+fA 7 3 2 CVIK 0 K Q 10 4 • Q 9 85 • 85 + K 1 10 6-' CVI98654 CV1 10 7 3 0 86532 0 g7 .2 + A43 • Q9 CVIAQ12 0 A1 + K 1 10 7 6 See page 27 r· .... .. ......... - .. ........., CHAS. BRADBURY l l LIMITED 2fi SACKVILLE ST., PI CCADILLY LONDON, W.l . P hone REG : 3123-3995 l l LOANS ARRA.NGED l W ith or without Security TO CLUB SECRET ARIES. lli Spread the ?£ews of your ~~:O P EAN . l~ activities. Write and tell us l BRIDGE of your special events. Items of general i11terest are always l REVIEW I welcome. l~ Annual Subscription Rate : l~ l 301- post free. The copyright of this magazine is vested in Priestley Studios Ltd. European Bridge Review It is published under the aut hority l Klintcn, Sweden. ~ of the English Bridge U nion. l Single copies 3/- from Ncwsagents l The Editorial Board is composed of, &nd the E ditor is appointed by . tho L~ ............................................. ..• _.... ...J E nglish Bridge Union. HOTEL CANFORD CLIFFS BOURNEMOUTH FACES CHINE AND SEA AMID GLORIOUS SURROUNDINGS Quality fare prepared by first class chefs Perfectly appointed bedrooms and suites Cocktail Lounge- Tennis- Golf Telephone : Canford Cliffs 185 Brochure on Request e Y 0 11 can always rely ou a good game of Bridge at The Ralph · Evans's Hotel CONTRACT BRIDGE JOURNAL OFFICIAL ORGAN OF T H E ENGLISH BRIDGE UNJOr..· VoLmiE 4 SEPTEMBER, 1950 Nu~rBER II CONGRESS · CONTENTS · E ASTBOURNE, a Congrc s Page running from October 6 t;> October 9, fittingly in:tugur­ 2 EDITORIAL •.• ates the 1950-51 Tournament FLEXIBILITY Season. This event-taken over j oh11 Brow11 4 by arrangement from Mr. Te:-ence .\.NALYSIS EXTRAORDINARY ReesP's T.B.A. by the E.B.U.­ 11!. Harrisn11-G•ay ... 9 is featuring all the varif'd !:'elec­ LoNDON CoNGRESS . • 12 tion of events which have di'iting­ SECOND THOUGHTS ON uished it heretolore: no:.tbly, BRIGHTON the Twc> Stars (one of 1_he premier Guy Ramsey 15 P~>ir events) ; the Inter City ORDER OF ~lJmiT 18 Cup ; the Cavalcade Cup, given THE " ·o TTINGllA~I CLuB" by the newspaper of that n~e ~d J1 largery Bums 19 organised by Dr. Edward Smci?-Ir; RIO GRAND SLA~I 2 1 the Riviera Cup ;tnd the Burling­ THREE Bros ton Cup. M 'llfi,l Healc 23 TheGrand Hotel is Congres'iH.Q. hiPORTANT ~ OTICE 26 Co-incidentally, unhappily for COVER PROBLEM SOLUTION 27 those teams \vhich (like the THIS l\loNTH's Co~tPEnnoN 29 Percys of old) intended to raid ANSWE RS TO jULY "over the border," the S.B.U. CoMPETITION 30 is holding its Autumn Congress • • • at Gleneagle,;. A II Bridge Correspo11dence to llu The thronged programme of ' Editor: Tation;tl and County events ~~ GUY RAMSEY, alreadv begun to move, With I 13 Cannon Place, the i!:>£tie of brochures and calend­ London, N .W.3. ars. A detailed list of events All Correspondenu 011 and dates will appear next mont!~. Subscriptions or Advertising In In the meantime, Blackpool IS Publishers : a fi~ · cd star. Licensed by the PRIESTLEY STUDIOS Ltd., E.H.U., the North-Western. Con­ Commercial Road, gr~ss on November 17 i~ hopmg to Gloucester. break its rPcord-hrcakmg atten­ dance of la: t year. 1 EDITORIAL HILE the majority of bridge­ quarter the difficulties and frus­ W players have spent the tration of the present arrangement. dog-days in team-building, the As it is the E.B.U. Southern beavers of the game-the Com­ Congress at Eastbourne-October mitteemen and women-have 6th. to October 9th-clashes with been busy striving to press a the Scottish Brid~e Union's gallon of essential fixtures into Autumn Congress at ··Gleneagles: the pint-pot of available dates. an inconvenience, 'doubtless, to Heaven defend the game from but a few teams, but still a matter the submergence under yet more for regrP-t. Committees ; and yet, there is It might be well if such a room-urgent room-for just one Committee (to save travelling) more : viz., a Co-ordinating Com­ were synchronised with the E.B.U. mittee (blessed phrase!) on the Council :Meeting of appropriate question of the Calendar. date ; well, too, if the Members of Between the B.B.L., the E.B.U. such a Committee were themselves and all the County Committees, Delegates to the E.B.U. the over-loaded programme runs Such a Committee could then the gravest risk of regrettable together fix ALL calendars with clashes. Frantic telephone calls, the minimum of clashing and impassioned juggling of pro­ friction. grammes, insuperable difficulties The l\Iembers would, of course, of fixing venues, anxiety to space have to have individually dis­ properly the engagements that covered venues and filed must occupy the