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1 T HE QBA B ULLETIN Published by the Queensland Bridge Association manager@qldbridge.com April-June 2013 Volume 39 No2 From the President Keith McDonald THE Victorian Bridge Association Bulletin May 2013 has an excellent editorial by Ben Thompson, President of the VBA. His subject is volunteerism in clubs. The article is available on the QBA web site. I never cease to be impressed at the club members who volunteer to serve in management positions for their club. Yet again I have been confronted by criticism of club officials who are performing to their best, in the interest of all club members. Boards are accountable to their members and should be transparent and communicate effectively. However members need to empathise wth officials before commencing politicking. According to UK-based executive education and research organasation Roffey Park, politicking has grown from being a fairly peripheral issue to the single biggest cause of stress in the workplace today. This politicking can be soul destroying in a bridge club. 1. Don't say anything about fellow members you wouldn't say directly to them. 2. Separate tabloid-style gossip from news. 3. Aim to build solid connections with other members. 4. Avoid sticky situations by remaining aware of, and sensitive to, the tacit rules that influence behaviour. 5. Always focus on facts, not feelings. Our aim should be to foster a harmonious atmosphere within our club so that all can enjoy the game we all love! I leave next week for the Gold Point event (the Barrier Reef Congress) at Mackay. Townsville will host the 2014 event. This Congress has built a great reputation (with Cairns) of good bridge. I hope you will look to join us in Townsville in GCC Feb 22 - Mar 1 Contents From the President... 1 Open Trials by Kamal Sangumarasa...1 Seniors' Trials by Richard Wallis...3 Cuppaidge's Column by George Cuppaidge... 8 Mixed Pairs by Betty Lee...10 Mike Robson Manager's Travels by Kim Ellaway...11 ANC Teams Day by Richard Wallis...12 From the Manager's Desk...13 Club News Years Ago by Richard Ward...14 Klinger's Column by Ron Klinger...15 Director's Corner by Jan Peach...20 Open Trials Kamal Sanmugarasa WILD distributions produce crazy results. Here's one where the scores were scattered from +650 to 550 and anything in between. If I am the almighty with the power to award a par score for the deal below that we played in the recent Queensland Open Trials, then it will be +475 (N-S). Dlr E KQ1086 Vul NS A1065 AKQ KQ4 N 7 S J AKQ AJ92 J J5 3D P 3NT X 4D P P X All pass Not that the almighty is obliged to explain why, but here's the logic. The bidding should proceed as follows. East opens 3D, West bids some number of clubs (4 or 5) and North bids 4D asking partner to bid his major or double 5C. The two reasonable scenarios are 5H by South making (plus 650) or 5C doubled by West for two down (+300). Hence the par score being +475 (average of +650 and +300). 5H by South is cold as, on any lead

2 2 Have You Arranged Your Travel Insurance It s Not Too Late To Join The ABF Members Travel Insurance Scheme While it can seem a bit pessimistic, making sure that you your next trip is memorable for all the right reasons should be a result of planning for the worst and hoping for the best. An important part of planning for the worst is in making sure that the what ifs are taken care of, and in most cases this means travel insurance. Unfortunately, navigating the maze of different policies and options can be complex. Travel insurance is something you will need on the road. You never know what could happen, and most health plans won t cover you overseas. No one ever planned to pop an eardrum while scuba diving, break a camera in Italy, break a leg hiking or that an immediate relative would die and they would have to fly back home. Appropriate travel insurance is there when those events happen. While it is something you hope you never have to use, it is just not wise to travel without it. I would rather be safe than sorry and not stuck with an enormous hospital bill. With the myriad of plans and insurers available, people can easily get confused about what they should get and why. There are a lot of options out there. This is big business and every insurer has an offering, thus you face a huge number of choices that can be overwhelming. Whether it is medical expense coverage limits, evacuation, geographical coverage areas, illness and injury cover, lost or damaged possessions, cancellations, legal expenses or financial protection finding the benefits you need, then trying to shoe horn them into your budget is a herculean task. For this reason, the ABF s General Insurance Broker, TBIB, have developed a Corporate Travel Insurance for the financial members of ABF affiliated clubs. TBIB were already the insurance brokers to the ABF and are specialists in Corporate Travel Insurance. A Corporate Travel Insurance Policy, is a travel insurance policy to which all members of an organization are eligible to join. Because of the collective nature of the participation, individuals can avail themselves of a broader range of covers and benefit levels at a more competitive price than individual or credit card based policies. TBIB have found the right arrangement for the ABF and we are now in the second year of enjoying the benefits of the ABF Corporate Travel Insurance Policy for your members The TBIB policy is one of the most inclusive available. For eligible members, just some of the cover inclusions are; o Covers all trips commenced during the period of the policy including overseas and within Australia when you are more than 100km s from home. o Pre-existing medical conditions are covered (unless you are travelling against medical advice and are fit for travel) o No medical examinations required to get cover. o Medical expenses are covered worldwide (except Australia) and are not limited to a maximum amount. The cover limits for this policy are extremely generous, and from just doing a little bit of research, the premiums come in considerable cheaper than an individual policy with similar benefits especially as you get older. The members of the ABF do a bit of travelling, whether it is for our great game, or just time away with family. Nothing ruins a holiday faster than an unplanned emergency. And while travel insurance cant prevent the emergencies, the right insurance can definitely alleviate a lot of the hassle. Its important to do your homework before you go so you can rest easy knowing that you didn t trust your wellbeing to an inferior option. For more information, go to to view the PDS and additional information about the policy. Take the time to review all the information to ensure the product meets your needs.

3 3 declarer can enter his hand with a spade and finesse the trump honour for eleven tricks. On the other hand if West played in 5CX, surely the obvious trump lead will keep declarer to nine tricks as when South gains entry through a spade he can play a second club to reduce the ruffing capacity in dummy to just one trick. At our table the bidding went 3D by East (Nathan van Jole), 3NT West (Kamal), double by North, 4D by East, doubled by North. East played in 4DX for two down; 300. This should give us +5 IMPs under the 'almighty scheme', but in reality we got 5 IMPs. In other words we lost 10 IMPs as a result of stuffups (there is a better word for this, but I can't use it here) by the rest of the field. If I was grumpy with the results on the above board, I was pleasantly surprised with the 10 IMPs that we got on the following deal in a subsequent match 4. Dlr S QJ6 Vul NS A10932 KJ K82 Q876 N KJ 76 S Q532 KQ A95 54 A108 AJ972 1C P 1H P 2C P 2D P 2NT P 3NT All pass We bid clubs, hearts, diamonds before declaring in 3NT. Sitting South I got a spade lead. I could count eight tricks: two spades, one heart, one club and four diamonds assuming I am able to locate the queen. So I have to bring hearts into play to make this contract, without losing control in spades. If West had the K it would be almost impossible to stop spades, as, when I lose a heart, East can push a spade through. So I played a low spade from dummy hoping the 10 is with West. East played the 8 The Open Team: Mike Pemberton, Rosemary Green, Peter Evans, Nathan Van Jole, Peter Hainsworth and Kamal and I won with the 9. I now played a heart from hand and played low from dummy and was pleased when the jack appeared from East. East returned the K that I won with the ace, dropped the K and gave up a trick to the Q. I was therefore able to make ten tricks: three tricks each in spades, hearts, diamonds and the A. How often do you feel dissatisfied, even after winning 10 IMPs on a board? Here is one. Dlr W AJ2 Vul Both QJ 864 AKJ43 K N AK865 AKQ7 S J93 Q Q D 2C X All pass Sitting West I opened 1D and North overcalled 2C. My partner doubled for takeout and I passed to defend 2CX. East cashed the A and K, and switched to a diamond. I cashed my three top diamonds and played the 10. Declarer ruffed and played the J. I won with the king and returned a spade. Declarer won the spade in dummy and took the club finesse for two down. On a combined 22 point count, the score of 500 was good and netted 10 IMPs. However, had I been more alert and returned the fourth diamond after winning the K, declarer will be forced to ruff with the J. This will promote my partner's 10 for an additional trick to the defence. I can only hope that there is still more time for me to get better at this intriguing game. Seniors' Trials Richard Wallis THE trials for the Seniors Team at the ANC in Adelaide from July 8 to July 12 were held at QCBC in April, and a pleasing 19 pairs fronted up for Stage 1, played over the first weekend, to qualify the top 10 pairs for Stage 2, which took a further 3 days and 9 matches. A number of participants in both the Womens and Seniors questioned the need for a 2-stage process with only 19 pairs, and after due consideration, the Tournament Committee decided that for 2014, the Seniors' and Women's Trials will be conducted as a single Stage Howell for a maximum entry of 24 pairs, after which it will

