Club News Sheet – No. 243 www.pattayabridge.com 1^st July 2007

My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 086 6089887

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

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Mon 25^th 1^st Eddie & Lewis 57% 2^nd Paul Sav.. & Mike 55%

Wed 27^th 1^st Terje & Lewis 65% 2^nd Eddie & Jan 61%

Fri 29^th 1^st Bob & Dave 65% 2^nd Torbjorn & Gunn 59%

Bidding Quiz Standard American is assumed unless otherwise stated.

Hand A Hand B With Hand A partner opens 1NT, what do you bid?

♠ 10543 ♠ 86 With Hand B LHO opens 1♣ and RHO bids 1♠

♥ 965 ♥ J1074 (a) What do you do?

♦ A93 ♦ KJ92 (b) Suppose you pass and LHO bids 1NT, this is passed round

♣ KJ7 ♣ A93 to you, what do you do this time?

Hand C Hand D With Hand C you open 1♣ and partner bids 1♠, what do you bid?

♠ AK10 ♠ AKQJ106 With Hand D partner opens: -

♥ 83 ♥ Q94 (a) a weak 2♦, what do you bid?

♦ Q1084 ♦ 6 (b) a weak 3♦, what do you bid?

♣ KJ105 ♣ J84

Hand E Hand F What do you open with Hand E?

♠ A62 ♠ A62

♥ KJ5 ♥ K5 What do you open with Hand F?

♦ AQ96 ♦ AQJ963

♣ AK3 ♣ AK

Hand G Hand H With Hand G you are playing the Multi 2♦ and so elect to open

a weak 3♦ (I have no problem with that). Partner bids 3♠, what

♠ 82 ♠ QJ64 do you do now?

♥ 107 ♥ AK

♦ KQJ1042 ♦ A75 With Hand H you open 1NT and partner transfers with 2♥,

♣ A109 ♣ K1072 what do you bid?

Hand J Hand K With Hand J partner opens 1♦ and you bid 1♥. Partner bids

1NT (12-14), what do you do?

♠ J73 ♠ AQJ96

♥ Q952 ♥ AQ94 With Hand K partner opens 3♦, what do you bid?

♦ 8653 ♦ J

♣ K5 ♣ KQ8

Bidding Sequences Quiz

L 3♦ pass 3♠ pass 3♦ is pre-emptive, is 3♠ forcing?

M 1♦ pass 1♠ pass Is the jump to 3♠ forcing?

2♣ pass 3♠

N 1♦ pass 1♠ pass 2♥ is 4^th suit forcing, is 3♠ forcing?

2♣ pass 2♥ pass

2NT pass 3♠

P 1♣ pass 1♠ pass Does the 2♠ bid guarantee 4 card ♠ support?

2♠

Q 1♦ pass 1♥ pass Is 3♥ weak or forcing?

3♦ pass 3♥

A ridiculous reverse Board 16 from Wednesday 27^th

Dealer: ♠ 8432 Table A

West ♥ 2 West North East South

E-W vul ♦ 10864 1♦ (1) pass 1♠ 1NT (2)

♣ 9873 2♥ (3) pass 3♥ (4) all pass

♠ A N ♠ QJ975 Table B

♥ Q10763 W E ♥ A94 West North East South

♦ KQ975 S ♦ J 1♥ (1) pass 1♠ pass (2)

♣ Q10 ♣ 6542 2♦ (3) pass 2♥ all pass

♠ K106

♥ KJ85

♦ A32

♣ AKJ

Table A: (1) I did not bother to put this opening bid in the quiz as it’s so trivial. Quite why anybody would want to open 1♦ instead of 1♥ is totally beyond my comprehension.

(2) With a balanced hand in the Sandwich seat it’s best to keep quiet – if West decided to double then South would be in deep trouble.

(3) Total nonsense of course, this reverse promises 5 ♦’s and just 4 ♥’s with 16 + points. But the with that holding he should surely double 1NT!

