Scores 7X55 MainChallenge


October 2003 Scores


Analyses by Richard Pavlicek

“The House on Phantom Lane” play contest had 690 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 100101201301Location RankingBot’s Eye View

Number of participants690
Number of locations103
Highest score60
Median score37
Lowest score22
Average score37.29

Top 100

RankScoreCCName123456
160ZWLeif-Erik StabellFBFADA
260JPTong XuFBFADA
359UKenGareth BirdsallFBFADD
458CAonDavid GraingerFBFBDA
557PLWojtek SiwiecFBDBDA
657PLEuzebiusz RebajlloFBDBDA
757UKwaJulian PottageFCDADA
857HULajos LinczmayerFBDBDA
956CAonGabriel Nita-SagunaFFFADD
1056UKenFrances HindenFCDADD
1155INNeelotpal SahaiFBDADC
1255USmaBrian LeeFBDAAA
1354UKenNeil MorgensternFBDAAD
1454PLEustachy TrutenFBDEDA
1554BGZahary ZaharievFBDEDA
1653UStxBill ErwinDBDADD
1753UScaLen VishnevskyDBDADD
1853USilCharles BlairFCCADA
1953CNWeidong YangFBDEDD
2052PLHieronim WspanialyFBDFDA
2152DERainer HerrmannFBFAED
2252UKenJohn ReardonEBDBDD
2352TRUfuk CotukBBDADD
2451UStxDavid CochenerDBDBDD
2551CApqRichard WildiFEDCDA
2651EGAndrew de SosaEFFBDA
2751PLWojtek UrbanFBFEAA
2850NLFernando NoordamFBDBDB
2950USorPaul FlashenbergCCDBFD
3050NLDaniel de Lind van WijngaardenCFDBFA
3150FIJussi TamminenFBDFFA
3250UKMarcus ChiloarnusBBDBDD
3350USohAmit RaturiCFDCDD
3450PLJacek MasiarekFBFEBA
3550PLJulka KowalskaFBFEBA
3650UKscNigel GuthrieFFDBDC
3749PLDarek KardasFBFECA
3849UScaSandy BarnesCEDBDD
3949ILRam MeiriCCDACA
4049USflJane KilleleaEFFAAA
4149AUKen DalleyEFDBDD
4249NLJan TesselaarBFDADD
4349INKamal RoyFFFAED
4449NLFrans BuijsenFFFAED
4549SERolf MattssonDEDADA
4649BEPol DutrifoyEFDBDD
4748UScaSteven HoughECDBFD
4848IEMary CollinsFFDAAC
4948PLSlawek CwiekFBFFBA
5048PLKazik DrozdzFBDECA
5148USflCarol DickmanFEDBDC
5248USmaHelene PortnoyCFDAFC
5348LVIldze StraumeDFDAFD
5448USwaN. Scott CardellFBEBCD
5547USohBob StittECDAFC
5647SEJohan GronkvistCCDCBA
5747PTManuel PauloEBDFDD
5847NOSjur BoeCBDBAC
5947INVibhas TodiEFDAAD
6047CAonBruce AmosFFDCBD
6147PLAndrzej KrakowiakFBFFCA
6247SECarsten KofoedFFFBED
6347CAnsGerald MurphyFCDBED
6446CAonJohn CunninghamCBDCDE
6546ROCatalin DorasEFDABD
6646CHGeorge HashimotoEEDBFA
6746USpaAndy PurbrickFFDBFF
6846USmaMark AquinoEFDBDC
6946USinMichael SpurgeonEEDAAA
7046PTManuel OliveiraFFDBDE
7146UStxRichard HigginsEFDBAA
7246USmdTibor RobertsFCFBFE
7346UKenToby KenneyFBDABE
7446PTAntonio SoucasauxEFDEDD
7546PLMarcin ZbrojaFBDFCA
7646INVenkatesh RamaratnamEBDBCD
7746UScaRichard AronsonBFDCDD
7846UKenJulian WightwickCEDAFC
7945MKAna RobevaEFFBFC
8045RSZoran RadojcicCEDACD
8145FRChristian OstermanCEDFDA
8245CAonMatthew MasonEFDBAD
8345UScaDanny KleinmanECDBCA
8445USazMax JohnsonEFDBBA
8545CApqNicole GervaisECDAAC
8645NLWilliam ClaassenECDBFC
8745FIMatti NiemiCEFFDD
8845CAonJohn S. RobsonCBFCFE
8945USinTim DeLaneyFADADE
9045UKenDavid HodgeCCDEAD
9145NOGeir HarnesECDEFD
9245EEAllar PadariEFDBAD
9345SGJerome GanzFCDECD
9445FIErkki MalkamakiEFFFDD
9545AUDavid HarrisCCDAAF
9645USorJohn LuskyBCDAFC
9744AERavi ShivramFFDBAF
9844AUMatthew PorterEEDAFC
9944USmnJack RhatiganEEDBDC
10044USnhRichard BatorFBDBBE

