THE INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE PRESS ASSOCIATION Editor: John Carruthers This Bulletin is published monthly and circulated to around 400 members of the International Bridge Press Association comprising the world’s leading journalists, authors and editors of news, books and articles about contract bridge, with an estimated readership of some 200 million people BULLETIN who enjoy the most widely played of all card games. www.ibpa.com Bulletin No. 616 May 7, 2016 President: PATRICK D JOURDAIN Editorial 8 Felin Wen, Rhiwbina The opinions expressed here are solely the editor’s and do not necessarily Cardiff CF14 6NW, WALES, UK Tel.: (44) 29 2062 8839 represent those of the IBPA Executive or its members. [email protected] Previously, I had been adamantly opposed to the extermination of appeals committees. Chairman: I believed that only a panel of expert players could truly understand and come to grips PER E JANNERSTEN with the subtleties of the decisions top players make at the table and the roadblocks Banergatan 15 put in their way by misinformation and unauthorised information. However, over the SE-752 37 Uppsala, SWEDEN years, a few controversial appeals committee decisions has introduced some doubt in Tel.: (46) 18 52 13 00 [email protected] my mind. Some of these well-known (or infamous, depending on one’s point of view) committee decisions over the years: Executive Vice-President: •the JoAnna Stansby “Oh, shit!” Vanderbilt ruling JAN TOBIAS van CLEEFF •the Billy Cohen non-alert of Stayman Vanderbilt ruling Prinsegracht 28a •the Kerry Sanborn “usually” Wagar ruling 2512 GA The Hague, NETHERLANDS •the Tor Helness four or three spades Vanderbilt ruling. Tel.: (31) 70 360 5902 [email protected] Each of these appeals committee decisions was characterized at the time as the “worst- ever” by at least some expert players. Thus there has been some sentiment among top Organizational Vice-President & players that we can do without committees. And, in fact, both the WBF and the EBL Bulletin Production Manager: have eliminated appeals committees, while the ACBL has announced that future NABC DILIP GIDWANI appeals committees will be comprised solely of tournament directors. 43,44 Cheema Colony Budha Theh, Beas, Amritsar This is not to say that appeals committees are solely to blame for poor and/or 143201 Punjab, INDIA controversial rulings. Organisations and players are partly to blame as well. For example, Tel.: (91) 98214 53817 the WBF used to feature very unwieldy committees with as many as 17 members, most [email protected] of them officials who could not be considered expert players. The players were equally Secretary & at fault since those out for any edge would call the TD at the drop of a hat and, if the Membership Secretary: ruling were not to their liking, appeal with impunity. HERMAN DE WAEL The ACBL had a good idea, forming appeals committee teams (for NABCs) under a Michel Willemslaan 40 leader, with each team responsible to form a committee if required on a particular B-2610 Wilrijk, BELGIUM date. With three teams of 12-15 members, each team needed to be available on only Tel.: (32) 3 827 64 45 three or four days during any given tournament. This model could have worked well in Fax: (32) 3 825 29 19 theory, except for the fact that all committee members were players at the tournament [email protected] and the team leader or a TD often had to search for a committee late at night, after the Treasurer: evening session. That frequently resulted in less-able committees. RICHARD SOLOMON It should have been a simple matter for all of these organisations to construct a 308 Kauri Road, RD2 Tuakau 2697, NEW ZEALAND permanent or fluid appeals committee of expert players whose duties were appeals, Tel.: (64) 9 232 8494 not playing bridge, and who would attend a given tournament as part-time employees. [email protected] A pool of a couple of dozen players would not have been too difficult to manage. Then, five or seven committee members not planning to attend a particular tournament Honorary General Counsel: could have been engaged to attend. DAVID HARRIS 1a Westfield Avenue Instead, we are now left with the unsavoury situation in which tournament directors Harpenden AL5 4HN, UK are the sole arbiters (with, it must be said, ‘help’ from expert players). It should make Tel.: (44) 1582 821161 the players at the table uneasy to receive a ruling where all the