The Mysterious Multi - Horton & van Cleeff

I remain doubtful that the end of the printed word is upon us but the ability to read on screen is certainly changing our lives. One small advance is that it is now cheap and easy to send out review copies of new books. The Canadian publisher Master Point Press has done exactly that and several of their titles arrived via email. They cover a wide spectrum; some are aimed at beginners and improvers, some are reprinted (and revised) classics, others targeted at advanced players and experts.

Despite being an overseas publisher, MPP have a strong British slant. There is a Acol introduction, The Pocket Guide to Acol Bridge by Mark Horton and Barbara Seagram and The Mysterious Multi subtitled, How to Play it, How to Play Against it by Mark Horton and Jan van Cleeff.

The second book's authors nicely represent the early history of two level artificial bids as pre-emptive devices. Horton is British, where the Multicoloured Two Diamonds was first seen – Terence Reese petitioned the English Bridge Union unsuccessfully to play it in 1970 – and van Cleeff is Dutch, the main extenders to other two-level openings. The Mysterious Multi covers these bids too as it moves from common treatments to the more difficult and perhaps, less attractive to club players.

The 'Multi' occupies a strange place in our game. It is an awkward artificial opening that is almost unfair to use against less-experienced players. Yet it is extremely popular even at club level and enjoys great leniency in regulation. So even if you don't want to play the Multi, you will certainly have to defend against it.

The Mysterious Multi covers a lot of ground for both proponents and defenders. I can easily imagine using the early treatments and returning to later pages to modify and extend. Alternative suggestions, simple and complex, are given to developing the auction and there is sound advice on how to establish definitions within the partnership. That you develop these methods as a pair is essential and agreeing to play "as page 26" is a fine start. Shallow agreements in natural methods are dangerous let alone in complicated ones; if you think you can play these with minimal discussion, you will only duplicate the errors of the past:

  • Q9852
  • 8754
  • A8
  • A7
N
W
E
S
  • AK107
  • AQ103
  • K1072
  • K
West
North
East
South
Reese
 
Flint
 
Pass
Pass
2*
Pass
2NT*
Pass
3
Pass
4
End

All the book examples are taken from actual play and attributed throughout – something I find reassuring. Here, back in 1970, Flint simply forgot his methods and made (I guess) the response he would have made over two hearts. When his passed partner actually made a forward-going enquiry despite having passed, he described a minimum weak-two in spades.

The Mysterious Multi is a good read in its own right and a useful recipe book for methods. It is suitable for club players interested in bidding systems and anyone interested in developing a partnership for tournament play.

Published Saturday 6.Mar.2010