Scores 7X39  Main Challenge

June 2003 Scores

Analyses  by Richard Pavlicek

The “Valley of the Kings” play contest had 752 participants, and everyone scoring above average is listed here. Ties in the rankings are broken by the date and time of submission (earliest wins). At the end of this page is a “Bot’s Eye View,” which shows how various computer programs fared.

Top 100

101

201

301

Location Ranking

Bot’s Eye View

Participation Stats

Number of participants	752
Number of locations	106
Highest score	59
Median score	39
Lowest score	18
Average score	39.10

Top 100 Places

Rank	Score	LC	Name	1	2	3	4	5	6
1	59	USnv	Barry Goren	2	K	2	Q	4	5
2	59	DE	Rainer Herrmann	2	3	2	6	4	5
3	58	UKen	Gareth Birdsall	2	3	2	6	A	5
4	58	SE	Carsten Kofoed	2	3	2	Q	4	5
5	58	BG	Chavdar Kochkov	2	K	2	Q	A	5
6	57	USma	Brian Lee	2	9	2	Q	4	5
7	57	RO	Eduard Munteanu	2	9	2	6	A	5
8	57	AU	Bruce Neill	2	9	2	Q	4	5
9	56	CAon	Dale Freeman	2	K	2	6	4	6
10	56	BG	Zahary Zahariev	2	9	2	Q	A	5
11	56	USaz	Tom Schlangen	9	3	2	6	A	5
12	56	USil	Charles Blair	9	3	2	Q	4	5
13	56	FR	Jean-Christophe Clement	2	3	2	6	3	5
14	56	JP	Tong Xu	2	K	2	Q	3	5
15	56	USwa	N. Scott Cardell	2	9	2	Q	A	5
16	56	HK	Walter Lee	2	9	2	Q	A	5
17	55	UKen	John Reardon	2	K	J	6	A	9
18	55	USil	James Hudson	2	9	2	6	A	9
19	55	CAbc	Connie Delisle	2	K	2	6	3	9
20	54	CAon	David Grainger	2	3	2	6	Q	5
21	54	NL	Jan Tesselaar	2	K	2	Q	3	9
22	54	BG	Katia Yazova	2	9	J	6	4	9
23	54	IT	Nicola Farina	2	K	10	Q	4	5
24	53	USil	George Klemic	9	4	2	6	A	5
25	53	NL	Frans Dinnissen	2	K	J	6	Q	5
26	53	USpa	Kathy Miller	K	K	2	6	A	5
27	53	RO	Geza Stanca-Vass	A	K	2	6	3	5
28	53	AU	Phil Gallasch	9	9	J	6	A	5
29	53	MX	Robert Pugh	2	K	2	3	4	5
30	53	UKen	Frances Hinden	2	3	2	Q	Q	5
31	53	HR	Zoran Bohacek	9	K	2	6	Q	5
32	53	USma	Irene L. Finkle	2	9	2	6	A	6
33	53	UKen	Julian Wightwick	2	3	2	Q	3	9
34	52	UK	Marcus Chiloarnus	2	K	10	6	A	9
35	52	PL	Wojtek Siwiec	2	9	2	Q	Q	5
36	52	USca	Charles Thompson	K	3	2	6	A	5
37	52	CApq	Nick Krnjevic	2	4	2	Q	3	5
38	52	USca	Phil Clayton	2	K	2	6	4	Q
39	52	IN	Venkatesh Ramaratnam	2	K	2	Q	3	6
40	52	UKen	Toby Kenney	K	3	2	6	A	5
41	51	LV	Ivars Rubenis	2	K	10	Q	3	5
