TO THE ENGLISH FROM AMERICA

Many players are afraid to try duplicate in a bridge club. Part of that problem is the lack of sympathy from more experienced opponents, who never seem to remember that they were beginners once. Back in 1986, Americans Kitty and Henry Bethe were living in England and had the idea for No Fear duplicates. They were for newcomers, and only a very simple bidding system was permitted. They were quickly successful. There was one No Fear event in ‘86, seven in ‘87 and more than 70 in ‘88. (She is now Kitty Cooper, and he died in 2015.) One unnamed No Fear declarer played cleverly in this deal from 1988. How would you have tried to make seven no-trump after West led the heart 10? North used two doses of Gerber, learning that his partner had three aces and two kings, before plunging into seven no-trump. South had 12 winners, three in each suit. If either spades or diamonds were splitting 3-3, that suit would supply the 13th trick. And perhaps one opponent would have four spades and four diamonds, making him a squeeze victim — but that might be too advanced for a No Fear competitor. Would an opponent throw a spade from four? No fear! So, after winning the first trick, South cashed three spades. Unlucky — West discarded a heart. Now, though, declarer took her remaining heart tricks. West had to discard from one of those minors. With nothing to go on, he selected a diamond, so the grand slam made. If you are nervous about playing in your local club’s regular game, suggest a No Fear event.