Triumph and Disaster

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
Rudyard Kipling

The final session of the match between BBO and Lavazza was a source of both pleasure and pain – depending on where you were sitting.



Keeping things simple the Lavazza team are all employing the World Bridge Federations Standard Card:

South led a club and declarer took North’s queen with the ace, crossed to dummy with a heart, ruffed a diamond, went back to dummy with a heart and ruffed another diamond. She went to dummy for a third time with a spade, drew the outstanding trump and claimed, +1430.


West intended his 4{ to be a cue bid agreeing hearts, but revealed that this was un discussed. It appeared to the commentators that there was some danger of 7] being reached, a contract that could not be made on this layout, but when East eventually selected 6NT it became clear that the message that 4{ had intended to convey had not been received.

Declarer won the lead of the jack of spades with dummy’s king, played a heart to the king and a club to the jack and king. He won the return and played a second club, settling for one off – no doubt hoping that there might have been an accident in the other room.

It cost BBO 17 IMPs.


Double Three card support, non-minimum or strong hand

When South led a spade declarer had no hope and was soon one down,


South led the three of spades and declarer won with the ace, played a diamond to the ace, and played a heart to the king. South won with the ace and returned the nine of hearts. Declarer can still get home from here, but short of time she allowed North to get in with the king of clubs and he returned a heart for South to ruff.

One winning line is to run the eight of clubs at trick two. Say North wins with the king and returns a spade. Declarer ruffs in dummy, draws trumps, runs the jack of clubs, eventually pitching a spade on the fourth club and gives up a heart.