The highest bid ... amongst bridge players is for Thomas. De La Rue's LINETTE and CROWN playing cards LINETTE " c II SERIES CROWN SERIES THOMAa D LA RU• A CO. LTD., 84•a8 REQ.NT aT., LONDON, W.l • • • • ·EVERY MONDAY IN ·THE - • • • • • • • • • Kr. 30 R.20 . 120 £1 /100 . I , •• 1 curren y t 1:1 folio mg . J. Sul t\an. 4 tanley tr t, uth . Matz, co D langg d 73 t. artin' ill , Tuarn, Co. e, Bridge- lub toile, 26 Rue halgrin 0. Hellmi h, ludenberg r r _7 . Box , For urg, 2 The British ridge World UCCE OR TO TH E CONTRACT BRIOOI! JOURNAL: M£01 FO R Oll H BRIOOE U 10 N WS dtted by TER E REESE VOLUME 2 July 1956 UMBER I ditorial Board BER RD W TALL (CH IRMA ) GEOFFR Y L. BUTL R HUBERT PHILLIPS TERE C REESE K ETH KO STAM COM PETITIO EDITOR: J. C. H. M RX EDITOR FOR R GIO AL NEWS: HAROLD FRA KLI 4 Rom n venue, lced , 8 :;r. ~thtr correspondence, including Subscriptions and Advertisetm!nts, to tlr~ 110 /~rs : Hu&h Que ett Ltd., 3S Dover Street, London, W.l riptiOII 30/- 11re British Bridge World Is published on the 15th of each month ~ 011 #Hitoq o/t~• prop•l•tou. TltomM D• C.. Rw .t Co. Lid~ #ly H II Qwbtt Lid., Ool'fr s,,,, '-tdo.o. W.J. t>•lnt.d by M-• 84tl•y Lid. • lt•tr•at ~'"'"· LolodiM, £., 3 c ts p dit rial 5-6 tch, by Edmund k T" Rid i th 'f J • 11! '" hip Phillip 7-11 mou Hand from ·tmou .H rri on Gr y 12-1 o.6 nlimit ·d ripti n orm ... mp Dynamite, by K nn th K n tam ... meri n w -Letter, by lfred heinwold imultan u P r onte t : H nd 9-16 ... 22- 1- • ou ay . T urnament W rid, by Harold ranklin ... n wer to June mpetition, by J k M r July mpetition, t by J ck Mar Editorial THE R hanahan, Mr . L ter and Mr . Tb unhappy di pute that ha Van Ree 1 urely the be t we attended the el tion of Britain' have ever had, and a captain 1 team for the ur pean hampion­ am more than hopeful of it hip at toe holm ha , if n thin ucce . e1 • attracted wide notice in the p and harpened publ ic • 1- ter t in the performanc T RTO Britain' " ond I." A Ire. d · The Tournament ommittee many reader have a ked for of the uropean Bridge League the " Champion hip ew " an­ has at Ia t tackled the qu tion of nounced on page 2I ; any further low play, but in incredibly pu y­ application mu t be made before foot fa hion. 2t hour are al­ •.Jrd July. lowed for each half-match of 20 France, with a tronger tea m board , and 10 minute ' grace on e\en than Ia t year, mu t be top of that. ot until a team ha. accounted odd -on favourite for three time exceeded thi time­ the open champion hip. The limit doe it incur any penalty. Briti h team , if it ha the modicum and then the I. M.P. to t do not of luck that a team need in any affect the re ult of the m tch in tournament decided by ictory progre but only the team' fin I point , ha a fine chance to fini h po ition in the event of a tie on ~nd . victory point . I hould have thought that any two team incapable of pJaying 20 board in 2t hour h uld In the Ladie ' ection the new required to lea e the building. i that two of the Dani h team ~hat won I t year will be playing ~n the Open, o that ranee, which WHER WlLL TH ! a really trong team, i the reat 1 threat to a Briti h vic- tory. everthele • the Briti h thi team (Mrs. Marku , M . the ordon • Mr • W1'JJ 1am.' M1' the s re one thin Jlt'll nttndu, but in truth I t ere per on lily in the rid orld. If it ·ere n t for t e the committee men who put in o mu h ·olunt r , th re w uld be no com­ petitive bridge on a n tiona! al , no publi ity for the pme, F ILIAR and no tar to play a in t. to criti i e, or