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Fireside Chat
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FIRESIDE CHAT DECEMBER 2003
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome and Announcements
Believer's FireSide Kindling
Bidding with Bridgboy
Guido's Really Important Stuff
Hand of the Month
Fifee's SolidGold
Mezzie Lends a Hand
Moogal's FireSide Log
Treble's Table Talk
And Finally Kaltica
=======================================
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Hi all!
Welcome to the December, 2003 issue of FireSide
Chat, our monthly newsletter written for and about
our FireSide friends and events.
We hope you enjoy all of this month's articles and
features. Please feel free to write to us with any
comments, questions, ideas, or whatever, that you may
wish to share. This newsletter is for and about you,
and we want you to feel welcome to participate. Just
email Believer at sarastobbe@aol.com or Moogal
at moocake@bellsouth.net.
A special thanks to all of you who have been sending
us contributions for our "giggle breaks". We appreciate
everything you send, and use as many as we can. Keep
'em coming, please! :-)
You can find current and past issues of this "FireSide
Chat" newsletter posted at our FireSide web site:
http://www.firesides.net/thechat.htm
If, for any reason, you do not wish to receive
these mailings, please write to Believer at
sarastobbe@aol.com to be removed from our mailing
list.
===========================================
CURRENT FIRESIDE SCHEDULE
Day Pacific Time Commentator
MON 11:00 A.M. POOKA
MON 5:00 P.M.* BRIDGBOY
TUE 11:00 A.M. BRIDGBOY
TUE 5:30 P.M. WINTAKA
WED 11:00 A.M. FREDW3
WED 5:30 P.M. DIANEW
THU 11:00 A.M. POOKA
THU 5:30 P.M. WISHTRIK
FRI 11:00 A.M. BLUEBEE
FRI 5:30 P.M. KALTICA
Commentators may change without notice,
according to their availability.
(*starts 1/2 hour earlier on Monday night)
*******************
Although there is no set fee for participating in
these "open to all" sessions, please note that FireSide
Bidding Practice Sessions operate with the support of
those in attendance. For information about how to
become a supporting member, please contact Kaltica at
kaltica@mts.net, Moogal at moocake@bellsouth.net,
or Believer at sarastobbe@aol.com.
Thanks to all of you for supporting the FireSide sessions
in all the many different ways you have of doing so.
We want to thank our commentators for their dedication
and caring. Please, think of them when you are thinking
of taking private lessons, paying a professional to play
tourneys with you, getting involved in a group session
mentoring program... most, if not all, of our commentators
and contributors to this newsletter are available for those
services. Just think how much easier it is to learn
from someone who's already a friend!
*******************
All articles herein (c) 2003 by FireSide Chat.
All rights reserved.
===============================================
BELIEVER'S FIRESIDE KINDLING
============================
Happy upcoming holidays to all of you. With the new
year just a month away, I was thinking about this
newsletter, and it's present format. I've had people
tell me they love the format, especially the jokes.
I've had people tell me they hate the jokes. Is there
anything we could change to make the newsletter more
enjoyable for you?
Some feedback would be appreciated... should we go on
plugging away as we have been for almost 4 years now, or
is it time for a change of some sort?
Please be sure to read Moogal's column this month, she
has a couple of important items we think you won't want
to miss.
I think you'll enjoy the whole newsletter this month. We
have a couple of columns we haven't seen for a while, and
are so glad to include them in this month's offerings.
Welcome back to Guido and Mezzie, and our Hand of the Month
feature from Gail37.
Hoping to hear back from you -
Sara (believer)
********************
You can write to Believer (Sara Stobbe) at:
sarastobbe@aol.com
===============================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Benson for this one:
Mensa Test
-----------
Q: What do you put in a toaster?
*
*
*
*
A: The answer is bread. If you said "toast," then give up
now and go do something else before you hurt yourself. If
you said "bread", go to the next question.
***
Q: Say "silk" five times. Now, spell "silk." What do cows
drink?
*
*
*
*
A: Cows drink water. If you said "milk", please do not
attempt the next question. Your brain is obviously over-
stressed and may even overheat. It may be that you need
to content yourself with reading something more appropriate
such as "Children's World." If you said "water", then
proceed to the next question.
***
Q: If a red house is made with red bricks, a blue house is
made with blue bricks, a pink house is made with pink bricks,
a black house is made with black bricks, what is a greenhouse
made with?
*
*
*
*
A: Greenhouses are made from glass. If you said "green
bricks," what the heck are you still doing here reading
these questions? If you said "glass", then go on to the next
question.
***
Q: Twenty years ago, a plane is flying at 20,000 feet over
Germany. If you will recall, Germany at the time was
politically divided into West Germany and East Germany.
Anyway, during the flight, TWO of the engines fail. The
pilot, realizing that the last remaining engine is also
failing, decides on a crash landing. Unfortunately, the
engine fails before he has time and the plane crashes smack
in the middle of "no-man's-land" between East Germany and
West Germany. Where would you bury the survivors - East
Germany or West Germany or in "no-man's-land?"
*
*
*
*
A: You don't, of course, bury the survivors. If you said
ANYTHING else, you are a real dunce and you must NEVER try to
rescue anyone from a plane crash. Your efforts would not be
appreciated... If you said, "Don't bury the survivors" then
proceed to the next question.
***
Q: If the hour hand on a clock moves 1/60th of a degree every
minute, then how many degrees will the hour hand move in one
hour?
*
*
*
*
A: One degree. If you said "360 degrees" or anything else
other than "one degree", you are to be congratulated on
getting this far, but you are obviously out of your league.
Turn your pencil in and exit the room. Everyone else proceed
to the final question.
***
Q: Without using a calculator - You are driving a bus from
London to Milford Haven in Wales. In London, 17 people get
on the bus. In Reading, six people get off the bus and nine
people get on. In Swindon, two people get off and four get
on. In Cardiff, 11 people get off and 16 people get on.
In Swansea, three people get off and five people get on. In
Carmathen, six people get off and three get on. You then
arrive at Milford Haven. Now, what was the name of the bus
driver?
*
*
*
*
A: Oh, for Heaven's sake... It was you!
=================================================
BIDDING WITH BRIDGBOY
=====================
We do not bid in a vacuum. We are allowed to place cards in
our partner's or opponent's hand based on the bidding or lack
thereof that occurs on every hand. What may seem to be iffy
can become a near certainty if information is revealed
to us.
Here is a classic example:
S Q1092
H AQ10942
D AQ
C 2
Partner opens 1S. We first have to decide how to continue.
We could have votes for 2H, 4C, 2NT, or even 3H. Let's say we
bid 2H and partner bids 2S. Now we can splinter to 4C or just
blast into blackwood and ask for key cards. Opposite a 3 key
card response we could then ask for kings, hear zero, and sign
off in 6S knowing both red kings are missing. We have
intelligently bid the hand and move on to the next challenge,
knowing we have done our best.
Now let's change the auction. This time it goes
1S-X by RHO to us. Now how do we view things?
This time all the missing cards have been located on our right,
so the high cards that partner may be missing have been exposed
and all the finesses are onside and working. So it isn't hard to
see the KJ of hearts, king of diamonds, and KQ of clubs sitting
nicely in RHO's hand.
So now, after we ask for the key cards, we can bid a confident
7S, not because we feel lucky but because we know both
finesses are onside, and no matter what partner has, we will make
13 tricks. I am not saying that RHO did anything wrong with his
take out double either. But I am saying that this time his bid
helped identify for us where the missing high card points lay and
allow us to bid more intelligently than we could have, had he
passed. Silence may be golden but at the bridge table any noise
made by any player will help us all decide exactly how high to
bid.
********************
You can find Bridgboy (Bob Lavin) doing his FireSide
sessions on Monday evenings at 5:00 p.m., and Tuesdays
at 11:00 a.m. OKbridge time.