4 4 revert to Stage 1 over 2 days to qualify 12 pairs for Stage 2 over 4 days. I played this year with Therese Tully, and after many years of playing 4-card Acol, we have changed to a 5-card major system, 2-over-1 game forcing. Since there are many new and often artificial concepts for both of us, we have experienced a few teething problems, but are slowly coming to grips with the new system and slot in a practice session whenever time permits. By the end of Stage 2 we were getting on top of it, and were in the happy position with only match to go of being locked into the team for Adelaide, as were the other 2 pairs, so the final match was only played to determine the reserve pair! The Seniors' team for Adelaide is: Ian Afflick/Paul Collins, Tony Jackman/ Tony Hutton, and Therese Tully/ Richard Wallis, with David McLeish as non-playing captain. Welcome to Tony Hutton, now living in Queensland, and a first-timer with the Queensland team at the ANC. M 1 AQ2 Bd Dlr N Q54 Vul EW AKQ4 K N J1054 J107 S K9832 J106 5 J3 AKQ3 A ran around to the Q, and now the successful spade finesse meant 12 tricks for Since none of the 5 NS pairs got to slam, this should have been a flat board, but one NS pair must have had an oops moment as they stopped in 3C, making 12 tricks for +170, losing 8 IMPs themselves, and the other NS pairs all gained 2 IMPs. Unlucky for our opponents to lose 2 IMPs in this way. M Bd Dlr S A962 Vul None 63 AJ10652 Q4 K752 N AQ103 K4 S Q1073 A 1054 K9 J J85 KQJ9872 1C 1S X P 2C 2S P 3S P 4S All pass We sat EW for boards in the first match and we were both alerted by North s negative double, announcing a 4-card heart suit. I chose to rebid my reasonable 6-card spade suit rather than introduce a motley 4-card heart suit with the announced length in hearts on my left, and Therese, with her heart honours seemingly well-placed, invited game in spades, which I quickly accepted. North led the 6, and since I knew North to have heart length, I did not want to enter dummy with the Q in case South was void. I won trick 1 with the A and hoped to create an entry to dummy by leading the K, but expected South to hold the A and duck to deny the entry. When North won the A and returned the 3, it was almost certain that the spade finesse was right, so I trumped the club and led to the Q for a successful spade finesse. After drawing trumps I could test the hearts by cashing the Q first, but when the J fell from South, 12 tricks were easy for A loss maybe, but no! Another EW pair played in a spade part-score for 10 tricks, and 2 EW pairs only made 11 tricks, so we gained 2.25 IMPs. 1NT P 2C P 2D! P 3NT All pass On this board in the first match I got lazy, as I could not remember with any certainty the part of the system that could uncover a potential club fit for slam, so I checked for a heart fit and signed off in 3NT after the no major, 2D response. Since the spade finesse worked, 6C was cold, so I feared that we may have lost a few IMPs as someone always seems to find these just under 50% slams! East led the 2, which Therese Seniors Team: Therese Tully, Richard Wallis, Tony Hutton, David McLeish (npc), Tony Jackman, Ian Afflick and Paul Collins Qld Youth Bridge Fun Days - FREE! June 27 and July am-3pm Qld Contract Bridge Club, 67 Ipswich Road, Woolloongabba These days are for all young players 8-26 yrs old wishing to learn bridge or improve their existing bridge game. Players can attend either or both days. Pizza lunch is provided. Where: Qld Contract Bridge Club, 67 Ipswich Road, Woolloongabba. Please contact Paul Brake if possible ( or phone on paul.brake95@ gmail.com or ) or just turn up. No partner is required.

5 5 The QBA Bulletin April - June 2013

6 6 M 1 J1098 Bd 19 A104 Dlr S Q Vul EW K10964 KQ76 A52 N K65 AJ8643 S K972 Q87 J53 43 QJ A2 3H X 4H X All pass I had a minimum hand to act over the pre-empt, but I did have 4 spades, so I bit the bullet and doubled for take-out. Things took a potential turn for the worse when North raised to game, and Therese doubled, to show cards, but likely denying 4 spades. At the vulnerability I did not think it was the right time to introduce my modest 6-card diamond suit, so decided to take my chances on 4 tricks in defence rather than 11 in offence, and passed. We took our 2 spades, 1 diamond and 1 heart for a lucky +100, but that was enough for 3.75 IMP gain. One NS pair played in 3H for +140, one EW pair got to 4S going 1 off for +100 to NS, and 2 other NS pairs Youth Team played in 4H undoubled, for 50. It is hard to predict a result in such a small field. M 2 AQJ Bd 6 J1032 Dlr E A654 Vul EW 73 K N 94 KQ10872 S J93 4 Q AKQ876 AKJ52 P 2C P 2D P 2H P 2S! P 3C P 3H! P 5D! X P! P 6H All pass On this board I had a hand with great potential, especially after Therese showed a good hand with support by bidding just 3H instead of game, as her first 2 bids were virtually forced by our system (playing Kokish 2H rebid). My concern was 2 spade losers as I thought that Therese was likely to be short in clubs, and thus I jumped to 5D over 3H expecting that this was Exclusion Key Card Blackwood! West doubled this for the lead (she Angus Gray, Anastasia Mulcahy, Jessica Brake, Russell Skennerton, Chris Larter, Paul Brake (c) and Andrew Gosney was going to be on lead!) and Therese passed the double to show 1 Key Card (R0P1), thus I was in relatively safe waters when I bid 6H. The grand slam seemed like too much to ask for, but it looked good when I saw dummy after West led the K. Keeping my options open, I ruffed the opening diamond lead, drew trumps, and led the top clubs expecting to be able to ruff my clubs good and discard my spade on the A later. Since the clubs did not break, I discarded one on the A and took the spade finesse for the overtrick and a modest 0.25 IMP. M 2 AQ9742 Bd 19 J1052 Dlr S KJ Vul EW Q 108 K65 K3 N Q7 A10864 S Q52 J542 K10873 Q3 A A96 1H P 2NT! P 3C! P 4H All pass I opened a shade light for our normal minimum opening of 11 HCPs, since I had a 5-card major suit and 2 aces. Therese had a reasonable hand with a good spade suit, but showed her support first by bidding a Jacoby 2NT, as this would find out more about my hand. My 3C rebid showed a minimum, so game was her only aspiration, and she signed off in the known 5-4 fit, to which West led the 10. The lead may have been singleton, and the diamond suit looked particularly vulnerable, so I rose with the A and led out 2 rounds of trumps hoping that it was East who won the K. I do not know if I would have guessed right if West had led a low diamond after winning the K, as West cashed the A and took away any guess for me. This was not good defence, especially playing teams scoring, and we gained 4 IMPs since 1 pair did not get to game and one declarer went off in 4H. The full article is on the website.

