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Fireside Chat
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FIRESIDE CHAT MARCH 2005
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome and Announcements
Believer's FireSide Kindling
Bidding with Bridgboy
Special Treats
Hand of the Month
Dealing With Dann
Bridge For the Club Player
Moogal's FireSide Log
Treble's Table Talk
And Finally Kaltica
=======================================
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Welcome to the March, 2005 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. KALTICA
WED 11:00 A.M. FREDW3
WED 5:30 P.M. DIANEW
THU 11:00 A.M. POOKA
THU 5:30 P.M. WISHTRIK/FIFEE
FRI 11:00 A.M. BLUEBEE
FRI 5:30 P.M. WINTAKA
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 who attend. 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) 2005 by FireSide Chat.
All rights reserved.
===============================================
BELIEVER'S FIRESIDE KINDLING
============================
Hi :)
March already! Spring is right around the corner, and
none too soon for me! We've had a LOT of snow this
winter -- in fact, it's snowing as I type this! Only
supposed to get "a few" inches between now and tomorrow
night. Sigh. The good thing is, this time of year it
doesn't stick around too long, hopefully it'll melt in
a day or two.
I got to play with MsLizzzy again a couple weeks ago in
a sectional here. I really enjoy getting together with
her, and it's always a treat to play with her. She's
great company, a fun house guest, and a much better
player than me so we do pretty well in the events, too!
We'd probably do even better if we didn't stay up til 4am,
yakking like schoolgirls!
We had fun though, and earned a little bit of Silver...
we played in the open pairs this time, and I was a little
apprehensive at first, but settled right in and felt very
comfortable there. I found that there's a lot more silliness
going on in this section though! In the 199'ers, folks
are friendly, patient, and understanding when you goof.
In the open pairs, all that civility seems to get lost...
I can't believe how many partners argue with each other,
and how rude they can get with the opps! We had a couple
of unpleasant encounters, but for the most part folks were
very friendly and easy to get along with. It's just too
bad that the unpleasant experiences are the ones that
stay with you.
Please note that I have a new email address (bb@wowway.com).
My other address (sarastobbe@aol.com) is still active, and
you can use either one to email me. I'll use the
wowway address to mail out these newsletters though, so if
you need to add me to your "OK" list, please add that one.
We have some neat stuff in the newsletter this month so
I'll quit babbling at you and let you get to it! Enjoy!
See you at Fireside!
Sara
********************
You can write to Believer (Sara Stobbe) at:
sarastobbe@aol.com or bb@wowway.com
===============================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Luc for this giggle:
Doctors are used to getting calls at any hour. One night a man
phoned, waking me up. "I'm sorry to bother you so late," he
said, "but I think my wife has appendicitis."
Still half-asleep, I reminded him that I'd taken his wife's
inflamed appendix out a couple of years before. "Whoever heard
of a second appendix?" I asked.
"You may not have heard of a second appendix," he replied, "but
surely you've heard of a second wife."
===============================================================
BIDDING WITH BRIDGBOY
=====================
IMPs vs. MPs, Part 3
Safety is an important issue in bridge when deciding how we
should play a hand. The type of game we are playing further adds
to this dilemma. As we have already stated, the issue in teams is
to get your plus score, and by that I also am implying that you
want to do everything in your power to protect that plus score!
In matchpoints you may have to take a calculated risk to improve
the chances of successfully beating par on the given hand.
Let's look at a hand that will help us understand this concept.
Dummy:
S 9763
H K5
D A865
C KJ7
Declarer:
S A842
H A94
D 3
C AQ1062
The contract is 4S. How should we play this in teams vs.
matchpoints?
This is a normal par contract that should be reached by everyone.
Playing teams you want to make sure you make your contract
because there is very little difference between plus 420 and plus
450 at IMPs, but a huge difference if we should be minus 50. That
being said, we have a simple safety play available to protect us
if the trump suit splits 4-1, which will occur 28% of the time.
All we need to do is cash the ace of trumps and then abandon
drawing any more trumps, not caring if they ruff in and make 3
trump tricks. Our overall contract will be safe and we will score
up plus 420. But playing matchpoints, this play would be
guaranteed to get us a bad score 67% of the time, when trumps
split 3-2. That is clearly unacceptable, so playing matchpoints
we hope for a normal 3-2 trump split and duck one round of trump
completely. Now when we get the lead back, cash the ace of trump
and then run our outside winners. We will fail if trumps split
badly but that is how all the duplicate players will play the
hand, so we should get an average. We cannot risk a near bottom
if we play for 10 winners and all our competition is easily
making 11 winners.
There is another side to the safety issue, so let's look at it in
another light. Sometimes, even at matchpoints, we are in such a
good contract that few might reach that we should do everything
in our powers to guarantee we will make it! Likewise we sometimes
may bid to a horrible contract and we have to think in reverse,
namely throwing caution to the wind, and figuring out some
possible line that might permit the contract the make.
Dummy:
S 432
H AKJ102
D 42
C KQ8
Declarer:
S A75
H 43
D AK53
C AJ109
Through skilled bidding you arrive at 6C contract. In a 4-3 fit
few will get there, so this will earn you a top score if you can
maximize your chances to make the bid. In team play, as always,
you should try to make your 12 winners at all cost. But because
this is a great contract all efforts should be to make this bid
even at matchpoints, because if you fail I guarantee you will
earn a zero score.
So the two things you need to keep in mind are how good your
contract is, and what type of bridge game you are playing. Stay
tuned! More to follow.
********************
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 Tuna for this giggle:
User Friendly?
Customer: I can't get my diskette out.
Helpdesk: Have you tried pushing the button?
Customer: Yes, sure, it's really stuck.
Helpdesk: That doesn't sound good; I'll make a note ..."