Anyone interested in one-on-one lessons on any topic of
the game may contact Bob at bridgboy@charter.net
===================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Luc for this giggle:
A boy was assigned a paper on childbirth and asked his parents
"how was I born?"
"Well honey ..." said the slightly prudish parent, "the stork
brought you to us."
"OH," said the boy. "Well, how did you and daddy get born?"
he asked.
"Oh, the stork brought us too."
"Well how were grandpa and grandma born?" he persisted.
"Well darling, the stork brought them too!" said the parent, by
now starting to squirm a little in the Lazy Boy recliner.
Several days later, the boy handed in his paper to the teacher
who read with confusion the opening sentence: "This report has
been very difficult to write due to the fact that there hasn't
been a natural childbirth in my family for three generations."
=============================================================
GUIDO'S REALLY IMPORTANT STUFF
==============================
Conventions to Forget
There is a long list of conventions I suggest that you forget.
However, since you are not going to listen to me anyway, I'll
keep the list very short. How about just one? OK? Stolen Bid
Doubles.
For those of you who have been blessed enough never to have
heard of this beast, it works like this: Your worthy partner
opens 1NT (15-17 balanced); the next player bids two of a suit;
you double. Using this silly convention, your double shows
that if your Right Hand Opponent had passed, you would have
bid exactly what he bid. So, if he bids 2C, your double is
Stayman; if he bids 2D, your double shows 5+ hearts.
Brilliant. You have lost any and all chances of doubling the
opponents. That is not a good thing considering that your
partner has shown a hand suitable for defense with
approximately 40% of the total high card points. You gain..
well, you gain not very much.
I suggest you learn some version of lebensohl (the "official"
spelling is sans capital, by the way). Transfer lebensohl is
excellent, but the plain old vanilla version is quite good and
not at all complicated. It is interesting, perhaps, to note
that not a single top player plays or ever has played Stolen
Bid Doubles.
When deciding whether or not to add a convention to your
arsenal, remember that there are several aspects to consider.
Skid Simon (author of what many consider to be the best bridge
book ever, "Why You Lose at Bridge") had a list which looked
something like:
1. What does the convention gain?
2. What does the convention lose?
3. Will we remember it?
4. Does it occur frequently enough to be worth the bother?
Let's run Stolen Bid Doubles through this sieve. What does it
gain? It preserves transfers (and if the overcall is 2C,
Stayman) at the two level.
What does it lose? The ability to double the opponents for
penalty (which is NOT lost if you play negative doubles here,
by the way). It gives fourth hand the ability to redouble for
the lead (or pass when he doesn't want the suit led). This in
itself negates much of the positional advantage of the
preserved transfer, by the way. It allows fourth hand to bid
your now known suit as a Cue bid of some sort. If the overcall
showed a two-suited hand with the second suit unknown (as in
DONT), it tells fourth which suit his partner does not have.
You need to decide for yourself whether or not you will
remember it. The frequency is reasonably high.
Let's run a few more conventions through the grinder. How
about Stayman? It makes finding a 4-4 fit after partner
opens 1NT easy. It gives up the ability to play in 2C, but
if you can make 2C and only 2C, the opponents can make a
contract and will often bid it. It is easy to remember and
is quite frequent.
Ok, let's try Graduated Grand Slam Force. GSF is a jump to 5NT
asking partner to bid 7 if he holds 2 of the top 3 honors and
otherwise to bid 5 of the trump suit. Graduated GSF uses a
different scale depending upon what trump suit is agreed. If
clubs are agreed, it works just like regular GSF. If spades
are agreed, then 6C,6D,and 6H are all. You get the idea.
The convention can be extremely effective. It will get to some
grands you otherwise won't bid and keep you out of some bad
slams, too. In theory, it loses nothing. (looking good so far,
eh?) It does create a memory strain. It is VERY infrequent and
the times it will gain over GSF makes it extremely rare. It is
so infrequent that unless you play way to much bridge for your
own good, I suggest forgetting about it.
OK, one more for the road: Strong, artificial, forcing 1C
(Precision, for example).
Gain: Huge. Limits all other bids to 15 or so high card
points. Starts big hands at the lowest possible level. Handles
good, but not quite forcing hands much better than standard.
Can tighten up the NT ladder (see previous columns or ask).
Losses: Huge. Makes 1D a catch-all opening. Allows the
opponents to jump around before you know if you have a fit or
not. Warns the opponents that this is very likely not their
hand.
Memory strain: not much at all.
Frequency: More frequent than Stayman and you play that,
right?
Note, please, that the review of a convention has to include
what happens when you do NOT use it. Thus, the review of
Strong One Club considers the effect when you your side opens
1 of major (positive) and 1D (negative).
Using these criteria, a few conventions stand out as clear
winners. These include Stayman, Splinters, and take-out
doubles. Each gives up very little and gains quit a bit. All
are reasonably frequent and simple enough not to cause much
memory strain. A Strong Club is close to a push. Stolen Bid
Doubles belong in the dumpster.
You of course don't have to agree with my assessment but use
the Four Step Program yourself for all your conventions (and
treatments).
********************
You can email Guido at p.paulfriedman@comcast.net
==============================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Luc for this giggle:
I read this article that said the typical symptoms of stress are:
eating too much, impulse buying, and driving too fast.
Are they kidding? That is my idea of a perfect day.
===========================================================
HAND OF THE MONTH
=================
This month we are thrilled to present our 'Hand of the Month'
feature, with a big "thank you" to Gail Wix for formatting
it for us.
From The 2003 Daily Bridge Calendar. For more information
call 1-888-453-1976, or email: calendar@interlog.com
********************
Vul: none North
Dlr: S S AK
H AJ2
D 96543
C 876
South
S QT98532
H K3
D J2
C K3
West North East South
3S
Dbl 4S All pass
Opening Lead DA (Ace from Ace-King)
When you run into a bad trump break, do not indicate by word or
gesture that you are in trouble. Play as if everything is hunky
dory so that the defender who is short in trump is not alerted
to the situation. It's not easy.
West leads the DA and continues at trick two with the DK. East
playing the D7 and the DQ. At trick three West shifts to the CQ.
East wins and returns a club to your king. When you cross to a
high spade in dummy, West discards a low heart.
Plan the play from here. You need the rest of the tricks, by the
way.
*****************************************
S AK
H AJ2
D 96543
C 876
S -- S J764
H Q9874 H T65
D AKT8 D Q7
C QJ42 C AT95
S QT98532
H K3
D J2
C K3
Contract: 4S Lead: DA
********************
In order to make this hand after this insidious trump break,
you have to (a) trump three times in your hand reducing to the
same trump length as East; and (b) wind up in dummy at trick
twelve with the SQT hovering over East's SJ7. Start by ruffing
a club at trick six. Next, the big play, a low heart to the HJ
trying to create a necessary extra dummy entry. Unless West
inserts the HQ, an entry-killing play if he finds it, you will
be in the dummy with the HJ and can ruff a diamond. Next
overtake the HK and ruff another diamond. The table is set.
Cross to a high spade in dummy at trick eleven and take the
last two tricks with the SQT.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Don't let on if you run into a bad break. If West catches on to
your problem, he may wise up and play the HQ when you lead low
towards dummy's HAJx, thus depriving you of two heart entries to
dummy. When planning a trump coup (what you did here), reduce
to the same number of trump as your opponent arranging to end up
in dummy at trick twelve.
********************
Hand and analysis by Eddie Kantar, courtesy of the Daily
Bridge Calendar, published by Ashlar House Inc.,Brampton,
ON, Canada. Reprinted with permission.(Special thanks to
Lee Daugherty and Dann Kramer.)
===========================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Benson for these...
ONE LINERS!
