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In our newsletter this week...
President's Message Canberra in Bloom Teams League Competition at the Club! New Players Online Lessons Youth News Upcoming Events All That Jazz - It’s About The Bids You Don’t Make Classifieds Corner Lighter Moments
President's Message
Congratulations to our Youth Players Congratulations to Alexis Wilsmore and Jess He, who represented Australia in the Under-26 Women’s team at the recent World Youth Transnational Championships in China, reaching the A Final. Congratulations also to Jade Wilkinson, and Dev and Diya Shah, who were members of the Australian Under-21 team that won the D Final. Well done to all our young representatives! Our Youth Co-Ordinator, Suz, will provide a full report on their experiences and achievements shortly.
Please take care around our Club A gentle reminder to take care when crossing the back car park, particularly if using the shorter route rather than the footpath. We were sorry to hear that Kerry Dunlevy had a fall in the car park while making her way into the Club last Friday morning. Kerry would like to thank everyone who assisted her on the day, and we wish her a speedy recovery. Please also take care when using the stairs, and remember that the ramp is available if you would prefer an easier route when entering or leaving the Club.
Celebrating Barb Just a little reminder that we will be gathering at the Club on Thursday 20 August at 4:30pm to farewell Barb as she retires after more than 15 years of teaching Beginner lessons at CBC. All members, particularly those who have learned with Barb over the years, are warmly invited to join us for late afternoon tea and to wish her well. Please bring a plate to share. The Club will provide a selection of drinks. We hope to see lots of you there!
- Mary
Canberra In Bloom - 2nd to 5th October 2026
Early Bird Entries closing this Saturday
Held in conjunction with Australia's largest floral festival, Floriade, Canberra in Bloom is a national, gold points congress for players of all abilities. Pairs and teams events are held in novice, restricted and open categories, with a rookies pairs event catering for players with less than 5 masterpoints.
• Early bird prices for most events are available until 15 August. • Restricted: Under 300 Masterpoints • Novice: Under 100 Masterpoints • Rookie: Under 5 Masterpoints • Masterpoint cut off is 30 June 2026 This year CIB will be held at the Belconnen Labor Club.
Entries close 18 September (late entries may be accepted at Convenors' discretion). Contact Roger Brake for consideration
Register now through the link below: • https://www.myabf.com.au/events/congress/view/3853
Teams League Competition at the Club!
As we head towards Christmas, we are trialling a new competition at the Club – a regular Teams Event designed for players of all skill levels, from beginners to expert! The Club will be hosting regular teams events – open to teams of four, five or six held over two sessions a fortnight apart.
You do not need to have experience playing teams before entering. All you need to do is to have two pairs available for both the second and fourth Monday evening of the month.
Teams is an extremely rewarding form of playing bridge where you are not competing against the entire room, but are rather playing head-to-head against another team. Your results are not scored against the whole room but are rather only compared to the results at the other table. If your pairs do better with the cards you are dealt than the pairs of the opposing team, you will win, regardless of where you are ranked across the room. The scoring rewards bidding games and making one’s contracts. Overtricks and obsessively bidding No Trumps instead of the minors are not rewarded as highly as in regular pairs game.
This makes it ideal for regular club players from B-grade, C-grade or the supervised sessions.
When is it?
The first season is Monday 14th September and Monday 28th September. Each session starts at 6-30 PM at the Club and will conclude at 9-00 PM Players should aim to arrive by 6-20PM at the latest!
Does the team have to come to both weeks?
Yes. At least one pair must play both weeks. The teammates can be a different pair each week if your team has six players
How much does it cost?
Regular table fees will be charged on the night via MyABF
Who is it for?
Any playing ability will be accommodated The field will be split into multiple “Divisions” and players will only play other teams within their division At the conclusion of each month, the winning teams in each division will be promoted to a higher division and the bottom teams will be relegated to a lower division
What is the format?
Each night teams will play two twelve board teams matches There will be an overall winner within each division after the two nights
How do we enter a Team?
Via the following link on MyABF:
• https://www.myabf.com.au/events/congress/view/4641
Can you help us find team-mates?
There are no guarantees but we are always prepared to assist. If you need help securing team-mates, please contact Elizabeth or Steve.
What if I have further questions?
If you have any questions, you can speak to Steve at the club or via email:
Alternatively, you can speak to Elizabeth or email her on:
New Players
Canberra Bridge Club welcomes the following new and returning players:
• James Van-Lane
Online Lessons
The next online lesson with Will Jenner-O'Shea is on Thursday 27 August at 9:30am. This lesson is on Doubling 1NT.
Youth News
Our five representatives had a great time in China. They were part of a 30 man squad and the vibe was very positive during the highs and lows of the event. They learned a great deal from their knowledgeable team captains and met players from many other countries.
Congratulations Jess and Alexis, who were part of the U26 Women's team. It was the only Australian youth team to make the A finals. The U21 team played in the D division finals where they were undefeated and won that section.
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YOUTH EVENTS Summary (see below for more details)
August 21: RealBridge Youthish Night - https://myabf.com.au/events/congress/view/4544 August 29 - 30: Cootamundra Congress September 18: Youthish Night September 25: RealBridge Youthish Night - https://myabf.com.au/events/congress/view/4614 September 27 - October 1: Youth Triathlon Saturday November 7: Trivia Fundraiser December 5 - 6: NSW State Youth Championships
SAVE THE DATE - CBC Trivia Fundraiser
Saturday November 7, 2pm - 5pm The questions are not bridge related so gather friends and family, bring your thinking caps, and get ready for an entertaining afternoon of questions, prizes, and great company.
