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Time Limit

By In 43rd World Bridge Teams Championships On 24th August 2017


When you only have limited time each day to watch a few deals you tend to rely on outside information. Here are a couple of deals that were dropped into the office:

You pick up this fine collection and the player on your right deals and opens 1NT. Would you consider bidding?

Perhaps you are influenced by the vulnerability? Only your side is vulnerable. Would the methods you are employing influence you?
I decided to check out the actions of the quarter-finalists and discovered that most of the time North started with 1diamonds, when no-one saw fit to enter the auction.
When North did start with 1NT – the choice of Fleisher, Levin, Ostberg, Dai and Huang – their respective opponents were Upmark, Nanev, Buchen, Rombaut and Van Zwol. Buchen was the only one to bid – trying 2hearts which saw NS reach 5spades.
This was the full deal:

I cannot tell you if it is right to overcall with this type of hand – comments from the players I polled included ‘adventurous’, ‘daring’ and ‘barking mad’.

My second deal is straightforward – a lead problem:

With neither side vulnerable you pick up a modest hand as dealer:

After this auction you have to find a lead:

If you are the type of player who favours passive leads then I suspect you will opt for a diamond. In any event when I show you the full deal I suspect you will be surprised at the choice of the player holding the South hand:

South’s imaginative choice of the spadesK was not a triumph.


About the Author

Mark Horton
Mark Horton

Mark Horton British journalist and expert player, was Editor of Bridge Magazine 1995-2017 and now edits the online publication Bridgerama+. At one time, his business cards were inscribed: Have Cards will Travel, but following the death of his most famous sponsor, the Rabbi Leonard Helman, he has tended to concentrate on his writing exploits (in 2018 he had five books published!). Anyone wanting to discover how to lose at bridge on a regular basis (and pay for the privilege) should feel free to contact him. He currently lives in Shrewsbury with his wife Liz.