Only light bulbs can go out each night and still be bright come
morning.
The American Way: Using instant coffee to dawdle away an hour.
If he asks what sort of books you're interested in, tell him the
checkbook.
First National Bank of Dad. Sorry, Closed.
Waiter: Would you like your coffee black?
Customer: What other colors do you have?
Remember the good old days when people killed time by working
instead of by taking coffee breaks?
A bore is a person who talks so much about himself that you
don't get a chance to talk about yourself.
"Economy" today means a large container of detergent or a small
car.
You can say whatever you want in this country.
No one listens anyway.
If a magician's tricks were awful, perhaps the entire audience
would disappear.
Sign at a jewelry store: Why not come in, purchase a diamond
ring, and pay as you glow?
============================================================
FIFEE'S SOLIDGOLD
=================
More Trouble with Doubles - Negative Doubles vs Negative Free
Bids
By Patricia Anderson
A few months ago we discussed using Negative Doubles when partner
opens a suit and opponents overcall before we have a chance to
respond. We double their overcall to show partner some values but
not enough to bid over the overcall.
Negative double guarantees 6-7 HCP minimum at the 1 level AND 4
card support in unbid Major suits.
For example:
1D (1H) X - Negative double shows exactly 4 card Spade suit and
6HCP up to opening hand.
1D (1H) 1S 1S shows 5 card or more Spades, with less than 5 card
Spade suit, we make a negative double.
Another example:
1C (2H) X Negative double shows AT LEAST 4 card spade suit and
8-9 HCP minimum.
1C (2H) 2S shows 5 card spade suit and at least 10 points. With 8
or 9 points and a long Spade suit, we make a negative double
first, then bid spades at next opportunity. This will say to
partner, I have long spades but was not strong enough to bid 2S
immediately.
When we are forced to make a negative double at a higher level,
we add 2 points for each additional level to our minimum
requirement for negative double.
Another example:
1H (1S) X Negative double shows 6-7 HCP minimum and good minor
suits and less than 3 card Heart support. Also, probably
unbalanced hand or balanced with no spade stopper.
Negative Double when minors are bid:
1C (1D) X shows 4 cards in both majors with 6-7 HCP minimum.
1C (1D) 1H or 1S shows 4 card major suit only. We do not need 5
card major to bid 1H or 1S over 1C (1D), but of course 1H or 1S
can be longer.
One word of caution about Negative Doubles. As the bidding gets
higher and we want to show partner a hand with values, the
definition of our hand relaxes a little for a negative double.
This is why I suggest beginning Negative Doubles through 3S only.
Get comfortable with Negative Doubles first before extending the
range. Example:
Partner opens:
1D (3C) X This negative double at the 3 level may be showing
values and not necessarily 4 - 4 in unbid majors but a tolerance
for either and a good hand with no better descriptive bid.
Requirements tend to blur as the levels increase, but even at
high levels, negative doubles will be disciplined in showing a
minimum value and no serious flaws.
A more recent development in the Negative Double family are the
Negative Free Bids. Negative Free Bids are used after we open and
the opponent's interfere, but they are different than Negative
Doubles and used instead of Negative Doubles. There are many
different versions but I will attempt to explain one common usage
here so that the reader can become familiar with the Negative
Free Bid concept.
In striving to increase the responder's ability to show a good
suit after an opponent's overcall, some partnerships have agreed
that a Free Bid by responder does not promise the standard
minimum of 10-12 HCP. These Negative Free Bids may be made on
weaker hands, so they do not force opener to bid again. They are
called Negative Free Bids in recognition of their non-forcing
nature. They are however intended to be constructive bids meaning
at least 6-10 HCP and showing a good 5 card suit or longer, not
junk.
For example:
Opener Opp Resp
1D 1S 2H Responder might hold xx KQxxxx Qxx xx
All strong actions by responder commenced by doubling. The double
does not promise or deny a particular shape but commits the
partnership to game.
After responder's Negative Free Bid, opener may bid on if he has
a hand that fits with responder or he can pass. In the above
auction the opener might have:
A. xxxx Ax AKxxx KQ
B. xxxx Jx AKxx KQx
With hand A opener may raise to 3 hearts. Remember with Negative
Free Bids, even though responder's hand is weak, his suit is
good. If responder has a useful doubleton in spades and the queen
of opener's suit, he would bid 4 hearts (his cards would be
considered 'working cards').
With hand B opener would pass the non-forcing 2H bid, but would
be willing to compete to 3 hearts over further bids by the
opponents.
Please email me at AndersonsCorner@charter.net with any questions
or comments. Remember your partner is your best friend at the
table! Love and respect will be rewarded and don't forget to
return partner's lead! If you are wrong, at least partner will be
happy with you. :) Have a wonderful Christmas!
===========================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Luc for this one too :-)
A little boy was taken to the dentist. It was discovered that he
had a cavity that would have to be filled.
"Now, young man," asked the dentist, "what kind of filling would
you like for that tooth?"
"Chocolate, please," replied the youngster
===========================================================
MEZZIE LENDS A HAND
===================
Cruise Control
During a long team match, there are plenty of hands
which arise that require little thought. The bidding
is straightforward, and when dummy comes down there
are plenty of tricks available. Wasting precious time
scratching for overtricks will burn you out, so you
save your concentration for the "problem" hands, and
set yourself in "cruise control" on the easy hands.
Identifying which hands you can sit back and relax on
can be tricky, however!
Sitting South in an lengthy match, you are dealer and
pick up a normal 1NT opener. After a Stayman sequence
and silent opponents, you find yourself declarer in
3NT.
The opening lead is the 5 of hearts, and these are the
cards you can see:
Dummy (North)
S Q985
H AJ2
D AJ87
C 82
You (South)
S AK4
H Q7
D Q9542
C A73
Let's count our tricks. Assuming the opening lead is
from the king of hearts, we can ride the opening lead
around to our queen, and repeat the heart finesse for
3 heart tricks. We have 3 sure spade tricks, and a 4th
if spades are 3-3 or if an opponent holds JT
doubleton. How about diamonds? With this suit
combination, we can never win less than 4 tricks (the
awkward holding is when West holds all the missing
diamonds), and may have 5 with a successful spade
finesse and a 2-2 break (or a singleton king onside).
Add to those the ace of clubs, and it seems as though
we have plenty of tricks!
This seems to be one of those "cruise control" hands.
In other words, a ho-hum 3NT contract with enough
tricks available so that we can pretty much play it by
mechanically following suit.
Can anything go wrong?
We run the opening heart lead to our queen of hearts
and - wait a minute! East wins the 1st trick with the
king of hearts. Oh well, we only have 2 heart tricks
now. We assume East will lead back a heart, but after
a couple of seconds of thought, East plays back a low
club. It is then that we notice our frail club
holding! We duck twice, and win the 3rd club to take
the diamond finesse. East holds that king, too, and
cashes 2 more clubs to put our once-promising contract
2 down.
Now that we see the problem, the solution is easy.
Our thinking declarer takes the ace of hearts at trick
1. This costs us a chance at 3 heart tricks, but now
nothing the defense does can hurt us. We cross to the
king of spades to take the diamond finesse, which
loses. Now, even if East switches to clubs, we have
set up enough tricks for our contract: 3 spades, a
heart, 4 diamonds and the ace of clubs.
The hands:
Dummy
S Q985
H AJ2
D AJ87
C 82
West East
S 762 S JT3
H T9854 H K63
D T3 D K6
C Q94 C KJT65
You
S AK4
H Q7
D Q9542
C A73
The moral: take an extra minute before you play to
trick 1 to see if anything can go wrong with a
seemingly iron-clad contract. Trust me, an extra
minute of thinking BEFORE the play starts will save
you a lot of IMPs by the end of day!
