Last night I got done by thegarve's lack of computer skills .. He is on computers 22/7 and he cannot work the BBO

 Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. 

Last night I was playing in my own Ireland Imps Pairs when I came up against thegarve and zaczaczac but thegarve failed to alert that he was dumb at using computer or maybe to be more exact dumb at using new BBO version. 

The bidding as above and I don't have much to do anyway but I felt surely 2S was forcing and surely they might get into trouble and surely I might be taking the willow to a higher spade contract but amazingly el garve PASSED.

Later on I asked him either zaczaczac don't know she is playing non forcing 2 bid or something else. 

The lucky bugger managed to misclick a PASS when trying to click on 2NT. He said 2S forcing 1 round. 

Galligan lose 8 imps minus and the plus for doubling 4S so maybe 15 imps on the board. How could it happen that the man who knows everything about everything does not know how to work the new fantastic BBO software and how come the bugger gets lucky enough against me. I did not even hesitate. I had my willow out ready to drive 4S into the stands. 

The Doorbell Coup

 Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. 

On Monday night in Malahide we had Swiss Teams event. 

So I was looking at this hand wondering what is 2D and why is it not alerted. Turned out West answered doorbell and returned ..saw 2C bid and presumed partner opened 2C strong. 

When 2 professionals collide sometimes its a masterclass

 Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. 

This morning in the Peter Pigot Bridge Club the moon and the stars all lined up for one pair. Yes they are the strongest pair in the room but that seldom amounts to much past 65% unless you eat the Devenish porridge for breakfast and tea. Today 2 Peters both professionals at their own games delivered an 83% game in the 

https://www.bridgewebs.com/peterpigotbridge/

The Peter Pigot Bridge Club. Games 11am  Tues and 745pm Thursday currently 

Good game Peters Townsend and Pigot

A man bids 2D overcall in a live auction and is still playing it doubled

  Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. 

Heres a story from NIBU versus England. The Australian Dyke probably thought all his Xmas's here together. The mighty Tranmer is in 2DX and he has the Souths lot opposite his partners opening bid plus reopening double. 

Santa Claus or whatever they call him in Australia has landed. 

One also noted a CBAI trained bridge teacher also stepped in the doggy poo on this hand so I guess that makes Tranmer's bid okay then. 

https://kibitz.realbridge.online/

The above link has the Camrose weekend results and much more information

The above hand was hand 4 of match 1.

Team BJ won the Camrose at the weekend. 

Bridgebase online competitive all tournaments and search for eamongall. 2 BBO dollars gets you 28 boards of good hands and usually some very capable opponents. The Swiss format means most folk play against their peers. 

A man goes down in 6NT when he might have done better. Losing 4 imps plus the gain for making

 Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. 

The man arrived in 6NT declared by South.

Spade 10 lead and no opposition bidding. Despite the 33 hcp 12 tricks don't appear straight away. So our man wins Spade Ace and plays off Heart Ace and East shows out. 

Any ideas about making or is it time to surrender.

Meanwhile the Camrose was in full flight and Ireland were going strong after dispatching Scotland and England. Next up little Northern Ireland. Despite the presence of 120 times capped Rex Anderson and ironman David Greenwood there was no doubt another victory was guaranteed. At half time 42 imps behind it was no problem. Not even the appearance of the most form player of the last 9 months mattered. Tranmer and Sommerville maintained the lead for the tiring Greenwood Anderson and NIBU remained 40 odd imps ahead. 

Meanwhile it gradually came to light that Scotland only had a 4 man team. Some pairs internet was kaput and the rules indicated no subs allowed. A mention was made of the 4 handed CBAI team of 2007 decimated by bereavement which reduced to 3 players when one of their number got very sick. However in that instance CBAI were 26 ahead with the final match only worth 25 so the captains when polled agreed it was okay for the sick player to go to bed where he remained for about 17 hours.

Nobody bothered to tell David Jackson the NPC that he was going into battle until 5 minutes before game time. 

So it was new partnership Tommy Garvey and David Jackson who took on Scotland. 

............

Anyone making the 6NT contract above. 

