Our website is www.pattayabridge.com                             Club News Sheet – No. 282

Our blogsite is www.pattayabridge.wordpress.com                                 

My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 083 6066880                   6th April 2008

It is best to use my home number to contact me unless I am at the bridge club.

My e-mail is terry@pattayabridge.com or pattayabridge@yahoo.com

My MSN messenger ID is tj_quested@hotmail.com

Mon 31st      1st    Ivy & Hans V                         69%       2nd    Esko & Frode                  58%

Wed 2nd       1st    Ivy & Terry                            62%       2nd    Jan & Ursula                    59%

Fri 4th            1st    Jean-Charles & Mike             57%       2nd    Jan & Tom                       56%

       
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Pattaya Bridge Club to Pattaya Bridge home page
   
recommended bridge books reviewed to bridge book reviews
   
    to bridge conventions to No Trump bidding

 

               

Bidding Quiz                   

 

Hand A           Hand B           With Hand A RHO opens a weak 1NT (12-14), what do you do?

 

108               KJ4           

K104            Q762            With Hand B partner opens 1, what do you bid?

AJ83             J74

KJ974          AK9

 

Bidding Sequence Quiz

                               

C     1      pass   1NT   pass      

2NT                                     How many points is the raise to 2NT?

D     1     pass   1      pass      

1NT   pass   2                    Is 2 weak or forcing?

E      1      pass   2     pass

        3     pass   3                    Is 3 weak or forcing?

 

Doubling a Weak No Trump                               Board 27 from Monday 31st

Dealer:             KQ4                                           West          North         East(A)      South

South               A82                                            -                 -                 -                 pass

Love all            K765                                         pass           1NT (1)      dbl   (2)      2

1098                                          dbl   (3)      all pass

 

J92                    N             108                 (1)  Weak, 12-14

Q96               W    E          K104             (2)  What did you bid with this East hand A in   

Q942                S              AJ83                     this week’s quiz? This penalty double is

Q53                                   KJ974                  ridiculous of course.

                        A7653                                  (3)  In the belief that partner had 15+ points.

J753                                    

10                And what happened? 2 doubled made exactly for a clear top to N-S.

KJ2              The bottom lines: -

 

-         A double of 1NT is 15-17 points, this is true whatever range the 1NT opening is.

-         If you start doubling 1NT with anything from 12-18 points then partner will have no idea whether to pull it or not. Restrict a (penalty) double to a 3 or 4 point range (15-17 or 15-18)

-     There are lots of green pass cards in the bidding boxes – use one of them if RHO opens and you have a flat 12 count.


4-4 is better than 5-3                                            Board 11 from Friday 4th 

 

Dealer:             KJ4                                            Table A

South               Q762                                          West          North(B)    East            South

Love all            J74                                             -                 -                 -                 1

AK9                                           pass           4NT (1)      pass           5    (2)

pass           6              all pass

9                        N             8765              

A104             W    E          9                           Table B

K862                S              Q953                    West          North(B)    East            South

J8653                                 Q742                   -                 -                 -                 1

                        AQ1032                                    pass           2   (1)      pass           2

KJ853                                       pass           4NT (3)      pass           5   (4)

A10                                           pass           6              all pass

10

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you bid with this North hand B in this week’s quiz? You have a fit and probably enough values for game, but this 4NT is premature as there may be a superior 4-4 (or even 5-4) fit.

(2)  Two keycards + Q.

Table B:     (1)  This North got it right, take it slowly with a (forcing) 2 bid just in case partner has 4 ’s. 2 is incorrect as that promises 5 ’s. It is quite permissible to bid a three card suit in situations like this.

(3)   RKCB for ’s

(4)   Three keycards.

 

And what happened? 6 is cold but a contract should make just 11 tricks. At the Pattaya bridge club defence is not always perfect and the four results were:

6=, 6= and 4+2 twice

 

The bottom lines: -

-         A 4-4 fit is usually better than a 5-3 fit and a 5-4 is even better.

-         A 2 response to a 1 opening promises a five card suit.

-         A 2 response to a 1 opening could well be just a 4 or even 3 card suit.

 

 

 

Dave’s Column       Here is this week’s Dave input involving the best play for the contract.

 

North               South         You are South, declarer in 3NT, plan the play on the 3 lead.

