Pancakes and Waffles

Better Bidding by Simulation:

If not your first, then your second bidding lesson taught you how to find major-suit fits and take extra tricks with trumps. No one ever explained when and why it might be better to do without trumps.

Until now. With the aid of careful scientific investigation, the authors focus on combinations of balanced hand patterns (4333, 5332, 4432, 6322), all appropriately nicknamed (for their flatness) as pancakes, waffles, biscuits, and scones. Pancakes matched with waffles are powerful trick-taking machines that deliver reliable games with 24 HCP and, more surprisingly, perform better at notrump with not only eight-card, but also nine-card major-suit fits!  Learn why some 34-point slams fail while other 31-point combos are destined to succeed.

Allan DeSerpa is a professor of economics at Arizona State University in Tempe. A frequent contributor to The Bridge World, Allan dabbles in bidding theory and writes a book when the spirit moves him to do so.

John Mohan has been a prominent figure in the bridge world for 6 decades, with 20 national championships to his credit.

Richard Catero served as a meteorologist in the USAF and careered at Motorola for 35 years in semiconductor R&D and manufacturing.

Paperback; 196 pages; 2021