42	51	CAon	John Cunningham	9	3	2	Q	4	Q
43	51	FI	Joakim Fabritius	9	A	2	6	A	5
44	51	USfl	Coimbatore Iswaran	K	K	2	6	A	9
45	51	USpa	Roger Wolf	2	K	7	6	3	5
46	51	UStx	Bill Erwin	K	9	2	Q	4	5
47	51	UKwa	Julian Pottage	9	4	2	6	3	5
48	51	USca	Ron Jacksier	K	9	2	6	A	5
49	51	CAab	Nicolae Vartosu	9	9	J	6	3	5
50	51	VG	Beverly Washburn	2	4	2	6	3	9
51	51	USin	Tim DeLaney	2	3	7	Q	A	5
52	51	CAon	Gabriel Nita-Saguna	2	4	2	6	4	Q
53	51	BE	Eugeen Vannuten	2	A	J	6	A	5
54	51	PL	Jacek Masiarek	2	K	10	Q	3	5
55	51	RO	Gabriel Dumitrasciuc	2	9	2	6	A	8
56	51	UKen	Douglas Dunn	2	3	10	6	3	5
57	50	ES	Juan Boveda	2	K	10	6	A	6
58	50	USfl	Mel Klein	2	9	10	6	3	5
59	50	NL	Thijs Veugen	2	3	2	6	2	5
60	50	SE	Johnny Johansson	9	K	2	6	3	Q
61	50	PT	Manuel Oliveira	K	3	2	6	3	5
62	50	PL	Darek Kardas	2	K	7	Q	3	5
63	50	PL	Wojtek Urban	2	K	7	Q	3	5
64	50	IT	Felice Cupane	9	K	2	3	A	5
65	50	BG	Tchavdar Nikolov	9	9	10	6	A	5
66	50	USil	Nikolay Demirev	2	3	10	Q	3	5
67	49	USca	Allen Prohofsky	9	3	10	6	A	9
68	49	USca	Alan Holmes	9	A	J	6	A	5
69	49	UKen	Dom Goodwin	K	9	2	6	A	9
70	49	IN	Sourendra Coomer Dutt	9	K	7	6	3	5
71	49	SG	Darren Lim	2	5	J	Q	4	5
72	49	USmd	John Glynn	K	9	2	6	3	5
73	49	CN	Xiongwen Gu	6	K	2	6	A	9
74	49	UKen	David Collier	K	9	J	6	A	5
75	49	TR	Berk Basaran	2	K	J	Q	3	Q
76	49	PL	Slawek Cwiek	2	3	7	Q	3	5
77	49	IE	Ciaran Coyne	K	9	2	6	3	5
78	49	CAab	Daniel Bertrand	9	3	10	6	A	9
79	49	PL	Marcin Zbroja	2	3	7	Q	3	5
80	49	UKen	Ray Parkinson	A	K	J	6	3	9
81	49	EG	Andrew de Sosa	9	3	10	Q	4	9
82	49	PL	Zdzislaw Beling	2	K	10	Q	3	9
83	48	FI	Matti Niemi	K	4	2	6	4	9
84	48	UKen	Mike Ardron	9	K	10	6	A	6
85	48	BY	Dmitri Shabes	2	3	7	6	3	9
86	48	USfl	Betty Parker	A	K	10	6	3	5
87	48	USia	Richard Newell	K	9	2	Q	A	9
88	48	IT	Vanni Rui	8	9	2	6	A	5
89	48	AU	Peter Karol	2	9	10	5	A	5
90	48	USva	Yi Zhong	9	K	10	6	A	6
91	48	CAon	Richard Wilson	K	9	2	Q	3	5
92	48	USmd	Lei Gu	9	9	10	6	3	5
93	48	IT	Marco Catellani	2	4	2	Q	5	5
94	48	IN	Gopichand Anne	9	9	10	6	A	9
95	48	USca	Marcella Lane	9	K	10	6	3	9
96	48	NL	Tjebbe Witteveen	8	9	2	6	A	5
97	48	NZ	Steve Boughey	2	3	J	J	4	5
98	48	USma	Charles Altman	9	9	2	6	3	Q
99	48	USca	Ronald Kow	9	9	A	6	A	5
100	48	USmt	Bruce Cook	9	9	7	Q	A	5

