There are three reasons why I never make ‘psychic’ bids. First, because I’m a wimp. Second, because I often play with partners who are better than me, and I feel it would be arrogant to manipulate the bidding. And third, because you really have to know what you’re doing with psychic bids — and I’m
There’s been a fair amount of moaning about the English Bridge Union’s decision to move the week-long ‘Summer Meeting’ — one of the most popular events in the bridge calendar — from Brighton to Eastbourne. The decision was purely financial: Brighton is far more expensive. On the other hand, Brighton is a buzzy, vibrant town
Here’s a bridge tip you won’t find in a book — one which the wonderful Gunnar Hallberg gave me. You’re declarer and a suit is led; dummy comes down with something like 8643, and it obviously doesn’t matter which card you play. Instead of routinely playing low, you should ask for a ridiculous, random card
The rise of Donald Trump in the US presidential race has had at least one very peculiar consequence: millions of American bridge players are suddenly bidding no-trump contracts with great gusto. A recent New Yorker cartoon encapsulated it perfectly, depicting four players at a table with the caption: ‘One no-trump. Oh, please, God, no Trump.’
I’ve never had the courage to ‘psyche’ at the bridge table, but I grudgingly admire those who do. Sally Brock and I were well and truly kippered at the recent European women’s pairs championships when, neither side vulnerable, I opened 1♣ holding AK43, K986, J4, 854. Our innocent-looking young Dutch opponent found the gutsy overcall
Congratulations — yet again — to the England women’s bridge team, who last week won gold at the European championships in Budapest. They have now won medals at the last six World and European women’s teams events which, according to the English Bridge Union, might currently make them the most successful international team in British
Just take the money! That’s the philosophy of many rubber bridge players when it comes to bidding — or rather not bidding — grand slams. Why risk going down in seven when a small slam will net you a large enough gain? I’m not of that school myself: so long as I trust my partner,
The Hubert Phillips Bowl is one of my favourite tournaments of the year: a friendly, knockout event with a rather quaint rule that all teams must include at least one woman. For some reason, this normally leads to teams of men plus exactly one woman — as though the woman represents a handicap. So, in
Sometimes Janet teases me that this should be called the David Gold Column, as I mention his name so frequently. It’s true — David is a good friend as well as my bridge mentor, so he often points out interesting hands for me to write about. But it’s also true that over the past few
I’ve been practising bidding online with my friend Guy Hart in preparation for the Spring Fours in Stratford (we’ll know our fate by the time you read this). We’ve not played together much before, and frankly the field is so strong — a roll-call of the greats — that our team has about a zero
Bridge is such an unforgiving game; you can’t afford to take your eye off the ball for a single moment. Take, for example, the penalty for revoking. There you are, concentrating fiercely, counting the cards — and suddenly you realise you’ve done something as idiotic as fail to follow suit. You try to correct your
Well done to Janet and her team for their victory at the London Easter Congress. My own team — David Gold, Peter Taylor and Ingar Hansen — were lying first equal at one point, but ended up slipping to tenth after Janet and her crew beat us in our head-to-head match. I seem to have
Bridge players are a superstitious bunch. And I don’t just mean the steps they take to prepare for matches — the lucky socks, the special pens, the insistence on sitting North or South. No, even once the game has begun, many rely on strange sayings and beliefs to help them decide how to play. Different
Unless you’re an expert, it often pays to keep quiet at the bridge table — something I really ought to remember. It shames me to think of all the times I’ve made a mistake and then tried to justify it, invariably using flawed reasoning which makes me look even more idiotic. That’s bad enough; but
Over the years, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking, and canvassing opinion, about what to lead from AKxxx (or AK10xx) against no trump contracts. Yes, I know, I should be spending my time pondering weightier issues, but it’s surprising how often that particular dilemma crops up. Holding AKxx, you would clearly kick off with
It’s got to be the most bizarre news story of the year: last week, no fewer than 50 Thai police officers burst into a bridge club in Pattaya — a city rife with crime and prostitution — and arrested 32 elderly players, many of them British ex-pats. Gambling is strictly forbidden in Thailand, and the
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster, and treat those two impostors just the same… Well, Kipling obviously never played competitive bridge. Triumph is the only thing that counts: just ask Helen Erichsen and Fiona Brown, who did brilliantly last weekend to win the England women’s trials. You needed to finish in the top
Forgive me for the outdated, clichéd expression but …GIRL POWER! The surprise winners of last weekend’s TGRs auction pairs were two women internationals, Paula Leslie (Scotland) and Solvi Rehmen (Norway). It was a giant victory — and a small step for womankind. Many of the (male) heavyweights of the bridge world had flown to London
This might be the most beautiful hand I’ve ever seen. I came across it while reading one of the old bridge books in my collection (Test Your Play as Declarer by Paul Lukacs and Jeff Rubens), and was bowled over by the solution: the pure logic of it came as a sort of epiphany. Forgive
If you don’t play bridge, you really should avoid gatherings of bridge players — you’ll find us excruciatingly dull. I’ve never forgotten the time, a few years back, when Sally Brock and I went for dinner with our teammates after a tournament. We got a booth in a restaurant, and began discussing the hands we’d