(4) East obviously expects about 16+ points opposite and the 2♥ reverse is forcing, 3♥ here is fairly clear – weakish if you do not play Lebensohl in this situation.

Table B: (1) Everybody else opened the hand sensibly.

(2) This South had the sense to keep quiet

(3) And the simple rebid kept the level safe.

And what happened? 3♥ went two down for a totally deserved bottom for West. Everybody else was in 2♥ making 8 or 9 tricks. 1NT doubled by South would have gone one or two down. The bottom lines: -

- A reverse shows 16+ points and is forcing.

- A reverse guarantees more cards in the first bid suit.

The Club Championships The current standings are: -

Gold Cup = Best 30 Silver plate = Best 10 Bronze medal = Best 5

1816.8 Janne Roos 666.8 Janne Roos 350.4 Janne Roos

1779.6 Jan v Koss 650.5 Jan v Koss 340.2 Jan v Koss

1755.7 Dave Cutler 634.5 Lars Gustaffson 336.2 Bengt Malmgren

630.9 Paul Savelkral 332.9 Paul Savelkral

627.2 Dave Cutler 325.6 Gunnar Barthel

Deduct a point for 4333 type shape Board 1 from Wednesday 27^th

Dealer: ♠ 2 Table A

North ♥ AJ1082 West North East(A) South

Love all ♦ J107 - pass pass pass

♣ 10864 1NT pass 2♣ (1) pass

2♠ pass 3♠ pass

♠ J987 N ♠ 10543 4♠ (2) all pass

♥ K3 W E ♥ 965

♦ KQ854 S ♦ A93 Table B

♣ AQ ♣ KJ7 West North East(A) South

♠ AKQ6 - pass pass pass

♥ Q74 1NT pass pass (1) pass

♦ 62

♣ 9532 Table C

West North East South

- 2♦ (3) pass 2♥ (4)

2NT pass 3NT (5) all pass

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this East hand A in this week’s quiz? Everybody should know my opinions by now – knock off a point for the 4333 shape and it’s not worth an invite (via 2♣).

(2) With this absolute minimum West should pass.

Table B: (1) I was East at this table. I was calling for dummies and then went to the West seat to play the hand. I got the ♥J lead and was just about to claim 9 tricks when a late pair walked in. So I let them take over and bid the hand again. They bid as table A and went two down in 4♠.

Table C: (3) A rather off-beat Multi 2♦.

(4) With support for both majors, South should bid 3♥.

(5) West’s 2NT overcall is 15-18 and so I suppose that bidding game is reasonable. Also, East knows that there may be a bad ♠ split if there is a 4-4 ♠ fit (because of the opening bid) and so he chose 3NT rather than looking for 4♠ via Stayman 3♣.

And what happened? 3NT got a ♥ lead and so a fortunate 400 for a clear top. 4♠ was bid twice and went -2 and -3 (doubled). One pair stopped safely in 2♠ for a decent score but I don’t know the bidding. The bottom lines.

- Knock off a point for the totally flat 4333 type shape.

- If you want to play the Multi – then understand it (bid 3♥ at (4)).

Too strong for 2NT Board 23 from Wednesday 27^th

Everybody missed the comfortable slam on this deal: -

Dealer: ♠ QJ43 Table A

South ♥ 983 West(F) North East South

both vul ♦ 104 - - - pass

♣ J643 2NT (1) pass 3♣ (2) pass

3♦ pass 3NT all pass

♠ A62 N ♠ K1098

♥ K5 W E ♥ AQ76 ‘Expert’ Table

♦ AQJ963 S ♦ 82 West(F) North East South

♣ AK ♣ Q82 - - - pass

♠ 75 2♣ (1) pass 2♦ (3) pass

♥ J1042 2NT (4) pass 3♣ (5) pass

♦ K75 3♦ (6) pass 4NT (7) pass

♣ 10975 6NT (8) all pass

Table A: (1) What did you open with this West hand F in this week’s quiz? This hand is much too strong for 2NT (20-21).

