BRIDGE

Number One Hundred and Forty

Bernard Magee’s Acol Bidding Quiz

You are West in the auctions below, playing ‘Standard Acol’ with a weak no-trump (12-14 points) and 4-card majors.
August 2014

1. Dealer West. Game All. 4. Dealer South. Love All. 7. Dealer West. Game All. 10. Dealer East. Love All.
♠ A 10 8 4 ♠ A J 2 ♠ J 9 8 7 4 ♠ 3
♥ 7 6 N ♥ K Q 6 5 N ♥ A K 3 N ♥ J 8 7 6 5 4 N
W E W E W E W E
♦ A 7 6 ♦ A K 5 ♦ 2 ♦ 8 7 6
S S S S
♣ A 10 9 2 ♣ J 10 4 ♣ A J 4 3 ♣ 9 3 2

West North East South West North East South West North East South West North East South
? 3♠ 1♠ Pass 2♦ Pass 2♣ 2♠
? ? ?

2. Dealer South. Love All. 5. Dealer East. Love All. 8. Dealer East. Love All. 11. Dealer East. Love All.
♠ A K 8 2 ♠ A J 9 8 ♠ J 9 8 7 ♠ K Q 4
♥ 9 7 5 N ♥ 8 5 3 N ♥ 6 5 N ♥ 8 7 6 N

♦ A K 4 2 W E ♦ 7 6 W E ♦ 4 3 2 W E ♦ A 9 8 7 W E
S S S S
♣ 6 5 ♣ K Q J 4 ♣ 10 8 7 6 ♣ 5 4 3

West North East South West North East South West North East South West North East South
Pass 1♠ Pass 1♥ 1♠ 1♥ Pass
1NT Pass 2♦* Pass 3♠ Pass 4♣ Pass Pass 2♠ Dbl Pass 1NT Pass 2NT Pass
2♥* Pass 2NT Pass ? ? ?
? *Transfer to hearts

3. Dealer West. N/S Game. 6. Dealer West. Love All. 9. Dealer North. Love All. 12. Dealer West. N/S Game.

♠ 7 6 ♠ 6 5 ♠ 7 6
♠ 8 4 3
♥ A K 8 4 2 N ♥ A J 8 3 2 N ♥ J 8 N ♥ 7 6 N
W E W E W E W E
♦ A K 3 ♦ K 6 ♦ A 8 7 6 5 4 ♦ 7
S S S S
♣ 8 7 2 ♣ A 6 4 2 ♣ Q 3 2 ♣ K Q J 6 5 4 3

West North East South West North East South West North East South West North East South
1♥ Dbl Redbl Pass 1♥ Pass 1♠ Pass 1♥ 1♠ Pass 3♣ 3♥ 4♣ 4♥
Pass 1♠ Dbl Pass 2♣ Pass 2♦* Pass ? ?
? ? *Fourth suit forcing

Answers on page 6 Answers on page 9 Answers on page 11 Answers on page 13

 Join Mr & Mrs Bridge on an unforgettable voyage.
Thailand
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Angkor Wat
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V OYAGES TO A NTIQUITY
10093

ABTA No.Y2206
 FEATURES 4 Discover Japan & China

BRIDGE
aboard Minerva
1 Bidding Quiz
by Bernard Magee 6 Better Hand Evaluation
RUBBER /
5 Mr Bridge 7 Mail Order Form CHICAGO
Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Names and Addresses
Surrey GU21 2TH
6 Bidding Quiz Answers 2014
(1-3) by Bernard Magee 8 Bridge Event
( 01483 489961 Booking Form
9 Bidding Quiz Answers
bridge@mrbridge.co.uk (4-6) by Bernard Magee 8 Bridge Events with
www.mrbridge.co.uk Bernard Magee
11 Bidding Quiz Answers
shop: www.mrbridge.co.uk/ (7-9) by Bernard Magee 9 Bridge Events at
mrbridge-shop Elstead Hotel
11 Declarer Play Quiz
by David Huggett 10 QPlus 11
Publsher and
Managing Editor 13 Bidding Quiz Answers 10 We Are Survivors
Mr Bridge (10-12) by Bernard Magee Teatowel

Associate Editor and 14 Nazir in the Spotlight 12 Bernard Magee’s The Olde Barn
Bridge Consultant by David Bird Tutorial Software
Marston,
Bernard Magee 17 Julian Pottage 13 Tunisia with Mr Bridge
bernardmagee Lincs NG32 2HT
Answers Your Questions 16 Denham Grove
@mrbridge.co.uk Filming Weekend 2015
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Cartoons & Illustrations by David Huggett 18 Genesis Choice
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27 Mary’s Eighth Lesson
catrina@mrbridge.co.uk
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Tony Gordon by Julian Pottage 23 Mr Bridge 29-31 August
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ruth@mrbridge.co.uk with Mr Bridge Diana Holland
33 August 2014
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Tony & Jan Richards 34 David Stevenson with Voyages to Antiquity
Richard Wheen Answers Your Questions
Hugh Williams 26 Bridge Events at
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Office Manager by Richard Wheen 26 Bridge Events at
Rachel Everett
39 Readers’ Letters Blunsdon House Hotel
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Elizabeth Bryan All correspondence should be addressed to Mr Bridge.
elizabeth@mrbridge.co.uk Please make sure that all letters and e-mails carry full Booking Form on page 8.
postal addresses and telephone numbers.

BRIDGE August 2014 Page 3

Discover Japan
& China
aboard Minerva
with Tony & Jan Richards

Stimulating, informative, relaxing, sociable - just some Japan and China Discovery
of the words passengers have used when describing the
Swan Hellenic experience. A cruise aboard Minerva is like 3 – 24 January 2015
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22 Days from £2,999pp suppl single
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t*
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 CAKE COUNT
While we were gathered
around an extended
kitchen table the other day,
we tried to count the
number of cakes that
Mrs Bridge has made for
celebrations of one kind or
another. The consensus
reckoned it must have
passed the 700 mark.
The occasion for celebration
this time was for the second
birthday of Zoe, grandchild
number 15. The cake was
adjudged the best ever or if
not the best ever, then
certainly in the top ten. It
just melted in the mouth. I
had a second helping, this
time drowned in double
cream. Yummie.
An extra cause for
celebration was the arrival
of number 16, Rosalind
Creasey, pictured above,
who had just weighed in at
8lb 15oz. Both mother and
Rose, as she will be known,
are doing well.
OBSESSIONS ET AL
When I wrote to you last
month, I told you about all
my news. New computers,
new operating software,
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 5
new telephone system,
new database management
software and new postage
machine. Well, it will all be
plugged in tomorrow and
by the time you receive this
letter, we should have
sorted out all the inevitable
teething troubles. However,
until I have worked my way
through them, there won’t
be a chance to talk to you
about much else, other than
to assure you I will carry on
much as before, working on
my latest project.
Mrs Bridge has her
enthusiasms: babies,
grandchildren, dogs,
ponies/horses, more or less
in that order. She calls
some of my projects
unreasonable obsessions.
Current state is that I am
just calming down about
lovely Aegean Odyssey
about which I still cannot
speak of too highly. Now I
am focused upon the
development of BRIDGE
into a stand alone monthly
subscription magazine, but
I will tell you more about
that next month.
Meanwhile, on the horizon,
another siren has just
appeared, the m.v. Minerva,
pictured above. I will have a
bridge team on board 365
days a year while she is at
sea, replacing m.v. Voyager
once she returns to
Portsmouth next spring.
There will be exclusive
deals and prices for my
readers, for the first of
which see the facing page.
WHAT NEXT
Bernard Magee in his extra
job as my Associate Editor,
will be investigating all the
schemes, plans and dreams
that I have in mind for your GOFFIES STAMPS
amusement and
entertainment. Indeed, he
will probably ask you to
write a regular column
yourself if you have a mind
so to do. Alternatively, you
may choose to use the
Readers’ Letters pages as When a new family baby is
one or two others already in the course of production,
do. Oh and send me a I put stamps aside to use
photograph of yourself as following its delivery.
my illustrator/cartoonist, I get these from Clive Goff
Marguerite Lihou, will and the selection he sends
need to get to work on you. to make up the first or
second class rate are really
BERNARD 2015 most amusing.
Following Twixmas and Remember, Clive Goff’s
New Year at Denham discounted stamp service is
Grove, Bernard starts the really worth a try.
year with the filming of
Value supplied in two
his fifth series of six films
stamps, combined to make
with a live audience at
up the 53p, 2nd class rate.
Denham Grove.
2nd class to you at 44p. 1st
At the end of February he class 62p, still only 50p to
hosts our annual fortnight you. Available in lots of
in Tunisia and March into 100. ( 0208 422 4906.
April sees him hosting a
large cruise party from
SO SORRY
India to Jordan. In May, he
flies to the lovely resort of
Rovinj for our second visit
to Croatia. June, July and
August see him on board
Aegean Odyssey (see the
dates on the back cover)
and all this interlaced with
weekend events where
possible. Then it is time to I needed one of these to
pull all the threads of plans remind me of the bits and
for the monthly magazine pieces in this column I have
together. Understandably, been unable to include, but
he will need to cut down on with the briefest of
his travels. So, if you enjoy mentions.
travelling with him or
attending his seminars,
GENESIS
make the most of it.
Travel Insurance page 18.
2015 DIARIES
CLEARANCES
For second-hand software,
etc. see the carrier sheet.
TUNISIA
Please see page 13.
All good wishes,
These are now in stock. Mr Bridge
 Answers to 
Bernard Magee’s  Evaluation
Bidding Quizzes 1-3
on the Cover
1. Dealer West. Game All.
♠ A 10 8 4
N
♥ 7 6
W E
♦ A 7 6 S heart contract, so your bid is 4♥.
♣ A 10 9 2
West North East South
? When you do not have a fit, you are
1NT.
This might seem an easy question,
but there are some players who are
circumspect when dealt three bare
aces. In fact, when vulnerable, it is
not unreasonable to consider a pass.
However, this hand is not bare – it has
two tens and a nine, which bolster both
of your long suits. The potential in your
two long suits should certainly persuade
you to open 1NT.
2. Dealer South. Love All.
♠ A K 8 2 ♠ Q J 10
N
♥ 9 7 5 ♥ K Q J 10 8
W E
♦ A K 4 2 S ♦ 9 8
♣ 6 5 ♣ J 4 2
West North East South
Pass
1NT Pass 2♦* Pass
2♥* Pass 2NT Pass
? for penalties. It might seem a very low
*Transfer to hearts
4♥.
When East makes a transfer bid, he is
showing five or more cards in the suit
irrespective of what he bids next. His next
bid completes the picture of his hand.
Here, he has shown five hearts and 11
points and the choice of final contract is
left up to you. Whatever you choose, East
Page 6 BRIDGE August 2014
is likely to pass.
With 14 HCP, you should certainly go for
game and with 3-card heart support and
a small doubleton, you should choose a
Remember the decision is yours: when
your partner describes his hand neatly, it
is up to you to finish the job.
3. Dealer West. N/S Game.
♠ 7 6 ♠ A Q J 5
♥ A K 8 4 2 N ♥ 9 7
W E
♦ A K 3 S ♦ 7 6 5
♣ 8 7 2 ♣ A 9 4 3
West North East South
1♥ Dbl Redbl Pass
Pass 1♠ Dbl Pass
?
Pass.
An interesting auction so far. You opened
1♥, which was doubled by North and
then redoubled by your partner. This call
shows that your partner is strong and
that your side has the majority of points.
It does not show heart support and it
suggests that the opposition might be out
of their depth and that doubling might be
profitable.
You pass the redouble, but then North
bids 1♠ which your partner doubles.
After a strong redouble, all doubles are
level to be doubling at, but if your partner ideas in this book can be used by an
has good spades and your side has the
majority of the points, then it should be
profitable. At the prevailing vulnerability, is going to help anyone you partner –
two off would be better than a game
score.
North is not going to have much fun
in any contract. Five tricks will be his
maximum, but he might not manage
that. ■
Better Hand
Bernard Magee
Introduction
Better Hand Evaluation is aimed at
helping readers to add greater accura-
cy to their bidding. It deals with auc-
tions 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.
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 assess­ment is to use the
Losing Trick Count; this is an impor-
tant 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
individual. For example, evaluating
your hand to be worth an extra point
as long as you get it right.
£14 including UK postage
See Mail Order Form
on page 7.
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BRIDGE August 2014 Page 7

 ✄
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✄

Page 8 BRIDGE August 2014

 Answers to Bernard Magee’s
Bidding Quizzes 4-6 on the Cover
4. Dealer South. Love All.
♠ A J 2 ♠ 6
♥ K Q 6 5 N ♥ A 9 2
W E
♦ A K 5 S ♦ J 9 6 4
♣ J 10 4 ♣ Q 8 6 5 3
West North East South
3♠
? bidding 4♣, East has the opportunity
3NT. With a very strong hand, you need
to take some action and, with no long
suit, you really have only two choices:
3NT or double. With a good spade stop,
you should go for 3NT. The problem with
doubling is that it will only really work if
partner has four hearts, otherwise he will
bid a minor at the four level and you may
well end up in no-man’s-land.
Pre-empts are designed to make your
life difficult and they certainly achieve
their aim on this hand. Generally, when
planning a bid over a pre-empt, you are
allowed to hope your partner has 7 or
8 sprinkled points in his hand. With 18
in your own hand and a great spade
holding you should go for the nine trick
game. 3NT might well outscore 4♥ even
if you do have a heart fit because your
spades might be worth an extra trick in
no-trumps.
Of course, sometimes you will bid
3NT and North will have most of the
remaining points and he will double you:
that is how it goes when there is a pre-
emptive bid.
5. Dealer East. Love All.
♠ A J 9 8 ♠ K Q 7 6 5
♥ 8 5 3 N ♥ J 6 4
W E
♦ 7 6 S ♦ A K Q
♣ K Q J 4 ♣ A 7
West North East South
1♠ Pass
3♠ Pass 4♣ Pass
?
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 9
4♠. Unless agreed, 4♣ is not Gerber. It
should be a slam try, with control in clubs
– a cue bid. Your partner wants you to
show anything you have in diamonds or
hearts. With a big fat zero in both suits,
you should simply rebid 4♠ suggesting
that slam is beyond you.
East has a good hand which needs
a little help from you: a singleton heart
would have been delightful. By cue
to explore for slam whilst keeping the
bidding low. Knowing the number of aces
will not help East here – he needs to know
whether your side has a heart control first.
6. Dealer West. Love All.
♠ 6 5 ♠ A K 9 8 2
♥ A J 8 3 2 N ♥ K 4
W E
♦ K 6 S ♦ 8 4 2
♣ A 6 4 2 ♣ K Q J
West North East South
1♥ Pass 1♠ Pass
2♣ Pass 2♦* Pass
? *Fourth suit forcing
Elstead Hotel
Bournemouth BH1 3QP
Full Board – No Single Supplement
Booking Form on page 8.
2NT. Fourth suit forcing is a convention
which allows a player to keep the bidding
open and hopefully learn more from his
partner to help make the right decision
as to the final contract. You have shown
five hearts and four clubs in the auction
so far, so is there anything else you can
tell your partner?
One of the most important things to
bear in mind when responding to fourth
suit forcing is that your partner will often
want to play in no-trumps, so if you have
a stop, you should show it.
K-x is a stop, believe it or not. If you bid
no-trumps, then the lead will be coming
up to you and the ♦K will be safe. You
should bid 2NT and your partner will
raise to 3NT.
East had a very strong hand, but did
not want to bid no-trumps because of
his weak diamond holding. In fact, if he
does bid 3NT, it may well be defeated
because the opponents may lead a
diamond through your king.
Instead, East used the fourth suit
forcing to ascertain whether you held a
diamond stop and whether 3NT was a
possibility. ■
10-12 October £199
Just Duplicate – Jo Walch
31 October – 2 November £199
Just Duplicate Val Passmore
14-16 November £199
Just Duplicate – Mary Stebbing
21-23 November £245
Doubles – Bernard Magee
 Q PLUS 11
We Are Survivors
(For those born Before 1940 . . .)
We were born before television, before
penicillin, polio shots, frozen foods,
Xerox, contact lenses, videos and the pill.
We were before radar, credit cards, split
atoms, laser beams and ballpoint pens,
before dish-washers, tumble driers, electric
blankets, air conditioners, drip-dry clothes
Really user-friendly
. . . and before man walked on the moon.
We got married first and then lived bridge-playing software
together (how quaint can you be?). We
thought ‘fast food’ was what you ate
in Lent, a ‘Big Mac’ was an oversized FEATURES INCLUDE
raincoat and ‘crumpet’ we had for tea. We
existed before house husbands, computer
dating and sheltered accommodation was l Help button - explains the features for bidding
where you waited for a bus. and card play advice
We were before day care centres, group
homes and disposable nappies. We never l Displays on HD and large screens
heard of FM radio, tape decks, artificial
hearts, word processors, or young men l Comprehensive manual

£92
wearing earrings. For us ‘time sharing’
meant togetherness, a ‘chip’ was a piece l Minibridge option
of wood or fried potato, ‘hard­ware’ meant
nuts and bolts and ‘software’ wasn’t a l Save match function including
word. UK post and packing

Before 1940 ‘Made in Japan’ meant l Feed in your own deals

junk, the term ‘making out’ referred to
how you did in your exams, ‘stud’ was l 5,000 preplayed hands for teams
something that fastened a collar to a shirt
and ‘going all the way’ meant staying on l 4,000 preplayed hands for match-point pairs
a double-decker bus to the terminus. In our
day, cigarette smoking was ‘fashionable’, l Pre-programmed systems include Acol,
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mother’s lullaby, ‘Eldorado’ was an ice-
cream, a ‘gay person’ was the life and soul
of the party, while ‘aids’ just meant beauty
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We who were born before 1940 must be a QPLUS TRADE-IN OFFER
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in which the world has changed and the Return any QPLUS CD and booklet with a
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. . . BUT
Order with confidence.
By the grace of God . . .
we have survived!
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Page 10 BRIDGE August 2014

