As the knockouts come down to the final stages and the pairs get into high gear, players at the 8th World Bridge Championships are experiencing their own versions of outrageous fortune

For example, in the Rosenblum on Sunday, the team captained by Gabriel Chagas was leading in a tight match with the Christal Henner-Welland squad before suffering a game swing on the next-to-last board to fall behind for the first time in nearly the entire second half, and with a flat final board, they were out.

Four American teams remain in the Rosenblum, which begins the quarter-final round today.

The semi-final round of the McConnell is today, with the possibility of an all-American final – Steiner and Narasimhan. The other semi-finalists – Katt-Bridge and Poland - will have something to say about that.

Pairs competitors are advised to read the notice on page 17 of this issue.