7 7 Youth Co-ordinator FROM June 1 Nathan Van Jole will step down as Youth Co-Ordinator for the QBA as he will be relocating to Townsville. The QBA would like to thank him for the magnificent effort he has made to put Qld Youth back into the spotlight. We are fielding a full Youth team at the upcoming National Championships in Adelaide and for the first time in years all members are 25 or under. We now have a regular Youth session at QCBC each Monday afternoon 4pm start for the more junior or 5pm for our more experienced players. All are very welcome to attend. Structural and Functional Changes to Human Brains Following a Stroke I am conducting a study to find out how the structure and function of the brain is influenced by the incidence of a stroke. In order to do this, I will use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fmri) to compare brain activity of stroke patients to brain activity of aged-matched, healthy adults. This research is being conducted as part of the requirements for the Bachelor of Psychological Science Degree at the University of Queensland. I am seeking healthy adults who are over 50 years of age, have never had a stroke, and are considered MRI safe (e.g., do not have any metal inside their body). MRI is safe and requires no injection but due to the strong magnetic field used by the MRI scanner, it is vital that participants do not have pacemakers, brain clips, dental braces or any other metals inside their body. Participants will be provided with a Metals Checklist prior to participating in the study in order to ensure MRI safety. Nathan van Jole handing over to Paul Brake Another new initiative has been our Youth Days held during the school holidays where we offer to teach bridge for free in one day! It is great fun and wonderful to see youth players ranging from 8 years old to 25 attend the Brisbane ones and the others also well supported. We naturally have different levels of coaching to suit all comers. These have been held at QCBC, Surfers Paradise Bridge Club and Harvey Bay. We wish Nathan and Nicky all the very best and we have no doubt the Domino Pizza sales in Townsville will treble! They will be missed. We are very fortunate to find a great replacement in Paul Brake. He is the captain of our Qld Youth Team and his daughter, Jessica, is a member of the team. We have no doubt Paul will continue to make Qld Youth grow and it will be exciting to watch. He will be ably supported by Andy Hung and myself and we are all passionate to see our youth players develop. During the study, participants will view pictures and respond with button responses while undergoing an MRI scan. Testing involves two sessions. The first session (one hour) which includes behavioral testing takes place at the University of Queensland St Lucia campus, Brisbane, in the School of Psychology (building 24A) and the second session (on a different day) which includes an MRI scan takes place at the University of Queensland St Lucia campus at the Centre for Advanced Imaging (building 60). Participants will receive $30 reimbursement for their participation in the study. The experiment is expected to take approximately 2 hours in total. If you are interested in knowing more about this study, please contact Tarran Beavis at tarran.beavis@uqconnect.edu.au or on QCBC 67 Ipswich Rd Woolloongabba Ph: qcbc1@optusnet.com.au Sessions: Mon am 7.30 pm Tue am 7.30 pm Wed am 7.30 pm Thur am Fri am 7.30 pm Sat 1.00 pm Supervised: Mon 7.30 pm Fri 9.30 am

8 8 Cuppaidge s Column George Cuppaidge Virtue is Often Rewarded ONE of the joys if bridge is that virtue is so often rewarded. Do the right thing and your reward comes. Maybe this particular reward was a little undeserved. Dlr S KJ8765 J3 AQ5 A2 94 A32 82 N K963 S 1082 KJ Q10 AKQ10 J74 Q1054 1NT P 2H P 2S P 3C 1 P 4C 2 P 5S P 6S 3 All pass 1 North told me, as I played the hand, that 3C was a cue-bid; a slam-try for spades, and I had no right to bid slam with my subminimum values. 2 North has spades and clubs, as far as I am concerned, and with J74 I cannot bid 3NT. If partner suggests a minor-suit game, slam must be a possibility. If you don t want a suit raised, don t bid it. Conversely, if you have a raise, raise. (It is amazing how many players consider a raise as the bid of last resort.) 3 The Q10 must be a jewel on this bidding. North is entitled to consider slam on his cards, but standard methods are non-existent when responder holds a strong single-suiter opposite 1NT. I do not agree that 3C is a cue-bid. How else do you show a club suit? This was indeed an ugly auction to an ugly contract. How do you assess the suitability of the combined hands for slam below game? This is one of the multitude of situations where 2NT, played as always forcing, comes to the rescue. (To play it as game-invitational with five spades is, simply, gross.) The key features are, obviously, fit for the suit and controls. Over a forcing 2NT, 3NT will deny three spades. If partner continues with a new suit this will be a cue-bid setting spades. Opener will asses an honour in spades as being of immense value. A new suit over 2NT is a cue-bid with three spades. By further agreement, 3S might deny an honour in spades, with a cue-bid promising one. 4S shows no spade honour and no first round control. On this hand, over 3NT North bids 4S, the slam try has been made, and North can feel he has done enough. 4S is plenty. What does opener do with four-card support? My suggestion is always super-accept holding four, never with two or three. That fourth trump is usually of immense value and you are protected by being in a nine-card or better fit when responder is weak. The hand may well belong to the opponents. Opener has five different ways of super-accepting, a serious partnership must attach a specific meaning to each. West led a heart. The heart suit will provide discards for two of dummy s losers, so the diamond finesse cannot be avoided. With a dearth of entries to the South hand, it should be taken now. When it won, a spade was led off the board. East flew with the A and returned a heart, won in hand by declarer. A second trump removed West s only remaining one and the heart winners could all be cashed. In due course East s last trump was drawn. How do you play this for one trick? Qx 9xxx You need to find AK under the Qx and short J10 on your right. Play twice towards the queen Australia v Turkey, World Bridge Games, Lille BBO offers extensive viewgraph coverage of bridge worldwide. I rarely bother because it can be so slow. This one hand was rewarding to watch but the coverage of this particular table broke down immediately afterwards, so I abandoned the quest again. The match was between an Australian team and a Turkish team. I watched Lavings and Krochmalik. I noted that Lilley and Nagy had avoided a very marginal 6H, playing in a safe 4H making five. At the time Turkey led 31-1 IMPs. I am happy to report that Australia recouped a deserved 14 IMPs on this hand, or I should say that the Turks deservedly lost them. Australia was very lucky the swing did not go the other way. The commentary was in Turkish, so I will have to substitute my own. Dlr S 65 Q853 AQ KJ1092 J96 N 42 KJ93 S J1084 AQ84 AK AKQ 2C P 2D P 2NT P 3C P 3D P 3S P 4H P 4NT P 5C P 5S P 7H All pass I imagine that 3C was puppet Stayman, 3D showed no five-card major, 3S showed four hearts, 4NT was rkcb and 5C showed 1 or 4 key cards with hearts agreed. My only comment, to this point, is that South must be dead minimum for his 2NT rebid. Perhaps they open 2NT on points, a really dreadful range, 19 points is a one-bid. Opening 2NT with 19 points is a profligate waste of bidding space. To my taste, 19 points is the perfect upper limit for an opening bid of one of a suit in standard systems. Perhaps South