 Answers to 
DECLARER
Bernard Magee’s 
PLAY
Bidding Quizzes 7-9
QUIZ
on the Cover
by David Huggett
out in order to allow your side (Answers on page 21)
7. Dealer West. Game All. to compete for the deal. Al-


♠ J 9 8 7 4
♥ A K 3
W E
N
♠ Q 10
♥ 8 7 6 4
most always if they find a fit
at the two level, you should be Y ou are South as declarer playing teams or rubber bridge.
In each case, what is your play strategy?
♦ 2 S ♦ A J 9 8 6 aiming to outbid them in your
♣ A J 4 3 ♣ K 2 own fit because -50 will be a
great score, better than letting
1. ♠ A 3 3. ♠ K Q 9 2
them make their contract.
♥ K 7 5 ♥ Q 4
West North East South You must not pass 2♠ dou-
♦ 9 8 6 4 ♦ 7 6 4
1♠ Pass 2♦ Pass bled: your trumps are not
♣ K J 9 3 ♣ J 9 8 3
? good enough; instead, you
bid 3♣, your best suit other N
N
W E
2♠. Not a nice position to find than spades. 3♣ will probably S
W E
S
yourself in, but you do not re- drift one off for the golden
ally have any choice for your -50. North-South should be
♠ K 8 5 ♠ A 8 7 6 5
rebid. 2NT would show 15+, able to make 2♠ comfortably.
♥ A 6 4 ♥ A K 7
3♣ would show 16+ and 2♥
♦ A 2 ♦ A 5
would be a lie in a major. Your
♣ Q 10 8 7 5 ♣ A K Q
spades are poor, but you have
to rebid them. East will pass 9. Dealer North. Love All.
your 2♠ rebid and it turns out ♠ 7 6 N ♠ A K 9 5 4
W E You are declarer in 3NT You are declarer in 7♠ and
to be an OK spot. Since your ♥ J 8 S ♥ A 7 6
and West leads the ♦Q. West leads the ♥J. How do
partner has bid at the two ♦ A 8 7 6 5 4 ♦ 3
East follows with the ♦3. you plan the play?
level, he will rarely pass 2♠. ♣ Q 3 2 ♣ 9 8 7 6
How do you plan the play?
With less support he might
well have bid 2NT to suggest
a better final contract. West North East South
1♥ 1♠ Pass
2. ♠ 6 5 4 2 4. ♠ A 7 3
?
♥ Q 9 ♥ Q J 7 5
♦ A Q 10 9 6 ♦ K 6 3
8. Dealer East. Love All. Pass. Your partner has
♣ K 3 ♣ K J 2
♠ J 9 8 7 ♠ 2 made a simple 1♠ overcall.
♥ 6 5 N ♥ A K 8 7 4 The situation is not the same N
W E
N
W E
♦ 4 3 2 S ♦ Q 8 5 as responding to an open- S
W E
S
♣ 10 8 7 6 ♣ A K 4 3 ing bid, when you should
try to keep the bidding open
♠ A K ♠ K 8
with 6+ points because your
♥ K J 10 7 ♥ A K 9 8 2
West North East South partner might be very strong.
♦ J 8 2 ♦ A 7 2
1♥ 1♠ Here, if East was extremely
♣ A 8 7 2 ♣ A 10 3
Pass 2♠ Dbl Pass strong, he would have started
? his auction by doubling, forc-
ing us to respond.
You are declarer in 3NT You are declarer in 6♥ and
3♣. What does partner’s With a weak hand, you
and West leads the ♠Q. West leads the ♠5. How do
double mean? should pass partner’s over-
How do you plan the play? you plan the play? (Trumps
When your opponents find call: no great support and
are 2-2.)
a fit early in an auction, you no reason to show your own
should play doubles for take- suit. ■

BRIDGE August 2014 Page 11

 BERNARD MAGEE’S
INTERACTIVE TUTORIALS
BEGIN BRIDGE ACOL ADVANCED DECLARER
ACOL VERSION BIDDING ACOL BIDDING PLAY
l Card Play Technique l Basics
l Opening Bids and l Suit Establishment
l Planning Card Play Responses in No-trumps
l Advanced
l Bidding Balanced Basics
l Slams and Strong l Suit Establishment
Hands Openings in Suits
l Weak Twos
l Bidding Suits
l Support for Partner l Hold-ups
l Responding to a Suit l Strong Hands
l Pre-empting l Ruffing for
l Supporting Partner l Defence
Extra Tricks
l Responding to 1NT l Overcalls to Weak Twos
£66 l Entries in
l Stayman l No-trump l Defence to 1NT
No-trumps £76
l Strong Two Opening Openings
l Doubles
and Response and Responses l Delaying

l Overcalls l Opener’s and

l Two-suited £96 Drawing Trumps

l Doubles £66 Responder’s Rebids

Overcalls
l Using the Lead
l Defences to
l Pre-empting l Minors and Misfits l Trump Control
Other Systems
l Defence against No l Doubles l Endplays &
Trump Contracts l Misfits and
Avoidance
l Competitive Distributional
l Defence against Suit
Auctions Hands l Using the Bidding
Contracts

ADVANCED DEFENCE FIVE-CARD BETTER

DECLARER PLAY MAJORS & BRIDGE
l Lead vs Strong No-Trump
l Making Overtricks No-trump Contracts l Ruffing for
in No-trumps l Opening Bids Extra Tricks
l Lead vs & Responses
l Making Overtricks Suit Contracts
in Suit Contracts l No-Trump l Doubling and
l Partner of Leader Defence
Openings
l Endplays vs No-trump Against
Contracts l Support £89 Doubled
£69
l Avoidance
for Partner Contracts
l Partner of Leader
l Wrong £81 vs Suit Contracts l Slams
Contract
& Strong Openings l Play and Defence
l Count
l Simple of 1NT Contracts
Signals l Rebids
Squeezes
l Counting
l Attitude £76 l Minors l Finding and
Signals & Misfits Bidding Slams
the Hand
l Discarding l Pre-empting
l Trump Reductions
& Coups l Doubles l Making the
l Defensive Plan
Most of High Cards
l Playing Doubled l Stopping Declarer l Overcalls
Contracts
l Counting l Competitive l Competitive
l Safety Plays the Hand Auctions Auctions

Make your cheque payable to Mr Bridge and send to: Mr Bridge , Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH
( 01483 489961 www.mrbridge.co.uk/mrbridge-shop
System Requirements: Windows XP, Vista, 7 or 8, 8mb RAM, CD-ROM
 Answers to Bernard Magee’s  Mr Bridge
Bidding Quizzes 10-12
on the Cover
10. Dealer East. Love All.
♠ 3 ♠ A 5 4
N
♥ J 8 7 6 5 4 ♥ A K 2
W E
♦ 8 7 6 S ♦ A 9 3
♣ 9 3 2 ♣ A K Q 6
West North East South
2♣ 2♠
? responded 2♥ to 1♥, but with such a flat
Pass. Your partner opens 2♣, your
strongest opening bid, and you are just
about to respond 2♦ (negative) when
you notice South’s 2♠ overcall. Although
it disrupts your thoughts, it should not
disrupt your bidding: you must show how
weak you are and to do that you pass.
The only reason you normally respond
2♦ (negative) is to keep the bidding open
for your very strong partner, but now
that South has bid, your partner can
bid again so you are off the hook. It is
important not to bid 3♥ because, if you
do, your partner might get over-excited.
Instead, you pass first and will show your
hearts later, allowing you to finish in 4♥
rather than 6♥.
When an opponent overcalls a strong
opening, then passing denies strength.
11. Dealer East. Love All.
♠ K Q 4 ♠ J 6 5
N per person per night or a superior garden view room
♥ 8 7 6
W E
♥ A K 4 3 2
♦ A 9 8 7 S ♦ K Q 5
♣ 5 4 3 ♣ A 2
West North East South
1♥ Pass
1NT Pass 2NT Pass
? stead of +500. Just because your partner
3♥. Your partner’s 2NT bid is inviting you
to game. You have shown 6-9 points and
your partner thinks that game will be on
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 13
ALL
INCLUSIVE
AT THE
ROYAL KENZ
TUNISIA
if you are in the upper range: 8-9 points.
2014/2015
Therefore, with 9 points, you should bid
game, but you should make sure you
give your partner all the options: with
three hearts in your hand, you should tell
him and leave the choice to him.
East is very glad to hear 3♥ and raises
to game. East cannot rebid his hearts over
your 1NT because that would promise six
hearts. Some players might even have
hand, I prefer the 1NT response, but I like
the 3♥ bid on the way to game, giving
partner the final say. As you can see,
3NT will likely go down on a club lead,
whilst 4♥ is a much better contract.
Two-week
12. Dealer West. N/S Game. All-Inclusive
♠ 8 4 3
N
♠ 9 7 5 2 Duplicate Bridge
♥ 7 6 W E ♥ Q J 2
Holidays
♦ 7 S ♦ A K 8 4
♣ K Q J 6 5 4 3 ♣ A 7
2-16 November 2014 £899*
Golf available
West North East South Tony and Jan Richards
3♣ 3♥ 4♣ 4♥
? 1-15 March 2015 £935*
Golf available
Pass. With the vulnerability in your Bernard Magee and his team
favour and your partner supporting you,
there is surely no doubt that you should *The prices shown are per person on an all inclusive
basis, sharing a twin-bedded standard room and are
push on to 5♣ for a great sacrifice? inclusive of bridge fees. Standard rooms all come
No! Even if your partner supports you it with private bath, toilet and balcony. Single rooms are
double rooms for sole occupancy at a supplement of £6
does not give a pre-emptor permission to per night. You can add a pool view supplement for £3
bid again: your partner is in charge and with bath robe, tea/coffee making facility for £5 per
person per night. These prices are based on air travel
he makes the final decision. If he thinks from Heathrow to Tunis. Flights from other airports
4♥ is making, he will bid 5♣, but here are available at a supplement. For details of what is
included as part of the all inclusive package please call
he will either pass with hope, or double, for an information pack or view the website. Prices for
seven-night stays are available on application.
depending on his mood.
These holidays have been organised for Mr
4♥ may well go two off: ♦A-K, ♣A, Bridge by Tunisia First Limited, ATOL 5933.
a diamond ruff and a trump trick. 5♣,
meanwhile would be three off: -500 in-
DETAILS & BOOKINGS
supports you, it does not give you permis-
sion to speak again: perhaps East bid ( 01483 489961
4♣ in the hope that the opposition would www.mrbridge.co.uk/abroad
push on to 4♥ and his plan worked. ■
 Robin Hood’s Bridge Adventures by David Bird
R
obin Hood and Nazir had just
won the fifth rubber of their
crown-a-100 game against
two wealthy merchants. It was fast
approaching midnight and only
the hardest-drinking of the Weary
Pilgrim’s clientele remained.
‘We had the luck on that last one,’
declared Robin Hood adding yet
more coinage to his swollen, deer-skin
purse. ‘Have you had enough?’
Rupert Locke peered deeply into
Hood’s eyes. ‘You’ve been taking us
for fools, haven’t you?’ he exclaimed.
‘If ever I’ve seen a pair of professional
card players, it’s you two. Scarcely a
single mistake.’
‘You play a strong game, too,’ Hood
replied. ‘Shall we call it a day?’
Locke looked across at his partner.
‘What d’you reckon, Jeb? One more
rubber?’
‘To get back what we’ve lost, we
would need a big win,’ Jeb Silver
replied. ‘Can’t be done at crown
stakes.’
Rupert Locke turned once more
towards Robin Hood. ‘Let’s see what
you brave boys are made of,’ he
declared. ‘How about one more rubber
at… let’s see… one guinea-a-100
stakes?’
Hood paused. He and Nazir were
the better players, as had already been
proved, but should they put at risk
the princely sum they had already
claimed? It would be enough to feed
a dozen villages handsomely until the
early harvest.
‘We will take you on, one more
Page 14 BRIDGE August 2014
Nazir in the
Spotlight
time,’ said Nazir, making up Hood’s
mind for him.
The well-worn cards were shuffled
and this was the first deal:
Dealer South. Love All.
♠ A 8 7
♥ 7 6 5
♦ 7 6 3
♣ A 10 8 2
♠ 3 ♠ 9 6 5 2
N
♥ J 3 ♥ Q 10 9 4 2
W E
♦ K Q 9 4 S ♦ J 10 8 5
♣ K Q 9 5 4 3 ♣ Void
♠ K Q J 10 4
♥ A K 8
♦ A 2
♣ J 7 6
West North East South
Jeb Robin Rupert Nazir
Silver
Hood Locke on earth had he agreed to play for such
1♠
2♣ 2♠ Pass 4♠
All Pass
Jeb Silver led the ♣K and Nazir
nodded as he studied the dummy. The
spade game was a good one. If the ♣A
emerged unruffed at Trick 1, he could
draw trumps and establish at least one
further trick in clubs.
Nazir paused for further thought.
What if West held six clubs for his
overcall? If he covered the opening
lead with dummy’s ♣A, East would
ruff. If it subsequently transpired
that he had started with four
trumps, it would not be possible to
draw the remaining trumps and then
score the two club tricks that were
necessary.
Nazir leaned forward and detached
the ♣2 from dummy, East discarding
a heart. When West led a low club to
the second trick, the ♣8 was played
from dummy and East ruffed. On this
trick, Nazir was careful to unblock the
♣J, clearing the way for a subsequent
finesse of dummy’s ♣10.
When East switched to the ♦J, Nazir
won with the ♦A and drew trumps
in three rounds, ending in his hand.
He then led the ♣7 to dummy’s ♣10
and discarded a diamond on the ♣A.
The game was his, with the defenders
taking an eventual heart trick.
Jeb Silver recognised a well-played
hand when he saw one. Goodness me,
one more deal like that and it would be
the most expensive day of his life. Why
exalted stakes?
The somewhat unkempt landlord
of the establishment approached the
table. ‘Will you gen’lmen be playin’
much longer?’ he asked. ‘You ain’t
exactly been orderin’ heavily.’
‘Depends on how the cards fall,’
Rupert Locke replied. He reached into
his pocket. ‘Here’s half a crown for
your trouble.’
The Landlord caught the silver coin
spun towards him and returned to the
bar.
After a few failing part-scores,
Nazir arrived in a potentially rubber-
winning game on the deal below:
 Robin Hood continued
Dealer South. N/S Game.
♠ J 9 2
♥ 5
♦ A J 9 6 3 2
♣ K 7 3
♠ A K 8 7 4 ♠ Q 10 6
♥ A 6 3 N ♥ J 10
W E
♦ 10 5 4 S ♦ K Q 8
♣ 6 5 ♣ J 9 8 4 2
♠ 5 3
♥ K Q 9 8 7 4 2
♦ 7
♣ A Q 10
West North East South
Jeb Robin Rupert Nazir
Silver Hood Locke ♣ —
1♥
1♠ 2♦ 2♠ 4♥
All Pass
Jeb Silver scored his ♠A-K against the
heart game and continued with a third
round of spades, ruffed by declarer.
Nazir surveyed the dummy,
disappointed to see only one trump
there. Well, there was nothing much
to the play. He would have to lead one
round of trumps towards his hand and
hope for a big slice of luck.
Nazir crossed to dummy with the
♣K and led the ♥5. The ♥J appeared
from East and he covered with the ♥K,
winning the trick. Allah be praised!
Playing one of the most valuable
contracts of his life, it seemed that
he had been granted a trump break
from Paradise. Surely, East held ♥A-J
doubleton and the gold-tinged rubber
would be at an end. It would be too
cruel if East had started with ♥A-J-10.
Nazir led the ♥9 from his hand,
wincing as East won with the ♥10.
‘You make the trump ace too,’ he said
to Rupert Locke. ‘One down.’
‘The trump ace is over there,’ Locke
replied.
Nazir’s mouth fell open as he
realised what had happened. West
had deceived him by holding up his
♥A smoothly. If he’d taken the ace on
the first round, declarer would have
no option but to lead the ♥Q next,
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 15
picking up East’s bare ♥10.
Nazir looked apologetically across
the table. ‘Allah himself could not read
such a lie of the cards,’ he declared.
A few deals later, Nazir had a chance
to redeem himself.
Dealer South. Game All.
♠ 7 3
♥ A 6 2
♦ A 8 6 3 2
♣ 8 5 4
♠ 10 9 6 2 ♠ J 8 5
♥ K 10 9 7 N ♥ J
W E
♦ K 9 S ♦ Q J 10 7 4
♣ Q J 10 ♣ K 9 6 2
♠ A K Q 4
♥ Q 8 5 4 3
♦ 5
♣ A 7 3
West North East South
Jeb Robin Rupert Nazir
Silver Hood Locke
1♥
Pass 2♥ Pass 4♥
All Pass
Jeb Silver led the ♣Q and Robin Hood
laid down his cards. Nazir was in no
hurry to play the contract. If he could
land ten tricks, he and Hood would
return to the Forest with the biggest
pay-packet in memory. What joy they
would bring to the poor villagers
who’d been short of food for many
weeks.
Even if the trumps broke reasonably,
he would like to score a club ruff in
the dummy. This might be possible
after discarding one of dummy’s clubs
on the ♠A-K-Q. To further this aim,
Nazir ducked the first round of clubs.
He won the next club with the ace and
crossed to the ♥A, an ominous ♥J
appearing from East. Three rounds
of spades stood up and he discarded
dummy’s last club. A club ruff was
followed by the ♦A and a diamond
ruff. These cards remained:
♠ —
♥ 6
♦ 8 6 3
♣ —
♠ 10 ♠ —
♥ K 10 9 N ♥ —
W E
♦ — S ♦ Q J 10
♣ — ♣ K
♠ 4
♥ Q 8 5
♦ —
Nazir led his last spade, delighted to
see West follow suit. He ruffed with
dummy’s ♥6 and continued with a
diamond, ruffed with the ♥5. Jeb
Silver had to overruff in the West
seat and then concede the final trick
to declarer’s ♥Q. The game had been
made.
‘Bravo, Nazir!’ exclaimed Robin
Hood. ‘A fine play, indeed.’
When the two merchants heard the
name Nazir, light dawned on them.
For four hours or more they had
been facing two of the shire’s finest
card-players: the outlaw cut-throats,
Robin Hood and Nazir. A draining
experience financially, yes, but what a
story to tell their grandchildren. ■
 BERNARD MAGEE
at Denham Grove
near Uxbridge, Bucks, UB9 5DG.
9-12 January 2015
£399 Friday – Monday, £369 Friday – Sunday, full board
Limited places for Thursday night available. £45pp single, £65 double/twin.
Defence as Partner of the Leader
Defence is the hardest aspect of the game, but the one
that I love to teach the most: it is where most players can
make great progress. You are often taught about opening
leads, but what about as the leader’s partner? How do you
play to trick one and then what do you do later? Should
you continue with your partner’s suit or switch? I will try
to give you the answers to all of these questions and more.
Strong Opening Bids
Much focus is placed on weak opening bids in the
modern game which means many strong hands are hard
to bid. Managing your strong bids carefully can give
you great joy, particularly when you have a neat
bidding sequence to a lovely slam. I will talk about
your strong opening options and show you how to
make the most of them.
Suit Establishment
Five-card suits (and longer) are powerful things: I will
try to get across my passion for them by showing you
how to develop your extra tricks through establishment.
Every five-card suit merits your attention, however
weak. Once you have seen the opportunities for extra
tricks, you will understand why it is important to add
strength on for long suits during the auction.
6 seminar sessions with Bernard1
Contact Mr Bridge to book your place or for further details: ( 01483 489961
1
Filmed Not with Bernard Magee
2
Aggressive Bidding AT PAIRS
Forty years ago, duplicate pairs was in its infancy and you
needed 13 HCP to open the bidding and rarely competed
for a partscore. Now the norm is to open with 11 HCP and
compete for every hand. The reason is largely because of
the scoring system. -50 and -100 can score very well, when
your opponents can make a contract of their own. Since
going off can score well, you should bid more.
Take-Out Doubles
Take-out doubles are an increasingly important aspect of
duplicate bridge. I will deal with basic take-out doubles
and their responses and then progress to
talk about competing for every partscore.
Aiming to push your opponents higher or
looking to get the magic -50, which scores so well when
your opponents can make a contract of their own.
Landy / Defending Against 1NT
Competing against a 1NT opening allows you to chal-
lenge for the partscore and also disrupts your opponents’
conventions. I will talk about competing over 1NT in
general and then talk about the Landy Convention,
which is a relatively simple method of competing over
1NT. The weak no-trump is a powerful pre-emptive
opening, so you need to try hard to overcome it.
6 sessions of supervised play2
 Julian Pottage answers your bridge questions

