August 2016 - 8

Letters to the Editor
5♥ doubled, quadrupled

I've seen many interesting coincidences while playing duplicate for
more than 40 years, but had a new one
recently. In a team game using computer-dealt deals, the final contract
was 5♥ doubled for four consecutive
hands. (Results: down three, down two,
making, down five.)
C.K. KOHLMILLER
Kennesaw GA

Weaving webs

My home club in Mountain View CA
is blessed with outstanding owners
and directors who nearly always use
"web" movements to ensure the fairest
contest possible. We are fortunate to
have Will Watson, an expert on such
movements, to teach and mentor the
staff. It seems these are used far less
frequently at sectionals and regionals,
however. Why is that? It occurs to me
that using the fairest possible movement would be a very high priority at
these events. At a recent sectional, I
experienced multiple sessions where
32 boards were in play, resulting in
each pair playing only about 80% of the
boards against 80% of the players.
CHERYL HAINES
Half Moon Bay CA

The garden of bridge

Our bridge club is reminiscent of
a well-tended garden, one that, over
time, has grown and flourished. The
plants are fascinating and diverse in
both their appearance and capabilities.
It's no Garden of Eden (closed and perfect), but rather changing and impacting the broader community.
Some of our "plants" don't seem
hardy enough for northern winters and
have to be temporarily transplanted to
warmer climates. There are even birds
in our garden, including one who is
hard of hearing, whose every song can

8 Bridge Bulletin August 2016

resonate throughout the entire garden,
or the often-heard cell-phone song
emanating from a hidden purse. Some
of our plants need a little "staking" with
canes or walkers, but their tenacity
is admired in place of lost sturdiness.
Recently, we celebrated the birthday
of a very rare and beautiful flower who
turned 101! What a treasure!
We share an endless variety of potluck plant food - birthday cake once a
month, fresh fruit, pecan pie, brownies,
chips and dip, a seemingly unlimited
supply of excellent cheese. Oh my, so
much, but good, healthy plants need
nourishing, don't they?
One very special plant was named
Jimmy. For years he would drive 30
miles twice a week to come to games
early to give lessons and encouragement or to discuss the previous day's
hands. In his mid-60s, he recently
died of a heart attack. Most of the club
attended his wake, held in his favorite bar 30 miles from our garden. By
coincidence, we had started to collect
donations so that the church where we
meet could upgrade the chairs we use,
but then decided to think of the fund
as recognition for Jimmy. With this
added impetus, we raised twice our
goal in a short time.
We also have seedlings. A wellrespected local college offers a course
in duplicate bridge. It fills to capacity
each year, and a requirement for credit
is that the students play two games at
our club, one at separate tables and one
with the members. These seedlings
will enrich some other garden in the
future.
And, of course, there's the Master
Gardener, our director. With extensive
experience as a public-school teacher,
she brings both compassion and discipline to support her playing excellence.
She has nurtured many plants and has
occasionally done some "weeding" of

disruptive players.
Can a garden be a family? Deep
friendships, love affairs, even marriages have grown in our garden. Most
of all, many of us have learned that Life
Master comes not just from accumulated points, but from accumulated
experience and compassion toward a
deeper "life master." Every hand is different. Every player is different.
So, how does your garden grow?
CAROL CLINE & TOM DANDRIDGE
Grand Rapids Michigan Bridge Club

Scoring and sexism

I'm a man who plays with a female
partner in New York City, usually
playing West. When the time comes to
approve scores, North invariably turns
to me for the approval. However, my
partner always approves the scores,
because I don't like to. So I say, "She
does it." Sometimes on a three-board
round, I have to say this three times.
We tried shifting sides, thinking it was
a right/left thing, but the same thing
occurred. Very few Norths will ask,
"Who approves?" Does this confirm a
sexist bias, namely, that the man must
be in charge and therefore always approve scores?
DAVID YURICK
New York NY

New talent spotlight

I came home after work and saw the
June Bulletin on the counter. Quickly
thumbing, I saw Oren Kriegel's picture
and went immediately to the interview.
I enjoyed the interview, but even more,
I applauded the concept. Bridge needs
more heroes, more celebrities and
more role models. It may be premature
to say that Oren is one of those, but I
believe the idea of highlighting up-andcoming players is a sound one.
DAVID CAPRERA
Denver CO

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2016