(2) East has values for just game and so obviously starts with Stayman.

‘Expert’ (1) Our experts know all about hand evaluation and this hand is easily worth a 2♣

Table: opener (followed by 2NT).

(3) Waiting

(4) 22-24, which is what this hand is worth.

(5) Stayman

(6) No 4-card major.

(7) Quantitative – asking opener to pass or bid 6NT.

(8) With the knowledge that partner has around 11 points West’s hand improves. Every suit will probably be stopped twice so even if partner does not have the ♦K (or if it’s offside) there will still probably be 5 ♦ tricks and 12 total tricks. This 6-card ♦ suit is enormous.

And what happened? The board was played 3 times; everybody made 3 or 4 overtricks in 3NT.

The bottom lines.

- Upgrade a hand with an excellent 6 card suit.

- If you opened 2NT with both Hands E and F in this week’s quiz then you need to read up on hand evaluation. There’s a section on the web – Hand Evaluation in the links column.

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

North South You are North, playing in 6♥. You win the ♠10 lead and try a ♥

♠ A4 ♠ KJ to the ♥J which wins with East dropping the ♥8.

♥ Q9643 ♥ AJ52 You try the ♥A but the ♥K does not drop.

♦ K853 ♦ A972 You appear to have a ♥ and a ♦ loser, how do you try to

♣ K7 ♣ AQ5 make the contract?

Dave’s Column answer Board 13 from Wednesday 27^th

Dealer: ♠ A4 West North East South

North ♥ Q9643 - 1♥ pass 2NT (1)

Both vul ♦ K853 pass 3♥ (2) pass 4NT (3)

♣ K7 pass 5♦ pass 6♥

all pass

♠ Q7652 N ♠ 10983

♥ 8 W E ♥ K107 (1) Jacoby 2NT

♦ Q106 S ♦ J4 (2) Showing an average opening with no shortage.

♣ 10643 ♣ J982 (3) RKCB

♠ KJ (4) One key card

♥ AJ52

♦ A972 East leads the ♠10 against 6♥, how do you

♣ AQ5 tackle the play?

When you cannot completely eliminate one of the side suits you may be able to remove the cards of one particular defender. You can then throw him on lead, forcing him to give you a ruff and discard.

You win the ♠ lead with the ♠A and lead a trump to the ♥J. If a singleton 10 appears from West your ♥Q9 will be good for a finesse against East’s ♥K. As it is, only the ♥8 appears from West. You therefore continue with the ♥A, discovering that you have a trump loser. Since there is an apparent loser in ♦’s, however the ♦’s lie, you may think that defeat is imminent.

♠ - Not at all! You play the ♦K and continue with a low

♥ Q96 ♦ towards the ♦A. You then play the ♠K followed by

♦ 8 3 rounds of ♣’s on which you throw a ♦ loser.

♣ - This is then the position.

You now play a trump, throwing East on lead. Since

♠ 76 N ♠ 98 East does not hold the outstanding ♦Q he has to

♥ - W E ♥ K return a black suit, conceding a ruff and discard.

♦ Q S ♦ - You ruff in dummy and throw the ♦8 from hand.

♣ 10 ♣ J Slam made.

♠ -

♥ 52 And what happened at the Pattaya bridge Club?

♦ 97 Two made the slam and one went down. Dave says

♣ - that a trump was led by West at one table and East rose with the ♥K (so then there’s no trump loser) and that at another a ♠ was led when East eventually won with the ♥K although the ♦’s had not been eliminated.

The bottom lines: -

- If you cannot completely eliminate a suit, a partial elimination may succeed.

- The bidding was that of a pair playing the Jacoby 2NT convention which is written up in the conventions folder and is on the web.

- A singleton trump is not usually a good lead.

- At the table when West led the ♥8, East should have looked at the spots and covered the ♥9 with the ♥10, thus ensuring a trump trick.