9 9 has, simply, decided that his hand is worth more than its face value of 22 points. North must have assumed the 5C response to show 4 key cards, and since he was looking at one, and the Q, he felt obliged to tell partner, by asking for kings, that all six key cards were held. (5D would ask for the Q.) South might have been much stronger for his 2NT bid. I cannot imagine what drove South to his 7H bid - what is his undisclosed value? Declarer got a not unfriendly trump lead, won in hand with the 7, although no lead should have made any difference. This terrible contract is stone cold. Declarer played one high trump and took, as he must do, the diamond finesse. He then cashed the A. At this point he is at the cross-roads. His choices are taking the spade finesse or playing for a 3-3 break in diamonds. The odds favour the former, although there are other factors, will the cross-ruff stand up? When declarer ruffed a third round of diamonds, his chances had evaporated. A potential huge gain became a huge loss. When both finesses work, declarer cashes the three top clubs and crossruffs, for thirteen tricks. Whatever the right line, Australia was lucky that Turkey did not choose the winning one. Two simple hands I would expect competent players to have no difficulty at all with these two hands. See how you go. K765 AQJ2 AQ3 K Q2 A654 AKJ The auction began 1C-1D; 2NT. I was loath to introduce spades now as I believe that to show 5-4. This is a good hand for modified Wolff, see QBA Bulletin Jan Over 3C, Wolff, opener bids 3D and partner can now show 4-card suits up the line. It is assumed the 2NT rebid denied four diamonds. We finished in 6C, slightly inferior to 6S, but better than 6NT. How do you play either contract on a heart lead? In hand one, my man s play was a little shortsighted. He cashed the A and crossed to dummy to finesse into a doubleton Q offside. Does he have to be clairvoyant to play for the drop? No. He plays the top two trumps and claims when the Q drops. If it does not he cashes all his major suit winners, hearts first. If the holder of the Q does not ruff he is thrown in with it to lead away, you hope, from his K or concede a ruff and discard. In 6S declarer draws trumps, finding them to be breaking, finishing in the West hand. He cashes AK. When the Q drops, he claims. If it does not, he discards two clubs on AQ. A club ruff establishes the twelfth trick. West can handle long clubs in the North hand as well. If the trumps turn out to be four one, declarer must rely on Q being onside. 4 AK AK2 J6 AKQ AQ654 3 P 2D 3H 5D 2C 2S 4NT 6H You win the diamond lead and play the A, noting the J on your right. Will you be applying restricted choice? It would be premature to draw trumps immediately, instead the top two spades are cashed and a spade ruffed in hand. North can overruff with his Q but that is his side s only trick. North s shape was Novice Co-ordinator MY name is Mick Fawcett, I am pleased to have been accepted by Queensland Bridge Association, and having the opportunity of fulfilling the role of a Novice co-ordinator. I regularly played card games as a child with my family; however, I only took up bridge at a serious level eight years ago when I had the beginners' lessons at QCBC. After a break for personal reasons I began playing regularly at Mount Tamborine in January 2010 and now play regularly at Sunnybank, QCBC and Toowong as well as Novice congresses at other clubs and the Gold Coast Congress. I am a Novice player myself and understand how difficult it is to start playing bridge from the initial lessons to everyday play and Novice level congresses, I understand that some players enjoy playing bridge at a social level, some more competitively and some enjoy both aspects of the game. Personally, I am the latter, for me it is always a thrill to win and I also enjoy having some social interaction with the opposition including learning about the game itself from playing against the more experienced players. As the Novice co-ordinator, I aim to provide support and build the confidence in the up and coming novice players currently in lessons, supervised play or club sessions and also includes the Novice congresses too. Most bridge clubs offer beginners and more advanced lessons; however, the biggest advancement of learning how to play bridge is by gaining actual play experience; however, this is a difficult area for Novices to progress. They are soon out-bid and out-played by more experienced players and therefore their advancement can become somewhat stifled. From here, some players lose confidence but I hope to provide support and encouragement in order to provide the freedom to play their system and learn from their mistakes and, therefore, achieve progression and more enjoyment from their game. Over the coming months I aim to talk to teachers and novice players in some of the bridge clubs, and if any Novice players have questions or concerns, ideas to put forward or need help with bridge at the Novice level please feel free to contact me. My address is novicecoordinator@qldbridge.com

10 10 Mixed Pairs Betty Lee IT had been a long time between drinks for Mike and me, in winning the Mixed-Up Pairs. So long in fact, that we had been heard to say that winning this event was like winning the lottery. I wish we could now claim that is an event of great skill, but really it seemed it was just a time when Lady Luck smiled on us. However Tom Landy and Mike may have had a hand in the outcome (excuse the pun). A couple of interesting Moysian fit hands happened during the weekend. The first is how best to play 4H on the following board? Dlr E K108 Vul Both AKJ AQ73 87 N QJ1076 S AQJ J2 Q62 AK9852 K5 1C 1D P P 1H 4H P 3H All pass On the lead of the 4, won by the ace, declarer leads a heart to their ace and leads a club. East wins the ace and exits with a diamond won by the king. Declarer cashes the K, draws trumps in 4 rounds and exits with a club to East s queen. East is end played in spades. If East does not take their A and lets the king win trick 3, declarer exits with the 5 to East's high clubs. If East plays their third club, declarer must ruff with the Q, play their other high hearts and exit with the 9 to the 10 to execute the endplay in spades. It would be nice to say this play was found at the table, but it was not and the result was one off. Board 30 had a good outcome for us. Dlr E A10742 Vul None AK10 N QJ32 K96 S QJ752 KQ87 A53 KQJ A J942 P 1S X 2S X P 4H All pass Not everyone opened the South hand and many EWs played in 3NT. Mike s making 4H was an absolute top for us. Going into the last round, we were in the lead. Board 27 did not go our way. Dlr S K106 Vul None AQJ109 AJ3 AK 983 AJ54 K87632 N K1087 S Q Q QJ983 P 2H X P 3C P 3NT All pass Ian Halford,West, opened a weak 2H. Mike doubled, I bid 3C and Mike, 3NT. Michelle Radke considered her lead options very carefully. Suspecting Mike had spades she led the 2. Mike held up to the 3rd round, gave up a heart and was surprised when Ian produced the 4th diamond. The contract was no longer makeable. As many declarers made 9 or more tricks in 3NT it was likely they received a club or spade lead. Luckily we had enough in reserve to hold onto our lead, despite Michelle s well thought out lead. Mike Robson FEW weeks ago Tom Landy gave A me an old book called Winning Pairs Technique by Eric Jannersten and reading it I discovered just how much I had forgotten about playing pairs as opposed to teams. I cannot say it won us the event but it certainly helped. Hand 18 session 4. (do you feel lucky) Dlr E 1072 Vul NS J10743 K Q64 AKJ985 N Q8 J97 S AKQJ AK9652 AQ532 2 East opened 1S, South bid 2S (hearts and a minor) and I bid 6C which concluded the auction. North led the K and South overtook with the ace and I played the J to try and confuse the issue. South now played the A and I claimed quickly. Some days you just get lucky. Mike and Betty celebrating their win I'd like a review of the bidding with all of the original inflections. George Kaufman

