Bridge Today • July 2003 page 1

July 2003

ß
˙
∂
ç

Editor: Matthew Granovetter

The Magazine for People Who Love to Play Bridge

In this issue:

Discussing the Team Trials Final

Steve Landen, member of the winning team in last month’s USA
Team Trials, discusses the fine points of card play from the final
match. Page 17.

Features

2 Good Bids and Good Luck 30 The Traveling Score

by Pamela Granovetter by Pete Kichline

3 Are You Thinking Logically? 31 True Confessions

by Marshall Miles by Chip Martel

13 Kantar’s Korner 33 Bridge Yesterday

by Eddie Kantar by Paul Zweifel

25 Why I Lose at Bridge (part 2) 35 Hand of the Month

by Barry Rigal by Barnet Shenkin

Special thanks to the ACBL and Paul Linxwiler for photos from the Trials.

ALERT: Please do not e-mail this e-mag to anyone. Much time, energy and money was spent to produce this
product, and most people can afford to pay for it. If you would like someone to see an issue, please contact
us with his email address (write to matt@bridgetoday.com) and we’ll gladly pass on a sample excerpt. Sub-
scriptions are $33 per year for 12 monthly issues. Thank you!
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 2

Good Bids and Good Luck

Go together like soup and sandwich
... usually but not always

by Pamela Granovetter

In early June, the Team Trials for Rosters:

USAII* for the Monte Carlo Bermuda Bowl 1. SCHWARTZ
was held in Memphis. Richard Schwartz, Mike Becker, Zia Mahmood,
Michael Rosenberg, David Berkowitz, Larry Cohen

The bracket sheet starting with the 2. COHEN

round of 8 was: Steve Landen, Pratap Rajadhyaksha, Dan Morse,
Robert Wolff, Doug Doub, Adam Wildavsky, Ralph
1. Schwartz Cohen NPC
8. Brachman Brachman
3. WEED
Welland Jimmy Cayne, Ron Smith, Michael Seamon,
5. Jacobs Welland
Bobby Levin, Steve Weinstein, Charlie Weed NPC
4. Welland Cohen
4. WELLAND
3. Weed Roy Welland, Bjorn Fallenius, Steve Garner,
6. Deutsch Weed Howard Weinstein
Cohen
5. JACOBS
7. Kasle Cohen
George Jacobs, Ralph Katz, Sam Lev, Jon Wittes,
2. Cohen Ross Grabel, Brian Glubok

6. DEUTSCH
Seymon Deutsch, Billy Cohen, Jaggy Shivdasani,
John Mohan, Sidney Lazard, Bart Bramley

7. KASLE
Gaylor Kasle, Barnet Shenkin, Grant Baze, Mark
Feldman, Neil Chambers, John Schermer
*USAI, the other team representing the USA in the
Monte Carlo Bermuda Bowl, won the Team Trials of 8. BRACHMAN
2002 (Nick Nickell, Richard Freeman, Jeff Malcolm Brachman, Eddie Wold, Geoff
Hampson, Eric Greco, Marc Jacobus, Mike Passell
Meckstroth, Eric Rodwell, Paul Soloway and Bob
Hamman).
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 3

The Final consisted of 120 boards played over two days. The
COHEN team defeated WELLAND 287 to 222. Most of the big
swing hands were won or lost in the bidding. Many of the bidding
decisions were simple bread-and-butter judgment situations, but
there was the usual luck element involved (i.e., you can come out
smelling like a rose when the cards lie right for you, or you can
look like a fool when they don’t).

The margin of victory was 65 imps, but 108 imps were won
and lost on the following 12 hands! (And I’ll have 12 more for
you next month.) These hands are good bidding-quiz material,
because system rarely had anything to do with it. Ready to try?
We start on the next page, in sets of four hands.

Are You Thinking Logically?

by Marshall Miles

North South opens a strong notrump,

ß Q 10 4 which North raises to 3NT. You lead
˙AK3 the deuce of spades; dummy plays the
∂ J 10 9 7 3 4, East the 8 and South the 9. South
ç94 leads a low heart to the king and
West (you) partner plays the jack. Dummy leads
ßJ732 the ∂J, 8, 2, queen. What do you play
˙764
N next, and why?
W E
∂AQ2 S
çA32 Solution on page 18.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 4

Problem 1 (Board 5) Problem 2 (Board 6)

North dealer East dealer
N-S vul E-W vul

You, East, hold: You, East, hold:

ß Q J 10 ˙ Q 6 ∂ J 7 4 3 ç 8 7 6 4 ßJ6432 ˙AQ7 ∂852 çJ2

West North East South West North East South

— pass pass 1 NT — — pass pass
double 2 ∂* pass 3˙ 1ç 2∂ ?
3ß pass ?
Your call.
*transfer

Do you think you owe partner a boost?

On the one hand, you have a great spade Problem 3 (Board 7)
holding, but on the other hand your queen South dealer
of hearts is wasted and it doesn’t sound like All vul
partner has three hearts, so your hand
won’t produce a ruff. In addition, you’re You, East, hold:
not vulnerable, so losing a part score swing
by bidding one too many is as bad as miss- ßQ85 ˙A865 ∂J7 çA963
ing game. And, South’s three-heart bid
might have put pressure on partner, so he’s South West North East
not showing as much as a three-spade bid 1ç 1˙ 1ß ?
would have shown after a two-heart bid by
South. In short, there are a lot of reasons to Your call.
pass ... but, then again, those are awfully
nice looking spades you’ve got there....

Problem 4 (Board 9)
North dealer
E-W vul

You, South, hold:

ß K Q 9 8 3 ˙ 7 ∂ 9 2 ç Q 10 9 7 4

West North East South

— 1∂ pass 1ß
pass 2ß pass ?
Ralph Cohen
captain of the winning team Your call.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 5

#1-Board 5 North (which may have convinced you to bid) was

North dealer ß87 irrelevant — it was the 8 of clubs that
N-S vul ˙ 10 9 8 5 4 3 played the key role in this hand!
∂ Q 10 9 6
ç 10 At the other table, West (Bobby Wolff)
West East overcalled one spade after a one-club open-
ßAK6432 ß Q J 10 ing bid and East raised to two spades. West
˙2 ˙Q6 bid four and scored 420.
∂A85 ∂J743
çAJ9 ç8764 You have no doubt noticed that declarer
South needed three club tricks to make his game
ß95 (along with 2-2 spades so that he could play
˙AKJ7 three rounds of clubs and then get to
∂K2 dummy to cash that 8). If you passed, at
çKQ532 least you were right in theory, because in
three spades, you can go to dummy in
West North East South spades, play a club toward your hand (on
— pass pass 1 NT the bidding, you will play South for the
double 2 ∂* pass 3˙ king-queen), finish pulling trump ending in
3ß pass ? dummy, and make your second club play
for your contract.
*transfer
If you chose not to raise partner, take a
Raising partner was the winning bid at six-imp loss. North had a natural singleton
the table. The real East passed three spades. ten-of-clubs lead, so declarer just had to pull
Strangely, East’s strong spade holding trump, give up a club, and claim — easy.