********************
Mezzie is available for individual lessons and tournament
play. For more information, you can write to Mezzie
(James Mesbur) at: james_mesbur@yahoo.com
============================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Subject: A.A.A.D.D.
Recently, I was diagnosed with A.A.A.D.D.--Age
Activated Attention Deficit Disorder. This is how it
manifests: I decided to wash my car. As I start
toward the garage, I notice that there is mail on the
hall table. I decide to go through the mail before I
wash the car. I lay my car keys down on the table,
put the junk mail in the trash can under the table,
and notice that the trash can is full. So, I decide
to put the bills back on the table and take out the
trash first. But then I think, since I'm going to be
near the mailbox when I take out the trash anyway, I
may as well pay the bills first.
I take out my checkbook that is on the table, and see that
there is only one check left. My extra checks are in my desk
in the den, so I go to my desk where I find the bottle of soda
that I had been drinking. I'm going to look for my checks, but
first I need to push the soda aside so that I don't
accidentally knock it over. I see that the soda is getting
warm, and I decide I should put it in the refrigerator to keep
it cold. As I head toward the kitchen with the soda, a vase
of flowers on the counter catches my eye--they need to be
watered.
I set the soda down on the counter, and I discover my reading
glasses that I've been searching for all morning. I decide
I better put them back on my desk, but first I'm going to
water the flowers. I set the glasses back down on the counter,
fill a container with water and suddenly I spot the TV remote.
Someone left it on the kitchen table. I realize that tonight
when we go to watch TV, we will be looking for the remote, but
nobody will remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I
decide to put it back in the den where it belongs, but first
I'll water the flowers. I splash some water on the flowers,
but most of it spills on the floor. So, I set the remote back
down on the table, get some towels and wipe up the spill.
Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was
planning to do.
At the end of the day: the car isn't washed, the bills
aren't paid, there is a warm bottle of soda sitting on
the counter, the flowers aren't watered, there is
still only one check in my checkbook, I can't find the
remote, I can't find my glasses, and I don't remember
what I did with the car keys. Then when I try to
figure out why nothing got done today, I'm really
baffled because I know I was busy all day long, and
I'm really tired. I realize this is a serious problem,
and I'll try to get some help for it , but first I'll
check my e-mail.
=============================================================
MOOGAL'S FIRESIDE LOG
=====================
Fireside News
It is with the deepest sadness that we note the recent death
of Nina Campbell (PSYCHE) after a long and brave battle with
breast cancer. Nina leaves behind her grieving husband Gerry,
and her two children, ages 13 and 6.
Nina made friends wherever she went, and OKB was no
exception. She loved to play in the tourneys, and Sara, her
dear friend and her devoted supporter during her illness, was
a frequent partner. So many people asked me over the past year
or so, how she was doing, it was clear that everyone loved
her.
I am grateful I had the chance to meet Nina once in New York.
She will be missed by all.
Tuna will be holding a memorial tourney for Nina on December 7
at 11:00 AM -- play in your choice of the regular or mini, and
remember Nina with a smile
*************************************************************
OKB Tourneys
Well done to all our Fireside friends who excelled in
the tourneys this past month!!
Tue Nov 4 11:30 2003
Rank Team Score Boards
1 garyi/Mslizzzy 68.05 12
Tue Nov 4 17:30 2003
Rank Team Score Boards
1 raija/tuna 4.78 12
Thu Nov 6 11:00 2003
Rank Team Score Boards
1 hester/pascha 68.15 11
Sat Nov 15 11:00 AM
Rank Team Score Boards
1 ecofin/jccasper 69.54 26
Mon Nov 17 19:00 2003
Rank Team Score Boards
1 ndkid/pamela 3.10 17
Tue Nov 25 11:00 AM
Rank Team Score Boards
1 lucinha/wheels 2.67 25
There are now 12 tourneys a day, not possible for me
to check each one....so if you win a tourney, let me
know! We want everyone's name up in lights!
****************************************************************
NOVICE MENTOR TOURNEYS
Congrats to our winners of the two Novice-Mentor tourneys in
November.
And well done to all our top finishers:
Thu Nov 13 06:00 PM
Rank Team Score Boards
1 sha/wandaw 60.75 20
2 DavidRG/frank-1 55.69 18
3 Fleurene/kte 55.00 18
4 hawes/peter_5 54.31 18
5 eva-1/fcd 54.21 19
6 cora/lijian 52.22 18
Sat Nov 15 12:00 PM
Rank Team Score Boards
1 Fleurene/kte 62.49 20
2 ic/wilmott 62.20 20
3 richardg/Rockford 61.99 20
4 gosi/mmoti 57.91 19
5 lee-1/lello 54.39 19
6 bonnied/eagle123 53.30 19
7 ana/smileyuk 53.23 20
8 franny/riggin 50.90 19
9 dannya/elmastas 50.42 17
Mentors and novices, join us this month on the 11th
and on the 20th - email Sandra at sandree@attbi.com
if you would like to find a partner ahead of time.
We'll do our best to match you up! I promise
you a fun game.
****************************************************************
FIRESIDE'S MENTOR CUP GAME
Our September winners are:
11-09-2003 Team ANDRE55: Andre55, JanetE, CDHill & JerryB
11-30-2003 Team SHADE: Shade, GroovyB, JCabal, and Callie
Visit our website at www.firesides.net/mtc.htm for info and
lists of all our top placing stars. To get on the email reminder
list for these games, contact us at firesider@aol.com - all
welcome!
****************************************************************
FIRESIDE REMINDER
Sometimes we have to cancel a Fireside session at the
last minute, and really no way to let people know.
So, if you don't see a Fireside table, check the
'stats' for BELIEVER and MOOGAL -- we will put the
relevant information there.
Thanks for your understanding -- we do our best to
cover every session. Sometimes it just isn't
possible.
****************************************************************
Congrats to Laurie (BAGEL27) who recently became a Life
Master!
She spent a week with PATRICIA in Las Vegas Oct 20-27 playing
in a Sectional Tournament. Although she had long ago
surpassed 300 points, she was still 9 silver points shy of
meeting the requirements for LM. As she noted, can you think
of a better place to go trolling for silver than Las Vegas?
When the week ended, she had garnered over 11 silver points,
and that elusive letter in front of her ACBL number. She
gives a huge THANKS to Pat, for helping her to achieve her
goal!
****************************************************************
Congrats to Bill (WINTAKA) for achieving Diamond Life Master
status! His 5000th master point got him a mention in this
month's Bridge Bulletin, and a ceremony at the recent Winnipeg
sectional.
****************************************************************
Some of you may remember Rashid Khan (CLEOS2), who was a FS
commentator for a brief time before his university schedule
interfered. This month in the Bridge Bulletin, a writer
commends Rashid on his sportsmanship for refusing a revoke
penalty in a match that would determine a Swiss team winner.
The writer referred to him as a class act...aren't all our
commentators, past and present!
****************************************************************
Our Finest Gifts We Bring by Richard Pavlicek
Pa-rum pum pum pum! Your opponents have the holiday spirit as
they overbid and offer you six gifts. Will you collect them?
Find out in this new defensive-play contest for December.
http://www.rpbridge.net/7x57.htm
Results of the November bidding poll "Big Brother Is Watching"
will be posted December 3. For these, and anything else related
to the monthly polls and contests, go to:
http://www.rpbridge.net/rppc.htm
****************************************************************
NEW ORLEANS NABC
On Saturday morning, November 22, I hopped on a plane for
New Orleans, for a quick visit to the fall NABC. I was meeting
Eric (ETSAND) there, and I knew it would be a fun time!