Customer: No .. wait a minute... I hadn't inserted it yet... it's
still on my desk... sorry.
Helpdesk: Click on the 'my computer' icon on to the left of the
screen.
Customer: Your left or my left?
Customer: I can't print. Every time I try it says 'Can't find
printer'. I've even lifted the printer and placed it
front of the monitor, but the computer still says he
can't find it...
Customer: I have problems printing in red...
Helpdesk: Do you have a color printer?
Customer: Aaaah....................thank you.
Helpdesk: What's on your monitor now ma'am?
Customer: A teddy bear my boyfriend bought for me in the
supermarket.
Helpdesk: And now hit F8.
Customer: It's not working.
Helpdesk: What did you do, exactly?
Customer: I hit the F-key 8-times as you told me, but nothing's
happening...
Customer: My keyboard is not working anymore.
Helpdesk: Are you sure it's plugged into the computer?
Customer: No. I can't get behind the computer.
Helpdesk: Pick up your keyboard and walk 10 paces back.
Customer: OK
Helpdesk: Did the keyboard come with you?
Customer: Yes
Helpdesk: That means the keyboard is not plugged in. Is there
another keyboard?
Customer: Yes, there's another one here. Ah...that one does work!
Helpdesk: Your password is the small letter a as in apple, a
capital letter V as in Victor, the number 7.
Customer: Is that 7 in capital letters?
A customer couldn't get on the internet:
Helpdesk: Are you sure you used the right password?
Customer: Yes I'm sure. I saw my colleague do it.
Helpdesk: Can you tell me what the password was?
Customer: Five stars.
Helpdesk: What antivirus program do you use?
Customer: Netscape.
Helpdesk: That's not an antivirus program.
Customer: Oh, sorry...Internet Explorer.
Customer: I have a huge problem. A friend has placed a
screensaver on my computer, but every time I move
the mouse, it disappears!
Helpdesk: Support, may I help you?
Customer: Good afternoon! I have waited over 4 hours for you. Can
you please tell me how long it will take before you can
help me?
Helpdesk: Uhh..? Pardon, I don't understand your problem?
Customer: I was working in Word and clicked the help button more
than 4 hours ago. Can you tell me when you will finally
be helping me?
Helpdesk: How may I help you?
Customer: I'm writing my first e-mail.
Helpdesk: OK, and, what seems to be the problem?
Customer: Well, I have the letter 'a' in the address, but
how do I get the circle around it?
===========================================================
SPECIAL TREATS
==============
A big "thanks!" to Dloye for sending us the following
article! We do have a lot of fun when we play in the
Mini Tournaments -- hope to see YOU there, too!
********************
Mini Adventures
Sara consented to allowing me to tell some of our adventures in
late night mini tourneys. Since I've taken procrastination to an
art form, other than the odd niggling sensation at the back of my
mind, I had totally forgotten my attempt to volunteer to make
myself a deadline that I would respect, and force myself, a
pathetic writer wannabe, to put some words on paper. Or, er...
on that block of white space on my monitor...
Last night was typical, atypical, as life happens. Days are
similar unto blending together until I look back over the last
year, and notice a good bit of happy trail behind me.
Random hand from last night's mini. We started this mini so well
and ended up beating ONE, count them ONE pair. Have you
considered changing your stratification to B? This inglorious
outing may have put us second in B! Is that scary, or what?
Join us in B flight... so when we come in last we never get pond
points for first in B.
Ok, the random hand. Board three.
south
dloye
S Q985
H KQ
D K87
C J973
As dealer, I have the honor of making the first mistake (er call)
in the auction. Close to opening, but way too flat, quacky, and
suitless for my taste. Does anyone open this?
Easy enough to check on OKb's online tourney results. My
suspicion is that the ones who went down in 4S may have liked
this hand enough to open.
Pairs Board 3
west north east south
***** believer ****** dloye
pass
1D X 1H
Ok, my turn again. Sara has doubled, both opps have bid and I'm
supposed do something impressive to show my near opening values,
double fit... because she surely has both spades and clubs. One
Spade just shows a willingness to compete, it's a free bid no? A
cue... well there are two choices of suits to cue, and I'm not
looking for some magic NT contract, so I'm eschewing the cuing.
I want to get to game if she has good or long spades and a rock
solid X. 2S would be my bid maybe? I'm asking here.
Creativity of expression is not a true asset when your mouthpiece
is a bid box. I decided 3S stated my position pretty well.
Oh, my poor, poor partners! Now Sara has to try to decide what
the heck that is. She figured it just had to be a long weak
spade suit and passed.
We're in a not so bad contract, and I get to play it. Goodie
Goodie.
IMPs north Pairs Board 3
Dlr: South believer
Vul: E-W S T743 west north east south
H J9743 *** believer *** dloye
D A5 pass
C AK 1D X 1H 3S
(all pass)
west east
***** *****
S AJ6 S K2
H A2 H T865 Opening Lead: HA
D J962 D QT43 Result: +3
C QT82 C 654 Score: 140, IMPs:2.40
south Playing time: 4:41
dloye
S Q985 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
H KQ W HA-H2 J-C2 6 9 C8 SA-D2 T D6
D K87 N 3 4 3 K-S4 A-HJ-H9 5 A-H7
C J973 E 5 6 2 4 K-D3 8 T Q 5 C6
S Q K-S5 3 8 7 C7 S9 K-C9 D8
On the lead of the Heart Ace I surely have some side winners and
a pretty clear picture of the hand (what was East bidding one
Heart on? West surely has a singleton...)
If I can get the trump suit in with only two losers... maybe I
can make the game we didn't bid and might should have. Is there
any way to play that trump suit? Wait for the opponents to break
it?
