Anyone who plays bridge competitively knows how stressful it can be. If you wonder how world-class players cope, you should read The Art of Becoming a Top Bridge Player by Samantha Punch. Sam is not just a Scottish international, but also a professor of sociology. She interviewed scores of well-known names on topics ranging from how they recover from their mistakes to how they become better partners.
Quite a few lesser players were also interviewed – as it happens, I was one of them. I talk about not always being able to control my emotions at the table – which is bad, but in mitigation, I’m not alone. Zia Mahmood says he’s just ‘red-blooded’, and points out that the Italians, whenever they have a bad board, lift the screen and scream at each other. At the other end of the spectrum are those with perfect sangfroid, like Bob Hamman, who never speaks during play.
It’s certainly easier to play with someone who’s calm. One of my favourite partners is Sebastian Atisen, who never shows any hint of annoyance or frustration. No doubt this helps him focus too. At the Summer Congress Swiss Pairs, he found this sharp play:
West led the ♥6. Sebastian played low, and East’s ♥Q won. Most declarers would routinely play the ♥2 from hand. But if West guesses that East started with two hearts, he’ll win the heart return with the ♥A. If he thinks East started with three, he’ll duck it to keep communication open. Sebastian’s solution? To play the ♥9! When East continued with the ♥8, he played with the ♥10. West, now convinced East had started with ♥Q82, ducked. Two overtricks scored nearly 100 per cent.
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