Discoveryy

Discover
Club Members
Club
SAVE
SA
AVE AN EXTRA

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An eexceptional
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BRIDGE
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DUPLICATE
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GUARANTEED
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All Mr Bridge passengers are eligible to attend the exclusive drinks parties. W
Al hen Discover y
Wh Jul 29 HARWICH, England
is at sea there are morn miinars and afternoon brriidge sessions. Due to the number
niing sem Embark on mv DISCOVERY
of oppportun niities for seminars, thhiis cruise is ideal to give Mr Bridge passengers the chance Jul 31 At sea
to expand their knowledge and brush up on their bridge techn niiques. Those choosing to Jul 31 FLÅM, Nor way
payy the £30 per bridge player supplement, will be eligible for the even niing duplliicate after
the first sitting dinner. The bridge programme is fully optional and you may participate as Aug 1 ÅLESUND, Nor way
much or as little as you wish. Mr Bridge actively encourages singles to join the parttyy and Aug 2 TÓRSHAVN, Faroe Islands
they will alwayys be found a partner for a game. Aug 3 Cr uising the Atlantic Ocean
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Aug 19 At sea
Aug 20 HARWICH, England

Inside ccategory
ategor y O from £1,995pp

0
01483
1483 489961
489961 for
for brochures
brochures and
and bookings
bookings
w
www.bridgecruises.co.uk
ww.bridgecruises.co.uk

Fares
Fares shown are
are per person based on two people sharing lowest twin-bedded cabin category currently
currently available and include all applicable discounts for new bookings only.
only. All offers are
are subject to availability,
availability, capacity controlled
controlled and may be withdrawn
at any time. A cabin number may not be allocated at time of booking. See brochure
brochure for full terms and conditions. Only bookings made directly
directly with Mr Bridge are
are eligible to be part
part of the Bridge Group.
Group. Those wishing to play bridge, please note that
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 FEATURES 45 Better Balanced Bidding,
The Banzai Method

BRIDGE 3 Bidding Quiz

4
by Bernard Magee
reviewed by David Hugett

46 Bidding Quiz Answers

BIDDING QUIZ
by Bernard Magee

Publisher and
Managing Editor 7 Double Dummy Quiz
by Bernard Magee
Y ou are West in the auc-
tions below, playing
'Standard Acol' with a weak
Mr Bridge by Richard Wheen ADVERTISEMENTS
no-trump (12-14 points) and
Ryden Grange 9 Bridge at the 2 In the Wake four-card majors.
Knaphill, Surrey Royal Kenz of the Vikings (Answers on page 46)
GU21 2TH by Bernard Magee on board Discovery
1. Dealer East. Love All.
( 01483 489961 11 Double Dummy Answer 5 Cut-out Form
♠ A 10 7 6
by Richard Wheen Mail Order Form
e-mail: ™ K 10 7 3
6 All Roads © Q7
bridge@mrbridge.co.uk 12 Julian Pottage
Lead to Rome ® KQ2
Answers Your Questions
website: on board Minerva
West North East South
www.mrbridge.co.uk 16 Declarer Play Quiz
11 Tunisia 1® Pass
by Dave Huggett
1™ Pass 2NT Pass
Associate Editor 17 Stephen Cashmore says 11 Duplicate Bridge ?
Julian Pottage Bid Your Games Rules Simplified
Especially when 2. Dealer West. Love All.
15 Egypt 2011 ♠ 4
Technical Consultant Vulnerable
™ K732
Tony Gordon 20 David Stevenson
16 Rubber/Chicago
Bridge Events © AQ2
Answers Your Questions ® AQ765
Bridge Consultant
18 Voyages of Discovery
Bernard Magee 23 Defence Quiz West North East South
2010/11 Winter Cruises
by Julian Pottage 1® 1™ 1♠ 2™
Proof Readers 27 Bernard Magee says
24 Bridge Weekends ?
Tony Richards with Bernard Magee
Look for an
3. Dealer West. Love All.
Danny Roth Eight-Card 26 Bernard Magee ♠ AK872
Hugh Williams Major-Suit Fit Tips for Better Bridge ™ AQ42
Richard Wheen 28 Heather Dhondy says © 76
26 Charity
Lead Trumps ® 43
Bridge Events
Software Support Against Sacrifices
West North East South
( 01483 485345 32 Stamps
1♠ Dble Pass 2©
29 Declarer Play Answers
by David Huggett 33 Bernard Magee ?
Events & Cruises Hand Evaluation
( 01483 489961 30 Jeremy Dhondy says 4. Dealer East. Love All.
Jessica Galt Splinters Help 37 ♠ 6
Find Suit Slams 2010/11 Bridge Breaks ™ A 10 9 3 2
Rachel Everett
Megan Riccio © KJ87
31 Readers’ Letters 38 Voyages of Discovery
® Q72
2011 Cruises
Club Directory 39 Defence Quiz Answers
West North East South
by Julian Pottage 40 Global Travel
and Charity Support Insurance
1® Pass
maggie@mrbridge.co.uk 42 At the Feet 1™ Pass 1NT Pass
of the Master 43 Christmas 2010 ?
Address Changes by Dick Atkinson
47 Bridge Software 5. Dealer South. Love All.
( 01483 485342 43 Catching Up ♠ 96
by Sally Brock 48 Cruise to the Riviera
™ AK32
All correspondence should with Bernard Magee
© A K Q 10 8 7
be addressed to Mr Bridge. 44 Seven Days and team
® 8
Please make sure that all by Sally Brock on Board Discovery
letters, e-mails and faxes West North East South
carry full postal addresses 3®
The views expressed in this publication are not
and telephone numbers. ?
necessarily those of the publisher or its Managing Editor.

Page 3
 PROMOTING
THE BRAND
Not only am I a real person,
I am also a brand, and
brands need promotion.
Now, what could be better to
promote the brand than my
wonderful Premium Quality
Playing Cards.
They were developed for that
specific promotional purpose
and it seems like an age
since their launch in 2006.
So, they need a re-launch.
It really gives me a thrill
whenever I play my ace of
spades (pictured above) at
the table. And the crisp
330 gm quality card is
evident to everyone when
handling them.
ORDERS
First stock will be available
from the third week in June.
Send your orders in now
for your cards. Your cheque
will not be cashed nor your
card number charged until
the day stock is despatched
to you. Alternatively, you
may order online:
www.mrbridge.co.uk/
mrbridge-shop
PRICES
12 packs (unboxed)
6 red backs
6 blue backs
£19.95
60 packs (unboxed)
Ideal for Clubs
5 x 6 red backs
5 x 6 blue backs
£60.00
Theses prices are inclusive
of VAT and delivery.
BAR CODES
Clubs requiring cards with
bar codes for Duplimate
machines may place orders
at the same price. 60s only.
QPLUS TIPS
As an increasing number
of you are using QPlus
software to sharpen up your
game, I make the following
suggestions to improve its
conformation.
If your QPlus is running too
slowly, click Configuration
and go to Playing Strength,
reset the Memory at 9 and
the Playing Level at 27.
That should speed it up, as
a powerful computer will
always spend all day
thinking about a problem if
you give it half a chance.
Just like a man I hear you
ladies saying.
To further enhance your
enjoyment of QPlus, go to
Deal, then to Match Control
and put a black dot in Deal
Number. Reset the scoring
method to Team by putting a
black dot in that box too.
Finally, at the bottom of the
panel, go to Comparison and
put a black dot in the Closed
Room box, setting the
number of boards at 16.
These adjustments should
enable you to have a result
after the play of each hand.
If you do badly compared to
QPlus, you can always
replay the hand
automatically and see how
Page 4
QPlus has played the hand in
the closed room.
This is a great way to learn
from your mistakes at your
own pace and all in the
privacy of your own home.
TRY THESE HANDS
Those of you lucky enough
to own a copy of this
wonderful software will
know that each and every
possible combination of 52
cards dealt into four hands is
given a number of its own.
Here are two that I found
interesting. 2424/13 and
7792/13. Should you find
hands of interest, email me
the reference number and I
will let the growing army of
QPlus users share it.
TUTORIALS
QPlus designer Johannes
Leber, pictured above, has
used his QPlus ‘engine’ to
make Bernard Magee’s
tutorial programs. These
CD’s are not cheap. They
take a long time to devise,
script, programme and
record. If you have a really
limited budget, I would
recommend the latest in the
series, Defence, as it is the
most likely to dramatically
improve your game, but it
will also involve you in some
brain work. You choose. See
facing order form.
CRACKED
Sometimes disks get cracked
or scratched in the course of
time. QPLUS and Tutorial
software disks can be
replaced by sending the disk
back to us together with a
cheque for £10 for each
replacement required.
PIPE DREAM
In all the extra work that has
arisen since I started to be
coached as a businessman,
I have forgotten to mention
my cruise on Discovery In
The Wake of The Vikings.
This time I am going to
leave the office at Ryden
Grange to the care of my
trusted staff and keep the
mobile phone well and truly
switched off. As Tony and
Jan Richards are the bridge
hosts on board, that part of
my enjoyment is assured.
If you haven’t made your
own holiday arrangements
yet, take my word for it.
Norway and Greenland
are magic places.
TEA TOWELS
I am now no longer involved
in the tea towel business but
the range is still on sale.
We are Survivors
Life’s a Game
10 Commandments
and many others.
All at £5.95 each from
Art Screen Print.
( 01287 637527
POSTAGE SAVINGS
Support Clive Goff’s unusual
service supplying unused
British postage stamps at a
useful discount.
( 0208 4224906
Clive.goff@londonrugby.com
BRIDGE WEEKLY
If you would like to receive
your weekly bridge
e-supplement go to
www.mrbridge.co.uk and
click the subscribe link under
Bridge Weekly. This, too, is
free of charge and we are
already up to issue 9.
✄

If you have not contacted us in the last two

MAIL ORDER years, please enter your details in the box
below to re-register:
PLAY SOFTWARE
QPlus 9.1 £84.00 .......
QPlus 8.8 (second hand) £54.00 .......
Name (Dr Mr, Mrs, Miss) .............................................
TUTORIAL SOFTWARE Address ..............................................................
Acol Bidding £64.00 .......
More Acol Bidding £94.00 ....... ............................................................................
Declarer Play £74.00 .......
Postcode .............................................................
Advanced Declarer Play £79.00 .......
Defence £74.00 ....... Telephone............................................................

BOOKS E-mail .................................................................

Duplicate Bridge Rules Simplified £5.95 .......
Club Offer 10 for only £35.00 .......
Simple Directing at the Club – Dr Gurr £4.75 .......
Better Hand Evaluation – Bernard Magee £14.00 ....... If you have any comments, queries or points of
interest, please use this panel and post them in:
Bernard Magee’s Bridge Quiz Book £14.00 .......
Bernard Magee’s Quiz and Puzzle Book £14.00 ....... ............................................................................
Bernard Magee’s Tips for Better Bridge £14.00 .......
............................................................................
SINGLE-SUITED BALL-POINT PENS
Ballpoint Pens. Boxed set of four £19.95 .......
Please send BRIDGE to the following enthusiasts:
PREMIUM QUALITY CARDS
Standard Faces
Mr/Mrs/Miss ..............................................................................
12 packs (6 red / 6 blue) £19.95 .......
48 packs (24 red / 24 blue) £60.00 ....... Address ....................................................................................
Bar-coded Faces
..................................................................................................
48 packs (24 red / 24 blue) £60.00 .......
Email.........................................................................................
All prices are fully inclusive. I enclose a cheque for £.............

Mr/Mrs/Miss ..............................................................................
Mr/Mrs/Miss ................................................................................................
Address ....................................................................................
Address .........................................................................................................
..................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................
Email.........................................................................................
Postcode ..............................................( .............................................

Mr/Mrs/Miss ..............................................................................

Address ....................................................................................

..................................................................................................
Expiry: ............................ CVV.................... Issue No. ...............
(CVV is the last 3 numbers on the signature strip) Email.........................................................................................

, Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH.

www.mrbridge.co.uk/mrbridge-shop Please complete all or part this form and return to
, Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey, GU21 2TH.
( 01483 489961
✄

Page 5
Swan Hellenic Discovery Cruising
For people with a mind to travel

At Swan Hellenic, we go
further and dig deeper. Our
ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME MIN100826
on-board guest speakers and 15 days departing August 26, 2010 from £1,282pp* (inside),
excursions ashore, help you
gain fascinating insights. £1,995pp (outside) or £1,538pp* (inside single)
You travel in country-style Follow in the wake of Pilgrims, maritime
comfort with no more than explorers and gentlemen on the Grand Tour
320 like-minded passengers and dine in from Dover to St Peter Port to the
the restaurant of your choice with your magnificent cathedrals of Santiago de
friends. Be assured of excellent value Compostela and St Peter’s in Rome.
for money, including tailor-made shore Share in their fascination and wonder as you
excursions and all tips on-board and explore Pompeii and Herculaneum, taste port
ashore. Travel with a renowned British and sherry in Oporto and Jerez, and marvel
at the Moorish Alhambra and the
company, established in 1954, and enjoy
Rennaissance cities of Florence, Pisa and
an experience that will live with you Rome.
forever.
A tailor-made excursion programme,
Mr Bridge entrance fees and all gratuities are included.
All passengers who have booked and *Fares exclusive to Mr Bridge
registered through Mr Bridge will be
eligible to partake in the exclusive late FREE Complimentary pre-cruise transfer from London Gatwick to Dover (please request
afternoon duplicate session. There is at the time of booking). For Airport parking details please see Terms and Conditions below
no Bridge supplement, as like most of

01483 489961
the excursions, it is included in the
price. Mr Bridge actively encourages for brochures
singles to join the party and they will
always be found a partner for a game.
and bookings

Fares shown are per person based on two people sharing a category 12 inside cabin or a category 8 outside cabin. Offer applies to new bookings only, is subject
to availability and may be withdrawn at any time. Booking terms and conditions apply. All fares shown are guarantee fares - cabin number will be allocated
approximately 3 weeks prior to departure. Travel insurance not included. Swan Hellenic is a trading name of All Leisure Holidays Limited ABTA W0392 ATOL
3897. Only bookings made directly with Mr Bridge guarantee participation in the onboard Mr Bridge programme, subject to availability. Parking at London
Gatwick must be arranged and paid for independently. Please call BCP parking on 0871 360 2993 quoting BCPAT3897 for a discounted rate.
 MINERVA
The following are the most
frequent requests from our
cruisers:
l small ships
l no flying
l balconies
l insightful port lectures
l inclusive tours
l no single supplements
l open sitting dining
l daily duplicate
Discovery can meet some of
these requirements but
certainly not all.
Minerva, pictured above,
carries only 325 passengers,
has 12 cabins with balconies,
Oxbridge quality port
lectures, inclusive tours and
open dining arrangements
and a bridge room for seven
or eight tables.
I think the following is a
particularly attractive offer.
All Roads Lead to Rome
Dover to Naples
26 August – 9 September
See adjacent advert.
15 days from
£1282
per person
sharing an inside cabin.
20% supplement for singles.
CHARITY EVENTS
On page 26, I provide a
listing of fund-raising events
involving bridge. Do try to
support them if you can.
Organisers, do send in your
details really well in advance
– bridge players have events
and matches booked a long
way forward.
The listing in BRIDGE is
free of charge. Organisers
should also ask the bridge
trade for prizes. Some will
help and the worst they can
do is to say no.
FEBRUARY CAPTION COMPETITION
First Prize
a place on board mv Discovery
on the cruise to the Riviera.
Creating a spectacular entry.
Mrs Jill Clark, Herts.
Runners Up
a single place at any
Mr Bridge 2010 weekend event.
At last a forth for bridge.
Mr Alan Chapman, Marlborough.
Ahoy! You have to pay2pass.
Mrs D Moles, Dartington, Devon.
Too few points Captain, can’t reverse.
Mrs C Bryce, Stevenage.
Have you tried reversing?
Mrs S Taylor, Farnham.
Don’t be a dummy, it’s not Chicago.
Mr David Roberts, Herts.
You can’t trump this cruise for value.
Mrs Y Mills, York.
Great cruising with lots of finesse.
Philip Apple, Essex.
Ahoy! We need a 4th for bridge.
Mrs F Beattie, Manchester.
Grand ship. Grand canal. Grand slam.
Jan Jones, West Sussex.
It’s Mr Bridge ruffing it in Luxury.
Mrs J C Graham, Peterborough.
CHRISTMAS QUIZ ANSWERS
Hand 1 – 1NT. Hand 2 – 2®. Hand 3 – 1™.
Premium Quality
Playing Cards
Standard
Design.
Unboxed.
6 red
6 blue
£19.95
30 red
30 blue
only £60
See the Mail Order Form on page 5.
Page 7
KEEP SAVING
We have just received a
further cheque in support of
Little Voice from the sale of
the used postage stamps that
you and your friends are
carefully putting by for me.
The work that Little Voice
does in Addis Abba is
valuable and it is well worth
accumulating these
otherwise worthless pieces
of waste paper for such a
worthwhile cause.
DOUBLE DUMMY
by Richard Wheen
♠ 2
™ 432
© 32
® Void
♠ Void ♠ A
N
™ 8 ™ KJ9
W E
© A S
© Void
® Q J 10 9 ® AK
♠ Void
™ A Q 10
© 65
® 5
South, the declarer, is to lead
and North/South need to
make five tricks with hearts
as trumps. How should one
go about it? To find the
answer, look on page 11.
TRAVEL COVER
Those needing travel
insurance should consider
Global Travel whose terms
and conditions can be found
on pages 40 & 41. The form
provided is for a single
holiday – those wanting an
annual policy should
download the form from
my website, or if it’s easier,
telephone and I will post
one to you.
Do say you heard it from
Mr Bridge.
DISCOVERY 2011
Brochures for next summer
season are now available.
( 01483 489961.
 NO COMPUTER
Those of you skilful or lucky
enough to have won software
vouchers in my competitions,
but do not have a computer,
may use the £50 towards any
future weekend booking.
Those with weekend
vouchers but too far away to
travel may convert them to
£50 off software vouchers.
All subject to availability.
Offer ends 31 July, 2010.
BACK COVER
STORY
This is the last Cruise to The
Riviera. Next year Discovery
is taking a different route to
the Med. For the last few
years, Bernard Magee and
his team have looked after
parties of bridge players on
what has proved to be a
really popular ‘extra’ holiday.
Like a weekend with him at
The Beach Hotel, you should
book now, otherwise it will
be just a memory of what
might have been.
BEACH HOTEL
Yes, sadly The Beach is
closing after our 3-5
December weekend event.
There is still some
availability on the extra
weekends that I have put on
in October and November
with both Bernard Magee
and our other hosts.
RUBBER CHICAGO
Diana Holland, pictured
above, is hosting two
weekend events for
rubber/Chicago players. She
is also hosting a mid-week
event there in mid-November.
CHRISTMAS UK
This year we will have
Christmas groups at The
Olde Barn Hotel, Marston,
Lincolnshire and Denham
Grove near Uxbridge,
Buckinghamshire. Twixmas
and New Year’s Eve breaks
are also being held at
Denham Grove. For dates
see page 43.
APPLE MAC
QPLUS does not currently
have a Mac version, so I
recommend Mac users to
buy Bridge Baron. This is
available from Chess and
Bridge. Ring and ask for
Matt. ( 020 7388 2404.
AND FINALLY
Bernard Magee’s youngest
sister will be performing in
Teechers, a comedy by John
Godber at the Henley Fringe
Festival. Teechers is on at
7pm from Monday 19th to
Saturday 24th July 2010 at
The Henley Rugby Club,
tickets are £8. For more
details or to book online
www.falcongrange.com
or book over the phone on
( 01491 578631.
Page 8
Why it is so important
for club committees
to insure their club
The rise in TV adverts offering free legal assistance in the
event of an accident or personal injury has increased public
awareness of the possibility of making a claim and, as a
result, the need for club committee members to seek public
liability insurance is becoming more important than ever.
Over the last year we have seen a number of incidents that
highlight the need for clubs to take out insurance to protect
their committee members against possible claims.
One case concerned a member leaving his club, tripping
over another member’s briefcase and falling through a plate
glass door. As a result of the injuries sustained, the gentle-
man sadly died a few weeks later. This could have resulted
in a liability claim against the club committee and member
but, fortunately, the gentleman dictated a letter absolving
his club of any responsibility and making it clear that the
accident was his own fault. An act that is rare these days.
Another incident occurred when a member attended a
club evening. After parking his car in the club car park, the
member apparently slipped over on ice and injured his
knee. Some months later the member initiated a claim via
solicitors for personal injury as a result of the fall. The
allegation of fault by the club surrounds their statutory duty
under the Occupier Liability Act 1957 to provide safe
premises for lawful visitors and that the club failed to do so
by not clearing the ice or gritting the car park. The car park
holds around 60 cars, so clearing ice or gritting the car park
would not have been easy for the club committee to arrange.
Recently we received a call from an uninsured club. The
committee members were aware of the need to insure but
had decided not to bother. That is, until a rather large club
member had the chair that they were sitting on collapse
under them. The individual concerned is claiming injury
and making a claim on the club, which in effect is the
committee members. The committee are now left to deal
with defending the claim and any subsequent payment. The
club have now decided to take out club insurance.
In the first two cases the committees were initially
extremely concerned but fortunately both were insured
through our club protection policy scheme. In the second
case, the ongoing claim and all associated correspondence
has been passed to the club’s insurer. However, in the third
case, as the club was not insured it is for the committee to
respond to the allegation or to seek legal advice, which may
prove very expensive. In the event that liability is proven,
any damages will have to be met by the club’s members.
These examples illustrate how important it is for commit-
tees to insure their club. The present bridge club insurance
scheme has an annual premium of £57.75 plus £2 adminis-
tration charge and for clubs wishing to join in June taking
them through to this November the pro-rata premium
including the £2 administration charge is just £31.00.
For more information please contact
Moore Stephens Insurance Brokers Ltd
email: enquiries@msibltd.com ( 020 7515 5270
 Bridge at the
Royal Kenz
T
he weather can be a little variable
in Port El Kantaoui, Tunisia, but
this February it was perfect (as it
had been last November as well). The
temperatures were in the mid 20s and
the sun was out for most of the time.
What do you do for two weeks?
Some people worry about going away
for a full two weeks: it sounds like too
much bridge. However, you can play as
little or as much bridge as you want.
Most players enjoy the evening bridge,
but tend to do their own thing during the
rest of the day. However, there are also
four or five seminars, which people do
enjoy, with set hands to follow in order
to practise the subject.
There are plenty of tours to occupy
you: to explore Tunisia, the country and
the culture. There is also plenty to do
nearer to hand. Walking along the beach
is one of the more popular things, all the
way in to the marina, which has
restaurants and shops and a pleasant
atmosphere. This particular year I tried
walking the other way, past various
seaside cafes and on and on – we went
for two hours and you could have kept
on going: the sand is lovely and the sea
a glorious colour.
Then of course there is swimming,
where you have three choices: very
cold, cold or nice and warm.
I have tried all three: the hotel
outdoor pools are very cold; they almost
stop the blood; it took at least three
minutes to restore consciousness. The
nice and warm temperature can be had
in the new indoor pool. The hotel has
finished its new Thalassotherapy
department, which includes a very large
and spacious pool with huge windows
flooding the area with natural light.
There are also plenty of treatment
rooms for spas and massages.
by Bernard Magee
However, my favourite of the three is
the sea: it is undoubtedly cold, but there
is little to beat the pleasure of
swimming in the real thing. I have tried
doing a little snorkelling, but there is
not a huge amount to see and now that I
have been to Sharm El Sheikh, it is
never likely to compare.
Here is a hand that put me in mind of
plunging in to the outdoor pools:
Dealer South. Love All.
♠ Q
™ AK2
© A987
® A7643
♠ J 10 9 8 2 ♠ Void
™ J 10 9 N ™ Q873
W E
© Q 10 S
© KJ652
® 10 8 5 ® KQJ9
♠ AK76543
™ 654
© 43
® 2
South opens 3♠ and North raises to 4♠.
West leads the ♠J.
You should always try to take your
time at trick one. Things look rosy:
hopefully seven spade tricks and four
top tricks in dummy and perhaps there
is a chance of a twelfth trick by
establishing dummy’s clubs?
With a plan made, you play dummy’s
queen and East discards the ©2.
Whoa. The water is very cold indeed.
It takes time to get used to the shock,
so take your time. However, rather like
the swimming pool, given enough time
your body/mind will compensate and it
becomes like swimming anywhere else.
This hand is very similar: your
previous plan will work in the same
Page 9
way, it is just that you will lose two
extra tricks to West’s long trumps.
Setting up a long club becomes the key
play, because it will be the tenth trick.
After taking the ♠Q, you play the ®A,
ruff a club, cross to the ™K, ruff a club,
return to the ™A and lead the fourth
club. At this point, a little care is
required, but hopefully the numbness
has subsided: you throw your last heart
on the fourth club, as does West. East
leads the ™Q; you ruff and West
overruffs. He now leads a diamond, but
dummy’s ace wins and you lead
dummy’s winning club to discard your
last diamond. The defence make one
club trick and two trumps and that is all.
If you make the mistake of ruffing the
fourth club, West overruffs, leads a
heart to East’s queen and another heart
is led, leaving you only losing options.
Our agents have a tour company based
in Tunisia, Eden Tours, with Jette and
Sonia. They were a mother and daughter
partnership when we started running
holidays here, but they are now a
grandmother, mother and child. Sonia
looks after our every need in the country
and if ever anything goes wrong, they
are quickly on hand. The tours they run
are superb with excellent guides.
However, if you prefer, you can explore
on your own. A 15-minute taxi ride takes
you to Sousse, which is a big town, with
a medina and souk as well as plenty of
museums and shops. You can get a great
flavour of the country here, as well as
having the opportunity to buy as many
touristy things as you want.
I took Jo and Eddie with me on a trip
to Monastir this time. We were very
relaxed, trying out the market where I
bought a few belly-dancing outfits for
my niece, whilst Eddie bought presents
for his grandchildren and Jo bought
 Bridge at the Royal Kenz West North East South to the queen. This is the time to sober
continued Pass 1™ up: do not take your ace of diamonds;
Pass 1♠ Pass 2© keep it back until later; the fewer
Pass 4™ Pass 6™ diamonds played the less likely an
more shoes. We had coffee in one of the All Pass overruff. You ruff the second diamond,
many coffee shops, took in a few more play a trump to your jack and ruff the
retail shops and then decided it was Bidding judgement tends to veer on the third diamond. Finally you ruff a spade,
lunchtime, so we walked over to the aggressive side, although there are some and close your eyes when you put down
Monastir marina. A lot quieter than the players who recede in to their shell after the ace of trumps.
El Kantaoui marina, but it is of a similar a few cocktails. The auction started When you open your eyes you see
design. We strolled gently around, slowly but after South’s 2©, North took East’s king on the table: your queen
enjoying the sun, the sea and the sailing a rosy view of his cards: 8 HCP a then draws West’s last trump and you
boats. Eventually, we found the singleton and a six-card suit: 4™. can take your other winners.
restaurant I had eaten in with my wife Definitely an overbid. An undeserved top: sometimes when
seven or eight years before and we However, the auction was not you have a night of overbidding you can
decided to give it another go. finished: South counted only five losers get very big scores indeed. However,
The fresh fish and seafood is to die and therefore felt slam was on the cards; the contrary is also true: you can give
for, so we started with crayfish. It who needs Blackwood when you are your opponents very big smiles too.
looked brilliant, but when we opened tipsy? 6™. South has also over-valued Had you played your ©A after
them up there was no flesh in any of his assets: his ®Q by itself should winning the ©Q, East would have been
them: very delicate able to overruff on
indeed. However, the the fourth round of
waiter replaced them Monastir diamonds.
with calamari which The greatest pleas-
was wonderfully ure of running bridge
fresh. Next we went events is to see peo-
for the Sea Bass: so ple enjoying them-
fresh and tasty. selves. The players
The company was mixed particularly
excellent, the food well on this event,
delightful and, by the with a lovely atmos-
time we had got to phere built up.
the end of the meal, Amongst the group
we had drunk enough we had about twenty
so that we did not single players: which
notice whether it was gave all of them a
expensive or not. chance to play with
Having too many different partners to
drinks is a common start off with and
affliction on holidays then perhaps settle
and it can affect with one particular
people’s bridge. partner, although
Many a time I have been asked to do a certainly slow him down. others preferred to continue playing the
seminar on playing bridge when tipsy. However, overbidding does not field.
Here is a deal that exhibits the problems always lose out: sometimes the cards lie The standard of bridge always varies:
that can be encountered. very nicely, although it does require a social players, those still learning, once-
sober mind to play them properly. a-week players, all the way through to
West leads the ♠A and, when partner county players. It is important to Mr
Dealer East. N/S Game. plays the ♠4, he pauses to consider and Bridge to make bridge holidays and
♠ J76532 eventually switches to the ®J. Now events open to everybody: we try to
™ 10 9 8 declarer has to hope the cards are with create an atmosphere that allows
© 6 him and work out what he requires to everybody to enjoy themselves as well
® AK7 make his contract. You need to get rid of as to enjoy the wonderful game of
♠ AKQ ♠ 10 9 4 all three diamonds, but three ruffs bridge.
N
™ 732 W E
™ K6 would leave no trumps to lead for a Although most of our holidays are
© J9872 S © K 10 5 finesse, so a finesse and two ruffs will designed as two week breaks, you are
® J 10 ® 98654 have to do, but, even then, you will only able to book for seven nights if you
♠ 8 be able to manage one trump finesse, so prefer.
™ AQJ54 you will have to hope that East has just However, many of those who do
© AQ43 two hearts. A lot to hope for, but you come for seven days regret it when they
® Q32 might as well try. leave: they wished they had booked for
You take the ®A and play a diamond the fortnight. n