Bobby Wolff Dan Morse

Bridge Today • July 2003 page 6

#2-Board 6 North Did you bid over 2∂? The 4ß game

East dealer ßQ9 needed 2-2 spades or singleton queen, or 3-3
E-W vul ˙ 10 4 2 hearts — not bad for a vulnerable game.
∂KQJ96 When both spades and hearts broke, Dan
çQ65 Morse (East) had an overtrick for +650 to
West East COHEN.
ßAK75 ßJ6432
˙K863 ˙AQ7 Closed Room:
∂43 ∂852 West North East South
çA74 çJ2 — — pass pass
South 1ç 2∂ pass 3∂
ß 10 8 (all pass)
˙J95
∂ A 10 7 Here North failed by three tricks, which
ç K 10 9 8 3 meant a score of only +150 for East-West.
Perhaps a 2ß bid is stretching things, and a
Open Room: negative double with only three hearts is
West North East South also imperfect. South had a 3∂ bid and
— — pass pass that shut East-West out of any further
1ç 2∂ 2ß pass bidding. If you bid 2ß, win 11.
4ß (all pass)

#3-Board 7 North
South dealer ß J 10 7 6 2 South West North East
All vul ˙4 1ç 1˙ 1ß 3˙
∂Q8432 double* pass 4∂ pass
ç Q 10 4ß (all pass)
West East
ßA93 ßQ85 *cooperative
˙QJ9732 ˙A865
∂ 10 5 ∂J7 Whatever North and South did, they
ç87 çA963 weren’t likely to land on their feet. The
South result was down two, -200, while in the
ßK4 other room North-South played in a quiet
˙ K 10 2ß contract (after South opened 1NT), for
∂AK96 +110 and seven imps to the COHEN team.
çKJ542
Notice that a dainty 2ç cuebid by East
South West North East would allow South to bid 2∂, and North-
1ç 1˙ 1ß ? South will end up in three or four dia-
monds, for +130 (declarer guessing spades)
This time Dan Morse (East) bid an old- and a one-imp gain instead of a 7-imp loss.
fashioned 3˙ and that doomed North-
South to a losing position. At the table, the If you bid three hearts, give yourself 7
auction continued: imps.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 7

#4- Board 9 North West North East South

North dealer ßAJ65 — 1∂ pass 1ß
E-W vul ˙AK94 pass 2ß pass ?
∂J753
çJ
West East “Five-five, come alive,” anybody?
ß— ß 10 7 4 2
˙QJ865 ˙ 10 3 2 If you made a game try, obviously North
∂KQ84 ∂ A 10 6 will be charmed to accept and you will go
ç8652 çAK3 +420.
South
ßKQ983 At the table, South passed two spades,
˙7 and lost 6 imps. (In the other room, the
∂92 North player for COHEN raised one spade
ç Q 10 9 7 4 to three.) If you passed two spades, lose 6.

Problem 5 (Board 12) Problem 7 (Board 24)

West dealer West dealer
N-S vul None vul

You, South, hold: You, West, hold:

ß K 10 5 4 ˙ 6 ∂ 6 5 ç A K 10 8 6 3 ß A 10 9 8 7 3 2 ˙ 6 2 ∂ 2 ç K Q J

West North East South West North East South

pass 1∂ pass 1ß 1ß double pass 2˙
pass 2∂ pass 3∂ ?
pass 3ß pass 4ç
pass 4∂ pass ? Your call.

What now? Problem 8 (Board 26)

East dealer
Problem 6 (Board 20) All vul
West dealer
All vul You, West, hold:

You, North, hold: ß J 2 ˙ A K J 6 ∂ 10 8 6 4 2 ç 4 2

ßQ ˙A97 ∂KJ9532 ç852 West North East South

— — 1 NT 2 ˙ (natural)
West North East South ?
1ß ?
Suppose you play that double is negative,
Are you an overcaller or a passer? so partner will reopen with a double if he
has short hearts. Your call.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 8

#5-Board 12 North The auction went the same way in both

West dealer ßAJ2 rooms until this point. The South player
N-S vul ˙A875 for the COHEN team bid five diamonds
∂ Q J 10 8 7 4 and the South player for the WELLAND
ç— team passed.
West East
ßQ6 ß9873 I wonder if it’s possible on the highest
˙ 10 9 4 3 2 ˙KQJ level to find a trump lead from the East
∂A92 ∂K3 hand (the 3), after South bids 5∂. After all,
çQJ5 ç9742 South made a non-forcing 3∂ bid, North
South showed nothing extra, and South bids a
ß K 10 5 4 game anyway. Isn’t he very likely to hold a
˙6 singleton heart on this auction?
∂65
ç A K 10 8 6 3 Be that as it may, if you passed four
diamonds, lose 10.
West North East South
pass 1∂ pass 1ß
pass 2∂ pass 3∂
pass 3ß pass 4ç
pass 4∂ pass ?

#6-Board 20 North The North for the COHEN team was an

West dealer ßQ overcaller, and the North for the
All vul ˙A97 WELLAND team was a passer. The North
∂KJ9532 who overcalled reached three diamonds,
ç852 down one for -100; and the North who
West East passed defended two spades, down two for
ß K J 10 9 7 ß52 +200 (South was allowed to win the first
˙J65 ˙ K 10 8 3 round of diamonds; he played a spade to
∂A76 ∂84 North’s queen; North returned a low heart
çK6 ç A J 10 7 4 to South’s queen; South played another
South trump, so there was no diamond ruff for
ßA8643 declarer, who also had to lose a trick to the
˙Q42 8 of spades in the end — nice defense!).
∂ Q 10 Credit yourself with seven imps if you
çQ93 passed.

West North East South

1ß ?
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 9

#7-Board 24 North The West for the COHEN team bid two
West dealer ßQ spades, and the West for the WELLAND
None vul ˙AKJ3 team bid three. Three was the winner:
∂ K Q 10 8
ç A 10 7 4 West North East South
West East 1ß double pass 2˙
ß A 10 9 8 7 3 2 ßK4 2ß 4˙ (all pass)
˙62 ˙854
∂2 ∂J97543 West North East South
çKQJ ç53 1ß double pass 2˙
South 3ß 4˙ 4ß 5˙
ßJ65 (all pass)
˙ Q 10 9 7
∂A6 Four spades is a great sacrifice (down only
ç9862 one if you play Restricted Choice) against
the North-South four-heart game. Five
West North East South hearts had no play, so credit yourself with
1ß double pass 2˙ 10 imps if you bid three spades.
?

#8-Board 26 North At the table:

East dealer ß K 10 9 8 7 4 West North East South
All vul ˙8 — — 1 NT 2˙
∂3 pass pass double pass
ç J 10 9 7 6 pass 2ß pass pass
West East 3∂ (all pass)
ßJ2 ßAQ5
˙AKJ6 ˙73 Three diamonds made five, +150. At the
∂ 10 8 6 4 2 ∂AQJ75 other table, the auction went:
ç42 çK85
South West North East South
ß63 — — 1∂ 1˙
˙ Q 10 9 5 4 2 1 NT 2ß 3 NT (all pass)
∂K9
çAQ3 North led a spade, so the COHEN de-
clarer made ten tricks, but three notrump is
West North East South always cold if declarer ducks the jack of
— — 1 NT 2 ˙ (natural) clubs lead (which is a normal thing to do).
?
Lose 10 imps if you waited in the bushes.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 10

Problem 9 (Board 29) Problem 11 (Board 37)

North dealer North dealer
All vul N-S vul

You, East, hold: You, South, hold:

ßKQ5432 ˙AKQ ∂KJ5 ç2 ß A K Q 5 4 ˙ 8 6 2 ∂ K 10 6 4 ç 5

West North East South West North East South

— pass 1ß pass — pass pass 1ß
1 NT* pass ? 2ç double 3ç ?

*forcing Your call.

Your bid.

Problem 10 (Board 32) Problem 12 (Board 38)

West dealer East dealer
E-W vul E-W vul

You, East, hold: You, South, hold:

ß A K 9 7 4 ˙ 3 2 ∂ A Q J ç A K 10 ß K Q 10 8 6 ˙ A 2 ∂ Q 6 ç K Q 10 8

West North East South West North East South

pass pass ? — — pass 1ß
double 2ß pass ?
Your bid.
What now?

