BRIDGE News:

In Monday’s game, Jack Stafuric and Sam Borkowsky were 1st in Flights A, B and C.  Martin Cooper and Jerry Fleming were 2nd in Flights A and B.  Steve Kemic and Jennifer Young were 3rd in Flight A.   Earle Marie Hanson and John Ruminer were 4th in Flight A and 3rd in Flight B.  Bobby Haynes and Tom Alexander were 2nd in Flight C.

In Wednesday’s game, Cliff Rudy and Jerry Fleming were 1st in Flight A.  Steve Kemic and Jennifer Young were 2nd in Flight A.  Linda Lambert and Harry Dewey were 3rd in Flight A, and 1st in Flights B and C.  Randy Baker and John Ruminer were 2nd in Flight B, and Martin Cooper and Sam Borkowsky were 2nd in Flight C.

We welcome Tom Alexander, who played in one of our games for the ffirst time on April 13! The last two articles dealt with long suits utilized in defense.  This time, let’s look at a situation where a player holding a very long, strong suit hopes To steer his/her partnership to a playable contract rather than disrupt the opponents.

This is Board #13 from our April 15 game.  North is the dealer, and both sides are vulnerable.

Some Norths might open 4♦ , hoping to disrupt the opponents, as we saw in the earlier columns.  But North probably has 8 tricks if diamonds are trumps.  So why not involve partner to determine if this is our hand?  An opening bid of 1♦ will allow the partnership to share considerable information if this is their hand.  Assuming that happens, South should bid 2♣, which is game forcing in many modern partnerships.  After North rebids 2♦, South can now show good spades by bidding 2♠.  At this point, North’s best bid is probably 4NT Blackwood, asking how many aces partner holds, after which South will show two Aces. At this point, a 6♦ bid is certainly reasonable.

When this hand was played locally, one pair played in 6♦/N making 7 (the opponents didn’t lead a heart!), one pair played in 5♦/N making 6, and one pair played in 3NT/S down 3 (Oops!!!).

Hello, fellow “game enthusiast”.  Are you interested in a game that will test both your mental acuity and your communication skills as you and a partner enter the field of intellectual combat? Then perhaps you’ve seen the historical card game “Bridge“ mentioned in a book or seen it being played in an old black-and-white movie on the Orient Express or by Gloria Swanson in “Sunset Boulevard.”  Bridge is not a game of the past, though, but is still played worldwide and by millions of Americans at least once a week, in venues ranging from competitive in-person tournaments with hundreds of players to casual play at home or on the internet.

Interested in Learning how to, RESUMING or playing Beginner Bridge? Contact Neill Goltz—641.236.1170, neill.goltz2@gmail.com—for further info, schedule, location confirmation, or any other questions!  The Los Alamos Duplicate Bridge Club games are held at the Betty Ehart Senior Activity Center (BESAC) at 12:45 p.m., Wednesdays, and at the White Rock Senior Activity Center (WRSAC) at 12:45 p.m., Mondays. We will continue to meet regularly on Saturday mornings from 10 a.m. to noon at the Mesa Top game store (next to Booomerang) on Central here in Los Alamos.

Here in Los Alamos and White Rock, our local club is ready to bring you on board with nighttime, after work or weekend FREE lessons and playing opportunities with other newcomers, resumers, and beginners.