Bridgebase online competitive all tournaments and search for eamongall. 2 BBO dollars gets you 28 boards of good hands and usually some very capable opponents. The Swiss format means most folk play against their peers. 

Some hands from Northern Ireland v Ireland Camrose Match 3

  Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. 

Bridgebase online competitive all tournaments and search for eamongall. 2 BBO dollars gets you 28 boards of good hands and usually some very capable opponents. The Swiss format means most folk play against their peers. 

Yesterday Saturday January 8th we had CBAI v NIBU in Camrose normally a comfortable win for CBAI but in these strange times the regular squad got beaten in the trials for the event. So it was a confident NIBU squad who went into battle as they knew they were playing equals as opposed to the famous Thomas "No medals " Hanlon and his sidekick Hugh McGann. NIBU also has "The Beast" on board. For some reason Paul Tranmer has found a massive run of form in the last 9 months or so and given he is sitting in the same chair and sleeping in the same bed there was hope for NIBU. 

 Board 2 and North makes a bid showing both minors. I think it is the dreaded Ghesthem or something similar. Anyway somehow BJ O'Brien left this bid pass him by ..must have been a misclick as everything points to a diamond contract. 

1. He has 6 card support for his partner

2. He has 4 Hearts indicating shortage in partners hand

3. So he got 11 card fit and singleton and void to use those trumps on so its totally bizarre not to be motoring. 

4. In my world BJ has an opening hand and his vulnerable partner is bidding. So thats opening opposite opening so something went wrong. 

5. Just in case the 3C bid was alerted as "minors" 

.........

Board 15 seems unlucky for CBAI but unfortunately I have no idea what 2D overcall means but it meant something and steered NIBU into a hard to beat 3NT contract but declarer may have telegraphed the defence.

Maybe I am wrong but after Greenwood trick 2 diamond to King is the defence not in charge. A little bit of minding the entries and the defensive communication. 

However the CBAI contract of 4H had no hope after 3 slaps of the club suit. Another 11 imps gone. 

....

Board 16 saw more misery

3NT has no play at all ... Lindsay already told about his clubs so its bizarre to play in 3NT when you got a 53 heart fit. Another 12 imps in the bin. 

Something has gone wrong with these grandmaster players who put the fear of God into all opponents when playing in the CBAI events. 

I will just show one bizarre hand from the 2nd half. A result I have not seen since I was learning the game in Swords in 1985. I gleefully got Pat McMahon down 9 in 3NT with my great heart suit. Later I found out it was 0% as vulnerable game beats 9 down non vul. 

Here it is Padraig O'Briain down 9 vulnerable in 3NT losing all 13 defensive tricks to Greenwood Anderson. Now maybe its an okay ploy as one would figure there is slam on for the NIBU lads. However it was minus 900 and 9 imps away. I know the plan was to run to 4D if doubled but it never happened and Padraig is still waiting for the race to start. 

And all except 3NT-9 was before Wayne unleashed the Beast. 

NIBU 85 CBAI 42 or 17-3 in VPS.

Wbridge5 robot sacrifices against Galligan on Bridge Now

 Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night on BBO. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. Sean Connor and Thomas Gilligan took the victory last night despite Connor  getting caught in Murphys grippers early on. 

Bridgebase online competitive all tournaments and search for eamongall. 2 BBO dollars gets you 28 boards of good hands and usually some very capable opponents. The Swiss format means most folk play against their peers. 

Just now on Bridge Now website I found a good move

I found a good 6H despite the robot partner telling me 2 aces with NO QUEEN. I decided it would be a very bad 2C opening if he telling me the truth. My Axxx of spades made it look like our hands would mesh well so I bid on to 6H. 

Then robot West decided ..hmmmm he is making 6H so maybe I better sacrifice but it is too late as Eamon did not even know if he was making 6H so happy to take money from 6SX. 

It reminded me of a hand where Mr Murchan thought Martin Garvey was stroking him and acted rashly. 

Minus 1800 later he learned the error of his ways ..

Robot West lost 1700 so that was a good return for Eamon 

Eventhough at a quick glance it appears 7H has play on the finesse I think you run into trouble with the Jxx of trumps and the singleton diamond all combining to end you in the grand down 1. 