Bjorn Fallenius Roy Welland

Bridge Today • July 2003 page 11

#9-Board 29 North helpful if the opponents would lead one of

North dealer ßJ the pointed suits for you....
All vul ˙8652
∂ A 10 9 4 The East player for WELLAND rebid
çQ875 three spades and was raised to four. South
West East led the ∂Q. North won the ace and shifted
ß 10 9 ßKQ5432 to a heart. Declarer won and was able to use
˙ 10 9 7 ˙AKQ his single entry to dummy for a trump play,
∂7632 ∂KJ5 which turned out nicely for him. He lost
çAKJ9 ç2 two spades and the ∂A, for +620.
South
ßA876 If you believe that your weak spade spots
˙J43 make a jump rebid of 3ß unappealing, you
∂Q8 rebid two diamonds (as the East player for
ç 10 6 4 3 the COHEN team did), and receive a club
lead. Declarer won, played a second high
West North East South club, pitching a diamond, and correctly
— pass 1ß pass guessed to play a diamond to the king.
1 NT (forcing) pass ? Nevertheless, the hand fell apart when he
played a normal low spade from his hand at
Your choice of bids is crucial because of trick four. North was able to win the jack
the opening lead. You’d like to have two and play high diamonds, promoting a third
entries to the table — one for a diamond defensive trump trick for down one.
play and one for a spade play — but you
have only one. Therefore, it would be If you rebid 3ß, win 12 imps.

#10-Board 30 North Open Room

West dealer ßQ62 West North East South
E-W vul ˙KQ87 pass pass 2ç pass
∂ 10 7 3 2∂ pass 2 NT (all pass)
ç632
West East Result: Down 2, NS + 200
ßJ83 ßAK974
˙ 10 9 ˙32 Closed Room
∂9642 ∂AQJ West North East South
ç9875 ç A K 10 pass pass 1ß (all pass)
South
ß 10 5 Result: Making 2, N-S -110
˙AJ654
∂K85 Seven imps went to the WELLAND team
çQJ4 when Steve Garner chose to open the East
hand with one spade. If you opened 1ß,
West North East South win 7.
pass pass ?
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 12

#11-Board 37 North The South player for COHEN made a

North dealer ß76 takeout double at his second turn, and
N-S vul ˙ K J 10 4 North chose to defend. A trick got away on
∂AJ53 defense, so North-South finished +100. In
çQ73 the other room North opened the bidding,
West East so WELLAND cruised into four spades,
ßJ92 ß 10 8 3 making five for +650.
˙Q9 ˙A753
∂Q2 ∂987 It’s not clear what would happen after a
çAJ8642 ç K 10 9 3∂ bid by South. North will probably bid
South 3˙, fishing around for a three notrump
ßAKQ54 game. South bids 3ß, but North makes an
˙862 inference that he didn’t bid 3ß over 3ç, so
∂ K 10 6 4 how good could his spades be? North will
ç5 probably pass 3ß, or try 4∂, passed out.

West North East South If you bid 3ß over 3ç, you reached
— pass pass 1ß game and push the board. If you doubled
2ç double 3ç double or bid 3∂, lose 11.
(all pass)

#12-Board 38 North Did you find the 2NT bid over 2ß?
East dealer ß975 Bjorn Fallenius had an easy time scoring
E-W vul ˙K63 nine tricks in 3NT. If South tries for game
∂KJ72 with a 3ç bid instead of 2NT, North, with
ç743 no honors in either of partner’s suits and
West East 4-3-3-3 shape, will sign off in 3ß. After the
ßA4 ßJ32 2NT bid, however, North’s red-suit holdings
˙ Q 10 8 7 ˙J954 are worth more than 7 HCP because he is
∂A4 ∂ 10 9 8 5 3 over the takeout doubler.
çAJ965 ç2
South In the other room, the South player for
ß K Q 10 8 6 COHEN never looked for an alternative
˙A2 contract after finding the spade fit, and,
∂Q6 after a heart lead, he finished down two in
ç K Q 10 8 his four-spade game, -100. Credit yourself
with 11 imps if you rebid two notrump.
West North East South
— — pass 1ß Next month, we’ll try another 12 hands.
double 2ß pass 2 NT
pass 3 NT (all pass)

Opening lead: ç5
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 13

Kantar’s Korner
by Eddie Kantar

If you want to know how to play a hand,

you must buttonhole the computer!

They say that Deep Finesse never lies. If Try this one, too:
you feed this software program a four-
handed bridge deal, it will tell you how North dealer North
many tricks you can take against any lead East-West vul ß K 10 8 6
and best defense. Deep Finesse said that the ˙K32
following hand from the recent Cavendish ∂J52
Invitational in Las Vegas was cold for 6˙ ç A 10 4
with the ßQ lead. Before looking at all four ∂3
hands to see whether you agree with Deep South
Finesse, try it single-dummy: ßAJ975 
˙A4
North ∂K87
ß53 çK92
˙Q842
∂A73 West North East South
ç Q 10 9 5 — pass pass 1ß
pass 2 ç (1) pass 2 ∂ (2)
ßQ pass 3 ß (3) pass 4ß
(all pass)
South
ßAK  (1) Reverse Drury  
˙AKJ65 (2)  Full opening bid
∂ Q 10 5 2 (3)  Four spades  (2ß would show 3 spades)
çA6
Opening lead:  ∂3  (4th best)
Would your play have worked? On the
next page are all four hands and the official East wins the ∂A and returns the ∂9.
solution. Plan the play. (Solution on next page.) 
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 14

6˙ Solution by Deep Finesse

 Solution: Win the opening lead and play
Perhaps you’d like to try it double- a diamond to the ace. East must unblock
dummy as well, before reading the solution the king, lest he be thrown in after the
(to the right). majors have been stripped and forced to
lead a club or give declarer a ruff-sluff,
North eliminating the club loser.
ß53
˙Q842 Once East unblocks the ∂K, cash the
∂A73 ∂Q, a second spade, and play two rounds of
ç Q 10 9 5 trump ending in dummy and lead the çQ
West East (or the 9 or 10). East must cover, so you win
ßQJ984 ß 10 7 6 2 the ace and play a second club, forcing out
˙97 ˙ 10 3 East’s remaining honor. The club spots are
∂J984 ∂K6 interesting. East cannot continue the suit,
ç74 çKJ832 lest he give you two diamond discards.
South Alternatively, a spade return is a ruff-sluff,
ßAK  allowing you to ruff in your hand while
˙AKJ65 discarding a diamond from dummy. So the
∂ Q 10 5 2 hand is cold just as Deep Finesse, who never
çA6 lies, said.  

Contract: 4ß North Your best shot is to win the ∂K, strip the
ß K 10 8 6 hearts, and exit a diamond to West’s queen.
˙K32  If West plays a trump, the hand is over. If
∂J52 West leads a low club,  play low from
ç A 10 4 dummy, capture East’s honor and play the
ace and a spade up to dummy. If West
∂3 follows, stick in the ten. If you lose to a
doubleton queen, East is endplayed. If the
South (you) 10 holds, you have no spade loser. If West
ßAJ975  shows out on the second spade, win the
˙A4 king and exit a spade.
∂K87
çK92 If West gets out with a club honor, win
in either hand, but wherever you win it —
Opening lead:  ∂3  (4th best) that’s where you start the trumps from,
planning to take the same “safe” finesse
East wins the ∂A and returns the ∂9. next. Thanks to N. Scott Cardell for this
Plan the play.   one.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 15

Bob and I thinking I would bid 5ç if Bob signed off

in 4ß.
Here’s a nice hand I came across while
cleaning out a very old chest in the attic. I We were playing asking bids in certain
played it with Bob Hamman (many, many, sequences and Bob thought that this was
years ago). You decide what you think of one of those sequences. Unfortuntately, I
the bidding. didn’t. Bob responded 4NT, thinking he
was showing me second-round heart con-
North (lovable Bob) trol. I thought he was bidding Blackwood.
ß Q 10 8 3 This hand was so long ago that I don’t even
˙Q think we had ever heard of Key Card
∂  K Q 8 7 6 Blackwood! I responded 5NT showing two
ç  10 4 3 aces and a void. He thought my 5NT was
West East the Grand Slam Force  (is this a well-knit
ßA92 ß4 partnership, or what?)  and bid 6ç showing
˙J76 ˙K5432 me bad spades. I thought 6ç was asking me
∂J52 ∂ A 10 9 4 3 how good my trump were! I decided they
çQJ52 ç87 weren’t so hot and signed off at 6ß. Merci-
South (me) fully, Bob passed.
ßKJ765
˙ A 10 9 8 I got a low heart lead and the queen
∂— held. The ∂K was covered by the ace and
çAK96 ruffed. I pitched a club on the ˙A, ruffed a
heart low, pitched a club on the ∂Q and
South West North East ruffed a diamond low. So far so good. Now
1ß pass 3ß pass came a heart ruff, my last heart, and back
4˙ pass 4 NT pass to the çA-K for a club ruff. Dummy re-
5 NT pass 6ç pass mained with the ßQ and two little dia-
6ß (all pass in great relief) monds and I had the K-J-7 of spades. Play-
ing skillfully, I held my trump losers to one
I opened 1ß and Bob bid 3ß, limit. I and the slam came home. There really
don’t know why I cuebid 4˙, since 4ç wasn’t any other way to bid this hand, was
seems a little brighter. I must have been there?  