Well, some days you get lucky. Miscommunication on the bidding,
a distinctly fuzzy crystal ball for hand visualizing (notice
how flat this thing is all around the table and more than one of
us were thinking there was distribution) and we still came up
with a decent score.
Bridge is not just for lucky guessers though. It helps to have a
bit of skill and card sense to back up the lucky flashes. Maybe,
try not to get creative in the bidding? Thinking a bit before
ducking that Ace would be a good idea too.
There is/was a system called "Every Hand An Adventure." Sara and
I have it refined to a fare-thee-well. And even in our worst
outings there are some ok spots.
See you at a Mini sometime soon?
********************
If you have a "Special Treats" story you'd like to share
with us, we'd love to include it in one of our future
issues! Just send it to Sara at sarastobbe@aol.com or
to Janice at moocake@bellsouth.net. Don't worry about it
being "perfect" -- we'll fix it! Just type it up and send it :)
================================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Max: Hey, Joe! Nice trumpet you've got there.
Joe: Thanks. I borrowed it from my neighbor.
Max: I didn't know you could play the trumpet.
Joe: I can't. And now, neither can my neighbor.
================================================================
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 2005 Daily Bridge Calendar. For more information
call 1-888-453-1976, or email: calendar@interlog.com.
********************
Vul: none North
Dlr: W S 9876
H JT9
D K98
C K65
South
S AKT54
H 765
D QT4
C A2
West North East South
1NT* P P 2S
P 3S All pass
*15-17 HCP
Opening Lead: HQ (Q from AKQ)
West leads the HQ (from HAKQ) and cashes three hearts, East
playing up the line, standard count. At trick four West shifts
to the CQ. You win and play the SAK both following.
1) How do you continue if West started with SJx and East SQx?
2) How do you continue if West started with SQx and East SJx?
3) How do you continue if West started with the SQJ doubleton?
*****************************************
S 9876
H JT9
D K98
C K65
S Q3 S J2
H AKQ H 8432
D J752 D A63
C QJ94 C T873
S AKT54
H 765
D QT4
C A2
Contract: 3S Lead: HQ
********************
In order to find the DJ, count points!
1) West has turned up with 10 point in the majors and presumably
the CQJ for a total of 13 outside of diamonds. West needs the DA
to have enough points to open 1NT but can't have the DJ -- that
would give him too many (18 HCP). Play East for the DJ. Strip
the Clubs, lead a diamond to the king and a diamond to the ten.
2) West has turned up with 14 HCP outside of diamonds and can't
have the DA (18 HCP), but must have the DJ to get to 15. Strip
the clubs, lead the DQ and, if it holds, run the DT.
3) This time West has turned up with 15 HCP and can't have the
DA but might (or might not) have the DJ. In cases like this,
prepare for the post-mortem if you get the diamonds wrong. Since
West would have opened 1NT with two suits unstopped if he didn't
hold the DJ, play West for the jack. At least, that will be your
excuse when West wins the trick.
The Bottom Line
1) When an opponent opens 1NT and you become declarer, be sure
you know the exact point count of the bid.
2) If you have a touchy suit (diamonds), play that suit last if
you can. You may get some valuable information along the way or,
if you are playing against a close friend or relative, they may
lead the suit for you. Problem solved.
********************
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 Pringle for this one:
Black and White
(Under age 40? You won't understand.)
You could hardly see for all the snow,
Spread the rabbit ears as far as they go.
Pull a chair up to the TV set,
"Good Night, David. Good Night, Chet."
Depending on the channel you tuned,
You got Rob and Laura - or Ward and June.
It felt so good. It felt so right.
Life looked better in black and white.
I Love Lucy, The Real McCoys,
Dennis the Menace, the Cleaver boys,
Rawhide, Gunsmoke, Wagon Train,
Superman, Jimmy and Lois Lane.
Father Knows Best, Patty Duke,
Rin Tin Tin and Lassie too,
Donna Reed on Thursday night --
Life looked better in black and white.
I wanna go back to black and white.
Everything always turned out right.
Simple people, simple lives...
Good guys always won the fights.
Now nothing is the way it seems,
In living color on the TV screen.
Too many murders, too many fights,
I wanna go back to black and white.
In God they trusted, alone in bed they slept,
A promise made was a promise kept.
They never cussed or broke their vows.
They'd never make the network now.
But if I could, I'd rather be
In a TV town in '53.
It felt so good. It felt so right.
Life looked better in black and white.
I'd trade all the channels on the satellite,
If I could just turn back the clock tonight
To when everybody knew wrong from right.
Life was better in black and white!
============================================================
DEALING WITH DANN
=================
Strong Minor Suit Hands
How We Bid Them (No Interference)
The first thing we need to look at when we have a strong, minor
suit oriented hand is, "what is my distribution in the 2 suits,
and how will I express this to partner?" This is where reverses
and strong jump rebids will come to our rescue.
For any reverse, whether minor to major; hearts to spades (only
major-major reverse) or clubs to diamonds (only minor to minor
reverse) our first bid suit is ALWAYS LONGER than the suit we
reverse into. Whether we are 4-9; 5-8; 4-8; 6-7; 5-7; 4-7; 5-6;
4-6; or 4-5 our fist bid suit (the one we open!) is the longer
suit. Once we reverse, pard knows our first suit is longer.
That helps them picture one of the listed distros as the one we
hold, and with the correct suit as longest.