to in ite to General The th l the eetin WAiTED urrey m ting the familiar prote t w he rd from one pe ker:- .. Wh t d th 6 Weak T Bids in the World Cha pionship Match b D :u D PH I ll P Time wa when it wa c.nn­ champion hip. A again t only idered unpatriotic to ugg t h.. t one p ir in 1955, all the 1956 American bridge theory wa ., in merican team except Goren any way uperior to Briti h Hut were u ing Weak Two , and now that our former conqueror al o one of the French pair , have been beaten three years on Bacherich and Gh tern. The the run by the premier Briti h Wea Two was in fact u d in 16 team; now that Stayman for out of the 224 hands-and thi e ample, ha incorporated a num­ it elf i a point in it favour ber of Acol technique into hi ince one of the argument again t tern; the time h perhap the Acol Two i that it eldom come when we can afford to be occur . I hope to how, how­ reciprocally generou and admit ever, with as many illu trative that there may till be omething hand pace allow , that the for u to learn from the U.S.A. Weak Two has advantag more year ago in the " Contract po iti e than mere frequency. Bridge Journal " I advanced the For tho e unfamiliar with the thes· that the Acol Two Bid w convention the Weak Two i an an over-rated convention and opening bid of Two Diamond , iiJustrated thi with hand from Heart or Spade that ho the 1955 world champion hip. normally a ix-card uit and At the me time I ugge ted that point-count of 6 to 9. t I t the Wea Two Bid might be a that i how I play it; the Am ri­ profitable alternative but a there can extend it use up to 10 or 11 were only two occ ion during point in certain po ition . ~ match when the bid wa u ed ow the hands. The Wea n. ~ difficult to provide con­ Two wa fir t u ed, by the U.S.. vmcmg evidence. only, on b rd 67 but there w .My opportunity now come no h first h nd of wuh the record of the 1956 world con equ n o. 103 :- 7 7 KQ J r:::) K QJ 0 97 RTII • 9 7 KJ 52 Ill r:::) 9 • 10 0 97 r:::; 54 3 2 .J 0 K IO 6 3 1 • Q4 97 • 6 Room 1 QJ r:::) K 10764~ TH W R TH A 1 J 5 0 104 Ja• T,ul Ha '" • 1075 0 TH Obi. • Q3 r:::; s Room 2 0 Q3- H w RTH • Q96 .. F,/d &Kit,; It ta mQif 20 30 3. Room! H 40 4. so Trrul Hau" lip .. 100 Room 2 I. I. a 9 Thi tim Room I to th pr iou H w T ent of theW K• Ja I. ,. 4+ Room 2 a TH T RTH &. rirlt Har 11 then. i that from time t tim it G r '"" lead to gam th t could not 0 Obi. otherwi e be r h d. 20 2 T 0 3 T II ran 460 In R t d ler gh room for t-W t vulnerable: m r.ceu re, Three o Trum • RTH re ched without a he rt topper. + AKQJ3 but he rt r not Jed . Th ran g in 6 I.M.P. ~here t " 104 0 94 m1ght well have lo t th m. • 6 Wr (/• KQ97 0 K J 10 6 2 • 1052 • 9 7 5 5 "0 J Q5 • j 94 10 JOI any. that de tar r' nd orth dealer line (drawmg trump m three Both ides vulnerable round and throwin RTH with the third club • J 5 wor . Th clue. I think. \? K J 10 9 53 from the ond tri . 0 AQ not W t, holding the + . haYe + 10 2 continued with a ma ll hea rt . W T E in tead of th Queen. to av 1d + KIO 74 + AQ6 being immediately end-pi cd? "Q 2 0 KJ964 to Room 2, it i ea y. eei ng " 0 5 all four hand , to critici the + 96 + KQJ543 opening lead of the OJ which TH • 932 handed d larer hi contra t; and I mu t say that 1 ha e een too " 7 6 4 10 7 3 2 many Three o Trump contract 0 handed to decl rer by I d from + A7 K J 10 to h e much reli h for It ~ould eem that whate er that choice when, a here. ther i orth open E t-We t hould a rea onable alternative. r ch their natural contract of our pade .