The bridge history has known Rixi Markus, as devout bridge lover who chose to embrace bridge career for life in preference to studies in music and classical literature. Having migrated from Austria to England just before the World War II, she became a British citizen. She earned a name and fame as an outstanding and regular player of British ladies bridge team since early sixties, bridge correspondent and bridge writer that will live in the annals of world bridge history for all times to come. She has four world championships and twelve European championships to her credit.

In bridge Rixi believed in simple approach to the game without much of conventional bid. In sixties pretty Rixi Markus felt strongly in favour of opening bid of four card majors as compared to five card majors. Her viewpoint for certain advantages appealed to bridge players in Europe as against opening with 'prepared' club or better minor in the absence of five card major suit and was practiced with considerable success. So also she lay down a few dictums of bridge, while playing the game with a stranger as partner, that are validly followed universally even to this day.

They are briefly: (1) Keep the bidding simple and never make a bid that can be read two or more ways.(2) Do not suggest conventions and gadgets to your partner not in his knowledge. (3) If you are a weak player do not push your stronger partner into a contract which you would not bid with other players; bid naturally and play accordingly. (4) Do not make doubtful bid or double your partner may not understand. (5) Do not try to play all the hands yourself and let the hands be played by either partner on the merit of strength and holdings. (6) Give a clear signal to your partner instead of peter with 3 and followed by 2 if you can afford it.

In course of her long bridge career Rixi Markus experienced disappointing and disastrous deals, she would not hesitate to relate them and also she would not know could some hands were to be bid to gain maximum advantage. One of such intriguing and interesting hands she played as declarer came to an utter grief is given below:-

North led diamond 6

Rixi Markus and her partner playing 16-18 no trump range she did not offer a defensive bid of no trump on the opening bid of 1 spade. When her partner in forth position made a informatory takeout double Rixi glowed in her fair complexioned face with excitement having 15 high card points herself, jumped to Three No Trump without even a slight hesitation taking it as a providential bonanza. The lead of diamond suit by North rendered her task extremely hopeless with only three cards of the suit between herself and dummy. The defenders collected six diamond tricks first to put the contract down by two tricks.

Any other lead would have given Rixi all the thirteen tricks on two successful finesses. Besides further the irony was the East-West partnership could succeed in making six spades on the layout of the hand. But how to bid spade slam after the opponent made an opening bid one spade.

Rixi frankly admitted in her biography that this deal in a friendly tournament among other ones grafted in her memory as haunting shadows for years as a part of some unprecedented failures in her bridge career.

THE BIDDING:

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South     West     North     East

Opp       Rixi     Opp    Partner

1S        Pass     Pass       Dbl

Pass      3NT      Pass      Pass

Pass

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Dealer South:

East-West vulnerable

NORTH

S -----

H 9854

D 1097643

C 753

WEST

S AQJ9

H Q 72

D Q5

C A1094

EAST

S 108753

H AKJ3

D 8

C QJ8

SOUTH

S K642

H 106

D AKJ2

C K62

Golden Tips: Unpredictability is so natural a part of bridge.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2004