So now what do we do if the higher ranking suit is the longer
one? (for minor hands - our diamonds are as long or longer than
clubs) we open the longer suit (diamonds) and jump rebid in the
lower (clubs). This way of bidding the hand tells pard our first
bid suit is as long or longer than the second bid suit; ie:
opening 1D and rebidding 3C over partner's response lets partner
visualize either 5-5; 6-6; or 8-5; 7-6; 7-5....5-4 in diamonds
and clubs. It is important pard understand our distro to insure
we reach the correct strain to play the contract in. Some people
like the power of the reverse and violate the distro, hoping to
stay lower to get a better feel for the final contract - but in
general we are best in the long run to fully inform partner and
let them make the choice of where and how high to play the
contract.
Now for the fun part - some example hands!
S 2
H A8
D AKT72
C AKJT7
Holding this hand we open 1D and jump rebid Clubs, showing
partner not only the values of the hand but that Diamonds
are equal to or longer than Clubs.
=====================
S -----
H K3
D AJ10932
C AKQ92
Similarly, holding this collection open 1D and jump rebid Clubs.
The suit strength doesn't matter but the length does, and again
we have good playing values
======================
S A2
H Q2
D AKJ7
C KQJ98
Here we have a hand we will open 1C and Reverse into 2D over
partners response, then partner knows our clubs must be longer
than diamonds.
=======================
S AJ
H KQ
D KJ104
C K9842
OK, trick hand. We are all excited about minor suit oriented
strong hands, and reversing/jumping to show pard our strength.
Don't forget that texture is important also. This hand is too
poor in our long suits to be trying to get pard on side for a
minor suit slam - I'd open 1D and rebid 2C. If partner can move
beyond 2C, we can take another call (2NT over a 2D preference),
and then pard knows our hand is minor suited from the fact we
showed nine minor suit cards, but with a NT wiggle after that,
hopefully they picture the poorer suits but good values.
NOTE! The above "trick" hand illustrates the idea of having good
suits before we reverse. That's another element of the reverse -
always have stuff in our suits with bad suits, and with a good
hand some prefer NT openings, depending on the suits; with pard's
tendency to transfer to a non-fit, we're usually better off soft
playing the hand for a bit, and then if we get the chance we can
tell pard we have some extras for them!
==================
S A
H 42
D AKJ2
C AKJ1086
As this hand shows we guarantee a minimum of 4-5 in D's and C's,
but we can have extra length in both/either as long as our first
bid suit is longer than the second bid suit for a reverse, so
here we open 1C and start completing the picture with 2D. When
we get our next call we can repeat the Clubs, which shows extra
length in the suit. If we were five Diamonds and six Clubs, we
would rebid the higher ranking - Diamonds - and partner gets the
message (five Diamonds and six Clubs). We still must have our
first bid suit longer to reverse, and we are showing extra
Diamonds by rebidding them.
Next Month we will look at biding a strong minor suited hand when
the opponents have reared their ugly heads into our auction -
'til then, Happy Bridging, and good luck when not my opponent!
********************
You will find Pooka (Dann Kramer) doing his FireSide
sessions on Monday and Thursday mornings, at 11:00 a.m.
OKbridge time.
Dann is available for one-on-one lessons, group mentoring
sessions, and/or tourney play.
For more information, write Dann at: pspeard@telusplanet.net
============================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Three astronauts were about to embark on a two-year NASA mission
in outer space. Each was allowed to take up to 200 pounds of
baggage, with no restrictions.
The first astronaut took along his wife, the second took along
books to learn how to speak German, and the third astronaut took
along 1,000 cartons of cigarettes.
Two years later, the space shuttle landed before a huge crowd.
The hatch opened and out came the first astronaut and his wife,
who introduced the crowd to their baby boy.
Then out came the second astronaut, who spoke to the crowd in
fluent German.
Finally, out came the third astronaut with a cigarette in his
mouth and crazed eyes. He stumbled to the podium and snarled to
the crowd, "Anyone got a match?"
=============================================================
BRIDGE FOR THE CLUB PLAYER
==========================
Three Questions To Ask Yourself During The Bidding
(parts two and three...)
Last article we discussed the first question: "Will my partner
understand my bid?" This could have been rephrased as "Does this
bid describe my hand?" or "Will I have the hand partner expects?"
Now let me talk about two OTHER questions that have helped my
bidding become better.
Question 2) Is this normal?
Let me give you a few examples of what I mean. Suppose
you are dealt any of these hands...
xxxxx x Jxxx KQxxx
QJ QJx AQJx QJxxx
KQx QJxx Kx x
Axx KQxxx Jxx Qx
Would you open these questionable hands? I do not propose to
debate the merits of opening these hands. (There is only ONE of
them that I would be happy to open.) But I propose this: IF
these hands are going to be opened at the other tables in the
game you usually play in, then you should also open them. If the
players in your club game are (mis)using the "rule of 20" the
same way they do in the club games I play in, all of these hands
will be opened at almost every table.
So the question becomes this: should I go AGAINST the field, or
should I go WITH the field and rely on our subsequent bidding,
card play, and perhaps other hands to save us? Let's put it
another way: if we are in game, down two, vulnerable but so is
everybody else, then we have not lost any ground. (We may even
be above-average if subsequent bidding saves us, or if others are
going down three instead.) But if I go against the field, I am
likely to either get a top or a bottom. Top-or-bottom bridge is
not the best way to play. Try for above-averages, so stay with
the field.
This philosophy doesn't just apply to opening bids, either.
Recently, in a club game, a player decided to only bid 2NT
(invitational) over partner's 1NT opening bid holding xx, QJx,
KQxxx, JTx. Her partner (who passed with a bad 16), played it
well to make four. So instead of an above-average, they got a
bottom. When dummy hit the table, she stated that "I know
everybody else would bid three, but I didn't because..." Her
reasons, though perhaps well thought-out, don't really even
matter. By going the opposite way from "everybody else", she was
staking EVERYTHING on being right.
