Doubles, Disasters and a Distinct Lack of Slams
Royston Bridge Club’s Thursday Pairs on 4 June 2026 produced a lively evening of matchpoint bridge, with 14 pairs, 24 boards, and enough doubled contracts to keep the post-mortems going well past bedtime.
Congratulations go to Malcolm and Ron, who won the evening with an excellent 68.75%. They were closely pursued by Colin W and Miriam on 67.36%, with Pat and Nicholas taking third place on 62.85%. It was a strong top three, and the sort of scoreboard that makes the rest of us start muttering about card placement, unlucky leads and other perfectly valid explanations.
Unlike some recent evenings, this was not a night for slam bidding. In fact, there were no slams bid at all. Not one. The grand slam hunters had clearly been sedated, or perhaps everyone had collectively decided that making game was stressful enough.
That did not mean the evening lacked drama. Far from it. There were 9 doubled contracts, which is a healthy number for a club night and a mild warning sign that several players had located the red card and decided to see what happened next.
The most spectacular board was Board 10, which produced the largest swing of the night: a remarkable 1,530 points. Six of the seven tables played in clubs, many of them doubled, but one table took a different route entirely. East played 4♥ doubled and made only 5 tricks, giving North-South a score of +1400. That was a clear top for Therese and Norma. It was also the sort of result that makes everyone nearby suddenly become interested!
Board 18 was not far behind, with a 1,470-point spread. Most tables were involved in spade contracts, but Will and Sylvia found themselves in 5♥ doubled by North. They made 12 tricks for +1050, which was the top on the board. Elsewhere, East-West were able to make 4♠ at one table for -420 to North-South, so this was a board where choosing the right strain was less a technical exercise and more a lifestyle choice.
Board 19 also delivered a healthy swing of 1,060 points. Three tables played 3NT by East or West, with scores of -600, -600 and -660 for North-South. At another table, West played 5D and went four off, handing North-South +400. That was a top for Will and Sylvia, and a reminder that not all five-level adventures end with a commemorative photograph.
Board 15 gave the double card another moment in the spotlight. Saroj and Alan collected +800 after 5H doubled by East went four off. That was the top on the board. Meanwhile, one table played 4♠ by South, made it, and scored +620. A perfectly good score in normal circumstances, but at matchpoints there is always someone nearby doing something outrageous with a double.
There was also one passed-out board. On Board 6, one table decided that discretion was the better part of valour and recorded Pass Out. Elsewhere, the same board produced contracts including 4♥ making, 2♥ making, 1NT by East making, and 3♣ by East going off. This suggests the hand was either finely balanced or that seven tables were playing seven different games. Possibly both.
The most common level of contract was the three and four level, with 52 contracts at the three level and 52 at the four level. There were 78 game contracts, but no one ventured into slam territory. Hearts were the most popular strain, appearing in 50 contracts, followed by spades with 41, no trumps with 37, clubs with 22, and diamonds with 17. Diamonds were clearly the wallflowers of the evening.
One of the quirkiest boards was Board 24. Six tables played 4♥ by East, and five of them made exactly 11 tricks for -450 to North-South. The odd table out played 3NT by West, making 10 tricks for -430, which gave Therese and Norma a top. This is matchpoint pairs in miniature: avoid the crowd by 20 points and suddenly you are a genius.
The winners, Malcolm and Ron, put together a steady card with 5 outright tops and several other strong boards. Their evening included a top on Board 1 for 3NT making 10, a top on Board 9 for 3NT making 10, and another on Board 21 for 3♦ making 11. Their only outright bottom came on the final board, but by then they had done enough work to survive the landing.
So the final verdict: no slams, plenty of doubles, one passed-out board, and several contracts that will probably be described differently by declarer, dummy and the defence.
Congratulations again to Malcolm and Ron on a fine win, and thanks to everyone who contributed to an evening that proved once more that bridge is a calm, rational, mathematical game, right up until someone doubles 4H.