School Story

I was giving this class on finesses and With plenty of entries back and forth
repeatable finesses and  I set up a hand that one of my prize students led a spade to the
had this spade suit: jack, which held. The ßA was played next.
When I asked why, I was told that at the
North beginning of the class I had said that you
ßAQJ expect about one out of two finesses to
work.
South
ßxxx 
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 16

Which Way Do You Play? carries around foreign currency, etc.) who
took his lesson on Forcing Passes and was so
Say partner opens 1ß, the next hand bids impressed that she and her partner from
4˙, and you are looking at:   the class decided to play in their first ever
Club K.O. event. Early on in their first
ß K Q 10 x ˙ x ∂ K Q x x  ç A K Q x match the world traveler’s partner passed
after Ms. Currency had made a clear-cut
A perfect hand for Blackwood, right? forcing pass. Before the opening lead, her
 Fine, but what would you bid on the same highness started in on her partner:  “How
sequence with:   could you pass?  We had this very same
sequence in our lesson.  My pass was forcing,
ß x ˙ x  ∂ K Q J 10 x ç K J 9 x x x   Pete said so.”  With that the director was
summoned. As he came to the table she
Not a bad hand to bid 4NT, asking repeated the same story.
partner for a choice of minors, right? You
can’t have it both ways and you don’t want The director said:  “Well, you can’t talk
to be guessing what 4NT means when before the opening lead, and you seem to be
partner makes that bid. Talk it over. My an experienced player knowing all about
choice would be the minors, but I’m willing forcing passes, etc., so I am going to to fine
to play it as Blackwood if my partner pre- you 3 imps.  With that, Ms. Currency goes
fers. into her purse, pulls out some bills and says
to the director: “OK, what’s the conversion
* * * rate?” The director decides that maybe she
My friend Pete Kichline tells of a cosmo- isn’t such an experienced player and re-
politan lady in his class (world traveler; scinds the penalty. Ciao.

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Bridge Today • July 2003 page 17

Discussing the Team Trials Final

with Steve Landen

Landen: Here are some thoughts on interesting card-play hands from the
USA Team Trials Final.*

In the first set of the final, the Welland team failed to bid four games
that we bid and made (see problems 1, 2, 4 and 5 in the article starting on
page 2). All the contracts were at least reasonable, some excellent.

For example, we won 10 imps on this

hand:

East dealer North

Editor: At the other table, after the same
N-S vul ß K 10 5 4
auction, Weinstein passed 4∂. Here Pratap
˙6
bid game. Landen won the heart lead,
∂65
ruffed a heart, cashed top clubs, throwing a
ç A K 10 8 6 3
heart and spade, led a spade to his hand
West East
and ruffed his last heart. Then he led the
ß9873 ßQ6
ßK. When the queen fell, he continued
˙KQJ ˙ 10 9 4 3 2
spades to reach his hand and led the ∂Q.
∂K3 ∂A92
West won the king and that was the end.
ç9742 çQJ5
South
ßAJ2
˙A875
∂ Q J 10 8 7 4
ç—

Fallenius Pratap Welland Landen

West North East South
— — pass 1∂
pass 1ß pass 2∂ *In this article, all the hands are rotated to make
pass 3∂ pass 3ß South declarer. Readers, we suggest you read the
pass 4ç pass 4∂ bidding quiz article (page 2) before reading this
pass 5∂ (all pass) article, because a few hands are duplicated. — editors
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 18

East dealer North Editor: West led the ßK and continued

None vul ß92 spades at tricks two and three. Declarer
˙A954 ruffed in hand and led the queen of hearts,
∂ K Q 10 7 5 3 which held. Then the jack of hearts was
çQ covered and won in dummy. Now Fallenius
West East had to concede by leading diamonds, allow-
ß A K Q 10 4 ßJ876 ing West to score two trump tricks.
˙ K 10 3 2 ˙7
∂8 ∂J92 Landen: To beat the contract I had to
çKJ2 ç 10 8 6 4 3 play three rounds of spades (which they
South also did at the other table). Also, when
ß53 declarer leads a heart honor, I had to duck.
˙QJ86 If I cover, he continues with a heart to the
∂A64 8.
çA975

Landen Welland Pratap Fallenius

West North East South
— — pass 1ç
1ß double 3ß pass
pass 4∂ pass 4˙
double (all pass)

Solution to Miles’ three spade tricks (at least), three heart

tricks, and is about to establish three dia-
Are You Thinking Logically? monds. Your only hope would be to take
ß Q 10 4 [from page 3] three club tricks before declarer could
˙AK3 establish his diamonds. That means partner
∂ J 10 9 7 3 would have to hold the çK-Q or çK-J-10.
ç94 But that would leave declarer only 13 or 14
ßJ732 ßK865 points for his notrump bid. Your best
˙764 N ˙ J 10 9 2 chance is to find partner with the ßK and
W E
∂AQ2 S ∂8 declarer with an original holding of A-9.
çA32 ç 10 8 6 5
ßA9 Once you have visualized a holding that
˙Q85 will give you a chance to set the contract,
∂K654 you still have a problem. How can you
çKQJ7 prevent partner from playing the king if
you lead a low spade? From his point of
If partner had the ßA, there is no reason view, you might have held four spades to
for him not to play it on the first trick. the ace and no çA. You should return the
However, he could have the king. Partner, jack of spades! Now partner can see the
by playing the ˙J, shows that he does not futility of playing the ßK, even if dummy
have the queen. Suppose that partner does covers with the queen.  You would never
not have the ßK. In that case declarer has lead the jack holding the ace-jack.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 19

Landen: Check out Dan Morse at the Dan Morse: “The bidding was 1ç, 1ß
wheel on this hand. overcall, negative double by me, 2ß by
Howard, 3ß by Bobby, pass, 3NT by me. I
South dealer North had hoped for seven solid clubs and the ace
All vul ß 10 of diamonds.
˙98
∂AKJ4 “Howard (West) would have bid 2˙ with
çAKJ984 a good 2ß raise. The play went spade to the
West East ace and back a low spade to the nine, fol-
ßQ95 ßAK832 lowed by the queen. I discarded a heart and
˙ K J 10 4 ˙652 a club from dummy. Howard thought for a
∂ 10 6 5 ∂Q7 long time and decided I had the king of
ç 10 7 6 çQ53 spades and the queen of diamonds and
South would not have both heart honors, so he
ßJ764 led a low heart. When Howard showed up
˙AQ73 with the queen of spades and king and jack
∂9832 of hearts, he should have no other honors
ç2 or singleton for his bid. So the only way to
make the hand was for Steve to hold the
Morse Weinstein Wolff Garner doubleton queen of diamonds and be strip-
South West North East endplayed in spades. So I played for that
pass pass 1ç 1ß holding.”
double 2ß 3ß pass
3 NT (all pass) Editor: Morse cashed four diamond
tricks, from the top, the ace of hearts, and at
Editor: The N-S at the other table trick ten led the ßJ. East was down to the
stopped in 3∂, making four. Here Wolff- ßK and three clubs to the queen. (East had
Morse reached 3NT. to discard a club, and hope declarer fi-
nessed. But Morse wasn’t planning to.) That
was 10 imps to Cohen.