How do we Reach
a Grand Slam?

Q
On the At matchpoints you should singleton or void in it), you West, after East’s
following deal score very well just bidding should normally respond 1NT second bid, still could
it is apparent 6♥ and making an overtrick. (the exception being with 9 not be sure that East was
that several slams Reaching 6♣ is easy because points and a 5-card suit). not 4-4 in the majors.
make, including 7NT. a natural start to the auction The 1NT response does not Should East have bid
I cannot see how to identifies that North is promise a balanced hand, 4♥ over 3NT, knowing
bid it. Can you? 5-6 in the black suits: it simply says you have the that West must have
values to keep the bidding 3 cards in at least
North South open but the inability to do one of the majors? If
Dealer North 1♣ 1♥ anything more helpful. A he had been 5-4 in
♠ A K 8 6 2 2♠ 3♥ fellow contributor uses the the minors, he would
♥ K 3♠ 4♣ term ‘dustbin’ bid for the 1NT have bid his clubs on
♦ A 4NT1 5♥2 response, which may help the second round.
♣ K Q 8 7 5 4 5NT3 6♣4 with your picture of the bid. Rupert Timpson by email.
♠ J 3 ♠ Q 10 9 5 4 1
Asking

A
♥ 9 6 4 2 N ♥ 7 3 2
2 key cards/aces ♣♦♥♠ The way East has
W E
♦ Q 6 4 S ♦ K 8 7 3 2 3
We have all the key cards bid suggests 4-5

Q
♣ J 10 9 2 ♣ 6 4
No kings Please would in the majors, not
♠ 7 you kindly 4-4 and not 5-5. With only
♥ A Q J 10 8 5 If you can do better comment 4-4, East should simply raise
♦ J 10 9 5 than that, well done. on the bidding with 2NT to 3NT or (if available)
♣ A 3 these hands? make a 3♣ enquiry. With
♣♦♥♠ a flimsy club holding,
West’s 3NT rebid was

Q
Steve Bailey, West Surrey. If my partner ♠ K J 3 ♠ A 8 7 5 2 unwise. West should have
opens a suit ♥ K J 7 N ♥ A 9 6 4 3 given preference to 4♥.

A
Reaching a making
grand slam with
confidence is not
at all easy. With clubs 4-1,
you cannot make a grand
slam in your longest suit.
You say that 7NT makes; I
and I have 6–9
points, can I respond
1NT with an unbalanced
hand without two of
my partner’s suit?
Ruth Savage by email.
W E
♦ A Q 5 3 S ♦ 8 2 Yes, East was at fault too.
♣ A 10 4 ♣ 3 An initial 1♠ response
would be better. East can
then rebid 3♥, over which
West East West gives preference to
1♦ 1♥ 3♠, making it easy to
2NT 3♠ avoid 3NT.

A
am not sure how you would If partner opens the 3NT Pass
make it. If the defender bidding and you ♣♦♥♠
with four clubs held the have 6 -9 points, East should surely

♦K-Q or (if West) five
spades, a squeeze could
yield the thirteenth trick.
On the actual layout, only
7♥ would seem to make.
Q
you should not pass. If you respond 1♠. He must How might the
cannot show a suit at the have chosen hearts in bidding best
one level and you cannot the hope that partner proceed after
support partner (which, would support them West, dealer at game all,
clearly, you cannot with a or bid spades. opens a weak 2♠?

BRIDGE August 2014 Page 17

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Ask Julian continued
♠ A 4 3 2
♥ K 10 8 7 6 5 2
♦ A 8
♣ Void
N works for me,
W E
S unless perhaps it is the king.
♠ 7
♥ A 4
♦ K 9 7 6 5 4 2
♣ A J 9
I do not have the E/W
hands, noting only that
both the red suits were
2-2, so, unexpectedly, 7♦,
7♥ and 7NT all make.
Richard Bird, Sevenoaks.
A
This is not an easy
hand to bid. If North
overcalls 3♥, South
bids 4♦ and North rebids
4♥, I suspect the auction
will end there. On a quick
computer simulation, 6♦
made 80% of the time and
6♥ made 75% of the time,
so it seems you do want to
be in a slam. Perhaps North
overcalls 4♥ rather than 3♥
(risky with so few HCP) or
South bids on over 4♥. When
the opponents pre-empt, you
do not expect good breaks.
♣♦♥♠
Q A
In a social
game, what
should I open
having dealt myself
the following hand?
♠ A K 6 2
♥ A
♦ A Q 8 4
♣ K J 9 3
I opened 1♦. My partner
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 19
raised to 2♦ and we
ended up in 4♦. As it
turned out, she had five
small spades and 7 HCP.
Should I have
opened 2NT?
Jan Hudson by email.
A
Opening 2NT with
a singleton rarely
However, I would open 1♣
rather than 1♦ because that
makes it easier to find a club
fit. Although older textbooks
recommend opening the suit
below the singleton, the more
modern practice is to open
1♣ with a 4-1-4-4 shape.
If your partner held 5
spades and 4 or 5 diamonds,
she should respond 1♠
whether you open 1♣ or
1♦. Showing the major,
especially when it is a 5-card
suit, should take priority.
You would then do your best
to show a strong hand with
spade support and short
hearts. Playing splinters,
you would rebid 4♥.
Not playing splinters, as
was probably the situation
in a social game, you might
reverse into 2♦ (forcing for
one round) and then jump to
4♠ later. Note that you would
not normally reverse with a
4-4 shape or fail to support
partner’s major immediately
with four; this hand is a
bit of a special case.
♣♦♥♠
Q
Please could
you explain why
someone with
11 or 12 points, but no
4-card major, might
need to use Stayman
in response to a
weak 1NT?
Peter Calviou by email.
A
If you play four-suit
transfers (2♠ transfer
to clubs and 2NT
transfer to diamonds in
addition to the usual red-
suit transfers), you need to
find some bid other than
2NT as a way to raise to
2NT. The simplest solution
is to go via 2♣ even when
you do not want to know
about the majors. You
then rebid 2NT whether
opener bids 2♦, 2♥ or 2♠.
♣♦♥♠
Q
What are your
thoughts on
how we did
and how we should
have bid this hand?
I, North, dealt.
♠ A K 9 5 3
♥ K 10
♦ Void
♣ K Q 10 9 6 3
N
W E
S ♣♦♥♠
♠ 7 6 2
♥ 5 4
♦ K Q J 9 4
♣ A 7 4
North South
1♣ 1♦
1♠ 2♦
2♠ Pass
I made 12 tricks, which
needed a defensive
error, but everybody else
at the table said I should
have opened 1♠ (we play
15-17 no-trump and
5-card majors). I said I
thought I had shown five
spades with my 2♠ bid
and longer clubs. The
other players disagreed.
Howard Brown,
Ulverston, Cumbria.
E-mail your questions for Julian to:
julianpottage@mrbridge.co.uk
A
Opening 1♣ is
correct, 5-card
majors or not.
A standard principle of
bidding is that you bid
your longest suit if you
can sensibly. Opening 1♣
and then bidding spades
twice without any support
does indeed show five
spades and longer clubs.
Although it is unusual
for opener to make a jump
shift rebid with only 15
HCP, here your exceptional
shape justifies it. If you start
adding points for shape (and
intermediates) or valuing the
hand using the losing trick
count, you will appreciate the
playing strength. I would rate
the hand as worth about 20
points. I would thus rebid 2♠
with the intention of bidding
3♠ next time. As your 2♠
rebid is game forcing, there is
no danger of missing game.
Q
Playing a 20-22
2NT opener, what
would you open
with this 19-count hand?
♠ A K
♥ K 9 3
♦ A Q
♣ Q J 10 9 8 7
Doreen Parrington,
Lytham St Annes.
With honours in the
short suits making
the hand suitable
for no-trumps and the good
6-card suit warranting an
upgrade, a 2NT opening
seems reasonable. The
alternative is to open 1♣ with
a view to rebidding 3NT. ■
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Page 20 BRIDGE August 2014

 Answers to David Huggett’s 
Play Quiz on page 11
You are declarer in 3NT and West leads hand. Finally, re-enter hand with the ace
1. ♠ A 3 the ♠Q. How do you plan the play? of diamonds to cash the last heart and
♥ K 7 5 If the diamond finesse works you have the last trump.
♦ 9 8 6 4 nine easy tricks, but what if it doesn’t? If you had won the first heart in dummy
♣ K J 9 3 Suppose you take the diamond finesse at inadvertently, you would find that you
♠ 10 7 2 ♠ Q J 9 6 4 trick two, which loses to East who returns were an entry short for the fourth club.
N
♥ J 8 3 ♥ Q 10 9 2 a spade. Now, you need a heart trick to
W E
♦ Q J 10 7 5 S ♦ K 3 fulfil your contract, but if West holds the
♣ A 6 ♣ 4 2 ace of that suit and three more spades,
♠ K 8 5 you will be defeated. Instead, knock out 4. ♠ A 7 3
♥ A 6 4 the ace of hearts first. Whoever wins will ♥ Q J 7 5
♦ A 2 doubtless return a spade, but now you ♦ K 6 3
♣ Q 10 8 7 5 take the diamond finesse into the hand ♣ K J 2
which is likely to be out of spades. If ♠ J 9 6 5 ♠ Q 10 4 2
N
he does have another spade, it doesn’t ♥ 4 3 W E ♥ 10 6
You are declarer in 3NT and West leads matter because you are losing only two ♦ Q 10 4 S ♦ J 9 8 5
the ♦Q. East follows with the ♦3. How do spades, a diamond and a heart. ♣ 9 8 6 5 ♣ Q 7 4
you plan the play? ♠ K 8
I hope you didn’t duck that opening ♥ A K 9 8 2
lead. With four certain tricks in clubs, ♦ A 7 2
you will make the contract as long as you 3. ♠ K Q 9 2 ♣ A 10 3
don’t lose four diamonds and the ace of ♥ Q 4
clubs, but you will lose four diamonds ♦ 7 6 4
only if the suit breaks 5-2. If that is ♣ J 9 8 3 You are declarer in 6♥ and West leads
the case, East – who is the hand likely ♠ J 10 4 3 ♠ Void the ♠5. How do you plan the play?
N
to be short in the suit – must have K-x ♥ J 10 9 3 ♥ 8 6 5 2 (Trumps are 2-2.)
W E
and could not afford to unblock the king ♦ J 3 2 S ♦ K Q 10 9 8 You will succeed if you can guess the
for fear of setting up another diamond ♣ 7 5 ♣ 10 6 4 2 position of the queen of clubs, but it is
winner in dummy. ♠ A 8 7 6 5 much better to let the opponents find it
If you are on autopilot and duck trick ♥ A K 7 for you. Win the lead, draw trumps and
one, West will lead a low diamond at ♦ A 5 eliminate spades by ruffing the third one
trick two and will have enough winners ♣ A K Q in hand. Now play the ace and king of
to defeat you when he comes in with the diamonds and exit with the remaining
ace of clubs. low diamond. Whoever wins will either
You are declarer in 7♠ and West leads have to give you a ruff and discard, when
the ♥J. How do you plan the play? you ruff in dummy and discard a club
If trumps are anything but 4-0, you from hand, or open up the club suit. ■
2. ♠ 6 5 4 2 have thirteen tricks on top so you have
♥ Q 9 to direct your mind to the worst-case
Mr Bridge
♦ A Q 10 9 6 scenario. If East has all four missing
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♠ Q J 10 9 3 ♠ 8 7 it is West. Win the opening lead in hand Standard Faces,
N
♥ A 6 4 ♥ 8 5 3 2 and play the ace of spades. If East shows with or without
W E
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BRIDGE August 2014 Page 21

 David Stevenson answers your Frequently Asked Questions
D
ealer bids 1♣. The next player
looks surprised and says, ‘Is
that natural?’ ‘Of course,’ says
dealer’s partner, ‘I didn’t alert.’ At the
end of the auction, dealer’s partner is
declarer in 3NT and the opening lead
is a club. When the lead is from a dou-
bleton, declarer accuses his opponents
of cheating and World War III erupts.
There are other similar examples. A
player who is just about to make the
final pass asks about a spade bid and
his partner leads a spade. Or a player
whose partner is on lead asks before a
card is led face down and this may af-
fect his partner’s lead. Is this cheating?
The rules for asking questions are
that you can ask whenever it is your
turn to call. You can also ask before the
opening lead if you are on lead and af-
ter the opening lead is put face down
on the table, if your partner is on lead.
After that, a defender can ask when it
is his turn to play and declarer can ask
when it is his or dummy’s turn to play.
Dummy should be quiet.
So what is wrong with the questions
above? While, legally, you can ask
questions, there are dangers in doing
so. Asking questions, especially sur-
prising or unusual questions, suggests
something about your hand and this is
unauthorised information to partner:
your partner must make every effort
not to use the information. So if you
ask about an unalerted 1♣ opening,
your partner should not lead a club
unless it is the obvious lead. The way to
avoid unpleasantness and adjustments
by the director is not to ask unneces-
sary questions. If your opponents open
1♣ and it is not alerted, then you know
it is natural so why ask?
It is rather different with alerted
bids because, when you ask, it is more
probable you are asking because of the
alert rather than what is in your hand.
Nevertheless, players often ask because
Page 22 BRIDGE August 2014
Questions
and Answers
they have some obvious reason, for
example, they have enough points to
double but are not prepared to do so
without some answers, while they do
not ask if they are weak. I am not sug-
gesting that you do not ask questions
at all, but be very careful when you do.
If you are merely curious, or want to
know because it will help your defence,
try getting into the habit of asking all
your questions before you lead if you
are on lead, or when your partner has
put his lead face down if he is on lead.
Do not ask before he leads: the same
problems as mentioned above apply: if
you ask meaningfully about a club bid
and he leads a club, the score may be
adjusted. Incidentally, do remember
always to lead face down, giving your
partner the chance to ask questions
(and avoid leading out of turn). Gener-
ally, declarer also should ask his ques-
tions after the auction is finished.  1♥-Pass-3♠ is also a splinter. Now the
How do you answer questions?
While you do not need to go into a
wealth of detail, single word answers
are unhelpful. For example, suppose
you are asked what signals you play:
do you ever answer ‘natural’ or ‘stand-
ard’? Half the world plays high-low to
say they like it and the other half to
show an even number: either could be
considered natural or standard. How
about ‘attitude’ or ‘count’? That is fine,
since people know what they are – ex-
cept that some people play reverse and
do not tell you. It is very annoying
when someone says, ‘attitude,’ and you
assume high-low is encouraging, but it
isn’t. Of course, it is not just annoying,
it is misinformation. Safest is to say,
‘standard attitude,’ ‘reverse attitude,’
‘standard count,’ or, ‘reverse count.’
The main point is that your answers
should be as accurate and helpful as
possible. You want to win by out-play-
ing your opponents, not by confusing
them with inadequate answers.
Suppose your partner bids 3♥ in
a complex auction and an opponent
asks what it is. Obviously, if you know,
you tell him. But what happens if you
are not sure or do not know? A lot of
players say, ‘I am taking it as …,’ but
you should not do so. If you have no
agreement, then say so: do not invent
one. If you have an agreement but can-
not remember it, then say so. In that
case, the director might ask you to
leave the table so partner can explain
your agreement to the opposition. The
tricky cases are when you do not have
a real agreement, but you know what it
might be because of similar situations:
then you should explain that.
Let me give you an example of the
last case. You have agreed that 1♥-
Pass-3♠ is a splinter, showing shortage
and agreeing partner’s suit. Further-
more, you have agreed that 1♣-Pass-
bidding goes 1♣-Pass-1♥-Pass-1♠-
Pass-4♦ and you have no agreement.
If asked, what should you say? I would
answer, ‘We have no agreement in this
sequence, however we do play that
double jumps are splinters in other
situations.’ That is as helpful and fair as
you can be.
Another thing to avoid is names,
unless they are unambiguous and you
play them in a standard fashion. Even
‘Stayman’ causes confusion. As invent-
ed, it did not guarantee a major and
many players have always played that.
However, many players think it does
show a major, probably because they
were taught that way. Suppose you play
Stayman asking for 5-card majors?
Then say, ‘5-card Stayman.’ Remem-
ber that not everyone plays things the
same way and opponents need to know
your actual agreements.
To summarise: be careful before ask-
ing questions and be helpful when an-
swering them. ■
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BRIDGE August 2014 Page 23

 AEGEAN ODYSSEY BRID

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Join Bernard and explore the
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TION FOR 7 DAYS

 Bridge and Travel Tips
The Olde Blunsdon
Barn Hotel House Hotel
Marston, COVERING UP Swindon SN26 7AS
Lincs NG32 2HT
Bridge tip from Sally Brock: If they don’t
cover an honour with an honour,
then they don’t have one.

