GCBA NEWSLETTER Season 2018-19 October 2018

PROGRAMME World GCBA RESULTS For this first month of the new Championships in The Winter Swiss Teams programme year, we have - Orlando, FL started off with 14 teams st playing two matches, after • Mon 1 : Swiss Teams 2 The event started on 20th which the leaders were th • Mon 8 : Winter Pairs 2 September and continues into Croatian visitors led by David th • Mon 15 : League 2 October. In the main teams Hauser, and then comes the • Mon 22nd : County KO QF event – for the Rosenblum Cup team of Roy Collard & Val • Mon 29th : League 3 – a team of four Englishmen Constable, Steve Evans & reached the semi-final before Patrick Phair. For any of these Mondays apart being knocked out by the Italian from the League, you need only Lavazza team. The four were The Winter Pairs started with turn up as a pair if it is a pairs & Alexander 15 pairs and the leaders were event, and as a foursome if a Allfrey, Ed Jones & Tom Paske. Roy Collard & Pam Pearce teams event. The County KO Well done! with nearly 65%, followed by Qualifying Round will be a Tony Letts & Roger Schofield. multiple teams game unless DON’T FORGET the There are four more sessions there are exactly 8 teams, in to come. which case there will be an Bridgathon event at Cheltenham Bridge Club, open draw for 28- head- In the County League the first where you can drop in for to-head matches. matches have taken place, any of the 6 sessions or just with the biggest scores going IN OCTOBER … drop in to play a single 5- to Alison Pritchard’s team board match in between The first weekend event of the which now leads Division Two, visits to the Literature season run by the GCBA will be and (in his absence) Joe the Everett Cup, on Saturday Festival. On 12-14th Oct. Angseesing’s team which now 20th October. The event starts leads Division One. at 1100 hrs and will include lunch and a short tea break in EBU SENIORS The turnout for the Ladies’ the afternoon. The event is a CONGRESS Pairs was poor and we teams event, but you enter as a merged the movement with It is not very often that the EBU pair and we will have a draw for the Men’s Pairs; the final runs a congress on our team-mates (after the pairs result was a win for Wendy doorstep, but at the start of have been allocated to one of Angseesing & Anne Swannell November (2nd to 4th) the EBU two buckets). Everyone is in the Ladies, and for Roger is running its 3-day Seniors welcome, so do come along to Jackson & Peter Waggett in Congress at the Hallmark Hotel try something new. the Men’s. in Gloucester. The congress has its main event over Friday EDGAR FOSTER BRIDGE AROUND and Saturday, but there are GLOUCESTERSHIRE stand-alone events on the In the Midlands Counties Pairs Saturday (Swiss Pairs) and on Championship, we did very Coming up in the near future … the Sunday (Swiss Teams). well, with John Councer and Mark Rogers taking first place, Well worth a visit. More details are on EBU website. and our other representatives th th ➢ On the 27 -28 is the (Lesley Harrison & Ashok Malvern Congress which Kwatra, John Stirrup & Anne takes place just north of Most club bridge games are Swannell) doing well enough Worcester. Swiss Pairs on matchpoint scoring, but where for the GCBA to capture for us the Saturday and Swiss the computer does the scoring the county trophy for overall teams on the Sunday. then teams scoring (imps or performance. Details are on the WCBA cross-imps) is an easy option. If website. you want to try this, but are unsure of the way forward, just ask Patrick ([email protected])

Page 1 Contributions welcome - to Patrick Shields, [email protected] Check out the GCBA web site at www.gcba.org.uk GCBA NEWSLETTER Season 2018-19 October 2018

EXTREME SHAPE County Match #1 After 3 the best option is for West to show a modicum of The Weston Congress Swiss The first match of the season club support with 4 . Pairs took place in September – was against Leicestershire and . there was no local success, but this was the last board of the Whichever hand bids 4., the one of the hands was rather out 32-board match. It was the next hand should make a cue of the ordinary. In third seat worst board for the Dawes bid (4 by W or 4 by E) and after I passed and a weak 2 team, their best board for the after any positive move from opener on my left, partner held Porter team, and a flat board for partner the hand opposite is the Markham team. Let’s think good enough to be bidding the  AKQJ953 . QJ9743 what should have happened. slam. and yes no hearts or spades. It  87 Since the grand slam is a doesn’t take much from partner  JT642 possibility, and you don’t want to make a slam (one top club)  QT987 to bid a grand slam missing a but partner could have a lot . Q key-card, someone should roll more which might be totally  AJ64  K32 out a 4N ask, and then it is  AQ973 B 32  K useless. There are two options easy to stop in 6.. with a hand like this – you can  A5 DLR W  42 . 83 VUL: EW . AKJ9765 bid one suit then the other, or This was achieved only by the you can invoke the unusual NT  QT95 two opposition pairs in the (it has to be 4N here) to show  85 Dawes, while one of our pairs in both minors. The latter route  KJ63 the Porter managed to bid 6N suggests you want partner to . T42 (which only makes when 7N make a choice of suit, but in also makes!). Each table started with 1 and fact you don’t – your diamonds  If you can consistently bid a good enough to insist on that after 2.-2, everyone was in a slams, please contact the suit – the only times clubs being game forcing auction. This County Team captain to let him better is when a diamond means that East can continue know – we need you! contract suffers a club . with a forcing 3. bid, to show a

6+ card suit. It was at this point The traveller shows that 11 where opinions diverged. pairs out of 68 forced their way Some Wests looked no further Best Conventions to a slam, but the hand than the fact of a diamond stop The past 12 issues have opposite was AQ652 KT93  and bid 3N. This was passed covered the following which are 82.52 and the opposition and five declarers collected an listed here with the most had two top clubs to cash. Of embarrassing +720 score. important (to Patrick) first - the 42 pairs in 5, 28 had a top 1. Takeout doubles club lead from AK6 and 15 of A better judgement over 3. is those beat the contract by that 3N will be at a serious risk 2. Stayman & transfers if partner has no help in giving partner a ruff. Without a 3. top club lead, you have to play diamonds, and bidding 3 as the club suit for one loser, with fourth suit forcing will get you to 4. Splinters the 8 as an to dummy 3N when that is the right 5. Two-suited contract (and it might protect (when the singleton T 6. appears on the ). partner’s Qxx). 7. Roman Key Card Blackwood What is the best line in clubs? Over 3, East has no good 8. Checkback after NT rebid. The answer is to lead a high answer, but there are two club from hand first, and then to natural options available; 3 9. Jacoby 2N forcing raise lead from dummy, playing for cannot be four or you would 10. Kokish for game forcing flat split honours in clubs. Of those have supported on the previous 11. Two-suited defence to 1N who had to play clubs for round, so Kxx will match themselves, 10 out of 14 were expectations, and there is also 12. Unassuming cue bids successful. the possibility of 4., for which These are all needed to bid well If you play 4 sessions of bridge the suit here is good enough. at county level bridge. a week, you should expect to see a 7600 shape by some player, on average once a year. Don’t forget Hand-of-the-Day on the website changes every day! Page 2 Contributions welcome - to Patrick Shields, [email protected] Check out the GCBA web site at www.gcba.org.uk