Howard Weinstein Steve Garner

Bridge Today • July 2003 page 20

Landen: Here’s a tough hand that our Editor: The winning line is to guess the
team got wrong: diamonds. You ruff the second heart in
dummy, pitching your club, play a high
South dealer
North spade and then guess right, of course, lead-
All vul ßAK ing a low diamond to the jack on the first
˙5 round of diamonds. What do you think?
∂K63
ç K 10 8 7 5 4 3 At the table, Wildavsky ruffed the sec-
West East ond heart in dummy, discarding his çJ, and
ß97 ßQ864 cashed a trump. But then he led a diamond
˙AK87643 ˙ Q J 10 2 to the ace, followed by the ßJ to the queen.
∂ 10 ∂Q94 East led another heart and Wildavsky
çQ92 çA6 cashed the ß10. But when spades didn’t
South break and diamonds didn’t either, he was
ß J 10 5 3 2 down three.
˙9
∂AJ8752 At the other table, after the same auction,
çJ Morse (West) switched to clubs at trick two
after seeing partner’s ˙2 signal. Wolff (East)
Doub Weinstein Wildvasky Garner won and continued clubs, so Welland
South West North East (South) scored his game by cashing two
pass 3˙ 4ç 4˙ trumps, coming to the ace of diamonds and
4ß (all pass) leading the jack of trumps. He could ruff
the heart return, draw the last trump and
Opening lead: ˙A claim, with dummy’s club suit all good —
14 imps to Welland.
Weinstein continued hearts at trick two.
Now what?

Landen: How do you play this suit for

five tricks?

ßJ8

N
W E
S

ßAQ7643
Pratap Rajadhyaksha Steve Landen
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 21

North dealer North Editor: The ∂2 was led. Declarer won

N-S vul ßJ8 and played the ß8 to the ace followed by a
˙Q654 spade to the jack. There were now two
∂AK5 trump losers, plus two aces to lose.
çKJ74
West East Landen: Here are the possible plays.
ß 10 ßK952 (1) Cash the ace first — picks up stiff
˙ A 10 8 2 ˙93 king in either hand, loses to all other 4-1
∂Q7432 ∂ J 10 6 breaks onside;
ç865 ç A 10 3 2 (2) Lead the 8 to the queen — loses to
South stiff king offside, but picks up stiff 10 or 9
ßAQ7643 (by returning to dummy and running the
˙KJ7 jack);
∂98 (3) Lead the jack intending to finesse —
çQ9 loses to stiff king in either hand, picks up
all other 4-1 breaks onside including
Pratap Garner Landen Weinstein K-10-9-x (if the jack is covered, return to
West North East South dummy and run the 8).
— 1ç pass 1ß
pass 1 NT pass 2 ∂ (art. force) Declarer told me that he was very tired,
pass 2˙ pass 2ß and wouldn’t normally mess up this combo.
pass 2 NT pass 3ß
pass 4ß (all pass)
Landen: Interesting hand here. I ducked
East dealer North the first spade, the right play in my mind —
N-S vul ßA5 maybe they’ll do something helpful. Steve
˙A52 Garner won the king and returned the jack.
∂Q8652 Howard Weinstein may have erred by not
çJ86 playing ßQ on the second round. I called
West East for a low heart. Now when Steve was in
ßQ32 ß K J 10 9 6 4 with the ˙K, he had no clue what to do.
˙Q943 ˙K He thought a long time and led the ç2,
∂K943 ∂ J 10 7 which I ducked to the jack. I now had 10
ç 10 3 çQ92 tricks by cashing the ˙A and continuing
South hearts. It was dangerous in a way to duck
ß87 the club (could be a stiff), but it took him
˙ J 10 8 7 6 forever to play it so I “knew” his holding.
∂A
çAK754 Editor: At the other table, East opened a
weak two-bid in spades. Welland, the de-
Weinstein Pratap Garner Landen clarer, won the spade lead at trick one and
West North East South led a low heart. When Doub (East) cashed
— — pass 1˙ the ßK, Wildavsky (West), followed with
pass 1 NT 2ß pass the queen, so Doub exited with a diamond,
pass 3˙ pass 4˙ and the defenders took a club trick to beat
(all pass) the contract. That was 12 imps to Cohen.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 22

Landen: It’s embarrassing to bring up this next hand. The auction

was a nightmare. I should preface the discussion by explaining that
we play two totally different bidding systems depending on the vul-
nerability. When vulnerable we are sounder than most and play sort
of a standard 2/1 system. Nonvul, we play extremely light opening
bids. If we are going to open a light hand, we open in a 4-card major
if we have one. Therefore, if we open in a minor then rebid or raise a
major, we promise a legit opener. In response to 1M opening, we play
1NT not forcing, up to 14 HCP. If opener rebids over 1NT, he shows
a 5-card major. If weak, he’s bidding his shape. If he has a legit hand,
he treats it as a forcing notrump.

South dealer North Landen: Anyway, our system somewhat

None vul ßKQJ43 explains my reluctance to pass 3NT. I
˙K43 hadn’t shown anywhere near the strength I
∂AJ2 had. I think Pratap should have been
ç72 content to bid 3NT over 2ç. As far as the
West East play, I figured I had to play for the ßA
ß652 ß A 10 9 8 7 onside so I won the trump lead in dummy
˙A98 ˙J765 and took the ruffing finesse (East covering).
∂97 ∂ 10 6 4
çQ9865 çK At trick three I led a heart to the king,
South which held. It didn’t seem right to discard
ß— my other hearts, allowing LHO to pump me
˙ Q 10 2 after I lost a club finesse. So I led a club to
∂KQ853 the king and ace, then the ç10. Howard
ç A J 10 4 3 Weinstein ducked the ç10 (which I had
led rather than the jack, because I was
South West North East hoping to make him think it wrong to duck,
Landen Weinstein Pratap Garner but he found a good duck anyway), and I
1∂ pass 1ß pass was sick. East ruffed and returned a heart.
2ç pass 2˙ pass But all’s well that ends well, as the 10 lost to
3ç pass 3∂ pass the ace. A club came back. I ruffed with
3˙ pass 3 NT pass the ∂A, and cashed two top spades, throw-
4ç pass 4∂ pass ing the last two clubs. At the other table,
5∂ (all pass) they played an easier 3NT, making three.
No swing.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 23

South dealer North Weinstein Pratap Garner Landen

All vul ß— South West North East
˙A9763 1 NT 2ß 2 NT 3ß
∂ 10 9 7 4 3 2 pass 4ß 4 NT pass
ç94 5∂ 5ß 6∂ pass
West East pass double (all pass)
ßAQ8542 ß 10 7 6 3
˙K ˙ 10 8 4 2 Opening lead: çA
∂— ∂Q5
çAQJ862 çK53 Landen: It seems to me, in either auction,
South that you shouldn’t sell out short of six of
ßKJ9 your known fit. In any event, look how
˙QJ5 Howard Weinstein played the hearts in 6∂
∂AKJ86 doubled. After the çA lead (nice lead,
ç 10 7 pard!) and a club to the king, I switched to
a spade. Weinstein ruffed, drew trumps and
Wolff Fallenius Morse Welland led the ˙5 from his hand! This was a 9-imp
South West North East swing to Welland.
1 NT 2 NT* 3˙ 4ç
4˙ 5ç (all pass)

*minors or big 2-suiter

South dealer North Landen: Check out this cool safety play
All vul ß7542 by Pratap. He ruffed the ßA lead, cashed
˙J93 the ˙A and led a club to the king and ace.
∂A3 A club was returned, ruffed by West. But
çK976 that was all. By playing clubs before a
West East second round of trump, he all but guaran-
ßAQJ63 ß K 10 9 8 teed the contract, guarding against 3-1
˙64 ˙Q7 hearts and 4-1 clubs.
∂J8742 ∂ 10 6 5
ç8 ç A 10 4 3 Editor: At the other table, Garner-
South Weinstein played 5ç from the North posi-
ß— tion. Wolff, sitting East, led a spade. Garner
˙ A K 10 8 5 2 ruffed in dummy, and tried the çQ and çJ,
∂KQ9 which held. The ˙A was cashed, a dia-
çQJ52 mond to the ace followed by a spade ruff,
and the ∂K-Q to pitch a third spade. The
Open Room ˙K was cashed but a third heart was ruffed
Pratap Fallenius Landen Welland by Wolff, who was able to cash a spade for
South West North East the setting trick. That was 13 imps to
1˙ 1ß 2˙ 3ß Cohen.
4ç 4ß 5ç pass
5˙ (all pass)
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 24

Problem Solution

You, West, hold: Landen: The auction screams for a trump

lead, I think. Did you find it?
ß 10 7 3 2 ˙ 7 ∂ K 10 8 5 ç J 9 7 3
My partner did! So what if you had a
West North East South singleton. Here’s the logic. By bidding
— — 1 NT 2 ç* Stayman, the overcaller suggests a spade side
pass 2∂ pass 2˙ suit. Also, since the opponents are bidding
pass 3˙ pass 4˙ game with only about 1/2 the HCP, they
(all pass) must expect to score some ruffs. Here’s the
full hand (below):
*Stayman!