AQ95           KJ

J8                 A542

J865             AK92

973              AQ8                              

                                               

                                                                             

                                               

                                                     


Dave’s Column answer                      Board 27 from Wednesday 2nd  

 

   

Dealer:             AQ95                                         West          North         East            South

South               J8                                               -                 -                 -                 2NT

Love all            J865                                           pass           3             pass           3

                        973                                            pass           3NT           all pass

 

743                     N             10862                   West leads the 3 against your 3NT contract.        

973                 W    E          KQ106                

Q1073               S              4                    (a)  Which card do you play from dummy? 

KJ10                                  6542              (b)  Suppose you play low and East plays the 4,

                        KJ                                              which card do you win with?

A542                                   

AK92                                        

AQ8                                     .            

 

Count your tricks. You have one , three ’s and one and three sure ’s, four if either the 10 drops or if you can get to dummy after you unblock the KJ. If you could somehow take 4 tricks you would have no problem with this hand.

Consider the position. If you play the J at trick one you have blown it – no entry to dummy after unblocking the KJ. So you play low and East’s 4 indicates that West has led from Q1073 and you have three sure tricks in the suit. The point is that you have three sure tricks in the suit even if you win the first trick with the A or K!

By doing just that you will have created a later entry to dummy with the J. After you win the first high, cash the KJ and then the 2nd high and then lead a low towards the Jx. West wins the Q but you have the J entry and 9 tricks without needing a finesse.

 

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? Everybody was in 3NT but just one out of five made it exactly. (+1 twice and -1 twice).

The bottom lines: -

-         Look for creating an entry to a long suit.

 

 

 

Dave’s 2nd Column   Here is Dave’s 2nd input involving the best play for the contract.

 

West                East                You are East, declarer in 6 and South leads the J.

865               A4              Trumps are 2-2, plan the play

A532            KJ10         

KQ75           A10986     

QJ                AK3
Dave’s 2nd Column answer              Board 26 from Wednesday 2nd

 

   

Dealer:             KQ32                                         West          North         East            South

East                  864                                             -                 -                 1              pass

Both vul            J4                                               1              pass           2NT           4

                        10765                                        pass           pass           6              all pass

         

865                     N             A4                  This is the bidding from Dave’s book. It was

A532              W    E          KJ10              not duplicated at the Pattaya bridge club where

KQ75                 S              A10986          nobody ended up in 6.

QJ                                      AK3              

                        J1097                                   Anyway, you are in 6 and trumps are 2-2,

Q97                                      plan the play    

32                                             

9842                                   

                                                           

You have a certain loser and a possible loser. If you finesse ’s and it loses, the opponents will cash their trick.

Hands that have losers in two suits, one of which is inevitable (’s here) and one of which is not (’s here) lend themselves to strip and throw-in plays.

The trick is to give up the trick at such a time that any return costs the defenders a trick. In order to do this you must (1) remove all of the opponents’ safe exit cards and (2) throw them in with a suit that is equally divided between your hand and dummy.

The play here is to win the opening lead, draw trumps and play three round of ’s discarding a from table. This discard of a is the key play of the hand. It now evens out the holding between your hand and dummy. You now give up a and get the rest regardless of who wins.

 

The bottom lines: - Look out for endplays when you have a certain loser and a two-way finesse.

And what happened at the Pattaya bridge Club? Nobody was in 6. Results were 3NT+2, 3NT+3, 4+3, 6NT +1 and 7=.

Terry’s comment. Note that Kantar says that there is a ‘certain’ loser – that is not true if you guess the finesse correctly (as Ian did in 7! and also the declarer in 6NT+1).

 

Bidding Quiz Answers

 

Hand A:     Pass, obviously. If you double partner will take you for 15-17/18 points.

Hand B:     2. There is no need to rush and there may be a superior 4-4 fit. 2 is wrong as that promises q 5-card suit.

 

Bidding Sequence Answers

                               

C     1      pass   1NT   pass      

2NT                                     2NT is about17-18, remember that partner may have only 6 pts.

D     1     pass   1      pass       2 is a weak bid promising 5 ’s and 4 ’s and partner is

1NT   pass   2                    expected to pass or correct unless he has exceptionally good ’s

E      1      pass   2      pass

        3     pass   3                    3 here should be played as forcing.