11 11 Hand 4 session 4 (don t get greedy) Dlr W Vul Both 8 J J1032 Reaching 4H by North was easy but East spoiled the party by leading the A and another which West ruffed and returned a club which was won in dummy. Worried about losing the heart finesse to East, who might then give West another ruff, I played the A and then returned to dummy to lead another heart in case West had started with KJxx. All was well when both opponents followed suit, but had I finessed the queen I would have gone down as East held Kx of hearts. Hand 21 Session 4 Dlr N 73 Vul NS 95 KQJ852 J85 KQJ A Q107 KQJ AQ9652 J7 A7 A10632 N K7 S Q96 Q AK5 K654 N Q86 S A643 A32 A652 KJ107 7 K964 I was North and following the principles of Tom s book I opened 3D which was passed round to West who doubled, and East left it in. East led a spade and I won in dummy and led a diamond to my king which held, so I led the queen noting the fall of the 10 and 9 which promoted my 8. Again this was ducked so I now played the jack which was also allowed to hold. I now made the obvious play of the 9 which lost to the A. West followed with 2 more rounds of spades the second of which I ruffed and finessed a heart followed by the K which dropped the queen leaving my 7 a boss so I cashed it throwing another club from hand. East ruffed with the A and cashed the A but I was home and hosed now. To defeat the contract East must win a diamond earlier and play a club, not an easy play to find. From my point of view I was extremely lucky with the lie of the cards and I agree with Betty that we got lucky with the cards all weekend. Manager's Travels Kim Ellaway WE look forward to the months after the Gold Coast Congress because we can play a lot of bridge due to our work load being decreased somewhat is a good year for me because I don t have to fly too far with driving to Mackay my condition. We went to Coolum in March and this was the first congress played in their new club rooms. Brisbane participants did not shine and we hit the storm on the way home - and I don t mean the football team. April saw us going to Tamworth where we were defending our title but only managed to come second. We had something to pick up in Canberra so I said that as we were half way there, we could put the trailer on and drive to the ABF Headquarters and pick up what we wanted. Boy, Canberra is a Our Major Sponsor long way away but due to the cargo we were carrying and the impending rainy weather, we could not afford to stay at a motel so we left at 5am from Canberra and arrived home only a little weary at 10pm. Thank you to Toowoomba for closing the range to one lane and thank you to Millmerran who had road works and increased our road trip an additional two hours. It did not help with him, hubby, saying it was quicker to fly. We then went to Caloundra and when the music stopped, we were in front - lucky us and thank you Cheryl and Claire. In the middle of all of this Mum (Marion Cooke for those who don t know and certainly on the wrong side of 70) went and played at Northern Suburbs and won the event - so well done Mum from a proud daughter. The Anzac Teams saw me playing with her and teaming up with Ray and Hari Baumanis - a lovely day and we will leave it at that. We played at Toowoomba and won every match however could only manage second. I cannot forget the Bridge for Brains as I have played in it every year - we got 64% nationwide and came 77th - some years this percentage has got us in top ten. We had a couple of days down at Surfers doing Gold Coast Congress business and played in the Saturday Teams event with our dear friends Bev and Gerald and had a fabulous time. Whilst writing this I am advising Ray on how to get the car ready as I am such an expert in this area. We leave next week to Mackay and on the way popping into Bundaberg for a game and a chat. Stores at Australia Fair, Browns Plains, Bundaberg, Cairns Central, Caloundra, Capalaba, Carindale, Chermside, Garden City, Helensvale, Hervey Bay, Indooroopilly, Ipswich, Logan Hyperdome, Mackay, Morayfield, North Lakes, Pacific Fair, Redbank Plaza, Robina, Rockhampton, Springfield, Strathpine, Sunshine Plaza, Toowoomba (Grand Central & Clifford Gardens), Townsville (Stocklands & Willows), Tweed City, Victoria Point, Wynnum. Head office: 41 Bulcock St, Caloundra 4551 Ph: Fax: admin@cosmeticsplus.com.au

12 12 It seems living in the South East Queensland at present one can find a game every weekend. A hand I found amusing. Dlr S Vul Both AK9872 Q92 K1097 J743 AQ1082 Q N A1053 S KJ A53 K965 J QJ Ray, South, opened the bidding with 2D which in our system only shows a weak major option. As I knew he had spades I bid 2H. East now came into the auction and bid 2S passed round to me. I reopened with a double which we play as pass or correct knowing Ray would pass. However, lo and behold he bid 3H so naturally we now got to the par spot of 4H. Lots and lots of bridge over the next few months, swatting for my co-pilots exam for a new plane as I have to fly to Alice Springs in September, and I want it put on notice I have been conned. I have only just found out that it is two planes to come home and we have to get off in Adelaide and then get on another plane. After the many drinks I have to get on the first plane, it takes me the plane trip to sober up - now what is going to happen? I am already having bad dreams about the trip. ANC Teams Day Richard Wallis KEEPING up the tradition of the last few years, all 4 Queensland teams to play in the Adelaide ANC in July, with very few absentees, turned up at QCBC on 25 May for an afternoon of bridge, information about the ANC, team jackets and hopefully helpful hints from experienced players, culminating in an informal dinner for those that could stay on after 5pm. Partners were also encouraged to come for dinner, but many were otherwise engaged. The afternoon started off with the QBA via Kim Ellaway presenting each team member with a list of useful rules by Kate McCallum (a top USA player who has been to the Gold Coast Congress a few times), and Ron Klinger (who needs no introduction). The rules contained very sound advice, and each player who masters them will go a long way towards being a better player. Bill Haughie (former NZ International, resident in Brisbane since 1988, and a member of many Australian Seniors' Teams since 2000) then gave the teams the benefit of his own experience and some more sound advice, aimed at keeping the partnership congenial and the mind and body alert. After this the bridge began in earnest, with the 6 teams (2 extra teams were made up from the third pairs) playing a 6-board match against every other team. 10 of the boards had been selected by Andy Hung with a special point, and these boards were included in a commentary prepared by Andy and presented to each player at the end of the afternoon. The remaining 20 boards were randomly dealt. Bill Haughie stayed throughout the afternoon and offered valuable advice at the matches he was able to watch, and then reviewed each of the 10 boards prepared by Andy during a general discussion forum before stopping for dinner. Each of the 10 boards contained a point of good technique, and 3 of the boards are presented for general interest. At the conclusion of the forum all players still present, and any partners able to attend, were treated to a dinner prepared by Therese to cater for most tastes, including a host of pizzas at the end. As Therese was playing all afternoon, Pele Rankin and Connie Schoutrop kindly offered to come in and get the dinner ready for the players at the end of proceedings. Bd 1 AJ10 Dlr N 9873 Vul None AQJ J N AK S 865 AK874 QJ962 KQ974 Q6542 K2 5 Wanted - An Editor for the ABDA Bulletin The Australian Bridge Directors Association is seeking an Editor for the quarterly ABDA Bulletin. The Bulletin is an electronic and hard copy members only publication of around 24 A4 pages covering matters of relevance and interest to Australasian (Zone 7) Bridge Directors. Non-members of ABDA may access to a previous sample version by ing abda@abf.com.au. A negotiated payment will be made for final copy of each Bulletin produced. Contact Officer: Sean Mullamphy, not@abf.com.au, phone +61(0) Applications close on Friday 17th May 2013, and should be ed to Sean at the above address, copy to abda@abf.com.au 1D P 1S P 1NT P 2C! P 2D P 3H P 4H All pass Board 1 was a relatively straightforward auction to 4H, using two-way check-back over the 1NT rebid. South only has 10 points, but the 5-5 major holding should provoke a game try with a jump to 3H and North is happy to accept. When dummy tracks, South can see problems after ruffing the second club if the hearts are not 2-2, so must plan accordingly.

