DR. JOHN'S CASE NOTES.................................................. Continuing with my review of most unusual syndromes, here are two more which constantly plague bridge playing communities around the world.

• APOLLO NINE SYNDROME: This affliction tends to strike those players who now and again achieve moments of greatness.......briefly tasting the sweet sensation of stardom. The corrupting influence of accolades and publicity will send their expectations sky high. They wallow in the glory, boasting of better things to come. Nothing, at first, will get them down off cloud nine. However, the inevitable string of mediocre results that follow their triumph now start to remind them of their true status and rather modest ability. Not surprisingly, those feelings of euphoria are replaced with feelings of emptiness and despair. A reality-check is completed when future competition results see them firmly stuck at the bottom with all the other no-hopers and novices. This clearly demonstrates to the world at large (and themselves) the flukiness of their earlier triumph. And it is this final and stark realisation which brings them down to earth with a rather massive bump........and with egg all over their faces.
• ALICE IN WONDERLAND SYNDROME: This is a unusual variant of infla tedego, affecting only those players whose awareness of reality is very suspect.The strange thing about this particular syndrome is that victims develop a belief that their bridge brain is much bigger than it really is. By having some technical ability to bid and play the cards, the syndrome somehow distorts their perceptions of self to such an extent.......they firmly believe they are players of the highest calibre. Moreover, they perceive other players as being incredibly weak, inferior and insignificant. Therefore, they stand head and shoulders above them. Their grossly distorted delusions of grandeur, and skewed sense of proportion, actually leads them to look for bigger stages on which to perform. Their local club, alas, becomes a building reduced to the size of a doll's house...... far too small for such bridge giants like themselves to ever consider entering again .