Walddk

Roland, I am confused: :unsure: do you suggest this sequence if 1NT is forcing or if 1NT is NON forcing ? If 1NT was forcing, doesn't this also sacrifice the natural 2NT invite ? :unsure: Indeed. If playing 2/1 where 1NT is F1, 2NT next would be natural (11-12). If you play sayc or Acol, however, where 1NT is limited to a bad 10 count, you should use 2NT as a sound raise for opener's second suit. Roland

There is a significant difference if 1NT is not forcing for one round. Opener will still bid 2♥ of course, but now you can distinguish between a sound raise and a weak raise (not invitational). Many play it this way: 1MA - 1NT 2OM - 2NT = sound raise in OM (other major). Whereas 3OM would show less than invitational values; a courtesy raise if you like (in case opener has a super max for his 2OM). Roland

Excuse me, Richard, but what has this political manifesto to do with this thread? I thought this was a bridge forum. Roland

The whole issue is ridiculously simple. If I owned BBO, I would definitely not advertise for any other bridge site, using a link that has the name of that site in it. Is that so strange? I own a bridge bridge centre 20 miles North of Copenhagen. Do I advertise for the three bridge centres in Copenhagen? Of course not! Do they advertise for me? Of course not! Everybody knows that we are all there, and trust me, if people really are interested in knowing about them all, they will find out. Just like they will find out about BBO's "competitors" if that is their wish. We can't and should not stop them, but it would be totally wrong to feed them with information about how to go about it. Quality will prevail, and the customers are smart enough to figure out where that quality is. Roland

If it hadn't been so sad, it would be hilarious. So they think we should be punished because we are big? Could it be that we are big because we deliver quality and promote bridge in the best possible way? At the end of the day it's our fault anyway I suppose. We elect the politicians we get, do we not? I wish there were more bridge players among them. Politicians who have both feet solidly planted in thin air are useless. Fred used the word "stupidity". I dare say that this is stupid beyond belief! Roland

Let me say this once and for all, so that no misunderstanding is possible: BBO does not censor and will never impose censorship upon our commentators. They are all adults and therefore capable of knowing what's right and wrong. We have had examples of commentators who overstepped the line, but our remedy is very simple: They will not be invited again. We have very few rules the commentators must abide by, but we have no intention of interfering with their comments as long as they are put forward in a civilised manner. Roland

Pass is clear to me. Double is out of the question (I am stuck if partner responds 1♥), and I rarely overcall on 4-card suits. Partner will never know how high he can compete, and I will not know if his raise is based on 3 or 4-card support. Pass does not deny a hand like this. It only denies that you have a hand suitable for anything else. Roland

Being provocative is easy, so let's try this. Have we reached golf (Ryder Cup) status at bridge? Europe is dominant, USA comes second? I know that Europe had more chances to get top places in Estoril, but let's pretend that we add Canada to USA. This is what you get if you give 1st place 5 points, 2nd place 3 points, 3rd place 2 points and 4th place 1 point: Europe: 19 points USA: 11 points Asia: 3 points Bermuda Bowl: 1. Europe (Italy) 2. USA (USA1) 3. USA (USA2) 4. Europe (Sweden) Venice Cup: 1. Europe (France) 2. Europe (Germany) 3. Europe (Netherlands) 4. USA (USA1) Seniors Bowl: 1. USA (USA1) 2. Asia (Indonesia) 3. Europe (Denmark) 4. Europe (Netherlands) Seems like USA must wait to gain superiority until they get a little older ;) Roland P.S. Since two USA teams had to meet no later than the semi-finals, maximum points for the Americans would have been 7 of 11 in each category.

Allow me to ask two questions: 1. Why would anyone want to write "beginner" in one's profile when (s)he is not, Hannie? 2. Similarly, why would anyone want to strut in borrowed plumes and write "expert" or "world class" when they know they are not? Roland

It would of course have been nice to have had more tables, but as guggie points out, the fact that we had fewer than we would have liked created a kind of "intimate" atmosphere at the tables. And we did have the odd bonus table(s) when it mattered. Operators, commentators and spectators were a unit that created a perfect setting for a unique occasion. I also agree with mrdct when he encourages local BBO'ers to get out there and help when we need it. How can it not be special to be operating at a table where the likes of Lauria, Versace, Rodwell and Meckstroth play? Even less than that will do. We had few operators at Estoril, but we still put on quite a show! Roland

That would have been quite something, because the players might have been at the table still, playing extra boards! The two boards gave Italy 12 and 6 IMPs respectively. The difference in the end? Yes, you guessed it: 18 IMPs! 268-250. Roland

Who can blame him? :( Happy Birthday! Roland

The past two weeks have been a tremendous success for BBO. We set all kinds of records during the World Championships, the last being reached in the last set on Saturday where we had to stop for access to BBO on 9,899 users online. Total online at one time: 9899 Total highest at one table: 7286 Total combined tables watching vugraph: 8386 (7041 at one table; 1345 at the other). Who knows how many more we would have been if we had allowed more in? Currently, the server can't take any more, but as far as I know that will change when the next release is due in December. Some of us remember how thrilled Fred was when we passed 100 users! Thanks everyone for taking part in this, and thanks to Fred, Sheri and Uday for having created this site. What a treat for all of us - and it's even free. Unbelievable! Roland

