Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-08-30
q IHE BRIDGE Forum
II Problem

II Problem
WhichiSthcmorc broftablc?ThiS-
You stupid ignolamus what fool you've proved
to be!
Your bids and plays are awful every time you
play with me-
You act as if you cannot tell diamond from
a heart
know that when I cut YOU am licked be-
fore start.
Or this
Don't let it feaze you. partner just because
these hands went bad;
We'd be the heavy winners if we had the luck
they had.
You suit me for partner. never think Of what
has been;
Buck up and let's go get them in the end we're
bound to win
H~ SYCHIC" psychological ones
4" to confuse the oppostion-are con-
of all bids because of the danger
that they viii mislead the partner.
But are they?
Mrs Philip Hal Sims who is undoubtedly
the outstanding pioneer in this form Of bidding
and who has many national championships
because Of them, docs not class them the
most hazardous when used at the right time
and in the right way.
Il was once brought into court a charge
of speeding" she said the other day. Luckily
the case came up before intelligent judge.
I admitted that / had been speeding. but
commended that IN modern traffic it is some
times safer to go fast than slowly He agreed
with me and I was discharged"
So it is with bridge, she added There are
times when your side is in grave danger of
having the opponents heavily against
you The peril is already existent. and in such
cases the only way to thwart it may be by
means of some tricky bid which viii divert the
opponents from the natural course of their
bidding or play. If the tricky bid misleads
the partner and gives the opponents chance
to score against you because of it, they win
not be likely to score much as they other
wise could. If they do, it is probably because
the bidder had used poor judgment In making
the particular psychic bid he did
In the early days of psychics." said Mrs.
Sims, Il used TO find an opportunity to make
such a bid once in every five or six hands.
Now that good players are more familiar with
them, they cannot be used so often. profit
able chance to make one comes perhaps once
in 20 or 80 hands now, unless you happen to be
against people who are not used to combating
them"
1T has been said" she went on, that
psychic bids unfair when used against
opponents who not versed in them who can
not recognize the probability of psychic when
made by else. That theory seems
destined to die out 1t would be just as sound
to prevent pitcher from using a curve ball
IN base ball when opposed 70 q b2tSman who
had never hit at curve. Psychics constitute
part Of the skill of the game among advanced
players and to bar them when playing against
les experienced opponents would mean to take
away from the skillful part Of their most ef-
fective tactics. Better still to advise the
average player to learn more about psychics
how to use them. how to combat them, how to
guard ones side from being mfsled by the
partners psychics
According to Mrs. Sims. the psychic bid has
enriched the game. adding interesting fea-
ture which interrupts the monotony Of straight
mathematics. She thinks player should have
positive ways Of counting the mental types Of
partners and opponents, and the chance of con-
fusing them, just counts the value of the
various card combinations.
"Psychics constitute the fourth dimension Of
bridge" she adds. They are the same thing
making aces out of spaces. They are
mental hazard to the opponents and they make
the game q keener contest Of wits than it
ever could be without them"