What is your lead?

East dealer North

Editor: Declarer finessed in trumps. East
All vul ßK8
won the king and returned a trump. Now
˙A84
two spade ruffs in dummy were impossible,
∂A9643
so declarer played on diamonds, his only
ç642
hope being a 3-3 split. He ducked a dia-
West East
mond, allowing a third trump. Then ∂A
ß 10 7 3 2 ßQJ5
and a ruff, to set up two diamond tricks. No
˙7 ˙K62
luck, down two.
∂ K 10 8 5 ∂Q2
çJ973 ç A K 10 8 5
South
ßA964
˙ Q J 10 9 5 3
Closed Room
∂J7
Weinstein Morse Garner Wolff
çQ
West North East South
— — 1 NT 2˙
Open Room
2ß 4˙ (all pass)
Pratap Fallenius Landen Welland
West North East South
At this table, a diamond was led. Wolff
— — 1 NT 2 ç*
won in dummy and led a club. There was
pass 2∂ pass 2˙
now no way to stop two spade ruffs, 13 imps
pass 3˙ pass 4˙
to Cohen.
(all pass)

Opening lead: ˙7
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 25

Sports Psychology

Why I Lose at Bridge

by Barry Rigal

Second in a three-part guide on how to get

the most from your own game and partner’s

Faults of Personality and Temperament
How many of the following sins have
you committed?
1) Your RHO overcalls in the suit where
you hold A-Q-10-8-5-2. Playing negative
doubles, you pass in perfect tempo, but your
partner re-opens by bidding a new suit
rather than doubling. Your side was sure to
get at least the value of a game had he
doubled, so you jump to 3NT, which goes
one down.
2) You can see the right defense from
your side of the table. Maybe there is a
killing switch or a defensive ruff. However
obvious this may be to you, partner does
something else. Without considering
whether his defense was rational, or even
right, you somehow take your eye off the
ball and misdefend yourself, to let the
contract through.
3) You have just had a lousy result on
the previous board. Without properly
considering whether this was a normal, and
unavoidable, result, you unconsciously push
a little on the next hand, perhaps by open-
ing a marginal hand, or accepting an invita-
tion when you should not. Or perhaps you
go too far in the opposite direction. You
have just been set 500 when the trumps
broke 5-0. So on the next hand, where you
had a marginal acceptance of an invitation,
you pass, subconsciously influenced by the
previous hand.
4) Declarer is ruffing a suit in dummy,
and you decide to falsecard, for no good
reason, but just in case it should turn out to
be relevant. Or you decide in third seat to
follow with the queen from a queen-jack
holding, or some similar deception. How-
ever, it is your partner who is fooled. Be-
lieving your carding to be honest, or some
sort of suit-preference, he gives a ruff and
discard, or finds the wrong switch, to let the
contract through.
5) It’s not enough to play a perfect game
from one side of the table only. If you play
perfectly, but by your demeanor at the table
encourage your partner to play badly, then
you are going to do less well than someone
who plays poorly but persuades his partner
to play well. In the following case nothing
was said, but actions spoke louder than
words.
I was a spectator of this hand, in the
latter stages of a knockout tournament in
the UK:
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 26

North ably ought not to be playing with them.

ß 10 7
˙AKJ65 Try to take the balanced view in all these
∂Q situations; in the first and second examples
çQ9643 your position is a bit like the Irishman, who
West East when asked how to get to Ballymenagh said,
ßKJ65 ßQ832 “Well if I were you, I would not start from
˙974 ˙ 10 3 2 here.” Admittedly you would rather not be
∂ J 10 8 4 ∂K753 starting from this particular spot in the
çA8 çJ5 hand, but that does not mean you cannot
South get a good result on the hand if you apply
ßA94 yourself properly. It is all too easy to give
˙Q8 up prematurely, and surrender yourself to
∂A962 despair (which can be quite an enjoyable
ç K 10 7 2 experience if you are a natural depressive),
but it is much better for the team and your
West North East South partner to hole out your recovery shot from
— 1˙ pass 2ç the bunker in which your partner has left
pass 4ç pass 6ç you.
(all pass)
In situations such as the third example
North and South had a fundamental my experience has been that it is virtually
disagreement about the hand type to be never right to try to recover things on your
expected for a four-club bid, but all would own. If you have misjudged the current
have been well from their point of view if state of a match and your masterminding
West had followed the generally acceptable loses a match your side was winning, how
premise that if the Lord deals you a se- will you and your teammates feel? Psyching
quence, you are expected to lead it. This or making tactical overbids or underbids is
West was made of sterner stuff, and led a a maneuver fraught with danger. Do not
spade. try it unless you can really see that your
chances otherwise are hopeless (in which
South thanked his partner politely, won case it is probably too late anyway). And do
the opening lead and crossed to the ˙A to try to put the previous board out of your
lead the ∂Q. East, who had not been ex- mind before starting the next. If you still
pecting this, twitched slightly before follow- need to clarify your thoughts, go and wash
ing low, and when South played low, West your hands, get a cup of coffee, but do not
in perfect tempo contributed the jack, to let start the next hand till your mind is fully
his partner know that he had just on the subject, and not reliving past disas-
misdefended. Witty, yes; charitable ... no. ters.

All these mistakes have a similar basic,
underlying theme: You do not have enough
respect for your partner and teammates. If
you do not trust them enough to assume
that they will do the right thing, you prob-
When it comes to falsecarding, and po-
tentially misleading partner in the play, I
would be the last person to suggest that
there is not a time and a place for a well-
judged deceptive maneuver. But the impor-
Bridge Today • July 2003
tant point is that you should not make the
play at random, and you must make sure
that you can run before you can walk.
Your first priority in playing the cards
should be to avoid error, and to make life
easy for your partner. Misleading your
opponents is very much a secondary issue.
If you do fool your partner into doing the
wrong thing, you simultaneously cause him
a high degree of aggravation and you lessen
partnership trust for the next critical deci-
sion he has, as to whether to trust you or
declarer.
6) There are other faults of personality
that I can identify with. How many other
people have played hands like this:
East-West vul North
Teams ßKQ974
˙Q3
∂K752
çA9
South (you)
ß8
˙AKJ854
∂ A 10 4
çK52
You reach a pretty fine 6˙ contract, on
unopposed bidding, and receive the lead of
the çQ, on which East plays the 8. You
win the king, and a spade to the queen loses
to the ace. A club comes back to dummy’s
ace. What next?
If you are like me, you ruff a spade, draw
two rounds of trumps, ending in dummy,
and ruff another spade to hand. If spades
are 5-2, you have remote squeeze chances,
but at least you delay going down til trick
13 if these chances do not work. Contrast
this line with the correct one of ruffing a
club low in dummy, and you will see that
page 27
the latter line is an overwhelming favorite,
but if you fail it is instant death. Many
bridge players suffer from this kind of
creeping paralysis, of not wanting to go
down till the end of the hand if they can
avoid it.
7) Another type of error I find myself
slipping toward occasionally is the “Two
shots are better than one” reasoning, which
sees me playing for the 3-3 break plus an
unlikely squeeze, rather than the finesse.
The sum of the two chances is less than the
50% of the finesse, but nonetheless the
combination shot seems more attractive.
The solution in both these cases is simple
to state, but difficult to put into practice.
Where there is nothing else to determine
the issue, go for a strict cal-culation of the
percentages, and if one line is much better
than the other, put other considerations out
of your head.
8) Notice the important caveat in the
above advice, however. It is certainly pos-
sible to go much too far in the direction of
relying on statistics, and not to go into the
human factor at all. I was shocked by how
the following hand was played in the early
stages of the World Championships in
Santiago. The hands were duplicated, so it
was possible to follow the play at all tables,
and I was not happy with anyone’s line.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 28