Congratulations from me too, not only on the bronze medal but also on winning the IBPA Personality of the Year Award! IBPA stands for International Bridge Press Association. Fred was rewarded for the way he has promoted bridge through the expansion of BBO. I am sure I speak on behalf of everyone when I say that no one deserves this more than him! Read about it here: http://www.worldbridge1.org/bulletin/05_2%...oril/bul_13.pdf page 12. Roland

I can't write in Italian either (let alone understand the language), but since I see my name mentioned a few times, it would be nice to know what this is all about, so that I get a chance to reply. Anyone care to give me a summary, perhaps via roland_wald (at) hotmail.com Roland

Exactly; it's nothing but a storm in a tea cup. mrdct took offence when he was told about the policy of the BBO management. It's his right to be offended, but I honestly think that it's uday's decision and that you either live with it or don't live with it and sign off. I think it's wrong to have Swan on my BBO screen, but that's just *my* opinion. And it has absolutely nothing to do with cencorship when your hosts ask you to comply with the rules they set. If you don't like the heat, get out of the kitchen. Roland

Personally, I think they should dump any carryover. When you reach the knockout phase, you should start from the scratch. The higher ranked teams already have the advantage of choosing their opponents. That should be it. Let a new match begin. Roland

I can't speak for Bridge Base Inc., but my guess is that this will never happen. I can speak for myself, however, and you are most welcome to remind me in the unlikely event that I forget. If there ever is a joint effort regarding the co-ordination of vugraph broadcasts, I will prefer to resign. This is a promise, not a threat. I wouldn't be able to work with the Swan management. I dislike the people in charge there; it's as simple as that. Roland

I don't think this is censorship at all. Judge for yourself when you read what commentators assigned for the knockout phase have received from me: Please do not advertise for one of our competitors (Swan) by giving the link to results too often (preferably not at all). It's much better that you check yourself and give the spectators scores with regular intervals. With five commentators assigned for each table, this should not be an impossible task now that we have very few matches in progress. To me this looks like a polite request, not an order, and certainly not censorship. Dave Thompson (mrdct) did not sign up for any knockout session, so he didn't get this e-mail. Commentators (71) who did get the e-mail don't seem to have a problem with this. Dave messaged me to tell that he would be available as a commentator for about an hour Wednesday morning (evening for Dave). I welcomed him, and about 30 minutes later when I told him about what the BBO policy is regarding this issue, he left in disgust to join Swan instead. He wasn't exactly pleased to say the least. Fair enough; take it or leave it. Dave preferred to leave it. Roland

BBO had 5000 kibbitzers for the USA I vs II match. Any idea how many Swan had? 210 (max) for the final segment between Indonesia and Denmark (seniors). Roland

It's perhaps worth noting that only a couple of the quarter-finals went down to the wire, and that 3 teams in the Venice Cup didn't go the distance. Canada conceded against France after 64 of 96 boards, and USA2 and England did the same against USA1 and Germany after the penultimate segment. Roland

Here are the pairings in the World Championship semi-finals: Bermuda Bowl: USA1 vs. USA2 Italy vs. Sweden Venice Cup: France vs. USA1 Netherlands vs. Germany Seniors Bowl: Denmark vs. Indonesia USA1 vs. Netherlands Our schedule for Tuesday: Segment 1: France vs. USA1 (VC) Segment 2: USA1 vs. USA2 (BB) Segment 3: To be announced As usual, we will try our best to add a match to at least two of the three segments. Roland

We do have MP events on BBO vugraph at least 4 times a year. Uday mentioned one, and here are 3 others: The Grand Tournament, Bergen, Norway, in January. The Norwegian Summer Festival, Norway, in July. The Hecht Cup, Copenhagen, Denmark, in August. In order to make MP broadcasts exciting for the spectators, you need a barometer format with (almost) instant results service on an internet web site. The Scandinavians are very good at that. We will of course welcome still more MP events, but we reserve the right to make sure that the conditions are acceptable for everyone involved. Roland

4NT is not too high. As I pointed out earlier, you can make 5NT, because the heart suit is blocked for the opponents. AJ K109xx Heart to the ace and the jack back. You duck and all they can get is 2 heart tricks. Lucky yes, but there is no law against being lucky. Roland

Pairings for the quarter-finals (including carryover) at the World Championships: Bermuda Bowl: Italy v India (2.3 IMPs) USA1 (9) v Brazil USA2 v Argentina (4) Egypt v Sweden (16) Venice Cup: France (15.5) v Canada China (16) v Netherlands Germany v England (3.7) USA1 (9) v USA2 Seniors Bowl: USA1 (11) v France Indonesia (16) v Portugal USA2 (16) v Netherlands Denmark (16) v Israel 6 segments of 16 boards (3 Sunday and 3 Monday). .... Schedule for Sunday USA1 v USA2 (Venice Cup) USA1 v Brazil (Bermuda Bowl) To Be Announced As usual, we are hoping to add a match in segments 2 and/or 3. Roland