Eric had arranged to bring teammates from Houston for a KO
starting that afternoon. I was delighted to be playing
again with Jonathan (JHARRISH) and John (JHM). Eric made sure
I was getting us some sandwiches while he purchased the entry
-- so that I wouldn't see the "slight" inflation in our master
point total. :)
We played well enough to win our first two matches, sadly
losing our third by 7 IMPs.
So it was off to IMP pairs for Sunday night! Eric learned
something very important during this match -- next time
he will request N-S seating. It seems I tend to get lost
going from table to table. Yes, I realize the table is
generally right beside the one we were at....I don't know
why but by the time I negotiated that distance the other
three were seated, had their cards sorted and were on the
third round of bidding! Eric got a very worried look when
one opp pointed us to a table at least three away as our
next destination! Again, we played fairly well, enough
for a section mention, but not quite enough for an
overall.
The low point: Colin had taught me a nifty convention
called Transfer Stayman, used after the auction starts
2C:2NT. I had nagged Eric to consider it and he
agreed to add it to our card. It doesn't come up all
that often, but when it does, it does a lovely job of
setting the right contract and right-siding it. Guess
what, we had an auction start 2C:2NT! Would any of you
believe me if I said "I DID NOT FORGET TRANSFER STAYMAN"??
Sigh, I didn't think so.
The high point: Seeing old and new Fireside friends!
Of course we had a lovely time with our teammates,
John and Jonathan, and I am looking forward to
seeing them again in Houston in February for their
regional.
We had arranged to meet Bill (WINTAKA) and Sue (SAM143)
for breakfast on Sunday, and they were able to join
us that night again for dinner. In the hotel coffee
shop I spotted Lynn (WISHTRIK), and a nice surprise,
she was eating with Diane (DIANEW). Also, had dinner
with Gail (FRODO), Jim (JBOT) and Judy (JKH), and a brief
visit with DLOYE, Chuck (GUNNE) and Bob (BRIDGBOY).
We had quick hugs with Tina (LUCKYLU) and Howard (CAPTHOOK)...
we need more time to socialize between sessions!
I regret that I was unable to locate either Fred
(FREDW3) or Ruth (KITKAT) who were also there.
Eric has a slightly different slant on the experience,
so here's his take on things:
Since the entire Houston bridge world thought New Orleans
was a local tournament, I did not have an excuse to skip
this one. I coerced a couple of local buddies (JHM and
JHARRISH) to join Jan and me for the knockouts on
the first weekend. The ACBL is an amazing organization.
Pulling off a tournament of this size, all without knowing
how many players will be in any given event is truly remarkable.
Remember, of course, this is literally a game where most of
the players have no clue what the rules actually are. The
tournament directors do not just sit around during each round,
but are constantly straightening out irregularities or
re-educating participants. From my vantage point, this was
done with minimal acrimony and reasonable diplomacy. Even the
caddies have their challenges, running boards between
sections that spilled into hallways past the water coolers.
Sometime in the distant past I learned from "A Fireside Guide
to your First NABC" (now out of print) that ACBL masterpoints
are the crazy glue that holds together the whole organization.
Come to the tourney with no masterpoints and you might find
yourself playing bridge with someone who just learned
yesterday. With 100 masterpoints, you may play with someone
that learned 2 weeks ago. This puts many Fireside alumni in a
position of relatively few masterpoints compared to their
experience, resulting in a chance for easy wins at the table.
But if your goal is to find a stiffer game, you head to the
open game. For the knockouts (KO) a modified strategy is
required. The KO strata are carefully arranged by
masterpoints. Many players carefully select teammates to
arrive at the lowest possible total of masterpoints in order
to improve their chances of winning.
Jan and I chose a slightly offbeat route. In hopes of finding
a KO bracket where opponents had accurately filled out a
convention card, I added a zero to Jan's meager masterpoint
total. This bounced us into bracket 6 with 15 other teams.
Over a two day period, each of four rounds is 24 boards, with
a break at half to compare scores or look for chocolate.
In the first match we stormed out of the block a bit nervous,
fumbled a couple of five level decisions and ended up down a
tad at half. In the second half we settled down and walked
away with a clear win. For the second match we were matched up
against some friendly folks from Houston. The quality of the
bridge faded at this point, but both sides are allowed to
makes mistakes and we won a squeaker. In the third round we
ran across a well oiled machine from Florida. We managed to
keep our smiles as they explained new rules to us like, "you
may not keep your convention card on the table." Only a few
imps changed hands in the first half and we found ourselves
down by 10 imps. More imps began to fly in the second half. I
missed a slam, but opponents let a 3NT make. We missed a
laydown white game and they overlooked a dicey 3NT. At time to
compare I knew it would be close and as the scores were
totaled up, we came up 7 short.
Of course the real reason to go to the NABC is to put faces to
the names that we see all year round on OKB. Plant yourself in
the hotel lobby and the whole world walks past. I had the
pleasure to see Fireside commentators Diane Walker, Lynn Deas
and Bob Lavin. We saw FREDW3's name in the daily bulletin
racking up points, but could not find him in the bar. Many FS
regulars such as JBOT, JKH, DLOYE, GUNNE, and FRODO were there
enjoying the tournament and the city. A highlight for me was
to finally meet a Winnipeg envoy, Bill Treble (WINTAKA) and
his able TM, Sue Moore (SAM143) Bill recently racked up his
5000th masterpoint so is no stranger to the tournament scene.
But far from obsessed with this game, he kept drifting over to
the large screen TVs to check on his NFL picks. Sue also has
years of bridge experience behind her. She kept the post-
mortems light as she pointed out hands that Bill "had played
well for a player of his ability." :)
Don't pass up your chance to go to the next NABC in a tourist
trap near home. :)
Thanks Eric, for agreeing to play with me!
Take a look at a few photos:
http://www.attcanada.net/~andre55.msn/NOrleans.html
My camera died halfway through, so although I took
some pictures of Dloye, Chuck, Gail, Bob and Howard,
they were nowhere to be found when I downloaded.
I am hoping Dloye will add hers to this site,
and if so I will repeat it in next month's issue.
So here are the results for our friends for the
New Orleans NABC! Well done to all.
Education Foundation Prs
290 Pairs
MPs A B C Names Score
7.28 5 1 Robert Pardue - Geo. Fred Williams III, Knoxville TN
171.50
1st Sun IMP Pairs
168 Pairs
MPs A B C Names Score
2.85 6 William Treble, Winnipeg MB; Sue Ann Moore, Colorado
Spgs CO 58.00
ENJOY THE JAZZ KO BKT 6
16 Teams
MPs Rank Names
10.66 3/4 Eric Sandberg - Jonathan Holmes - John Monroe Jr,
Houston TX; Janice Kofman, Miami FL
SUN AFT 100/200/300 PAIRS
42 Pairs
MPs A B C Names Score
2.80 3 2 Gail Hyland, Leavenworth WA; Robert Bennett, Sterling
City TX 106.50
Women's B-A-M
20 Teams
MPs Rank Names Score
44.00 5 Lynn Baker, Austin TX; Kerri Sanborn, Stony Point NY;
Lynn Deas, Schenectady NY; Beth Palmer, Silver Spring MD; Hjordis
Eythorsdottir,Huntsville AL; Debbie Rosenberg, New Rochelle NY
34.68
23.16 14 Barbara Ames - Diane Walker, Gaithersburg MD; Ellen
Cherniavsky, Silver Spring MD; Rae Dethlefsen, Reston VA 26.43
Mon Eve BAM Teams
22 Teams
MPs A B C Names Score
1.48 5/6 Mickey Britt, Tallahassee FL; Charles Gill, Newton IA;
Dloye Swift, Slidell LA; Dann Kramer, Calgary AB 14.00
Everybody's Here KO Bkt 3
16 Teams
MPs Rank Names
12.07 4/6 Tim Crank, Wheaton MD; Fabrice Lecomte, New York NY;
Nancy Hetsko - Larry Rich, Cumming GA; Howard Einberg, Los
Angeles CA; Robert Glickman, Woodland Hills CA
Tuesday Zip Ko's -RED-
10 Teams
MPs Rank Names
2.27 2 Andrea Hayman, New York NY; Renato Robledo,
Philadelphia PA; Robert Glickman, Woodland Hills CA;
Howard Einberg, Los Angeles CA
Dead Turkey Walking 4
16 Teams
MPs Rank Names
30.77 1 Robert Glickman - James Glickman, Woodland Hills CA;
Tim Crank, Wheaton MD; Fabrice Lecomte, New York NY;
Howard Einberg, Los Angeles CA
Wed Eve B A M Teams
38 Teams
MPs A B C Names Score
1.47 6/8 Richard Cornett, Madisonville KY; Deborah Gregory,
Henderson KY; Dann Kramer, Calgary AB; Gail Hyland,
Leavenworth WA
Peggy Serpas Open Pairs
162 Pairs
MPs A B C Names Score
1.96 5 Charles Gill, Newton IA; Dloye Swift, Slidell LA
303.50
Orlando Morning Ko Brk 2
9.25 3/4 Evan Markowitz, New York NY; Walter Tauber,
Longmeadow MA; Robert Park, Gibsonia PA; Geo.