Page 10
 DOUBLE DUMMY SOLUTION
by Richard Wheen
(Problem on page 7)
♠ 2
™ 432
© 32
® Void
♠ Void ♠ A
™ 8 N
W E
™ KJ9
S
© A © Void
® Q J 10 9 ® AK
♠ Void
™ A Q 10
© 65
® 5
S o there we were, playing
in the South-East Surrey
Senior Novices’ Summer
Pairs’ Competition. I was
sitting North and had picked
up my usual Barbara*.
Without much help from
me, partner had become
declarer in an ambitious
heart contract, and needed to
make five tricks in the posi-
tion shown above. As per-
mitted in these events, I had
manoeuvred my electric
buggy to behind partner’s,
managing to look at my
opponents’ hands on the
way. I saw partner would
have his work cut out to
make the contract (even
though the opponents’ hearts
were well placed), because
there did not seem to be
enough entries to dummy to
finesse twice in hearts. Well,
what did he expect, with my
holding a Barbara? At least,
I thought, partner would
make a diamond trick after
losing one to the ace.
First partner led a club,
DUPLICAT EBRIDGE
RULESSIMPLIFIED
(otherwiseknownastheYellowBook)
by John Rumbelow and revised by David Stevenson
NewEdition.Includes2008LawRevisions.
Availablefrom
AT THE ROYAL KENZ
ruffed in dummy. He now
led a heart from dummy.
TUNISIA 2010/2011
East played the nine and
partner won the trick with
the ten – so far so good!
Partner then established a
diamond trick by losing one
to West’s diamond ace - East
discarded his last club on
this. West then had to lead a
club. This was ruffed by
dummy. East realised that, if
he overruffed this, declarer
would overruff in turn and
the rest would be easy for
him, so East discarded his
ace of spades and South
threw his now established
diamond. North led his
spade (but the situation
would have been the same
had he led his last diamond).
With only trumps left, East
had to ruff this. South
overruffed and cashed his Two-week half-board
remaining trump for the
contract. duplicate holidays
I was glad later to see that
this achievement had helped 31 Oct – 14 Nov £749*
raise us from last to second
last place in the competition.
Tony and Jan Richards
I was left ruing the fact that, Golf available
as ever, I had been the player
with the Barbara and my 20 February – 6 March £749*
partner had been declarer
with the interesting hand – Bernard Magee
c’est la vie.
*A Barbara: a hand with 6 March – 20 March £749*
no card higher than a five –
see The Official Encyclo-
pedia of Bridge, 7th (next)
20 March – 3 April £749*
edition. A Barbara is more
common than all those hands *per person half-board sharing a twin-bedded room and is inclusive
of bridge fees. Single supplement £6 per night. These prices are
of 37 points that we hear based on air travel from Gatwick to Monastir. Flights from other
about (but very seldom see). UK airports are available at a supplement. All prices are firm until
the end of July 2010. Prices for seven-night stays are available on
application.
Pay £70 per fortnight per person extra and have a pool-facing
room, tea & coffee making facilities, bath robe and a bowl of
only seasonal fruit.
£5 95 These holidays have been organised for by Tunisia First Limited, ATOL 5933,
working in association with Thomas Cook Tour Operations Limited, ATOL 1179.
DETAILS & BOOKINGS
( 01483 489961 ( 01483 489961
Page 11

Q Q
All the modern
books say to lead
your partner’s suit
but not the top card. Please
can you remind me why
not the top card?
Mary Willoughby, Thetford,
Norfolk (similar from Janis
Hardwick).
A
Leading top of
partner’s suit is not
such a good idea on
layouts like this:
75
Q82 N
A 10 9 6 3
W E
S showing a strong hand so I
KJ4
If you lead the queen rather
than low, declarer makes an
undeserved second trick
in the suit.
Even if you have only low
cards in partner’s suit,
leading high could cost:
partner might think that you
have a doubleton and try to
give you a ruff.
If you have supported
partner’s suit and you have
only low cards in it, there is a
case for leading high because
your raise precludes the
possibility of a doubleton
and the only issue is your
strength. This tells partner at
once that you cannot help in
the suit. In the USA and
Canada, very few people lead
MUD in supported suits.
Why has Leading Top
of Partner’s Suit
Gone out of Fashion?
Whilst playing
with three
experienced
players, I held:
♠ AQ75
™ K6
© AJ853
® 75
West North East South
1© 2® 2™ Pass
? raise the level.
I thought if I bid 2♠ it
would be a reverse
rebid 3©; I played there
and went down. My
partner asked why I had
not bid my spades. I said
because 2♠ would have
been a reverse. They all
seem to agree that it would
not. Please explain.
Barry Tyrrell by email.
A A
In an uncontested
auction, you reverse
if you bid a low-
ranking suit before a high-
ranking suit in such a way
that partner cannot go back to
your first suit at the two level.
After the overcall, the
position changes. A 2♠
rebid, if you made it, would
not be what takes you past
2©. Your partner’s 2™ has
already done that. If you
rebid 2♠, it shows no more
than if you had rebid 1♠ in
Page 12
Ask Julian Pottage
the uncontested auction
1©-1™-1♠. A reverse is still
possible after an overcall.
Suppose your main suit was
diamonds and your second
suit hearts. If you open 1©,
the next hand bids 2® and
partner bids 2♠; it would be
a reverse if you rebid 3™.
This is because your 3™ bid
would be raising the level.
Compare this with what
actually happened. 2♠ on
your sequence would not
®©™♠
Q
In reply to Mrs J
Eede (Feb 2010)
you say ‘With 4-4
in the majors, opener would
have opened 1™ rather
than 1♠’. I have always
understood the opposite to
be the case.
Alan Bullock by email.
A
Opening 1™ with
4-4 in the majors
has been standard
practice in Acol for a long
time (since the publication of
All About Acol in 1969, if
not before). Opening 1♠ is a
recipe for missing many
good heart fits as partner
cannot bid 2™ without five
hearts and you intend to
rebid in no-trumps. Opening
1♠ with a view to rebidding
2™ is even worse, leading to
frequent 4-3 and 4-2 spade
fits. If you open 1♠ and
rebid 2™, you guarantee a
5-card spade suit.
The confusion may have
arisen because some bridge
teachers say ‘you should
open the higher of two four-
card suits’. They say this
when looking at a hand
where one is a major and the
other is a minor. It might be
more helpful if they say
‘with two four-card suits,
you should open a major
rather than a minor’. I am
sure they do not mean to
advocate opening 1♠ with
4-4 in the majors.
®©™♠
Q
I have the bad
habit of not
watching opposing
discards during declarer
play. I tend to play too fast
once play is underway.
How can I avoid this?
Derek Wright, Watford.
I may not be the
best person to ask.
Many of us make
that mistake at some point!
Usually you will notice
that an opponent has failed
to follow suit, but perhaps not
the exact card played. Maybe
you have to imagine you are
a defender. You would watch
partner’s discards, the first
discard to see what to lead
and the later ones to know
what you need to keep. Try
to do the same as declarer.

Ask Julian continued
Q
Is sacrifice bidding
consistent with
Acol rules and is it
common in social bridge
club play?
George Hutter, Knodishall.
A
If you bid
something expecting
it to go down but
also expecting the penalty,
even if someone doubles, to
be less than the value of an
opposing contract then that
is a sacrifice bid. Yes,
sacrificing is entirely normal
in social bridge and all forms
of the game. Deals on which
the par result is a sacrifice
are more common than are
slam deals.
At one time, social bridge
was one of the main places
where you would find
sacrifice bidding. People
would vie to keep playing
the contract to stop their
opponents from converting
their part-scores into games
and their games into rubbers.
A single rubber could easily
go on for an hour or more as
the players accumulated a
series of scores above the
line. This is one of the
reasons why many people
switched from traditional
rubber bridge to 4-deal
bridge. Like many things in
life, sacrifice bidding is good
in moderation!
®©™♠
Q
Partner opened 1©
and rebid 2® after
I responded 1♠.
As I had a poor ten points,
with four clubs and three
diamonds, and believed
that my partner had shown
me a weak opening hand, I
passed.
My partner told me that
one must respond to a
change of suit at the two
level. Is this so?
Linda Cartwright by email.
A A
Many authorities
split one-level
opening hands into
three strengths: weak 12-15
points, intermediate 16-18
and strong 19+. The
sequence 1©-1♠-2® is
consistent with either a weak
or an intermediate one-level
opening. It does not promise
only a minimum opening.
This is because 1©-1♠-3®
would promise a strong one-
level opening i.e. 19+.
While the simple 2® rebid
(over the one-level response)
is non-forcing, it is not a
command for responder to
pass. With 10 points and
a fit for both of opener’s
suits, you should have raised
2® to 3®.
®©™♠
Q
In the sequence
below, what is the
maximum strength
South should hold? North
and South disagreed about
whether a 13-point hand
would be normal.
West North East South
1© Pass 1™ 1♠
Anne Knight,
Wolverhampton.
A
Once upon a time,
players would
double on any
opening hand, meaning that
an overcall would show a
weaker hand.
These days, very few
people do that. In a
competitive auction, you
want to be able to show your
suit when you get the chance
before the bidding gets too
high. An overcall does not
deny the values for an
opening bid.
My advice is that if a hand
is too strong for a 1NT
overcall then it is also too
strong for a simple suit
overcall. If South’s shape is
5332, up to 17 HCP for the
1♠ overcall on this sequence
is acceptable. 13 HCP is
Page 13
certainly possible, though While reaching
South could have less than 7NT is tough – the
that of course, depending ©J is a vital card if
upon shape and the quality you cannot ruff anything –
of the spades. you should be able to reach
7®. Both you and your
®©™♠ partner were overly cautious.
With the North hand, I
Q
I refer to Freddie would respond 2©, not 1©.
North’s article on With good support for the
page 17 of suit opened, you can make a
BRIDGE 99. How does jump shift even if your own
partner differentiate suit is not very good. When
between 4® as a natural North supports clubs later,
slam try and 4® as Gerber South checks there is not an
asking for aces? Most club ace missing and bids 7®.
players after a no-trump Even after the 1©
bid would think 4® was response, you should still
Gerber. reach 7®. As opener, you
Arch Jelley, should rebid 2♠, not 1♠. You
Auckland, New Zealand. have a 4-loser hand and just
about as many high cards as
A
I agree with you you are likely to have for a
that players use one-level opening. Facing a
Gerber far too hand that wants to play in
much, though I hope you are game opposite a 6-count,
wrong in thinking that the North has a huge hand.
majority do. 4® should only North should agree clubs
be Gerber, asking for aces, in and later check there are no
very limited situations, key cards missing before
certainly not when the bidding 7®.
partnership has previously
bid clubs, which they had in ®©™♠
this auction (1®-1©-3NT).
Q
After the sequence
®©™♠ (one side bidding)
of 1®-1©-1™-1♠,
Q
How should we bid which of 1♠ and 2♠ should
these hands? Our be fourth suit forcing?
actual sequence Bill Hogan, St Helens.
was not a success.
A
There is not really a
right or a wrong
♠ 6 answer – it depends
™ AJ8 upon what you have agreed
© KQ75 with your partner.
® AJ763 In traditional Acol, a
responder’s rebid of 1♠ after
N
W
S
E 1®-1©-1™ is fourth suit, just
as if the side bids three suits
♠ AK82 in some other fashion.
™ Q Modern thinking is that 1♠
© AJ ought to be natural since
® K Q 10 9 8 5 opener might open 1® and
rebid 1™ with a 4-4-1-4 or
4-4-0-5 shape, when the
North South partnership could have a 4-4
1® spade fit.
1© 1♠ However, I would not say
4® 5® yet that it has become
standard to play 1♠ as
Gertrude Porter by email. natural.