Scores 7X39 Main Challenge

Analyses Top June 2003 Scores

Places 101-200

Rank	Score	LC	Name	1	2	3	4	5	6
101	48	IE	Liz Taaffe	2	9	10	6	3	9
102	48	USny	William Bascom	9	9	10	6	3	5
103	48	NL	Frans Buijsen	9	3	10	Q	3	5
104	48	PL	Kazik Drozdz	2	K	7	Q	Q	5
105	48	IT	Valter Boetti	K	9	2	Q	3	5
106	48	IN	Sivakumar Salem	2	3	2	6	3	Q
107	47	USwa	Josh Sinnett	9	9	2	5	3	9
108	47	USny	Gerald Cohen	2	9	10	Q	3	9
109	47	SI	Hubert Froehlich	2	4	7	6	3	5
110	47	USla	Ted Morris	9	4	2	Q	A	Q
111	47	USnj	Elaine Glauser	A	4	J	6	A	9
112	47	USfl	Joseph Lane	9	K	7	6	A	6
113	47	DE	Michael Kammermeier	9	3	J	6	3	Q
114	47	USma	Frank Morgan	9	9	7	6	3	5
115	47	USca	Betsy Marcus	A	9	J	6	3	9
116	47	USor	Adam Saroyan	2	K	J	6	3	Q
117	47	ID	Pika Piskanto	2	5	2	6	Q	5
118	47	USmi	Carol Borich	6	9	J	6	A	5
119	47	UKsc	Tim McKay	9	A	J	6	A	9
120	47	ID	Suatmodjo Naslan	K	9	J	6	A	9
121	47	USco	Lois Scott	K	9	2	6	3	9
122	47	USva	Chris Johnson	K	4	J	6	A	5
123	47	CApq	Nicole Durand	K	4	2	6	A	9
124	47	PT	Antonio Soucasaux	K	9	J	6	A	9
125	47	CN	Weidong Yang	9	5	2	6	3	5
126	47	USma	John Byers	9	3	10	Q	4	6
127	47	CAon	Robert Defreyne	K	9	J	6	A	9
128	47	USca	Dan Scarola	A	9	J	6	3	9
129	47	USny	Jack Presser	9	K	10	Q	Q	5
130	47	USil	Rick Kirby	6	K	J	6	3	5
131	47	UKen	Roger Morton	2	3	2	J	3	5
132	46	USnj	Leonard Helfgott	2	9	A	6	3	9
133	46	UKen	David Davies	2	4	2	Q	A	Q
134	46	USco	Jess Cohen	A	3	2	6	A	Q
135	46	PT	Augusto Lopes	2	A	10	6	A	9
136	46	BG	Kamelia Balabanova	K	4	J	Q	A	5
137	46	ID	Maryadi Surya Hartadi	K	9	10	6	A	5
138	46	USpa	Matt Lahut	K	3	7	6	A	5
139	46	USnh	Richard Bator	K	9	10	6	A	5
140	46	IN	Mohanakrishnan Kumar	K	3	J	6	3	9
141	46	USca	Jack Shiffer	A	9	10	6	A	9
142	46	USma	Murat Azizoglu	K	K	J	6	A	Q
143	46	PL	Andrzej Krakowiak	2	K	7	Q	5	5
144	46	BG	Ivan Petkov	2	4	10	6	3	9
145	46	USnc	Dale Swift	9	3	10	6	A	Q
146	46	USca	Rai Osborne	2	3	10	6	3	Q
147	45	UKen	Dean Swallow	9	K	2	3	A	Q
148	45	HK	Dicky Lai	9	5	J	6	A	9
149	45	FR	Andrei Varlan	K	9	J	6	3	9
150	45	CO	Mauricio Tawil	A	4	J	5	A	5
151	45	IN	Bonny D’Lima	K	A	2	6	3	5
152	45	PT	Luis Travassos	K	9	J	6	A	6
153	45	USaz	Steven Price	9	9	10	Q	3	9
154	45	RS	Marko Popovic	A	4	J	6	A	6
155	45	USca	John Hardy	A	9	2	5	A	6
156	45	AU	David Stern	9	K	10	Q	Q	9
157	45	CApe	Allan MacDougall	9	3	2	3	3	9
158	45	USoh	Bob Stitt	9	4	J	6	3	6
159	45	IT	Franco Galleni	K	A	2	6	3	5
160	45	USpa	Janet Stine	K	4	J	6	3	5
161	45	CH	Beda Wettenschwiler	K	4	2	6	3	9
162	45	PT	Jorge Goncalves	2	A	10	Q	3	5
163	45	SG	Jason Chew	A	9	J	5	A	9
164	45	AU	Gaye Marks	K	9	J	6	A	6
165	45	CAon	Michael Roche	2	K	7	Q	3	Q
166	45	USmd	Mollie Lipman	8	9	J	Q	A	5
167	45	HU	Istvan Fay	6	9	2	6	A	6
168	45	USca	Yumiko Reynolds	K	9	J	6	A	6
169	45	BG	Ognian Smilianov	2	3	10	6	A	Q
170	45	PE	Vladana Diaz	K	4	2	6	3	9
171	45	AU	Heather Scott	6	9	2	6	A	6
172	45	IS	Ulfar Kristinsson	9	4	J	6	3	6
173	45	AU	Bill Powell	9	3	2	J	A	9
174	44	USin	Brian Ross	9	9	10	6	3	6
175	44	USaz	Max Johnson	9	4	10	6	3	9
176	44	SG	Eugene Ho	K	9	10	6	3	5
177	44	UKen	Biddy Smyth	K	9	10	6	3	5
178	44	UKsc	Paul Gipson	2	K	10	Q	Q	Q
179	44	USal	Scott Stearns	9	3	7	5	3	5
180	44	USco	Charles Goudey	K	K	10	6	A	6
181	44	TR	Salvador Assael	2	9	10	6	3	8
182	44	USca	Martin Hertz	9	9	10	6	3	6
183	44	TR	Kamil Karaali	9	4	10	6	3	9
184	44	RO	Gelu Serpoi	9	4	2	3	3	5
185	44	DE	Hans Fleischhack	9	4	10	6	A	6
186	44	NL	Arnold Fok	2	3	J	A	3	6
187	44	USva	David Walker	9	9	A	6	3	9
188	44	BE	Renaat Melkenbeek	K	9	10	Q	4	9
189	44	USca	Mark Bartusek	2	3	10	Q	Q	6
190	44	FI	Jussi Tamminen	9	A	10	Q	4	9
191	44	USca	Marina Fomenkova	K	4	10	6	A	5
192	44	TR	Osman Ozcan	2	9	10	6	A	Q
193	44	TR	Tamer Cokgor	2	K	10	Q	Q	Q
194	43	USnc	Jon Rice	9	9	7	6	Q	9
195	43	UKen	Victor Milman	2	4	7	6	3	6
196	43	USpa	Frank Abel	K	4	J	6	A	6
197	43	NL	Kees Schaafsma	9	5	2	Q	A	Q
198	43	DE	Roland Voigt	9	9	10	6	3	Q
199	43	PT	Fernando Mascarenhas	K	9	7	6	A	9
200	43	USnh	Robert Eachus	K	9	7	6	3	5