all-too-few week­ provisional dates for the several ends, the incidence oi bank events of each autonomous organi­ holidays and school holidays : all zation before the Committee met. these make the task of the Such a Committee might then Committees all but impossible. inexorably perceive that the bridge ' Nevertheless, somehow, with more programme of the whole country kicks than ha'pence for the is grossly over-crowded; and organizers, the rank-and-file of take appropriate corporate steps competitive bridge-players get to pool events or othenvise thin their programmes scheduled and them out. fulfilled. * * * The existence of such a Co­ Now that a new Season is upon ordinating Committee, to be us, with its intra-Britain Inter­ attended by a representative of nationals, the Camrose matches, the B.B.L., of the E.B.U., of the we beg to suggest yet another L.C.C.B.A., of the Y.C.B.A., and innovation : the holding of Trials of one or two of the other lead­ for the Metropolitan area. ing tournament-and Congress­ As things stand at present, a running organizations ; holding very small Panel of Internationals one meeting (or, at most, two) among the (mainly London) 1\Ias­ some time in July or August ters has been compiled, from might-would, if the Committee which four plavers are selected members were co-operative- for each Camrose : sometimes, 2 CONTRACT BRIDGE JOURNAL though not always, B.B.L. Nomi- T?e whole quesbon of Vni­ nations for E. B.L. Internationals. verstty players neerls considerable :\clditionall y, for every other attention and not only revision match, a Pair is chosen either but careful original tho-ught. Ex­ from the orth or the South to perts form the senior University, till the six places in the team ; for example, receive scant en­ and these Provincials are chosen coura.gement-since they are but as a result of a gruelling Trial. transients-from the Oxfordshire No such machinery, however, A~!"ociation which this yem exi ts for the very considerable failed to nominate Truscott and bod\' of London players who are, d'Unienville for the CamrosP and. are doomed to remain, within Trial even though, on record, onl y " smelling distance " of an this pair was appreciably stronger International Cap. than most County players. Such an innovation would It may well be possible that assuredly, give a fillip to Duplicat~ Mr. .\ and i\Irs. B from London are equally (or even more) worthy of bridge throughout the country. " Third Pair " status as l\Ir. X and * * * l\lrs. Y from Leeds, or as that pair One third suggestion we offer; of Birmingham stalwarts, K and despite the inherent difficulties, Q. But if K. and Q win the to those at the top who control Sou thern, X and y win the bridge: this is, the widening, orthern Trials, 011 merit, these through cheapening, of the Dupli­ two pairs wi ll play against cot- cate net. land, \Vales, Eire or Northern There is in England (as in Irel<md without let or hindrance ; Scotland) a whole body of League while A and B will still languish in players who never enter, and never a Cap-less condition : without dream of entering, for the National honour and without hope. Competitions ; nor even the . County Competitions of their Thts,. inevitably, is inequitable ; particular County. and mjustice is always wrong. It It is not their standard which is also static, for the Panel precludes such entry, but the remains, almost inevitably, in the brute question of price. hands of the Established. There L e t us, as tl 1e R ..A F •. wa> won t arc name that should command to say, face it : bridge is an consideration, partnerships that expensive game. The ordina!)' should compel encouragement, out-of-town Congress costs tts players who dese rve at least the participants round about £20 for chance of international honours. a week-end; even the local uch players fall into two Congress will cost a c<Jin~etit?r £2 categories : those who are already in entry-fe:!s and som :!thmg hke a at their peak and those- like the five-pound note before ~e - is University men of recent years- through.- i\Iany compettttons who sl.10uld now be undergoing a involve heavy travel, whtch adds groommg to take the place of our appreciably to the cost. Gray'S and Dorlds's when thev It is impo:;sible to esttmate the reach- in we prefer not to say ho~v bridge-quality of the thousands many years-the veteran class. (Continued ou page 14) 3 FLEXIBILITY by JOHN BROvVN N important principle in advancement of this ductile A play is the maintenance of quality can bring, let me first flexibility.