Ask Julian continued
Q
Please explain the
scissors coup.
Robert Noyes,
Dublin.
A
The scissors coup is
a technique to cut
defensive commun-
ications, usually a loser-on-
loser play to prevent a ruff.
♠ KJ4
™ 93
© A Q 10 9 4
® A Q 10
♠ 73 ♠ A5
™ K Q 10 4 ™ AJ852
N
© 763 W E © 2
S
® J952 ® K8763
♠ Q 10 9 8 6 2
™ 76
© KJ85
® 4
South plays in 4♠ after East
opened 1™. West leads the
™K, which East overtakes to
switch to the ©2.
Declarer can see East’s
plan: win a trump lead with
the ace, put West in with a
heart and score a diamond
ruff.
One idea is to win the
diamond switch in hand and
take the club finesse. If West
has the ®K, you will be able
to throw a heart on the ®A,
avoiding not only a diamond
ruff but also the second heart
loser. However, in view of
the opening bid, you place
East with the ®K, which
means that line will not
work.
While playing clubs before
trumps is correct, you should
play dummy’s ace on the
first club. You then continue
with the ®Q, allowing East
to hold the trick with the ®K
as you throw a heart from
hand. By exchanging a heart
loser for a club loser, you
keep West off lead and so
avoid the ruff. This is the
Scissors Coup in action,
cutting the communications
between East and West.
®©™♠
Q
Partner opens 1®.
What do think of a
4NT response on
this hand? Is it likely that
we have an 11-card club
fit?
♠ K42
™ K2
© AK
® A Q 10 9 8 6
Ken Wickes,
Morden, Surrey.
A
1. This is one of
those rare hands on
which an immediate
4NT is a reasonable bid.
Whether you play simple
Blackwood or some form of
Keycard Blackwood, you
can find out whether partner
has the two missing aces and
the ®K. If there are no aces
or kings missing, you could
gamble a grand slam. You
would be able to count 12
tricks and see many
possibilities for a thirteenth.
At teams or rubber bridge,
you would bid 7® because
the ability to ruff may be
crucial – for instance,
partner could have a
doubleton spade but no
queens. At pairs, I think you
would risk 7NT.
2. Playing four-card
majors and a weak no-trump,
a 1® opening is often going
to contain a five-card club
suit. Opener would need a
4441 type or at least 15
points to be opening 1® on a
four-card suit. The strength
of your hand makes it
improbable that partner has
15+ points, so in this case an
11-card club fit is indeed
quite likely.
If you are playing five-
card majors and a strong
Page 14
no-trump then an 11-card
club fit is nowhere near as
likely. Partner would often
open 1® with three or four
clubs in a 12-14 balanced
hand.
®©™♠
Q Q
In our group, we
expect the opening
leader to lead
partner’s suit if possible.
The lead of some other suit
thus indicates a void in
partner’s suit. Is this good
practice?
Janis Hardwick,
Brandon, Suffolk.
A
While leading
partner’s suit is
often a good idea,
this is not an absolute rule. It
often depends upon the
auction. The more strongly
that partner has bid a suit,
the more likely you are to
lead it. Whether a failure to
lead partner’s suit implies a
void depends upon the
auction and the alternative
lead made. With a K-Q-J
combination or A-K against
a suit contract, you might
well lead your own suit
rather than partner’s.
Another possible reason to
avoid leading your partner’s
suit is that you have an
unsupported ace in the suit.
It may depend upon how
strongly partner has bid
the suit.
Auction 1
West North East South
1♠
Pass 2™ 3© 3♠
Pass 4♠ End
Auction 2
West North East South
1© Pass 1™ 2♠
Pass 4♠ End
Auction 1 strongly suggests
a diamond lead, so a non-
diamond lead would imply
West is void in diamonds.
In auction 2, East could
easily hold four hearts to the
jack for the simple one-level
response. West might well
lead something else for a
variety of reasons. It would
be rash for East to assume
that West is void in hearts.
®©™♠
We shuffle
manually at our
club and find we
get many flat hands. Our
usual shuffle method is
moving cards back and
forth from front to back of
pack.
Some people dislike the
riffle method of dividing
the pack into two and
bending the two halves
together so they interleave
as they say this bends the
cards.
What method is best for
manual shuffling?
Ann Yeldon (similar from
John Graham, Somersham,
Cambridgeshire).
A
You are right. Many
people do not shuffle
thoroughly, resulting
in abnormally flat hands.
At rubber bridge, cards
from the previous deal end
up in tricks, often with four
cards from the same suit in
one trick. If you do not
shuffle at all, on the next
deal with that pack, all four
players receive a card from
the same suit.
The problem is lessened at
duplicate but still exists. A
run of several tricks in the
same suit or a sorted hand
produces clusters of cards in
one suit. These days many
players shuffle their cards
before returning them to the
board; even if they do, they
give only a cursory shuffle.
From my own experience,
10 riffle shuffles suffice to
produce deals as random as
the odds suggest. You would
probably have to do 20 or 30
times using the sort of method
you say is popular at your
club. I am sure it is possible
to do riffle shuffles without

Ask Julian continued
damaging the cards.
Q
I have been using
the LTC for quite
a long time and
found it a reliable guide.
This deal seems an
exception. Have I
miscounted or were my
expectations unrealistic?
♠ A6
™ J952
© AKQ874
® 6
♠ 5 4 2 W N E ♠ Q J 10 9 8
™ 74 S
™ AK
© J65 © 10 3 2
® Q J 10 7 5 ® 9 4 3
♠ K73
™ Q 10 8 6 3
© 9
® AK82
With the heart fit, North
seems to have 5 losers and
South 6, which totals 11.
Taking 11 from 24 gives 13.
This suggests bidding 7™
never mind 6™ when only
5™ is actually possible.
P A Bailey, Shalford, Surrey.
A
The Losing Trick
Count is a useful
guide to the playing
strength of the combined
hands but is not always
exact. Your counting is fine.
In a way, you have 13 tricks:
two spades, three hearts, six
diamonds and two clubs, not
to mention a couple of ruffs
in the North hand. The only
trouble is you have to lose
two first!
Here, you have massive
duplication in the diamond
suit – the A-K-Q facing a
singleton – which is why the
LTC overestimates how
many tricks you can take.
The LTC will tell you to
E-mail your questions for Julian to:
julianpottage@mrbridge.co.uk
think about a slam – but it is
one thing thinking about a
slam and another actually
bidding one. Any sort of
Keycard Blackwood will tell AT THE 5* KIROSEIZ
you that the requisite
controls are lacking, thereby
averting disaster. THREE CORNERS,
®©™♠ NA’AMA BAY,
Q
Holding 20 pts
approx & 4441 we EGYPT 2011
open 2©; partner
must respond 2NT; opener A 5* spacious resort hotel complex with a friendly
then bids his singleton at atmosphere situated 3km from the resort centre of
the three level, showing his Na’ama bay and a 15 minute courtesy bus ride from
three four-card suits in one the hotel’s private beach.
bid. Partner then decides
the contract. Do you think
this is a good idea?
Robert Noyes, Dublin
(similar from Clive Miskin,
Gerrards Cross).
A
As such hands are
rare, it is debatable
whether one wants
to allocate a 2© opening just
for them. In any case, it
seems better for the relay
response to be 2™ rather
than 2NT. This keeps the
bidding lower.
Most people who open 2©
on these hands play that
opener rebids in the suit
Duplicate Bridge
below the singleton, with Bernard Magee
allowing responder to bid the
singleton as an enquiry about
range or controls (or perhaps 17-31 January 2011 £1029*
to ask whether opener is
5440). This also increases All inclusive board includes: buffet-style breakfast,
the chance that the strong lunch, dinner, snacks served at selected times
hand will become declarer, a between meals, ice cream served in the afternoon
small advantage I admit and afternoon tea. An unlimited amount of hot, soft
when the defenders know its and alcoholic drinks (excluding international
shape. brands and cocktails) served 10 am to midnight.
You can play a Multi with
The bridge itinerary consists of four seminars and
only strong options, say
set hand sessions, a quiz with an answer session and
either a three-suited hand or
a varied evening programme.
a balanced hand. If a 2NT
opening and 2©-2™-2NT *per person half-board sharing a twin-bedded room and is inclusive
both show strong balanced of bridge fees. Single supplement £221 per fortnight. These prices
are based on air travel from Gatwick. Flights from other airports are
hands, you can play a 2® available at a supplement, Birmingham, Glasgow, Bristol, Cardiff,
opening as an unconditional Manchester and Newcastle.
game force. I cannot see any
This holiday is arranged in conjunction with Thomas Cook Holidays ATOL1179.
downside to making the 2©
DETAILS & BOOKINGS
( 01483 489961
Page 15
 RUBBER / CHICAGO DECLARER
Hosted by Diana Holland
30 July-1 August 2010 (Fri-Sun) PLAY
The Beach Hotel, Worthing BN11 3QJ
16-18 November 2010 (Tue-Thu)
QUIZ
The Beach Hotel, Worthing BN11 3QJ
by David Huggett
11-13 March 2011 (Fri-Sun) (Answers on page 29)
Ardington Hotel, Worthing BN11 3DZ
ou are South as declarer playing teams or rubber bridge.
Please note there are no seminars or set hands at these events
Y In each case, what is your play strategy?
£199 – Full-board – No Single Supplement

1. ♠ A73 3. ♠ AK5
™ A 10 9 3 ™ K6
© AK7 © QJ5
® K 10 6 ® A8763
N N
W E W E
S S

♠ QJ4 ♠ 762
™ J7 ™ Q82
© 852 © A 10 9 7 6
® QJ875 ® K4
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ BOOKING FORM _ _ _ _ _ _ _
You are declarer in 3NT You are declarer in 3NT
Please book me for .... places, Single .... Double .... Twin ....
and West leads the ♠6. after East bid 1™ over
for the Rubber/Chicago event(s) of .................................. How do you plan the North’s 1® opener. West
play? leads the ™5. How do you
at ........................................................................................ plan the play?

Mr/Mrs/Miss .....................................................................

Address...............................................................................

............................................................................................ 2. ♠ AJ2
™ K975 4. ♠ AJ865
Postcode ............................................................................ © AQ ™ A4
® Q 10 6 4 © K5
( ...................................................................................... ® K 10 7 4
N
Special requirements (these cannot be guaranteed) W E N
S W E
S
........................................................................................... ♠ Q3
Please send a non-returnable deposit of £50 per person per place by ™ A Q 10 8 3 ♠ K Q 10 4 2
cheque, payable to Mr Bridge. An invoice for the balance will be © KJ4 ™ Q6
sent with your booking confirmation. On receipt of your final ® J93 © A87
payment, 28 days before the event, a programme and full details
® AJ3
will be sent together with a map. Cancellations are not refundable.
Should you require insurance, you should contact your own You are declarer in 4™ and
insurance broker. (Sea view £30 supplement, Beach Hotel only.)
West leads the ♠4. How You are declarer in 6♠ and
do you plan the play? West leads the ™2. How
, Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
do you plan the play?
( 01483 489961 Fax 01483 797302
e-mail: jessica@mrbridge.co.uk
website: www.holidaybridge.com

Page 16

uppose you pick up the hand
S below. You open 1♠ and partner
raises to 3♠. Do you go on to 4♠
or not?
♠ KJ952
♥ K7
♦ A J 10 6
♣ 63
There are two ways to look at this.
The pessimist says, ‘I have only
twelve points and an ordinary hand.
Partner’s eleven points is unlikely to
give me good play for game. On top of
that, my losing trick count is seven – so
if partner has about eight losers for his
3♠ bid, the three level should be the
limit. I am going to pass.’
The optimist says, ‘I have five spades
and therefore a nine-card fit, a second
suit that might provide a source of tricks
and high cards that are working well
together. Although in theory I have
seven losers, the ♦A-J-10 could work as
well as ♦A-Q. I am going to upgrade and
bid 4♠.’
What is your choice?
Quite right – the question is unfair.
You need to know what form of bridge
you are playing.
First, let us think why it is important
to bid game anyway. An obvious reason
is that you get a bonus for bidding and
making game. This is usually worth 500
(all vulnerable) and 350 (otherwise) for
rubber bridge, and 500 (vulnerable) and
300 (non-vulnerable) for duplicate
bridge and Chicago.
In rubber bridge (and Chicago),
scoring the bonus is indeed the big
reason. You need the points to beat your
opponents at the table. However, in all
forms of duplicate, your true opponents
are those holding the same cards as you,
and it is vital not to fall behind them.
Stephen Cashmore Says
Bid Your Games
Especially when
Vulnerable
If other players with your cards are
going to be bidding and making a game,
you have to do the same to keep up. We
must bear this in mind when considering
whether to raise to 4♠ with the hand
above.
So, in rubber bridge, assuming you do
not already have a part-score, it is best to
take a shot at 4♠. You strain to win a
game whenever possible, especially if
both sides are vulnerable (when a
second game for either side swings the
rubber). The same is true at Chicago any
time you are vulnerable, as a 500 bonus
is at stake. Partner might have hand A or
B below:
Hand A Hand B
♠ A 10 7 6 ♠ A 10 7 6
♥ Q84 ♥ Q 10 4
♦ 75 ♦ K873
♣ KQ74 ♣ Q5
With hand A, you are going to lose a
club, a heart and a diamond, so 4♠
depends on not losing a trump – not bad
odds for your 23-point game. With hand
B, you will lose two clubs and a heart. If
the lead gives you nothing, you will
need to sniff out both missing queens.
Not such good odds, but you cannot tell
that when you are bidding!
With International Match Points
scoring (IMPs) – the norm for teams – or
any form of aggregate scoring, yet again
you want to bid up at the game level. You
simply cannot afford to let others gain
250 or 450 points on you. If game goes
down then hard luck, but they may well
be going down at the other table and you
will not have lost any ground. Again, it is
important to bid up when vulnerable – it
is harder to make up 450 points (10
IMPs) by part-score swings or overtricks
than it is 250 points (6 IMPs).
Beginners are often reluctant to bid
Page 17
vulnerable games, uneasily aware that
undertricks are expensive. Indeed they
are, but you must focus on the score at
the other table(s), and forget about
counting in 100s. Do not let opponents
steal a march on you because they are
bold enough to go for their 500 bonus
while you are too timid.
At matchpoint pairs, the situation is a
bit different. There is a good case for
staying in a part-score if the game is
likely to be difficult, or at any rate has
less than a 50% chance of success. By
stopping in a part-score, you record a
small plus score and so will beat any
pairs down in game and probably any
pairs in a silly contract.
Let us suppose you elect to stay in 3♠,
partner gives you hand A, and you make
10 tricks when you are lucky enough to
receive a singleton trump lead. At the
end of the day, the traveller might
include the following entries:
Pair Contract Tricks Score
1 3♠ 10 170
2 4♠ 10 620
3 4♠ 9 -100
4 3♠ 9 140
You are pair 1 and have a 67% score on
the board despite your feeling that you
bid badly. Why is this? Well, any pair
who bid and make the game will beat
you. Remember, we have worked out
that 4♠ will be a tricky contract. This
means that you beat all the pairs who go
down in 4♠ and all those who stay in 3♠
but make only nine tricks. Conventional
wisdom is therefore that, at matchpoint
pairs, it is not wise to bid thin games.
In summary, the maxim applies at
rubber bridge or any form of aggregate
or IMP scoring. By contrast, playing
matchpoints it is better to stay out of
marginal game contracts. ■
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Fares shown are per person based on two people sharing lowest twin-bedded cabin categor
Fares categoryy cur rently available, are subject to availability and include all applicable discounts for new bookings only
currently only.. *£70pppd appliess to ‘On the Trail
Trail of the
Tr
reasure Fleets’. **No single supplement applies
Treasure applie to selected I & G cabins on all cr ales of the Old Spanish Main’. Upgrade offer applies to inside Cat N upgrading to outside Cat K, inside Cat M upgrading to outside
uises except on ‘Tales
cruises ‘TTales outside Cat J.
Upgrade offers are not combinable with any other offer
offer.. Only bookings made directly with Mr Bridge are eligible to be par
partt of the Bridge groups. All offers and cabin upgrades are subject to availability,
availability, are capacity controlled and may be withdrawn
at any time. Upgrade offer valid for new bookings made by 30th June 2010. A cabin number may not be allocated at time of bookin g. See brochure for full terms
booking. terms and conditions. V oyages of Discovery
Voyages Discover y is a trading name of All Leisure Holidays Ltd.

Q Q
I led a small spade
against 3NT from
a holding of five.
Dummy laid down two
spades. All followed and
partner took the trick with
the king; partner
continued with the queen
and won the trick. Partner
continued with a third
spade; declarer hesitated
for an uncommon length
of time before playing the
ace, his only remaining
spade. Is this action
permissible?
Frank Vickers,
Woking, Surrey.
A
It is illegal to
mislead opponents
by thinking at a
time when you have nothing
to think about. If this
happened, and your partner
later misdefended because
he believed that you only
had four spades, then the
director would adjust the
score. You, of course, have
seen all thirteen spades, so
you could not be misled.
Usually, when this
happens it just means
declarer has stopped to think
about the hand without
considering the effects of
when he thought. It is
illegal, yes, but neither
deliberate nor very bad. If it
really was deliberate, an
adjustment is not enough;
but that is both unlikely
and rare.
DAVID STEVENSON answers questions on Bridge Laws
Can Declarer
Hesitate for
no Reason?
What is the
situation when a
player, during the
bidding, realises that he
has given an incorrect
explanation of one of his
partner’s bids? Should he
correct the explanation as
soon as he realises his
error? How should the
offender and his partner
conduct themselves
thereafter?
Bert Potts, Stockport.
A
As a matter of law,
a player who
realises he has
given an incorrect
explanation must call the
director and explain. While
he can bid in any way to
repair the damage, his
partner has unauthorised
information and must bend
over backwards to take no
advantage.
♣♦♥♠
Q
East was in 4♥
doubled. North
won the opening
lead and returned the ♣J.
East played the ♠2 but at
once declared an error and
asked to withdraw it.
South agreed. East then
put the ♥8 on the table.
South objected, saying that
East could not now ruff.
The director (North)
confirmed.
Argo by email.
Page 20
A A
It is very difficult
when people give
incorrect rulings at
the table without calling the
director. South should still
call the director, even if he is
one of the players at the
table. In many clubs, if a
ruling is required at the
director’s table, some other
director who is not the
director that night will come
when called. In my club,
players expect me to rule
when it is at my table. In
either case, it is the
director’s decision what to
do with a call from his own
table. Nowhere is it
acceptable not to call the
director.
Once East has played a
legal card, of course, the
rules do not allow him to
change it. South should not
have agreed to the change
but instead called for the
director. However, once he
has agreed, why should East
not ruff?
♣♦♥♠
Q
If there is a short
pause when a
game is being
played, I find that anyone
of the three who has not
got the lead will sometimes
either say who is to lead or
tap the table as an
indication. Is this
permissible?
Joy Pope by email.
Rushing another
player is rude and,
as such, is an
infraction. There is no law
telling people not to, except
the general law disallowing
players to upset other
players, but I would make
sure to stop it, penalising if
necessary, until such players
learnt manners.
♣♦♥♠
Q
I am thinking of
playing three-level
openings to show
three-suited hands with a
shortage in the suit
opened and 16-18 points.
Is this legal?
Clive Miskin,
Gerrards Cross.
A
It is not legal to
play a 3-level
opening as a
3-suiter, showing the
shortage and 16-18 points
at any level of competition.
It would be legal if you
increased it by a point, say
17-19, at Level 4 only; most
clubs tend to be Level 3.
You could apply to the
EBU for permission to play
it as you wish. I cannot
answer for them, though
they tend to look favourably
on applications for
agreements showing strong
hands; it is quite possible
they would allow it at
Level 3.

