April Slams
This week while playing bridge, I had many occasions where I though “Gee, I wish I could have a do-over on THAT hand!” but sadly we aren’t afforded that chance. But what we DO have is… the pencil eraser. Let’s take a moment and consider that humble little object that we reduce to pink dust in our efforts to rid ourselves of past errors.
Interestingly, the eraser and oxygen were both discovered by Joseph Priestley (1733-1804).
What a guy! He was a chemist, theologian, biologist, teacher and philosopher... he published over 150 works, founded Unitarianism in Great Britain, and was so outspoken in his beliefs about human rights and attempts to reconcile religion and science that he had to go on the lam and escape to the United States.
And somewhere along the line, he discovered that rubbing a piece of latex rubber on paper would erase pencil lines. For that, bridge players should be eternally grateful.
And speaking of gratitude… for those polishing their slam bidding and play, this issue of Vu-Bridge is a winner.
MATTHIAS HUBERSCHWILLER intrigues us right from the start with his hand titles: No Five-Card Suit Should Be Ignored (ever heard that before?), Don’t Break the Tenace, How High is TOO High? And Bad News is Good News.
BEN NORTON has a series of six hands on a common theme: When to pull trump. Granny told us to pull trump right away, getting our “children” off the street. But as beginners develop their game (especially with Ben’s guidance) they learn that it’s all about timing. Sometimes we need to save pulling trump for dessert, and make them work for us.
I’ve got a series of six hands for you that are all about “the order of things”. It is so rare that we can play any card in any order and bring home the contract. Should we hold up? When should we set up our side suit? What about taking a finesse? Is there a best time? Stay tuned…
We close the issue with two quizzes from MATTHIAS HUBERSCHWILLER. The first is how to reach slam with two-suited hands, and the second features a bid-a-hand with two-suiters.
Enjoy!
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