A better idea for West Robot was to bid  4S  as soon as possible and let the opponents figure it out now. 

After 2C 2S ...how many pairs will have the very useful here negative double available in their agreements. No ability for South to show 4 card hearts will leave them well busted if West launches the 4S bid ... No great way to find a 6H contract now. 

The moral of the story is launch your interference quickly and don't be hanging around to see what happens ... 4S bid was much easier than the later 6S bid. 

In and out quickly is the way to go. Put them under pressure used to work for Jack Charlton. It also seems to work for that Argentinian guy managing every soccer supporters most hated team .. Leeds United. People seem to be liking the current Leeds United. The 1970s version of Leeds was a serious collection of hard men. Even the legendary Brian Clough only lasted a month there. 

Put them under pressure works in all levels of bridge ... push them up one level out of the comfort zone. 

Loads of folk can play 2H making 9 or 10 ... but push them up into 3H making 9  and the pressure might produce down 1. Stick 3S at them non-vul and sometimes they go to 4H down 1. 

Many ways to bid 55 in the minors opening in Ireland Imps Pairs

  Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. John Comyn and Eimer rolled back the years last night or else folk offered presents.  

Bridgebase online competitive all tournaments and search for eamongall. 

Hand 4 from last night was interesting.

After 3 passes South opens 1D and gets a 1H from North.

What next .. Some bid 3C and reached the making 5C. 

Murphyslaw bid 2C and was left there. 

Sean Connor 3rd in hand launched a 1H opener against zaczaczac to no avail. 3zac just bid 2NT showing 55 both minors and thegarve pushed on with 4C and they arrived in 5C. 

More interesting was a few tables choice of opening bid with the South hand. Several tried the 1C opening with a reverse into diamonds following. This does not feel right to me with 55. One pair even tried 1C opening followed by  a 3D reverse but getting left in 4C means the partner was using a different page of notes. 

Go here https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwoo/bw.cgi?pid=display_rank&event=20210106_1&club=irelandimps

or Google Ireland imps and use the bridgewebs to examine hand 4 or other interesting hands and see what the different players do. 

Lets see what else happened

Here we saw poor Murphyslaw lose near 7 imps for doing nothing wrong. Opponents played in 4H and made 11. 3 pairs bid a going down slam and another pair had a bidding accident or misclick or something and languished in 1D contract. Some days the slam will make but need a 2-2 trumps break and getting said guess right as missing the queen. 

Undos were allowed but sometimes there is no chance for an undo as it goes 1D p p and the next chap passes and the hand is visible so whats the move ..the hand has been seen. 

One just has to be more careful with the mouse or touchpad or whatever. 

Also BBO has setting for needing a double click 

Galligan finds some traction on Bridge Now this afternoon

 Ireland Open Imps Pairs at 8pm every night. This is a good training session as well as competition. You won't leave this event without some story. John Comyn and Eimer rolled back the years last night or else folk offered presents.  

Bridgebase online competitive all tournaments and search for eamongall. 

When you hold the South hand and the opponents want to declare 3S and your partner has indicated extras on an opening bid its time to drop the hammer. With a probable 4-1 trump break and partner with goodo up above its unlikely a robot can make 3S ... so I dropped the hammer and found it 3 off for 500 and a 98% score. 

The Camrose Trophy takes place this weekend. I think its virtual as I got no call to do any vugraph. 

NIBU will have a great chance as they have the best player seen for many a year on board. The COVID era certainly brings out the best in Paul Tranmer as himself and Mrs Tranmer have posted some serious scores in the last 8 months or so. 

However he has not replicated the same form when saddled by Wayne Sommerville. Wayne does not seem to be able to get the best out of him. However maybe Wayne been riding him "hard held" and will unleash the beast this weekend. 

I presume England will gain their customary win but who knows as this COVID era has seen several new players hit the podiums. 

Tom McIntyre and Finola Higgins have been relentless in their pursuit of Sligo victories. However despite numerous victories they failed to catch the eye of the NIBU selectors. 

I think the Camrose takes place on RealBridge platform. 

https://realbridge.online/