Youthish Night is on this Friday, September 18
Entry is FREE and includes a Pizza dinner All experience levels are welcome, no partner required. Come at any time. • Session 1: 4:30 PM - 6:30 PM • Dinner: 6:30 PM - 7:00 PM • Session 2: 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
NSW State Youth Championships
December 5 - 6 ACT players are invited to participate in the NSW State Championships. Let's make a team and get some payback for the 2026 ANC.
RealBridge Youthish Nights
Club session bridge is matchpoint scoring which is a different beast to teams scoring. Learn about the differences and get a board by board breakdown from Will after the match. It's a great way to level up your skills. ONLINE and FREE. Next sessions are Friday August 21 and September 25. Youth and youth adjacent members can enter. If you bring a Youth player to Youthish Night you can join!
Youth Triathlon - 27th Sept to 1st Oct (Sunday - Thursday)
3 days of Competition 2 days of Training 1 Winner Crowned
Sunday 27 Sept Development Monday 28 Sept Pairs Competition: 2 sessions Tuesday 29 Sept Teams Competition: 2 sessions Wed 30 Sept Individual Competition: 1 session + development + sightseeing Thursday 1 Oct Development An overall winner of all 3 events combined will be crowned 🥇 2026 Youth Triathlon Champion 🥇 and receive the Bobby Richman Shield
CBC Youth Coordinator Suz Wilkinson
A strong Youth Bridge program can only occur with dedicated people supporting our events, often quietly behind the scenes. This week’s Youth Shoutout goes to Suz Wilkinson who is doing a stellar job in keeping our Youth Community vibrant.
Upcoming Events
Tuesday Night Competition
The next Tuesday Night Competition is the Egon Larsen Butler Pairs starting on 25th August to 8th September 2026
Australia Wide Open Pairs
The Australia-Wide Open Pairs has a rich history that goes back more than 40 years, bringing together thousands of players from all around the country. Each player will receive a souvenir booklet on the day, describing our recommendations for how the bidding and play should have gone. After the results are in, there will also be a second personalised booklet available on our web page, looking at every board to see how your bidding and play compares against our recommended results.
• Wednesday evening 26 August - Walk in Event • Cost: $15
BFACT Gala Pairs - Saturday, 5 September
This is a one-day butler pairs event where players of BFACT affiliated clubs of all levels will be welcomed and will be competitive. BFACT will also be selecting the “ACT 2” team for the Grand National Open Teams (GNOT).
All That Jazz - It’s About The Bids You Don’t Make
A common bidding question that developing players have is what to do with the following kind of hand, playing a 15-17 HCP No Trump:
♠️ AQJ9 ❤️ KQ5 ♦️ QT64 ♣️ 72
Suppose you are Dealer. You have a balanced hand but you are not strong enough to open One No Trump. You have a pretty Spade suit, but you don’t have five so you can’t open One Spade. Most people would open this hand One Diamond and see what happens next. Suppose your partner responds One Heart. What should you bid next?
Well, if you learned to play bridge in the 1990s as I did, you may well have been taught to respond One Spade – showing your four card suits “Up the line”. I would suggest you will be far better served by always rebidding One No Trump – telling your partner you have a balanced hand but that you were not strong enough to open One No Trump (ie not 15-17). They will now know that you have a balanced, 12-14 HCP hand with two or three Hearts (since with four card support you would RAISE your partner’s suit).
Notice that, provided your partner is playing the same system, we will still find our four-four Spade fits whenever game is likely. Our partner can press on in the auction now and if she has four Spades as well, she can bid them (or ask about ours using a convention known as Checkback).
Why is this better than the old fashioned style of bidding every major under the sun in the hopes we find a fit?
The main advantage in Opener always showing a balanced hand as quickly as possible comes in all of those auctions where they DON’T bid No Trumps. Consider the following auction assuming I know you will always show your balanced hands:
ONE CLUB : ONE HEART ONE SPADE :
What do I know? I now know you almost certainly have exactly four Spades (since with five you would have opened them). But I also know that your Club suit is a genuine suit. I can now give preference on the basis that you are likely to be Five-Four with Clubs and Spades and I don’t need to be worried that you might only have three Clubs (since if you open a three card minor it will always be a balanced hand)
Often following the rules of bidding is as much about being consistent as it is about picking the correct bid for some specific hand.
When opener has started the auction (showing 12 or more HCP and any number of hand shapes) and their partner has responded (showing 6 or more HCP) they should step through the following priorities:
First Priority – Do I have a fit for my partner (ESPECIALLY in a major)? If yes – Raise! Second Priority – Do I have no fit but a balanced hand? – If yes – Bid No Trumps! Final Priority – With no fit and an unbalanced hand, bid something else. A second suit or repeat your first suit.
If we ALWAYS follow this algorithm our partner can begin to draw inferences about our hand based on the bids we didn’t make.
It’s extraordinary how many hands we can talk about using just the thirty eight “words” of our bidding language (One to Seven of Clubs or No Trumps plus pass, double and redouble). We don’t have much to say, so clear, consistent agreements will help minimise confusion and maximise the information we can convey to our partner.
If you have any interesting hands that come up (or hands you wish you’d known how to play) we would love to hear about them at:
- Steve Geddes
Lighter Moments
If you see the following fellow wondering around our carpark please call 0424 935 989 and ask Yolandi from the Wombat Rescue Organisation to come and pick it up.
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Take care everyone and don't forget to email any contributions to the newsletter on
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