AL78

[hv=pc=n&s=skjt3hkjt7d873ct6&w=s7542hq9642d96cq5&n=sa986h85dkqjck872&e=sqha3dat542caj943&d=s&v=e&b=3&a=pp1n2dppp]399|300[/hv] I was North. 2♦ makes exactly for a NS bottom. It was an evening with only three and a half tables, and this board only got played three times. The other two scores were 1NTX= by North, and 2♠+1 by North (they may bave been playing a strong NT 5 card major system).

Oh I know it can't be just bad luck, as luck should swing both ways over time. I'll try and dig out some more hands for you to look at where I got a bad score on a competitive partscore hand. I may have to go back a year or so because I've forgotten what happened in the bidding on recent evenings. There might be one or two from 2018 which ring a bell.

I'm struggling to find good examples of where we lost the partscore battle and got a bad score, and I can remember the bidding. I have noticed one way we are getting bad scores which there is nothing we can do about, that is, opposition bidding games and slams that are only bid once or not at all at the other tables. I have found a couple of evenings where our opponents bid a slam on a combined 33HCP and it is either significant imps out or a near bottom, because almost everyone else stays in game, or bids the NT slam that goes off. Here is a partscore hand we lost: [hv=pc=n&s=sqj93h2daqt6c8763&w=s72hqt7dk954cakj9&n=sak654ha84dj8ct42&e=st8hkj9653d732cq5&d=w&v=0&b=8&a=1np2dp2hppp]399|300[/hv] I was North. I didn't think my hand was good enough for a 2♠ overcall over what could be unlimited opponents. Sadly I was wrong, all other Norths overcalled and found the spade partscore so we got a near bottom. I've just noticed I haven't set the vulnerability correctly. EW were vulnerable.

It is a self esteem issue. Doing badly in a competitive game/sport where I used to do well is demoralising. Regression is rarely, if ever good. Doing your best and going home with another sub 50% score and feeling lousy is not good either. I did consider stopping playing but then I lose one of my primary social events.

Yes I'll do that, when I get some time. It is going to take me a while to go through past hands where I can remember the bidding and then try and post them.

I'm with the majority, bid 2C followed by spades at whatever is the cheapest level (even if that is at the four level). If the overcallers partner pre-empt raises, that means we have a fit somewhere, and it is very likely to be in one of the black suits. I'll pay out if it turns out partner has a weak opening hand with 2371 or 2461 shape. If partner has a chance to support one of the black suits (optimistic), I will be looking for slam.

Chess is a game where there is no luck and the best player wins, does no-one play chess? A significant luck element is also a turnoff. I get disillusioned during sessions where opponents do strange or poor actions/make mistakes and get rewarded for it, whilst I get the hand of God down on me for every single mistake. I have noticed it is the poor players/novices that complain about not being able to win, and won't play on the stronger evenings, because they want the thrill of feeling they have a chance of winning, and do win occasionally, but can't be bothered to put the time and effort in to become competitive. If you want to achieve something significant, you have to put the effort in, it is very rare there is an exception to this.

I don't know what North was thinking. He/she knows there is a guarenteed fit in one of the suits after EW have shown a nine card fit, and if that fit is in one of the majors, there might even be 4M on.

It categorises as declaring side, defending side and pass out. Over the last 12 months these are 27.25%, 72.19% and 0.56%.

I'm thinking I am doing something wrong, because it happens most of the time with different partners. Four hands seems to be the standard number I declare in a session. Yesterday, I played with a pickup partner and between us, we declared half the time, but he declared eight times and I declared only four times, despite my average HCP count being 10.54 and his HCP average being 9.12. A week and a half ago, I played with my strongest partner and it was one of the more enjoyable bridge sessions, I only declared three out of 27 hands, he declared nine times, his average HCP was 9.15, mine was 9.59. Earlier this week I played with an enthusiastic beginner who I am helping to improve, out of 22 boards I only declared three times, we both had above average HCP counts. A couple of weeks ago when I was assisting on the beginners evening, I sat in and played with someone who had no partner, out of 15 boards I didn't declare at all. It just keeps going on like this, every time I go to the club I think optimistically this time will be different, or the declarer drought will ease, but it almost never happens. It wouldn't be so bad if I was doing well but I frequently get mediocre results (significantly worse than a decade ago) with partners I should do better with, sub 50% about a third of the time, usually 50-55%, and the rare high 50's low 60's. My NGS rating has dropped a good 5% over the last few years or so. In 2016, it was up around 60%, in 2017 the rot set in and it is down to 55% now. Yes I do use the law of total tricks for guidance and do bid to the level of the fit with a decent trump fit in a competitive auction. I'm loathe to bid again if I think I have bid my hand fully. I have asked my strongest partner what he thinks I am doing wrong but he takes the line of "It goes like that sometimes", yes it does but not for two years straight. I cannot believe this is just statistical randomness.

I don't think there is much, if any cheating at my local club. The closest I can think of is a partnership where one has a tendency to bid super-aggressively, occasionally psyching, and one of the strong players theorised that his partner fields them. It has never been proved.

I use Pianola which gives information on scores throughout the year and average statistics. These statistics state that over last 12 months, I have defended around 72% of the time (72.19 to be exact). This is close to what I expected intuitively, as in 24 or 28 board movement, most of the time I only declare three or four times. This happens even if I hold average HCP strength over the evening. I play around three or four times a month so this average is over quite a lot of hands. This seems way too high, it should be not far from 50% over a lot of hands. Could this point to something I am doing wrong in the bidding, and is a good way to address why I defend so much? I think one reason is I pick up a lot of flat single digit point counts which are hard to get into the auction with if partner does not bid, but haven't properly analysed this.

That is going to be very difficult to do, because elderly people ARE the dominant demograph in most bridge clubs. Telling someone it is not only for the elderly is going to fall flat on its face as soon as they step into a bridge club. The main problem with duplicate bridge as I see it, it that it is optimised for retired people, and very sub-optimal for younger people with day jobs and children/babies. The problem is the rigid structure. You HAVE to turn up at a specific time, once there you HAVE to stay there for a minimum of three hours, there is no turning up and departing when convenient for you (e.g. when I played badminton, I could turn up any time during hours of play and leave when I'd had enough). This means someone who has a day job, doesn't get home until 6:30 or 7 pm doesn't have time for a proper meal if they wanted to play bridge in the evening. If I want to play bridge on a working day, I pretty much have to take a full days food supply with me. Then there is the issue with childcare in the evening, their partner might resent being left holding the baby if they wanted to go out as well. If a game is structured optimally for retired people, you should not be surprised to find it dominated by retired people.

http://community.dur.ac.uk/bridge.club/poorbridge/051.php

Hi, my first time on this forum. Playing a four card major Acol system with a weak partner (not a beginner): 1H (2D) 2H (3D) 3H AP I held (as East) A7 AKQ865 J4 J86 and made 12 tricks for a bottom. [hv=pc=n&s=st43h9da9763ckt42&w=skj85ht43dk5caq97&n=sq962hj72dqt82c53&e=sa7hakq865dj4cj86&d=e&v=n&b=2&a=1h2d2h3d3hppp]399|300[/hv] What a waste of picking up the club suit for no losers. :(