So, if and when you catch yourself talking yourself into going
with the "brilliant", anti-field, or non-normal bid, stop and ask
yourself: "Is this normal? What will everyone else do? Do I
REALLY have good enough reason to go totally against the field?".
It will help you improve your results.
Question 3) If not now, when?
Perhaps the best example of this happened to me in Orlando. With
everyone vulnerable, I was dealt this monster: xxx, xxxx, xxxx,
xx. (Yes, really.) The bidding went as follows:
LHO: 1H
Partner: 2H! (which we play a bit differently: a "top-and-bottom"
cue-bid showing at least four spades with longer clubs,
constructive or better values, NOT preemptive)
RHO: Double (Unalerted, unexplained. Probably hearts.)
Me: Pass (duh...)
LHO: 3D
Partner: Double (Showing extra strength but NOT extra
distribution.)
RHO: 4H (after some thought)
Me: ??
What would you do? Pass is the instinctive bid, but what is
going on? Partner has a powerhouse to suggest we be at the
three-level, vulnerable, without extra distribution. I trust
him, so he is likely 4-1-3-5 with 18+ points. They are not gonna
make this, but he probably cannot double again, because he does
not know they are "only" in a 5-3 heart fit. So I applied my own
teaching: "If not now when? If you are EVER going to make a
penalty double with zero points, is this the time?" Yes. So I
did. Plus 800.
Sometimes, during the bidding, you will be faced with unusual
situations. Should I bid again? Should I double? Should I pass?
Normally, you shouldn't, but you feel that this situation is
unusual. Try applying this litmus test: "If not now, when." Is
it EVER possible to make this unusual bidding decision? Is this
truly the BEST example hand of when it would be right? If your
hand passes these tests, then go for it! But if not, then go
back to the previous question: "Is this normal".
I want to share a bit of Brawner philosophy: if you are a good
card player, you can be dangerous at the table. But if you are a
good card player AND a good bidder, you are dangerous to the
opponents only.
Asking myself these three questions during the bidding has helped
me become more dangerous to the opponents than to my partner. I
hope they help you as well.
Jack's Bidding Rule #1: Know what to bid.
Jack's Bidding Rule #2: Bid it anyway.
Happy Bidding!
Jack Brawner
TrojanOwl@AOL.com
********************
Jack welcomes students of all levels for lessons.
Contact him for information at trojanowl@aol.com
============================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Dloye for these:
I planted some bird seed. A bird came up. Now I don't know what
to feed it.
I had amnesia once -- or twice.
I went to San Francisco. I found someone's heart. Now what?
All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy.
Two can live as cheaply as one, for half as long.
What is a "free" gift? Aren't all gifts free?
They told me I was gullible ... and I believed them.
Teach a child to be polite and courteous in the home and, when he
grows up, he'll never be able to merge his car on to a freeway.
Experience is the thing you have left when everything else is
gone.
What if there were no hypothetical questions?
One nice thing about egotists: They don't talk about other
people.
When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to
look like a nail.
A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.
What was the greatest thing before sliced bread? Hmmmm?
My weight is perfect for my height-- which varies.
I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not sure.
The cost of living hasn't affected its popularity.
How can there be self-help "groups"?
Is there another word for synonym?
The speed of time is one-second per second.
Is it possible to be totally partial?
What's another word for thesaurus?
Is Marx's tomb a communist plot?
If swimming is so good for your figure, how do you explain
whales?
Show me a man with both feet firmly on the ground, and I'll show
you a man who can't get his pants off.
It's not an optical illusion. It just looks like one.
Is it my imagination, or do buffalo wings taste like chicken?
===========================================================
MOOGAL'S FIRESIDE LOG
=====================
OKB Tourneys
Well done to all our Fireside friends who excelled in
the tourneys this past month!!
Tue Feb 1 11:00 AM Combo
Rank Team Score
1 lucinha/wheels 1.64
Fri Feb 4 08:30 PM
Rank Team Score
1 peter-1/sam143 2.37
Tue Feb 8 12:30 PM
Rank Team Score
1 Kaltica/moogal 71.64
Sun Feb 20 05:30 PM
Rank Team Score
1 sam143/wintaka 3.63
Fri Feb 25 09:00 AM
Rank Team Score
1 mgr777/tuna 2.76
Sat Feb 26 05:30 PM
Rank Team Score
1 dloye/nifty 3.23
Our Flight B tourney stars:
IMOGENE, MARLYSE, LSSCOTT, MARYS, NEOPHYTE, MACAVITY, ARROW,
JUDYDEE, ASK1, FRANK-1, DESIREE, RIGGIN, WILSE, ELVEE, TODD,
JULIE, POTTS, LEE-1, DLOYE, BELIEVER
We encourage you to change your flight to B or C so that you are
competing on an appropriate level -- you can do this on the OKB
website home page. Look for "Change my flight" in the box where
your icon appears. This is OKB's way of letting everyone have a
chance to get some pond points. And, as more and more of you
change your flights, the flighted results will be more realistic.
And, remember, if you do place in the overalls, you are still
eligible for the higher awards!
I know I must have missed a few of your names here. I can't check
every result -- believe it or not I do have a day job :)) Please
email me and let me know about your good results. We want
everyone's name up here in lights!
**********************************************************
FIRESIDE'S TEAM GAME
Our February winners are:
02-13-2005 TEAM BOBOWEN: Bobowen, Queenhrt, Mytmoss & Stlmark
02-27-2005 TEAM POTTS: Potts, Tuna, Jundith, & Hawes
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!