13 13 If West has three honours, nothing can be done, so the play must concentrate on when East has three honours, and then it is 2 to 1 that West will have a singleton ace or king, so South must plan to play a heart off the dummy and duck! If this loses to the A or K, South enters the dummy again and leads another heart, this time playing the Q if East ducks again. Of course since West has the singleton J, this plan fails, and 4H will go 1 off on this line of play, but it is the best odds. The key to the hand is that with no other prospects for a 4th defensive trick, East must be prepared to duck smoothly when a trump is led from the table. This board was an exercise in using the bidding to your advantage. Bd 5 AQJ96 Dlr N K74 Vul NS 4 K A5 N QJ10962 KQ1073 S AJ6 Q86 AJ K S 2H P 3D P 3H P 4H All pass North opened 1S and EW inevitably got to 4H, to which South led the 5, won by North with the A who switched to the 4. Before playing to the second trick, is the time to take stock and examine the bidding, or lack thereof. South appears to have a spade honour, and 3-card support, but did not bid 2S, thus is not likely to have any points outside of spades, also there are only 16 points missing, and North must have them all except the K (If North had this card he would have played it at trick 1). There is a big danger that North can win the K and put South in with the K for a diamond ruff to defeat the contract, but East has a certain counter to this! Win the diamond switch on the table with the K, and take the club finesse, which is certain to win. Cash the A and return to the table with the A and lead the Q, discarding the 8 when North plays the K. Now the diamond ruff has been avoided and 10 tricks are made. Board 26 was a fine example of using the bidding to take all of your chances for the contract. Bd 26 AQ10 Dlr E QJ10853 Vul Both K74 A K K6 N 2 Q1063 S A952 J863 KQ952 J743 A974 J P P P 1H P 2H P 4H All pass After 3 passes North opens 1H and due to the fine shape and 6th heart, bids game after the simple raise by partner, to which East leads the K. If every card is well placed, there would be 12 tricks, but in a teams format, it is wise to plan for the times when every card is not well placed. As East appears to have at least 5 points in clubs and yet passed as dealer, they will not have all of the missing honours, and in fact if they have the A they are unlikely to have either major suit king. Lead the Q at trick 2, just in case East covers, but rise with the A and lead another heart. If West leads a spade, put in the 10, and if it loses, West will have the A. If West leads a diamond, play the K, and if this loses, West will certainly have the K, again 10 tricks! QBA Mailing List If you wish to be put on the mailing list for news which is sent out about once a month, please the manager. manager@qldbridge.com The Teams for the ANC WOMENS Paula McLeish (npc) Meta Goodman Maureen Jakes Lynley Jenkins Cecily Critchley Margaret Millar Carolyn Woolley SENIORS David McLeish (npc) Ian Afflick Paul Collins Tony Jackman Tony Hutton Richard Wallis Therese Tully OPEN Neville Francis (npc) Nathan van Jole Sanmugarasa Kamalarasa Peter Evans Rosie Green Peter Hainsworth Mike Pemberton YOUTH From the Manager's Desk Paul Brake (npc) Chris Larter Jessica Brake Angus Gray Russell Skennerton Anastasia Mulcahy Andrew Gosney Congratulations to Kenmore Bridge Club, Maryborough and Beenleigh Logan who were successful with Jupiters Application. Bridge for Brains - best Queensland Results - Spurway and Cummins from Sanctuary Cove - 7th Overall with %. I am told from one of my spies that a student from one of Arana's beginners classes students went out into the open field within the club and obtained 55.79% and won the night - perhaps a star in the making there. New Alert Regulations Later this year, the ABF will be introducing a change to their alerting regulations that involves "announcing". This requires your partner to announce basic information about your 1C and 1NT opening

14 14 bids. Specifically, when you open 1NT, your partner will need to state its range (e.g. "14-16"), and when you open 1C, your partner will need to state the minimum suit length if using a natural system (e.g. "3+ clubs") or the minimum HCPs if it's a strong or Precision 1C (e.g. "16+, strong"). The argument supporting this change is that opponents are inclined to ask about the bid then pass, possibly providing their partner with unauthorised information. Mandatory announcing will mean many of these questions won't be necessary, making for a much cleaner auction. Queensland will adopt these changes from the commencement date decided by the ABF, and your club will apply them at that time also. New VP Scale Later this year there will be the replacement of the 0-25 Victory Point Scale (as used in teams and Butler pairs) with a new scale. The new scale has two key differences: the range is 0 to 20, with a draw being 10/10 (as opposed to 15/15 in the old scale); and the scale is continuous so that every different number of imps converts to a different number of VPs, and as a consequence introduces decimal places. The second point is significant. Under the old system, with 8-board matches, winning a match by 2, 3, 4 or 5 IMPs resulted in a 16/14 score, which some would argue is unfair. The new scale has different VPs for each number of imps, so a 2 IMP win converts to 10.86/9.14 and a 3 IMP win equates to / 8.73 etc. Even a 1 IMP win gives the winner more VPs than the loser (10.44/9.56) whereas under the old scale both teams earned 15 VPs. (However, a 1 IMP win is still a draw for masterpointing purposes.) Queensland will adopt these changes from the commencement date decided by the ABF, and they will be applicable to QBA congresses after that date, though congresses will still be able to use the old VP scale until the end of the year. Youth Days - Thursday June 27th and Thursday July 4th at QCBC - see QBA website for more details. Club News Arana The Club Teams Championship was won by David Lehmann, John Nibbs, Lorraine Fredericks and Joan Mills. The Novice winners were Ross Shardlow, Beth O'Reilly, Sue Kennard and Bev O'Hara. Cairns In view of the closeness of the recent bridgemate ballot, the Committee has decided to treat the result as a draw and will show progressive travellers for each hand on alternate months. The travellers will be on view for the rest of May. This decision may be reviewed with experience. Gold Coast Thank you to sponsors Broadbeach Oasis Shopping Centre, Bernie Nightingale and Philip Roberts. Northern Suburbs The next series of Beginners' Classes CLEAN CRUISING SWISS PAIRS SUNDAY OCTOBER 13 Hosted by the QCBC and Sponsored by groups@cleancruising.com.au ENTRY FEE: $60 Per Pair - START: 9.30am DIRECTOR: Alan Gibson All enquires and entries to QCBC: qcbc1@optusnet.com.au Details on the website: will be FREE and will commence in mid July Special thanks to our sponsors Audiology Trio and K M Smith Funeral Directors. The members accepted the proposal to extend the current building. Darling Downs Congratulations to the Championship team winners Nick Willems, Sue Crooke, Pat Penberthy and Kath Weaver. Sunshine Coast Winners of the 2013 Club Pairs Championship - Joan McPheat and Reg Busch Townsville sadly reports the death of Andrew Wing Lun. 25 Years Ago Richard Ward THE City of Cairns was booked out over Easter as an enormous contingent of sportspersons converged for the North Queensland Games. Accommodation was at a premium and we found a delightful unit directly under the flight path towards Cairns airport which would have been great if you enjoyed watching large jets at close quarters! We missed the excitement over the road where Jo Wirth and Edith Howard were shot at through their motel room window whilst having an afternoon nap. The bullet hole in the glass was quite a talking point, and increased adrenalin flow is said to improve your bridge!! The Cairns Bridge Club was almost overflowing with players and in the 37 degree heat all the cards stuck together. 'How nice not to be directing', I thought as I watched Laurie Kelso, sweating profusely, charging around the room kicking over electric fans. Club Secretary, Ev Turner, quickly put any complainers from Townsville in

