Master Of The Cards

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31560, 23 December 1967, Page 4

Master Of The Cards

(Reviewed by J.R.W > The Bridge Immortals. By Victor Mollo. Faber and Faber. For his latest book, Victor Mollo, a self-appointed mes-l senger of the gods, issued on , their behalf invitations to Olympus to thirty-five leading bridge players who, in his opinion, deserve immortality. All have a chapter to themselves containing a brief i sKetch of their personalities and bridge achievements, and including several hands of their own choice in which they have played a prominent part. These hand?, many of which have never been published before, are of a particularly high standard, and an experienced player or a reader adept at fairly quick analysis of bridge deals from the printed page will find them fascinating. Anyone lacking these qualifications may, however, have some difficulty in following the rather condensed accounts of how some of them were played.

The reader will have no difficulty in following the author’s style, which is readable and racy, even at times a little too racy. The constant search for the telling turn of phrase, or the use of too much hyperbole, occasionally lead him into passages like the one where he writes of Perroux, captain of the Italian team victorious in eight consecutive world championships: “A future Oscar Wilde may entitle a play The Importance of being Perroux.’ A future Nietzshe may take as his theme ’Captain and Super-Captain’.” Fortunately not too many such passages demand the use of the pruning shears.

' For most readers the main interest of the book will be in the picture it gives of the strange world of professional bridge in Europe and America and its inhabitants. Some of the immortals earn their entire living from the game. Others have alternative forms of income generally from one of the professions. All are completely dedicated to bridge and their lives revolve around congresses and [tournaments. When the Itali ian captain found his recently- : married star player had brought his bride to honeymoon at the World Bridge Olympiad, he took strong action. Twice the night before important matches he decreed the young couple should occupy separate rooms. Nothing is allowed to interfere with bridge, and the professional is prepared to lead the life of an anchorite monk if it means the difference between winning and losing. It is not surprising that this sort of pressure takes its toll. Five years ago two partnerships were supreme in the world, one French, one English. The French partnership no longer plays in competition bridge, disillusioned by the bad manners of opponents, suspicions voiced about certain teams, and the complex systems recently introduced. The English partnership was broken up by charges of cheating laid against it, one of its members giving up the game entirely. Even with its one or two faults, “The Bridge Immortals” is an entertaining book, with, as they say nowadays, something for everyone—good hands for the experts, good reading for the average players, and good stories for the rest.