**********************************************************
NOVICE MENTOR TOURNEY
Well done to all our top finishers:
Thu Feb 10 06:00 PM
Rank Team Score
1 de/hec1 68.06
2 eva-1/jamerl 56.94
3 believer/nancor 54.17
4 oink/redlin 53.12
5 anneS/wheels 52.78
6 analisa/knyee 52.27
7 racecar/zoo 51.04
**********************************************************
Sadly, I note the death of The Reverend Kenneth Halcott,
(KENH_31). Our deepest sympathy to his wife Andree, his five
children, and to his dear friend and OKB partner, Olivia (BAOL).
**********************************************************
Get well wishes to Mary Ann (TCBM), who just had back surgery.
She is home and doing well, and we wish her a continued and
complete recovery.
**********************************************************
We also send get well wishes to Mary (MARYS) who is in
rehabilitation after a hip replacement. We hope you will
be home soon, and back at the Fireside Team Games, where
Team Tara needs you! We hope you are well on your way.
*********************************************************
A few more get well wishes to our own Colin, who slipped on the
ice and broke his finger. They had to saw his wedding ring off,
which he described as a less than pleasant procedure while in
pain, but he is now properly splinted and trying to type at
Fireside and mentoring games.
I think we will limit him to the house during the winter months
from now on.:)
**********************************************************
Congratulations to my good buddy Eric (ETSAND) on achieving Life
Master status. He did this at the recent Houston Regional,
playing with regular teammates Jonathan (JHARRISH), MURAT, and
Ken (KEN_B).
**********************************************************
I had the pleasure of a visit from Marlene (NANTICA) and her
husband Don last month. Marlene recently retired (lucky girl!)
and is taking advantage by doing some traveling....she attended
the Reno Regional prior to landing in Miami, where she played
with her OKB partner Pam (PAMELA). Pam and Marlene are teammates
with Eric and myself on a RIKO match team, The Billy Club.
We had a lovely evening, taking in a quick tour of some South
Florida scenery, and ending up in South Beach for dinner. It was
a tad on the "chilly" side, and Marlene, a Winnipegger, had a
chuckle at the heat lanterns set up on the patio where we ate
outside. They found the temperature quite balmy.:)
**********************************************************
I'd like to note that our friend Danilo (SHADE) was a nominee for
Angelfish in February. Congratulations to him!
**********************************************************
Did you note Sara's new email in your address books?
bb@wowway.com
I always hated the old one anyway:) I might be able to remember
this one!
**********************************************************
Swan Song Nets Huge Loss by Richard Pavlicek
Did you know that Elvis Presley's last concert was a huge
financial disaster? I'd explain, but I'm "All Shook Up!" Find
out why in this new bidding poll. Select your calls on six
problems from a past tournament. You might even be able to guess
the location from my clues. Try it!
http://www.rpbridge.net/8w25.htm
Results of the February play contest "Mission: Implausible" will
be posted March 3, 2005 at 21:00 GMT. For these, and everything
else related to the monthly events, go to:
http://www.rpbridge.net/rppc.htm
==================
I just want to mention that I had the pleasure and privilege of
playing against Richard (and KENT) in a recent RIKO match. In
what other sport would I would able to sit down against a player
of Richard's stature! If you would like info on setting up your
own team, please go to
http://www.okladder.vivimos.net/
It's fun, people are nice....and you also might get to play
against a national champion!
********************************************************
Some of you will be heading to Pittsburgh for the Nationals
this month...please send me your stories and your results.
Also, remember that during that time, many of our commentators
will be gone. Always check the stats for Believer and myself
for the schedule during that time. Good luck if you are going,
I am very jealous!
Hugs...Janice
**************************************************************
While we list the lessons offered by the commentators who
write for The Chat, we want to note that some of our other
commentators and newsletter contributors 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
Patricia/Fifee andersonscorner@atlanticbb.net
Nightowl/Jack trojanowl@aol.com
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!
***********************************************************
Rainbow and Spectrum Series Online!
The popular Rainbow (SAYC and play) and Spectrum (2/1-GF)
series have been automated for your convenience. You can take
any of the lessons at your leisure simply by clicking on either
of these links:
http://www.firesides.net/rainbows.htm
http://www.firesides.net/spectrums.htm
Enjoy!
***********************************************************
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 with PAYPAL! 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.
*****************************************************
February Events: (All times Pacific)
===============================
NOVICE/MENTOR TOURNEY:
======================
Thursday, March 10, at 6:00 PM, OKb time.
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. March 13. (No game Easter Sunday)
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 Kaltica for this giggle:
MARRIAGE SEMINAR
While attending a Marriage Seminar dealing with communication,
Tom and his wife Grace listened to the instructor,
"It is essential that husbands and wives know the things that are
important to each other."
He addressed the man, "Can you describe your wife's favorite
flower?"
Tom leaned over, touched his wife's arm gently and whispered,
"It's Pillsbury, isn't it?
The rest of the story gets rather ugly, so I'll stop right here.
============================================================
TREBLE'S TABLE TALK
===================
Posers
One of the givens in the world of bridge is that not all
decisions are black and white, otherwise we'd all be experts.
Many are coloured in various shades of gray, with several actions
having an equal opportunity of leading to success or the utmost
calamity.
To begin with, you are playing in a club STAC (Sectional
Tournament at Clubs) duplicate pairs game, where you gaze upon
these pasteboards as South:
S-Q9xxx H-A D-QJ98 C-xxx
The auction goes:
Partner You
1H 1S
2C ?
So now what? You have diamonds well stopped, but 2NT should be
10-11 points rather than a misfitting 9-count. Passing may get
you a plus, but there may be better results available in other
strains. 2S may land you in a terrible contract when opener
passes with a singleton spade and minimum hand. There's another
bid available that might not seem obvious at first sight, but
could work out favourably. That would be a preference to 2H on
your singleton Ace. Wouldn't that run the risk of exciting
partner unduly? It shouldn't, as he should expect a preference
on a doubleton heart, given your failure to raise directly to 2H.
