Slam Temptation, Red Cards, and the Board Where Everyone Behaved
Royston Bridge Club’s Thursday Pairs on 11 June 2026 gave us 12 pairs, 24 boards, and a fine reminder that bridge is a game of judgement, discipline and occasionally looking at the traveller and asking, “Who did what?”
Congratulations to Patrick and Miriam, who topped the field with 60.42%. They were followed by Colin and Paul on 58.33%, with Will and Sylvia close behind in third on 57.08%. It was a compact-looking podium, although probably less compact for those trying to catch them.
This was not a quiet night. There were 7 small slams bid, but only 2 made. No grand slams were attempted, which may suggest admirable restraint, or perhaps that everyone had learned from previous evenings that the seven-level is where hope goes to fill in a damage report.
The most successful slam moment came on Board 5, where Malcolm and Ron reached 6 ♣️ by North and made all 13 tricks for +1390. That was a clear top and the sort of score that makes the rest of the room suddenly feel that their perfectly respectable contract was in fact a cry for help. Others also made plenty of tricks on the board, including 3 NT making 13 and 5 ♣️ making 13, but only Malcolm and Ron collected the slam bonus.
Board 11 was another slam battleground. Colin and Paul bid 6 NT by North and made it exactly for +990, taking a clear top. Elsewhere, two other brave expeditions to the six-level came back missing a wheel: 6 ♥️ by South and 6 NT by South both went one off. The lesson, as ever, is that slam bidding is glamorous when it works and character-building when it doesn’t.
There were also a few ambitious contracts that did not survive contact with the opening lead. On Board 1, one pair reached 6 ♠️ by East, but it went one off, giving North-South +50 and the top their way. At other tables East-West were making 3 NT, 4 ♠️ or 5 ♥️, so this was one of those awkward boards where stopping lower felt dull until the scoring slip came out.
Board 4 was equally unforgiving. Two pairs reached slam, one in 6 NT and one in 6 ♦️, and both went one off. Meanwhile, the pairs in 3 NT were making 10 or 11 tricks. This is the bridge equivalent of ordering the tasting menu while the next table enjoys fish and chips and still gets more matchpoints.
There were only 2 doubled contracts all evening, which shows admirable restraint with the red card. Or possibly poor eyesight. The first was on Board 8, where John and Jean played 2 ♦️ doubled by South, made 9 tricks, and scored +280. That was a clear top. The second was on Board 21, where 5 ♥️ doubled by West went two off for +300 to North-South. So the double card had a 50% success rate, depending on whether you were holding it or being held by it.
A special mention goes to Board 3, where all six tables played 4 ♥️ by North, all six made 11 tricks, and all six received a flat average. This was less a traveller and more a photocopy. Nobody gained, nobody lost, and the board quietly left the room without troubling anyone.
The largest swing of the night came on Board 5, with scores ranging from +230 to +1390, a spread of 1,160 points. That was followed by Board 11, with a 1,040-point spread, and Board 20, where results ranged from -100 to +690. Board 20 rewarded Colin and Paul, who made 3 NT by North with 12 tricks for the top. Others in 3 NT were less fortunate, including one table going one off. Same contract, different planet.
There was also one passed-out board. On Board 22, one table recorded Pass Out, while others played mainly in 3 ♣️ by East or 3 ♠️ by South. The passed-out board scored 0 and earned North-South 8 matchpoints, proving that sometimes the best contract is the one nobody has to play.
Across the evening, spades were the most popular suit, appearing in 46 contracts, followed by NT with 44, hearts with 22, clubs with 21, and diamonds with 10. Diamonds were clearly doing their best to remain unnoticed, though 2 ♦️ doubled making on Board 8 did rather spoil the disguise.
So the evening’s summary is simple: Patrick and Miriam won, Colin and Paul chased hard, Will and Sylvia completed the podium, 7 slams were bid, 2 made, and Board 3 achieved the rare distinction of making everyone look equally competent.
Congratulations to the winners, and commiserations to anyone who bid slam, went one off, and then discovered that the people in game had been quietly collecting matchpoints with the expression of people who knew exactly what they were doing.
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