North The successful declarers ducked two

ß73 hearts, won the third, stripped off the
˙83 diamonds, and endplayed West with the
∂KQ952 fourth heart. This was fine, but a spade
çA964 shift by East at trick two or three would
˙2 have reduced declarer’s chances to a
South straight 50% spade finesse.
ßAQ
˙A954 The unsuccessful declarers, consulting
∂ A 10 8 4 their mental percentage tables, read no
ç Q 10 2 further than the line which says, “The
odds-on play in the club suit is to run the
Everyone reached a contract of 3NT from queen and then the ten.” They won the
the South seat, after South opened a strong first heart and led the çQ. East won and
notrump, and received the lead of the took the ˙J and 10, then played a spade.
(fourth highest) ˙2. The declarers took the ace, repeated the
club finesse, and went four down. This was
the full hand:

ß73
˙83
∂KQ952
çA964
ßJ852 ß K 10 9 6 4
˙Q762 N ˙ K J 10
W E
∂76 S ∂J3
ç753 çKJ8
ßAQ
˙A954
∂ A 10 8 4
ç Q 10 2

All declarers exhibited a remarkable
blind spot. It’s not a good idea simply to
play the best percentage line, which puts no
pressure on your opponents, if you have
virtually equivalent approaches that repre-
sent strong pressure.
Play a diamond to dummy at trick two,
and lead a low club from dummy. If East
has the çK, he will be under heavy pres-
sure to win it in case you are sneaking the
ninth trick through. Your line in the club
suit (low to the 10 and run the queen on
the next round) is still 74%. Would you not
be prepared to give up 2% for a whole lot of
pressure? Or, if you prefer, cash four dia-
monds before making the percentage play in
clubs. Don’t you think there’s a chance that
someone will signal attitude in clubs, or
even in spades?
Bridge Today • July 2003
9) Do not ignore your instinct. If you’re a
man, do not make the patronizing assump-
tion that it’s only women who have good
instinctive reactions. Everyone subcon-
sciously interprets the behavior of the
players at the table, and converts it into an
instinctive feel for the right thing to do on a
hand. Some people scorn such readings,
preferring to rely on the odds and percent-
ages. But as far as I’m concerned, the most
irritating experience I can have at the table
is to ignore my instincts and discover subse-
quently that they were right. Don’t follow
them blindly; check out if you can discover
why you had such a strong impression, and
if the reasons make sense, follow them.
10) Know when to give up. Most people
have only a finite amount of energy to
direct to bridge. I have already suggested
that you should try to protect your supplies
by not wasting efforts as dummy. But it is
also important to bear in mind that you can
also over-exert yourself in a lost cause.
It’s essential to have a strong will to win.
But if you come to a hand where you are
Barry Rigal
page 29
faced with an insoluble problem, how to
defeat a contract that you “know” to be
unbreakable, or how to make an impossible
contract, you may come to a stop as you
recycle the same unappetizing pieces of
information through your brain, hoping for
a miraculous solution. There’s a limit be-
yond which it is not helpful to continue
thinking, since no new thoughts emerge.
My advice to you is to set an absolute limit
of five minutes on thinking time. If the
right answer has not emerged by then, it
probably never will.
11) Playing fast is not a sign of ma-
chismo. Some people naturally think and
play extremely fast. If you try to keep pace
with them, the likely outcome is that you
will make unnecessary mistakes. Many of
these players will lure you into playing at
their tempo, perhaps as a form of games-
manship, but don’t fall into their trap. You
should be able to admit to yourself that
these people play faster than you; your task
is to play better than them.
[Part III in August]
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 30

The Traveling Score

by Pete Kichline

Board 2 North
East dealer ßJ975
N-S vul ˙KJ2
Board 2
∂AKQ5
N-S Contract Result N-S Score N-S MPs
ç73
1 4S (S) +1 +650 6
West East
2 6S (S) -1 -100 1
ß 10 4 ß86
3 5NT (N) = +660 10
˙— ˙AQ8643
4 4S (S) +1 +650 6
∂ 10 8 7 6 3 ∂J92 5 4S (S) +1 +650 6
çQJ9542 ç 10 6 6 6S (S) -1 -100 1
South 7 4S (S) +2 +680 11
ßAKQ32 8 4S (S) +1 +650 6
˙ 10 9 7 5 9 6NT (N) -1 -100 1
∂4 10 4S (S) +1 +650 6
çAK8 11 6S (S) = +1430 12
12 5S (S) = +650 6

West North East South 13 4S (S) +1 +650 6

— — 2˙ 2ß
pass 3˙ pass 4ß
(all pass)

Opening lead: çQ Post-Analysis

Pre-Analysis
The diagrammed auction is the simple
version. At some tables, North may declare
notrump, where only 11 tricks are available.
But 12 tricks can be taken in a spade con-
tract by the declarers who count out the
East-West distribution. After pulling
trumps, South ruffs his club loser and plays
diamonds. When declarer opts to discard a
third heart on dummy’s last diamond, West
will be endplayed. The forced minor-suit
return permits South to dispose of his last
heart, as he ruffs in the dummy. One dia-
mond trick is declarer’s only loser!
East’s 2˙ opener was a gigantic clue that
most declarers failed to capitalize on. But,
amazingly, had East-West been silent
throughout the auction, West’s complete
distribution still would have been an open
book. This assumes declarer has been
counting as he plays the minors after pull-
ing trumps. As I have been telling my
students for decades: “Stop asking all of
your bidding questions ... take your tricks!”
Notice 11 out of 12 matchpoints for N-S
at table #7. They may have missed the
slam, but South took all of the tricks to
which he was entitled.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 31

True Confessions
by Chip Martel

I missed a nice defensive chance from the I led the ç10. Gaylor Kasle won the king
round-robin of the recent team trials: in dummy to preserve his hand entry and
played ace and a heart to his queen (the
North (Grant Baze) percentage play, since it picks up J-x offside
ßKJ975 and two tricks must be lost to K-x). I contin-
˙ A 10 ued clubs, declarer drove out the ˙J, and
∂ J 10 5 3 Lew continued with a third round of clubs.
çK2 Declarer now cashed his two heart winners
West (Chip) East (Lew Stansby) with this position on the last heart:
ßAQ32 ß 10 6 4
˙K2 ˙J543
∂Q92 ∂K86
ç 10 9 8 7 çQ65
South (Gaylor Kasle)
ß8
˙Q9876
∂A74
çAJ43

West North East South

— 1ß pass 1 NT
pass 2∂ pass 2 NT
(all pass)

Readers are invited to

submit interesting hands
for the True Confessions
column. Please confess
your own errors, not your
partners’!
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 32

North (dummy) Declarer had six tricks in and must hold

ßKJ9 the ∂A or ∂K, so I correctly determined
˙— that declarer must have a stiff spade for us
∂ J 10 5 to have a chance, and if partner has the
ç— ∂A, we set it for sure by my keeping all my
West (Chip) East (Lew) diamonds (throwing a diamond lets declarer
ßAQ
N
ß 10 6 4 make if he has the ∂K-8-x and guesses
˙— W E ˙— well). So I threw a spade, and dummy threw
S
∂Q92 ∂K86 a spade.
ç7 ç—
South (Gaylor) On a spade lead, I won the ace and
ß8 cashed my club, and dummy was pseudo
˙6 squeezed, but declarer guessed to throw
∂A74 dummy’s high spade. I had to break dia-
ç3 monds now, setting up the eighth trick.

