The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-06-11
EXPERTS MEET AT
DUPLICATE AUCTION
East Will Play West at COM
ing Congress Of the
Whist League.
PITFALLS IN DOUBLING
By r. F. FOSTER.

49, 'S'' VIM w To-
%sembllng at Spring Lake Beach for the
t~wenty-sixth annual congress Of the
American Whist League. and they will
find ample opportunity to discuss the
various moot points connected with auc-
ton and its laws as well as TO test their
skill In the various contests arranged
especially for that game in its duplicate
form.
Progressive pair matches. a special
pair match FOR men n n team of four
contest for men and women will he
played.
Friday. June ga p. NJ. progressive
pairs; s T. NJ. special pair match for
men. Progressive pairs.
Saturday. June 2i-l0 A. NJ. progress
awe pairs: . J.. NJ. trophy contest FOR
teams OF four. first half. Progressive
pairs. s i. NJ. trophy contest FOR teams
OK four. second half. Progressive pairs.
For particulars. write II. G. Wallace.
president. Scranton. Pa. or c. =. Cad
ley. secretary. $40 Nostrand avcrue.
Brooklyn. y. Y.
This will be the first time that play.
ers from the West will meet those from
the East since duplicate got into it's
stride, and the difference o: method In
both scoring and play will ave a fai-
GRANGE TO be conn lred. and proh?1lv
new ways will he tried out.
IT Is unfortunate that the majority OF
the suggestions that have come to THE
SUN with regard TO elimina,inr the ele-
ment OF luck In duplicate scores are al
most Invariably based on some scheme
or changing the suit values. which is
the very thing the players and the law
makers wish 10 avoid.
The more closely duplicate can be made
to resemble the ordinary rubber the
more popular IL will become. because
or the excellent practice II gives in care
full play and the many opportunities II
affords for comparing methods and re-
suits. showing how differently the aver
age player and the expert handle the
same cards when the bidding Is ne. ob-
nous.
II II were possible 10 play actual rub
bers at duplicate nothing more would be
necessary than to formulate the plan,
but unfortunately this cannp; he done
except at two tables. and even then
there must be an unfinished game or
rubber ut one or both tables II the match
is for an agreed number Of deals and
there i a set schedule Of changing part
ners In the teams.
Therefore any suggestion for arriving
a: the most equitable system Of scoring
duplicate contests should have for it's
foundation the present suit and honor
values, and the ordinary rules for bid
ding. 1t is when We come TO the mat
ter OF penalties and premiums that du-
plicate can no longer follow the course
Of the ordinary rubber.
II IL obvious. Tor instance. that there
can be no such thing as a demand for a
new deal IN duplicate therefore any
orenc" that would render y PLAYER liarla
IN fhlf par,altp in =, r.fyk. u,,gtipp ~,
be punished ny the loss of points in
duplicate. Just what. the amount should
he and why II should he that and not
something else, y matter Of guesswork.
Fifty points seems to be the present
rule in most clubs.
Passing trays to another table with
a wrong number OF cards in the pocket
Is another matter which must be pro-
vided for By point penalties. as one can
not have a new deal at duplicate when
IL j. found that II player has fourteen
cards II another only twelve.
In some clubs they penalize both
tables. the one that puts the wrong
number OF cards into the pockets and
the players that lif, and look at the
foul hands AT the ucXt table. The idea
Is to force every player TO count his
cards face down before lifting and sort
ing them.
w NV way bdA W me lhSN
table 10 get the hands adjusted does
not set matters right, IL the player who
has picked up fourteen or fifteen cards
has a good memory Suppos' he finds
that the cards that are no LONGER in
HIS hand are the ace and queen y
spades. He knows those two cards are
now among those held 10y the p,ayar
who had only eleven cards before the
tray was sent back 10 be rcctiiied.
lkFhan thA II ....N-I al.
Spring Lake get down to discussing
questions of play, there will doubtless
be some lively arguments for and
against the modern doubling convcn-
tons when the cracks from the West
sit down to play against those from the
East.
In some clubs these doubles have be-
come such "A we'll recognized part OF the
game that Il would be almost impossible
to eradicate them, while in other clubs
they are absolutely forbidden and are
olassed by the governors as private
conventions.
Some Of the details Of these doubling
systems are not yet settled--whcther n
double shall mean the same thing on the
second round as t. does on the first,
for Instance. Those who freely adopt
the double OF one trick bids are stiil In
doubt as to the ACCESSIBILITY OF doubling
original bids Of two or more. because
Yuch a double asks the partner II he
can do something which the bid itself
shows 1t is highly Improbable that he
can do.
Doubling n suit bid is supposed To
show nothing In shat suit, but a no
trumper otherwise. with no suit long
enough to dictate IA choice. The double
asks the partner II he can stop that suit.
When a player starts witt a bid Of two