BRIDGE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2860, 6 January 1909, Page 13

BRIDGE.

"NO TRUMPS" v By " Cut-Cavexdish." | (Author of " How to Win at Bridge," "The Complete Bridge Player," etc.). (All Rights Reserved.) The aspirant to Bridge honours has much to learn, and his first duty to himself and to the world in general is to acquire ail the knowledge obtainable on the subject of the declaration. Recollect that the game must be played with intelligence and in accordance with the lines of play laid down by the leading authorities. It is a curious fact how many men there are at Bridge who play their cards well enough", but whose declarations are, to say the least of it, supremely shaky. After all, if success is to crown your ; efforts, your declarations in the main will be responsible for the issue. It stands to reason that whenever your cards permit of an attacking call you make the declaraI tion as valuable a one as possible. There- | fore, the goal of the declarer must ev^r !be No Trumps. Not only does the call carry with it most points per trick, but the play of the hand favours the dealer, who, the moment Dummy's cards are exposed, knows exactly wherein his strength lies, and can often proceed to establish his long suit without endangering the situation. in any case the first duty of the declarer, whether he be the dealer or Dummy, is to consult the score, a point it is impossible to emphasise too strongly. Indeed, whether it be your declaration or not, you should always know the exact state of affairs in ; relation to the score. It will guide you not only in the declaration, but actually to the play of the hand. A DOUBTFUL NO TRUMPER. To hazard a doubtful No Trumper when ; you can practically see your way to game | on Clubs or Spades is a foolhardy proceeding. _ As dealer, make certain of the game, whenever you are afforded the opportunity, even if the call be Spades, for j a difference of 200 points hangs on the I result of a rubber, and if you leave it, Dummy may chance a comparatively weak red suit, with possibly disastrous results. The chief consideration must ever be to win the game without running any unnecessary risks. Yet how frequently we see the dealer, with a score of 22 or 24, rashly pass the declaration, holding the | while a fist full of Clubs. He richly deserves to lose the game in question, and^ happily has often to pay the penalty of his reckless temerity. Perhaps it has never struck you what a wide difference even two points can make to the score. Take, for example, the relative values of four and six. On the latter mark you are a trick nearer home on each of the different declarations open to the Bridge player. No small matter this, surely. Other important landing stations are 12, 18, and 24, and, failing the game, you must make one or other of these your goal whenever possible. And now to proceed more particularly with the subject of this article — the declaration of No Trumps. At the commencement of a game naturally the dealer will not attempt too speculative measures. At the same time, if his hand has the makings of a No Trumper it would be madness on i his part not to take full advantage of the call. The time to tempt providence by initiating an attacking declaration must ever be when you hold a hand above rather I than below the average. Should your part- j ncr hold positive rags you are, of course, ! down, but this possibility must not be allowed to influence you in your call. Anyone would declare No Trumps hold- ' ing four aces, as, whatever happens, a nice little addition is made to the 6core above the line. A hand containing three aces is also voted a No Trumper, though here, j even with a blank score sheet. Hearts might | easily prove the sounder declaration. For example, I would rather call Hearts than No Trumps on either of the following hands, as it seems to me the declarer is . quite as likely to get four by tricks in Hearts as three in No Trumps, and the risk in each instance is greatly mini- , mised :: — ■ i Hearts — Ace, 9, 7, 5, 4, 3. Diamonds — 7, ( 2. Clubs — Ace, Knave, 8. Spades — Ace, 6. j Hearts — Ace, Queen, 10, 5, 2. Diamonds —Ace, 8, 3. Clubs— Ace. Spades— lo, 8, 6, 4. WHAT CONSTITUTES A NO TRUMPER. It is impossible to lay down a hard and fast line as to what constitutes a No Trumper, merely because you would hazard that call on lighter paper than usual should j your position be a desperate one; that is to soy, supposing the adversaries were far advanced in the final game of the rubber, i you would call No Trumps on the smallest provocation. A hand only a Queen or Knave above the average would then serve your purpose, and is it surprising how frequently a desperate call of this description comes off. The light No Trumpor affords the greatest gambling counter in the game. . and is at all times much to be preferred to a doubtful red suit declaration. In the latter event you may find your partner's weakness in trumps a fatal stumbling- i block, whiiet in No Trumps strength in any one of your partner's suits should ( prove a valuable asset. i Opinions differ the wide world over, yet occasionally one is surprised to a startling extent. Let us glance at a case in point. A well-known writer on Bridge some few years ago gave the appended handb as affording Heart declarations :—: — ; Hearts — Kimr, Queen, 10, 7. Diamonds — | Ace 86. Clubs— Ace, 5 Spade*— lo, 9, 4, 2. Heart? — Queen, Knave, 9. 8. Diamonds — Ace, 10, 3. Clubs — Queen, Knave, 8. ! Spade.-,— King, Queen, 9. # i Heie we have a recognised authority on the game, whose advice is for the most part admirable, going, in my humble •pinion, on this one point hopelessly astray. Surely both hands comprise sound No