Scores 7X39 Main Challenge

Analyses Top June 2003 Scores

Places 201-300

Rank	Score	LC	Name	1	2	3	4	5	6
201	43	USin	Kenneth Woodman	A	K	J	A	A	6
202	43	ES	Margaret Spaargaren	K	A	2	6	A	6
203	43	UK	Margaret Back	K	5	2	6	A	9
204	43	NZ	Pieter Verhoek	9	3	A	6	A	8
205	43	NL	Peter van der Stap	9	9	10	3	A	5
206	43	CApq	Jean-Paul McKinnon	K	A	J	6	3	5
207	43	USca	Alex Hutton	9	4	10	Q	3	9
208	43	IE	Robert Knight	2	K	10	A	A	Q
209	43	USny	Arlo Tuppel	K	K	7	6	3	9
210	43	RO	Alin Salinacki	6	4	J	6	3	5
211	43	ZA	Bernard Donde	9	9	J	6	3	Q
212	43	ES	Santiago Masia	K	4	7	6	A	5
213	43	HU	Gyorgy Ormay	2	5	2	Q	3	Q
214	43	USwa	Roberta Tarr	K	4	10	Q	A	5
215	43	AR	Gerardo Malazdrewicz	K	4	J	6	A	6
216	43	USca	Steven Hough	9	K	J	5	3	5
217	43	FI	Mikko Kekki	9	4	10	Q	Q	5
218	43	ID	Erny Rufiaty	6	K	J	A	A	5
219	43	EE	Allar Padari	K	9	J	5	A	9
220	43	NO	Hans Holme	9	9	2	Q	5	Q
221	43	PT	Miguel Ramos	9	3	10	5	Q	5
222	43	USnc	David Kogut	K	A	J	6	3	5
223	43	UKen	Fiske Warren	K	4	J	6	3	9
224	43	USdc	Ron Zucker	9	9	J	6	3	Q
225	43	USfl	Lee Fleishman	K	4	7	6	A	5
226	43	NO	Magnus Skaar	K	K	7	6	3	9
227	43	USfl	Alan Kravetz	9	4	J	6	2	5
228	43	USma	Barney Reiffen	A	5	J	6	3	5
229	43	USny	Ron Sperber	9	3	10	6	3	8
230	43	USca	Harvey Jaffe	2	A	2	6	Q	8
231	42	USca	Paul Nelson	K	4	10	6	3	5
232	42	IL	Brian Zietman	K	9	10	6	3	9
233	42	PT	Jose Egreja	8	4	J	6	3	5
234	42	IL	Or Shoham	9	4	J	3	A	9
235	42	CApq	Gerald Leclerc	6	4	10	6	A	5
236	42	ES	Raimon Tatxe	9	4	10	Q	A	Q
237	42	USca	Jojo Sarkar	9	A	A	6	3	5
238	42	HK	Sing Lam	9	4	J	3	3	5
239	42	USwa	Cromie Wilson	K	4	7	Q	A	5
240	42	AU	Tony Rolfe	9	9	10	5	A	6
241	42	CAbc	Keith Dowdall	K	9	10	6	3	9
242	42	FR	Albert Ohana	6	K	10	6	Q	5
243	42	AU	Bernard Nightingale	A	A	A	6	A	5
244	42	USne	Matt Campbell	K	K	7	6	A	Q
245	42	USny	Erik Rubinstein	K	K	10	6	3	6
246	42	USco	Artie Weiss	9	9	A	6	3	6
247	42	USfl	David Tyler	K	4	10	6	3	5
248	42	DE	Harro Wimmel	K	3	J	5	A	6
249	42	USma	French Wall	9	K	7	3	3	5
