Tollemache on RealBridge

The Tollemache qualifier was rather different this year - played on RealBridge and with an all-play-all format rather than four groups.

After a trial session where it took over an hour to play six boards, I had worried that the EBU might be a bit ambitious in running a fairly complicated event on a newish software platform, but my experience was entirely positive. There were a few minor problems with players losing connection, but the software seemed to work perfectly and the event ran almost exactly to the schedule.

I find that the ability to see and hear the other players – and team-mates between rounds - is a huge plus for RealBridge over BBO. It’s much closer to face-to-face bridge and less like a computer game. The Tollemache used the 'screen' mode which tries to mimic the diagonal screens that have been used in major international competitions for many years.  You alert your own bids (as in BBO) and can only see and hear one opponent during play. This was my first experience with screens (real or virtual) and I found that this made for a very sociable game, with plenty of good natured chat between screen mates.

Although Dorset finished in the nether regions of the table, it was a very enjoyable weekend. When (if?) life returns to normal, I wonder whether events like this will still be played online. There is certainly an advantage in being able to play a national event without needing a 300 mile round trip and an overnight hotel stay, though I did miss the chance to go over the hands in the bar after play.

Here are a couple of hands that might be of interest. First, a simple but effective play by my partner that helped declarer to go wrong.

Most auctions led to 3NT by North but our opponents managed to right-side the contract after a strong club sequence and I led a low club to the ten and jack. Maybe declarer should work on hearts now but he began with a spade to the ten and queen. Declarer took the club return and played the queen of hearts which Ann ducked. If he had continued with the king of hearts there would have been no defence, but when he played a low heart I could win the jack and clear my club trick. Now when Ann won the ace of hearts I made two more tricks with the ace of spades and a club.

That was a clear error by declarer, for if I had held the ace of hearts and Ann the jack, I would have taken the first round of hearts and played a club, but these things are always much easier to see in the post mortem than at the time. In any case, if Ann had taken the ace of hearts on the first round declarer would have had an easy ride. 

Now for a bidding problem that we failed to solve, along with over two-thirds of the field.  

It is an easy grand, though you need some gadgetry to be able to bid it with confidence. Exclusion Blackwood would make this hand a doddle.  It is a jump to a new suit above game level, showing a void and asking for key cards outside of the void suit, using the same step responses as Key Card Blackwood. Then we could bid

1♠  -  2NT (game forcing with 4+ spades)

3♠  (extra values with 6+ spades) -  5♦ (exclusion)

6♣  (2 key cards outside diamonds and the trump queen) - 7♠

Simples. I must persuade partner to add Exclusion Blackwood to our armoury, and hope that we remember it when it next comes up in 2023.

Tollemache 2019

In the Tollemache qualifier Dorset ended in sixth place out of nine. Although this was the same position as last year, we had a much better VP total (70 rather than 53, with 80 average) and avoided any very large losses. More importantly, we managed to just finish above local rivals Somerset.

Ann and I finished just above half way in the cross-IMP table, our performance spoiled by a couple of slam accidents and my letting Gunnar Hallberg make a ridiculous 3NT where the details are too embarrassing to relate. We had a particularly hard time against Suffolk, although this hand was a rare piece of good news.

South's 3♦ was explained as a fit-jump - diamonds and clubs. The contract is easy on a heart lead but fortunately I chose to start with the ace of spades to have a look at dummy. The heart position was now clear so I cashed the king of spades and switched to a club, but declarer was unable to generate a ninth trick and drifted one off. North-South played in 3NT at eight tables; the other seven all made the contract, usually after a heart lead.

The hand record showed that 3NT can be made but when we discussed this hand over dinner we were unable to come up with a winning line. That fine player Mr D P Finesse provided the answer - take two rounds of clubs ending in dummy and lead a low heart, covering East's card. West is now endplayed and has to concede an extra trick in one of the red suits. This line works on any layout, assuming that West started with ace-king doubleton in spades.


We enjoyed these two hands against Somerset, although the first was an outrageous piece of good fortune. South's 3♠ gave me a tricky problem. I considered 3NT and 4NT before eventually doubling, expecting to face another problem over a response of 4♥. When partner surprised me by jumping to 5♣ I could hardly bid less than six, worried that we might be missing an easy grand.  I hadn't noticed the rose-tinted specs that she was wearing. Better to be lucky than good... 

Now for something more sensible, to show that we occasionally manage to bid a hand correctly. For once I was pleased with our auction on this hand, where we were only pair (out of 12 tables) to bid to 5♦. Everyone else was in 3NT, usually going down although a couple of declarers managed to get home by sneaking a diamond through while South was having an after-dinner nap.

Silence is Golden

This hand from the Western League match against Somerset set a personal record for the largest gain on a single board at teams-of-eight with four IMP comparisons.

Where Somerset sat North-South, both players chose to open the mouldy 11 count, and both Dorset Easts (I was one) decided to keep quiet. That led to North declaring 3NT, making 9 tricks at one table and 10 at the other.

Events at the other two tables were rather more exciting. Both Dorset Norths chose to pass and both Somerset Easts opened a weak 2♥, which was followed by two passes and a double from North. At one table West chose to stick in 2♥ doubled and lost 1400, while at the other table West jumped out of the frying pan into a very hot fire and lost 1700 in 3♣ doubled. All that added up to a swing of 59 imps on the board. We still lost the match, though only by 11-9.

The Somerset players involved seemed to think that their bids were normal and it was just bad luck. I may be biased, but I’m inclined to disagree.  I remember a piece in one of Martin Hoffman's books where he advised against opening marginal 4441 hands - you  are content if the opponents play in one of your 4-card suits and can show your hand in one bid with a take-out double on the next round if they bid your shortage. And opening 2♥ as East does not have a lot going for it because of the poor suit, adverse vulnerability and a hand playable in two other strains.