T
his was a very famous
bridge tip given by
Zia Mahmood many
years ago, but a word
of warning: it works best
against good players.
Here is the deal:
Maybe you take the dia-
mond finesse, a 50% shot
for your game.
But look at it from East’s
point of view. He doesn’t
know that this is your dia-
mond suit. Maybe your
hand was: BRIDGE EVENTS

1-3 August £169 ♠ K Q 3 2 10-12 Oct £199

Just Duplicate Bridge ♥ A 4 3 ♠ A 4 Just Duplicate Bridge
Patrick Dunham ♦ J 2 ♥ 6 5 2
Sheila Rogers
♣ K J 6 5 ♦ A 10 8 5 4
29-31 August £169 ♣ A 10 3
Rubber / Chicago
N
W E
14-16 Nov £245
Diana Holland S
Bernard Magee
♠ A 4 If he doesn’t cover the jack Further into
12-14 September £169
Just Duplicate Bridge
♥ 6 5 2 of diamonds from Q-x-x the Auction
♦ A K 10 9 8 6 and you hold this hand,
Sheila Rogers
♣ 10 7 you will make your contract 28-30 Nov £245
without needing to guess
26-28 September £179 Bernard Magee
Declarer Play clubs. He doesn’t know
You, as South, decided to that your diamonds are so
Bidding NEW
Gwen Beattie TOPIC

open a slightly off-centre solid. So, when he doesn’t Distributional

10-12 October £245 weak no-trump and your
Endplay & Avoidance partner uses Stayman be-
Bernard Magee fore raising you to 3NT.
West leads a heart and you
17-19 October £169 duck twice before winning
Just Duplicate Bridge the third (both opponents
Patrick Dunham following). What now?
cover the jack of diamonds, Hands
he surely doesn’t hold the
queen. So, you go up with 23-25 Jan 2015 £245
the ace, cash the king, Bernard Magee
dropping West’s queen
and make your game with
Competitive
an overtrick or two. ■ Bidding

31 Oct – 2 Nov £169

Just Duplicate Bridge
Travel tip from Emma Thomson:
June Dixon and Carol

W
Fisher omen travelling in Middle Eastern
countries require wardrobe awareness.
14-16 November £179 Heads need to be covered to gain entry
Doubles to mosques and other sacred sites, so always pack a
Will Parsons pashmina or headscarf. In more relaxed countries,
such as Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, this
28-30 November £169 may be sufficient, but in strict states, such as Saudi
Just Duplicate Bridge Arabia and Kuwait, full-body coverage is required.
Michael Haytack Loose-fitting, dark-coloured, long-sleeved dresses,
trousers, skirts and tops will ensure you don’t cause Full Board
Full Board
offence. No Single Supplement
No Single Supplement
Booking Form on page 8.
Booking Form on page 8.

Page 26 BRIDGE August 2014

 Beginners’ Bridge Corner
Mary’s Eighth Lesson
M
ary had speeded
up counting her
high card points
(HCP). Even the mentors had
noticed it. She was definitely
more confident on her first
count of the hand, although
still needing to double check
the total point count. Funnily
enough, it was her grandson,
David, who had helped her
to speed up. David was
always picking up the cards
from the TV table, shouting
out the honours for Mary
to count. David called it,
‘Nana’s homework.’ If
Mary got it wrong, then
1p went into the jar. If she
took longer than David to
count the honours (without
David cheating), then
another 1p went into the jar.
Every day, David counted
out the pennies in the jar
asking, ‘What are we going
to spend it on Nana?’
Alasdair said, ‘Today is the
last playing technique lesson
before going back to learning
more bidding strategies.’
Good humoured mutterings
and quick repartee from the
group along the lines of, ‘But
we don’t need to learn more
bidding strategies.’ Mary
really enjoyed the play. It
actually fascinated her. How
could 13 cards in your hand
challenge you so much and
provide you with so much
frustration, confusion and
yes, happiness? Although
she had never been a card
player, Mary found the play
In no-trumps, remember to leave an entry to the hand with a long suit.
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 27
by Liz Dale
easier than the bidding. Mary
was meticulous about doing
her homework, which she
did in two stages, as Alasdair
had suggested. Mary also set
herself a target of dealing
13 cards for herself and
13 cards for her imaginary
partner three times each
evening and tried to work
out the bidding sequence, as
Alasdair had also suggested
in earlier sessions.
Tuesday mornings were
fun, as were her two evening
practice sessions at Joan’s
house. Mary was doing
everything to give herself the
best chance of success and
it was becoming noticeable
to the others. Last night, at
Joan’s, Mary needed to look
at her notes only a few times.
It had been commented on
and Mary went home feeling
very happy. What had Liam
said? ‘It was only a game
of cards.’ Not so, Liam. You
have got that very wrong.
It’s a lifeline, thought Mary.
The fog and pain of the
last two and a half years
were beginning to lift.
Today’s playing technique
was about learning to set up
your long suits combined with
transport. Again, the mentors
had guided the players at
each of the four tables into
the correct 3NT contract to
be played by West. Joan
had to play the hand at their
table and Mary was dummy.
The mentor said, ‘I will be
dummy if Mary would like to
BRIDGE
Make sure you
don’t miss your
favourite monthly
articles by taking
out an annual
pull up a stool next to Joan
and help her to get the nine
subscription.
tricks contracted for in no-
trumps.’ Joan was counting l Acol Bidding Quiz
her top tricks. Seven. The & Answers
challenge was to work out
Bernard Magee
where the other two tricks l Ask Julian Pottage
were coming from. ‘Yes,’
pointing quietly to dummy’s l Julian’s FAQs
five card suit, Joan and l Misleading Cases
Mary agreed the extra tricks as reported by our
would come from the long court correspondent
suit in dummy. They could
commence play. Everything l Ask David
was going swimmingly well,
Stevenson
except now they had two l David’s SPECIAL
winners in dummy’s hand FAQs OFFER
that they couldn’t reach. The PRICE
defenders took their six tricks
l Mary’s
First Lesson
and Joan and Mary wrote
down the score, vulnerable l Play Quiz
minus 200. ‘How did that
happen?’ thought Mary. l Defence Quiz
Only one of the tables l Tales from
had made more than seven Sherwood Forest
tricks and Mary suspected the by David Bird
mentor on that table had told
declarer how to play the hand
l Blast from
the Past
instead of letting her find
out from her own mistakes. l Catching up
Going down minus two when
3NT could be made was hard
l Seven Days
to take. Alasdair was now l Jeremy Dhondy
showing them on the smart
board exactly how to make l Sally Brock Tip
the contract, by ensuring that l Travel Tip
you left an entry in dummy’s
hand so that you could get l Readers Letters
back into dummy to play
out your two winners. Mary Special
decided she was going to Introductory
practise similar examples of
this kind of play before she
Subscription:
collected David from school £20 for twelve
this afternoon. ■ monthly issues.
See mail order
form on page 7.
 BERNARD MAGEE
Boxed Sets of six DVDs
Series 1
1 Ruffing for Extra Tricks
This seminar deals with declarer’s
use of ruffing to make extra tricks
and then looks at how the defenders
might counteract this. (74 mins.)
2 Competitive Auctions
This seminar focuses on competitive
auctions from the perspective of the
overcalling side and then from the
perspective of the opening side in
the second part. (86 mins.)
3 Making the Most
of High Cards
This seminar helps declarer to use
his high cards more carefully and
then looks at how defenders should
care for their high cards. (83 mins.)
4 Identifying
& Bidding Slams
The first half of this seminar is about
identifying when a slam might be on
– one of the hardest topics to teach.
The second half covers some slam-
bidding techniques. (96 mins.)
5 Play & Defence
of 1NT Contracts
This seminar looks at the most
common and yet most feared
of contracts: 1NT. The first half
looks at declaring the contract and
the second part puts us in the
defenders’ seats. (88 mins.)
6 Doubling & Defence
against Doubled Contracts
The first half of this seminar
explores penalty doubles and the
second half discusses the defence
against doubled contracts. (88 mins.)
Individual DVDs. £25 each.
Boxed Set of 6. £100.
PICK AND MIX. A BOX OF ANY 6. £105
Mr Bridge ( 01483 489961 email: mrbridge@mrbridge.co.uk
Series 2
7 Leads
Bernard takes you through all the
basic leads and the importance of
your choice of lead. If you start to
think not just about your hand, but
about your partner’s too, then you
will get much better results. (95 mins.)
8 Losing Trick Count
A way of hand evaluation for when
you find a fit. Bernard deals with the
basics of the losing trick count then
looks at advanced methods to hone
your bidding. (92 mins.)
9 Making a Plan
as Declarer
Bernard explains how to make a plan
then expands on how to make the
most of your long suits. The first half
deals with no-trumps, the second with
suit contracts. (87 mins.)
10 Responding to 1NT
This seminar deals with Transfers
and Stayman in detail. The 1NT
opening comes up frequently, so
having a good, accurate system of
responses is paramount. (93 mins.)
11 Signals & Discards
This seminar deals with Count,
Attitude and Suit-preference signals:
aiming to get you working as a
partnership in defence. (92 mins.)
12 Endplay
Bernard takes you through the basics
of the technique before showing some
magical hands where you take extra
tricks from defenders. In the second
half, Bernard looks at how to avoid
being endplayed. (80 mins.)
Individual DVDs. £25 each.
Boxed Set of 6. £100.
Series 3
13 Hand Evaluation
Going beyond just the point-count
is important if you want to improve.
Reaching & making 3NT on 24 HCP;
and avoiding 3NT on 26 HCP when
there are only 7 or 8 tricks. (110 mins.)
14 Pre-Emptive Bidding
The art of pre-empting is so important
in the modern game. Understanding
the right types of hand to bid up
on and realising the importance of
position and vulnerability. (96 mins.)
15 Splinter & Cue-Bids
Take your slam bidding to another
level. Splinter bids are a vital tool to
add to your armoury & try your hand
at Italian style cue-bidding. (116 mins.)
16 Avoidance Play
As declarer, an important tactic is
to be in control of the defenders:
avoiding a particular defender getting
the lead. As a defender, you can try to
make sure the right player gets the
lead at the right time. (88 mins.)
17 Play & Defence at Pairs
Duplicate Pairs is the game most of
us play and getting used to the tactics
will make a lot of difference to your
performance. Making more overtricks
and making sure you do not give
away tricks as a defender. (90 mins.)
18 Thinking Defence
By far the hardest aspect of bridge,
but if you can improve your defence
your results will quickly improve.
Learn how to think through the
defence and get your mind in gear for
the decisions that await you. (87 mins.)
Individual DVDs. £25 each.
Boxed Set of 6. £100.
 Bernard Magee’s Tips
DEFENCE for Better Bridge
QUIZ 65 invaluable tips in 160 pages
Bidding Tips 33 A low lead usually promises
by Julian Pottage 1 Always consider bidding
spades if you can
length and an honour
34 When declaring 1NT,
(Answers on page 47) 2 Bid more aggressively try to be patient
when non-vulnerable 35 Duck an early round when
3 Always double when the you are short of entries

Y ou are West in the defensive positions below playing

matchpoint pairs. It is your turn to play. Both sides are
using Acol with a 12-14 1NT and 2♣ Stayman.
opponents steal your deal
4 A takeout double shows
shortage in the suit doubled
36 Lead up to your
two-honour holding
37 Do not always assume
5 ‘Borrow’ a king a suit will break well
to keep the auction open 38 Drop a high card
6 After a penalty double, to put off the defence
don’t let the opponents escape 39 Play your highest card to tempt
1. ♠ K5 3. ♠ A 8 5 2 7 Halve the value of a singleton a defender to cover
♥ 10 7 4 ♥ K J 7 honour when opening 40 Draw trumps first unless you
8 Only add length-points for a have a good reason not to
♦ KJ974 ♦ Q 10 9 5 suit that might be useful 41 Do not waste your trumps
♣ A Q 10 ♣ K 10 9 Isolated honours are bad 42 Consider leaving a lone defen-
♠ J 9 6 4 ♠ 10 6 4 except in partner’s suit sive trump winner out
N N 10 Use the jump shift sparingly
♥ A J 5 ♥ 10 8 4 W E Defence Tips
W E 11 Consider passing and letting
♦ 10 8 6 S
♦ 6 4 S partner decide 43 Keep four-card suits intact
♣ 8 6 4 ♣ A 8 6 5 4 12 You need two top honours whenever possible
for a second-seat pre-empt 44 Give count on declarer’s leads
13 Put the brakes on if you have a 45 Keep the right cards
misfit rather than signal
West North East South West North East South 14 Strong and long minors work 46 Take your time
1NT 1NT well in no-trumps when dummy is put down
15 One stop in the opponents’ suit 47 High cards are for killing
Pass 3NT All Pass Pass 2♣ Pass 2♠ other high cards
can be enough for no-trumps
Pass 4♠ All Pass 16 Keep your two-level 48 Do not waste
You lead the ♠4. Partner responses up to strength intermediate cards
17 Use your normal methods in 49 Pick two key suits to
takes the ♠K with the ♠A, You lead the ♦6 to the ♦J concentrate on during the play
response to a 1NT overcall
cashes the ♠Q and contin- and ♦A. A spade goes to 18 Don’t overcall just because 50 If in doubt, cover an honour
ues with the ♠10. What do the ♠A and another to part- you have opening points with an honour
19 Overcalls can be quite weak, 51 If a lead is from two honours, it
you do? ner’s ♠K. Back comes the
so be prudent when responding is best not to cover
♦K and then the ♦2, which 52 Keep your honour to kill
20 Weak overcalls must be based
you ruff. What do you do? on strong suits dummy’s honour
21 6NT requires 33 points 53 Try to show partner your
not 4 aces and 4 kings solid honour sequences
22 Raise immediately, if weak 54 Lead the normal card when
2. ♠ J 8 5 2 4. ♠ 9 8 7 2 with four-card support leading partner’s suit
♥ A K J 10 ♥ K J 10 23 In a competitive auction, 55 Never underlead an ace at trick
show support immediately one in a suit contract
♦ K ♦ 10
24 Bid to the level of your fit 56 Be wary of leading from
♣ K J 10 5 ♣ A K J 8 5 quickly with weak hands four cards to only one honour
♠ A 10 6 ♠ J 6 4 25 With strength and support, 57 Lead a higher card from
N N a suit without an honour
♥ 8 7 5 4 ♥ 8 4 use the opponents’ bid suit
W E W E
58 Lead through ‘beatable’
♦ Q 8 6 4 2 S ♦ A 9 6 4 2 S strength and up to weakness
♣ 4 ♣ 10 6 4 Declarer Play Tips 59 Cash your winners before try-
26 When your contract depends ing for a trump promotion
on a finesse, think ‘endplay’ 60 Be patient when defending
27 Consider what a defender 1NT
West North East South West North East South might be thinking about 61 Trump leads can be safe
1♣ Pass 1♥ 1NT 28 Always take your time throughout the play
at trick one
Pass 3♥ Pass 4♥ Pass 2♣ Pass 2♠ 29 Establish extra tricks before General Tips
All Pass Pass 4♠ All Pass cashing your winners 62 Do not put important cards
30 Use your opponents’ at either end of your hand
bidding to your advantage 63 Avoid being declarer when
You lead the ♣4. Partner You lead the ♥8. Partner 31 Avoid the ‘baddie’ you are dummy
wins the first two tricks wins with the ♥Q, cashes gaining the lead 64 Before you lead, ask for a
with the ♣Q and ♣A, the ♥A and continues with 32 Use the Rule of Seven when review of the auction
holding up in no-trumps 65 Enjoy the Game!
continuing with ♣2. What the ♥9. After ruffing this
is your plan? what do you do? £14 including postage and packing from Mr Bridge,
Ryden Grange, Knaphill, Surrey GU21 2TH. ( 01483 489961

