Can you tell us what time, so I can set an alarm? I don't want to miss this amazing revelation!

You will if you get Bali Belly…

Surely every Scotsman knows there is only one Burns…

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
Aboon them a' yet tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy o'a grace
As lang's my arm.

After we see just one “concept” there is sure to be a stampede for the position of “sponsor in the USA”.

Maybe we should make a Kickstarter page to help with the publication of the “books and new ideas”.

Don't miss this golden opportunity!

Richard Cummings did much same in Valkenburg, 1980, winning a brilliancy prize for outplaying the Vugraph commentators.

I haven't been able to sleep… this wait is killing me

"In an argument of you against the world, bet on the world.
Frank Zappa.

Do you have an opinion about the “anti-establishment” conclusions of Bird and Anthias on opening leads?

What would be the most significant change you have seen in the last 30 years?

Dealing hands at the table is “quaint” at best.

0=4=5=4 is rare. Ending overboard is more likely, so 3♥ is a poor call. Mr Parrish is right - 3♦ is the least worst option.

A player is not allowed to “ask declarer for clarification”.

See Law 68 D.

Having the director going through this “clarification” business will only serve to wake up a declarer who miscounted his tricks and give him time to come up with a line just like, “Of course, after the lead I knew…”.

He thought he had 13 winners. He didn't. Down one. That's the price we have all paid at some time or other for stuffing up.

And I don't buy a word of this “Joe Grue in the final of the Spingold” line. Belladonna has revoked in the final of a Bowl, so lesser players can miscount.

Peg Kaplan says in “Spingold Final - Tie after Regulation”:

“Many years ago, I was kibitzing a Vanderbilt finals with one Bob Hamman (one of the rare times he was watching rather than playing). A few clearly poor plays were made, so I said to Bob “I could beat these guys!”

Bob looked at me for a moment, then commented. “You have NO IDEA how exhausted people are at the end of a major team event.” He explained how, at times, the level of play is a bit better in earlier matches, due to the culmination of fatigue after many days of high level bridge.”

Quite so.

If declarer thinks 3 = 4 then the director rules that 13 (likely) = 12 (in fact).

You challenged Mr Herrmann to find a reasonable line for 9 tricks and he did so.

We should be saying, “Well done!”.

There are no misconceptions in the article. You need to read Solution 1 from the article again.

Also, I endorse Mr Burn's tip - read Expert Bridge Simplified“. Very worthwhile.

To claify:
Suppose West ALWAYS leads a longest and 4th highest 2-spot against your 3NT contract. You know that East therefore has a doubleton. Vacant places (11:9) does NOT apply.

The error you have made is in your first sentence:
”If SOME suit breaks 5-3…“.

This is not ”some suit“ since W always leads 4ths.

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hall_problem:

”Phillip Martin's article in a 1989 issue of Bridge Today magazine titled “The Monty Hall Trap” (Martin 1989) presented Selvin's problem as an example of what Martin calls the probability trap of treating non-random information as if it were random, and relates this to concepts in the game of bridge."

What are the misconceptions in the article?

Good to hear you did the right thing. People who self-adjudicate at the table just make matters worse.

And you are right, some players are amazingly obtuse:

I once psyched after my partner's pre-empt and played 3H in a 2-2 fit with next-to-nothing in high cards. At pairs, favourable vul, I faced my hand and said, “Nine off”.

“Play it out!”, LHO barked.

“Please play it out” is in violation of:

Law 68 D. Play Ceases
After any claim or concession, play ceases (but see Law 70d3). if the claim or concession is agreed, Law 69 applies; if it is doubted by any player (dummy included), the director must be summoned immediately and Law 70 applies. No action may be taken pending the director’s arrival

Dean:
Beautiful satire! Sir Humphrey Appleby would be proud of you…