250	42	USva	Tibor Koos	9	9	10	6	Q	6
251	42	PT	Paulino Correa	2	4	7	6	3	Q
252	42	USmn	Jack Rhatigan	9	4	10	6	3	6
253	42	JP	Mark LaForge	2	5	7	Q	3	5
254	42	TW	Zeno Lin	K	9	2	5	A	Q
255	42	USca	Joanne Cobeen	9	A	A	6	3	5
256	42	CAbc	Michael Dimich	6	K	J	Q	3	6
257	42	IN	Anirban Mitra	A	4	J	Q	Q	9
258	42	UKen	Coral Wiggins	6	K	J	Q	A	8
259	42	BG	Violeta Staykova	K	9	10	6	A	6
260	42	NL	Hans Uijting	K	9	2	Q	2	5
261	42	CAbc	Sheila Dickie	A	4	10	6	3	9
262	42	USny	Tom Barry	K	9	10	6	3	9
263	42	IE	Richard Mullins	6	3	J	6	3	6
264	42	USma	J. Michael Andresen	8	K	J	6	Q	9
265	41	SG	Adam King	K	K	7	5	3	5
266	41	USca	Tysen Streib	9	9	A	3	A	5
267	41	USpa	Dottie Abel	K	K	J	6	3	Q
268	41	CL	Rudolf Buitelaar	6	K	10	Q	A	6
269	41	UKsc	Nigel Guthrie	2	9	10	3	Q	5
270	41	USca	Clark Millikan	K	9	7	6	3	9
271	41	UStx	Richard Higgins	2	K	A	5	3	Q
272	41	USma	Bruce Tedford	A	4	7	6	3	9
273	41	USfl	Robert Solomon	K	4	7	6	3	5
274	41	USca	Marvin French	K	3	2	Q	2	9
275	41	TR	Nail Sert	8	3	10	5	4	5
276	41	BE	Koen Grauwels	K	9	10	6	A	Q
277	41	IT	Michele Scopelliti	K	K	7	A	A	5
278	41	USny	Bruce Ross	8	4	J	Q	3	5
279	41	RO	Catalin Lazar	9	4	7	6	3	6
280	41	USmo	Mark Hardaway	8	9	7	Q	A	5
281	41	CAbc	Samuel Krikler	K	9	J	6	A	Q
282	41	UKen	Sue Prebble	K	4	7	6	3	5
283	41	NL	Albert Reijnen	K	A	J	6	3	9
284	41	USal	Ben Wheeler	K	4	J	6	3	6
285	41	CH	Pedro Bilar	K	4	J	6	3	6
286	41	USfl	Paul Kendall	A	A	J	6	3	6
287	41	FR	Soph Civry	2	A	10	Q	Q	9
288	41	IN	Neelotpal Sahai	K	4	10	Q	3	5
289	41	UK	Michael Errington	K	3	10	Q	A	Q
290	41	UKen	John Haslegrave	9	5	2	A	3	5
291	41	USoh	Forrest Smith	K	5	J	6	3	5
292	41	AU	Elizabeth Wylie	K	9	J	6	Q	6
293	41	CAon	Naveed Ather	K	9	7	6	3	9
294	41	AU	David Harris	K	A	J	6	A	6
295	41	USca	Michael Migdol	K	A	J	6	3	9
296	41	TW	I-Don Jien	K	9	10	6	A	Q
297	41	CAon	Malcolm Ewashkiw	K	9	7	6	3	9
298	40	USca	Doug Burke	A	9	10	Q	3	Q
299	40	SI	Simon Pirjevec	K	4	10	6	3	9
300	40	HU	Laszlo Sztrapkovics	K	4	10	6	3	9

