The Magazine for Social and Duplicate Bridge Players | September-October 2020
in this issue
1 Editorial by Audrey Grant
2 Play of the Hand by David Lindop
4 Master Solvers ’ Club A Feature from The Bridge World
5 Look-Alikes by Audrey Grant
6 Point of View
8 Defenders ’ Corner by Audrey Grant
10 Come to the Party by Audrey Grant
12 The Real Deal by Larry Cohen
14 Bridge Maxims : Truth or Fantasy ? by David Lindop
16 Modern Bidding by Oren Kriegel
18 The Play ' s the Thing
19 Quizzical Pursuits
& Bidding Quiz
20 Quizzical Pursuits
& Bidding Quiz Answers
EDITOR Audrey Grant | TECHNICAL EDITOR David Lindop | CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Larry Cohen , Oren Kriegel , Shawn Quinn , Andrew Robson , Robert Todd , and Rhoda Walsh . AUDREY GRANT ’ S BETTER BRIDGE IS PUBLISHED SIX TIMES A YEAR BY BARON BARCLAY BRIDGE SUPPLY , 3600 CHAMBERLAIN LANE SUITE 206 , LOUISVILLE , KY 40241 USA . NO PART OF THIS MAGAZINE MAY BE COPIED OR REPRINTED WITHOUT WRITTEN CONSENT OF BARON BARCLAY . TO SUBSCRIBE : CALL 1-800-274-2221 OR EMAIL : SUPPORT @ BARONBARCLAY . COM . SUBSCRIPTION IS $ 35 USD PER YEAR OR $ 60 FOR TWO YEARS . COPYRIGHT © 07 2020 . PRINTED IN THE USA . VOL 25 NO 5 ISSUE 152 .
“ Zen stone gardens seem very simple ; just a few stones and raked gravel . But , if we take the time , the more we explore and sit with them , watching the light change , the more we see how all the elements are constantly changing , altering the infinite net of their relationships . There is always something new .” John Loori , The Zen of Creativity .
D . T . Suzuki , in the same book , describes his filming of a silo . He explains how he photographed it through the seasons , at different times of the day , every day for almost two years . The slide sequence of the images showed , he explains , the many hidden faces of the silo , aspects that would not be easily apparent to the casual observer . He writes : Isn ’ t this what art is about , bringing to light new and different aspects of ordinary , everyday objects ?
Playing online offers an opportunity to experience simple aspects of the game in a different light , even between experienced players . It ’ s the limitless possibilities and the curious , blameless , nature of discussions that keep us engaged .
In this issue , we bring to light some seemingly ordinary concepts . David Lindop takes a closer look at why 4-4 fits are so valuable , even when the defenders ’ cards are divided 4-1 . Standard bidding methods are designed to get us to 4-4 fits in the major suits and David takes a look at why this is such a good idea .
Second Hand Low is a familiar maxim for defenders . But there ’ s another perspective to it . David shows us how to use it from declarer ’ s point of view .
It ’ s easy to overlook the contribution of the ten simply because it ’ s not even given a single point ! It can be an entry , it can be a signal , it can take a trick . Defenders ’ Corner looks at why the ten really deserves our attention .
2 / 1 Game Force has been highly acclaimed , and for many players , it seems this system should even be ‘ taught ’ to absolute beginners . How did this adjustment to Standard methods come about ? Who invented 2 / 1 Game Force ? The answer might surprise you . See Come to the Party .
Point of View shows that sometimes experts agree on what to overcall . When it comes to choices of the overcaller ’ s partner , the advancer , there is a lot of room for individual opinion . That ’ s the delightful thing about the game : you own it and you can give your opinion .
The quality of bridge information is important . Oren Kriegel ’ s opinions are respected by the finest players in the world . In this issue , he shares with us his thoughts on New Minor Forcing .
Thank you for being part of Better Bridge . I look forward to meeting you at one of our online seminars which we ’ re launching this Fall .
Best Wishes , Audrey Grant and the Better Bridge Team
BetterBridge . com
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