Evening star., 1943-05-23
In Bridge
Circles
Notes on Clubs
And tournaments
By Frank B. Lord

By Frank B. Lord
The open team of -four game of
the Washington Bridge League
which was substituted for the usual
big May team f-four match and
played In two sessions resulted after
q close contest in a victory for
the Diebert-Lanz-Byrne -Athey four
some. They scored IS boards against
1914 for the Duprau-Thomas-Ros-
son-Rosson team. For third place
the Steinberg- -Steinberg and West
rich-King team tied with the Skin
ner-Skinner and Checks-Stone team,
each winning SO boards. The prize
was the Eynon Bowl.
In the second section, which was
q benefit game, the Shelton Coblenz-
Thomas-Smith team won 351a
boards, against 34h boards taken
by the Golden -Grewe -Hodgkins-
Mathews foursome.
The Federal Bridge League played
the first OF its summer season of
pair games on Tuesday night at the
Wardman Park Hotel. North and
South winners were Mrs. L. Ehinger
and G. M. Richards, first, 1907
points: r. G. Wilson and F. J.
Hallauer, second, 149, and Mrs. Vio-
let thinner and Sumner Bliley,
third, al. East and West leaders
were Mrs. Frederick Eberson and
Charles A. Lyon, first, 65h: Mrs.
r. D. Shelton and Mrs. A. H.
Hodgkings, second, 164, and Mrs. r.
Patton and Mrs. R. Baker, third,
1881.
The leagues monthly master
point game will be played on Tues
day night.
How frequently will a deal Of four
hands In game of bridge be dupli-
Gated? Because Of the possibility of
making millions, even billions Of diff
ferent hands in the distribution of
81 cards, the mathematicians will
say that q duplication Of all four
of them would practically never
occur.
That is why there is mystery
among local players concerning a
hand that was played here recently
In the open pair game of the North
ern Virginia tournament. The pat
tern Of the hand was bit unusual
and it was necessary for the de-
clarer to exercise high degree Of
skill to make the maximum contract
Of six spades. Only two of them
were successful. They were George
Rapee OF New York, one Of the CO.
winners OF the open pair champion
ship, and James G. Stone of Wash
ington. More than 30 failed to do so.
Because of its exceptional char
acter the deal was published in this
column and the play explained in
some detail. Thereupon Frank A.
Albus, a prominent attorney and ex-
pert bridge player, although he sell
dom participates in tournaments,
announced that he had seen the
same hand printed short time be-
fore in the Newark News, where it
was described by Richard P. Frey.
Investigation developed the fact
that the two deals were exactly the
same. From the court cards down
to the last little pip on the deuce
Of clubs, the respective hands were
identical. The hand pictured by
Mr.. Frey had been played in New
York two or three weeks before it
occurred here.
Seeking an explanation OF the
duplication 1t was pointed out that
Russell ]. Baldwin who directed the
tournament here had conducted a
similar event in New York and it
was suggested that when he brought
the boards to Washington they were
played, or at least the one in ques-
tion, without having been shuffled.
This theory was somewhat dis
counted by Mr.. Baldwin himself
who was certain that the boards
must have been played several times
between the two tournaments. He
was further sure that he had di-
rected the players when they sat
down to the open pair game here,
to shuttle all boards. That is an in
variable practice.
Then there was another develop
ment which tended still further to
rule out this explanation. Mr.. Frey's
story narrated that the hand had
been played in New York In rubber
game; in that event there would
have been no boards to which the
cards could have been returned.
That entirely absolved Mr.. Baldwin
from any responsibility in regard to
the duplication. Further, Mr.. Frey
stated that the deal had been dis
covered by Harry j. Fishbein, a
New York expert who had exhibited
1t to several of his friends as an
exceptional one and had asked them
to figure out a way by which the
declarer could make a small slam
In spades. Some of them found it
very difficult to do so.
William Cheeks, who supervised
the Northern Virginia tournament,
has offered this explanation: That
some New York player familiar with
the hand had spread it out before
the game here and invited q solu-
ton that would produce six spades
and had then inadvertently placed
1t in board without shutting the
cards. That would mean that Mr..
Baldwin's injunction to shuttle all
boards had been ignored. At any
rate, the deal was exactly the same
as the one which had been played
several weeks before in New York.
With the exception of the open
pair match, practically all of the
honors in the Old Dominion cham
pionship tournament held last week
at the Wardman Park Hotel went
to local players. DR.. Arthur Salasky
and Mrs. j. E. Folline of Richmond
captured the Richmond News
Leader Trophy in this contest. They
are both from the Virginia capital.
Other results were:
lace. ,rst, i47 points; J. de q. Stone H and and
John Darsey. second, 1904: Gene Her
mann and william Cheek, third. 1873.
Women's pair-Mrs. Tom Hsmlin and
Mrs. Irene dursuy, nrst, 1904: Mrs Violet
thinner and Mrs. w. 8. Athey, second;
1904: Mrs. r. Richards Of Los Angeles