All News

High Wire Decisions  … 20 years ago. Yesterday, we saw a deal where the 2004 New Zealand Open Team scored very well in their top match against the Netherlands in the Olympiad, despite some negative comments from the Vugraph... read more here

Michael Cornell had.... ....“The Last Laugh”.   From 20 years ago. Before reading today’s story from 2004, what bid would you make as South in this auction, with double being for take-out?    ... read more here

On such moments, "you need minties" or something stronger! Maybe this is not the best board to show you around the happy time of Christmas. It exudes bad news! Yet, at the bridge table, one side’s bad news is just joy for the other! It... read more here

Chris Ackerley. Toing and Froing....a deal from 2004.  Chris Ackerley has written up a lot of interesting declarer deals for New Zealand Bridge Magazine during its existence…and has been successful in a good number of them too. In... read more here

the wisdom of...Tom Jacob. 20 years after..doubled! One lead you cannot get right…and one you cannot get wrong! Which would you like first? Hah, I am not going to tell you! What I will tell you is that they both occurred in the “20... read more here

Gore 2004....Dorothy Gray, Ngaire Keane and Pam Bush.  Twenty Years Ago... A "Grand" Time in Southland. More from late 2004 and I went on an official bridge visit to Southland clubs. At Gore, it was the “night no-one seemed to want... read more here

Twenty Years ago at the Babich. We start our look back by going to December 2004 and seeing a comparison with the present day, the New Zealand Wide Pairs. It was then sponsored by Babich Wines (yes, their sponsorship lasted many years) and NZ... read more here

Saluting the Loveblock winners. I hope lots of you enjoyed this year’s Loveblock New Zealand Wide Pairs. It should have provided enjoyment for all (oh no doubt, most will say they could have played just a little better!) and certainly was a... read more here

For Junior, Intermediate and Novice players…and others. It's Fri day! Who’s the boss? Some deals require an exchange of information between partners in the bidding. Others see one partner take control, find out what they need to... read more here

Trust your opponents. Drawing Inferences. We know we can draw inferences from our opponents’ actions at the table at our own risk. Let’s see if we can draw any inference from their “actions” here, “actions”... read more here

Brian Mace as often seen at the bridge table...with a "concerned" look! Your Pick of Slams? Today’s deal also comes from the final of this week’s Open Trial. Before I reveal all, here’s a decision for you as West:... read more here

Our new Open Team. Along with previously selected Matthew Brown and Michael Whibley, here are Brian Mace, Malcolm Mayer, Ian Berrington and Graeme Tuffnell.  Down to the wire: New Zealand Open Trial. The trial to determine the two pairs... read more here

    Jeremy Fraser-Hoskin: with some key decisions. Youth to the Fore: The New Zealand Open Trial. They have not won yet but in three days of bridge, the team of Zachary Yan, Jeremy Fraser- Hoskin, Lysandra Zheng and Tim Pan have... read more here

For Junior and Intermediate players (maybe not Novices)..it’s Fri  day! Reverse…and go forward! There is a continuous debate among bridge teachers as to whether the concept of “reversing” should be taught to new... read more here

"Step" to Success. Today’s deal, again from last weekend’s Regional Championships, is really about declarer play but first of all, spare a thought for those defenders on lead who found a really challenging lead but who were to get a... read more here

Shirley Newton, Margaret Burgess, Sue Southen and Pam Tibble.  Canterbury Success in the Women’s Regional Championships.  It has been a while since Canterbury have won the Women’s event in the Regional (formerly... read more here

The fateful take-out double. Lysandra Zheng and Tim Pan have fast been showing as one of the most promising new pairs in the country with several impressive results. They added to that list with a fine performance in the Open Regional... read more here

Dougal McLean, after whom the prized overall Regional Trophy is named.  Canterbury’s Weekend at the Regional Championships The 2024 Regional Championship winners are Canterbury, victorious in both the Women’s and Intermediate... read more here

for Junior, Intermediate and Novice players ... and others. It's Fri   day.  Communication….. One of the keys to successful defence is communication between defenders. So often, a declarer, especially in a no-trump... read more here

The Lost “Master-suit”. Spades is usually the “boss”  or “master”-suit and if you hold that suit, then you are normally in a fine position in most competitive auctions. Yet, even spades can get lost in... read more here

Ducking to Defeat. Opening hands are getting weaker by the day…..or so East might have thought on inspecting dummy as they embarked on defending and hopefully defeating 3NT. Maybe the declarer felt a little short-changed? Nevertheless, it... read more here

Nicely Played. Today’s deal comes from the final round of the Auckland-Northland Inter-Club competition which has been played on-line once a month on Real Bridge. The Waiheke Open Team were in the Plate section and in their final match... read more here

Is it? Unmakeable and Unbeatable.  Does that saying describe many of your contracts? Well, maybe one or two. Let’s see whether you would be put to the test to make the unmakeable. We shall consult our Panel first:... read more here

for Junior, Intermediate and Novice players...and others. It's Fri  day! A Partly True Saying. “Why do good players take fewer finesses than we do? When they do, they seem to work more often than ours!” Such laments are often... read more here

Murat’s Finest Moment. Thanks to Murat Genc for allowing me to reproduce this story. Murat was one of my teammates in the recent NZ Seniors’ Team in Buenos Aires. The story becomes much more real with names. His partner was Anne... read more here

Or square! Enterprising defence….and bidding! Today’s deal has a few interesting angles. The question posed below is for a defender. South DealsNone Vul ♠ 9 7 6 A 9... read more here

Running or Staying Still? Today, we feature one further successful board for the winners of the Loveblock New Zealand Wide Pairs. It features a difficult situation when one’s opening weak no trump is doubled for penalties. What would you do... read more here

Taupo’s tops in the Loveblock. The annual New Zealand Wide Pairs, sponsored by Loveblock Wines,  took place last Friday with there being 54 heats taking place at 53 clubs from Kerikeri down to Invercargill. While not a record for the... read more here

For Junior, Intermediate and Novice players…and others!  It’s Fri day! Doing it Right. Welcome back to our Friday slot for less experienced players. Today’s deal is one all declarers should get right though only just... read more here

To see the results of the 54 heats as they come in, go to   https://www.compassmate.bridge-centre.org/results/monthly   thanks to the X Club team for producing them so quickly.   Richard Solomon         read more here

Another Leading Question. As promised yesterday, we have another “Leading Question” today. Like our two from yesterday, it comes from a Seniors’ match in the recent World Championships in Buenos Aires. Yesterday’s two had... read more here

Success for Debs  Havelock North’s Debs Smith has won the recently completed WBF On-Line Autumn Bridge Festival, the third time she has won one of these events. which are held bi-annually. She is a regular in these events and has... read more here

Leading Questions. Over the next two days, we will cover three leading problems, all with a uniting theme. All three occurred in the recent World Championships within the space of a few boards. The first two will be today and you will not be kept... read more here

Fine Finish for winners of National Pairs. The National Pairs, the final of the national events ( outside the Inter-Provincials) took place at the Auckland Bridge Club this past weekend. Some of our international players had still to return from... read more here

Contrary to the norm. Are computer dealt hands freakier than ones we deal ourselves? The argument has raged for years and most of us feel that is the case. We are lazy shufflers and thus are more likely to produce lots of flattish deals.... read more here

Jo Simpson, Auckland Club President, Neil Stuckey, and Sam Simpson. Fine Finish for winners of National Pairs. The National Pairs, the final of the national events for 2024 (outside of the Inter-Provincials) took place at the Auckland Bridge... read more here