Scores 7X55 MainChallengeAnalysesTop October 2003 Scores

Places 101-200

RankScoreCCName123456
10144USDavid DunstanECDBCD
10244CAonTerry NosanchukBCDCDC
10344TRSalvador AssaelEBDBBC
10444NOHans HolmeCFDBDE
10544USflAlan KravetzEFDFDD
10644AUKeith BarrieDCDBFC
10744NLDale RudrumEBDEDF
10844BRItalo BovoEFDAAC
10944ROAndrei CosmanescuCDDAAD
11044EEMeelis TiitsonEFDFDD
11144HKDicky LaiFEDBAC
11244FRSamuel RozenbergEFDEFD
11344USnjJames ConnellFEFFDC
11444USflGloria TrinkunasEEDEDD
11543USazSherryl BuchlerCEFAAF
11643UScaPaul NelsonEFFEAD
11743CAabNicolae VartosuEEDBBA
11843USnyChuck LampreyFFDBEC
11943NLTommie NooijFEDECA
12043USvaYi ZhongFADBED
12143USnjTina DalyCFDFDC
12243UKenJack MorganEDFBFD
12343NZPieter VerhoekECDDFA
12443NOJostein AmundsenFEDEFC
12543USflArnold WeinsteinECDBDE
12643AUJack BanaECFEFC
12743TRSavas KucukyavuzECDBAC
12843SEJohnny JohanssonBFFBDF
12943USmaBarney ReiffenFECBAD
13043TWRoy TsaiEEDCDC
13143UScaAlvin FarberCEFACC
13243UScaRonald KowBFDBBA
13343USmiRose BurkeEFDCFC
13443LVIvars RubenisEEDBAD
13543ZANeil TraceyCEFFFD
13643USflMarcia GreensteinEBDBCC
13743UScaCon SeraCFDBFB
13843CAnsBryson CrowellEFDBCD
13943UKenRichard MorseDEDBAA
14043RESylvain BrethesBCDFDD
14142PLZbych BednarekCBDFDE
14242USilJacqueline RappDBFCFE
14342ROMax RotaruEFDBDE
14442ITFranco GalleniEFDDFA
14542HULaszlo SztrapkovicsDFDBCD
14642SGCharles LeongCEFDFD
14742UKenKarl FarquharEBDDAD
14842NLLeo BlaauwBEDABD
14942USnyBarry RigalCFDBFE
15042USokWinston MunnEEDBDF
15142EEMargus TuvikeneCEDCCD
15242UKenQuentin StephensCEFCED
15342USorJosh KvidtCCDEAC
15442UScaAllen ProhofskyDCDEAD
15542TRSitki SonmezerCCDBEC
15642PTCarlos CabrinhaCEDBAC
15742HUTopi TopiEFDBAC
15842USscHugh BrownEEDCAD
15942USiaBob McCurdyEFDBAC
16042USmnTom RandEFCBDC
16142PTJoao CostaFEDBCC
16242CAabDaniel BertrandBEFCAA
16342USflWilliam SlepinEFDEAD
16442PTJorge GoncalvesEEDAAC
16542AUCatherine RitterFEDACF
16642BGTchavdar NikolovEFDBAC
16741USgaBill BickfordFFDFAC
16841UKenAndy HollandEEDCFC
16941ROBogdan MitranBFDBCD
17041USncNancy DressingDEDAFF
17141USilDan EnglishDEFEAA
17241UStxLarry SmithDFECAD
17341HUTom BarczyDEFBCD
17441CAonPaul RedversEECBFD
17541UScaMike RoneyCEDFAA
17641UKenAndrew DoyeEEDBDB
17741CAonDavid ColbertECDFBA
17841USPat RichEEDEDC
17941AUGaye MarksCEDCAC
18041UKenVictor MilmanECDBAF
18141UKenAnne WalfordFEFDFC
18241UStxDoug CouchmanCEDBBC
18341ILBrian ZietmanEFDBFB
18441CAonMike MaletteDEFFFA
18541NLYvonne KagerDCBABD
18641USnyGerald CohenBFDCDF
18741IDPika PiskantoEEDBEA
18841CAonAlex CameronDEDAAC
18941DEHans FleischhackEDDBDC
19041PTAnant RajaniCBDDAC
19141USnyJack PresserECDACF
19241UKenNigel MarlowBFDCCA
19341CApqGervais ThibaudeauFEDFFC
19441CApqLouise SauvageauEFDCFF
19541HRFrano JancicBCBBFD
19641UStxMary Jo BranscombBCDACC
19741USnyMarvin TalishEFCBBA
19841INSivakumar SalemCBDBCE
19941BGNadejda JordanovaEFABFD
20041ROAndrei DumitrescuCCFECC