Scores 7X39 Main Challenge

Analyses Top June 2003 Scores

All Others Above Average

Rank	Score	LC	Name	1	2	3	4	5	6
301	40	USny	Andrew Nitzberg	K	4	10	6	3	9
302	40	CN	Qing Ye	K	4	10	6	3	9
303	40	USor	Jeff Jacob	K	9	A	6	3	9
304	40	NL	Piet Dekker	9	9	10	6	3	Q
305	40	SG	Charles Leong	A	5	10	6	3	5
306	40	CApq	Peter Schwartz	K	4	10	6	3	9
307	40	SE	Andreas Westerlund	9	9	7	6	Q	Q
308	40	USnj	Steven Shulman	K	4	10	6	3	9
309	40	BE	Jean Verbeke	K	9	10	6	3	6
310	40	TR	Meral Yamac	6	9	J	Q	A	8
311	40	USmi	Ronald Rasansky	6	K	A	6	Q	5
312	40	USca	Earl Semones	K	3	J	6	Q	8
313	40	BE	Alon Amsel	2	A	10	Q	3	Q
314	40	NL	Gerrit de Ruiter	K	4	A	6	A	9
315	40	UKen	Karl Farquhar	6	K	10	6	3	6
316	40	CAon	Allen McDonald	6	4	2	6	4	Q
317	40	USca	Ron Landgraff	K	4	J	6	3	Q
318	40	CAyt	Bruce Beaton	K	3	7	5	A	9
319	40	PT	Jorge Cruzeiro	2	9	2	3	2	9
320	40	USfl	Len Rubin	K	9	7	Q	A	6
321	40	USca	Dylan Tai	K	A	10	6	A	9
322	40	PL	Julka Kowalska	K	4	10	6	A	6
323	40	USmi	Douglas Ogozaly	K	K	10	6	A	Q
324	40	IN	Venkatesan Adhivaraganatham	K	4	10	6	3	9
325	40	SE	Dick Andersson	K	4	10	6	3	9
326	40	PT	Manuel Paulo	K	4	2	Q	3	8
327	40	USaz	Charles Quenneville	A	9	A	6	Q	9
328	40	AT	Werner Hackl	9	3	10	Q	3	Q
329	40	NO	John Kirkholt	A	5	A	6	A	5
330	40	PT	Carlos Cabrinha	K	4	10	6	3	9
331	40	ES	Javier Carbonero	K	4	2	5	A	Q
332	40	CAmb	Doug Jobbins	8	4	7	6	A	5
333	40	RO	Bogdan Agica	6	A	2	6	A	Q
334	40	IN	Sapan Desai	9	3	10	Q	3	Q
335	40	AU	Sandy McCulloch	K	4	A	6	A	9
336	40	RU	Leonid Ulanovsky	9	A	10	6	3	6
337	40	USnc	Toby Weinstein	K	A	10	6	3	5
338	40	USca	Richard Stein	9	3	2	J	3	Q
339	40	UKen	Carlos Dabezies	9	4	J	3	3	9
340	40	DE	Michael Botzet	K	4	10	5	A	5

Names with accented or non-English letters have been converted to an English representation with a 26-letter alphabet. Many people use erratic capitalization, so I determine proper case by algorithm; if this does not correctly display your name, please advise and I will add it to the exception list. If you wish to contact someone whose name you see listed (such as a lost friend) give me permission to send your address to that person, then he or she can contact you. I will not give out e-mail addresses (these are private and go nowhere from me).

Scores 7X39 Main Challenge

Analyses Top June 2003 Scores

Location Ranking

This table lists all the participating locations, ranked by the average score of their entries. The “Best” column shows the best finish (by rank) of any player in that location. Locations with less than five entries are ineligible for the top ranking and grouped separately.

