Mr. Eric O. Kokish was born May 1947 in Montreal, Canada. He is a bridge professional, an author and writer in addition to being a contributor of many articles to bridge magazine, a bridge teacher and coach for many national and international teams. He is also the Coach for the United States Federation, a Board Member of the Canadian Bridge Federation.

During his many years as a bridge instructor and bridge teacher he has also theorized on many methods to be employed at the bridge table. In this regard he has made many notes on possible approaches for competing in the auctions, in which the opposing side has the advantage of first opening the auction.

One of these notes found great interest in Sydney, Australia, and became known as Scorrchio, which is a defense method against a No Trump opening by the opposing side. The concept is reported to have been a common agreement among several Australian bridge players and has found its way into the list of defense methods to No Trump openings.

Note: The designation scorrchio is, as of yet, undefined, although the designation without the double "c", or, scorchio means hot or scorching as in "The weather forecast with meteorologist Poula Fisch (Aherne), invariably reporting a temperature for all locations of 45 °C (113 °F) while exclaiming scorchio! The designation can also be a colloquiallism in the country of Australia, and any additional information would be greatly appreciated.

Guidelines of the Concept

Opponent		Overcaller		Meaning
1 NT				In general the range of the No Trump opening is based on the Acol bidding system, indicating a range of 12-14 points with a balanced distribution.
		Double		An immediate call of double following the No Trump opening by the opposing side promises a single-suited holding. However, the Diamond suit is excluded and the single-suiter may only be Clubs - Hearts - Spades.
		2		Promises at least a 5-card Club suit and at least a 4-card suit of the opposite rank.
		2		Promises at least a 5-card Diamond suit and at least a 4-card suit of the opposite rank.
		2		Promises at least a 5-card Heart suit and at least a 4-card suit of the opposite rank.
		2		Promises at least a 5-card Spade suit and at least a 4-card suit of the opposite rank.

Continuations and Additional Information

All continuations following the overcall, and the responder of the No Trump bidder passing, are a matter of partnership agreement such as jump bids, especially in any unspecified suit.

For additional information please contact the New South Wales Bridge Association, which is the home of the bridge in Sydney and New South Wales.

If you wish to include this feature, or any other feature, of the game of bridge in your partnership agreement, then please make certain that the concept is understood by both partners. Be aware whether or not the feature is alertable or not and whether an announcement should or must be made. Check with the governing body and/or the bridge district and/or the bridge unit prior to the game to establish the guidelines applied. Please include the particular feature on your convention card in order that your opponents are also aware of this feature during the bidding process, since this information must be made known to them according to the Laws of Duplicate Contract Bridge. We do not always include the procedure regarding Alerts and/or Announcements, since these regulations are changed and revised during time by the governing body. It is our intention only to present the information as concisely and as accurately as possible.