June 2008 - 8

Letters to the Editor

improved? I think the bad weather is
one reason the table counts at Pittsburgh and Detroit were low.
JACK MARGID
San Francisco CA

Just play it
To the Editor:
I was intrigued by Jerry Snow's
idea that passed-out hands be played
at 1NT (March, page 7). Ignoring
the advantage the opening leader
would have in tempo and whist-like
play with no dummy, the idea truly
fascinates me.
Unfortunately, adopting this practice would probably result in a lot
of fourth-seat 1 openers to avoid
the situation coming up. Crazy as
this sounds, I wouldn't mind playing
24 boards with random contracts
assigned to the boards. Shuffle, deal
and let the mayhem begin. I'm not
too proud say that it wouldn't be the
first time (or second) that I declared a
major-suit game on a 3-2 trump fit.
DENNIS BUTLER
Malden MA

No Stopping her
To the Editor:
Playing in a club game the other
day as a mentor to a non-Life Master,
I held a good hand with five spades
and four hearts opposite a 1NT
opener (15-17) by partner. I bid 2,
she bid 2, and I rebid 3, which
was passed out. I made four.
When I asked why she passed my
forcing 3, my partner said she
missed the jump and that I should
have used the Stop card to alert her
that I was making a skip bid!
Exclusive BRIDGE

It seems that someone should
evaluate the use of the Stop card with
the idea of determining its ultimate
value to the game. My guess is that it
is misused so often that we would be
better off without it.
BILL PEABODY
Greensboro NC
Any thoughts, readers?

Not tough enough
To the Editor:
Upon reading the comments by
Mike Flader about the experienced
pair who refused to fill out a convention card (March, page 38), his
remedy appeared severe. On second
thought, I believe it was too mild.
Is it truly conceivable that a pair
of Life Masters who play together
often would have no knowledge of
each other's tendencies or meanings
in bidding or play, no system or
conventions, and yet make unusual
bids that normally require an Alert or
explanation?
No matter how good they are as
individual bidders and card players,
could they come in first against any
but a group of beginners? More likely, they know a lot about each other's
bidding and defense. Whatever their
reasons for refusing to complete a
convention card (they have to do it
only once), they should have been
barred from the club some time ago.
I've played bridge more than 40
years and have many times encountered pairs with only one card at
the table. I've accepted that, but I
wouldn't accept a line like, "I never
know what my partner is doing," and
a refusal to explain any bid or even

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8

suggest a meaning for a bid or play,
from a couple of LMs.
ARTHUR D. APTOWITZ
Forest Hills NY

Deeply affected
To the Editor:
I read the letter about Walter Still
(March, page 8) and felt the pain
that Shirley Brooks endured after
losing her friend. I thought about this
and the heartbreak that it must have
caused for those who knew Walter
and his simple goal.
I remember reading an article in the
Bridge Bulletin years back about a
player who was attempting to win the
Barry Crane Top 500 but died before
he could reach his goal. Several
friends honored him by making him
non-playing captain of their teams.
Perhaps someone could accord the
same honor to Walter Still. If I had
a vote, I would let any gold points
won by that team count for Walter,
only .01 gold points shy of becoming
a Life Master when he died, so he
could achieve his coveted goal.
ALFREDO MOYA
Tucson AZ
The player who pursued the Top
500 was Bob Glenn, who died in the
summer of 1994, standing second in
the race, eventually won by the late
Richard Hunt.

Keep germs at home
To the Editor:
After reading the Laura Nash
article in the March issue (page 63),
I have to make a comment about the
world of duplicate. I really enjoy her
tongue-in-cheek articles, but case
number two really struck a nerve.
The last two winters, I have had the
bad luck to catch tables where one of
the players was obviously sick and
should not have been there. So what
do you do? You sit down and play and
hope this is your lucky day - and
I'm not talking about cards.
A few days later, I'm sick with
some really nasty virus that takes forever to get rid of. Please, players - if
you are sick, stay home.
TIM HOLMES
Portland OR
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of June 2008