BRIDGE August 2014 Page 29

 A Blast From the Past by Shireen Mohandes
Graysky
Lepidopterist
M
aurice Harrison-Gray (1900
-1968) almost deserves an
entire magazine devoted to
him: as an expert player, theorist and
bridge writer, but he was also a novel-
ist (during the wars, his writing career
included writing novels about Ameri-
can Indians) and lepidoptery. The last
of these two interests was not widely
known in the bridge world. His Rus-
sian wife, Stella (nee Soltz, a Russian
linguist by profession), nicknamed
him Graysky, but to his bridge friends
he was simpy known as ‘Gray’.
Tony Priday, his last bridge partner
(who now lives in Spain with his
wife Vivian), told me about his
experience when asked by Stella to say
a few words about Gray at his funeral.
When Tony walked up to the coffin,
Lunar Moth Photo: Haig Tchamitch
Page 30 BRIDGE August 2014
the
he was surprised to see that Stella had and his partner’s ♠J and ♠K won the
covered it with moths. Although Stella first and second tricks. Declarer won
had asked Tony to mention moths, the third round with the ace. After all,
Tony was a little lost for words; for he could not be certain that East held a
despite having visited the couple at seven-card suit.
their Hampstead flat many times,
he’d never seen the moths in display
cabinets nor on the walls and knew
nothing of them.
Gray was sitting West on the deal
below. There’s nothing exceptional
about the bidding or final contract –
you would expect the same today.
Dealer North. N/S Game.
♠ 9 Atlas Moth Photo: Haig Tchamitch
♥ A Q 10
♦ K J 9 8 5 2
♣ 9 8 2 Analysis
♠ 8 3 ♠ K Q J 7 6 4 2
N
♥ 9 6 4 3
W E
♥ 8 7 5 2 After seeing dummy, Gray placed
♦ A Q 3 S ♦ 7 South with the remaining high cards.
♣ K J 5 4 ♣ 6 Counting declarer’s top tricks, it looks
♠ A 10 5 like one spade, one club and probably
♥ K J three or four hearts.
♦ 10 6 4 More tricks are needed and either
♣ A Q 10 7 3 minor might offer good prospects.
Declarer may go for the clubs, hoping
to keep the danger hand off-lead, but
West North East South after East’s pre-empt, he may well play
Harrison-Gray on diamonds, hoping to find West
1♦ 3♠ 3NT with both honours.
All Pass What would you, as West, discard
on the third round of spades? Decide
Gray dutifully led his doubleton spade now before reading on.
 Graysky continued
‘Keep Icy Calm’
This was Gray’s motto. It is reported
that when he conceded four
redoubled overtricks, defending
3NT, against Iain Macleod,
he did not twitch a muscle.
Iain Macleod
Macleod (1913-1970) was shadow
Chancellor of the Exchequer
and then Chancellor for Heath’s
government, for a short while,
just before his untimely death.
♠ Void
♥ A Q 10
♦ K J 9 8 5
♣ 9 8 2 their transformation into cocoons.
♠ Void ♠ Q 7 6 4 2
N
♥ 9 6 4 3
W E
♥ 8 7 5 2 birth of the exotic moth with
♦ A Q 3 S ♦ 7
♣ K J 5 4 ♣ 6
♠ A
♥ K J
♦ 10 6 4
♣ A Q 10 7 3
Gray conjured up a dastardly illusion.
On declarer’s ♠A, he discarded his ♦A.
Declarer fell for it hook, line and
sinker. He was convinced that East,
the danger hand, held the ♦Q and that
Gray’s discard had created an entry to
his partner’s hand. Trying to establish
diamond tricks would thus lead to
doom. Instead, he turned his attention
to clubs, hoping that one of the club
honours was onside. He was hoping
for a layout like this:
♠ 8 3 ♠ K Q J 7 6 4 2
♥ 9 7 6 5 4 3 N ♥ 8 2 with words – it is almost as though he
W E
♦ A 3 S ♦ Q 7
♣ K 5 4 ♣ J 6
So, South entered dummy with a heart
and ran the ♣9. Gray won that with
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 31
his king and played a diamond, the ♦3.
Declarer ‘knowledgeably’ declined the
finesse, won with the king and then
took another losing club finesse.
At this point, Gray cashed his ♦Q to
defeat the contract.
Nowadays people may lead MUD
(middle up down), low from three
small, or TON (top of nothing). All
three have their pros and cons.
On this particular deal only a TON
leader would create a problem for
declarer, who would not know whether
to win the second or third round.
Maurice Harrison-Gray
Gray was the bridge columnist in
Country Life magazine for fifteen years
in the 50s and 60s.
Now it has a circulation of nearly
39,000 and readership of 206,000 (yes,
the typical copy is read by five people)
and the bridge columnist is Andrew
Robson.
A selection of Gray’s articles was
published posthumously in the
Country Life Book of Bridge, 1972.
What’s special about the articles is that
Gray had the luxury of an entire page
to devote to news and insight. He was
the envy of his friends, for they were
not as fortunate in their word limits.
In reading his articles as a collection,
one can see that he had a lovely way
is sitting next to you on a long train
journey and sharing his insight on the
latest happenings, tales of joy and woe,
on a large variety of topics, including
bidding theory and the ‘Losing Trick
Count’, which he advocated.
What is a lepidopterist?
A lepidopterist or aurelian is a
person who specialises in the
study of Lepidoptera, an order
encompassing moths and the three
superfamilies of butterflies, skipper
butterflies and moth-butterflies.
The term also includes hobby-
ists who catch, collect, study, or
simply observe lepidopterans.
There are approximately
160,000 species of moths.
♠♥♦♣
What was Maurice
Harrison-Gray’s interest?
‘… Away from the bridge table,
Harrison-Gray has one abiding
passion – moths. He breeds moths.
He nurtures them. From Borneo to
Brazil, from Mali to Madagascar,
he imports the eggs, fondles the
caterpillars and presides over
Finally, he ushers in the magic
brilliantly coloured, diaphanous
wings, spanning maybe as much
as twelve inches across…’
Victor Mollo.
The Bridge Immortals, 1967.
The next deal comes from a 1956
article.
Dealer East. Game All.
♠ J 6 5 2
♥ A Q 6 3
♦ Q 9 8 3
♣ 4
♠ K Q 9 8 3 ♠ 10 4
N
♥ J 10 8 2
W E
♥ K 9 7 5
♦ K S ♦ 5
♣ 8 7 3 ♣ A K J 9 6 2
♠ A 7
♥ 4
♦ A J 10 7 6 4 2
♣ Q 10 5
West North East South
1♣1 2♦2
2♠3 4♦4 Pass 5♦
All Pass
 Graysky continued
1
Most players would make the same open-
ing bid now.
2
Now we depart, as fashions change. Weak
jump overcalls have become very popular
amongst duplicate players, so today’s South
is likely to overcall 1♦.
3
West is a bit light for his 2♠ response, but
maybe he was used to an up to strength
opening bid from his partner, who is vulner-
able and opened first in hand. Also, he
probably did not have a ’negative double‘
available to him, as this type of double was
introduced to the world at large in 1957 by
American experts Alvin Roth and Tobias
Stone.
4
Opposite a strong jump overcall this was
an invitational call.
So what would happen in 2014? Some
players would probably make their
way to 3NT. But, actually, 5♦ is a better
contract at teams for two reasons:
first, if you are defeated, you will lose
fewer points. Second, playing in the
diamond contract means that you have
the comfort of a safety play, or maybe it
should be called a discovery play.
West led a club, West took his ♣K
and switched smartly to his ♠10, which
declarer won in hand with the ♠A.
Analysis
There are various ways to try to
make eleven tricks. Ruffing clubs in
the short hand is ideal (two major-
suit aces, two club ruffs and seven
diamonds representing an excellent
option), but declarer has two certain
– and immediate – black losers and
has to ‘find’ the ♦K. Holding eleven
cards in a suit, it is almost even money
to finesse or play for the drop (that is,
with no extra information about the
opponents’ cards).
But, reflecting on the bidding, it
looks as if West has five or six spades
headed by the K-Q. And trick one
suggests that East has the A-K of
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Page 32 BRIDGE August 2014
clubs. The opponents have half of the
points but where are the red kings?
Surely, they must be divided because
otherwise the bidding doesn’t seem to
add up.
Tony Priday, Gray’s last bridge partner
Deferring the trump decision, declarer
can play a heart to the ace and follow
it with the ♥Q, intending to discard
his losing spade – a type of ‘loser on
(might be) loser play’ that doubles up
as a discovery play.
♠ J 6 5
♥ Q 6 3
♦ Q 9 8 3
♣ Void Acol team S J Simon, Jack Marx,
N
W E
S Albert Rose and the Sharples
♠ 7
♥ Void
♦ A J 10 7 6 4 2
♣ Q 10
In the diagrammed position, if West
wins with the ♥K, then declarer can
win the return, reach dummy with a
club ruff and finesse East for the other
red king confidently.
On the other hand, if East plays the
♥K, then declarer plays for the drop in
trumps.
♠ J 6 5
♥ Q 6 3
♦ Q 9 8 3
♣ Void
N
W E
S
♠ 7
♥ Void
♦ A J 10 7 6 4 2
♣ Q 10
Notice that if West has the doubleton
king of trumps and East the ♥K, then
declarer will always be defeated. Even
if he was never making, he should still
be relieved to be in 5♦ rather than
3NT.
Gray’s major
bridge achievements
European champion in 1948,
1949, 1950 and 1963. Gold Cup
winner seven times. The first time,
in 1937, was with the original
Iain Macleod and Colin Harding;
the last time in 1968 was with
Tony Priday, Nico Gardener,
brothers James and Robert.
Postscript
Of course, a less flashy line is to play
the ♦A and see what happens. Then
you’ll know if the heart finesse is
needed. But don’t you think the first
line is more fun? ■
£20
12 monthly
issues
 2014 with Jeremy Dhondy, Chairman of the EBU
August 2014:
Charity Begins at Home
T
o many of us, charity means
giving money or time to
something we think is a
deserving cause. It might be a cancer
research charity, Oxfam or one of
many others. Generally, people like
making their own decisions and people
who stand on high streets waving tins
at us, or knocking on doors uninvited,
or perhaps sending us mail we didn’t
ask for, annoy us.
Many of us have a working defini-
tion of a charity in our heads and are
sometimes surprised when looking at
a list of charities. Charitable status is
determined by the Government and
the rules governing this have broad-
ened in recent years. This affects
bridge. On April 1st, the education
arm of the English Bridge Union be-
came a charity. That means a differ-
ent tax treatment, possible access to
donations from bodies that would not
consider a non-charity and a number
of other advantages. It’s early days but
one of the requirements is that bridge
is opened up to a wider audience. One
obvious idea is that the EBU courses
for trainee directors and those who
want to be teachers will be thrown
open to more people. The teaching of
bridge not just to the young but also
to those coming up to retirement and
also those who are retired and who,
perhaps, experience a sense of social
isolation will benefit from this conver-
sion to a charity. The increasing num-
ber who will be in retirement, look-
ing for new hobbies, is likely to give
many opportunities to clubs which
have been struggling to retain mem-
bership and also to people who want a
challenging activity to help keep their
brain and social life active.
Later this month, English Bridge
Education and Development (EBED),
the charity, will be running a junior
teach-in at Loughborough University.
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 33
It is for those who have never played
before, those who are beginners and
also more experienced players up to
and including junior internationals.
Those who are doing the teaching have
all volunteered their time. Attendees
sometimes come with parents and
there are bridge activities which also
involve them. If you or someone you
know is interested, then there is more
information at http://www.ebu.co.uk/
youth/Junior-Teach-In. You don’t
need to be an EBU member to take
part. The weekend is subsidised as a
result of a charity donation.
Around ten affiliated clubs and
one county have become charities
in the last few years. The first club in
the country to gain charitable status,
Hitchin, became a charity some time
ago. Their switch to their new status
has led to a wider involvement in the
community and, good for the club,
an increasing membership with a
stronger teaching arm. Other clubs
who have followed the same route
have also noticed these effects. As
the pioneers in this area, Hitchin has
been generous in helping other clubs
wishing to follow a similar route. In
May, one of our counties, Hampshire
and the Isle of Wight, gained
permission to become a charity. The
upshot of this is that it will allow them
to receive a sizeable donation which
will lead to a purpose built bridge
centre for the county. At least one
club has received permission to have
its membership dues for the year gift
aided. There are some hoops to jump
through first, but this possibility is
looking promising for other clubs. The
Club Liaison Officer for the EBU, as
part of his job, has to keep up to date
on all these initiatives so that advice
and help can be offered to affiliated
clubs who wish to go down this route.
That is a new and additional benefit
of affiliation for some. It doesn’t, of
course, stop unaffiliated clubs going
down the same route if they wish to
do so, although thus far membership
of a national body seems to have some
advantage in converting to charitable
status. This may be because of an
assurance that there are rules and
regulations that govern the game
properly and that the club contributes
to this.
I’ve heard it said by some that they
have their own definition of what
constitutes a charity and it doesn’t
include bridge clubs. Fortunately, their
own personal definition and what the
Charity Commissioners believe are
not the same thing. Bridge has a role to
play in our society. It is a useful activity
for the young to learn, it is a way for
our clubs to become more involved
in the community and it is a way for
older members of society not only to
become involved in a social activity
but also to keep their brain active. It
isn’t only the UK that is following
these sorts of initiatives. In Poland,
where bridge is fully recognised as a
sport and therefore has greater access
to funding, there is a large junior
section of players and a programme
for involving older members of society
that has been developing for some
time now. In France, they have run
a series of (expensive) TV adverts on
their equivalent of BBC2 to get more
members from the section of the
community coming up to retirement.
The adverts all show a small green
stick man exercising in the brain area
making a simple, but effective, point.
The charitable link has the capacity
to make a big difference to bridge so
let’s hope we can take advantage.
If you have constructive comment
or feedback on these or other topics,
I will be pleased to hear from you at
jeremy@ebu.co.uk. ■
 David Stevenson answers your questions on Laws and Ethics
Q
I have been
criticised by an
opponent on
more than one occa-
sion for placing my pass
card on the table without
waiting 10 seconds after
he made a ‘stop bid’ ie
1♦- pass-stop 3♦-pass
(from me). Ten seconds
seems a long time to
wait when it is appar-
ent to me that I have no
bid to make. What are
the reasons for this wait
before passing and, if a
wait is required, do the
rules specify 10 seconds?
Name and address supplied.
A
It is true that you
are required by the
regulations of the
game to pause for a reason-
able time whenever your
right hand opponent makes a
jump bid. The recommenda-
tion is that the pause should
be around ten seconds.
You say it is apparent to
you that you have no bid
to make: by not waiting the
required time, you have
made it clear to the oppo-
nents and, more importantly,
to partner, which may create
ethical difficulties for him.
Suppose, to take the
simplest case, you have a
shapely 10 points, LHO bids
3♥-pass-pass to you. Do you
double? If you are ethical,
you will not want your deci-
sion to be affected by know-
ing whether your partner has
a near bid or not: unethical
players will now double if
Page 34 BRIDGE August 2014
Must I Pause
After a Stop Bid?
partner thought for a time,
but pass if he passed quickly.
Ethical players will tend to
do the reverse. But if part-
ner takes a fair time to pass
whether he has a near bid or
a complete bust, there are no
ethical problems whatever.
Note that your opponent
should control the time so
you do not have to worry
about it: he is required to
leave the stop card out
for about ten seconds and
you may not call until he
has removed it. Sadly, too
many club players take
the stop card away im-
mediately, creating fur-
ther ethical problems.
♣♦♥♠
Q
During a rubber
bridge game, the
declarer drew
a card from the dummy
and placed it into play.
Immediately dummy
pointed out that declarer
had not followed suit and
indicated the card which
should have been played.
Ron Nabarro, Poole.
A
This is tricky: dummy
is not allowed to
draw attention to
an irregularity, so should
keep quiet. For example,
too many dummies point
out to declarer that he has
led from the wrong hand,
which is not allowed.
However, the world body
that writes the laws also
pointed out, many years
ago, that dummy should not
play a card from dummy
that constitutes a revoke.
This seems to me to contra-
dict what I have just said!
Perhaps, since he is not
allowed to play it nor draw
attention to it, he should just
sit there and do nothing.
I believe the practical
answer is that since the world
body has spoken we should
treat this as an exception.
So if you are dummy and
partner calls for a card that
would constitute a revoke,
you should point out it
cannot be played. Quote
this article if anyone chal-
lenges your right to do so.
Note that this reply would
be just the same at duplicate.
♣♦♥♠
Q
At my local club
last night, I
revoked. I had
not realised until the
end of play when the
opposition pointed it
out. The declarer, also
the director, awarded
himself four extra tricks
at first, then realised he
needed only three for his
contract and changed
it to three. My partner,
who has played for a
long time, asked the
director to have a look
in his rule book which
he refused to do and
stated he would look at
the end of the evening.
My revoke won the
trick, but if I had fol-
lowed suit, I still would
have won with my card
left in my hand later on.
His abrasive attitude
upset our game for the
last two tables. I am
relatively new to the
game and very much
appreciate your ad-
vice on this matter.
Dorothy Jackson by email.
A
Few clubs would
even have direc-
tors if they were not
allowed to play, so playing
directors are normal. But
such directors need to be
very careful indeed when
ruling at their own table and
it does not sound as though
your director exhibited such
care, especially when ruling
against less experienced
players. It is recommended
that rulings should be read
from the law book: in prac-
tice, directors often do not,
but failure to go and get the
book and read from it when
asked is unacceptable.
Nevertheless, without see-
ing the whole hand, I cannot
tell you whether the ruling is
correct or not. Since you won
the revoke trick and assuming
your side won a later trick,
two tricks are automatically
transferred to the other side.
But if the revoke actually cost
the other side four tricks, then
four tricks are transferred; if
three tricks, then three tricks
are transferred. So the ruling
is possibly correct. If he had
ruled this way he should also
have explained it carefully.
 Ask David continued
Q
Would you please
help me with
a query I have
concerning the new
rules (out about 6 or 7
years ago) regarding
alerting after a 2NT bid?
Is it required to alert 3♣,
stayman, at this level?
June Arditti by email.
A
There was no
change in alerting
responses to 2NT
6 years ago. Stayman,
as all other conventional
responses, was alertable.
However, there has
been a recent change
and now Stayman is an
announcement. So if you
play Stayman in standard
fashion, asking for four card
majors, you just announce,
‘Stayman,’ instead of alerting.
♣♦♥♠
Q
My partner
opened 1♥
and I held:
♠ A 5 2
♥ A Q 8 3
♦ Q 10 8
♣ J 9 7
I was too strong for
3♥ or 4♥ (we play the
E-mail your questions to: davidstevenson@mrbridge.co.uk
DUPLICATE BRIDGE 
RULES SIMPLIFIED
(otherwise known as the Yellow Book)
by John Rumbelow and
revised by David Stevenson
See Mail order form on page 7
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 35
latter as weak) and we
don’t play Jacoby 2NT,
so I temporised with
an invented bid of 2♦,
followed by a delayed
game raise to 4♥.
Our opponents felt that
2♦ should have been
alerted, saying they
expected me to have five
diamonds. My partner
who, equally, did not
expect me to have such
a diamond holding said
he couldn’t be expected
to alert every such
bid just in case I was
inventing something.
I certainly don’t think
two of a minor over one
of a major promises
five cards and is not
therefore alertable.
In the end, it made no
difference, since every
pair bid and made 4♥.
David Barker by email.
A
Too many players
assume everyone
else plays what
they play. It is not normal
to play a 2♦ response to
1♥ as showing five cards
so a response showing four
cards is not alertable.
When you invent a bid
which your partner has no
reason to understand, as
people have been doing
when raising their partner’s
major indirectly for seventy
years, it is not alertable
since it is not one of your
agreements. ■
only
£595
 Misleading Cases Number Eight
After the evidence and Counsels’ closing speeches, his Lordship gave judgment as follows:
“T
his case involves (a) the
game of bridge (which I
have not hitherto played
but have learned a bit about during the
case), (b) a bridge teacher named Mr
Horatio Halibut (the Defendant) and
(c) his erstwhile pupil, Mr Thomas
Trout (the Claimant).
On retirement from the Civil
Service, Mr Trout decided to take up
bridge. In the witness box today, he
said that many people take up the
game at that time of life, though from
what I have learned of it during this
case, I am doubtful if I will myself. Mr
Trout got Mr Halibut’s name from the
website of the English Bridge Union
(the bridge teachers’ regulatory body)
and sent him the following email
(Exhibit A):
‘Dear Horatio (if I may so address
you), I understand that you are a bridge
tutor and I would be pleased if you
would teach me the game, preferably
next Thursday – say 6pm? I imagine
half an hour would be long enough (I
have a PhD in Applied Mathematics
from Cambridge and I learned chess
from scratch in ten minutes). My
friends tell me that, having learned
the game, I should join a bridge club,
so could we go on after the Thursday
lesson to play at the Erehwon Duplicate
Bridge Club (their website says play
starts at 7pm) and perhaps you could
propose me as a member while we are
Page 36 BRIDGE August 2014
THE BRIDGE
LESSON
Trout v. Halibut
before his Honour Judge Kreuz,
in the Small Claims Division
of the Erehwon County Court
there? Also, as I am retired now, I hope
you will be able to give me a discount
on your usual teaching fee. Thanks J
Thomas Trout.’
Sadly, Mr Halibut’s precise response
to this enquiry has not survived (he
must have had fun composing it), but
in any event Mr Trout received (and
apparently accepted) the message that
bridge could not be learned (even by
him) in half an hour. In the end, he
signed up for a series of 12 weekly
lessons of two hours each with Mr
Halibut, postponing meanwhile his
application to join the Bridge Club.
And come September, when Mr
Halibut’s next beginners’ class started,
Mr Trout was there (along with a
number of others) with bus pass and
cheque book.
There was quite a variety of students
in the class, including some who
played kitchen bridge from time to
time, one or two who had studied the
game in the past but not kept it up, one
woman who left after the first lesson
because she thought she was joining
a course on advanced dentistry
and a man who had been under the
impression that the course was part of
Continuing Professional Development
for civil engineers, but stayed on to
learn bridge anyway.
Mr Halibut got the learners to
introduce themselves to each other
and say what experience, if any, they
had of bridge (or even whist). He
then introduced himself, saying that
he had started to learn bridge with
friends on the shores of the Caspian
Sea 50 years ago and, although bridge
lessons did not exist in those days, he
had been addicted to the game ever
since. He went on to explain where the
emergency exits, the loos and the first
aid kits were located and the lesson
began.
The lesson was certainly not what
Mr Trout was expecting. For sure, he
knew the suit symbols, but to begin
with he objected to the fact that an ace
(which he initially called a one) was
senior to a two and said he was going
to launch a petition to change this.
When Mr Halibut started teaching
about the shape of hands, Mr Trout
said that in his view, a hand of 5224
shape was just as balanced as one
of 5332 and, anyway, was there
not a proper mathematical way of
determining whether a person’s hand
was balanced or not? Quick as a flash,
Mr Halibut said yes, of course there
was: if p > 34 (where p = the product
of the lengths of his four suits) then
his hand is balanced: otherwise it is
not. That kept Mr Trout quiet while he
worked out its ramifications.
When Mr Halibut started teaching
how to value a hand of cards, Mr
Trout said that he did not accept that
a jack was worth a whole point.
 Misleading Cases continued
He had worked out on his way to the
lesson that there were about 13 tricks
in a hand of bridge (clearly, he was a
brilliant mathematician): obviously,
he said (aware now that aces were the
most valuable cards in the pack), four
of these tricks (presumably the first
four) would be won by aces and almost
all the rest by kings and queens. So
a jack was pretty worthless and he
personally would be ignoring his jacks
in valuing his hand and would expect
his partners to do likewise.
As recommended by the English
Bridge Union, the class played
minibridge (essentially bridge without
the bidding) during their first lesson,
with an initial demonstration by
Mr Halibut of how it was played. Mr
Halibut sat down in the South seat at a
table with three of his pupils and, after
shuffling the cards, the hands were
dealt:
♠ A K 2
♥ J 9 4 3
♦ A J 3 Mr Trout simply played each suit ‘from
♣ 7 5 4
♠ Q 10 8 6 ♠ 7 5
♥ 8 6 N ♥ Q 10 7 2
W E
♦ 9 5 2 S ♦ Q 10 6 4
♣ Q J 8 2 ♣ 9 6 3
♠ J 9 4 3
♥ A K 5
♦ K 8 7
♣ A K 10
Contract: 3NT.
Lead: ♣Q.
The rest of the class crowded round
to watch. The four players picked up
their cards, except that North’s cards
were placed face up on the table for all
to see. Mr Halibut explained that he
was South (declarer) partnering North
(dummy) and his task was to make
at least nine tricks for North-South,
without a trump suit (trumps would
be covered in lesson 2) and without
his seeing East’s and West’s cards. He
asked West to lead a card – any card –
and West led the queen of clubs.
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 37
As it happened, Mr Halibut made
only eight tricks, but he laughed it off,
saying that even experts cannot always
make their contracts.
Mr Halibut then asked if anyone
else would like to play the same deal
again, but with the East and West
hands shuffled and redealt. Mr Trout
volunteered and, on being selected, sat
down in the South seat.
The hands, as redealt, were now:
♠ A K 2
♥ J 9 4 3
♦ A J 3 Claims Court.
♣ 7 5 4
♠ 8 7 6 5 ♠ Q 10
♥ Q 10 N ♥ 8 7 6 2
W E
♦ 10 6 5 4 2 S ♦ Q 9
♣ Q J ♣ 9 8 6 3 2
♠ J 9 4 3
♥ A K 5
♦ K 8 7
♣ A K 10
Contract: 3NT.
Lead: ♣Q.
Again the queen of clubs was led and
the top’ (as Mr Halibut derisively put
it in his evidence), making 14 tricks
easily (four spades, four hearts, three
diamonds and three clubs).
He then turned to Mr Halibut
and said that he had not been at all
impressed by the latter’s earlier card
play, in particular because he had not
always played a high honour when he
could – Mr Halibut had called this
approach a finesse, but Mr Trout called
it ‘carelessnesse’ or ‘forgetfulnesse’.
Mr Trout then announced to the
class that, from what he had seen so
far, he personally would not gain any
benefit from further lessons with Mr
Halibut so would not be coming to
bridge classes again, though he would
be going to the bridge club to fine-
tune his technique. Meanwhile, he
said, turning back to Mr Halibut, he
would be grateful for the return of his
cheque.
Mr Halibut says he was embarrassed
and insulted, not to mention surprised,
by this request (which he rejected) but
worse was to follow.
A few days later, a letter (Exhibit
B) arrived from Mr Trout’s solicitors,
Messrs Tite, Lynes & Co.
They alleged that Mr Halibut was a
poor bridge player and a worse teacher
and pointed out, having enquired
of the English Bridge Union, that
Mr Halibut had no bridge teaching
qualifications and was not even a
grandmaster. They went on to demand
a refund of Mr Trout’s course fee
and travelling expenses, as well as
compensation for wasted time. Mr
Halibut again declined to pay up. And
now the matter has come to the Small
Having heard the details of this
dispute and the evidence of both
parties, I have to decide whose
evidence to prefer.
I am bound to say that I prefer the
evidence of a retired senior Civil
Servant (especially one who is an
advanced mathematician and even
more especially one who was at my
own Alma Mater) to that of a mere
(unqualified and, indeed, untrained)
bridge teacher.
Also Mr Halibut did not present
the bridge-teaching profession (if
indeed it can be called a profession) in
a good light. It was not clever of him
to conduct the lesson in the way he
did and surely a bridge teacher should
have taken at least as many tricks with
the North/South hands as his pupil, a
total beginner.
I sympathise, too, with Mr Trout’s
criticism of the point count system
and no doubt his views on the subject
will be considered very carefully when
he next plays at the Erehwon Duplicate
Bridge Club. As for the formula to
ascertain whether a hand is balanced, I
am not sure whether it is valid, but if it
is,* then some good will have come out
of this case and no doubt the formula
will be found very useful in beginners’
bridge lessons in future.
Judgment for the Claimant, Mr
Thomas Trout. Under the rules of
the Small Claims Court, each party
bears his own costs, which no doubt
explains why neither party is legally
represented here today.”
Reporter: Richard Wheen,
after A.P. Herbert
*It is. R.F.W. ■
 V OYAGES A NTIQUITY TO