Scores 7X55 MainChallengeAnalysesTop October 2003 Scores

Places 201-300

RankScoreCCName123456
20141SKKarol LohayEEEACD
20241JPKatsuko KawakuboCCFDCD
20341TRYavuz OvacikCCFFAC
20441USnyJay LevyEEDCFC
20541UKMichael ErringtonEFFBFE
20641AUDon StephensEEBAAA
20741USmiDouglas OgozalyCEDECA
20840FIJuuso LeikolaEADBCD
20940USazTom SchlangenCFDACE
21040CAonElizabeth ChapmanCEDBCC
21140USgaLarry GiltmanFFEBCF
21240USwaMaude GunnEFDFAD
21340NZKerry KellyBCDBBC
21440ROGeza Stanca-VassEEDCDB
21540USazSteven PriceBFDBDE
21640UKJane MarvinECDFCA
21740TRMurat YavuzEEDDFA
21840USflPaul KendallBFDFFD
21940ROMona LacatusDFDCAC
22040PTMiguel RamosDEDBCD
22140CAbcSamuel KriklerEEDBFF
22240USohCharles BisesiFEDAEB
22340UScaJay HelekarECDCFE
22440SEPierre WinbergFBBFCD
22540FIMikko KekkiCDDBCD
22640FRJean-Christophe ClementFEDBAE
22740UKenRoger MortonEFDBFE
22840USctScott MaramoBCDBFB
22940TRGuven DalkilicEFDBFE
23040UScaDick WinantDCDBFE
23140ROPetre VoicuBFDBAC
23240AUMarjorie AskewFFDBCE
23340USwaIlarie LetcaEFDBAF
23440USilKaren WalkerBFDBED
23540UKenCarlos DabeziesEECBDC
23640ESJavier CarboneroFECEAD
23740USmaBrad BarnhorstECDBEC
23840BGBoyan BalgaranovBFDBFF
23939PTRui MarquesCEEEFC
24039TRSenih InalCFDFAC
24139USflMatthew NorrisDADFFA
24239UScaMilton SpinnerEEDFAA
24339USflTerri IrwinDEFFAA
24439CApqPierre CaronEFDCFE
24539USinJanet JauchCEDEAC
24639RUVitaly NovikovDCDFCA
24739ITZulia PomelloEFDFCA
24839USnyGene SaxeEFDCFE
24939USinBill CrossDEFBFB
25039INGowniyan VaideeshwarCBEBCE
25139USscRajan IyerFDDFAD
25239NZDean EidlerBCDDDC
25339USpaSal BerenholzCFDFED
25439CAbcRobert GerrieBEDCCA
25539USmaSusan PappasCFDFAC
25639USmdJerrold MillerDEDAFE
25739USmaJoon PahkECBBCD
25839HUBernadette MagyarECDDCA
25939USnyWilliam BascomEEBCFD
26039USflMeg SullivanECEABB
26139AUBill PowellFFDFFE
26238FRPierre BianEFDBAE
26338USnyRon SperberEEDFAD
26438SGLeon OngEECBCA
26538HUGyorgy ZalaiEEFEAC
26638USnhRobert EachusEEDACF
26738USflDick BurnsFDDFFC
26838SGMingfeng LiuEECAAC
26938INShreerang JoshiEFDCAB
27038HKJonathan NgEBDBEE
27138ILOr ShohamEFCEAD
27238USpaDottie AbelBCCCCA
27338USncMike RiceBFDBAF
27438USvaChris JohnsonECBBAC
27538CAonGreg ElandFABAFE
27638SGBoon Chuan MahECDFAC
27738NZRichard AndrewFEBAAB
27838SELeif LundbergEDFEAD
27938ROAlin SalinackiBFDBCC
28038UKenNeil PrebbleDEDDFD
28138USwaRandy DeansECDFAC
28238USmdMollie LipmanDEDFAA
28338CApqJean-Louis GervaisDEDAEC
28438USpaJohn PolicellaDEDCAC
28538USnhBruce DowningDCDDFC
28638UKenDom GoodwinEEDBCC
28738UScaDan ScarolaEEDBCC
28838NOMagnus SkaarBEDCCD
28938HKDavid MokFFEDAC
29038UKscPaul GipsonCFDBEB
29138AUHeather ScottFCDFCF
29238CApqChantal SeigneurBEDBFF
29338UStxJohn StieberEFFFAC
29438ILJacob ShorEFCBAC
29538ILMichael TillesEEECCD
29638DKBjorn RemDBDEEC
29738USwaLen MaxwellCFECEC
29838AUInez GlangerBCDFDF
29938CLConstantino SifaquiBEDCCD
30038INVaduganathan MurugaiyanEFDFCD