You DO have the Ace of partner's longest suit, and a nine-count.
It has the merit of keeping the auction alive, in case opener can
show delayed spade support or invite with 2NT, which you can
happily raise to game. And even if he passes 2H, you could
easily be in your best spot, as he might hold for instance:
S-x H-KQ9xx D-Kxx C-AQxx
or a tenuous one if his hand is:
S-Kx H-J98xx D-Ax C-AKxx
Even on the second, less than optimum hand, partner could
scramble home eight tricks in hearts if the defense is not
accurate. In any event, responder's hand meets the definition
of a "poser", where there are a number of candidate rebids, none
of them remotely close to ideal.
Now let's try, with you as North, both sides vul:
S-void H-10xx D-AQ9xx C-AQxxx
You're hoping to leisurely show an opening bid with 5-5 in the
minors, but of course your RHO opens 3S. And now you're up at
bat, with a nasty curveball just having just been thrown your
way. Do you get in there and take your cuts, or take it quietly,
hoping to get on base later on? And if you do elect to bid, do
you try one of your five-card suits, swing for the fences with
4NT for the minors, or make a takeout double with only three-card
heart support. And then of course you can pass, as your hand is
sort of dicey for immediate action. My partner chose the latter
course, but now his LHO sallied on to 4S, pass, pass, back to
him. Now he dipped his feet in with 4NT, landing us in 5C
doubled. My hand was:
S-xx H-AKJ D-87xx C-10874
5C was down only one, but with the Q of hearts sitting in front
of my AKJ, 4S would have been down one. This kind of result is
always upsetting to me, since the subsequent 4NT bid is virtually
an admission that partner should have bid the first time around.
No picnic as to what the best direct action is, but my choice of
poison is the takeout double. It lacks only the fourth heart,
and is the most flexible of all the bidding options. Now I'd
prefer to have a minor suit King rather than the two Queens, to
increase my potential on defense. But them's the breaks, to
quote Colin "Kaltica" Ward. The downside of passing, although it
may be technically correct, is that partner may not have a
clearcut hand for balancing action, and may fear that your LHO
may have the bulk of the missing values. 4D would probably be my
second choice, and I'm not at all a fan of 4NT, which overstates
the hand and leaves hearts out of the picture.
And now, for the final act in the play, as you finally pick up a
respectable hand:
S-AJ H-AKx D-AQ9xxx C-Ax
Partner opens 3C vulnerable in first seat, and now you have to
decide whether to bash or take the slow, exact approach with a
forcing 3D. You could try 6C, a hoggish 6NT or a bold 7C. And
if Colin Ward has made the pre-emptive 3C bid, you pass and hope
that you have enough for him to scrape home with nine tricks :).
Since I was the pre-emptor, Bob Todd decided to assume I had a
vague semblance of my bid. Silly boy. He trotted out 6NT, and
the King of spades was led as I tabled:
S-x H-109xx D-x C-KQ109xxx
Well, a mixed bag. Disciplined with respect to the club suit but
the side four-card major wasn't exactly in keeping with a classic
weak three-bid. Moreover, 6C would have far more chances than
6NT, with plenty of time to ruff out a few diamonds and
eventually set up the suit for two heart pitches. The bridge
gods were looking on favourably, though, as the King of diamonds
was onside and the slam came rolling home with an overtrick when
RHO had the Kxxx of diamonds and the QJ of hearts as well.
Not much justice in the opponents' view, but a delectable result
for us. If you are courageous enough to make a daring
assumption, perhaps 3D might actually be the right bid with this
moose. If partner fails to raise, there's a good chance that he
has a singleton or void in diamonds, in which case responder
might now try for the brass ring with 7C. A diamond raise and
you can now keycard in diamonds, bidding the grand if partner
shows the King of your suit or settling for the twelve-trick
endeavour if the news is bad.
Hope you enjoyed the trip down the corridors of uncertainty and
befuddlement, and we'll see you again next month.
********************
You will find Bill doing his FireSide sessions on Fridays
at 5:30 P.M. OKbridge time.
Bill is available for private/group lessons and/or
supervised play sessions. Email Bill at (btreble@shaw.ca)
for more information.
================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
I got this from several readers. I love it :)
Jack wakes up at home with a huge hangover he can't believe. He
forces himself to open his eyes, and the first thing he sees is a
couple of aspirins next to a glass of water on the side table.
And, next to them, a single red rose! Jack sits down and sees his
clothing in front of him, all clean and pressed. Jack looks
around the room and sees that it is in perfect order, Spotlessly
clean. So is the rest of the house. He takes the aspirins,
cringes when he sees a huge black eye staring back at him in the
bathroom mirror, and notices a note on the table: "Honey,
breakfast is on the stove, I left early to go shopping--Love
you!"
He stumbles to the kitchen and sure enough, there is hot
breakfast and the morning newspaper. His son is also at the
table, eating. Jack asks, "son...what happened last night?"
"Well, you came home after 3 A.M., drunk and out of your mind.
You broke some furniture, puked in the hallway, and got that
black eye when you ran into the door."
"So, why is everything in such perfect order, so clean, I have a
rose, and breakfast is on the table waiting for me?" His son
replies, "Oh THAT!... Mom dragged you to the bedroom, and when
she tried to take your pants off, you screamed, "Leave me alone,
lady, I'm married!"
Broken furniture - $85.26
Hot Breakfast - $4.20
Red Rose bud -$3.00
Two Aspirins -$.38
Saying the right thing, at the right time.........Priceless.
===================================================
AND FINALLY KALTICA
===================
Events
******
What is the immediate future of F2F and online bridge?