bridge cruises to
ancient civilisations
aboard Aegean Odyssey

Combine a daily duplicate with the best of cultural travel

and the comfort of small-ship cruising
The philosophy of our bridge cruises is simple – to relax
and play bridge with like-minded people in comfortable
surroundings while sampling the culture and the history
of each daily destination.
With the experience gained from several seasons of working
with Voyages to Antiquity, each new itinerary offers the
chance to indulge your passion for bridge in comfortable
and welcoming surroundings while exploring many of the
great classical sites and fascinating cultures of the world.
Classically elegant, but far from formal, Aegean Odyssey
provides gracious public rooms, a choice of two restaurants
with open-seating dining, generously-sized suites and
cabins and outstanding, friendly service. Her size means
she has the ability to visit ports that are too small for larger
vessels – from the classical sites of the Mediterranean,
Aegean and Black Sea to the great cities of Asia.
Accommodating around 350 guests, with a casual and
relaxed atmosphere on board, Aegean Odyssey offers the
bridge player every comfort at sea.

Benefits of cruising with Mr Bridge:

Special Mr Bridge fares across all cabin categories – Daily bridge on board and bridge fees included in the fare
Each voyage accompanied by bridge team – Mr Bridge welcome and farewell drinks parties
Friendly fares for single travellers (a bridge partner will always be found) – Extra discounts for previous passengers

Also included in your fare:

• SCHEDULED FLIGHTS FROM UK & REGIONAL CONNECTIONS
•TRANSFERS AND BAGGAGE HANDLING ABROAD • SHORE EXCURSIONS IN MOST PORTS
• EXPERT ANTIQUITY GUEST SPEAKERS • OPEN-SEATING DINING
10093 • WINE INCLUDED WITH DINNER ON BOARD • ON-BOARD TIPS & GRATUITIES INCLUDED
ABTA No.Y2206

