August 2018 - 8

Letters to the Editor

all this fuss about making it tougher
to achieve a Life Master will only
turn players, especially seniors, away
from ACBL. There are plenty of local
non-ACBL bridge clubs. They are a lot
cheaper, too!
People are more important than a
platinum point.
ALICE THOMAS
Langley BC

If the guide cards were wider, then it
would be impossible to cover the numbers and letters (Table B3, for example)
on both ends of the cards, as is sometimes the case. Overall, it would make
it a simpler task for players to find
their assigned tables, as well as being
less time-consuming and frustrating.
RON HOPMAN
Huntley IL

Déjà vu?

A study in contrasts

Yesterday I was called to a table at a
game I was directing. While en route,
another table needed a quick answer.
By the time I reached the original table,
they claimed to have sorted things
out. Because I was already there, I
inquired what the problem was. North
said someone had scored on their line
(we use travelers at our club). East
then chimed in that they had already
played this board. I tried to clarify
whether East-West had played this
board at another table. All four looked
at me sheepishly and then admitted
they had played the same board twice
at this table, with a different contract
and a different result. North had sorted
things out when she realized that the
handwriting on the traveler line was
her own!
That was a first for me.
LARRY SHERMAN
San Diego CA

Bigger is better

In my travels to tournaments, as well
as local games, I have noticed the need
for larger guide cards on the table. The
chief reason for this, especially at tournaments, is that players are constantly
searching for their assigned tables because the guide cards are often covered
by the boards. Anyone who's played in a
Swiss team event knows what I mean.

8 Bridge Bulletin August 2018

♠-
♥ 10 8 5 2
♦KQJ982
♣ K 10 4

♠Q65
♥AQ74
♦ 10 7 5
♣863

♠J7432
♥J6
♦643
♣Q52
♠ A K 10 9 8
♥K93
♦A
♣AJ97

This deal came up in a knockout
event in the recent Sacramento Regional and demonstrates how really
good players should - and should not -
act at the table.
I opened 1♠ as South, and Mr. Good
Player overcalled 2♦. My partner
raised to 2♠, and I bid 4♠.
Mr. Good Player led the ♦K, and I
won the ace. At first glance, it looks like
I have five spades, three hearts and two
aces for 10 tricks. And if hearts split
3-3, I will make 11 tricks.
Thinking about the trump suit, I led
the ♠A, and when West showed out, I
realized that I had misplayed this suit
and had to rethink the entire hand. I
needed to start this suit by leading low
to the queen which would have allowed
me to discover the 0-5 split. If they had

both followed to the first trump, but
West showed out on the second one,
I could have crossed to dummy and
picked up the trumps with a finesse.
At this point, I led a spade to the
queen and returned a spade to my
hand, but now I have a potential trump
loser. My thinking then was that I
needed hearts to be 3-3 or something
good to happen in that suit, so I led the
♥9 to the queen, cashed the ♥A and
led a low heart to my hand. East could
not tell who had the ♥K, so he didn't
ruff this and I scored my king. I now led
the ♣A and exited with a club, waiting
to take my two remaining trump tricks
and making my contract.
It was at this point that Mr. Good
Player screamed at me saying, "Why
did you block the heart suit? If they
were 3-3, you just lost a trick," and
he said it very nastily. I stated that if
hearts were 3-3, I was making my contract, and if not, I needed some help,
which is what happened. He continued
to berate me about it. I should have
called a director, but I didn't.
It is this type of demeanor that the
game does not need. Why couldn't he
be gracious and say, "Nice play," or say
nothing at all? His teammates reached
slam and went down two, so we gained
13 IMPs.
The very next match, we played
against two other experts, Huub
Bertens and Dan Korbel, who really
enjoy each other and went out of their
way to have fun even when they lost by
a bunch. It was quite fun to play with
this attitude, and these two are great
examples of what the League needs to
promote the game.
JERRY WEITZNER
Danville CA
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2018
