then I leave the car
at Barry’s and meet a group
of girlfriends for lunch, two
of whom are celebrating
birthdays. After a bit of idle
browsing in the John Lewis
toiletries’ department,
 Seven Days continued
we mooch around the kitch-
en department and decide
to buy them both the most
elegant potato peelers I have
ever seen. I am a bit anxious
about how well they are go-
ing to be received but they
seem to go down OK.
Then we go back to Barry’s
for a couple of hours’ peace
and quiet. Later in the after-
noon, John Holland arrives.
He is going to stay with us
for the weekend while the
Lederer is on. We go out for
dinner with a lot of Cana-
dians and Americans (their
team-mates have arrived).
Afterwards we drop in to
the Young Chelsea (YC) for
another drink or two to so-
cialise with anyone who is
there playing in the dupli-
cate. Pass 5NT Pass 6♣
Saturday
Barry cooks us all breakfast,
after which John and I set
off for the YC. The Leder-
er is an invitation teams’
event staged each year at
the YC, with the sponsor-
ship of Bernard Teltscher. I
am playing with Nicola on
Kitty Teltscher’s team (also
Colin Simpson and David
Price). We are representing
the YC because we won the
Young Chelsea Knock-out
competition. John is on the
Spring Fours’ team (because
he won that event). There
are eight teams in total and
we all play each other in a
round robin. The scoring
is unusual: you score the
12-board match by IMPs as
usual and convert to victory
points (maximum = 36); in
addition, there are 2 points
available for winning each
board so the overall maxi-
mum total is 60. This means
that the tactics are a combi-
nation of pairs and teams.
We win two matches and
lose two, none by a huge
margin and at the end of the
day we are just above aver-
age and lying fourth.
This deal from early in the
first match is quite exciting:
Dealer West. N/S Vul.
♠ K 10 8
♥ Void
♦ A 8 7 6
♣ A K J 10 7 5
♠ 4 ♠ J 7 5 2
♥ K Q J 9 7 N ♥ A 8 5 4 2
W E
♦ J 9 5 2 S ♦ K 10
♣ 6 4 3 ♣ 9 2
♠ A Q 9 6 3
♥ 10 6 3
♦ Q 4 3
♣ Q 8
West North East South
2♥ 3♣ 4♥ 4♠
Pass 6♠ All Pass
The bidding is interest-
ing. A weak two bid with a
hand like West’s is more or
less standard at this level of
bridge these days – first (or
third) in hand at favour-
able vulnerability. It seems
better to me to bid my long
suit rather than double with
only three spades. I am
confident that there will be
further bidding and that
I will probably be able to
double a heart contract for
takeout. When East raises
to 4♥ Nicola knows I am
short in hearts and there-
fore probably have some
spade length; so although
her 4♠ bid looks aggressive,
it is well reasoned. I am now
happy to bid at least a small
slam and prepared to try for
a grand if she has both the
ace and queen of spades. My
5NT, in the first instance,
asks her to choose a slam
(here between 6♣ and 6♠).
When I bid 6♠ after she
Page 47
chooses 6♣, she knows that
I intended for her to bid the
grand slam if she has two
top spade honours. How-
ever, she is anxious about
having only a five-card suit
and not a great hand, so she
decides to play it safe.
How would you play 6♠
on a heart lead?
On this bidding, it looks
moderately likely that
spades are 4-1, so the safe
line of play is to ruff the
opening lead and run the
ten of spades. If West wins
with the jack and plays an-
other heart, you can ruff
high; then you can cross to
the queen of clubs to draw
the rest of the trumps and
claim the slam. As you can
see on the actual layout, she
needs to do this to make
her slam (and, of course,
then makes an overtrick).
Bernard Teltscher played in
similar fashion to flatten the
board.
We then all go out for a
Chinese meal (you can see
the root of my dietary prob-
lems – too much eating out)
to round off the day.
Sunday
Another cooked break-
fast and then off again to
the YC. We lose the first
match narrowly against the
holders but then have two
good wins (including a par-
ticularly pleasing 51-9 vic-
tory against the Canadian/
American team – somehow
it is always particularly
pleasing to beat friends,
though I guess it is good to
beat people you don’t like
too) to end up second. Af-
terwards there are drinks
and nibbles followed by a
prize-giving. After all this
activity, it is a pleasure to
drive home for the roast
chicken dinner Briony has
prepared for us, followed by
catching up on some TV. ■
Dramatis Personae
Sally Brock lives in High Wy-
combe with her two teenag-
ers, her husband Raymond
having died in early 2008. She
works partly as a bridge pro-
fessional, occasionally play-
ing for pay but more often
writing (she is the bridge col-
umnist for The Sunday Times)
and teaching online; the rest
of the time she works on the
production of travel guides.
She has been a member of
the British/English women’s
team on and off since 1979.
Briony & Toby are Sally’s
17-year-old daughter and
18-year-old son.
Ben, Gemma and Hayden
Ben is Sally’s 35-year-old son
who is married to Gemma.
Hayden is their two-year-
old son, and they all live in
Waltham Abbey.
Barry Myers is Sally’s new
partner, both at and away
from the bridge table. He is
a criminal defence barrister
and lives in Shepherd’s Bush.
Nicola Smith is Sally’s current
international bridge partner.
They formed a last-minute
partnership in 2008 to join
the England women’s team
for the World Mind Sports
Games in Beijing where they
won the gold medal. Nicola
has been playing interna-
tional bridge since she was
17, which is rather a long
time ago.
Richard and Gerry are two of
Sally’s regular online clients.
Richard lives in North London
and Gerry lives in Toronto.
Every week Sally plays against
them for a couple of hours,
stopping to discuss problems
that arise – sometimes with
Barry if he is not working,
and sometimes with herself
(when she usually is almost
flawless!).
Fiona Brown is a small red-
head who is always smiling,
comes from Australia, but now
lives in Harrogate with her
boyfriend, Irish international
Hugh McGann. Last year, she
finished her IT degree and at
the moment works part-time
in a pharmacy – which leaves
her plenty of time to concen-
trate on her bridge.
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Openings Basics in Suits in Suit Contracts l No-Trump
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