Fred Williams III, Knoxville TN
COFFEE & BEIGNETS KO #1
16 Teams
MPs Rank Names
19.17 3/4 William Treble, Winnipeg MB; David Willis -
Waldemar Frukacz, Ottawa ON; Jaroslaw
Piasecki, Buffalo Grove IL
SUN 2PM 299ER PAIRS
12 Pairs
MPs A B Names Score
0.84 4 Ruth Ruyle, Roseville CA;
Ed Harris, Forest City NC 61.80
****************************************************************
Whichever holidays you celebrate, we wish you and
your loved ones all the best during this season.
In loving memory of Nina,
Janice
**********************************************************
While we list the lessons offered by the commentators who
write for The Chat, we want to note that our other
commentators also give lessons in most shapes and
sizes....mentoring games, tourney play, partnership coaching,
just about whatever type of lesson you could envision.
Please feel free to contact any of them for lessons:
Colin/Kaltica kaltica@mts.net
Bill/Wintaka btreble@shaw.ca
Lynn/Wishtrik lynn@lynndeas.com
Dann/Pooka pspeard@telusplanet.net
Bob/Bridgboy bridgboy@charter.net
Diane/DianeW diane@walkersweb.org
Bernard/Bluebee Bernardh@btinternet.com
Fred/FredW3 Please msg on OKB
The lessons can be more affordable than you might
think, especially mentoring games. We think our
commentators give you your money's worth when you
choose private lessons, and they really value your
business. Maybe you can hint to a loved one what
you would like for your next birthday!
***********************************************************
We know that it isn't always easy to find a 'friendly' game.
We hope this new site will be a plus in your OKB experience
by helping our friends schedule games with each other.
Visit:
http://www.firesides.net/playdate.htm
and follow the directions to set up a table others can join, or
to join a game someone else has scheduled. You'll receive emails
notifying you as others join the same games.
If you wish to reserve a seat in one of the listed mentoring
games, which are supported by the people attending, we
suggest you do so, and also contact the mentoring commentator
for info.
We have tested this site, but we won't be surprised to hear
of a bug or two. Please let us know at kaltica@mts.net if
you encounter any problems serving, joining, or canceling a
game, or if you have any suggestions.
Have fun!
********************
Have a comment you'd like to make about the FireSide program?
An event or announcement you'd like to share with the rest of
us? A question you'd like answered? Here's a great place for
us to visit every day and keep up with each other:
http://www.firesides.net/chatline.htm
********************
Can't remember if this is a Mentor Cup week or when the next
Fireside session is? Get the complete schedule of events at:
www.firesides.net/whatsup.htm
Bookmark this page, and check back often. You don't want to
miss anything!
For those of you who use a credit card to support Fireside,
it's easy now! Go to:
www.firesides.net/support.htm
*********************
FIRESIDE UTILITY SITES
http://www.firesides.net/checker.htm
http://www.firesides.net/dealhand.htm
********************
And if you haven't had a chance to check them out yet,
here are some links to some of the quizzes that Colin has
developed to enlighten us:
www.firesides.net/staymantest.htm
www.firesides.net/sayctest.htm
www.firesides.net/sarctest.htm
www.firesides.net/spectrumtest.htm
www.firesides.net/bidstest.htm
www.firesides/net/IGITSAP.htm
(Note that IGITSAP must be in CAPS.)
Give them a try! They are fun and instructive.
*****************************************************
December Events: (All times Pacific)
===============================
NOVICE/MENTOR TOURNEY:
Thursday, December 11, 6:00 P.M. and Saturday,
December 20, at 12:00 P.M. A low-key introduction
to the tourney experience, sponsored by Fifth Chair...
see www.fifthchair.org for more info on this and
their other services, including getting a mentor.
FIRESIDE MENTOR CUP TEAM GAME:
Sundays, 5:00 P.M. December 14 and 28.
See www.firesides.net/mtc.htm for info and lists
of past winners. To get on the mailing list for
this game, email me at firesider@aol.com.
OKSCRIPT SEMINAR:
OKScript seminars are held as demand warrants.
Email Kaltica to schedule a session, usually available
on the same Sunday as the Mentor Cup Game, at 2:30 p.m.
OKScript is an add-on program that saves you many
keystrokes while playing on OKB by sending
prepared text to the table, opps, or lobby at the
push of a button. Try to download the program BEFORE
the seminar by going to www.firesides.net/okscript.htm.
For more information, email Colin at kaltica@mts.net.
FIFTH CHAIR INSTRUCTIONAL EVENTS:
=================================
Interested in getting a mentor to play with you periodically
in your learning of this wonderful game? Please contact
tarsh1@mindspring.com and ask for a mentor.
SAYC Novice Team Game:
Saturdays, at 8:00 a.m. PACIFIC. Newcomers very
welcome! In addition to the team game, there will be
an open table for those waiting to join the team game.
This table will also have a commentator.
2/1 Team Game for intermediate players:
Saturdays, 1:30 p.m. Pacific. Novices are welcome in
spectator mode.
Look for the words FIFTH CHAIR beside the server's name,
in the table notes, to attend either of these sessions
You can also go to the Fifth Chair Foundation webpage:
www.fifthchair.org if you have any bidding questions.
After clicking on the webpage, find the Ask Anything section.
Write an email to Lucy, and she will be most happy to answer
your questions.
OKbridge offers us an email discussion opportunity,
the Discuss List. You can join that list by emailing them
at Discuss-Request@okbridge.com and put the word 'subscribe'
in the subject line. You can also participate in the
discussions via the OKbridge web site now, just go to the
members area at www.okbridge.com and you'll find the Discuss
List there at the bottom of your opening page.
********************
Moogal (Janice Kofman) stays busy collecting all sorts
of news about our FireSide family members to share with us.
Please help her out by emailing her any news or stories you
are willing to share with the group.