15 15 their place with the sharp retort, 'This heat isn't so bad. It was worse last week when it ralned all the time and anyway, it's even hotter in Townsville!' This hand was a comedy of errors and highlights one area of the 1987 Duplicate Bridge Laws. Also I am sure the Eastons will he grateful to me for showing it to the world. Dlr E QJ10 Vul None A43 AQ QJ K865 J962 N K107 K S 10 K9542 A9432 Q85 J4 A87 After two passes, Steve Easton (West) opened 1D a little light and as Clarice Suthers (North) and Beth Whebell (South) powered Into game. Steve's ever-trusting mother Pat began doubling various contracts. To add insult to Steve's self-inflicted injury, when Beth (in 4SX) led the Q from dummy, Pat found the unusual play of the CLUB king. Steve innocently inquired if she really had no spades, an infraction under the new laws since defenders may not ask each other if they have no more of a suit, and the Director was called. Laurie ruled that the correct card should be played but, to penalize the infraction, later adjusted the score to what It would have been had the revoke occurred. Not that it mattered much, 4SX was always a good score for North-South. This type of penalty was recently imposed on World Champions, Bobby Wolff and Bob Hamman of the USA. To quote from the US Bridge World magazine, " Hamman picked a bad time to revoke; before he could correct. Wolff, following the habit of a lifetime, inquired, 'No spades, partner?' The upshot was that one team was credited with making a non-vulnerable game on a deal which everyone else went two down." The results are printed elsewhere but the Swiss teams became a twohorse race between Townsville teams KEMPTHORNE and BOWDEN, the former finally hanging on to win from the latter. Our team was never in it, but we had some great encounters. Two nasty hands cropped up against Michael Suthers and Grace Jamieson of Townsville. Dlr W AK8732 Vul Both K4 J A N A108 KQ S A7643 K65 QJ9 QJ96 QJ9832 R Ward Suthers M Ward Jamieson P 1S 2D X 3C! 3S P 4S 5D P P 5S All pass East led a club and the defence managed the A and two ruffs for one off. That was 14 IMPs to us when 6DX went for 800 at the other table. Dlr N J3 Vul None AK72 AQJ8 K109 AKQ J4 N K762 S 854 J3 AQ Q R Ward Suthers M Ward Jamieson 1NT 2S* 3H 4C 4H P P 5C P P 5H X All pass * Transfer to clubs Well bid all round! NS can make 4H and EW can make 5C - 5S is a bit awkward on heart leads. As you can see, no-one is afraid to bid in the North. We lost to this team which went on to win the best Under State team. New Player Problem West leads the 7: two ace three. East returns the Q: king, ruffed with the 7. West switches to the 2: three jack ace. Plan the play. How would you play if West had switched to the 9? Solution: Klinger s Column Ron Klinger Dlr S AQJ6 Vul NS Q K N 102 Q1052 S J987 7 AQJ10 2 AKJ864 AK K863 1H P 1S P 3C P 4C P 4H All pass You have lost two tricks and are in danger of losing two more clubs. You can afford to lose one more trick, but not two. If you play a low spade to the queen and that loses, you would be two down. There is a better way. After taking the A, play the 2 to the ace and lead the Q. If East plays the king, you ruff, play the A and a heart to the queen, discard a club on the J and then draw trumps. If East plays low you discard a club on the Q. It does not matter if the Q happened to lose to the K with West. Your J would be a winner. Later you play the A and a heart to the queen, cash the J (hoping no one ruffs) to discard one club loser. Courtesy of ronklingerbridge.com

16 16 Caloundra Teams Youth Day at Surfers Paradise Winners: Kim Ellaway, Ray Ellaway, Cheryl Stone and Claire Green Mackay At the back (from left to right): Angus Gray, Isaac Tat, Angela de Marr, Margaret Pisko, Kaye Donaldson, Nathan Van Jole At the front (going round the table from left to right): Jack Luke-Paredi, William Welch, Harrison Gavin, Rylan Tonakie, Tom Gavin, Madison Eaton, Amy Luke-Paredi, Laura Bignell BBC Easter Teams Rene Hobbes THIS photo was taken on Rene's 100th birthday. She is a life member of the Mackay Bridge club. She participated in the foundation of the Dalby club and instrumental in the formation of the Mackay contract bridge club in She continued to play until well into her nineties when failing eyesight forced her to give up the game she loved. One of Rene's many successes was winning the Qld Womens pairs with Grey Reynolds in Many of her Mackay bridge club friends, together with her extended family, helped her celebrate her 100th Birthday on 11th March. Although frail she still has a sharp mind and still loves a good joke. Three generations of the Brake family came second in Grade B - Paul, Jessica and Wal Brisbane Bridge Centre 104 Frederick St, Annerley. Ph: bbridgecentre@bigpond.com - Play Sessions Tuesday 9.30 am Duplicate 7.30 pm Duplicate Wednesday am Duplicate Saturday 1.00 pm Duplicate Coaching Sessions & Monday 9.30 am Beginners Classes Tuesday 7.30 pm Friday am Enquiries for coaching & beginners classes:

17 17 Gold Coast Club Directors' Course Participants with Margaret Pisko and Neil Raward (front row 4th and 5th from left) THE Gold Coast Bridge Club has been conducting a Club Director s course to enable people who would like to become Club Directors to better prepare themselves for the examinations which must be undertaken to obtain QBA accreditation as Club Directors. This is the 4th time that the club has conducted such a course. These highly successful courses have had a high rate of success with many of the attendees becoming qualified as Club Directors. A class room environment provides students with a better understanding of the complexities of bridge laws and Surfers Paradise Teams movements as previous experience has shown the difficulties of people passing the examinations if they are studying on their own. The 12-week course commenced on March 18 and the syllabus provides for 8 two hour sessions of movement and law lectures followed by revision sessions leading up to the exam which will be on Saturday June 22. This year, a record number of attendees (15) have been attending the course on a regular basis, with 8 members from the Gold Coast Bridge Club together with members from the Surfers Paradise, Broadwater, Mudgeeraba, Mount Tamborine and Tweed Heads bridge clubs. Success in these exams will provide these clubs with a larger pool of directors which in some cases is badly needed. Attendance at the recent one day seminar conducted at the QCBC by Jan Peach also provided further valuable assistance to our course attendees. Neil Raward and Margaret Pisko have been conducting the course and it is hoped that the previous high success rate will once again prevail with this course. If any club would like to conduct such a course in the future please contact Neil Raward at neil.raward@ bigpond.com for further details of the syllabus and course content. Neil Raward The winners of the "C" section: Pam Lorne-Tait, Judith Davis, Paula Bloor and Jennifer Sawyer with Dr. Frank Howes of Vision Eye Institute (sponsors of the event) situated in Southport, Varsity Lakes, Coolangatta and Brisbane. "Rummy" versus Bridge Though the game of bridge retains its popularity amoung the older people, there is a distinct reaction among the younger and livelier folk in favour of "rummy", which provides more opportunity for high spirits. It is becoming quite the vogue in Brisbane now to issue invitation to girls and young men for a "rummy party". It is not likely that the two games will ever be played much at any one gathering, as bridge players complain that it is impossible for them to concentrate when the more noisy game is going on anywhere in the vicinity. Cairns Post January

18 18 Gympie Teams Category A winners: Kendall Early, Geoff Hart, Tim Ridley and David Harris with President Bill Thorne (centre) Coolum Teams Winners: Anne Young, Therese Matthews, Adrienne Kelly and Trish Norris QCBC Anzac Teams Winners: Agnes Kempthorne, Richard Ward, Barry Kempthorne and Lindy Vincent A VERY successful congress directed by Peter Busch was held on 20/21 April attracting a capacity crowd of 96 players in the Pairs on Saturday and the same number in the Teams on Sunday. Sponsor for the event was Wide Bay Australia. Club members as usual provided delicious home made goodies for morning tea and the breaks between rounds. A lovely sandwich lunch and drinks and nibbles following play ensured that tummies were kept full even if bridge expectations weren't. Goondoowindi I GUESS bridge has always been associated with longevity and that bridge clubs everywhere can boast of players who've been at the tables for up to 60 years. Goondiwindi Bridge Club is no exception and, at present, can claim ownership of one member who is in her 96th year, three who will turn 90 this year and another aged 87. All, except one, are still at the tables once or twice a week and, whether it's because of the wiliness that comes with experience or the fact that their wits have never dulled, they can still tame the boards better than most. Flora Henderson, who turns 90 this year and now resides at Goondiwindi's KALOMA, was a Foundation Member of the Club and has since been made a Life Member. She has been teacher, scorer and was, for many years, the only director. In fact, it would be fair to say that bridge has been Flora's life and many present Club members will claim her as their mentor. Although no longer an active member of the Club, she still loves to keep in touch. Another Foundation Member who will turn 90 in July is Jack Sheinberg. He is one of only two members who have been playing continuously since the Goondiwindi Bridge Club started in Jack is a Past President of the Club and has won the local championships one more time than anyone else. He has claimed top honours at congresses in Moree, Inverell, Glen Innes, Dalby and Tarnworth and has qualified for the final tables of the Gold Coast Bridge Congress. He is usually partnered by wife, Diana, and they are a formidable combination who feature in the placings most weeks.