evidence has been Fax: (44) 1582 821162 presented by the TD out of the hearing of any of the players at the table. It seems too [email protected] much like allowing the police to have powers beyond their mandate (of defence and Awards Secretary: prosecuting attorneys, judge and jury as well as their normal powers of arrest and BARRY J. RIGAL detention). Apt 8E, 22 West 26th Street, I have a feeling that, years from now, we shall look back fondly on the days when we New York NY 10010, USA could appeal a TD’s ruling. I hope I’m wrong. Tel.: (1) 212 366 4799 [email protected] Address all IBPA Bulletin correspondence to: JOHN CARRUTHERS Presidents Emeriti: 1322 Patricia Blvd., Kingsville, Ontario, N9Y 2R4, CANADA TOMMY SANDSMARK (NORWAY) Tel: +1 519-733-9247 HENRY FRANCIS (USA) email: [email protected] 1 been deceptive with both the queen and king of hearts, but that was unlikely. There was no reason to fool OZ BRIDGE partner here. Ron Klinger Northbridge, NSW After the first six tricks, these cards remained: [K J www.ronklingerbridge.com ]A 6 {J }8 7 OZ BRIDGE [A 5 [— Ron Klinger, Northbridge, NSW ] Q 8 ] 10 7 4 www.RonKlingerBridge.com { 10 8 { 9 The Force of the Jedi } 10 } K 9 6 [Q 9 Take a look at one of Australia’s top players, Richard ]J 9 Jedrychowski, affectionately known as Jedi, in action {— in a rubber bridge game at the Grand Slam Bridge }A J 4 Centre, Double Bay, in Sydney on April 8. South has lost three tricks already and will lose to the Dealer South. Neither Vul. ace of spades at some point. How can South come to [ K J 8 7 nine tricks? ]A 6 5 {J 4 2 It would not work to cross to the ace of hearts, discard }8 7 2 a heart on the jack of diamonds and ruff a heart. If you [ A 5 4 2 [ 3 continue with a spade, West wins and a diamond gives ] Q 8 2 ] K 10 7 4 the defence the fifth trick one way or another. A heart { K 10 8 5 { A 9 7 3 to the ace, jack of diamonds to discard your heart } 10 5 } K 9 6 3 loser and then another club finesse will not work [ Q 10 9 6 either. ]J 9 3 Because it was hopeless if West had started with the {Q 6 queen-ten-two of hearts, declarer, of necessity, placed } A Q J 4 the heart ten with East. In that case, he could transfer West North East South the heart menace to East by leading the jack of hearts Callin Raj David Richard at a convenient time. At trick seven, Jedi therefore Gruia Limaye Conway Jedrychowski played the nine of spades. West took the ace, and ———1[ declarer unblocked the king from dummy as East Pass 2[ Double Pass discarded a heart. If West had played another spade, 3{ 3[ Pass Pass East throwing the nine of diamonds, South would have Pass won and led the jack of hearts, letting it run if West had played low. If West had covered, the heart ace West led the two of hearts: five–king–three. East would have won and the jack of diamonds would have shifted to the diamond three: six–king–two. West squeezed East in hearts and clubs. continued with the five of diamonds, taken by the ace. To defeat three spades, East needed to play another In practice, after taking the ace of spades, West was diamond, but he chose the three of clubs. The queen not so kind as to play another spade. He returned a of clubs won and South shifted his attention to diamond to dummy’s jack. This foiled South’s initial plan, trumps: six of spades–two–seven–three; then the eight since the squeeze position had been destroyed, of spades–diamond seven–ten–four. whether South discards a heart or a club. South could almost certainly tell West’s shape: four Not to worry, Jedi found the solution. He ruffed the spades (known) and four diamonds (indicated by the jack of diamonds! Ruffing your own winner is not play so far). As West had led the two of hearts, that usually a good idea, but here it was essential. Next would have been from three or four hearts. However, came the jack of hearts: queen–ace–six. East was down if West had had four hearts, he’d have bid three hearts, to the ten of hearts and king-to-three clubs while not three diamonds. South gave West three hearts, South had the nine of hearts and the ace-jack-four of and hence a 4=3=4=2 pattern. West had also shown clubs. The jack of spades simultaneously drew West’s up with the ace of spades and the king of diamonds. last trump and squeezed East. Whichever suit East As East won trick one with the king of hearts, South discarded, South would discard from the other suit also placed the heart queen with West.