Janice's email address is moocake@bellsouth.net
=====================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to BobW for these:
Subj: Dog (mostly) and Cat Quotes
No animal should ever jump up on the dining-room furniture
unless absolutely certain that he can hold his own in the
conversation." -Fran Lebowitz
The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail
instead of his tongue." -Anonymous
"Don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence
that you are wonderful." -Ann Landers
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go
where they went." -Will Rogers
"There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking
your face." -Ben Williams
"A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he
loves himself." -Josh Billings
"The average dog is a nicer person than the average person." -
Andrew A.Rooney
"We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love
we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the
best deal man has ever made." -M.Facklam
"Dogs love their friends and bite their enemies, quite unlike
people, who are incapable of pure love and always have to mix
love and hate." -Sigmund Freud
"If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain
dogs I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few
persons." -James Thurber
"A dog teaches a boy fidelity, perseverance, and to turn
around three times before lying down." -Robert Benchley
"I wonder if other dogs think poodles are members of a weird
religious cult." -Rita Rudner
"Dogs need to sniff the ground; it's how they keep abreast of
current events. The ground is a giant dog newspaper,
containing all kinds of late-breaking dog news items, which,
if they are especially urgent, are often continued in the next
yard." -Dave Barry
"Anybody who doesn't know what soap tastes like never washed a
dog." -Franklin P. Jones
"If your dog is fat, you aren't getting enough exercise." -
Unknown
"My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is up to
$3.00 a can. That's almost $21.00 in dog money." - Joe
Weinstein
"Outside of a dog, a book is probably man's best friend;
inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." -Groucho Marx
"Ever consider what they must think of us? I mean, here we
come back from a grocery store with the most amazing haul --
chicken, pork, half a cow.They must think we're the greatest
hunters on earth!" -Anne Tyler
"Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs
should relax and get used to the idea." -Robert A. Heinlein
========================================================
TREBLE'S TABLE TALK
===================
The Maze
Bridge often resembles a jigsaw puzzle, in that we can link
some of the pieces together, but it takes a lot of thought and
effort before we can bring the entire picture into focus. At
times, it feels as if we are scurrying around in a maze,
knowing there is a way out and the end is just around the
corner, but in danger of becoming irretrievably lost if we
miss a turn.
The image seems to become especially blurred if we are on
defense. Relying on assumptions made about the enemy bidding,
we make a sensible lead, only to have it blow up in our face.
Often, we're faced with several choices, of which only one
trail leads to the pot of gold and the other forks in the road
lead to a mudhole.
Take, for example, this opening lead challenge from a team
match, with you holding as West:
S--J8754 H--K642 D--743 C--9
The auction goes:
South West North East
1S pass 1NT dbl
2C pass 2H pass
3C pass pass pass
This is one of these hands where any lead can be right. With
RHO's 1S opener, both dummy and partner appear to be short in
that suit. You would expect declarer to be very short in
hearts, either a singleton or a void since he retreated from
North's 2H bid. Neither side has shown much interest in a
notrump contract. Let's sum up the pluses and minuses of the
various options:
1) A heart. The plus is that you may be able to
shortruff declarer by playing hearts and now the assumed 4-1
trump break can't be handled. Although LHO has bid hearts,
partner has made a takeout double, for which he should have
values and length in that suit. The downside of a heart lead
is if dummy has a trick or two in the suit and declarer is now
able to toss diamond losers.
2) A diamond. The unbid suit, never a bad choice. A
diamond lead might be required as you will only be on lead
once or twice, and partner could either have quick tricks in
the suit or you might have to lead through any strength dummy
might have in the suit, lest partner be endplayed later on.
On the other hand, declarer will usually have two or three
diamonds and if dummy has some high cards in diamonds, that
lead may be helpful for declarer.
3) A trump. The upside is that partner may be able to
win the first trick and play another round or two, eliminating
any ruffing potential in dummy and to a lesser extent in
declarer's hand as well. The downside is that a club lead may
allow South to minimize his potential losers in the trump suit
when he may not have had enough entries in dummy to do the job
himself. Also, since partner will eventually be able to
overruff in spades, there may not be a huge urgency for a
trump lead.
4) A spade. This is the least attractive of the four
suits, and while it MAY be right, it has the most downside so
doesn't rate high on our priority list.
So what is the right lead? You'll have to wait until next
month for the answer. In the meantime, you can email your
votes to me and I will publish the results of our "survey" in
my January article.
Now, let's ponder another defensive brain-teaser, where you
are defending a 3NT contract at IMPs in the North chair:
S-- A43 H-- J963 D-- QJ9 C-- Q63
You hear the opponents stumble into the notrump game
via this auction:
North East South West
pass 1H pass 1S
pass 2D pass 3C*
pass 3D pass 3NT
pass pass pass
West's 3C was fourth-suit forcing. Your move.
I gave a LOT of thought to what to try on this hand.
A club was the "unbid" suit, but West continued to bid notrump
in the face of partner's 10 or more red suit cards. The Q of
diamonds was another possibility, but didn't rate to set up
a lot of tricks for the defense since that suit appears to
be splitting down the middle. Additional thought didn't seem
to be producing any brain waves, so finally I said the heck
with it and led my fourth best heart.
Ironically, the heart turned out to be the killing
lead for a very strange reason:
East
S-- 10
H-- AK1052
D-- A86542
North C-- J South
S-- A43 S-- KJ87
H-- J963 H-- 74
D-- QJ9 D-- K10
C-- Q63 West C-- 108742
S-- Q9652
H-- Q8
D-- 73
C-- AK95
Declarer scooped up the first trick with the 8 of
hearts and now played on diamonds, ducking my Queen.
I now fired out a second round of hearts. Without the lead
and continuation, declarer has time to establish the diamonds
with communication available in the heart suit. Now,
however, the diamond suit was kaput, as West has no more
hearts to enter dummy with and a trick still had to be
yielded to get the diamonds established. West now had
eight tricks; five hearts, two clubs and a diamond, but
now correct defense can prevent him from getting a ninth,
as NS can get their five tricks first.
I'd like to say that I foresaw the need to disrupt the
communication between the EW hands and made the heart
lead based on cold-blooded logic. That might have been
flickering in my subconscious mind, but the truth isn't quite
so glamorous. I just didn't have good vibes about any of the
other choices of lead, and while I didn't expect the heart lead
to be profoundly right, it somehow felt least WRONG of the
various options. As it turned out, the lead turned out to be
a spectacular triumph, but again it was the maze scenario
and I happened to guess which turn was the correct one.
Now, let's turn our attention to a declarer
play exercise, where you have the following collection
of munchies as East:
S-- K7 H-- AKJ83 D-- 65 C-- J965
The auction goes, with NS passing throughout:
East West
1D
1H 1S
3NT pass
The opening lead is the 2 of clubs, and here
are the combined assets:
Dummy
S-- A963
H-- 52
D-- AJ1094
C-- Q8
You
S-- K7
H-- AKJ83
D-- 65
C-- J965
The Ace is won on your right, and the 7 of
clubs returned, dummy's Queen holding. With a
choice between the red suits, you come to hand with
the heart Ace and play a diamond to dummy's 9, losing
to the King. Back comes the 3 of clubs.
Declarer put in the 9 of clubs, losing to
the 10. Now a diamond came through, and a hopeful
10 lost to RHO's Queen, who now cashed the King of
clubs for down one.
The entire hand was:
West
S-- A963
H-- 52
D-- AJ1094
South C-- Q8 North
S-- Q1054 S-- J82
H-- Q1074 H-- 96
D-- 87 D-- KQ32
C-- 1042 C-- AK73
East
S-- K7
H-- AKJ83
D-- 65
C-- J965
It was a brilliant sleight of hand by
North, who defended very cleverly. Playing the
two club winners could not succeed, as East is pretty
well marked for the Jxxx of clubs for the 3NT bid and
South will be bereft of entries. So he won the Ace,
concealing the King, and returned the club seven. Then,
when he came in with the King of diamonds, he played
ANOTHER low club, giving declarer a losing option.
Although NS gave it the best defense, it
should not have worked, as declarer took his eye off
the ball. If South has led from K10xx of clubs, there
is no winning play as LHO will take the next two
club tricks. So let's consider all three possible
combined club holdings in the declarer's hands, knowing
from the third round by RHO that they are dividing 4-3:
a) LHO: K10xx RHO: Axx
It doesn't matter what you do here, as you'll
lose three club tricks.
b) LHO: Kxx RHO: A10xx
This may SEEM possible, but it isn't. Why?