Ask David continued
Q
I was East,
defending North’s
1NT. Declarer had
the lead and led the ♥A. I
followed low but dropped
the ♥10 as well. Although I
retrieved my ten quickly,
declarer said that it was an
exposed card, which I had
to play when legal so to do.
We did not call the director
for a ruling. Later declarer
led a heart from dummy
and won with the jack in
hand: I had to play the ten
despite holding the king
and queen.
Mrs Diana Levey,
Meopham, Kent.
A
I am afraid declarer
was right. Bridge is
very much a game
of mistakes; if you make a
mistake, you should be
prepared to pay the penalty.
The ten is an honour; when
you expose an honour
accidentally, it becomes a
major penalty card: you must
play it at the next legal
opportunity.
I am unhappy that neither
you nor the declarer called
the director. If you had
discovered what the penalty
was, either you or your
partner might have been able
to do something to alleviate
the penalty. Remember, the
director is there to sort out
problems, not the players.
♣♦♥♠
Q
We play Chicago
(duplicate-style
scoring) at our
club and score a game
bonus only if one side has
actually bid game. Now
some members are
insisting that if one side
makes 2♠ doubled then this
counts as being ‘doubled
into game’. I cannot see the
logic in this because if this
were true then a contract
of 3♠ doubled made would
attract a slam bonus.
Kathleen James, Bedford
(similar from Kara Radcliffe,
London).
A
At any form of
bridge, whether
rubber, normal
Chicago, duplicate-style
Chicago or duplicate, game
is 100 trick points. Trick
points, often referred to as
‘points below the line’
because of rubber bridge
scoring, are given for
contracts bid and made. If
you play in 2♠ and make
nine tricks, the trick points
come to 60, 30 for each trick
over six bid and made. The
ninth trick is an overtrick,
and does not affect the trick
points. Thus, this is a part-
score, being 60 points
towards game at rubber or
normal Chicago, and getting
a 50 bonus at duplicate-style
Chicago or duplicate.
In a doubled contract, the
trick points count double, so
if you make nine tricks in 2♠
doubled, the trick points
come to 120, 60 for each
trick over six that you bid
and made. The ninth trick is
an overtrick, and does not
affect the trick points. Thus,
this is a game, being one
game towards the rubber at
rubber, and getting a bonus
of 300 or 500 at normal
Chicago, duplicate-style
Chicago or duplicate.
Apart from trick points,
there are bonus points, given
for honours at rubber or
normal Chicago, given for
making a doubled or
redoubled contract – also for
overtricks and undertricks
and slams at any form of the
game. The slam bonuses
have no connection with the
trick points; you get these
for bidding and making a
12-trick contract (small
slam) or a 13 trick contract
(grand slam).
Redoubled is treated
similarly to doubled, so the
fewest number of tricks
Page 21
needed for game is seven,
since 1♥, 1♠ or 1NT
redoubled are game
contracts.
I am afraid the other
members are correct in what
they say.
♣♦♥♠
Q
In all good bridge
books, we read
that bidding is a
conversation between
partners – are bidding
boxes compatible with
Acol?
George Hutter,
Knodishall, Suffolk.
A
Bidding boxes are a
part of modern
bridge. They affect
the mechanics of making a
bid but not the actual bids.
You can use them whatever
system you play, including
Acol.
♣♦♥♠
Q
As I played my
last card to make
my contract, I
noticed one of the players
had two cards.
I called the director, who
said it did not matter as I
had made my contract; the
player in question said I
had played too fast.
Mrs S M Craze,
Maidenhead, Berks.
A
The suggestion you
had played too fast
is ridiculous:
opponents can always slow
the game down by slowing
how quickly they play.
The director was
remiss. Assuming there were
52 cards to start with, the
director should find the trick
with only three cards and
apply law 67 (Defective
trick). 
The main point of that law
is that it treats the failure to
play to a trick the same as a
revoke, with a one-trick
penalty.
Q
May one use an
aide-memoire
(perhaps to
remember responses to a
Multi 2♦ bid) at the table?
Steve Feering by email.
A
No, the laws do not
allow an aide
memoire. Of course,
clubs specifically for
beginners or novices often
allow them – but not other
clubs.
♣♦♥♠
Q
If I have placed
my opening lead
on the table face
down and my partner asks
for an explanation of an
opponent’s bid may I,
hearing the explanation,
change my opening lead?
R D Donnison, Windermere.
A
Once you have
chosen an opening
lead, you may not
change it unless there is
misinformation, in which
case the director may allow
you to change it. If you just
want to change it because of
an answer you had not
anticipated or a question that
you had forgotten to ask, no,
you may not change your
lead.
If, instead, the answer to a
question from partner
indicates that an earlier
answer or alert was wrong,
and that you were
misinformed, you call the
director. If he believes you
would have made a different
opening lead without the
misinformation, he will
allow a change.
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
North was playing
in 3♦. North was
on lead and played
a club. East trumped with
the ♦9. Dummy played the
♦8 (even though there were
clubs on the table, thinking
the lead was a trump) and
West followed. The director
came but was unsure how
to rule. Can you help?
Davina Arkell by email.
A A
Whenever a revoke
is not established, as
this one has not
been, it must be corrected. In
this case, there is no further
penalty – if it had been a
defender, there would be
penalty cards. Therefore, the
♦8 goes back in dummy,
replaced with a club.
Declarer’s RHO may
change the card he played
to the trick.
♣♦♥♠
Q A
The opponents are
in a heart
contract. My
partner leads a diamond;
dummy ruffs with the ♥A,
I follow and declarer
contributes the ♥3.
A spade is then led from
dummy, I follow; declarer
discards the ♦10 and my
partner ruffs. We notice
the error and call the
director. He directs that we
take back the current trick
and replay the previous
trick, with declarer to
follow suit this time and no
penalty applying. Later the
♥3 wins a trick.
Chris Constable by email.
A
The director is
incorrect. The ♥3
was a revoke. Once
dummy led a spade to the
next trick, this established
the revoke; it became too
late to change it.
There is a one-trick
penalty at the end. If the
revoke cost you two or more
tricks (unlikely from what
you tell me), the director
must restore equity.
♣♦♥♠
Q
What is the official
ruling relating to
the penalties that
may apply to a contestant
who refuses to play a
particular round in a club
pairs’ competition?
Barrie Waite by email.
It is up to the club
to apply penalties; it
would be normal to
suspend them from the club,
possibly for a few months
only. If there is some good
reason, then a less draconian
solution might be possible.
♣♦♥♠
Q
If I have a bad
hand with up to
14/15 high card
points, can I pass?
Should I write anything
on my convention card?
Simon Oldham by email.
A
Yes, it is legal to
pass on such hands.
However, if you
pass on hands that others
would open, it should not be
a secret from your opponents.
At the very least, it should
be on your convention card,
and partner should explain it
in reply to any question
about your opening bids or
original passes.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Our opponents
were in 4♥. When
my partner (West)
led the ♠A, dummy and I
followed but declarer
played a small diamond.
Declarer then played the
♦A and all followed. The
declarer next played the
♦K, at which point my
partner queried the
Page 22
position. Dummy called
the director saying that
declarer had led a diamond
thinking that he had
trumped the initial spade
and that both defenders
had condoned this. The
director ruled that East/
West had won the first
trick, but as the defenders
had accepted the ♦A lead,
declarer should continue
on lead. If I had been the
dummy, I would have told
my partner that he did not
win the first trick. Would
this have been better?
Doug Reed, Brighton.
A
Dummy is required
to be silent, with a
few exceptions. So
the dummy in the case you
cite and what you said you
would have done are both
wrong. Neither of you
should say anything and he
had no right to call the
director unless it was clear
that attention had been
drawn to an infraction and
even then he should be quiet
once he had done so.
The French word for
dummy is ‘le mort’, the
corpse, which gives a good
impression of how dummy
should act.
♣♦♥♠
Q
West is playing in
hearts and South
is on lead.
♠ Void
♥ Void
♦ Q
♣ 8
♠ Void ♠ Void
♥ 9 W
N
E
♥ Void
♦ 3 S
♦ K4
♣ Void ♣ Void
♠ 5
♥ Void
♦ 6
♣ Void
South leads the ♦6; West
ruffs (revoke), North plays
the ♦Q and dummy the ♦4.
Declarer then leads the ♦3
and the players notice the
revoke. Since one cannot
revoke on the twelfth trick,
they go back to it; declarer
replaces the ♥9 with ♦3
and North again plays
the ♦Q.
Can dummy play the ♦K
to win the trick or must the
♦4 stand?
J Dawe, Deva BC, Chester.
A
Dummy’s four must
stand. Law 62C
allows the offending
side to change cards played
after the revoke only if the
non-offending side does.
Some will say it seems
harsh – if you do not want
to incur penalties then follow
the rules!
♣♦♥♠
Q
Why are there
rules for when it is
legal to open a
Benjamin 2♣?
Maureen Harrold, WD5.
There has been a lot
of poor teaching
recently. It was
never just an eight-playing
trick hand. The idea of the
Benjamin 2♣ is to play weak
twos while not losing Acol
twos; the definition of an
Acol two is ‘a hand of power
and quality with at least
eight playing tricks.’ Over
the last few years, people
have completely forgotten
the ‘hand of power and
quality’ part and now open
them on any hand with eight
playing tricks.
Why not? It makes game
and slam bidding very
difficult if partner cannot
rely on a strong bid to be
strong. It is also illegal, as it
gives people an unfair
advantage. Players tend not
to bid when told their
opponents bid is ‘strong’ and
are deprived unfairly of a bid
when it turns out to be a
pre-empt.
 the case here); he may
Ask David continued correct it to any other call

DEFENCE
that covers a narrower range
of hands than the insufficient

Q
At a club with a bid (maybe the case here);
new director, the he may correct it to any

QUIZ
following situation other bid or pass but partner
arose. must pass for the rest of the
auction and there may be
West North East South lead penalties.
1♦ 1♥ 1♠ Pass Whether a change to 4NT
2♠ 2♥ Pass Pass would avoid attracting a by Julian Pottage
Pass penalty is complex, but it is (Answers on page 39)
possible. It depends upon
At this point someone saw whether there is any hand ou are East in the defensive positions below. It is your turn
the insufficient bid and we
called the director. The
that would have bid 4NT
legally but not 4♣ illegally.
Y to play.

director said North should

play in 3♥, making the bid ♣♦♥♠ 1. ♠ J73 3. ♠ KJ3
good. North said that he ♥ QJ2 ♥ K 10 8 2

Q
would have passed rather If we do not ♦ K J 10 9 ♦ AK
than bid 3♥ and that, as regularly lead ♣ AQ5 ♣ J653
three passes had followed fourth highest, ♠ K 10 5 ♠ Q96
his 2♥, surely that was the how should we complete N
♥ 9653 N
♥ Q643
W E W E
agreed contract. After the convention card? S ♦ A83 S ♦ 10 9 8 5 4 3
consulting someone more C J Comer Basingstoke. ♣ 973 ♣ Void
experienced, the director

A
changed the ruling, making Just describe what
the contract 2♠. happens! If the West North East South West North East South
Name and address supplied. agreement is fourth 1NT 1♣
highest but partner often Pass 3NT End Pass 1♥ Pass 3♣

A
When there has leads lowest, write that on Pass 4NT 1
Pass 5♣2
been an insufficient the card. If the agreement is Partner leads the ♠4. Pass 5NT Pass 6♣3
bid, the next player that he leads his lowest, Dummy plays low. What End
can condone it by calling write that on the card. You do you play? 1
Keycard Blackwood
and has done so here, even if just write whatever happens. 2
0/4 key cards (aces + the ♣K)
unintentionally. So 2♥ was 3
Nothing extra to show
accepted and the contract ♣♦♥♠ 2. ♠ K53
should have been 2♥. ♥ Q92
Partner leads the ♠2.
♦ Q J 10 9 5

Q
How long can you Dummy plays low. What
♣♦♥♠ sit and ponder ♣ K5
do you play?
when it is your ♠ AJ7
N
♥ 3

Q
A friend of mine turn to call? At our club, W E
S
bid 4♣ (Gerber) some people take so long I ♦ 843 4. ♠ Q83
when his partner almost fall asleep. ♣ Q97643 ♥ 2
had already bid 4♥. Did he Margo Banger, ♦ A K J 10 9 5
have to change the bid to Mill Hill London. ♣ AJ3
West North East South
5♣ or could he have bid ♠ A 10
1♥ N

A
4NT (Blackwood) instead? Although there is W E ♥ Q J 10 4
Pass 2♦ Pass 3♥ S
Edward Clarke by email. no time limit for an ♦ 843
Pass 4♥ End
individual call or ♣ 10 6 5 4

A
The law on play, there is a limited
insufficient bids is amount of time for each West leads the ♠2;
rather complex. If person overall. I can only dummy plays low. What West North East South
the next player does not suggest you have a word do you play? 1♦ Pass 1♥
accept the bid, the offender with your director or club Pass 3♦ Pass 3NT
may correct it to 5♣ if both host to see whether they End
4♣ and 5♣ are natural (not can help. ■
Partner leads the ♠5 and
dummy plays low. What
E-mail your questions on bridge laws to:
do you do?
davidstevenson@mrbridge.co.uk

Page 23
2010 and 2011 BRIDGE WEEKENDS
with Bernard Magee
Full Board. No single Supplement.

4 - 6 June 2010 29 - 31 October 2010 30 September - 2 October 2011

The Beach Hotel Denham Grove The Olde Barn Hotel
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Page 24
 PROGRAMME
HOTELS This is the format for
all Bernard Magee
Blunsdon House Hotel,
hosted events. BRIDGE WEEKENDS
near Swindon, is a four-star with Bernard Magee
hotel. It boasts a heated FRIDAY
indoor swimming pool and
1500 ♦ Full-board ♦ Two seminars
a nine hole, par three golf
course, as well as a one Welcome Desk open ♦ All rooms with ♦ Two supervised play
Afternoon Tea
mile woodland walk. en-suite facilities sessions
1745 to 1830 ♦ No single supplement ♦ Four duplicate sessions
The Beach Hotel is a family Welcome drinks
run hotel with the finest reception
Please book me for ..... places at £235 per person,
seafront location in Worthing. 1830 to 2000
Behind the elegant façade DINNER or ..... places at £145 per person as day guests.
are all the modern facilities
2015 BRIDGE 1
you would expect, while DUPLICATE PAIRS Single .... Double .... Twin .... Sea View1 .... Executive2 ....
many of the original
features have been retained. Venue .................................................................................
SATURDAY
Denham Grove is set in 42 Dates ..................................................................................
acres of grounds just 0800 to 0930
BREAKFAST
northwest of London. It Mr/Mrs/Miss .....................................................................
combines a modern design 1000 to 1230
with a rural setting and is SEMINAR & Address...............................................................................
the ideal place to unwind. SUPERVISED PLAY
Walk through the verdant of SET HANDS ............................................................................................
(tea & coffee at 1100)
grounds or simply relax in
the indoor pool or spa. 1230 to 1330 Postcode ............................................................................
COLD BUFFET
The Olde Barn Hotel, LUNCH ( ......................................................................................
Marston, Lincs, is an idyllic 1400 to 1645 Special requirements (these cannot be guaranteed,
retreat set in beautiful BRIDGE 2 but we will do our best to oblige)
countryside in the heart of TEAMS of FOUR
England. The emphasis is or FURTHER ...........................................................................................
on quality and the state-of- SUPERVISED PLAY
Please give the name(s) of all those covered by this booking
the-art Health Club and Spa of SET HANDS
has something for everyone. 1815 to 2000 ...........................................................................................
DINNER
Please send a non-returnable deposit of £50 per person per place by
Chatsworth Hotel is cheque, payable to Mr Bridge. An invoice for the balance will be
2015 BRIDGE 3
Worthing's most prestigious DUPLICATE PAIRS sent with your booking confirmation. On receipt of your final pay-
hotel and is a Grade II listed ment, 28 days before the event, a programme and full details will
building with a gorgeous be sent together with a map. Cancellations are not refundable.
Georgian frontage. SUNDAY Should you require insurance, you should contact your own insur-
Retaining its 19th Century ance broker. 1£30 supplement per room (Beach Hotel only). 2£50
charm, and offering 0800 to 0930 supplement per room (Blunsdon House and Denham Grove only).
BREAKFAST
impeccable service and a
warm welcome, the hotel is 1000 to 1230 , Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
backed by a silver tourism SEMINAR & ( 01483 489961 Fax 01483 797302
award for quality. SUPERVISED PLAY
e-mail: jessica@mrbridge.co.uk
of SET HANDS
The Inn on the Prom has a (tea & coffee at 1100) website: www.holidaybridge.com
superb sea-front location 1230 to 1400
on the St Annes-on-Sea CARVERY LUNCH
Promenade. Following their 1400 to 1645 Blunsdon House Hotel The Olde Barn Hotel
refurbishment programme, BRIDGE 4 Swindon SN26 7AS Marston, Lincs NG32 2HT
their stunning new boutique FURTHER The Beach Hotel Chatsworth Hotel
bedrooms offer contemp- SUPERVISED PLAY Worthing BN11 3QJ Worthing BN11 3DU
orary luxury at an affordable of SET HANDS or
Denham Grove The Inn on the Prom
price – an experience not DUPLICATE PAIRS
Near Uxbridge UB9 5DU St Annes-on-Sea FY8 1LU
to be missed.

Page 25
 Bernard Magee’s Tips
for Better Bridge
65 invaluable tips in 160 pages
Bidding Tips
1 Always consider bidding
spades if you can
2 Bid more aggressively
when non-vulnerable
3 Always double when the
opponents steal your deal
4 A take-out double shows
shortage in the suit doubled
5 ‘Borrow’ a king
to keep the auction open
6 After a penalty double, don’t
let the opponents escape
7 Halve the value of a singleton
honour when opening
8 Only add length-points for a
suit that might be useful
9 Isolated honours are bad
except in partner’s suit
10 Use the jump shift sparingly
11 Consider passing and letting
partner decide
12 You need two top honours
for a second-seat pre-empt
13 Put the brakes on if you have a
misfit
14 Strong and long minors work
well in no-trumps
15 One stop in the opponents’ suit
can be enough for no-trumps
16 Keep your two-level
responses up to strength
17 Use your normal methods in
response to a 1NT overcall
18 Don’t overcall just because
you have opening points
19 Overcalls can be quite weak, so
be prudent when responding
20 Weak overcalls must be based
on strong suits
21 6NT requires 33 points
not 4 aces and 4 kings
22 Raise immediately, if weak
with four-card support
23 In a competitive auction, show
support immediately
24 Bid to the level of your fit
quickly with weak hands
25 With strength and support,
use the opponents’ bid suit
Declarer-play Tips
26 When your contract depends
on a finesse, think ‘endplay’
27 Consider what a defender
might be thinking about
28 Always take your time
at trick one
29 Establish extra tricks before
cashing your winners
30 Use your opponents’
bidding to your advantage
31 Avoid the ‘baddie’
gaining the lead
32 Use the Rule of Seven when
holding up in no-trumps
£14 including postage and packing from Mr Bridge,
Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH. ( 01483 489961
33 A low lead usually promises
length and an honour
34 When declaring 1NT
try to be patient
35 Duck an early round when you
are short of entries
36 Lead up to your
two-honour holding
37 Do not always assume
a suit will break well
38 Drop a high card
to put off the defence
39 Play your highest card to
tempt a defender to cover
40 Draw trumps first unless you
have a good reason not to
41 Do not waste your trumps
42 Consider leaving a lone
defensive trump winner out
Defence Tips
43 Keep four-card suits intact
whenever possible
44 Give count on declarer’s leads
45 Keep the right cards
rather than signal
46 Take your time
when dummy is put down
47 High cards are for killing other
high cards
48 Do not waste
intermediate cards
49 Pick two key suits to
concentrate on during the play
50 If in doubt, cover an honour
with an honour
51 If a lead is from two honours,
it is best not to cover
52 Keep your honour to kill
dummy’s honour
53 Try to show partner
your solid honour sequences
54 Lead the normal card when
leading partner’s suit
55 Never underlead an ace at trick
one in a suit contract
56 Be wary of leading from
four cards to only one honour
57 Lead a higher card from
a suit without an honour
58 Lead through ‘beatable’
strength and up to weakness
59 Cash your winners before
trying for a trump promotion
60 Be patient when defending 1NT
61 Trump leads can be safe
throughout the play
General Tips
62 Do not put important cards
at either end of your hand
63 Avoid being declarer when
you are dummy
64 Before you lead ask for a
review of the auction
65 Enjoy the Game!
Page 26
CHARITY BRIDGE EVENTS
JUNE 2010
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29 PRINCESS ALICE HOSPICE
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for 11am. £64 per table inc. lunch.
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OCTOBER 2010
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John Perry ( 01373 467508
 Bernard Magee Says

Look for an
Eight-card
Major-Suit Fit
t is usually correct to play in an So often, you can gain an extra trick

I eight-card major fit if you can find

one. It outdoes no-trumps for two
reasons: you can ruff your opponents’
by ruffing in the short-trump hand; aim
to ruff a club. You start by winning the
trump lead in dummy. Then play the ♣A
♠
♥
♦
K65
AK42
KQ5
W
N

S
E
♠
♥
♦
AQ943
10 7
AJ42
long suits, rather than allowing them to and another club. Win the trump return ♣ J87 ♣ 62
run in a no-trump contract; and you can in hand and ruff a club with the ace of
score extra tricks by ruffing in the trumps. Cross to the ♦K, draw trumps
shorter trump hand. and take a heart finesse: when that holds, West East
Of course, it is important that, when you cash the the ♥A, ruff a heart and 1♥ 1♠
you play in the major-suit contract that play your last trump making at least 1NT 3♦
you do pursue your extra trick! eleven tricks. 3♠ 4♠
Here is an example: End

♠ K Q 10 3 ♠ J874 When East rebids 3♦, he describes his

♠ K Q 10 7 4 ♠ AJ3
N
♥ 85 W E
♥ AQ74
♦ K42 S ♦ A765
♣ 873 ♣ A2
West East
Pass 1♥
1♠ 2NT
3♠ 4♠
End
Contract 4♠. Lead ♠9.
An all too common auction would be:
Pass-1♥-1♠-3NT-End. Over East’s 3NT
rebid, West has little choice but to pass.
Modern Acol uses the 1NT rebid to
show 15-17 points and the 2NT jump
rebid to show 18-19. Any bid over 2NT
is forcing to game, so West’s 3♠ bid
gives East the choice between 4♠ and
3NT. With three-card support, East
should certainly want to play in spades.
In the play, declarer could draw
trumps and take the heart finesse – if it
works, he would end up with ten tricks,
but that is poor play and he might find
the traveller a disappointment.
In 3NT, declarer can make the same
ten tricks when the finesse works, but he
might even go off if the finesse fails:
losing four clubs and the ♥K. When you
are in the major-suit contract, you must
pursue your extra trick.
N
♥ AK4 W E ♥ 85
♦ AK65 S ♦ Q432
♣ A2 ♣ 873
West East
2♣ 2♦
2NT 3♣
3♠ 4♠
End
This time, it would be easy for East
lazily to raise West’s 2NT rebid (23-24
pts) to game. However, when the points
are heavily weighted to one side, it is
very important to find an eight-card
major fit if you can because it will help
with communications in the play of the
hand – ruffing entries can allow declarer
to choose which hand to lead from. East
uses Stayman and they locate their spade
fit. The play is not such an obstacle this
time because 3NT is likely to go off on
a club lead whilst in 4♠ there is an easy
ruff to take in either hand. The great
advantage of a 4-4 fit is that any ruff you
make gains a trick, so you can plan to
take the ruff in either hand – here ruffing
a heart is very easy indeed!
Even when the no-trump bidder is
completely flat, the major-suit game will
often play better because there might be
a weak suit. This is the case in the final
example.
hand neatly – the jump shows the
strength for game and he has shown both
his suits. West has a flat hand, but with
no cover in clubs he is happy to support
East’s first suit, spades, and they find the
safe 4♠. 3NT fails on a club lead (if they
are not 4-4) while 4♠ makes easily, even
if spades are 4-1!
Are there hands when it pays to play
in 3NT rather than in the major fit?
There are plenty of examples, but they
are fewer than you would expect, as long
as declarer pursues his extra tricks in the
major-suit contract. 4-3-3-3 hands do
tend to play better in no-trumps, so with
those hands, you should be slightly more
circumspect. Even then, as you saw
above, you might still have a weak suit.
Other hands that play better in no-
trumps are when your high cards are in
your short suits – this often renders a
ruff unnecessary (you have high-card
winners in the suit so a ruff does not
gain).
Conclusion
All modern bidding systems strive to
find their eight-card fits: Acol is
particularly good at finding 4-4 major
suit fits, but lazy bidders will often miss
their 5-3 fits. Take your time in the
auction and, if you do find a fit, then aim
to play in the major suit. ■

Page 27
 Heather Dhondy Says

Lead Trumps
Against Sacrifices
onventional wisdom is to lead a This was the full deal:

C
West North East South
trump against a sacrifice. 1♠ Pass 4♣ 5♦
Consider the following lead Pass Pass Dbl End
problem as West at unfavourable ♠ KJ4
vulnerability: ♥ 9 Partner’s 4♣ was a splinter, showing
♦ Q 10 7 4 values for game and shortage in clubs.
♣ Q 10 9 5 4 Since you are never going to let the
♠ 8 ♠ 8 ♠ 96 opponents play in 5♦ undoubled, you
♥ A K 10 5 4 N ♥ A K 10 5 4 N ♥ J876 can afford to pass to show a hand that
W E W E
♦ K98 S ♦ K98 S ♦ AJ6 encourages partner to bid 5♠. When, in
♣ KJ72 ♣ KJ72 ♣ A863 practice, partner decides to double, you
♠ A Q 10 7 5 3 2 are happy to accept his opinion.
♥ Q32 Now what do you lead?
West North East South ♦ 532 This situation is different. There is no
3♠ ♣ Void guarantee of trump support in dummy,
Dbl 4♠ Dbl End or indeed a shortage. Your defence is
clear. Lead the ace of clubs and then
You may feel tempted to lead a top North has done the right thing since you give partner a ruff (remembering to give
heart, and have a look at dummy. Before can make 4♥, probably losing a spade, a a suit preference signal for spades by
you do that, let us consider what is heart (if declarer misguesses) and a club playing the seven of clubs!). This gives
happening here. (an endplay should save you from losing you two tricks more than would a trump
When North raised to 4♠, this could two club tricks). lead when this is the full deal:
be on a wide variety of hands, from very In order to maximise your penalty you
weak (sacrificing) to strong (expecting must lead a trump. It is the only lead to
to make). Given East’s double, it sounds defeat the contract of 4♠ doubled by two ♠ 753
like North has the weak hand type, tricks. Declarer will need to lose the lead ♥ K J 10 7
presumably with spade support and a in hearts before he can take a ruff in the ♦ 95
little distribution, for example a dummy and you can put partner in with ♣ 9865
shortage. In this case, North will expect a diamond to play a second trump. Now ♠ A Q 10 9 4 ♠ KJ82
you to have a game somewhere and for if declarer plays on diamonds, you can ♥ Q98 N ♥ A6432
W E
4♠ to be a cheap sacrifice and he will switch to hearts and you are in time to ♦ 8 S ♦ Q 10 6
very likely be right. Therefore, we need cash a second heart trick before the ♣ A732 ♣ J
to minimise the number of tricks that thirteenth diamond is set up. ♠ 6
declarer is going to be able to scramble This rule is clear enough when the ♥ 5
together. Partner’s double suggests that opponents sacrifice with a known fit, for ♦ AKJ7432
we have the majority of the points, example, when they have bid and raised ♣ K Q 10 4
though he does not have a good suit to a suit in pre-emptive fashion. However,
show at the five level. It does not mean it does not always apply after a pre-empt
that he has a stack of trumps. that one opponent makes all on his own. Summary
With few values outside trumps, Consider the following deal as West,
declarer is going to attempt to score again at unfavourable vulnerability: When the opponents sacrifice with a
extra tricks by taking ruffs in dummy known fit, you should lead a trump. Their
(the short trump hand). To counter that, plan will usually be to score as many
it is imperative to lead trumps. We hope ♠ A Q 10 9 4 tricks as possible by ruffing. However, if
that declarer will have to lose the lead to ♥ Q98 N one opponent sacrifices without knowing
W E
partner before embarking on this ruffing, ♦ 8 S if their partner has a fit, it may or may not
and partner will be able to play a second ♣ A732 be correct to lead trumps. Consider the
round of trumps. auction for a clue. ■

Page 28
 ANSWERS TO THE DECLARER PLAY QUIZ
ON PAGE 16 by DAVID HUGGETT
You are declarer in 4♥ and West leads the ♠4. continue with a low heart to preserve com-
1. ♠ A73 How do you plan the play? munications with his partner and again the
♥ A 10 9 3 success of the contract relies on a favourable
It would be criminal to fail holding such splen-
♦ AK7 diamond position.
did values and yet a momentary loss of con-
♣ K 10 6
centration might lead you to do just that. It Now assume you play the ♥K from dummy at
♠ K 10 8 6 2 ♠ 95
N looks as though it can do no great harm to trick one. East will have to win, or you will
♥ 82 ♥ KQ654
W E duck the opening lead. Indeed, if West has make two heart tricks; so this way, when he
♦ J64 S ♦ Q 10 9 3
led away from the ♠K then you will surely lose continues with the ♥J, you can duck. After you
♣ A92 ♣ 43
only the two top clubs. However, in situations win the third round of hearts, you cross to
♠ QJ4
such as this it pays to be extra cautious and dummy with a black card and take the dia-
♥ J7
imagine if there is a lie of the cards that can mond finesse, not caring whether it wins or
♦ 852
defeat you – and here there most assuredly loses. If it does lose, West will have no more
♣ QJ875
is! hearts left.

Unless clubs are 3-3, you run the risk of a ruff.

Suppose here that, after you play low from
You are declarer in 3NT and West leads the 4. ♠ AJ865
dummy, East takes the ♠K and plays the ♣A
♠6. How do you plan the play? ♥ A4
followed by another club to his partner’s ♣K.
♦ K5
While it might look straightforward to play low Then, since he started with a doubleton club,
♣ K 10 7 4
from dummy at the first trick, consider what he will receive a third round ruff to defeat the
♠ 93 ♠ 7
happens if East plays the ♠9 and you win with contract. You could be equally in trouble if
♥ J982 N ♥ K 10 7 5 3
the ♠J. Clearly, you need to set up the clubs; West had the doubleton club. W E
♦ J642 S ♦ Q 10 9 3
on a bad day, the defence will not take the
You should simply win the opening lead in ♣ Q92 ♣ 865
ace until the third round of the suit. If that hap-
dummy and draw trumps; all you can lose ♠ K Q 10 4 2
pens, you will have two club winners in your
are two clubs and a spade. You may have ♥ Q6
hand but no means of access to them.
given up an unnecessary spade loser, but you ♦ A87
Certainly if West gets in with the ♣A, he will
will have ensured your contract. ♣ AJ3
not play another spade because he knows
you hold the ♠Q; if East has the ♣A, he can
play a spade through your queen.
3. ♠ AK5
You are declarer in 6♠ and West leads the ♥2.
Now see what happens if you have the fore- ♥ K6
How do you plan the play?
sight to win the opening lead in dummy with ♦ QJ5
the ♠A. You play on clubs as before. Even ♣ A8763 You have done well to bid the slam and it
though someone might hold up the ace until ♠ 943 ♠ Q J 10 8 would be a shame if careless play ended in
the third round, you will have definite access ♥ 754 N ♥ A J 10 9 3 failure. West has done well to find the only
W E
to the closed hand with a spade after the ♠K ♦ K42 S ♦ 83 lead to cause you any bother. At first sight, it
has gone. It will not matter if the defenders ♣ J952 ♣ Q 10 might seem proper to play low from dummy
switch to one of the red suits as you have both ♠ 762 in the hope that West has led away from the
of them well stopped and can play on spades ♥ Q82 ♥K. If this fails, there is always the chance of
yourself. ♦ A 10 9 7 6 playing the club suit for no loss if you can
♣ K4 determine who might have the queen of that
suit. In reality of course, there may be few
2. ♠ AJ2 clues and success in clubs may be little more
♥ K975 than a fifty-fifty guess.
You are declarer in 3NT after East bid 1♥ over
♦ AQ
North’s 1♣ opener. West leads the ♥5. How Now assume you play the ♥A at trick one,
♣ Q 10 6 4
do you plan the play? draw trumps and eliminate diamonds by ruff-
♠ 10 8 7 4 ♠ K965
ing the third one in dummy. Then exit with
♥ 42 N ♥ J6 It looks after the intervention that most of the
W E your remaining heart. It does not matter who
♦ 982 S ♦ 10 7 6 5 3 high cards will be with East but, in these days
wins because whoever does will have to open
♣ K872 ♣ A5 of light overcalls, you can take nothing for
up the club suit or concede a ruff and discard;
♠ Q3 granted. If you play low from dummy at trick
either way, your contract will be safe.
♥ A Q 10 8 3 one, East will surely play something like the
♦ KJ4 ♥9; then either you can win and hope the dia- All the hands in this edition revolve around
♣ J93 mond finesse will work or duck and hope the playing high as second hand – something we
defence goes wrong. If you do duck, East will are not prepared to do generally. ■

Page 29

o you play splinters? You may
D have been asked that question at
the start of an evening playing
with a first-time partner. What is a
splinter? It is usually a double jump in a
new suit, which shows a shortage in that
suit, in other words a singleton or void.
Take this auction for example:
West East
1♠ 4♦
Since responses of 2♦ and 3♦ would be
natural, 4♦ is a spare bid. Splinters are a
very good way of identifying whether
values are wasted and, if they are not,
getting to slams that you would otherwise
find difficult to bid. What do you need to
make a splinter? If partner opens 1♠ and
you bid 4♣ or 4♦ then you should have:
a) at least four-card support for
partner;
b) around the values for game;
c) a singleton or perhaps void in the
suit you bid.
A perfect example for the East hand in
the above auction would be:
♠ KJ765
N ♥ K94
W E
S ♦ 2 bid, 4♣, 4♦ and 4♥ are splinters.
♣ A 10 4 2
Now look at some West hands facing
this splinter. What do you do here?
♠ AQ984
♥ AQ2 N a result such as 4♥-7, a typical
W E
♦ KQ9 S explanation is that one member of the
♣ Q8
With 19 points, this might look good for
Jeremy Dhondy Says
Splinters Help
Find Suit Slams
slam but the warning is there. You know
you have significant values in diamonds,
which will be opposite a singleton.
Contrast this with the second hand you
♠
♥
♦
A743
KQ62
K 10 9 3
W
N
S
E
might have as opener below – while it ♣ 2
has far fewer points, the signs are good
and you will surely make 12 tricks in
spades. You have become alive to this West North East South
possibility because you have no wasted 1♥ 2♣
points in diamonds. ?
You could bid 4♥ or perhaps cue bid 3♣
♠ A 10 9 8 4 2 to show a decent hand; certainly best is to
♥ A2 N bid a 4♣ splinter to show four-card heart
W E
♦ 876 S support, the values for game and a
♣ K5 shortage in clubs. Partner is well placed to
judge his hand. In this position, as you are
splintering in the opponent’s suit, there is
While you may splinter on a singleton little chance for any misunderstanding
ace, you can work out from the above even though it is only a single jump.
example that it might make partner If you have been playing splinters for
misjudge the value of his hand (K-Q-x a while, you might discuss, with a
facing a singleton ace could be useful regular partner, a few other positions for
for instance). It is thus better to find an using them. Look at these hands:
alternative bid with such a holding.
Although splinters are an excellent aid
to slam bidding, they are not without ♠ AQ72 ♠ KJ864
risk. My suggestion, to avoid any ♥ AQJ93 N ♥ K4
W E
confusion, is this: after a natural opening ♦ 8 S ♦ 943
bid of one of a major, all double jumps ♣ A85 ♣ K73
in new suits are splinter bids. So, over a
1♥ opening bid, 3♠, 4♣ and 4♦ are
splinters; likewise, over a 1♠ opening West East
1♥ 1♠
If you come across an enthusiast for 4♦ 4♥
these bids, then he or she will want to 4NT 5♦
play them over minor-suit openings, 6♠
after responder has bid a suit and in 101
other situations. If you have not played West has a very good hand after the 1♠
them so far, my advice is to stick to a response. He is worth game but bids 4♦
few simple ones with clear-cut rules. on the way as a splinter. While East has
When you open up a traveller and see only 10 points, he has a fifth spade, a
great card in the ♥K and no wasted
diamond values so makes one cue bid;
partnership thought they were playing he would pass if West now bid 4♠. West
splinters and the other did not. actually bids 4NT, finds one ace is
Splinters can also assist you in the missing and bids 6♠, which is an easy
competitive auction. You hold as West: make. ■
Page 30

READERS’
LETTERS
PIPE DREAMS
I have always wanted to go
on a cruise and I also play
bridge. Am I to be thwarted
in my ambition to go on one
of these before I die?
I read your glossy
brochures which are so very
attractive but when I call your
office to see if you can fit me
in as a single person with
less than £1,500 to spend, I
get quoted £3,000 minimum.
Your adverts in the BRIDGE
magazine all start with
‘Special Mr Bridge price per
person’ £595 or £1,099 or
whatever. Is this only for
journeys to ‘Never Never
Land’, Disneyland or what?
Mr Alan Walters,
Clay Cross, Derbyshire.
The Harwich to Nice cruise
should suit you to a tee. You
will not be disappointed.
LATEST BARGAIN
It wasn't until I saw a copy of
BRIDGE 99 last week in a
charity shop that I realised I
hadn't received it. On
checking the website, I
noticed that I didn't receive
issues after No 96.
Since Mr Bridge asks for an
email address when we
send in our details, can he
possibly generate an email
to lazy sausages like me
who fail to notice the
passage of time?
Jim Greer, Streatham,
London, SW16.
My new e-supplement,
Bridge Weekly, is sent to
those who provide an email
address. I think we are
already up to Number 9.
However, it is likely that lazy
sausages won’t read those
messages either.
DELAYED
Is there a publication date for
Bernard Magee’s ‘Bridge
Direction Simplified’?
Mr T Tedstowe, Cubbington,
Leamington. Also from Frank
Howard and several others
by email.
Not yet. The work on the
simplification is taking longer
than planned.
SOFTWARE BACKUP
I am most grateful for the
time and effort you spent in
resolving the difficulties I was
experiencing in the use of the
tutorial program. Without
your help, I would still be
trying to find the answer to
my problem.
Mrs S Pillow,
Street, Somerset.
Readers with software
problems should contact me
to have them sorted out.
KENYA SUPPORT
I was so moved by the letter
from the lady in Karen,
Kenya, as we lived there for
a year in the late 80’s. So
sad now to live in fear.
Mrs P Johnson,
Hexham, Northumberland.
FALSE CARD
I tried to apply for a
Mr Bridge credit card today.
However, a condition of the
application is that I have to
agree in advance that if
MBNA should not accept my
application (which they might
Page 31
do, as I do not incur interest
on principle) they are
authorised to forward my
details to another card
provider. I commented that
this seems to be a gross
invasion of privacy and
probably contrary to the
Data Protection rules, but
they insisted it was a
condition on their part. I am
sorry, but when I take out a
credit card I select the
provider and have no wish
for MBNA to do that for me.
In the circumstances, I am
reluctantly unwilling to take
up your suggestion in BRIDGE
that I take out an MBNA
Mr Bridge card.
Maybe you should identify
another bank to offer
Mr Bridge credit cards,
without such a pre-condition.
John Barton by email.
It’s still a great card, shame
about the conditions.
FALSE SIGNALS
Julian Pottage answering the
query ‘When should I signal?’
(BRIDGE 100, page 13) missed
out one essential ingredient
and that is, ‘is partner in
receiving mode?’ and on ‘the
same wavelength!’. If, as
frequently in my case, I am
partnering the most attractive
and engaging lady in the
entire room, there is no
bonus in making any signal
other than giving a broad
encouraging smile from time
to time. So, I signal to
declarer to deceive or
reinforce whatever he/she
deduces. I get quite
considerable pleasure from
doing this; it gives a new
dimension to the game I
thoroughly enjoy.
Anonymous. (I would hate
my cover to be blown).
SHUFFLING
Some years ago, a friend
and I observed the difference
between computer dealt
hands and the hands dealt
at the table.
We thought about this
and conducted a test
comparing ‘riffle’ shuffling
with the more usual blending
approach.
We decided upon three
riffle shuffles as the number
of passes that could be riffle
shuffled whilst dealing was
taking place. There was no
delay due to riffle shuffling.
For a large number of
bridge sessions we kept a
record of distribution, in
terms of the number of
cards in a suit. The
proportion of unevenly suited
hands with riffle shuffling
was very apparent: there
were far fewer 4-3-3-3
hands and more long suits.
Other players caught on to
what we were doing and
followed suit by riffle
shuffling, liking the more
interesting hands that
resulted frequently.
Other players following the
riffle shuffling approach
meant that our record
became meaningless and
now all the groups we
play in give the cards three
passes of riffle shuffling
before dealing.
My friend is a retired naval
gunnery officer and had
studied the maths of
probability, explaining that it
is the basis of gunnery.
Doug Ball by email.
LOST SOUL
Please keep me on your
mailing list. I feel like a
Yarborough without it.
Mrs V Roberts,
Laleston, Bridgend.
FULL HOUSE
The other night when playing
with friends, my partner
opened 2NT – I held 19
points, so we had the
magic 40.
A dream come true but
how often, in fact, does
this happen?
Althea Wade,
Great Gonerby, Grantham.
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
PETS CORNER
Mrs McLennan and I have
similar problems, see letters
BRIDGE 100. Indeed, my cats
refuse to learn even the
simplest moves in bridge.
They are too busy sleeping
on my warm keyboard.
Hilary Heffernan by email.
Pets, most frequently cats,
are the cause of many of the
difficulties readers have with
their PCs and laptops. When
asked to help give readers
support, one of the first
questions I ask is ‘do you
have a cat?’
COMPLACENT
Oh, what have the EBU
done to themselves?
Mr D Burchum, Leamington.
DOUBTFUL
We were very iffy about
cruising but completely
fell in love with it.
Mrs Jackson by email.
MEMBERS WANTED
Now the good weather has
come, folk feel keen to go
out in the evenings and we
are looking for more
members for Oakwood
Bridge Club in Crayford, near
Bexleyheath, Kent. We are a
non-EBU club, modest-sized,
very friendly and welcome
players at all levels, including
novices if they know the
basics. We play three
evenings each week – Mon,
REDUCE THE COST OF YOUR POSTAGE
Postage stamps for sale at 90% of face-value,
all mint with full gum. Quotations for
commercial quantities available on request.
Values supplied in 100s, higher values available
as well as 1st and 2nd class (eg 1st class:
100x37p+100x5p)
(/Fax 020 8422 4906 e-mail: clive.goff@londonrugby.com
Tues and Wed – 7.30pm to
10.30pm for a mere £1 (£1.50
for visitors) at Vickers Athletic
Club, Old Road, Crayford.
Phone Ken ( 020 8303 1402
or Hilary ( 020 8301 1024 if
you haven’t a partner.
TRAVEL TIPS
Three important points
regarding travel insurance
and documents.
1) Always read the policy
carefully for details of any
excesses.
2) In the event of needing
to claim, always contact the
24 hour helpline as soon as
possible or your claim could
be invalid. The number is
provided in the documents.
Be sure you take copies of
these with you on your trip.
3) European Insurance
Cards have a date on them
and need to be checked and,
if necessary, renewed.
Mrs E M Staples,
Tadworth, Surrey.
THREE QUESTIONS
1. Do you have high quality
playing cards for sale?
2. Can you recommend an
up to date Rules of Contract
Bridge? My Carlton Club
edition dates back 30 or
40 years.
3. Do you have a Mr Bridge
Mail Order catalogue?
Mr R Ballard, Cambridge.
The answers are:
1. Yes – see my editorial on
page 4.
2. Yes – Duplicate Bridge
Rules Simplified covers most
of what you need to know.
Page 32
3. No – just a list on page 5.
HONOURS
Andrew Robson in today’s
Times writes about honours.
What he says is not what we
play. Could you please give
an authorative ruling?
Nigel Hacking,
Cobham, Surrey.
What he says is absolutely
correct. The law on honours
in rubber bridge is
summarised in my Bridge
Players’ Diary and reprinted
in the adjacent column for
the interest of readers.
RE-START
Thank you for sending your
promotional magazine,
BRIDGE. You don’t realize
how much you miss it until it
stops. Thank you for starting
it up again for me.
P. Howland by email.
REAL MULLARKEY
The recommended answer
to question 1 of Bernard
Magee’s Bidding Quiz in
BRIDGE 100 seems to be
somewhat ‘turgid’ to me. I
favour the opening bid ‘4NT’
(Blackwood or whatever
Ace-seeking bid the pair is
playing) because to me it
seems certain that:
If East has no aces, West
can make five spades.
If East has one ace, West
can make six spades (maybe
even six no-trumps with the
ace of hearts).
If East has two aces, West
can make seven spades (or
even seven no-trumps).
I believe in the original
Acol principle – ‘bid what you
think you can make without
delay’ thereby avoiding a
chain of bids which gives
information to the opponents
as well as to the partner. In
fact, I would probably open
with 4NT on the Quiz Question
Number 2, especially if it
were rubber bridge and I
was having a ‘good’ day.
Mr J Mullarkey,
Ringwood, Hampshire.
HONOUR POINTS
‘Honours' are the top five
cards in the trump suit:
‘A-K-Q-J-10’. If any
player holds four of
these cards, then his side
is entitled to score 100
bonus points above the
line and if all five are
held, that is worth 150
bonus points. Playing in
no-trumps, aces take the
role of honours, and a
player must hold all four
to score 150 for honours.
Any player can claim
honours, including
dummy (or declarer on
dummy’s behalf) and
either of the defenders.
Honours count in
Rubber and Chicago
Bridge, but not in
Duplicate (although it is
legal for a sponsoring
organisation to run an
event in which they do).
Honours can be claimed
at any time during play,
but it is wise to wait till
the claimer has become
clearly marked with the
relevant holding, e.g. if
declarer has drawn all
the trumps and everyone
else has shown out.
Otherwise, honours can
be claimed at the end of
the deal when the score
is being agreed. The last
chance to claim honours
is at the end of the
rubber, as defined by
Law 78: ‘When it is
acknowledged by a
majority of the players
that a scoring error was
made in recording an
agreed upon result (e.g.
failure to enter honours,
or incorrect computation
of score), the error must
be corrected if
discovered before the net
result of the rubber has
been agreed to.’
Reprinted from the
Bridge Players’ Diary
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
SIMPLE SIMON
I have just received the
100th issue of BRIDGE and
as always have found a
good deal of interesting
material in it.
In your feature ‘Ask Julian’,
you answer a query by
Mr Alan Solomon of
Wimbledon, who asks how
even a small slam could be
bid on the following hands:
´ KQJ76
™ 9643
© A7
® AK
N must South hold if he can bid
W E
S four hearts at once? He must
´ Void
™ AKQ8752
© KJ6
® 985
The bidding, according to
Mr Solomon, was:
North South
1´ 2™
4™
and 13 tricks were made.
On looking at the hands, I
was reminded of a passage
in S J Simon’s book,
Why You Lose at Bridge
(page 50 in my copy), in
which he refers to ‘the
principle laid down by ...
Harrison Gray (and) adopted
gratefully by me, ‘bid what
you think you can make’’.
Simon gives as an
example: ‘if partner bids
one club and you hold:
´ x
™ AKJxxxx
© xx
® xxx
You think you can make four
hearts. Bid four hearts direct.
Never mind about missing a
slam. In the first place, it
probably isn’t there; in the
second, there is nothing to
prevent partner making a
slam try over your bid.’
I think, in Mr Solomon’s
case, that South would have
done well to bid four hearts
directly. The hand he gives is
better than the one given by
Simon. There must be a play
for four hearts unless partner
has a void. Even then, South’s
trump holding is pretty
formidable.
If North then hears partner
bid an immediate game in
hearts, it seems to me that
he should bid six straight
away. What kind of a hand
have a long solid suit (and
North has four of them). In
addition, North has two aces
and an almost solid suit of
spades. Surely a contract of
six hearts must have a good
chance of success.
The auction I have
suggested may sound as if
North and South are taking
the bull by the horns, but I
think that Harrison Gray’s
dictum, as reported by
Simon, has a good deal of
brutal logic behind it, and
might well have been
applied in this case.
I should be interested to
know what you think.
Dr J P C Toalster,
Giessen, Germany.
There are two important
points to consider here
regarding the best response
with Mr Solomon’s South
hand:
1) Since you intend to reach
at least game whatever
partner has, a direct 4™
response can never gain but
might lose. Sometimes, you
will miss a slam by bidding
4™ directly. After all, you
might need little more than
the ©A and a singleton club
Page 33
in partner’s hand to give 6™
play. Any large jump cuts out
a lot of bidding space and
makes it hard for partner to
explore for alternative
contracts. At best, you will
play in 4™ and achieve the
same result as if you took the
more scientific route we
recommend. A bid that can
only lose or, at best, break
even cannot be a good one.
2) For most tournament
players and quite a few club
players, the option of bidding
a direct 4™ simply does not
exist. A double jump in a
new suit would be a splinter
bid, showing a singleton or
void (in hearts) and support
for the suit opened. One
reason why so many players
are happy to give up the
option of having a natural 4™
response available is that it is
so rarely right to pre-empt
when your side is bidding but
the opponents are not.
Julian Pottage.
QUITE SO
I think you should point out
that bridge clubs may be
covered for Public Liability
through the insurance extant
with their venue.
Our bridge club rents the
Village Centre for our bridge
sessions. The Centre’s policy
specifically extends public
liability to all non-profit
organisations using the hall
and the underwriters confirm
that we do not need
additional cover. If they do
not own their own venue,
committees should check
the position with their
landlords before taking out
a separate policy.
John Harrison, Prestwood.
MORE DUPLICATE
Please could we have more
‘Just duplicate’ weekends?
We do not want seminars
and find the usual weekends
are too expensive.
Mr J Turner,
Hucclecote, Gloucester.
Better Hand
Evaluation
Bernard Magee
Introduction
Better Hand Evaluation is
aimed at helping readers to add
greater accuracy to their
bidding. It deals with auctions
in which you and your partner,
against silent opponents, can
describe your hands fully to
each other and, by evaluating
them accurately, find the best
final contract. The emphasis of
all good, accurate bidding is on
hand evaluation.
There are two general types of
auction: a) A fit is found and b)
No fit is found.
When you do not have a fit, you
are aiming to describe the
strength of your hand as soon
as possible, most often using
no-trump bids. This book
begins by discussing balanced
hand bidding in Acol, as it is
very important that both
members of a partnership have
an accurate knowledge of how
to show hands of different
strengths.
When a fit is found, there is
much re-evaluation of the hand
to be done; point count, though
still important, needs to be
evaluated together with
distribution. The best way of
reaching an accurate assess-
ment is to use the Losing Trick
Count; this is an important
method of hand evaluation and
takes up a number of chapters.
Finally, we move on to different
forms of evaluation including
game tries and splinter bids.
You can never know enough
methods of hand evaluation;
the more you learn, the better
you get at judging your hand.
Although the Losing Trick
Count is used more easily in
tandem with your partner, a
large proportion of the ideas in
this book can be used by an
individual. For example, evalu-
ating your hand to be worth an
extra point is going to help any-
one you partner – as long as
you get it right.
£14 including postage
from Ryden Grange,
Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
( 01483 489961

