Bridge & Humor: Enjoy Bridge by Phillip Alder

Gadsden Times – Apr 21, 1994

Enjoy bridge… enjoy life. 

If you walk into a bridge club and watch play in progress, you witness a sea of serious faces. Rarely will any smile or — crime of crimes —laugh. And if someone does laugh, you will hear “Quiet, please” from all corners of the room.

It is one reason why beginners feel intimidated by bridge clubs. We should take the game less seriously.

South was lucky and then unlucky on today’s deal but he didn’t lose his sense of humor.

Four diamonds and five clubs were cue-bids.

Five no-trump was the Grand Slam Force, asking about trump honors. North’s six-club reply showed the ace or king of spades.

Then South closed his eyes, hoping North had only two clubs, or the club queen, or the diamond queen or stronger hearts.

West led a trump, dummy’s 8 winning the trick.

The right line is to ruff a heart, playing for hearts 4-4 or a heart-club squeeze. Instead, South started with dummy’s club ace. When no honor appeared, declarer bravely led a diamond to his 10. It held…Trying not to smile, South played off the A-K of diamonds, planning to discard one of dummy’s clubs.

Imagine his dismay when West ruffed the third diamond. One down after all. South showed remarkable composure at this cruel turn of fate.

He said: “This reminds me of the time I was in a serious accident. My car was totaled, but I was unhurt. However, as I climbed out of the wreckage, I slipped on a banana-peel, fell and broke my arm.”