People prefer events to open play. They prefer their
local club duplicate to kitchen bridge. The bigger the event
the better. Nationals are more exciting than regionals,
regionals more fun than sectionals, sectionals more enjoyable
than club games. This is a simple fact that every Sponsoring
Organization understands.
Note that I didn't say "playing in events". Watching
them can be a thrill, too. Spectating live bridge is limited
by space around the tables. For kibitzers, online bridge is
the place to be. When we watched the Canadian Championships
on BridgeBase Online ("BBO") there were hundreds in the stands
enjoying both the play and the commentary. Whoever said that
"bridge is not a spectator sport" clearly never watched a
Vugraph with Edgar Kaplan commentating and likely hasn't seen
a Goldway match. Why poker is on virtually every television
channel while bridge remains ignored is a mystery to me
(especially since the poker shows include instruction about
percentages and how that game is played).
What constitutes an "event" in online bridge terms?
Virtually anything other than open/club play. Tourneys used
to distinguish pay sites (e.g. OKBridge, EBridge, Swan) from
free ones (e.g. BBO) but this is changing as the latter begin
to hold more and more regular tournaments. It follows that
pay sites will have to offer more than tourneys to justify
the additional expense.
Firesides are, in essence, an event, as are the Mentor
Team Cup games and the 5th Chair Team Games. To attendees
these must seem simple to organize: advertise it in advance,
show up on time, send announcements to the lobby and start
your event. Well, there is a little more to it than that.
You may need to arrange partnerships/teams. You certainly
need to greet people and let them know what is going on.
This has to be done privately; otherwise the first person
to arrive will hear the same greeting & explication once
for every subsequent attendee. Preparing and posting a
"convention card" explaining what is going on can help, as
can a properly worded table note. In the case of Firesides
the Table Managers do most of this. With dozens of people
joining the table at once (especially at startup) this has
to be done quickly. OKScript usually allows us to do this
with a click or two of a mouse. It also allows us to issue
prepared statements, lessons, maxims, etc. This, more than
anything else, explains why there are so many more teachers
on OKBridge than other sites. It also explains why online
events are best played on OKBridge.
OKBridge used to sponsor an online world championship
event but this ran into a number of problems:
1. expense
When the World Bridge Federation sponsors an event they
charge enough to pay all of their expenses. Most often the
national sponsoring organizations--the constituent members
of the WBF--pay for the expenses. None of these groups has
shown much interest in sponsoring a similar online event.
2. legitimacy
How can any single outlet (e.g. OKBridge, E-Bridge, BBO)
claim to be hosting a "world championship"? What if all of
them were to hold competing "world championships", as we see
in boxing and wrestling? Clearly, to establish such a title
all of the online playing sites have to acknowledge and
support the same event.
3. security
There has to be more than mere honesty; there has to be
an appearance/assurance of fair play. This is difficult in
an online environment that doesn't have onsite monitors.
Again, without the co-operation of F2F bridge organizations
"on the ground", this is difficult.
4. support
What about those bridge players and sponsoring groups
that are not online? Or not on OKBridge? How can we get
them involved? Some of these may have vested interests
which conflict with any online events. For example, clubs
may regard online bridge of any sort as a competitor. I
have been told that half the clubs in North America don't
support the ACBL. Why would they care about online play?
The survival of bridge (online and in general) will
depend on two things: education and events. Bridge, being
a more complex game than, say, poker, requires a learning
period that often spans decades. In addition, the public
has to be educated as to the charm of the game. The easiest
form of promotion might well be events with instructional
and amusing commentary. Such promotion will likely require
coordinating all of the disparate sponsoring organizations.
How might this be accomplished?
Consider something like this:
Clubs hold local F2F playoffs to determine who will
represent them. These club champs go online and play a
regular schedule (and then playoffs) against opponents from
all over the world. Simple webcams could show the actual
players. Swangames has already added online background
voice commentary to such events. These games would draw
the expected online fans and could even be projected for
public view in club booster parties (like Monday Night
Football in bars, netting the clubs admission fees to
cover expenses). What bridgeplayer would not want to see
their local heroes taking on the best that London, New
York, Toronto, Moscow, Toulouse, Naples, Frankfurt or
Rio de Janeiro have to offer?
Important matches might be taped, with comments added.
The cost would be negligible until we get into prize funds
and telecasting expenses, which would require a sponsor.
Would finding a television and event sponsor be difficult?
Given the upscale nature of the target audience and the
minimal investment involved, I would expect sponsors to be
lining up around the block.
Would clubs support such a league? The progressive
ones, yes. Many of the others might join soon enough,
afraid to be "left out in the cold" by other clubs.
This, then, is my prediction for the immediate future
of bridge.
**********************
You'll find Kaltica (Colin Ward) doing his FireSide
sessions on Tuesday evenings at 5:30 P.M. OKbridge time.
Colin is available for private/group lessons and/or
supervised play sessions. Email him at (kaltica@mts.net)
for more information.
Rainbow and Spectrum Series Online!
The popular Rainbow (SAYC and play) and Spectrum (2/1-GF)
series have been automated for your convenience. You can take
any of the lessons at your leisure simply by clicking on either
of these links:
http://www.firesides.net/rainbows.htm
http://www.firesides.net/spectrums.htm
Enjoy!
=====================================================
GIGGLE BREAK
Thanks to Eleanor for sharing this one with us:
I copied this out of local club's newsletter...thought you might
get a kick out of it.
I don't know if you have met Priscilla at any of your
tournaments. She usually directs I/N and she is a DEAR!! But
runs a very "tight ship"
**************
Hole in the Mens Room Wall
If the guy who lost his temper and kicked a hole in
the men's room wall would please make an anonymous
donation for its repair, it would be greatly
appreciated. Just put the cash in the drink cup.
=============================================================
Fireside Chat Issues
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