For reservations call on 01483 489961 or visit www.mrbridge.co.uk

READERS’
LETTERS
IDEAL WAY
Christopher Dicker raises
some relevant points in his
letter to BRIDGE 138.
He is correct that, in
many small clubs, the
unpaid and playing director
is the general dogsbody,
responsible for doing
everything from collecting
money to putting up tables
and making the coffee. Total
reliance on one person is the
sign of an unhealthy club.
If that one person leaves,
the club is likely to die.
For many years, I ran
director training courses
for the EBU. These issues
came up frequently. Those
attending were frequently
rather apprehensive and
far from being convinced
of their own infallibility
and conscious only of a
need to help their clubs.
My advice for clubs is:
1. The director has two
functions. Apply the laws and
make sure the movement
works. The director may
or may not score (after
the event) as well. That is
quite enough for any non-
professional director. The
director should explain to
the club committee that
REDUCE THE COST OF YOUR POSTAGE
as well as 1st and 2nd class (eg 2nd class: 100x37p+100x16p).
(/Fax 020 8422 4906 e-mail: clive.goff@londonrugby.com
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 39
he will not take part in any
other activity. The committee
should realise that is in the
best interest of the club.
2. The director is in
charge of an evening but it
is helpful if other directors
are willing to answer calls.
3. Even with this relatively
limited role, everybody
should recognise the director
is making sacrifices to his
own game for the benefit
of the club and has a
difficult role. The laws are
not straightforward for an
amateur director. It is to be
expected that the director
will make mistakes and I
would suggest that if people
want to grumble about the
director, they might consider
whether they are prepared
to do the job themselves.
4. All clubs should aim
for the norm that as soon
as anything goes wrong
the director is called. The
director may sometimes be
wrong but he is unbiased.
The alternative is that the
players decide themselves
and those with the most
dominant personalities get
their own way. There is a very
simple and obvious principle:
no player ever has the right
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
to tell another player what to
do at the table. Comments
like, ‘You cannot bid after
your partner’s hesitation,’
or, ‘You must make your
insufficient bid good,’ or,
‘You didn’t specify which card
to play so I insist you play
the lowest,’ are wrong by law
and contradict every principle
of justice. The player saying
this to an opponent has an
obvious conflict of interest.
Andrew Kambites
by email.
OUR GOLDEN GIRL
Please award Jessica 10
Gold Stars for her patience
and skill in helping me install
QPlus10 on Windows 7. It is
tested and everything works.
There may be other people
with QPlus10, who upgrade
to Windows 7 and face the
same difficulty as I did. They
should give Jessica a call.
Philip Medcalf,
Trowbridge,
Wiltshire.
NEW SUBSCRIBER
I enclose a cheque for
£20 being the introductory
annual subscription
for your magazine.
I have enjoyed reading
free copies of BRIDGE for
quite some years and am
pleased to subscribe to what
I consider to be a very good,
informative and educational
facility for the majority
of bridge enthusiasts.
Mrs J Macreadie,
Rotherham,
South Yorkshire.
THE BERNARD OPTION
I am trying to improve my
bridge. I have been reading
your magazine for quite a
few years now, have been
on a couple of weekends
and have bought a
copy of QPlus. I have
also started playing at
a local bridge club.
I have only recently started
to use QPlus, but I have
found it quite difficult to
set up. What I think I was
hoping for was a program
that would take all of the
improvements in Acol, which
you have taught me: weak
no-trump, Stayman, red-
suit transfers, weak twos,
RKCB, cue bids, splinters,
fourth suit forcing, gambling
3NT, double for take-out
vs penalties etc. and play
those conventions with the
additional option of adding,
say, Michaels cue bids, when
I feel like experimenting.
Of course, not all of your
contributors play the
same system, but I get the
impression of a general
consensus on these things.
I am sure that all of the
options I have listed above
are possible within QPlus,
but there are so many
options I have no idea
what to set. I am sure I
have ended up with
a mish-mash.
The program certainly does
not behave as I would have
expected a player schooled
in the Mr Bridge system to
behave. I would find it helpful
to have a guide as to what to
set within QPlus to have the
program bid and understand
my bids according to the
broad guidelines that your
magazine promotes.
Oliver Buckley,
London W6.
QPlus versions 10 and 11
have the Bernard Magee
options: Acol or Advanced
Acol. Go to configuration
and take your choice.
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
THE FUTURE
In BRIDGE 138, Christopher
Dicker says that computer
dealing is out of the question
for ‘once-a-week’ clubs
who meet in church halls,
due to the cost and storage
of the equipment needed.
I disagree, for I run such a
club using computer dealt
hands without a Duplimate
or any dealing machine.
I purchased Dealmaster
software and make up the
hands manually from the
computer print-out. The
members like them and
hence won’t be thrown when
they meet computer dealt
hands in tournaments. As
well as getting a print-out of
the hands, they get computer
analysis showing the number
of tricks that can be made
with best play on both sides.
If the cards are pre-suited by
the members, it takes about
40 minutes to make up 24
boards. If a non-playing
member of the club is not
available to do this,
then you simply find a
bright teenager who
wants to make some
extra pocket money.
Give it a try at your club,
you won’t regret it. Once
your members get used to
more exciting hands with
the print-outs, they will
never want to go back to
the old ways. After all, has
any club who introduced
bidding boxes ever gone
back to silent bidders?
Ian Dalziel,
Troon, Ayrshire.
A USEFUL BRICK
A correspondent in BRIDGE
138 remarks that the cost
and storage of computer-
dealing equipment is out
of the question. Orpington
Bridge Club is quite small (5
Page 40 BRIDGE August 2014
or 6 tables) and used to think
the same but most members
greatly welcome having
hand records and the only
practical way to get them
is with computer dealing. It
doesn’t have to be expensive.
Next time your club
replaces your cards, buy
them with bar codes for
the same cost as the plain
equivalents. Then spend
just a few hundred pounds
– around a pound a table
for a year – for a low cost
computer-assisted dealing
machine which will work
with a cheap windows PC.
The 6-year old netbook we
use is perfectly adequate.
The dealing machine we
have (HandyDup) differs
from full-priced machines
by replacing the automatic
card sorter with a light
for each compass point:
swipe a face down card by
hand across the bar code
reader and drop it in the
indicated pile. Once the
knack is acquired, it takes
about five minutes to deal
three boards, including
taking the cards out of the
board and putting them
back – roughly the same as
thorough manual shuffling
and dealing. The software
is the same as that which
powers full-priced machines.
It generates provably random
hands and gives the same
double-dummy analysis
of makeable contracts.
Storage is trivial: the
machine is a little smaller
than a litre juice brick.
We take ours to the game
and have twice used it to
correct misboards in a
few seconds by re-dealing
only the hand with excess
cards with no need even
to look at a hand record.
( 01689 819228
( 07519 985547
Tom Smith
(or Mike)
by email.
BETTER DREAMS
Your new insurance company
in the BRIDGE magazine,
Genesis Choice with Mr Tom
Evans, was very impressive –
booking with multiple health
issues is always a nightmare.
Dr Gould,
Denmead, Hampshire.
SHE PLAYS BRIDGE
I thought this introduction by
Martina Navratilova to a new
book by Audrey Grant might
be of interest to your readers.
Syd Zoltie, Edinburgh.
Why Play Bridge
You may be confused as to
why Martina Navratilova
is writing the introduction
to a bridge book.
The answer is that I believe
it takes a strong mind,
as well as a strong body,
to live life to its fullest.
Bridge is more than
just a card game. It’s a
cerebral sport. Bridge
teaches you logic,
reasoning, quick thinking,
patience, concentration
and partnership skills.
Last year at Wimbledon,
when we got rained out, I
spent my time playing bridge
to keep me sharp and on my
toes. An evening of bridge at
home with family and friends
is so much more fulfilling
than sitting watching TV.
The American Contract
Bridge League has
commissioned one of the
world’s most successful bridge
teachers, Audrey Grant, to
write this book. Audrey has
taken what many people
consider a complex game and
made it easy and fun to learn.
Bridge has meant a lot to
me in my travels. No matter
where I go, I can always
make new friends at the table.
You know, tennis is a sport
for a lifetime and bridge is a
game for a lifetime. It can be
enjoyed by young and old,
male and female, weak and
strong. It crosses all barriers.
Take this book home
with you today. Start
learning a game and a
sport to last a lifetime.
Martina Navratilova.
BEGGING LETTER
Myself and lots of different
friends (and partners,
sometimes) have attended
many of your bridge
weekends and always found
them to be most enjoyable.
I belong to a charity
committee called Breakaway.
We are a registered charity
raising money for special
needs children nationwide.
We have been in existence
now for almost forty years
and in that time we have
raised nearly four million
pounds, but to keep doing
this we need support.
On November 3rd, I am
running a Bridge Luncheon
at the Hartsbourne Country
Club in Bushey. I expect
about 120 supporters and we
are charging £30 per head.
Therefore we would like a
very special raffle prize and
wonder whether you could
help by donating a weekend
away. Obviously this would
be very well liked and could
persuade people to spend
more money on the raffle.
I would be so grateful if
you could send me a voucher
so that the winner could
choose which weekend
would be suitable.
Thank you in advance.
Angela Goodman
by email.
The margins do not allow for
such generosity. However I
will send you a DVD box set.
SPECIAL NEEDS
Having just received your
latest brochure on your
2015 cruises, all of which
look fascinating, I was very
disappointed to note that
there is only one disabled
cabin on the Aegean
READERS’ LETTERS
continued
Odyssey, and given that
Voyages of Discovery
refuse to allow any
passengers to board
Voyager unless they can
walk up the gangplank,
I find myself excluded.
Having thoroughly  computers, so really what I
enjoyed your tutorials
and bridge sessions in
Worthing, Blunsdon and
Tunisia, I have since
embarked on a number of
cruises without any problems.
I hope that you will give some
thought to alternative ships
with suitable accommodation
as I am sure I am not the
only person who enjoys
bridge and cruising, is
mentally and physically fit,
but confined to a wheelchair.
Cruising gives my wife
and myself the opportunity
to meet people and for
my wife to go ashore and
see the sights when it is
impractical for me to do so.
James Ashton by email.
I hope to be able to
announce a couple of
sailings, catering better
for disabled people, in
the very near future.
MIND BOGGLING
We are looking for a
movement when our club
plays against another
club, as follows:
16 players in each team
arranged in 4 sub-teams of 4
people with each sub-team to
play against all the opposing
4 sub-teams. Is there a
movement which allows this,
without the need to reshuffle
boards on the last round?
Mr & Mrs R Odell,
Tingewick, Buckingham.
I have sent this on to David
Stevenson. If you have
similar enquiries, please
contact davidstevenson@
mrbridge.co.uk directly.
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 41
SCORING
For my sins I have taken on
the marking of the travellers
at our smallish (but very
friendly) bridge club. I
wondered if Mr Bridge had
some software which I could
put into the computer to
do the scoring. We are not
a large sophisticated club,
many members haven’t
need is something whereby
I could put in the scores and
the computer could give me
the results. I can finish it
off on a sheet we have and
show it at the next meeting.
They are not interested in
percentages etc. just who
has come first, second, third
etc. I do hope you can help.
Janet Whaley, West
Bridgford, Nottingham.
Jeff Smith has a free
program for scoring
duplicate pairs, PairsScorer.
Download it from:
http://homepages.
nildram.co.uk/~jasmith/
download.htm
MANY THANKS
Thank you for sending the
information. The years
have caught up with me
and I am no longer able to
undertake journeys. I have
very much enjoyed every
Mr Bridge event that I have
been able to attend and I
thank you for what you do.
Please know that you
enable people to meet
and share and enjoy life
and bridge together which
is a very considerable
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.
contribution. OK, you
Mr Bridge
make money at it but we
too are the richer for it,
so a big thank you.
Yvonne Wavell by email.
2015
NEW GAME NEEDED
On Wednesday 14th May, I
got an email from you saying
Bridge
Players’
that BRIDGE 138 was now
available on-line and printed
copies would be posted out
the next day to subscribers.
I much prefer the printed
copy to reading it on-line so
Diaries
looked forward to my copy
arriving through the post.
However, I was so keen to
read my favourite articles that
I printed a few each day and
read them in advance. By the
time the magazine arrived
by post on Monday 19th
May, I had printed all the
48 pages. What a waste Contents include
of paper. Perhaps I lead a
very sad life but it is such a ♦ Acol Summary
good magazine I just couldn’t by Bernard Magee.
resist peeking. Might it be ♦ Guide to the Laws.
possible to delay putting the
magazine on-line till it arrives ♦ Scoring Tables for
through our letter boxes? duplicate and
rubber bridge.
Ian Dalziel,
Troon, Ayrshire. ♦ Distributional odds.
Perhaps you should take
up a new game. Patience is ♦ Hand patterns and
one that springs to mind. fascinating figures.
♦ Cover colours: Red, Navy,
SO IT’S GOODBYE Green, Burgundy.
I have enjoyed BRIDGE
very much over the years. ♦ All covers printed in
gold-coloured ink.
I see you now want £20
from me to continue. Sorry, I ♦ Individual diaries £6.95
don’t see the point of paying each including p&p.
for a cruise brochure.
Mrs E Nice, ♦ Special concession
to clubs and teachers.
Long Marston, York. ■ 10 for £35,
thereafter £3.50 each
including p&p.
♦ Luxury version with super-
soft kidrell cover, gilded
page edges and
a ball-point pen attached,
in ruby red or navy blue.
£14.95 each including p&p.
See Mail Order
Form on page 7.
 Catching Up by Sally Brock
I
n the last issue, I left you just
before we flew to Ireland to play
in the Killarney Congress. Our
journey there was uneventful and
we picked up our hire car and drove
the hour and a half or so from Cork
to Killarney. We found our rented
accommodation easily enough –
and, if I say so myself, I could hardly
have done better. It was a spacious,
nicely furnished and decorated, four-
bedroom house, just over the road
from the Lake Hotel where the bridge
was to be played. We met up with Roz
who was sharing with us. Roz and I
went shopping for food while Barry
and another couple of friends watched
the FA Cup final. We were impressed
by the Lidl supermarket – I’d not
been to one before. We succumbed to
the delicious-looking (and delicious-
tasting) scones which we took back for
tea.
The following day, we played in
the two-session congress pairs and
finished third. This early board gave
Barry a fright:
Dealer East. Love All.
♠ A K 7 4
♥ J
♦ 6 3 2
♣ A K 8 6 4
♠ Q J 9 8 5 2 ♠ 6 3
N
♥ Q 10 9 8 4 2
W E
♥ K 5
♦ 8 S ♦ Q J 10 9 5
♣ Void ♣ J 10 9 3
♠ 10
♥ A 7 6 3
♦ A K 7 4
♣ Q 7 5 2
After I (East) passed, South opened
one club and Barry bid two clubs,
showing the majors. North bid four
clubs and this was passed around to
Barry. Not famous for being able to
keep his mouth shut when needed,
he bid four hearts. North bid five
clubs and I doubled, thinking that
Page 42 BRIDGE August 2014
my trump trick, diamond strength
and heart king should be enough to
combine with Barry’s values to take
three defensive tricks. At this stage,
North said to his partner, ‘We agreed
that all four club bids were slam tries.’
(This is not the sort of congress where
you would ever call the tournament
director for this sort of thing.) And
there we were.
Some people find it difficult to play
hands where the longer trumps are in
dummy rather than declarer’s hand
(actually, I remember struggling with
this myself). Declarer’s plan should
have been to ruff spades in her hand,
but, instead, she tried to ruff hearts
in the dummy. As she had drawn
one round of trumps at the start,
I overruffed the second heart ruff
and drew another round of trumps,
leaving her a trick short.
On the Monday, John arrived and
played with Roz with Barry and
me in the mixed teams – played
over two consecutive evenings. The
Manchester Nelson team were in the
lead throughout. We did quite well but
were 12 VPs behind them going into
the last match. We did OK and were
the first pair to finish. The news was
that Nelson scored only 3 VPs. We
scored up anxiously but found that we
had just done enough to pip them.
Almost as soon as we arrived, there
was the bad news that Roz’s father
was ill. She finally gave up trying
to sort things out long distance and
flew home on Wednesday evening, so
in the Women’s teams, I played with
Kath Nelson, Jean Keen and Suzy
Lawson and we won that too. In the
Mixed Pairs, I played with John and
an indifferent performance by both of
us saw us finish an undistinguished
fourth.
Because my American friend Kate
cancelled, we needed a fourth for
the teams and were lucky enough to
procure Irish international Padraig
O’Brian to make up the numbers and
play with John. Somehow, everything
went right with this event and we
managed to win with two matches to
spare. Because we were flying home on
the Sunday night, we left the problem
of getting whatever prizes we had won
back to England with John. Maybe we
should open a crystal shop some time
soon.
The thing about Killarney is the
scenery. To start with, the playing area
is not some internal room without
windows that you generally find in
a conference hotel. There is a huge
picture window running the whole
length of the bridge room and all you
can see is the lake and the mountains
behind. No houses or other sign of
human habitation. It really is glorious
and, during the week, the bridge is only
in the evenings, so you have the day
free to do whatever you like. We drove
around the Dingle peninsula one day
and the Ring of Kerry another. Perhaps
the high spot was the Three Lakes boat
trip. There were about a dozen of us in
a small motorboat and, at one place,
we had to get out so the boat would be
light enough to get through a shallow
gap. The only problem was that it was
very cold on the water, so when we
stopped at Lord Brandon’s Cottage for
lunch, we took up the offer to return
by jaunty cart – a horse-drawn trap.
This went up and over a mountain pass
and we had to get out and walk the
steeper patches to give the poor horse
a rest. All in all, a really nice break and
I would thoroughly recommend the
congress for any of you who fancy a
change of scenery for your bridge.
Aside from this, there has been a
bit of a hullabaloo about the issue of
whether Briony can accompany me to
Croatia. For various reasons, I felt I did
not want to leave her at home for all
that time and asked if she could come
with me. But the Selection Committee
felt that she would be a distraction, so
for a while there was uncertainty as to
if I would be playing at all and indeed
whether the rest of the team would go
either, but … ■
 Seven Days
by Sally Brock
Friday
… at long last, everything is sorted
for Croatia. Briony has permission to
come with me, provided she brings a
friend with her. The time has come to
forget all the brou-ha-ha and focus on
the European Championships.
Just after 11am, the three of us (Toby,
Briony and I) set off for Ilmington
where we are meeting my parents and
other, rather more distant, relatives
(aunt, cousin, nephew etc) for lunch.
Toby drives. When Toby first passed
his driving test, I couldn’t find a
company who would insure him (the
best – and only – offer I got was to
add him as a named driver on my ten-
year-old car for £6,600). The converse
now seems to have happened. A mere
18 months later, a period in which he
has not driven at all, I could put him
on the insurance of Briony’s car from
the beginning of May until the end
of October for a mere £176 (though it
would have cost £180 per month to do
it a month at a time). Now he is a bit
rusty and we welcome the opportunity
for him to practise motorway driving
with us in the car, prior to driving
on his own. We have an excellent
lunch and catch up on all the family
gossip and start to head back to High
Wycombe at about 4pm. The traffic is
dire and instead of the hour and 15
minutes it took us to get there, it takes
us three hours to get home.
I leap in and out of the house again
quickly as I have a date in London
half an hour later. With clear roads,
the journey takes 45 minutes, but
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 43
traffic problems continue and I don’t
arrive until 8.15pm. Nicola and I are
practising by playing in TGR’s Friday-
night IMP pairs. I arrive after seven
boards to find we are lying bottom with
–25 IMPs. Things improve slightly but
we still don’t manage to finish average.
After the game, someone suggests we
play a further 12 boards as a friendly
team match. Grateful for all the
practice we can get, we’re up for that
and redeem ourselves slightly despite
losing 12 IMPs on the following board
rather unexpectedly:
Dealer South. Game All.
♠ 10 4 3
♥ 10 9 6 5 4
♦ 5 3
♣ J 7 3
♠ A Q 9 8 ♠ J 7 5 2
♥ K 7 3 2 N ♥ J 8
W E
♦ Void S ♦ A 10 9 8 6 2
♣ A 9 8 6 2 ♣ 4
♠ K 6
♥ A Q
♦ K Q J 7 4
♣ K Q 10 5
If you open one no-trump (or two no-
trumps) and partner bids Stayman or
a transfer and the next hand doubles,
what does redouble mean for you and
your partner? For me, if partner has bid
Stayman, then the redouble suggests
we play there; but if partner has
transferred, then redouble says, ‘I am
maximum with three-card support,’
making it easy for partner to compete
further if needed. The reason for this
is that, generally speaking, partner has
some values to use Stayman, but often
does not when making a transfer.
However, on this deal neither North-
South were a regular partnership. In
both rooms, this is the start to the
auction:
West North East South
2NT
Pass 3♦ Dbl Rdbl
Pass 3♥ Pass ?
For some reason, both Souths think
three hearts is forcing. At my table,
South bids three no-trumps and my
double closes the auction. I lead a club.
Declarer wins and tries the ace and
queen of hearts, which I duck. She
then plays the king of diamonds which
Nicola wins and switches to a spade.
We take four spade tricks, the king of
hearts and ace of clubs. +800.
In the other room, South raises three
hearts to four, again doubled. This is
much worse because the defenders
manage a cross-ruff. When the smoke
has cleared, the penalty is 1,400. South,
at this table, is berating his partner for
not passing three diamonds redoubled.
However, I think that contract should
go for 2,200!
Saturday
After a nice lie-in we realise that we
have two cars in London, which is one
too many. Margaret and Martin are
coming to dinner in High Wycombe,
so we come up with the plan of my
 Seven Days continued
driving home in Barry’s car (a two-
seater Mazda MX5) while he drives
my car and Margaret and Martin
later on. A side benefit, to me, of this
arrangement, is that I get to travel
with the roof off. The traffic doesn’t
seem to have improved since yesterday
and it takes me longer than usual, but
the sun is shining, so I don’t care.
I get home and have a quick salad
lunch with Briony before setting off to
Waitrose to look for a coconut yogurt
(one made with coconut milk, not just
coconut flavoured) that Briony has
heard about. We are always looking for
new foods she can eat (i.e. ones without
dairy or wheat/grain products).
Toby has been doing most of the
cooking in the household since he has
been home and we have been enjoying
a high standard of cuisine. He was
keen to cook for Margaret and Martin,
so has taken on the responsibility of
the catering for this evening. What a
treat for me.
He does brilliantly. He has his friend
Tom as a sous-chef and Briony as a
sous-sous-chef (responsible for the
vegetables). We start with artichokes
with home-made Hollandaise sauce.
Then, it’s venison steaks with red-wine
gravy, new potatoes and perfectly
cooked sugar-snap peas, baby corn
and French beans. For dessert, it is
chocolate lava cakes. I am so proud of
them all. The food is delicious and it
is great to be all together enjoying the
evening.
Sunday
Today is the Hubert Phillips final. Our
team is Barry, Robert Sheehan, Gun-
nar Hallberg and me. Our opponents
are Sheffield-based: Tom Gisborne,
Sandy Davies, Mike Pomfrey and
Dave Robinson. We meet halfway, in
Coventry, to do battle over 60 boards.
I had not been to the Coventry Bridge
Club before and am quite impressed. It
is part of a sports centre and, as well as
the playing conditions being excellent,
on a Sunday there is a carvery, avail-
able all day, in the restaurant.
We play 30 boards and break for a
Page 44 BRIDGE August 2014
late lunch. At this stage we are 670 up,
but then we lose a few, partly because
of this slam deal which our opponents
handle very well.
Dealer West. N/S Game.
♠ K 9 7
♥ A 9 6 2
♦ A
♣ A J 10 8 5
♠ J 4 ♠ 10 6 2
♥ 10 8 7 N ♥ K Q 5 4
W E
♦ Q J 5 4 S ♦ 10 3
♣ 7 4 3 2 ♣ K Q 9 6
♠ A Q 8 5 3
♥ J 3
♦ K 9 8 7 6 2
♣ Void
The key decision is what to respond
initially with that South hand after
partner opens one club. Our South
decides to respond one spade and this
is their auction:
West North East South
Pass 1♣ Pass 1♠
Pass 3♠ Pass 4♦
Pass 4♠ All Pass
North, knowing that if he reversed
into two hearts he had no agreements
about how to proceed, decides to make
life simple by jumping to three spades
(note that if there is a 4-4 heart fit, then
South will always hold five spades).
Then, after the four diamond natural
slam try, he decides to sign off because
he is a trump short.
This is the auction in the other room:
West
Pass
North East
1♣ Pass 1♦
South
Pass 1♥ Pass 1♠
Pass 2NT Pass 3♠
Pass 6♠ All Pass
North realised that his hand could
hardly be stronger if his partner had
some slam interest and expected that
if South was weak, then he would
have started with one spade. A well-
deserved swing of 750 points.
With ten boards to go we are behind
– by 10 aggregate points. Everyone
scours their memories to see if they
have missed any honours. I play with
Barry for the last ten boards and they
are very flat. Seven flat games and
three partscores. It looks as if it’s all
going to be down to overtricks. When
it is all over, we don’t do so well on the
overtricks, but there is one partscore
swing in our favour. We win by 180
aggregate points. The match is played
in a great spirit and, after having a
drink with our opponents, we drop
Robert and Gunnar off at the station
before heading home. We grab fish
and chips on the way, then Barry
heads back to London.
Monday
I’m up early to squeeze some work in.
Nothing on the travel guide scene,
but bits and pieces to do: writing
and working on ProBridge (if you
haven’t had a chance to look at the
new site, do go to www.pro-bridge.
co.uk and take a look – or follow us
on Facebook (ProBridge) and Twitter
(@ProBridgeUK). I’m working on
putting up an international calendar
of events – not everyone wants an
organised bridge holiday and just
taking a holiday around a tournament
in a good location is the sort of thing
I like to do. After that, I’m thinking
of a ‘Hand of the Day’ to attract web
viewers.
For lunch, we are joined by Jess,
Briony’s friend who is coming to
Croatia with her. I enjoy being able to
spend a little time with the kids and
their friends.
In the evening, I have an hour’s
online practice with Nicola against
Fee and Catherine and then a two-
hour professional slot with my Irish
women. If you are a woman and play
online, I will give you a little tip: it’s a
really good time to do your nails. You
can varnish each one while waiting for
someone else to bid/play and there is
no temptation to get up while they dry
and do something too early.
Tuesday
Today is my birthday lunch. I share
a birthday with Michele Barker, who
used to play in the English women’s
team before she retired to have kids.
We decided to have a combined birth-
day lunch on the Tattershall Castle,
 Seven Days continued
a floating restaurant moored near
Embankment tube station. I discov-
ered this place last year and it is ex-
cellent and very good value (unlike
most of the actual restaurants on the
river). You can’t book a table, so we
need to get there early to make sure
of our place. Briony and I drive in her
car which we park at Westfield (that’s
good value too, for London, at only £6
for 24 hours). We do a quick shop and
then head off on the underground.
We get there first as intended and bag
three tables on deck as the weather is
glorious. There are nearly twenty of
us in total and we drink lots of white
wine and eat their sharing platters un-
til about four o’clock (though I am not
the last to leave). I get back to Barry’s
about 5.30pm – just time to soak my
aching feet (the problem with heels)
for half an hour before setting off
again.
We are out to dinner with my old
friend and bridge partner Steve Lodge
and his girlfriend Sophie. He has been
living in the US full time but has sold
his apartment in New York and bought
a riverside one in Battersea. We have a
drink while enjoying the glorious river
view. Then, we walk along the river to
London House, a new Gordon Ramsey
restaurant.
Wednesday
I had a date to spend today with my very
good friend Carol from Nottingham.
Amongst other things, we intended to
go to the Matisse Cut-Out Exhibition
at the Tate Modern. Unfortunately, she
had to cancel because of family illness,
so Briony and I are going to spend the
day together instead. We meet for a
coffee at Carluccio’s in Westfield and
go directly to Oxford Street for a bit
of shopping before getting a tube to
Waterloo and walking along the river
to the Tate Modern. We have a spot
of lunch in the café there and then
go to the exhibition. I love the simple
lines and bold colours. Then it’s back
to Westfield for a bit more shopping.
I have to say I’m a bit exhausted by the
end of it all. I didn’t sleep very well and
BRIDGE August 2014 Page 45
we have done a lot of walking. Briony
drops me off at Barry’s and the first
thing I do is sleep. Then Barry cooks
me sausages and mash and we watch
the athletics on TV.
Thursday
61 today. I get up slowly. The weather
is glorious and I drive home in Barry’s
car with the roof down, getting home
just after 11.30am. The kids have gone
to an enormous amount of trouble
to make the day special for me. They
take me into the garden with a cold
drink and give me their presents and
cards, as well as a few cards that have
arrived in the post. Have you seen
a TV quiz show called The Chase?
Well, a few weeks ago, I was on there
as a question, ‘What card game does
Sally Brock, multiple world champion
and Sunday Times columnist, play?’
(The contestant didn’t get it right).
Several people have told me about it,
but Briony had managed to get a DVD
of that particular show by writing to
the relevant person and asking nicely.
From Toby, I get a wine glass marked
‘small glass’, ‘large glass’ and ‘Sally’s on Jersey and Sally does not
glass’!
They have also prepared a picnic, so
we drive to Marlow and walk along
the river for a while before sitting
down on the bank and eating it – all
my favourite food. Then Briony and
I saunter along Marlow High Street
while Toby sits in the car waiting for
us. When I get home, I potter about for
a bit and then they give me a ‘bath set’.
They have put together in a box some
candles and matches, my favourite
section of the newspaper, a canned
gin and tonic plus crystal glass and
some luxury bubble bath. I’m usually a
shower person as I’m always in a rush,
so it is a real treat to spend an hour
soaking. Then, we have a barbecue (all
prepared and cooked by them) using
the new equipment we had bought at
the Ideal Home Exhibition a couple of
months ago. Again, all my favourites.
That all takes a long time and it is
really nice to relax and chat (using
the wine glass, of course) in the even-
ing sunshine. Afterwards, we move
inside and watch the aforementioned
quiz programme. A really lovely birth-
day. ■
Dramatis Personae
Sally Brock lives in High Wycombe
with her two teenage children, her
husband Raymond having died in early
2008. She works partly as a bridge
professional, occasionally playing for
pay but more often writing (she is the
bridge columnist for The Sunday Times)
and teaching online; the rest of the time
she works on the production of travel
guides – hence the occasional reference
to rather obscure countries. She has
been a member of the British/English
women’s team on and off since 1979.
Briony & Toby are Sally’s 18-year-
old daughter and 19-year-old son.
Barry Myers is Sally’s new partner,
both at and away from the bridge
table. He is a criminal defence barrister
and lives in Shepherd’s Bush.
Nicola Smith is Sally’s current
international bridge partner. They formed
a last-minute partnership in 2008 to join
the England women’s team for the World
Mind Sports Games in Beijing and they
won the gold medal. Nicola has been
playing international bridge since she
was 17, which is an awfully long time ago.
Roz Bavin is a friend who lives
see nearly enough of her.
John Holland, long-time friend of both
Sally and Barry. Plays for the England
Senior team with Gunnar Hallberg.
Margaret & Martin (Nygren).
Margaret is Sally’s best friend, who
lives in London. Sally and Margaret
played for England back in the early
noughties, winning a European
Championship together in 2001.
Fiona (Fee) Brown is a small redhead
who is always smiling, comes from
Australia, but now lives in Harrogate
with her boyfriend, Irish international
Hugh McGann. Last year she finished
her IT degree and at the moment
works part-time in a pharmacy
– which leaves her plenty of time
to concentrate on her bridge.
Catherine Draper is Fee’s new partner.
(We needed to replace Susan Stockdale
after the last world championships
as she has decided to retire for a
while to concentrate on running her
family business.) Catherine was on
the women’s team that won the World
Mindsports Championship in Beijing
in 2008. She lives somewhere in the
northwest with Andrew and five dogs.