Because LHO knows you probably have the J of clubs,
but has no clue about the remaining spot cards. On
this layout, South will probably take the King of clubs
and return another, hoping for A109x in partner's hand.
So that leaves:
c) LHO: 10xx RHO: AKxx
Since a) is irrelevant, and b) is not consistent
with the defense to this point, you must hope that c)
is the actual club position and fearlessly go in with the
Jack, nodding "good try" to RHO as you rake in your nine
tricks.
Another quiz hand to wind up this article, with
you in the South chair, vulnerable at IMPs:
S-- 10xxx H-- Kx D-- KJxxx C-- Jx
The auction commences:
North South
1D 1S
2C ?
You're going to bid some number of diamonds at
this point, but how many? A jump to 3D may be a tich
aggressive, but a 2D bid could easily be a meek preference
rather than the nice support you actually have and feels
like somewhat of an underbid. It's kind of a "tweener"
hand. So what's your choice, and the reasons for your
vote?
Any responses to the two quiz hands can be sent
to: btreble@shaw.ca.
See you next month!
********************
You can write to Wintaka (Bill Treble) at: bbtreble@mts.net
You will find Bill doing his FireSide sessions on Tuesdays
at 5:30 P.M. OKbridge time.
Wintaka and Kaltica present classes on:
SAYC (Rainbow Series)
2/1 (Spectrum series)
Precision (Prism Series)
and other selected bridge topics (Kaleidoscope series).
They also offer private/group lessons and/or supervised play
sessions. Email Bill (bbtreble@mts.net) or Colin
(kaltica@mts.net) for more information.
================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Benson for this giggle:
*Rookie Landing*
As the passengers settled in on a West Coast commuter flight a
flight attendant announced, "We'd like you folks to help us
welcome our new co-pilot. He'll be performing his first
commercial landing for us today, so be sure to give him a big
round of applause when we come to a stop."
The plane made an extremely bumpy landing, bouncing hard two
or three times before taxiing to a stop. Still, the
passengers applauded.
Then the attendant's voice came over the intercom, "Thanks for
flying with us. And don't forget to let our co-pilot know
which landing you liked best."
===================================================
AND FINALLY KALTICA
===================
Major Dilemma
*************
Consider this auction carefully:
Opener Responder
1D 1S
2NT 3H
Note that since we bid our FOUR card suits UP THE
LINE, 3H promises 5-4 or better in the majors. But is
3H forcing? Yes. The Mike Yuen Rule states that "2NT
ends all part score bidding", so if we don't wish to
force we should PASS 2NT.
But is 3H GAME forcing? For example, if Opener
rebids 3S here, is RESPONDER forced to bid on? Yes.
Had the pair found a 4-4 Heart fit Opener would have
been compelled to raise to 4H. Since hands where 4H
will make (due, perhaps, to the more balanced fit)
while 4S (a 5-3 fit) would go down would be few and
far between. Hence, 3H *is* GAME forcing here.
Given the game forcing nature of 1D:1S:2NT:3H,
then, which is STRONGER for an Opener holding 3 Spades?
3S or 4S? Due to the game forcing nature of this
sequence, the Principle Of Fast Arrival applies. Thus,
4S would show a dead minimum 18-count while 3S would
suggest a GOOD 18 or 19 points.
Because 1D:1S:2NT:3H:3S is forcing (thus allowing
Responder to cuebid if interested in slam), 4C or 4D
by Opener (i.e. 1D:1S:2NT:3H:4C or 1D:1S:2NT:3H:4D)
would be a maximum with HEARTS as trump. 1D:1S:2NT:3H:4H,
then, would suggest a minimum with 4 Hearts.
With 5-4 in the majors, then, any Responder
interested in slam can judge by Opener's rebid if
Partner is similarly inclined. 4H or 4S by Opener
would deny slam interest while 3S (Spades as trump),
4C and 4D (Hearts trump) would SHOW such ambition.
Without a major suit fit (e.g. 1D:1S:2NT:3H:3NT)
Responder can either pass, giving up on slam, or
invite 6NT via a 4NT quantitative raise.
Holding 5-5 in the majors, Responder KNOWS that
there is a major suit fit, since 2NT denies more than
one doubleton. Again, the Principle Of Fast Arrival
will apply: 1D:1S:2NT:4H denies any slam interest,
while 3H followed by 4H will invite 6H.
Opener Responder
1D 1S
2NT 3H - 5-4 or better in the majors.
3NT 4H - 5-5 majors, inviting slam.
So far, then, we have handled the 5-4 and
5-5 two suiters. But what about 6-4 in the majors?
Here, we KNOW we have an 8+ card fit in Spades, but
we might have a more balanced (and thus superior)
mesh in Hearts if Opener has 4 of those. Is there a
way to distinguish a signoff in game from a slam
invite with 6-4 in the majors?
There is no need to leap to 4S over 1D:1S:2NT,
since that is reserved for hands where Responder does
NOT have 4 Hearts and is NOT interested in slam. With
6+ Spades, 0-3 Hearts and slam hopes we can bid 3S THEN
4S (Principle Of Slow Arrival) to suggest 6S. But with
6-4 in the majors we would like to find 4H if we have a
4-4 fit there. Over 2NT, then, we have two possible
sequences:
i) Opener Responder
1D 1S
2NT 3S
3NT 4H - 6-4 majors.
ii) Opener Responder
1D 1S
2NT 3H
3NT 4S - 6-4 majors.
In the second auction we gave Opener a chance
to raise our 4-card Heart suit and, upon hearing
that Opener held 2-3 in the majors, corrected 3NT
to 4S. Note: knowing that Opener has only 2 Spades
we would ONLY correct to 4S with 6+ Spades. But
which of these two auctions suggests slam?
The answer lies in applying a very basic
principle with 6-4 2-suiters. Consider these two
auctions:
iii) Opener Responder
1D 1S
2D any
3C
iv) Opener Responder
1D 1S
2C any
3D
Which of these auctions suggests a stronger
hand? 2D is far more limiting than 2C over 1D:1S
since it reveals 13-16 points while 2C is 13-18.
Holding 8-9 points and a Club fit Responder will
have to raise 1D:1S:2C to 3C, in case Opener has
that elusive 17-18 count. Thus, we see that with
a MINIMUM 6-4 2-suiters we bid the 6-card suit
twice before introducing the 4-carder. Bidding
"6-4-6" rather than "6-6-4" shows the stronger
opening hand.
Similar logic applies to Responder in our
sequence: 1D:1S:2NT:3S:3NT:4H is weaker than
1D:1S:2NT:3H:3NT:4S. The latter suggests slam.
Easy game, bridge. :)
**********************
You'll find Kaltica (Colin Ward) doing his FireSide
sessions on Friday evenings at 5:30 P.M. OKbridge time.
Kaltica and Wintaka present classes on:
SAYC (Rainbow Series)
2/1 (Spectrum series)
Precision (Prism Series),
and other selected bridge topics (Kaleidoscope series).
They also offer private/group lessons and/or supervised
play sessions. Email Colin (kaltica@mts.net) or
Bill (bbtreble@mts.net) for more information.
=====================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks again to Benson for this giggle:
*10 Most Wanted*
Little Sammy's kindergarten class was on a field trip to their
local police station. There they saw pictures tacked to a big
bulletin board. The label clearly read, "The 10 Most Wanted."
One of the youngsters pointed to a picture and asked if it
really was the photo of a wanted person.
"Yes," said the policeman, "the detectives want him very
badly."
So Little Sammy asked, while tugging on the man's belt, "Um,
mister, why didn't you keep them when you took their
pictures?"
=============================================================
Fireside Chat Issues
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