Rank	Average	Best	LC	Location	Entries
1	45.73	5	BG	Bulgaria	11
2	43.13	35	PL	Poland	15
3	42.50	7	RO	Romania	10
4	42.50	19	CAbc	British Columbia	6
5	42.30	23	IT	Italy	10
6	42.22	2	DE	Germany	9
7	42.14	43	FI	Finland	7
8	41.43	72	USmd	Maryland	7
9	41.33	26	USpa	Pennsylvania	12
10	41.29	6	USma	Massachusetts	14
11	41.17	117	ID	Indonesia	6
12	41.00	34	UK	United Kingdom	5
13	41.00	167	HU	Hungary	5
14	40.86	11	USaz	Arizona	7
15	40.86	77	IE	Ireland	7
16	40.43	49	CAab	Alberta	7
17	40.33	75	TR	Turkey	12
18	40.11	121	USco	Colorado	9
19	40.07	12	USil	Illinois	14
20	39.90	4	SE	Sweden	10
21	39.80	36	USca	California	61
22	39.67	39	IN	India	21
23	39.36	3	UKen	England	45
24	39.33	37	CApq	Quebec	9
25	39.32	21	NL	Netherlands	25
26	39.22	16	HK	Hong Kong	9
27	39.22	90	USva	Virginia	9
28	39.20	220	NO	Norway	5
29	39.14	111	USnj	New Jersey	7
30	39.13	53	BE	Belgium	8
31	39.11	8	AU	Australia	28
32	39.00	13	FR	France	9
33	39.00	57	ES	Spain	9
34	38.83	145	USnc	North Carolina	6
35	38.60	9	CAon	Ontario	25
36	38.50	15	USwa	Washington	12
37	38.50	61	PT	Portugal	30
38	38.40	232	IL	Israel	5
39	38.38	51	USin	Indiana	8
40	37.71	254	TW	Taiwan	7
41	37.16	102	USny	New York	25
42	37.00	46	UStx	Texas	10
43	36.75	119	UKsc	Scotland	8
44	36.40	71	SG	Singapore	15
45	36.36	44	USfl	Florida	39
46	36.20	211	ZA	South Africa	5
47	35.88	109	SI	Slovenia	8
48	34.50	423	CAns	Nova Scotia	6
49	33.40	158	USoh	Ohio	5
50	31.71	434	US	United States	7

Rank	Average	Best	LC	Location	Entries
51	53.00	29	MX	Mexico	1
52	53.00	31	HR	Croatia	1
53	51.00	50	VG	Virgin Islands UK	1
54	48.00	85	BY	Belarus	1
55	48.00	87	USia	Iowa	1
56	48.00	100	USmt	Montana	1
57	45.00	150	CO	Colombia	1
58	45.00	170	PE	Peru	1
59	43.50	116	USor	Oregon	2
60	43.25	73	CN	China	4
61	42.50	179	USal	Alabama	2
62	42.33	118	USmi	Michigan	3
63	42.00	244	USne	Nebraska	1
64	41.67	81	EG	Egypt	3
65	41.50	172	IS	Iceland	2
66	41.33	1	USnv	Nevada	3
67	40.67	14	JP	Japan	3
68	40.33	41	LV	Latvia	3
69	40.00	318	CAyt	Yukon	1
70	40.00	336	RU	Russia	1
71	39.67	161	CH	Switzerland	3
72	39.50	332	CAmb	Manitoba	2
73	39.00	47	UKwa	Wales	2
74	39.00	110	USla	Louisiana	3
75	39.00	219	EE	Estonia	2
76	39.00	359	BR	Brazil	1
77	39.00	382	CZ	Czech Republic	1
78	38.50	356	USms	Mississippi	2
79	38.33	139	USnh	New Hampshire	3
80	38.00	154	RS	Serbia	2
81	38.00	224	USdc	Washington DC	2
82	38.00	401	CA	Canada	1
83	38.00	416	USri	Rhode Island	1
84	37.50	268	CL	Chile	2
85	37.33	215	AR	Argentina	3
86	37.00	157	CApe	Prince Edward Island	2
87	37.00	444	UStn	Tennessee	1
88	36.50	252	USmn	Minnesota	4
89	36.50	328	AT	Austria	2
90	35.00	97	NZ	New Zealand	4
91	35.00	341	USga	Georgia	4
92	35.00	527	DK	Denmark	1
93	33.50	280	USmo	Missouri	2
94	33.50	399	MY	Malaysia	2
95	33.00	612	USky	Kentucky	1
96	32.33	422	USct	Connecticut	3
97	32.00	620	USok	Oklahoma	1
98	31.00	643	RE	Reunion	1
99	31.00	654	USwi	Wisconsin	1
100	30.00	671	BH	Bahrain	1
101	30.00	674	USde	Delaware	1
102	29.50	675	CAsk	Saskatchewan	2
103	28.00	709	USsc	South Carolina	1
104	26.00	730	USar	Arkansas	1
105	26.00	732	UY	Uruguay	1
106	25.00	737	UKni	Northern Ireland	1