! Trumpets, and I cannot understand an ex- ' perienced player making any other declara- , tion at any stage of the game. I THE "ROBERTSON RULE." - ■ Summed up in a nutshell, the essential requirements of a No Trumper are three guarded suits, the hand at the same time to contain an Ace, King, or Queen above the average. Anything over and above strength will be to the good. To be guarded in any suit you must hold nothing less than an Ace ; a King and two others ; a Queen, knave and another ; or a Knave, 10 and two others. Such /re the qualifications of a No Trumps call, but if the beginner is ever in doubt as to the declaration, let him apply the " Robertson Rule."' Under its guidance an Ace counts as 7, a King 5, a Queen 3, a Knave 2, and a 10 one, and should the total addition of these figures realise 24 or more he can safely declare No Trumps, the only provision being that he be guarded in three suits. Indeed, when you may be said to have found your Bridge legs, you will call No Trumps on considerably less strength than this, being satisfied to take your chance should the toal under the " Robertson Rule " exceed 20. That one suit contains no vestige of strength must not for one moment deter the declarer from going No Trumps. Very possibly his partner may hold some good cards in the dealer's weak suit, and even if he does not, it is quite on the cards that some other suit will constitute the original lead, and that the game will be won before the opposition is able to bring its heavy guns into action. AN EXCEPTION. An exception there is to the general rule in No Trumps relative to the declarer being in on three suits. Five or more certain tricks in a black suit, backed up by another ace, affords a very pretty call. With your partner probably able to help you in on one of the other suits the chances of your getting going sufficiently early in the game to score the odd trick are favourable, and there is no reason why the game should not be won a number of times. This rule only applies to strength in a black suit, as on a strong red suit you would not be tempted to run too great a risk, but rather help yourself to a highly profitable red suit declaration. Another two-suit No Trumper of a still more hazardous description, which I would also advocate, is on a hand similar to the following :—: — Hearts — Ace, Queen, Knave, 6. Diamonds — Ace, King, 8, 5. Clubs — 8, 3. Spades, 9, 7, 2. With the dealer holding such strength in \ both red suite, if he leaves it to his partner a black suit is practically bound to be the response. Better take the bull by the horns and call No Trumps, the hand being one above the average. On a left declaration it is for Dummy to initiate an attack whenever opportunity arises. He can still look to the dealer for some good cards even if that individual bo not overwhelmingly strong in either of the red suits, or able to declare No Trumps on his own. He must eschew, however, too light a No Trumper, as the fact that his hand is first led through and then exposed enables the enemy to take advantage of any pronounced weakness, with deplorable results. He should also particularly avoid the thin No Trumper wherein weakness is too clearly demonstrated in his red suits. If his partner belongs to the cautious school of declarers, Dummy will allow himself a little more rope — perchance to hang himself with.