Scores 7X55 MainChallengeAnalysesTop October 2003 Scores

All Others Above Average

RankScoreCCName123456
30138NOKay StrandEEFEAC
30238INJai GramaEEDBCC
30338LVAigars GermanisFFDDCC
30438IEJeroen LodewijksEBDFFE
30538IDYusfiq RafiqiEDCAAD
30638EEAivar TihaneEFDACE
30738HRZoran BohacekECCBBC
30838BEEric BaesCECFFD
30938BGChavdar KochkovEBDCCE
31038PTTiago CanelasCFDBCE

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 7X55 MainChallengeAnalysesTop October 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.

RankAverageBestCCLocationEntries
146.885PLPoland16
240.8916UStxTexas9
340.4045SESweden10
440.2515BGBulgaria8
540.1358NONorway8
639.8029USorOregon5
739.678HUHungary9
839.1769USinIndiana6
939.004CAonOntario24
1038.5099USmnMinnesota6
1138.2923TRTurkey17
1238.233UKenEngland43
1338.1428NLNetherlands21
1438.0039ILIsrael9
1537.8893SGSingapore8
1637.8765RORomania15
1737.8392EEEstonia6
1837.7911INIndia19
1937.7241AUAustralia25
2037.6357PTPortugal19
2137.40117CAabAlberta5
2237.3112USmaMassachusetts16
2337.2021DEGermany5
2437.1831FIFinland11
2537.1784USazArizona6
2637.0063CAnsNova Scotia5
2736.7617UScaCalifornia38
2836.7018USilIllinois10
2936.5554USwaWashington11
3036.4381FRFrance7
3136.3940USflFlorida31
3236.33111HKHong Kong6
3336.31118USnyNew York16
3436.2933USohOhio7
3536.00101USUnited States6
3636.00123NZNew Zealand6
3735.75221CAbcBritish Columbia8
3835.5072USmdMaryland6
3935.27113USnjNew Jersey11
4035.00133USmiMichigan7
4134.67144ITItaly6
4234.5225CApqQuebec23
4334.14236ESSpain7
4433.7546BEBelgium8
4533.3667USpaPennsylvania14
4633.33130TWTaiwan6
4733.17338UScoColorado6
4831.00170USncNorth Carolina9