Your Questions and Suggestions
I love your magazine. I read all
the hints and recommendations
but how do I remember them?
Mrs B Guttridge,
Stamford, Lincs.
Could you simplify the section
on defensive play?
Dr F Bruckner, Kingston, Surrey.
I wish that there were some of
your bridge weekends in
Scotland.
Mrs M Bowie, Hawick.
I would like to see an article on
a simple discard system.
Mr D Wigley, Gloucestershire.
Who is the ‘artist’ who produced
David Stevenson’s picture?
Name & address supplied.
Being forgetful about the
passage of time, it would be
helpful if you could indicate
when I must get in touch again.
Perhaps for November 2012, a
simple code added to the
address like 11-12 might help.
Mr A R Morgan, Attleborough.
I would prefer not to have
articles on the thoughts of
someone’s dog.
Mrs K Gordon, Northwich.
Fewer stories – shorter blogs. In
other words, more bridge.
Mr A Peel, Leeds.
One suggestion. In teaching
articles, giving reasons helps
students to remember.
Mrs K S Muir, Repton, Derby.
Being very new to bridge, I
would welcome a ‘Beginners
Page’.
Mr B Steele, Lindfield.
Most readers’ letters complain
about very minor issues. Could
we have some happy or positive
letters?
Mr R Bassett, Caterham.
Not unless I write them myself.
I am interested in more cruises
on Swan Hellenic’s Minerva.
Mrs H Kaye, Harpenden, Herts.
Following trials this year, there
will be a bridge host on board
Minerva every cruise from
March 2011.
How do I get a copy of the book
Bridge’s Strangest Hands by
Andrew Ward?
Mr James Ryan, Abingdon.
Send me Your Questions and Suggestions
using the form provided on page 5.
As a bridge beginner I have not
plucked up courage to come on
a bridge weekend yet.
Mrs A Burroughes,
Aberystwyth.
The sooner the better.
Do you have spare plastic
covers for card tables as the
ones we have at my club are all
worn and holey?
Mrs M E Izzard,
Abergele, Conwy.
Any chance of an article on the
Losing Trick Count?
Mr J Blount, Leicester.
See my website library.
A profile of Mr Bridge could be
very interesting.
Mr M Grist, Long Ditton, Surrey.
I think we need more weekends
or 2-3 day – learn to play bridge
events. Get the population out
of four walls into those friendly
bridge clubs.
Mr J S Coles, Thame, Oxford.
Easier said than done.
An article on bidding over 1NT.
Mr Laird, Darley, Harrogate.
Recent writers have used
advanced bidding techniques in
their articles (e.g. unassuming
cue bid). An explanation would
be helpful.
Mr A E Gostling, Woodbridge.
Social bridge between friends is
just as important as Club Bridge
is to its members.
Mrs J Harborne, Grimsby.
I really enjoy the Bidding Quiz.
Could this be extended please?
Mr D Harrison, Lytham St
Annes.
Your wish will be my command.
Could a library be started for
Acol software which anyone
could borrow at a small cost?
Mrs M Abel, Dereham, Norfolk.
No, as this will breach copyright.
More problems to solve, please.
Mrs E Grange, Kettering.
More for beginners and baffled
improvers please.
Mr I. Williams, Okehampton.
My thanks for the pleasure the
magazine gives this 95 year old.
Could we have an article on
splinters and cue bids please?
Mr R Crisp, Oxfordshire.
Page 34
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
GOOD RESPONSE
Thank you for publishing my
feature article about ‘The
Case for All Combinations’ in
BRIDGE 99 on page 47.
I did have some response
and for one reader of
‘BRIDGE’ I was happy to
make up a complete case for
use at his club where I
understand the members
who direct are not fully
experienced.
The feedback I received
was that it was perfect for
their bridge club as all
movements from 3½ up to 10
tables, based on usually
playing 24 boards with a
maximum 3-board sit-out,
were readily referenced on
the Master Movement Card,
whilst the instructions for the
movement chosen ensured
that nothing was missed out
in the announcements made
by the director.
Another person
approached me after
reading the article, but he
required movements for 27
boards per session which his
club insisted on playing. This
is fine for the larger clubs of
9 tables or more or where a
half table pair is prepared to
sit-out for 4 boards which our
club considers too long.
Kevin Dawson,
Church Minshull, Cheshire.
FIRST LETTER
It was a letter on page 37
that caught my eye today.
I have a first cousin called
Victor Savage with whom I
had lost touch. The last time I
saw my cousin was when he
called to see me on his way
to a bridge congress in
Brighton about thirteen years
ago. I was not a bridge
player at that time, taking up
the game only when I was
widowed. Victor, on the other
hand, had played for years.
Please, forward my name,
address and e-mail details to
Victor Savage and if he is my
cousin, perhaps he will
contact me? The Lord works
in mysterious ways.
I look forward to BRIDGE 101.
Dora Felix, Haywards Heath,
West Sussex.
....FOLLOWED BY
I wrote to you about a letter
in your February issue from
Victor Savage. I thought he
might be a cousin with
whom I had lost contact.
You kindly forwarded my
particulars to him and I am
pleased to say that he is my
cousin and we have been
in touch and exchanged
family news.
Thank you so much for
making this possible.
Dora Felix by email.
DELETED
I have given my name and
address to you, via your
website, because I would like
to receive your free
magazine. Please note that I
have given my name and
address purely so that you
can send me a free BRIDGE
magazine. The Data
Protection Act applies.
I expressly do not want to
receive any marketing
mailings from you and you
must not pass my name and
address on to any other
party who may send me
marketing material.
Name & address supplied.
I do not pass on any readers’
data to third parties but I do
publish promotional and
marketing material which I
send out from time to time.
This is how the bills are paid.
IT’S FREE
I’ve only been a member of
EBU for a year and I
assumed this magazine
was coming from them –
apparently I was wrong.
Mr G Bak,
Bradford, West Yorkshire.
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
WELL DONE
In case anyone is interested,
last summer four friends got
together and we decided to
start a bridge club. We found
a local church hall and got
£500 start-up grant from
Milton Keynes Community
Foundation.
First night – 3 September,
12 tables – now we get 11½
tables regularly.
Amazing and everyone
seems to enjoy it.
Mrs Leslie Geddes,
Milton Keynes.
HUMAN ROBOTS
Once again your brilliant
magazine has come up
trumps. We are asking our
club members to give
computer-dealt hands a trial;
the proposal will be voted on
at our AGM on 20th April.
Julian Pottage’s answer to
Peter Pratt’s question in
BRIDGE 100, page 11,
therefore comes at exactly
the right time.
Mike Clements, Guildford.
ANOTHER NEW CLUB
Further to my email earlier
this month I am sending you
the details of our new club.
The name is Oakfield Bridge
Club and it is situated in
Stamford Golf Club,
Stalybridge, Cheshire.
We have a session on
Monday afternoons at
1pm which consists of 30
minutes tuition followed by
assisted play.
On Tuesday evenings, we
have a duplicate pairs
session and are operating a
‘host’ system so members
may come without a partner
to any session.
For information ring:
( 01457 875122
or visit our website:
www.bridgewebs/oakfield
Elaine McKinstry by email.
Life Continues
After P2P
On April 1st 2010, the EBU's
‘Pay-to-Play’ scheme went
live and on the same day
any club that hadn't
assented to the scheme was
ex-communicated instantly.
No matter how important or
historic your club, if it hadn't
signed up, all reference was
instantly removed from the
EBU's website. At a stroke,
the EBU lost some 40% of its
clubs. Such lost clubs cover a
wide spectrum of organised
bridge, from many nice-cup-
of-tea-and-a-game-of-bridge
social circles through to
major entrepreneurial clubs,
who can judge all-too-
accurately just how much
value the EBU adds to the
typical club player's
experience of their games.
The answer to that
question is very little, I'm
afraid; those clubs that have
ceased to issue master
points, my own included,
have lost hardly any players
at all and, in some cases,
there is a palpable sense of
relief that the few over-
competitive masterpoint
chasers have left and gone
elsewhere.
Some county websites
have followed the example
of the EBU in throwing out
links to refusenik clubs, while
others – my own London
county included – have
maintained a more
comprehensive listing, simply
noting which clubs are and
which aren't affiliated. Even
so I sense that a rather nasty
and vindictive streak of ‘you-
are-either-with-us-or-against-
us' is beginning to arise,
which, if left unchecked,
threatens to set friend
against friend and clubmate
against clubmate. All sadly
very predictable.
The EBU has also shown its
colours on its website by
claiming to speak for
duplicate bridge only. There
Page 35
Five members from the Bury Athenaeum Bridge Club have recently
enjoyed a twenty-one day cruise from Malaysia to Mauritius on board
m.v. Discovery. Pictured above are Eunice Pooler, Kath Swarbrick, Sue
Woods, Rita Wilson and Audrey Smith.
is so much bridge outside
club-based duplicate – social
bridge, charity bridge, rubber
bridge and so on; to
concentrate on promoting
duplicate only and not the
game in general must itself
be a wrong policy. Anyone
who works at the bridge
teaching interface knows
that there are many players
out there who have played
social bridge for a long time
but are deterred for many
reasons from playing
duplicate. We need to make
this transition as smooth, as
welcoming and as painless
as possible, rather than
emphasise the divide.
All of this would matter
less if the EBU had decided
to act as the members'
mutual organisation it is,
rather than the 'service
provider' (its own words) as
promoted by its leaders. The
EBU Board has affirmed
again that there will be no
move to one-member-one-
vote. Either the present
leadership has decided not
to trust the membership at
large, or – and this is the
message I am receiving –
they are contemptuous of the
level of interest that ordinary
players show in the conduct
of its national affairs.
This is a slippery path. The
latest proposal is that the
board of the EBU should no
longer be elected, even by
the limited present voting,
but that 50% of the board
should be appointed on the
recommendation of the
leadership. The argument is
that relevant skills may be
lacking at board level, but I
would say that if the present
board must appoint their
cronies, why can't they at
least extract a £23 direct
membership fee first. It's
all a bit too one-party-state
for me.
What about the EBU's
development policies? Two
such policies are being
trumpeted constantly: the
existence and cultivation of
the Parliamentary Liaison
Group for Bridge and the
policy of encouraging
schools to play mini-bridge.
Parliamentarians are very
good at eating lunch and
claiming expenses – recent
public events have confirmed
this. Where is there
legislation in the offing that
will benefit bridge? Bridge
needs to be recognised as a
sport in order to free the
major clubs from VAT and
this would be of great
benefit. There was much talk
of this happening when
bridge was applying with
other 'mind sports' to be
included in the Winter
Olympics programme but
when – to no impartial
observer's surprise – this
didn't happen, all talk
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
stopped and the issue was
swept under the carpet.
Recognising mind sports as
sports was said to require
changes in the 1937
Education Act, which defines
sport as having a physical
element. This didn't happen
then and I can't see it
happening now. But it's still
nice to have lunch with
one's friends.
As for mini-bridge, this is
fine and in the hands of a
competent bridge teacher
mini-bridge leads quickly on
to real bridge. But this does
depend on there being
interested and committed
teachers in each school and
this will be patchy at best.
The idea of bridge being
included in some way in the
National Curriculum, is of
course, a non-starter and not
worth spending any time
pursuing.
The real benefit of teaching
bridge to schoolchildren is
that when they get to
university they may be
readier to join a bridge club
there.
We often moan about the
lack of young people at
bridge clubs. But that's not
really a young person's
scene. In my opinion, given
today's lack of family card
games and the prevalence of
electronic alternatives, bridge
isn't doing too badly at all
amongst young people. Play
in the midnight speedball at
the EBU Summer Meeting at
Brighton and see what I
Write to Mr Bridge at:
Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
or e-mail letters@mrbridge.co.uk
E-mail correspondents are asked to include their
name, full postal address, telephone number and
to send no attachments.
Letters may be edited for length and clarity.
mean: the average age, even
including a few old boys like
me, is well under 30 and I
am sure the interest of these
young players in bridge is, in
part, sustained by a social
scene the details of which it
is probably best not to
discuss in a family magazine.
Schools’ bridge is not the
only recruiting point for
bridge: there is widespread
interest amongst young,
single adults in their 20s and
30s; among couples in their
30s and 40s looking for a
new, less active recreation;
among the newly divorced
who want to start again; the
newly retired; and even those
who pick up bridge via the
U3A and other similar
retirement groups.
Everywhere that bridge is
presented properly
attendances are booming
and, far from declining as the
EBU seems to bemoan, it is,
in many places, positively
rocking.
What the EBU does very
well is put on higher level
events for committed players.
But it has been careless in
recruiting to these events and
forgotten that this year's
novice may be next year's
organiser, so it is important to
keep renewing participation.
The other thing the EBU
does is put out representative
national teams. Money is
tight for this as the number of
events is rising. Sim pairs
have been a traditional
vehicle for raising funds, but
the P2P policy has cut at a
stroke the number of clubs
participating and accordingly
the amount of money raised.
Page 36
Anticipating the hatches
being battened down, the PROGRAMME
EBU has already decided that
This is the format for all
those selected for the except Bernard Magee
Camrose Trophy, the Home hosted events.
International series, will
participate only if they are
FRIDAY
prepared to pay for
themselves. Buy your way to 1500
international representation Welcome Desk open
Afternoon Tea
anyone?
In summary, I would say 1745 to 1830
that the present EBU Welcome drinks
leadership is not pursuing reception
the right policies for the 1830 to 2000
future of bridge, although I DINNER
am sure they would contend
2015 BRIDGE 1
they are. I am very much in
DUPLICATE PAIRS
favour of a strong and
unified national governing
body but it seems it will be
SATURDAY
some time before the forces 0800 to 0930
of good re-capture the EBU. BREAKFAST
In these circumstances, it is 1000 to 1230
not surprising that people are SEMINAR &
talking about alternatives. SUPERVISED PLAY
It would, of course, be of SET HANDS
wrong to have a situation (tea & coffee at 1100)
where we have the Peoples' 1230 to 1330
Front of Judea struggling COLD BUFFET
against the People's Judean LUNCH
Front. David Pendlebury,
1400 to 1645
the former webmaster of BRIDGE 2
Lancashire CBA, has FURTHER
created a website SUPERVISED PLAY
www. englishbridge.org.uk of SET HANDS or
to be an informative website DUPLICATE PAIRS
where all clubs can be listed 1815 to 2000
and the affiliated are as DINNER
welcome as the unaffiliated.
2015 BRIDGE 3
I am now supporting and DUPLICATE PAIRS
working with Dave on this.
We hope to populate the
website with club
SUNDAY
information, county by 0800 to 0930
county, until it is quite BREAKFAST
comprehensive and so 1000 to 1230
present outsiders with a truer SEMINAR &
view of the reach of the SUPERVISED PLAY
game. The wish list of of SET HANDS
information includes (tea & coffee at 1100)
supervised classes and 1230 to 1400
lessons around the country CARVERY LUNCH
as well as a listing of
1400 to 1645
teachers. BRIDGE 4
You can write to me at FURTHER
ned@nedpaul.com. Thank SUPERVISED PLAY
you to Mr Bridge for allowing of SET HANDS or
me to express my views. DUPLICATE PAIRS
Ned Paul, Twickenham. ■
 2010 and 2011 BRIDGE
Bridge Breaks BREAKS
JUNE2010
© Full-board © Two seminars
11-13 The Beach Hotel
£215 Slams & Cue Bids © All rooms with © Two supervised play
Ned Paul en-suite facilities sessions
© No single supplement © Four duplicate sessions
AUGUST2010
6-8 The Beach Hotel Please book me for ..... places at £....... per person,
£215 Leads & Defence
Chris Barrable Single .... Double .... Twin .... Sea View1 .... Executive2 ....