19 19 The other soon to be 90 years old is Elisabeth Holcombe. Elisabeth has been playing bridge for nearly sixty years, having been introduced to it by her bridge keen father-in-law soon after her marriage. She first played at Goondiwindi Bridge Club with her sister-in-law, Ruth McColI, and, after an absence of quite a few years, has now become a regular again. Dubbed by some as "Queen of the Finesse", she has lost none of her competitiveness and enjoys her Thursday battles. In any context, Philippa Day's story is an amazing one. The spritely nearly 96 year old became interested in bridge while living in Fiji in the early 1950s. Philippa learnt the basics of rubber bridge from a friend and neighbour and initially played quite often with a woman who dressed as a gypsy, liked to play for money and never lost a game. Eventually Philippa joined a group of well-heeled socialites who fortunately had no need to profit from the experience. When she and her husband, Geoff, returned to Australia and settled in Sydney, Philippa was introduced to Duplicate Bridge for the first time and played regularly at her local Bowls Club. She now lives in Goondiwindi near her daughter and has been a great encourager and confidence builder for many nervous new players. Weekly bridge sessions at her home with a group of these proteges have been a feature for many years. And, yes, she still plays at the Club once a week and is teased mercilously when she is escorted to her seat each time by a different young man. After all these nonogenarians, Dalva Brown, aged only 87, is positively a spring chicken. Dalva played solo in Victoria before coming to Goondiwindi and learning bridge when she was seventy. "It was the best decision I ever made", she said "and I have found it to be a most rewarding form of entertainment - both socially and mentally". It would have been an effortless transition for Dalva. Blessed with a great card sense, she is also a canny business woman who was Treasurer of our Club for many years. Goondiwindi Bridge Club salutes you all. Libby Bailey Coming Events Jul 6 Mackay Pairs Jul 7 Lockyer Swiss Pairs Jul 7 Noosa Teams Jul 7-18 Australian National Championships - Adelaide Jul Bundaberg Butler Pairs and Teams Jul 14 Redlands Novice Pairs Jul 14 Stanthorpe Inaugural Congress Jul Cairns Show Congress Jul Moreton Bribie Pairs and Teams Jul 21 Darling Downs Swiss Pairs Jul Maryborough Butler Pairs and Teams Jul 27 Mackay Novice Pairs Jul Surfers Paradise Butler Pairs & Teams Jul 28 BBC Graded Teams Aug 3-4 Proserpine Teams Aug 4 Sunnybank Teams Aug 4 Sunshine Coast Teams Aug 4 Toowoomba Novice Teams Aug QBA Butler Pairs - QCBC Aug Coffs Harbour Bridge Super Congress Aug Tully Pairs Aug 17 Novice Pairs - QBA - Hervey Bay Aug 18 Warwick Spring Butler Pairs Aug QBA Open Teams - Toowong Aug 25 Cairns Novice Pairs Aug 25 Noosa Novice Pairs Aug 30 QBA Mixed Teams - QCBC - Round 1 Aug 31-Sep 1 Yeppoon Congress Sep 1 QBA Graded Pairs - QCBC Sep 4-8 Territory Gold Alice Springs Sep 7-8 Surfers Paradise Swiss Pairs and Teams Sep 8 Caloundra Butler Pairs Sep 13 QBA Mixed Teams - QCBC - Round 2 Sep Mackay Barometer Pairs Sep 15 Noosa Teams Sep 20 QBA Mixed Teams - QCBC - Round 3 Sep Dalby Pairs and Swiss Teams Sep 22 Sunshine Coast Graded Pairs Sep 26 QBA Council Meeting Sep 28 Caloundra Novice Pairs Sep 29 Cairns Pairs Sep 29 Darling Downs Novice Pairs Sep 29 Redlands Graded Pairs Oct 4-7 Townsville Congress Oct 5-7 Toowoomba Pairs and Teams

20 20 Directors' Corner TIME wasting and frustration may be avoided if we all put our obligations under the laws ahead of our urge to write down the opening lead and/or contract before we forget it and/or pound the buttons of the scoring unit. No wonder so many 1s don t work. Law 41A: After a bid, double or redouble has been followed by three passes in rotation, the defender on presumed declarer s left makes the opening lead face down. Law 41C: Following this Clarification Period, the opening lead is faced, the play period begins irrevocably, and dummy s hand is spread. The laws set out the correct procedure. Please consider not making others wait for you. The time to apply Law 57A is when a defender has made a premature play to the current trick before his partner has had his legal turn or has made a premature lead to the next trick before his partner has played to the current trick. 57A applies when a trick is in progress. The card so led or played becomes a major penalty card and declarer may choose from a number of options. He may require offender s partner to play the highest card he holds of the suit led (to the current trick) or require offender s partner to play the lowest card he holds of the suit led or forbid offender s partner to play a card of another suit specified by declarer. The director applies Law 53A (not 57A) when it is the right time for a lead (because the previous trick has been completed) but the wrong player faces a card. Getting back to declarer s 57A options, when offender s partner is unable to comply with the rectification selected by declarer he may play any card. This is the same sentiment as expressed in the more general Law 59: A player may play any otherwise legal card if he is unable to lead or play as required to comply with a rectification, whether because he holds no card of the required suit, or because he has only cards of a suit he is prohibited from leading, or because he is obliged to follow suit. Declarer does not get a second choice from the remaining options if his initial choice is wasted because the defender cannot comply nor does the director inform declarer that one or more of the options cannot be fulfilled prior to declarer s choosing. A premature play (not a lead) by declarer from either hand is a played card and may not be withdrawn. There are two little laws that don t get much attention. 13E Placement or Movement of Card: When under this Law the Director requires play to continue, knowledge of the placement or movement of a card by the Director is unauthorized information for the partner of a player whose hand contained an incorrect number of cards and 14C Information from Replacement of a Card: Knowledge of the replacement of a card is unauthorized for the partner of a player whose hand contained an incorrect number of cards. Suppose an auction has started when a player s hand is found to hold 12 or 14 cards. If play continues after the hand is made correct, his partner is not entitled to know that the player is now calling or playing with one more or one less card than before. If the player starts bidding more enthusiastically partner may not think, Ah, perhaps he has gained an ace. Queries about the laws and regulations may be ed to janpeach8@ bigpond.com and by all means phone if the matter is urgent. Jan Peach QBA Accreditation QBA manager@ qldbridge.com Phone: Mobile: Fax: Web site: QLD BUTLER PAIRS Saturday & Sunday August 10 & 11 Incorporating the QBA Open Butler Pairs, the QBA Women's Pairs & the QBA Men's Pairs DIRECTOR: Alan Gibson ENTRY FEE: $120 per pair FORMAT: Average Butler Scoring QLD MIXED TEAMS Friday August 30 Friday September 13 Friday September 20 DIRECTOR: Alan Gibson START: 7.30pm FORMAT: Round Robin or Swiss Movement over 3 sessions. LINE UPS: Both genders must be represented in a team s line up at all times. QLD GRADED PAIRS Sunday September 1 DIRECTOR: ENTRY FEE: GRADE 1: GRADE 2: GRADE 3: Alan Gibson $60 per pair OPEN mp 0 149mp All enquires and entries to QCBC: qcbc1@optusnet. com.au Details on the website: D E A D SEPT 9 (noon) Contributions to: 33 Royal Pde Ashgrove 4060 Ph: psquire@acenet.net.au L I N E