Dubious Logic

Old and Rare

Easter, a few days off and what better than to spend an hour or several browsing in the bookshops of Suffolk's small towns and villages? Somewhere at the back of the shop there will be a case of golf, cricket, fishing, chess and bridge, with a dozen or so of the last if you are lucky. Should these forgotten titles concern the modern player? Well yes, I think they might. The display will usually separate into recognisable categories.

Beginner's books: these are generally best avoided – not because you're past all that now but even to entice a friend or family member, you'll find that the approach used twenty or thirty years ago is slow and, well, slightly patronising by modern standards.

Bidding: perhaps even worse and the main bridge related reason for avoiding the category above. Contemporary thinking about the auction has moved on dramatically since the 1960's and 70's from whence such usually hail. From a random pick:

• AQ9
• 765
• K6
• KJ1065

Partner opens one spade, you bid two clubs and hear a two heart rebid – what do you call? Well, one concern that the modern player will not have is whether opener has promised five spades or not – today that is absolutely certain. Better approaches to bidding balanced hands and 4-4-4-1 shapes have eradicated this worry. The suggested action of three spades (allowing conversion to 3NT if partner were 4-4 in the majors) would find few if any supporters today.

Card play: here are the gems. I picked up, A shortcut to Winning Bridge by Alfred Sheinwold (1961), a collection of newspaper articles and 100 hands. Just the thing for nightly pre-retirement study, or perhaps, if you find yourself setting hands for students, a source for that. Single dummy play and 'sure tricks' problems haven't changed over the years either - those by Eric Milnes, Robert Darvas and Paul Lukacs are classics.

All rounders: here the great English authors such as Reese, Flint, Kelsey, Harrison-Gray, etc. never disappoint; even the bidding seems more sense than system. I picked up Tournament Bridge for Everyone by Ewart Kempson and Albert Benjamin (1963). This includes advice for captains in team-of-four matches and tips on coaching and training – perhaps it was ahead of its time. Curiously, American books seem to have lasted rather well, perhaps because the decision to publish over here was easier if they were truly general in the first place.

Two things that will distinguish the books of yesteryear from those of today; the layout and the analysis. Some quite good works are ruined by their presentation – or lack of it. These days the level of checking in publications seems much tighter, maybe as a result of computer assistance. This deal is given by Kempson and Benjamin in the middle of a colourful chapter following the fortunes of a pair at matchpoint. Should they shoot for a top with 7NT?

West leads the club nine, 'top of nothing' and South goes on to develop a double squeeze; only East can now guard clubs and West spades, neither can cover diamonds. The authors decry the lead and claim with a small club, declarer would fail. I leave it as an exercise for you to prove them wrong. Answer at http://www.dubiouslogic.com/bridge/eadt/2007/Apr14.doc.htm

Answer. South has twelve immediate tricks and will garner one more when he plays off the hearts. On any lead, cash the ace of each suit and all the hearts except one to reach this position:

East still guards both minors but West, who has sole responsibility for spades, has an extra card in the diagram above. Whichever minor he reduces to a singleton, South takes the king of that suit and then (returning to hand with a spade if necessary) the last heart. The club case is effectively considered by the authors (though relying on dummy's five-spot to threaten East), so let us look at South throwing a diamond:

In fact there are many roads home here. Declarer could have played the last heart before the ♦K and now can resolve the spades by king then queen. But, come what may, West will have to pitch a club on the last heart and, when dummy's long spade is discarded, East again will find the pressure of holding both minors too much.

This general situation, where declarer has a threat over one defender (here spades) and menaces in two more suits, gives rise to a compound squeeze if there are sufficient entries to isolate the menaces. Typically, the first squeeze operates on the penultimate free winner (here hearts), declarer then cashes up the suit the defender relinquishes, and then goes back to his free suit for the finish.

Published Saturday 14.Apr.2007