A
n e-mail from the county cap-
tain was the surprise of the
week. It invited Millie and me
to play for the Norfolk third team in
the next inter-county league match.
Millie and I accepted the offer happily.
Apparently, we were late replacements
for a male pair who had dropped out at
the last moment. I’m sure the fact that
Norwich City were playing at home in
a rearranged football match had no
bearing on their decision. The switch
of the bridge fixture from a home to
an away venue was presumably not a
contributory factor either.
Spouse very kindly agreed to drive
and treat us to lunch en route at a
newly reopened restaurant that a
friend had recommended. We hadn’t
booked, so, on our arrival, we stayed
in the car while Spouse investigated
the menu and table availability. He
returned soon, looking puzzled. He
explained that there was a notice
on the door saying, ‘Sorry, Closed
for Lunch, Opening for Dinner this
Evening’. We accepted the situation
and found a friendly pub further down
the road. The roast meal was perfectly
acceptable as was the bottle of wine
that Millie and I consumed without
difficulty. It was probably not the best
preparation for the afternoon session
of bridge, particularly as Millie drank
the lion’s share. A short time later,
Spouse deposited us in good spirits
at the venue before disappearing into
town to visit an art gallery.
Team members from both counties
drifted into the hall, but, by the
official start time, several male players
from both sides had not made an
appearance. As pairs congregated into
their teams, the latecomers stormed in
having consumed a few pints of beer
in the local pub while watching the
Norwich football match on TV. Of the
32 boards, one deal was particularly
memorable as it allowed Millie and
me to use our latest gadget for the first
Page 46 BRIDGE August 2014
The Diaries of Wendy Wensum
Episode 28:
The County Calls
time. After an opening one no trump,
our new arrangement is to break red
suit transfers holding a maximum
with a good fit by cue bidding a
control. Subsequent non-trump suit
bids are also control showing cues, or
so I thought.
Dealer North. Love All.
Millie
♠ J 7 4 2
♥ K Q 10 9
♦ A 8 6
♣ K J
♠ Q 6 ♠ 10
N
♥ 4 W E ♥ 8 7 6 5 3 2
♦ Q J 10 7 3 S ♦ K 9 4 2
♣ Q 10 9 6 2 ♣ 5 4
Wendy
♠ A K 9 8 5 3
♥ A J
♦ 5
♣ A 8 7 3
West North East South
Millie Wendy
1NT Pass 2♥1
Pass 3♦2 Pass 3♥2
Pass 4♥2 Pass 7♠
End county and to mark the grand slam,
1
Spades 2
Control
Our opponents passed throughout.
As dealer, Millie opened one no
trump (12-14). I bid two hearts as a
transfer to spades. With 14 points
and four spades, Millie agreed spades
by cue bidding diamonds. At this
point, I started to panic. Had Millie
remembered the system? Would I get
the sequence right? It was too late to
worry now. I made a cue bid in hearts
showing the ace and Millie bid four
hearts showing the king. I thought
that with no top losers and the good
spade fit the grand slam could well
make. With much trepidation and a
shaking hand I placed the stop card
on the table. After a slight, unintended
pause, I removed the seven spades
card from the bidding box and laid it
tremblingly on the green baize gently.
West led the singleton heart. I
won the trick and tested trumps. My
worries were over and I claimed the
contract. It was very pleasing as it was
the first time Millie and I had used the
sequence and in our first county match
too. I haven’t bid and made many grand
slams, but, from my point of view, the
real significance of the hand was that
the first time spades were mentioned
was at the seven level. I congratulated
Millie on her three diamond cue bid
and explained how the four heart
bid showing the king was critical.
‘I wasn’t showing the king!’ she
exclaimed, ‘I was supporting your
second suit. I wondered why you played
the hand in spades and not hearts.’
It was then I realised that Millie had
interpreted this latest addition to our
system in a rather different way from
me.
Spouse enjoyed his afternoon and,
on his return, was delighted to find
that Millie and I were also in a cheerful
mood. He suggested that to celebrate
our inaugural appearance for the
we should return to the restaurant
that was closed at lunchtime. On
our arrival this time, a notice read,
‘Closed for Dinner. Open for Lunch
Tomorrow’. I think the establishment
is now off Spouse’s must-visit list. We
found a Chinese restaurant on the way
home and had an excellent supper.
Millie and I shared another bottle
of wine and, of course, Millie also
needed a brandy to calm her after all
the excitement of the day.
We had learnt several things from
our experiences: don’t believe notices
in restaurant windows; men like beer
and football; but most of all, make sure
your partnership agrees all responses
to a new convention. ■
 Answers to Julian Pottage’s 
Defence Quiz on page 29
West North East South you see a way of beating the contract by
1. ♠ K 5 1♣ Pass 1♥ two?
♥ 10 7 4 Pass 3♥ Pass 4♥ If you lead a low club and declarer
♦ K J 9 7 4 All Pass guesses incorrectly, your side makes a
♣ A Q 10 second club trick. Underleading the ♣A
♠ J 9 6 4 ♠ A Q 10 You lead the ♣4. Partner wins the first two carries no risk if you count the shape.
N
♥ A J 5 ♥ Q 8 6 2 tricks with the ♣Q and ♣A, continuing The bidding and play to date tell you
W E
♦ 10 8 6 S ♦ 3 2 with ♣2. What is your plan? that declarer cannot have five spades,
♣ 8 6 4 ♣ 7 5 3 2 For sure, you will ruff the club to give five diamonds or four hearts (it is usual
♠ 8 7 3 2 your side a third trick. The ♠A, if you to bid 2♥ rather than 2♠ with 4-4 in the
♥ K 9 3 decide to cash it, will be the setting trick. majors).
♦ A Q 5 At matchpoints and assuming you read Partner’s lowly ♦2, if declarer reads
♣ K J 9 the lowly ♣2 as denying the ♠K, cashing it as a suit-preference signal, may well
the ♠A is wrong. There is a much better induce a losing guess.
chance that your side will make two spade
West North East South tricks if you wait for declarer to play the
1NT suit. For the ♠A to run away, declarer
Pass 3NT All Pass would need all the missing hearts, jolly 4. ♠ 9 8 7 2
good diamonds and a singleton spade. ♥ K J 10
You lead the ♠4. Partner takes the ♠K If that were the layout, partner would be ♦ 10
with the ♠A, cashes the ♠Q and continues 5-0-3-5 and might well have overcalled ♣ A K J 8 5
with the ♠10. What do you do? 1♠. ♠ J 6 4 ♠ Q 5
N
You can see an easy way to beat the ♥ 8 4 W E ♥ A Q 9 5 2
contract: overtake with the ♠J, then cash ♦ A 9 6 4 2 S ♦ K 7 5 3
the ♠9 and ♥A. Since the cards in dummy ♣ 10 6 4 ♣ 7 2
make it obvious that you want a heart 3. ♠ A 8 5 2 ♠ A K 10 3
switch, you can afford to set your sights ♥ K J 7 ♥ 7 6 3
higher. Let the ♠10 hold. On a good ♦ Q 10 9 5 ♦ Q J 8
day, partner will hold the ♥Q (or even ♣ K 10 ♣ Q 9 3
the ♥K) and you will beat the contract by ♠ 10 6 4 ♠ K J
at least two tricks. A large set is possible ♥ 10 8 4 N ♥ 9 5 3 2
W E
if a desperate declarer rises with the ♥K ♦ 6 4 S ♦ K J 7 2 West North East South
trying to make the contract. (It should ♣ A 8 6 5 4 ♣ Q 7 2 1NT
be obvious that you hold the ♥A or you ♠ Q 9 7 3 Pass 2♣ Pass 2♠
would not leave the spades blocked.) ♥ A Q 6 Pass 4♠ All Pass
♦ A 8 3
♣ J 9 3 You lead the ♥8. Partner wins with the
♥Q, cashes the ♥A and continues with
2. ♠ J 8 5 2 the ♥9. After ruffing the third round,
♥ A K J 10 West North East South what do you do?
♦ K 1NT As on the previous deal, you can beat
♣ K J 10 5 Pass 2♣ Pass 2♠ the contract by cashing your ace. As
♠ A 10 6 ♠ Q 9 7 4 Pass 4♠ All Pass before, you should look for a second
♥ 8 7 5 4 N ♥ 3 undertrick assuming that you can trust
W E
♦ Q 8 6 4 2 S ♦ 10 7 5 3 You lead the ♦6 to the ♦J and ♦A. A spade your partner. The ♥9, being the highest
♣ 4 ♣ A Q 7 2 goes to the ♠A and another to partner’s heart partner could lead, should be a
♠ K 3 ♠K. Back comes the ♦K and then the ♦2, suit-preference signal for a diamond,
♥ Q 9 6 2 which you ruff. How do you continue? showing the ace (which you have
♦ A J 9 Your side has made three tricks yourself) or the king. So underlead the
♣ 9 8 6 3 already: a spade, a diamond and a ruff. ♦A. Then you get to score the ♠J on an
The ♣A looks like the setting trick. Can overruff. ■

BRIDGE August 2014 Page 47

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