Gaylor led the ˙6. What should I throw? However, if I had thrown a diamond on
the last heart the following position would
develop after I win the ßA:

North Now the ç7 squeezes dummy for real. A

ßK spade is immediately fatal and a diamond
˙— lets me lead the ∂Q to establish two tricks
∂ J 10 5 (note this would not work if declarer had
ç— the ∂K-8-x).
West East
ßQ N ß 10 Probably the best plays for my hand
˙— W E ˙— would be to discard in the following order:
S
∂Q9 ∂K86 ß2, ∂2, then ßQ. Then declarer would
ç7 ç— probably misguess in the ending (to the left)
South even if he held the ∂8 (since he doesn’t
ß— know the ∂9 is coming down).
˙—
∂A74 At the other table our teammates went
ç3 down one in 3NT.
Bridge Today • July 2003
Bridge Yesterday
by Paul Zweifel
Roth-Stone
Back in the early to mid 1950’s, the
tandem of Alvin Roth and Tobias Stone
was arguably the premier matchpoint pair
in the world. Knockout team play, on the
other hand, was pretty much dominated by
John Crawford and his cohorts, Howard
Schenken, Sam Stayman, George Rapee and
B. J. Becker. One of the strengths of the
Crawford team was its versatility: With one
or two exceptions, any of the players could
form a formidable partnership with any of
the others. In those days, with teams con-
sisting of a maximum of five players, this
was important, since it meant that anyone
feeling under the weather could sit out a
session without affecting his team’s perfor-
mance.
Nowadays, teams almost always consist of
three fixed pairs, and the idea of two play-
ers from different pairs playing together
would be anathema.
At one point Stayman left the Crawford
team and Sidney Silodor was recruited from
the Goren team to take his place. Just a
couple of years later, Schenken also left and
a satisfactory replacement was never found.
Aside from bridge prowess, Roth, Stone,
Rapee and Schenken were important bridge
theorists. Rapee invented the Stayman
convention and Schenken created (or at
least popularized) the weak two-bid and
other important innovations.
But Roth and Stone were the only
page 33
Americans up to that time to create a com-
plete bidding system (later of course Kaplan
and Sheinwold developed their methods
and Schenken developed a strong-club
system). While the Roth-Stone System
incorporated a number of features from
other systems, such as weak twos and five-
card majors, it had novel features as well,
such as the controlled opening psych, the
unusual notrump, one notrump forcing and
the negative double. But the main feature
of Roth-Stone may have been the philoso-
phy (now apparently obsolete) of sound
opening bids in first and second positions,
sound raises, and, especially, sound free
bids. Two key words describing Roth-Stone
might have been “Soundness” and “Disci-
pline.”
The Convert
Under the not-too-gentle prodding of two
of my partners, Larry Rosler and Roger
Stern, I became an early convert to Roth-
Stone. I had studied their book in depth,
but from time to time new features of the
system appeared in the Bridge World, usu-
ally as a result of a novel situation that had
arisen in some tournament, and Al’s and
Toby’s attempt to cope.
One example was “Two-over-one forcing
to game.” While this never, as far as I know,
became an official part of the system, it was
de facto systematic because of the soundness
of the Roth-Stone bids. The hand that
made this clear was one where Toby, first
hand with a 4-4-3-2, made the systemic
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 34

opening bid of one diamond, and over Al’s North

two-club response rebid his three-card ßAJ95
diamond suit! (In those days a two-notrump ˙KQ52
rebid promised extra values, the equivalent ∂876
of a reverse.) When Al next bid three clubs, çK5
Toby, with no appreciable extra values, bid West East
three notrump, a contract which he easily ßK872 ßQ4
brought home.* ˙J7 ˙ 10 9 8 6
∂AJ3 ∂ K Q 10 9 2
Not too long after this I was playing in a çJ876 ç93
sectional tournament in upstate New York South
with a friend of mine, Bob Pfeiffer. I picked ß 10 6 3
up, third hand, ˙A43
ßAJ97 ˙ KQ85 ∂876 çK5 ∂54
and opened one diamond (though four-card ç A Q 10 4 2
majors were used in third and fourth seats
in the Roth-Stone system, we were using Bob Paul
five-card majors throughout). Over Bob’s South West North East
two-club response I made the Stone rebid of pass pass 1∂ pass
two diamonds, hoping Bob would show a 2ç pass 2∂ pass
three-card major. When Bob bid two hearts, 2˙ (all pass)
no doubt thinking that we were on our way
to a notrump contract, I passed, soon discov- What a contract! Perfect defense (a dia-
ering that despite the 4-3 heart fit we were mond lead and East persisting with a fourth
in a wonderful matchpoint spot. (The two- round after he gets in with the ßQ) will
club bid, while sound, was not even de facto hold it to two. But West led a spade (who
game-forcing, because Bob was a passed wouldn’t?) and we made three. Two
hand.) The complete deal was: notrump is doomed on either a diamond
lead or switch; clubs makes three, for the
same score as two hearts, but without the
chance of making an extra trick on less-
*Today Dr. Roth insists that 2/1 game forcing is not
than-perfect defense.
part of his system. He has a number of exceptions to
the 2/1 game-force rule. But Dr. Roth’s require-
Thank you, Mr. Roth. Thank you, Mr.
ments for the opening bid are lower than Mr. Roth’s
Stone. I knew that my partner would not
of 1950.
shade his two-over-one bid even as a passed
In the 1950’s, the 2/1 response was de facto forcing.
hand, and so would bid again. That meant I
At that time a 2/1 response in Roth-Stone normally
was safe in rebidding my diamonds, hoping
showed at least 11 points and guaranteed that
that what did happen would happen.
responder would bid again. Since opener usually had
at least 14 points first or second hand, the combined
holding was 25 points, usually enough for game. Of
course, there were exceptions in the case of misfits
(hence “de facto”). For example the (uncontested
auction) 1ß-2ç-2ß-3ç implies a misfit and logically
could be passed.
Bridge Today • July 2003 page 35

Hand of the Month

by Barnet Shenkin

For a complete bridge experience on line North dealer North

there is nothing better than bridge base: N-S vul ß6
www.bridgebase.com. The site is run by ˙ Q J 10 8 7 4 3
Fred Gitelman and his wife Sheri. ∂ J 10 7 3 2
ç—
Vast numbers are drawn to the everyday West East
bridgegames. The programs run smoothly, ßKQ532 ßJ84
the graphics are clear and easy to under- ˙— ˙A52
stand. You can also choose to play the ∂— ∂9654
hands of old international matches like the ç A Q J 10 9 6 3 2 çK75
Bermuda Bowl for added excitement. South
ß A 10 9 7
There are also practice areas for teachers ˙K96
and students. Pairs can practice bidding to ∂AKQ8
their benefit and I have used this myself ç84
and found it valuable. There is also a com-
pilation of old top matches from various Wolff Welland Morse Fallenius
championships available to watch in West North East South
VuGraph form. — 3˙ pass 4˙
5ç pass pass 5˙
The most exciting recent development is 5ß 6˙ double (all pass)
a feast of live VuGraph matches. Some of
world’s best analysts help to explain what is Roy Welland found a well judged 6˙ bid
going on and keep you entertained. Re- to score 1660, but things got even better at
cently they have featured the Cavendish, the other table.
tournaments fom Poland and France, the
USBC and the Canadian Championships. Weinstein Wildavsky Garner Doub
West North East South
There is nothing quite like watching an — 3˙ pass 4˙
exciting bridge match from the privacy of 6ç pass pass double
your own home while perhaps sipping a (all pass)
good glass of wine. Thousands of people
recently enjoyed watching the USA team Here Howard Weinstein found a great
trials as they unfolded. The most exciting pressure bid of 6ç, and who could blame
hand of the final was this one. South for doubling? But +1090 added to the
+1660 at the first table (2750 net) meant 21
The Welland team was trailing by some imps for the Welland team, who were right
45 imps when this appeared on the screen: back in the match.