February 2025 - 64

Advanced Players
My Bridge and Yours
W
hen I became immersed
in the game in about
1970, Birmingham had
an unusual number of good young
players. After an evening duplicate,
the group of us would invariably head
for a nearby bar aptly named " The
Emergency Room, " and go over the
deals. If it had been a team game, we
would have a " charge session, " and
every clear error cost the offender a
quarter that went into a pot to pay for
drinks and pizza.
I recall those days with fondness.
Davis's eyes would shine as he went
up and down his card, looking for
hidden gems, and Van Hoose, a fine
analyst, would take the deals and lay
bare their intricacies, and the Hawk
would bemoan how he got stuck with
a cold round zero because a beginning
player took some action that
defied logic. Those after-game gatherings
were teaching moments; we
became better players for them. And
we forged friendships.
Fifty-five years later, after an evening
duplicate at my club, a group of
us repaired to the lounge to discuss
the deals.
" What did you do on Board 16? "
Unlucky Louie asked me. The deal
was:
Dlr: West s J 7 5
Vul: E-W h 10 6 5 3
d K J 10 4
c K 8
s Q 10 6 4
h Q 7 2
d A 6
c 10 9 5 2
s K 9 3
h A K J 9 8
d 8 7 2
c 7 6
s A 8 2
h 4
d Q 9 5 3
c A Q J 4 3
64 | Bridge Bulletin | February 2025
BY FRANK STEWART
frs1016@centurylink.net
" We were minus 110, " I replied. " As
East, I opened 1h after two passes,
South doubled, my partner raised to
2h and North tried 3d, passed out.
We couldn't beat it. We did well to
hold it to three. I might have made
3h with good guessing. "
" I think the lead of a low club would
beat 3h, " Cy the Cynic offered. " Then
the defense can tap you out. "
" What happened to you, " I asked
Louie.
The auction at Louie's table, where
he sat South, was:
West North East
Pass Pass
South
1h 2c
king and returned the 9.
2h 3c All Pass
West led the h2, and East took the
" I ruffed and drew trumps, " Louie
told us, " And then I had none left.
When I forced out the dA, the
defense cashed three hearts for down
one. I didn't like my partner's raise to
3c with K-x, and he didn't like my
overcall. "
North's raise to 3c was reasonable.
He had enough strength to
act, and Louie would often have
had a six-card suit to overcall at the
two level. Louie's error came in the
play. Instead of ruffing the second
heart, he discards a spade - a loser
on a loser - to preserve his trump
length. He ruffs the next heart, draws
trumps and leads a diamond. When
West takes the ace, he has no more
hearts, and Louie can take nine
tricks.
Grouper has partnered with ACBL to
promote social activities - like bridge!
If your health plan is eligible, Grouper
will send you a check to cover your
annual ACBL membership dues.
S IG N U P
ONLINE
To see if your plan covers the Grouper
social fitness benefit, visit
hellogrouper.com/acbl
Times have changed, and aftergame
postmortems, like penalty
doubles, are becoming extinct. The
results are available immediately,
and people tend to see how they did
and fly out the door - especially if
it's an afternoon game, to beat the
traffic. The deals may be available
online.
I think this is sad. Aside from the
loss of social interaction, an opportunity
to learn and improve, shall I say,
goes by the boards. 2
You Play, We Pay
Call
844-974-0558 Email info@hellogrouper.com
Formerly Element3 Health
http://www.hellogrouper.com/acbl
February 2025

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