SEPTEMBER2010 Staverton Park

Nr Daventry NN11 6JT Name of Hotel/Centre ........................................................
3-5 The Beach Hotel
£215 Dealing with 1NT Dates ..................................................................................
Sandy Bell NOVEMBERcontinued
17-19 Blunsdon House 19-21 Wychwood Park Mr/Mrs/Miss .....................................................................
£215 Take-out Doubles £199 Slam Bidding
Improvers* Gary Conrad Address...............................................................................
Alison Nicolson
26-28 The Olde Barn
£199 Stayman & Transfers ............................................................................................
Improvers*
Postcode ............................................................................
JANUARY2011
14-16 Ardington Hotel ( ......................................................................................
£215 Signals & Discards
Ned Paul Special requirements (these cannot be guaranteed,
but we will do our best to oblige)
21-23 Ardington Hotel
£215 Suit Establishment
...........................................................................................
Alex Davoud
Blunsdon House Hotel Please give the name(s) of all those covered by this booking
Swindon SN26 7AS
FEBRUARY2011
...........................................................................................
OCTOBER2010 25-27 Ardington Hotel
£215 Doubles Please send a non-returnable deposit of £50 per person per place by
15-17 Wychwood Park Ned Paul cheque, payable to Mr Bridge. An invoice for the balance will be
£199 Signals & Discards sent with your booking confirmation. On receipt of your final pay-
Ray Hutchinson ment, 28 days before the event, a programme and full details will
22-24 Staverton Park
MARCH2011 be sent together with a map. Cancellations are not refundable.
£199 Hand Evaluation 25-27 Ardington Hotel Should you require insurance, you should contact your own insur-
Alex Davoud £215 Pre-emptive Bidding ance broker. 1£30 supplement per room (Beach Hotel only). 2£50
Crombie McNeil supplement per room (Blunsdon House and Denham Grove only).
29-31 The Olde Barn
£199 Slam Bidding
Ray Hutchinson , Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
( 01483 489961 Fax 01483 797302
NOVEMBER2010 e-mail: jessica@mrbridge.co.uk
5-7 Wychwood Park
£199 Declarer Play
website: www.holidaybridge.com
Gary Conrad
5-7 Staverton Park
£199 Leads & Defence
Ardington Hotel The Olde Barn Hotel
Alex Davoud
Worthing BN11 3DZ Marston, Lincs NG32 2HT
12-14 The Olde Barn
£199 Better Defence The Beach Hotel Blunsdon House Hotel Staverton Park
Crombie McNeil Worthing BN11 3QJ Swindon SN26 7AS Near Daventry NN11 6JT
The Beach Hotel Wychwood Park
*aimed at the novice player and/or those picking up the game after a long break Worthing BN11 3QJ Near Crewe CW2 5GP

Page 37
 DISCOVERY
DISCOVERY
CLUB MEMBERS
CLUB MEMBERS
SAVE
SAVE
A
ANN EXTRA
EX T R A

55%
%
Discover Northern Europe,
Discover
the Mediterranean and the Black Sea in 2011
Voyages of Discovery’s summer 2011 programme features extraordinary new voyages including: Murmansk & The White Sea with
a maiden visit to Archangel and familiar favourites the Baltic; Norwegian Fjords; Iceland; the British Isles; Venice & the Adriatic
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A French
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A Baltic
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Fjords, Faroes,
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Ice 0
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T
Timeless
imeless Baltic
Baltic 0
02
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wich ~ Copenhagen ~ Helsinki ~ St P
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Kiel Canal ~ Harwich £1,199pp
G
Grand
rand Baltic
Baltic Discovery
Discovery 1
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3 JJul
ul 2
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wich ~ Copenhagen ~ Stockholm ~ Ajos/Kemi ~ Vaasa~ St P
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%ODFN6HD&RQWUDVWV &RQÁLFWV12
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01483 489961
01483 489961 for
for brochures
brochures and
and bookings
bookings
w ww.bridgecruises.co.uk
www.bridgecruises.co.uk

Fares
Fares shown are per person based on two people sharing lowest inside twin-bedded cabin categorcategoryy as shown and include all applicable discounts for new bookings only
only.. All offers are subject to availability,
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FDSDFLW\FRQWUROOHGDQGPD\EHZLWKGUDZQDWDQ\WLPH2QÁ\FU XLVHVÁLJKWVIURP0DQFKHVWHULQFXUD…SSVXSSOHPHQW…SSHDFKZD\6HHEURFKXUHIRUIXOOWHUPVDQGFRQGLWLRQV2QO\ERRNLQJVPDGH
FDSDFLW\FRQWUROOHGDQGPD\EHZLWKGUDZQDWDQ\WLPH2QÁ\FUXLVHVÁLJKWVIURP0DQFKHVWHULQFXUD…SSVXSSOHPHQW…SSHDFKZD\6HHEURFKXUHIRUIXOOWHUPVDQGFRQGLWLRQV2QO\ERRNLQJVPDGH
GLUHFWO\ZLWK0U%ULGJHDUHHOLJLEOHWREHSDU WRIWKH0U%ULGJH*URXS7KRVHZLVKLQJWRSOD\EULGJHSOHDVHQRWHWKDWWKHUHLVDEULGJHVXSSOHPHQWRI…SHUEULGJHSOD\HUWREHFRQÀUPHGDWWKHWLPHRIERRNLQJ
GLUHFWO\ZLWK0U%ULGJHDUHHOLJLEOHWREHSDUWRIWKH0U%ULGJH*URXS7KRVHZLVKLQJWRSOD\EULGJHSOHDVHQRWHWKDWWKHUHLVDEULGJHVXSSOHPHQWRI…SHUEULGJHSOD\HUWREHFRQÀUPHGDWWKHWLPHRIERRNLQJ
Voyages of Discover
Voyages Discoveryy is a trading name of All Leisure Holidays Ltd.
 ANSWERS TO THE DEFENCE QUIZ ON
PAGE 23 by JULIAN POTTAGE
Partner leads the two of spades; dummy Indeed, the bidding confirms that partner’s
1. ´ J73 plays low. What do you play? spade honour is not the ace. South’s 5®, in
™ QJ2 reply to 4NT, showed zero or four key cards
As on the previous deal, you should play high
© K J 10 9 (obviously four). These must be the aces you
– but not your very highest card. You want to
® AQ5 cannot see and the king of clubs.
save the ace to capture the king. You should
´ Q8642 ´ K 10 5
play the jack, finessing against the king. No After your nine of spades fetches the ace,
™ 87 N ™ 9653
W E matter who has the queen, saving your ace declarer has very good chances – a 2-1 trump
© 742 S © A83
will stop the king from scoring. break would do – even three trumps in your
® K 10 2 ® 973
hand would be fine as there should be an
´ A9 After the jack wins, of course you do not con-
endplay against you. As the cards lie, nothing
™ A K 10 4 tinue spades. You do not want to undo your
works and the slam fails.
© Q65 good work on the first trick. You should switch
® J864 to a club – perhaps partner has the ace. You
have no joy there, but partner gets in later
with a diamond and can continue with a high
4. ´ Q83
West North East South spade to repeat the finesse against dummy’s
™ 2
1NT king. You beat the contract with three spade
© A K J 10 9 5
Pass 3NT End tricks and a diamond.
® AJ3
´ J9652 ´ A 10
Partner leads the four of spades. Dummy N
™ A975 ™ Q J 10 4
plays low. What do you play? W E
© 72 S © 843
3. ´ KJ3
You may have heard that third hand plays ® Q7 ® 10 6 5 4
™ K 10 8 2
high; so do you play the king? Well, you do ´ K74
© AK
want to win the trick or perhaps force out an ™ K863
® J653
honour from declarer, yet you do not want to © Q6
´ 10 8 5 2 ´ Q96
give away a trick in the process. ® K982
™ J75 N ™ Q643
W E
If the lead is from the ace-queen, it will not © Q72 S © 10 9 8 5 4 3
matter what you do, so place one of those ® Q 10 9 ® Void
West North East South
two cards on your left. If this is the queen, ´ A74
1© Pass 1™
declarer makes just one spade regardless. ™ A9
Pass 3© Pass 3NT
© J6
The key situation is when partner has the End
® AK8742
queen but not the ace. Now playing the ten
saves a trick as it is good enough to drive out Partner leads the five of spades and dummy
the ace (or to win the trick if declarer holds plays low. What do you do?
West North East South
up). Play the ten here and the contract goes
1® The bidding suggests declarer has a spade
down. If you play the king (or duck), it makes.
Pass 1™ Pass 3® stopper, though you cannot be certain of this.
Pass 4NT1 Pass 5®2 If the lead does come from the king-jack of
Pass 5NT Pass 6®3 spades, you want to play the ten as a finesse
End to avoid setting up dummy’s queen. However,
2. ´ K53 1
Keycard Blackwood even if the ten of spades wins the trick, it will
™ Q92 2
0 or 4 key cards (aces + the ®K) do you little good unless you can put partner
© Q J 10 9 5 3
Nothing extra to show on lead – your ace of spades will block the
® K5 suit. A glance at dummy should tell you that
´ Q 10 8 2 ´ AJ7 Partner leads the two of spades. Dummy the ace of hearts is the only possible entry
™ 876 N ™ 3 plays low. What do you play? card – the diamonds are surely running and
W E
© A72 S © 843 any club finesse declarer needs will work if
If you had ´Q-10-x, it would be clear to play
® J82 ® Q97643 the diamonds do not provide enough tricks.
the ten. Here with Q-9-x in your hand and the
´ 964
ten in partner’s, the position is equivalent. Once you place partner with the ™A, there is
™ A K J 10 5 4
clearly a better course of action. Go up with
© K6 You would play the nine even if you did not
the ace of spades and switch to the queen of
® A 10 know who held the ten (if declarer has A-10-x
hearts. This defeats the contract if partner has
then you are not making a trick anyway). Here
either A-9-x-x of hearts or the ´K and any
you have good reason to place partner with
three or four hearts including the ace.
West North East South the ten. For one thing, the lead of the two sug-
1™ gests an honour. Since you would not expect This time, you do not finesse (a) because it
Pass 2© Pass 3™ partner to underlead the ace, this should be was unlikely to succeed and (b) even if it
Pass 4™ End the ten. worked, it would not really help. ■

Page 39
 GLOBAL TRAVEL INSURANCE
Amelia House, Crescent Road, Worthing West Sussex, BN11 1RL.
GLOBAL TRAVEL
INSURANCE ( 01903 203933 Fax 01903 211106 Email info@globaltravelinsurance.co.uk GLOBAL TRAVEL
INSURANCE
Services Limited Services Limited

INSURANCE PRODUCT SUITABILITY

This insurance is suitable for persons whose Demands and Needs are those of a traveller whose Individual round trip starts
and finishes in the UK and is of no more than 122 days duration, and whose age is 90 years or less and is a permanent
resident of the United Kingdom and Channel Islands.
As this description contains the Key Features of the cover provided it constitutes provision of a statement of demands and needs. This and
needs. This insurance is only available to persons who are permanently resident and domiciled in the UK.

SUMMARY OF COVER
The following represent the Significant and Key Features of the policy including Exclusions and Limitations that apply per person.
A full copy of the policy document is available on request.

CANCELLATION & CURTAILMENT up to £1,500
If you have to cancel or cut short your trip due to illness, injury, redundancy, jury service, the police
requiring you to remain at or return to your home due to serious damage to your home, you are
covered against loss of travel and accommodation costs.
Policy Excess £50. For persons aged 61 to 70 years the excess is increased to £100.
For persons aged 71 to 90 years the excess is increased to £150.
See section headed Increased Excess for Pre Existing Medical Conditions for increased excesses
applicable to claims arising from pre-existing medical conditions.
PERSONAL ACCIDENT up to £15,000
A cash sum for accidental injury resulting in death, loss of sight, loss of limb or permanent total
disablement. No Policy Excess.
MEDICAL AND OTHER EXPENSES up to £10,000,000
Including FIRSTASSIST 24 HOUR WORLDWIDE MEDICAL EMERGENCY SERVICE
(a) The cost of hospital and other emergency medical expenses incurred abroad, including
additional accommodation and repatriation expenses. Limit £250 for emergency dental treatment
and £5,000 burial/cremation/transfer of remains. Limit £2,500 for transfer of remains to your home if
you die in the UK.
Policy Excess £75 unless travelling within North or Central America or the Caribbean or on a
Cruise when increased to £150. For persons aged 61 to 70 years the excess is increased to
£150 unless travelling within North or Central America or the Caribbean when increased to
£500. For persons aged 71 to 90 years the excess is increased to £300 unless travelling within
North or Central America or the Caribbean or on a Cruise when increased to £1,000.
See section headed Increased Excess for Pre Existing Medical Conditions for increased excesses
applicable to claims arising from pre-existing medical conditions.
(b) HOSPITAL BENEFIT up to £300
An additional benefit of £15 per day for each day you spend in hospital abroad as an in-patient.
No Policy Excess.
PERSONAL LUGGAGE, MONEY & VALUABLES up to £2,000
Covers accidental loss, theft or damage to your personal luggage subject to a limit of £200 for any
one article, pair or set and an overall limit of £200 for valuables such as cameras, Jewellery, furs,
etc. Luggage and valuables limited to £1500. Delayed luggage, up to £75. Policy Excess £50.
Money, travel tickets and travellers cheques are covered up to £500 against accidental loss or theft
(cash limit £250). Policy Excess £50.
No cover is provided for loss or theft of unattended property, valuables or money or for loss or theft
not reported to the Police within 24 hours of discovery.
PASSPORT EXPENSES up to £200
If you lose your passport or it is stolen whilst abroad, you are covered for additional travel and
accommodation costs incurred in obtaining a replacement. No Policy Excess.
DELAYED DEPARTURE up to £1,500
If your outward or return trip is delayed for more than 12 hours at the final departure point to/from
UK due to adverse weather conditions, mechanical breakdown or industrial action, you are entitled
to either (a) £20 for the first 12 hours and £10 for each further 12 hours delay up to a maximum of
£60, or (b) the cost of the trip (up to £1,500) if you elect to cancel after 12 hours delay on the outward
trip from the UK. Policy Excess £50 (b) only.
MISSED DEPARTURE up to £500
Additional travel and accommodation expenses incurred to enable you to reach your overseas
destination if you arrive too late at your final UK outward departure point due to failure of the vehicle
in which you are travelling to deliver you to the departure point caused by adverse weather, strike,
industrial action, mechanical breakdown or accident to the vehicle. No Policy Excess.
PERSONAL LIABILITY up to £2,000,000
Covers your legal liability for injury or damage to other people or their property, including legal
expenses (subject to the laws of England and Wales). Policy Excess £250.
LEGAL EXPENSES up to £25,000
To enable you to pursue your rights against a third party following injury. No Policy Excess.
SCHEDULED AIRLINE FAILURE up to £1,500
Covers scheduled airline tickets cancelled prior to departure and cost of replacement equivalent
tickets incurred in order to return to the UK due to bankruptcy/liquidation of the airline. No Policy
Excess.

MAIN EXCLUSIONS AND CONDITIONS Medical Screening

The following represents only the main exclusions. The policy document sets out
all of the conditions and exclusions. A copy of the full policy wording is available
on request in writing prior to application.
MAIN HEALTH EXCLUSIONS:
Insurers will not pay for claims arising
1. Where You (or any person upon whose health the Trip depends) are undergoing tests for the
presence of a medical condition receiving or on a waiting list for or have knowledge of the need
for treatment at a hospital or nursing home.
2. From any terminal illness suffered by You (or any person upon whose health the Trip depends).
3. From any medical condition for which You (or any person upon whose health the Trip depends)
have within 12 months prior to the date of issue of this insurance been diagnosed with a medical
condition or have been admitted or undergone a procedure/ intervention in a hospital.
4. If You are traveling against the advice of a Medical Practitioner.
OTHER GENERAL EXCLUSIONS
Claims arising from
1. Winter sports, any hazardous pursuits, any work of a non sedentary nature.
2. Self inflicted injury or illness, suicide, alcoholism or drug abuse, sexual disease.
3. War, invasion, acts of foreign enemies, hostilities or warlike operations, civil war, rebellion,
Terrorism, revolution, insurrection, civil commotion, military or usurped power but this
exclusion shall not apply to losses under Section 3 - Medical Expenses unless such losses
are caused by nuclear, chemical or biological attack, or the disturbances were already taking
place at the beginning of any Trip.
4. Failure or fear of failure or inability of any equipment or any computer program.
5. Consequential loss of any kind.
6. Bankruptcy/liquidation of any tour operator, travel agent, airline, transportation company or
accommodation supplier.
7. Travelling to countries or regions where the FCO or WHO has advised against travel.
8. Your failure to contact the Medical Screening Line where required.
Unless you are traveling to North or Central America or the Caribbean or on a Cruise,
there is no need to advise us of your pre existing medical conditions. The term “Cruise”
does not include River or other Inland cruises or boat trips.
If You have a history of any medical condition and are traveling to North or Central
America or the Caribbean or on a Cruise, you must first contact the Medical Screening
Line to establish whether we can provide cover for your trip. If you are accepted, the
following levels of excess will apply. You will receive written confirmation that you are
covered for the trip. The number to call is:
0844 8921698
Increased Excess for Pre Existing Medical Conditions
Provision for the acceptance of pre existing medical conditions has been made by the
application of increased excesses in the event of claims arising.
For claims arising from any medical condition, other than those that are specifically excluded,
the excess is further increased as follows:
Under the Cancellation & Curtailment section – double the normal excess.
Under the Medical & Other Expenses section –
For persons aged 60 years or less the excess is increased to £500 unless travelling within
North or Central America or the Caribbean or on a Cruise when increased to £1,000.
For persons aged 61 to 70 years the excess is increased to £1,000 unless travelling within
North or Central America or the Caribbean or on a Cruise when increased to £2,000.
For persons aged 71 to 90 years the excess is increased to £1,500 unless travelling within
North or Central America or the Caribbean or on a Cruise when increased to £3,000.
MEMBER OF THE

POLICY EXCESSES:
The amount of each claim for which insurers will not pay and for which you are responsible. The
excess as noted in the policy summary applies to each and every claim per insured person under
each section where an excess applies.
 ✄
Global Travel Insurance Services Ltd are authorised and regulated by
the Financial Services Authority and our status can be checked on the
FSA Register by visiting www.fsa.gov.uk/register or by contacting the
Single Trip
FSA on 0845 606 1234.
This insurance is administered by FirstAssist Insurance Services Limited Travel Insurance
on behalf of the insurer Great Lakes Reinsurance (UK) PLC registered in Suitable for individual round trips up to 122 days duration
England No. 2189462. Registered address: Plantation Place, 30 that start and finish in the UK arranged by
Fenchurch Street, London EC3M 3AJ, and is authorised and regulated by
the Financial Services Authority other than Scheduled Airline Failure
which is underwritten by IGI Insurance Company Ltd. Registered address:
Global Travel Insurance
Amelia House, Crescent Road, Worthing, West Sussex, BN11 1RL
Market Square House, St James’s Street, Nottingham, NG1 6FG. ( 01903 203933 Fax 01903 211106
If you have a complaint about the sale of this insurance, you must first
write to the Managing Director of Global Travel Insurance Services Ltd. SINGLE TRIP APPLICATION FORM
Subsequently, complaints may be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Please FULLY complete the following in BLOCK CAPITALS.
Service. If we are unable to meet our liabilities you may be entitled to Once complete, return the application panel direct to Global Travel Insurance
compensation under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. with a cheque or with card details entered.
If you would like more information or are unsure of any details contained Insurance is not effective until a Policy has been issued.
herein, you should ask Global Travel Insurance Services Ltd for further Please allow at least 5 days before you need to travel.
advice. Details of the Applicant

PREMIUM RATING SCHEDULE Title (Mr/Mrs/Miss) Initials

GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS Surname

1. United Kingdom
England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, including all Telephone No.
islands comprising the British Isles (except the Channel Islands and the
Republic of Ireland). House Number/Name
(Any British Isles or UK Cruises are rated as Area 2).
2. Europe Street Name
Area 1 and Continental Europe west of the Ural mountain range, all
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136STI10
 At the Feet
Of the Master
by Dick Atkinson

M
y uncle, the 7th Baron von with the Baroness) Uncle Leopold an opposing contract! West overcalled
Münchausen, has a truly reopened with a double. The Marquis, with a strong 3™ and your mother, of
encyclopaedic knowledge of North, called 3NT, which was doubled course, bid 4´. East let the cat out of the
the game of bridge, coupled with a flair and redoubled within a second. bag by going straight to 6©. I called 6´,
bordering on clairvoyance in the play of West led the king of clubs, and de West obviously showed the Ace of
the cards and, more importantly, the Sade tabled his dummy. ‘Alors, mon trumps when he bid 7© and your dear
play of the opponents. On this occasion, brave,’ he intoned ruefully, ‘I was Mama called 7´, which was foolishly
however, he was briefly nonplussed. I hoping my two tens might be worth a doubled by East.’
had the tale from his old partner, the trick each on the bidding, but . . .’
late Marquis de Sade. It had happened ‘Excellent valuation, my dear
before my Uncle inherited the Barony, Camille!’ smiled the Baron as he won in ´ J 10 9 8 7 6
and he was playing against his parents. hand and finessed the six of diamonds. ™ Void
According to de Sade – though I can After a heart to the queen came another © 652
scarcely credit it – the Baron was diamond finesse, then the ace of hearts ® 6543
always outshone at the card table by his and a third diamond finesse. ´ 2 ´ Void
father. I was reminded of that line from ‘Assuming you have not suppressed a ™ A K Q J 10 2 N
W E
™ Void
Shakespeare about Mark Antony’s genius strong seven-card spade suit, Mama,’ he © A43 S © K Q J 10 9 8 7
always being rebuked by Caesar’s, or announced, ‘the contract is now solid. I ® 872 ® A K Q J 10 9
some such thing. take my ace of spades to extract Papa’s ´ AKQ543
last exit card, then I lead towards the ten ™ 9876543
of clubs on table. If you let it hold, © Void
De Sade Papa, I cash the ace of diamonds for my ® Void
´ 9843 ninth trick; so, of course, you take it – it
™ 52 is too high for Mama to cover. You take
© A Q 10 8 6 your four club tricks if you wish before ‘West chose to cut down our ruffs by
® 10 6 taking another diamond finesse for me. leading his trump, but there was no
The Old Baron The Baroness As you noted, Camille, each ten was defence, of course. I won in hand and led
´ 2 ´ K Q 10 7 6 5 indeed worth a trick. The hand establishes a heart, intending to take the marked
N
™ 98 W E ™ K J 10 7 6 some sort of a record, I suppose, since I quintuple ruffing finesse. When this was
S
© KJ975 © Void would wager a million Francs to a brass covered, I ruffed, then ruffed back a
® KQJ87 ® 92 farthing that no-one has previously minor-suit card and repeated the process.
The Baron taken as many as four finesses in a Eventually, after the fifth ruffing finesse,
´ AJ single suit!’ covered each time, I ruffed back to hand
™ AQ43 The Old Baron, however, had begun with my last trump to cash the two good
© 432 to pencil a hand on the back of his score hearts, dropping West’s pathetic
® A543 card. remnant, the deuce.’
‘Interestingly enough, Leopold, this De Sade even recalled – with unholy
was the decisive deal in the final of the glee, it seemed to me – the Old Baron’s
Uncle Leo had been South, and opened local teams-of-four tournament just last Parthian shot. He had reached into his
1NT at unfavourable vulnerability. The week. My counterpart at the other table pocket, remarking: ‘I think I have a
Old Baron overcalled with 2NT to show opened 1™ on the South cards, but I brass farthing here somewhere . . .’ ■
the minors – a convention my uncle favoured the prepared call of 1´ – and,
despises because of its revealing nature. after all, imagine the disaster if partner Previously published in BRIDGE 51.
After two passes (one can sympathise should eventually lead a heart against