Scores 7X39 Main Challenge

Analyses Top June 2003 Scores

Bot’s Eye View

I posed these play problems to some of the well-known bridge computer programs, and the results are tabulated below. (These results are not included in the “number of participants” shown above, nor in the calculation of the median or average score.) Most of the programs have different skill settings (thinking time), and this was set to the highest level within reason.* The scores and rankings, based on six specific problems, are not necessarily indicative of each program’s overall capability.

*I do not allow any setting that takes more than a minute to make a play. Time considerations are also used to break ties, i.e., if two bots have the same total score, the edge goes to the one that took less time. I conduct the tests on a 2.0 GHz CPU with 512 MB RAM, running Windows 98.

Congratulations to Jack, which took the top spot this month with a score of 44. Jack is clearly on a roll as it also won the Computer World Championship in Menton, France, defeating Bridge Baron 188-117 in the 64-board final. As I suggested a while back, Jack may be the first real challenger to GIB, which has been the overall card-play leader since I began the bot testing in these contests. GIB did not compete in Menton, nor in the previous two CWCs. Matt Ginsberg cited “personal reasons,” but I suspect he also felt there was little to prove. Perhaps the rising Jack will renew his interest.

GIB and Bridge Buff, second and third respectively, were the only other bots to top the average human score; although Bridge Baron, Blue Chip Bridge and Micro Bridge were close behind. Even HAL had something to brag about, which its marketers are milking for every cent. The home page at Hal9000.com now boasts, “HAL scores 10! Other bots not even close.” Immediately below it says, “Click here for results,” which just happens to be a dead link. How con-veen-ient.

As usual, some of the bot leads went off the chart.* On Problem 2, Bridge Buff chose the bizarre 10 instead of the 4, which indeed deserves the low award of 2. On Problem 4, Jack and Q-plus Bridge led the 3. This is significantly different from the 6 (scoring 10) because it falsifies the club count, but it’s a lot better than the worst three choices; I decided to give it 7. On Problem 6, Jack and Q-plus Bridge led the 6. For this to be equivalent to the 9, partner must now finesse the eight with J-8-4, a difficult play but probably right in theory. In any event, I couldn’t justify 8 for such a lazy lead, so I gave it 6.

*When a bot leads an unlisted card, I substitute a listed card if the difference is trivial or negligible; this is often the case when the bot chooses the right suit but an alternate spot card. If the difference is significant, I record the actual lead and score it appropriately. Usually this means the same award as the worst option listed, however, this month was exceptional with two cases that deserved a middle ground.

June 2003 Rankings

Rank	Score	LC	Program version	1	2	3	4	5	6
1	44	NL	Jack 2.0	A	9	J	3	A	6
2	43	US	GIB 6.1.3	K	9	J	5	A	9
3	41	CA	Bridge Buff 8.0	6	10	J	6	A	5
4	39	US	Bridge Baron 11.0	K	5	7	6	A	5
5	38	UK	Blue Chip Bridge 4.0.6	6	3	10	Q	5	5
6	37	JP	Micro Bridge 10.01	K	9	J	6	A	8
7	31	DE	Q-plus Bridge 7.1	K	A	10	3	Q	6
8	10	US	HAL 9000	8	5	A	J	2	Q

Bots Tested (alphabetical)

Program	Author/Creator
Blue Chip Bridge	Ian Trackman and Mike Whittaker
Bridge Baron	Tom Throop and Stephen Smith
Bridge Buff	Doug Bennion
GIB	Matthew Ginsberg
HAL	Someone with a warped mind
Jack	Hans Kuijf
Micro Bridge	Tomio and Yumiko Uchida
Q-plus Bridge	Hans Leber

Scores 7X39 Main Challenge

Analyses Top June 2003 Scores

© 2003 Richard Pavlicek