Ann Kuperberg
There’s still traffic on the roads, even though the snowbirds and vacationers are gone. Tough Tucsonans stick it out in the heat. We’re not wimps!
The MountainView Duplicate Bridge game continues, but we may miss the second Tuesday of the month. Check our website to be sure there’s a game in the Catalina Room at 1 p.m. on other Tuesdays.
If you need a partner or further information, contact JoAnn Aiken at [email protected] or phone 520-256-2702. Our website is www.bridgewebs.com/mountainview.
Karen Walker gave suggestions on hand evaluation. She said we should not become too dependent on arithmetic. Rather, be cautious when counting length or shortness before finding a trump fit. She also said, “Don’t try to assign a point value to a freak hand. If you’re dealt an 8-card suit, base your decision on playing tricks, not length or shortness points.”
Walker also advised not to use the Law of Total Tricks all the time. You can bid to the trick level that equals the number of trump. It’s also wise to check vulnerability.
One other bit of advice from Walker is to see how your honors are distributed. They’re more valuable when they’re in your long suit.
Another contributor to “Bridge Bulletin,” Robert S. Todd, wrote about returning partner’s lead. “When you play to trick 1, you often give partner a lot of information about the location of honors in your hand 7 declarer’s.” Todd said you should give “return count.” Return a high card from an even number and low from an odd number of cards remaining. However, when we have a sequence, we should return the top of that sequence. An example: AJ103. Play the Ace, then the Jack. If you’ve discarded a card from that suit, use the remaining count when you return it.
There’s so much to remember, but worth the effort.
Great bridge players are focused and watch cards by partner and opponents.