Page 42
 Catching Up
by Sally Brock
T
he most exciting thing to
happen since last I wrote
was our family holiday
to Gambia at half-term. Our
hotel was on the ocean and
combined the benefits of a
resort hotel with a touch of
the ‘real Africa’. We went on
several minor outings, but on
our last day had a fantastic
day out. We crossed the river
estuary on the local ferry,
climbed into a lorry, crossed
the border into Senegal,
visited a farming village with
no electricity or running
water (but plenty of healthy-
looking, happy children),
travelled by canoe along the
mangrove to ‘Treasure Island’
where we had lunch before
reversing the procedure to get
back. Whenever it seemed a
bit much for my parents,
someone just lifted them
bodily into and out of the
boat, or gave them a donkey
cart to ride in. It was a day we
will remember all our lives.
February 25th was the
‘Night of the Stars’ at
Wimbledon Bridge Club.
This is an annual charity do
where top bridge players turn
out and play with the club
players who have paid large
sums of money to charity for
the privilege. This year they
raised a magnificent £14,000
(up from £8,000 the previous
year). There were some
exciting hands. David Burn
fulfilled one of his lifetime’s
bridge ambitions when he
picked up:
´ Q
™ AK9
© AKQ974
® K73
He heard his partner open 2®
(supposedly Acol)! David
which East wins with the ace
to return the queen of clubs.
If you make the ‘normal’
play of covering with your Christmas
king, West will ruff and switch
to a heart; you will lose two
clubs, a ruff and a heart.
&NewYear
had the satisfaction of taking Look what happens if you
all the bids out of his bidding duck the queen of clubs. If DenhamGrove
box in one go: 7NT. There East switches to a different NearUxbridge
were only 16 tricks available suit, you will not incur a ruff
UB95DU
as partner held: and so will make your
contract. If, instead, he
continues with a third club
´ A K J 10 9 8 6 3 for West to ruff, you win the
™ 52 heart return in hand, draw
© Void trumps ending in dummy, and
® AQ6 ruff a club, setting up the fifth
club for a heart discard.
The Lords won the match
The following day was the easily, giving them a two-
annual Lords v Commons match lead in the overall
match. I am sure that you are standings. Let us hope the 24-27December
thinking that it is hardly three election sees some new DerekMonk
months since the last one let bridge-playing MPs. £395
alone a year – true, but the For Mothering Sunday
last one was in 2009, and this weekend, we went away with 27-29December
is 2010. Ben, Gemma and grandson ChrisBarrable
This time it was at the Hayden deep into the depths
Portland Club, who provided of Essex (got hopelessly lost &AnnPearson
a splendid lunch. The London trying to find it). We played £199
Export Company generously games, cooked in, went for
sponsored the match, for walks. Actually, I revisited 29Dec–1Jan
which we are all grateful. Paul geocaching. If you have not ChrisBarrable
Bowyer, as usual, supplied the discovered this and need to &AnnPearson
analysis. This was a neat little find ways to amuse kids of all
deal that I am afraid found all ages (well, adults too), let me £355
the declarers wanting: enlighten you. There is a
worldwide ‘treasure hunt’
activity. If you go to TheOldeBarn
North www.geocaching.com you Marston,Lincs
´ K 10 9 5 can read all about it. In short, NG322HT
™ 10 3 you need some sort of
© AK handheld GPS system (we
® 97643 used my i-phone) and then
West East you can join in. You input an
´ 7 ´ 643 address or postcode and it
™ 876542 ™ KQJ will give you the nearest
© 10 8 5 3 2 © QJ6 geocaches, with their
® 2 ® A Q J 10 coordinates – sometimes
South straightforward, sometimes
´ AQJ82 with cryptic clues. Then you
™ A9 go and look for ‘it’. ‘It’ is 24-27December
© 974 usually just a plastic box
® K85 containing a few cheap bits AlisonNicolson
and pieces. This weekend it £395
guided us to a nice walk of
West North East South about four miles to the ruined
Pass Pass 1® 1´ Tilty Abbey where we did ( 01483 489961
Pass 4´ All Pass indeed find the ‘treasure’. e-mail: jessica@mrbridge.co.uk
Much more interesting than a
website: www.holidaybridge.com
West leads the two of clubs, normal walk. ■
Page 43

Monday
I take the kids to school and
then go to the gym. When I
first went back there shortly
after the Gambian holiday, I
found it had gone bankrupt so
I had to find a new one –
actually easier for me to get
to than the previous one.
Workwise, it is Malta,
Serbia and Uruguay.
In the evening, there is a
Berks & Bucks League
match, New Amersham A v
New Amersham B so lots of
honour at stake.
Funny how sometimes you
pick up a bridge hand and
look at it with great
enthusiasm but it seems to get
worse every time someone
makes a bid. Other times it
just keeps getting better. At
game all, you pick up:
´ 98
™ 83
© J 10 8 3
® J 10 6 5 3
Not a very inspiring
collection – partner opens
1™. Still not much interest.
RHO overcalls 2®. Ah, now
that is more interesting. Pass-
Pass-Double, All Pass. Partner
started with a 4-4-4-1 22-
count including the singleton
®Q. Even though RHO holds
quite a sound overcall (´J 6 4
Seven Days
by Sally Brock
™A 10 ©7 5 ®A K 9 8 4 2),
you collect 800. Is it a good
board? No, lose 15 IMPs. At
both the tables where our
team held the clubs partner’s
hand opened at the two level,
so the overcall made was 3®,
and that went for 1100. At the
final table, after a two-level
opening, the sober citizen
passed so our side collected
a modest +130 in 4© making.
A little later on I hold a
slightly better hand:
´ Huge Waitrose shop arrives at
94
™ KQ92
© 10 8 4
® 9532
It is love all this time and I
hear 3™ on my right. Pass;
Pass, Double, All Pass.
Partner has ‘only’ a 20-count
this time, so it is just 500 with
no game making for our side.
We gain 11, but I am too busy
dashing to the bar before last
orders to find out what every-
one else did on the board!
Tuesday
This is looking a fairly quiet
week workwise, which is
good because I have a bridge
party on Saturday – 20
people for dinner and a four-
table individual (so four
people get to sit out and fill
up glasses or generally
Page 44
socialise at all times). I
sometimes think the main
reason for entertaining is to
force me to tidy the house! I
spent most of the weekend
sorting and tidying. Today I
have some work to do early
because Malta is due at the
printers. Only then, I go off to
the post office, charity shop
and to buy light bulbs. Then
home for an online teaching
session, followed by a visit to
the tip with about ten black
bin liners full of rubbish.
Wednesday
On the way to school, a man
in a car at the roundabout
gesticulates to tell me that I
have a flat tyre: just what I
need! Take Briony to school
and then to Central Tyres,
which as luck would have it
is very close to the gym. So I
can leave them to sort out the
car (needs two new tyres)
while I do my workout.
Later catch a 1.30pm train
to London. First, I meet with
Gad Chadha for a coffee. Gad
is helping me work out the
movement for Saturday’s
party (i.e. actually working it
out for me!).
Then a few hours of rubber
bridge – winning, which
makes a change recently. In
the middle of the session,
Briony rings to tell me that
the oven does not work.
Help! We have twenty people
for dinner with no oven. At
least I know a good Chinese
takeaway.
Thursday
Luckily, I know a friendly
local electrical fixing guy. So
ring him at 7.30am to leave
message explaining panic
and non-working oven. He
rings back at 8.30, and by
noon is here with spare part
in hand; by 12.30, the oven is
working again: fantastic!
2.30 and, at 5, I have my
regular counselling session –
at last, I am beginning to
appreciate the luxury of
having someone to talk to
who is unfailingly on my
side!
Friday
Start the day by going to the
gym (halo firmly in place).
Then it is just lots of cooking.
I had been putting off the
Waitrose shop until it got
sufficiently close to the
weekend for me to get stuff
for the party. That meant the
cupboard was bare in the
house so we have been
having takeaways.
Yesterday brought food for
general use too, so Briony
cooks us all duck à l’orange
for dinner, and very good it is
too.
 Sally’s Blog continued
Saturday
Up early to get Briony to
football. The main jobs left to
do today are making the
puds. While Briony is at
football, I make a start, then a
quick dash to the
supermarket for a couple of
things I have forgotten and
pick Briony up. Although her
team lost 5-2, she scored an
excellent goal so is feeling
pleased with herself.
Then it’s serial tart making,
interspersed with getting
chairs from the shed (Toby
helps with this), putting up
tables, checking the bridge
movement, putting out
glasses/cutlery/crockery etc.
The idea is that people
arrive and have a drink and
finger-food nibbles. Then we
start the bridge. After two
sets, we have our main
course, then more bridge with
the tarts and cheese put out
for people to nibble as and
when they like.
Briony is fantastically
helpful all day (we did
negotiate a fee). Scoring is
cross-IMPing which is quite
complicated to do, and needs
careful checking. After the
first set, she has difficulty
making it all balance but by
the end she gets the hang of it
and it balances first time. And
the winner is … me! (What
do you think I paid her for?)
It is quite miraculous, really,
that I won since the bridge
passed by in a bit of a haze
with my mind generally on
what I needed to do next. My
partners must all have played
very well.
Helen Schapiro does well
with this. She holds:
´ K
™ K Q J 10 9 6
© J983
® AK
In fourth seat, she opens 1™,
and I respond 1´. What do
you bid? She chooses 2NT,
which I raise to 3NT, holding:
´
™
10 9 8 4
A5
© 10 7 4
® Q632
In practice, West, who holds
a 5-3-2-3 distribution with
very poor spades, leads a
club. ‘Kucklimu’ unblocks
the clubs, crosses to the ™A,
cashes the ®Q and makes the
first nine tricks.
Of course, they can beat
3NT but it is difficult for
them. 4™ has four top losers,
which were much easier to
take (the lead of a diamond
from ©A-x being much easier
to find against 4™ than 3NT).
When they arrived, all
guests, as instructed, brought
a wrapped gift. The price
guide is no more than a
tenner, and some brought
proper prizes while we asked
others to bring jokey things
for booby prizes. This time
they all get a bit muddled up.
Many people leave their
prizes behind – whether
intentionally or by accident I
do not know. We have
acquired a self-help book, a
very posh box of toiletries, a
tin of comfit de canard and
two lots of chocolate bosoms!
Briony has done all the
washing up so we can go to
bed knowing that there is not
too much mess to face in the
morning.
Sunday
We sleep in late. Finish the
clearing up – mainly putting
away the tables and washing
up glasses. Then it is back to
Serbia and Uruguay. ■ counting as five points and a
Contact Sally at
sally@sallybrock.com
Page 45
Better Balanced Bidding, The Banzai Method
by David Jackson & Ron Klinger
Weidenfeld & Nicolson ISBN 978-0-297-85998-7 £12.99
Available from Chess & Bridge ( 020 7388 2404
reviewed by David Hugett
M ost bridge books these
days are variations on
well-known themes and often
seem stale in consequence.
Here we have something new
and rather sensational in that it
casts doubt about long-used
concepts in hand evaluation,
namely the Milton Work point
count. In fact, most players
have taken the 4-3-2-1 system
for granted without any real
means of justification and it can
be seen to be flawed.
Look at the following hands:
´ A965 ´ K2
™ A64 N ™ K 10 7 2
© K74
W
S
E
© A53
® A85 ® 10 7 4 2
Whatever system you play and
whatever the no-trump range
you use, most players will bid
to 3NT, which is a contract
with little chance of success.
One or two down would be
quite normal and would pass
without comment. However
consider the following hands:
´ Q J 10 6 ´ K2
™ QJ3 N ™ K 10 7 2
W E
© Q J 10 S © A53
® KJ6 ® 10 7 4 2
Now 1NT would be the norm
with the likely outcome of
making two or even three
overtricks, and yet the second
hand on the left has two points
fewer than the first hand!
David Jackson – nicknamed
Banzai – has propounded the
following rather earth shatter-
ing proposal, namely that with
balanced hands the old method
of evaluation should be
discarded and a new one take
its place. Here we count on a
5-4-3-2-1 basis, with an ace
ten counting as one point. So
there are 60 points in the pack,
not 40, but the percentage of
points needed to reach game
(62.5%) is obviously the same
– 25 points in old money but 37
in the new. Take a further look
at the two hands. In the first,
there is a combined holding of
34 Banzai points – not enough
for game – while in the second
there is a combined holding of
38, which is – amazing.
The conclusion the authors
come to is that whilst most
players, even very experienced
ones at that, upgrade hands that
are full of aces and kings they
should in fact be doing the very
opposite and thinking more
highly of hands redolent with
queens and jacks and tens.
Indeed, as the authors point
out, if you take nothing else
away from this book but that,
you will be a better player.
I liked this book enormously
because it is so revolutionary
but at the same time so easy to
read and understand. One has
to remember that this new idea
is essentially for balanced
hands. Clearly if you are
playing in suit contracts, you
would prefer to have an ace
opposite your singleton rather
than a queen and a jack.
The second half of this book
gives a zillion examples of
hands taken from play at the
highest level, comparing what
happened when Milton was
used to what might have
happened using Banzai. It is
very thought provoking and I
have to confess that when
playing in some match the
other day I should have
downgraded my 19 count but in
the last instant chickened out.
That was a mistake.
To the mathematically
inclined, there is an appendix at
the end giving the statistical
reasoning behind the new
evaluation based on the
potential trick taking of certain
card combinations and this
appealed to me too. Therefore,
if you want some excitement in
your bridge life, become a
convert, or at the very least buy
this book and make up your
own mind.
 ANSWERS TO THE BIDDING QUIZ ON
PAGE 3 by BERNARD MAGEE
is weak and you are a long way short of be on, but which? Likely options are 3NT and
1. Dealer East. Love All. strength; remember that over a 1-level 4™, but 5® and 5© might be better. To ensure
´ A 10 7 6 ´ KQ2 response you rebid just 1NT with 15-17 points. partner bids again you make a jump bid; the
™ K 10 7 3 N ™ AJ2 Just because South has bid 2™ does not bid to get across your shape is 3©. Having bid
W E
© Q7 S © A4 mean you can still rebid in no-trumps. North- hearts first, 3© implies at least four diamonds
® KQ2 ® A9876 South have bid well to disrupt your auction and five hearts; it will often let partner pick the
and you have to leave them to it. In any case, best contract.
partner – who is surely short in hearts – has
In practice, East will be worried about his
West North East South another bid. You will let him play in 2´ if he
weak spades and could use a 3´ bid (the
1® Pass bids it; this will probably go off, but will score
fourth suit) to ask for help there; the auction
1™ Pass 2NT Pass better than letting 2™ make.
might go: 1®-1™-1NT-3©-3´*-4®-5®. You, as
?
West, would show your belated club support
and then East would either try 4™ or go for
6NT. To find the correct answer you need to 3. Dealer West. Love All.
5®. 5® is the safe option whilst 4™ would be
know how strong the jump 2NT rebid is: in old- ´ AK872 ´ 5
an attempt to get a few more points for the
fashioned Acol, it showed 17-18; modern Acol ™ AQ42 N ™ 97
W E higher-scoring game. 5® is a great contract,
uses it to show 18-19. The West hand is very © 76 S © KJ82
whilst 4™ needs quite a bit of luck.
strong: it has a king-queen combination, tens ® 43 ® Q98652
helping in the four-card suits and, perhaps
most importantly, the club support – this will
5. Dealer South. Love All.
make club tricks easy to come by if partner West North East South
´ 96 ´ 10 3 2
has a five-card club suit. I would evaluate this 1´ Dble Pass 2© N
™ AK32 W E
™ QJ85
as worth close to fifteen points, which makes ?
© A K Q 10 8 7 S © 96
a slam favourite except when facing a weak
® 8 ® J962
17-count. You have no real fit in a suit or great Pass. When you picked up this hand, you
weakness anywhere, so no-trumps will be the were happy because whenever your four-
final denomination. Perhaps if you play a 17-18 card suit is neatly one rank below the five-
West North East South
rebid, you might make an invitational jump to card suit it makes the bidding plan easy: open
3®
4NT (not Blackwood, but quantitative). 1´ and plan to rebid 2™. However, things
?
However, since it is about time that we all have changed big time: firstly, partner has not
started playing the more modern style of responded; secondly, North’s double
Double. Holding 16 points and a great
rebids (1NT rebid = 15-17 and 2NT rebid = 18- suggests that he likes hearts himself (his
diamond suit, you must do something. After
19), the answer I give is a jump to slam. double was for take-out). You are quite weak
all, if diamonds divide evenly, you might
and partner has passed, so you should stay
manage eight tricks just with your own hand.
out of the auction. Had you rebid 2™ you
Pre-empts are not easy to deal with; the best
2. Dealer West. Love All. might have found yourself playing in 2™
way to think what to do when they pre-empt is
´ 4 ´ AJ8763 doubled!
to give your partner seven or eight points and
™ K732 N ™ 5
W E On this type of deal, probably neither side is see whether you might reach a making
© AQ2 S © 764
likely to make a contract, so you aim to contract. No doubt you can make one here,
® AQ765 ® 982
defend: 2© will probably drift one or two off. but which?

Depending on what partner holds, you might

West North East South belong in diamonds, hearts or no-trumps – the
4. Dealer East. Love All.
1® 1™ 1´ 2™ solution is to ask your partner. Make a take-out
´ 6 ´ J92
? double – if partner has a club stopper and a
™ A 10 9 3 2 N ™ J5
W E few points (ideally 10+) he might try 3NT. Just
© KJ87 S © AQ6
Pass. Competitive auctions can be hard to as important, if he holds four hearts, as here,
® Q72 ® AKJ86
judge, but try to avoid aggressive bidding with he can bid 3™, which you can raise to put you
misfitting hands. You do have fifteen points in the best game. Finally, you might ask what
but, with a singleton in your partner’s suit and you bid if he calls spades – you just have to try
West North East South
the ™K that could be useless, your hand is 4© (or 5© over 4´) – with five spades and four
1® Pass
worth little more than a minimum opening. hearts, he might then bid 4™ over 4©.
1™ Pass 1NT Pass
Pass is often the hardest call to make, but so
? Here, 4™ should make, even though your
often the right one: with no particularly good
partner holds only four points – your good
fit, you do best to keep out of the auction.
3©. The 1NT rebid shows 15-17 points (15-16 in shape and strong diamond suit make up for
2NT would be a poor bid: your heart stopper old-fashioned Acol); either way, game should his lack of values. ■

Page 46
BERNARD MAGEE’S INTERACTIVE TUTORIALS
ACOL MORE DECLARER ADVANCED DEFENCE
BIDDING (ADVANCED) PLAY DECLARER l Lead vs
l Opening Bids ACOL BIDDING l Suit PLAY Notrump
and Responses l Basics Establishment l Making Contracts
£74
l Slams and l Advanced in No-trumps Overtricks l Lead vs
Strong Openings Basics l Suit in No-trumps Suit Contracts
l Support for l Weak Twos Establishment in l Making £79 l Partner of
Partner l Strong Suits Overtricks Leader vs
l Pre-empting Hands £94 l Hold-ups in Suit Contracts Notrump
l Overcalls l Defence l Ruffing for Extra l Endplays Contracts
l No-trump to Weak Twos Tricks l Avoidance l Partner of
Openings l Defence l Entries l Wrong Contract Leader vs Suit
and Responses to 1NT in No-trumps l Simple Squeezes Contracts
l Opener’s and l Doubles l Delaying l Counting the l Count Signals
Responder’s l Two-suited Drawing Trumps Hand l Attitude Signals
Rebids Overcalls l Using the Lead l Trump l Discarding
l Minors and l Defences to l Trump Control Reductions & l Defensive Plan
Misfits Coups
£64 Other Systems l Endplays & l Stopping
l Doubles l Misfits and Avoidance l Playing Doubled Declarer
l Competitive Distributional l Using the £74 Contracts l Counting the
Auctions Hands Bidding l Safety Plays Hand

Q PLUS 9.1
System Requirements: Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7, 8mb RAM, CD-ROM

Still the very best Acol-

playing Software available

l Friendly Interface
Happy BRIDGE reader, Gill Smith writes:
l Hint and Help Buttons
l Easy Installation SECOND I love my QPlus Bridge. As this on arriving home,
a learner, I always have a usually cross with myself,
l
l
Manual
Rubber, Duplicate
HAND faithful partner whenever after a duplicate session. My
I want one. She is always faithful friend gives me a
and Teams Scoring OFFER available (late at night too)
and she bids and plays
sensible perspective on the
matter. When playing
l Instant results
perfectly. She has never Chicago or rubber at home,
playing in teams mode I have some copies kicked me under the table, at the end of the bidding
l 2,500 pre-played rolled her eyes or taken a and playing a difficult hand,
of QPLus 8.8 that sharp intake of breath. If I I have opened up my laptop
hands for teams
l 2,000 pre-played hands I have accepted in bid or play badly she is on and switched on QPlus.
hand with sound advice yet With fellow learners, I have
for match-pointed pairs part exchange for she doesn’t take offence if I looked at hands and seen
l Check your pairs the latest version. ignore it. how our electronic friend
percentage and ranking would have bid and played.
There is also a use which I
We still have lots to learn.
l Systems include: Excellent value didn’t realise when I
Acol, including £84 bought the CD. It is the I bracket my QPlus disc to-
at £54. facility to feed in the real gether with the dishwasher
Bernard Magee’s
hands that we deal, and see – an essential luxury that I
system, Standard how it would have bid and would find very difficult to
American or create played them. I have done live without.
your own.

Make your cheque payable to and send to: Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH

( 01483 489961 www.mrbridge.co.uk/mrbridge-shop Fax 01483 797302

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Our voyage
voyage then takes yyou Gibraltar,, y
ou through the Strait of Gibraltar you’ll
ou’ll relish the views of Africa from the
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entirely separate section, there will be a Mr Bridge team member improvers
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everyone
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eryone is able to enjoy all the ports of call. There is a £30 per bridge player supplement for
of 8 days Departing
those wishing to join in with the bridge programme. The programme is fully optional and y you
ou may September 6, 2010
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ares shown are per person based on two people sharing lowest twin-bedded inside/outside cabin categorcategoryy cur
currently
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