Dubious Logic

Suffolk at the Pachabo

I wrote last week about the tournament for winners of each county association's club competition. Last weekend the Pachabo Cup was contested for winners of each county's championship teams competition. What then the difference? Well, in practice, most players form themselves into teams that do not have special club or geographic allegiance. In fact, at the World Championships that have just started in Verona, this has been recognised to the ultimate extent in that, for the first time, all events are transnational – permitting team and pair members of mixed nationality.

The domestic game parallels this; most competitions are independent of county membership but a few are closed and at this time of year, the winners of those are pitted against each other at national events. Suffolk didn't have a great time at the Pachabo; the winners of the county championship, Maria Allnutt / Debby Sutcliffe, Peter Gemmell / Peter Sutcliffe finished below half-way but found a few crumbs of comfort – they defeated the runaway winners, Kent, and placed above local rivals, Norfolk, Northants and Cambs & Hunts. Here is a deal from the match against Kent:

They might beat you at the local club by leading ace and another club but that doesn't figure to work in the long run and East started with the diamond eight. West won and switched to a heart and declarer began trumps; East ducking once then winning and playing a third round. It all came down to the club suit. My reporter is a little sketchy but whether Peter Sutcliffe divined the relative lengths of the suits (an uncertain discard on the third trump perhaps) he now got the suit right by playing low to the queen and ducking on the way back – his opposite number in the same contract did not, finessing the ten on the first round. If you first play through the shortage, you'll always have an edge.

The world championships can be followed on the Internet at http://www.worldbridge.org/tourn/Verona.06/Verona.htm and there will be live coverage of the later stages through Swan Games at http://www.swangames.com/main/Bridgecast/Rama/Verona_2006/verona_2006.html

Published Saturday 17.Jun.2006