RankAverageBestCCLocationEntries
4960.001ZWZimbabwe1
5051.0026EGEgypt1
5145.0079MKMacedonia1
5245.0080RSSerbia1
5344.0097AEUnited Arab Emirates1
5443.6732UKUnited Kingdom3
5543.00140REReunion1
5642.00150USokOklahoma1
5742.00159USiaIowa1
5841.502JPJapan4
5941.0019CNChina3
6041.0048IEIreland3
6140.5053LVLatvia4
6240.337UKwaWales3
6339.50195HRCroatia2
6439.33158USscSouth Carolina3
6539.0036UKscScotland4
6639.00167USgaGeorgia3
6738.50108BRBrazil2
6838.00201SKSlovakia2
6938.00296DKDenmark1
7037.50120USvaVirginia4
7137.50246RURussia2
7237.25100USnhNew Hampshire4
7337.25187IDIndonesia4
7437.00299CLChile2
7537.00316THThailand1
7637.00326CAskSaskatchewan1
7737.00335USidIdaho1
7837.00343CACanada1
7937.00353USvtVermont1
8036.00368USriRhode Island1
8136.00392UKjeJersey & Guernsey1
8236.00397USwiWisconsin1
8335.7566CHSwitzerland4
8435.50228USctConnecticut4
8535.00418COColombia1
8634.00135ZASouth Africa4
8734.00321USmoMissouri3
8834.00464USneNebraska1
8934.00472USkyKentucky1
9033.33334ISIceland3
9133.00360USdcWashington DC3
9233.00499MXMexico1
9332.00547USalAlabama1
9432.00554VEVenezuela1
9531.67336SISlovenia3
9631.00374USlaLouisiana2
9730.00602ARArgentina1
9829.50569CApePrince Edward Island2
9929.00548CAmbManitoba2
10029.00611MTMalta1
10128.00628USnmNew Mexico1
10227.00648VGVirgin Islands UK1
10327.00661GRGreece1

Scores 7X55 MainChallengeAnalysesTop October 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 came through with a fantastic score of 54 to win easily. Q-plus Bridge was a distant second with 48, beating out GIB with the same score by tiebreaker (Q-plus was faster). Bridge Buff and Blue Chip Bridge were the only other bots to top the average human score, which is always a good sign. All considered, a fine bot showing on a set of problems that most people found troubling because of Fritz. Evidently, the impersonal aspect of the bots was a plus.

As usual, some of the bot plays went off the chart.* On Problem 1, Line G by Bridge Baron and Micro Bridge was to draw the last trump — not cool but surely better than ducking a spade, so I gave it 3. On Problem 4, Line G by Bridge Baron was to ruff a club and lead a trump — not as bad as a few other choices, so I gave it 4. On Problem 5, Blue Chip Bridge and Jack decided to cash a couple of winners (two clubs, or one club and one spade) before making the correct lead of the D 2 — clearly inferior but retaining some chances, so I decided on 5. I won’t bother to explain the Line H choices. Trust me; you don’t want to know.

*When a bot chooses an unlisted line of play, I substitute a listed line if the difference is trivial or negligible (such as a transposition of plays). If the difference is significant, I assign it a new letter and score it appropriately. This month, Line G indicates a line deemed to have more merit than the worst listed line, while Line H (think “hopeless”) represents a line as bad as or worse than the worst listed choice.

Quizzes in multiple-choice format always contain an element of luck for humans — how good are your guesses? — but this would not seem to be true for bots. Wrong. As a case in point, consider Problem 6 on which four bots chose the correct Line A. Out of curiosity, I followed up their plays, and only two (Jack and Q-plus Bridge) executed the endplay correctly. Hence, for the other two it was equivalent to a good guess.

Even HAL produced one of its better scores, proving once and for all that it can count to 13. Its curious sequence of answers (ADADEE) may contain a hidden message — yes, I remember HAL once printed an unrequested document about how it was orphaned as a child. Perhaps all it really wants is “a daddy.” Aww-w-w. Makes my eyes water.

October 2003 Rankings
RankScoreCCProgram version123456
154NLJack 2.0FBDAGA
248DEQ-plus Bridge 7.1FHFAAA
348USGIB 6.1.3FFDADE
445CABridge Buff 8.0FEDBDB
539UKBlue Chip Bridge 4.0.8FHDFGA
630JPMicro Bridge 10.01GHHAAC
728USBridge Baron 11.0GHHGAA
813USHAL 9000ADADEE

Participants (alphabetical)
ProgramAuthor/Creator
Blue Chip BridgeIan Trackman and Mike Whittaker
Bridge BaronTom Throop and Stephen Smith
Bridge BuffDoug Bennion
GIBMatthew Ginsberg
HALSomeone with a warped mind
JackHans Kuijf
Micro BridgeTomio and Yumiko Uchida
Q-plus BridgeHans Leber

Scores 7X55 MainChallengeAnalysesTop October 2003 Scores

© 2003 Richard Pavlicek