# Drax's bridge hand in Moonraker **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 24, 2013, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702 "2013-11-24T20:14:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/21 "2013-11-25T15:28:29Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > I think the real question is, surely Drax must know he has been cheated here - there’s no way Bond could have opened 7C on such a hand without collusion or cheating of some kind (never mind redoubling). If you’re going to cheat successfully, it must work but it must be non-obvious. In the book it is obvious, but it is supposed to be. M calls Bond into the situation because Drax is a national hero, but it is clear that he cheats at cards, and the owner of the club where Drax plays (Blades?) is afraid that a scandal when the cheating is revealed will hurt the Moonraker project. So M brings in Bond to spot how Drax is cheating (the Shiner mentioned previously, where Drax can see what cards he is dealing reflected in the silver cigarette case in front of him). Then Bond suggests the rigged deal to show Drax that they know he is cheating, and to give him a sharp and expensive lesson so he doesn’t do it again. In the book, when Drax realizes he has lost, he starts to say “You’re a che-” and the chairman cuts him off instantly and tells him that he has to put any accusations of cheating into writing and send them to the committee in charge. The implication is that, if Drax does that, they will reveal that Drax has been cheating and have him socially ruined. I have never played bridge, and I didn’t even try to understand the details of the rigged deal that Bond uses. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/22 "2013-11-25T15:45:51Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > I think the real question is, surely Drax must know he has been cheated here - there’s no way Bond could have opened 7C on such a hand without collusion or cheating of some kind (never mind redoubling). If you’re going to cheat successfully, it must work but it must be non-obvious. When Bond deliberately cheated Goldfinger out of a golf match, Goldfinger was obviously suspicious but couldn’t pin anything on him (hence, presumably, Oddjob decapitating the statue with his hat instead of aiming at Bond himself). IIRC, in the book, it was indeed obvious. The set up is that the club leadership was convinced that Drax was cheating, but hadn’t caught him in the act, so they ask Bond to sit in as a ringer. He spots how Drax is cheating and (with the club’s implicit permission) rigs the deck. After the rigged hand all goes down, Drax is sitting there realizing he’s been set up. Just before he can say anything the club manager comes by and pointedly tells Drax that he hopes there’s not going to be anything so unpleasant as an accusation of cheating, is there? Which is their way of telling Drax that his cheating gig is up and, since he’s just lost back the money he won cheating, the club is willing to keep everything quiet, but if Drax makes a stink about this hand, he’ll be exposed and socially disgraced. Drax gets the message and angrily pays (and plots revenge on Bond, triggering the main plot of the book). Edit: Curse you Shodan! My minions will take revenge upon you! ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/23 "2013-11-25T16:04:45Z")
Here’s the last part as Drax realizes something is going wrong. > [@](#): > > As Drax surrendered his king, for the first time he saw what" might be happening. His eyes squinted anxiously at Bond, > waiting fearfully for the next card. Had Bond got the diamonds? Hadn’t Meyer got them guarded? After all, he had opened > with them. Drax waited, his cards slippery with sweat. > Morphy, the great chess player, had a terrible habit. He would never raise his eyes from the game until he knew his opponent > could not escape defeat. Then he would slowly lift his great head and gaze curiously at the man across the board. His opponent > would feel the gaze and would slowly, humbly raise his eyes to meet Morphy’s. At that moment he would know that it was no > good continuing the game. The eyes of Morphy said so. There was nothing left but surrender. > Now, like Morphy, Bond lifted his head and looked straight into Drax’s eyes. Then he slowly drew out the queen of > diamonds and placed it on the table. Without waiting for Meyer to play he followed it, deliberately, with the 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, and > the two winning clubs. > Then he spoke. “That’s all, Drax,” he said quietly, and sat slowly back in his chair. > Drax’s first reaction was to lurch forward and tear Meyer’s cards out of his hand. He faced them on the table, scrabbling > feverishly among them for a possible winner. > Then he flung them back across the baize. > His face was dead white, but his eyes blazed redly at Bond. Suddenly he raised one clenched fist and crashed it on the table > among the pile of impotent aces and kings and queens in front of him. > Very low, he spat the words at Bond. “You’re a che…” ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/24 "2013-11-26T06:53:55Z")
Of course, any idiot can make a Grand with a whopping 8 HCPs - here’s how to do it with five: South holds five Spades to the Ace and eight bus-tickets in Clubs North holds six Spades to the Knave and seven irrelevant red cards The remaining Spades break 1-1 and the Clubs break 3-2; neither opponent has a red-suit void. Whatever is led, declarer wins the trick in hand or dummy, draws trumps in one round and cross-ruffs for six rounds finishing in hand. His five remaining Clubs are now good. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/25 "2013-11-27T10:41:01Z")
> [@Patch](#): > > Drax paid his partner’s losses for the total £15,000 loss. The book is temporarily mislaid but I’m pretty sure Drax says, ‘I will accept Meyer’s contribution’. It is not revealed how much that is. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/26 "2013-11-27T12:51:35Z")
> [@Chez\_Guevara](#): > > The book is temporarily mislaid but I’m pretty sure Drax says, ‘I will accept Meyer’s\*\* contribution\*\*’. It is not revealed how much that is. Addition. I always thought it meant the final score and wager amount. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/27 "2013-11-28T06:08:22Z")
> [@Chez\_Guevara](#): > > The book is temporarily mislaid but I’m pretty sure Drax says, ‘I will accept Meyer’s contribution’. It is not revealed how much that is. Bond is cut a check for the £15,000, so I assume he and M each got £15,000 and therefore Drax and Meyer each owed £15,000, but I don’t know if the implication was Drax took Meyer’s losses for the disastrous last hand, or the evening. I’ve always assumed the evening, since his cheating is why Meyer lost so much money ultimately. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702/28 "2013-11-28T08:45:28Z")
The bidding could have been more creative. For example: ```auto Bond Meyer M. Drax North East South West P P P 2C P 2D P 5NT 6C P P X 7C P P X XX (all pass) ``` [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/draxs-bridge-hand-in-moonraker/674702.md?page=1)