Super-Accept! Board 25 from Wednesday 27^th

Dealer: ♠ A5 Table A

North ♥ 1098 West(H) North East South

E-W vul ♦ Q86 - pass pass pass

♣ AJ985 1NT pass 2♥ pass

2♠ (1) pass pass (2) pass

♠ QJ64 N ♠ K10873

♥ AK W E ♥ 732 Table B

♦ A75 S ♦ K932 West(H) North East South

♣ K1072 ♣ 4 - pass pass pass

♠ 92 1NT pass 2♥ pass

♥ QJ654 3♠ (1) pass 4♠ (3) all pass

♦ J104

♣ Q63

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this West hand H in this week’s quiz? If you lazily just complete the transfer you will miss games!

(2) East has no idea that partner is max with a 5-4 ♠ fit and so passes, as would I.

Table B: (1) This West got it right, with a maximum and 4 trumps you should super-accept a transfer

(3) With the knowledge of the great fit and this shapely hand, East has no problem bidding game opposite a super-accept.

And what happened? The board was played 5 times; everybody made 10 tricks but only two pairs bid 4♠.

The bottom lines.

- Super-accepts are clearly explained in the no Trump bidding book.

A new suit response to partner’s pre-empt Board 10 from Friday 29^th

There was a heated discussion about sequence L (3♦ - 3♠ - pass). Ivy thought that it was forcing but Eddie categorically stated that it was not. More about it next page.

Dealer: ♠ 74 Table A

East ♥ K8632 West(D) North East South

both vul ♦ A98 - - 2♦ pass

♣ K73 2♠ (1) pass pass (2) pass

♠ AKQJ106 N ♠ 82 Table B

♥ Q94 W E ♥ 107 West(D) North East(G) South

♦ 6 S ♦ KQJ1042 - - 3♦ (3) pass

♣ J84 ♣ A109 3♠ (4) pass pass (5) pass

♠ 953

♥ AJ5

♦ 753

♣ Q652

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this West hand D(a) in this week’s quiz? You have nice ♠’s and 2♠ may possibly score more than 2♦ - but you should pass. The problem is that 2♠ is forcing (RONF) and there is little chance of game.

(2) East thought that 2♠ was a weak bid.

Table B: (3) This pair play a Multi 2♦ and so East chose to open 3♦, fine.

(2) What did you bid with this West hand D(b) in this week’s quiz? This is a very similar problem to (1) above and a 3♠ bid here is game forcing. Pass is correct.

(3) What did you open with this West hand G in this week’s quiz? You cannot pass as 3♠ is forcing; the sensible options are 4♣ (to show the ♣A) or 3NT. I would prefer better ♠’s to bid 4♣ and would choose 3NT. This East, Eddie, considers 3♠ to be a weak bid and passed.

And what happened? The results are irrelevant, but a discussion ensued at Table B as to whether 3♠ was forcing or not. Jan bid 3♠ and I believe he meant it as forcing. Eddie claimed that 3♠ is to play and Ivy disagreed. Sally sided decidedly with Eddie and Ivy asked for my opinion.

I stated that 3♠ is 100% forcing and Eddie was equally belligerent that it was not (backed up by Sally). I wandered over to my bag and produced the book: -

-1- “Standard Bidding with SAYC” and showed Eddie the section on page 89 which states:

‘If the pre-empt is in a minor suit, then 3♥ and 3♠ are forcing to game in the major or 3NT’

Eddie was not interested, stating that he does not play that system. That was the only bidding book I had with me but I promised to let everybody know what other books say: -

-2- “Standard Bridge Bidding for the 21^st century” states on page 172 states: ‘A new suit by responder is forcing. When responder bids a new suit, opener raises when possible, bids a new suit to show a value, or repeats the suit of the pre-empt when that is the most descriptive call.’

These are the two major bidding books on Standard American, but I assume that Eddie would like me to find the same in an Acol book? I normally refer to Crowhurst’s “Precision Bidding in Acol” but that does not mention responses to pre-empts.

-3- But his more recent book “Acol Index” does and on page 63 he states ‘The bid of a new suit at the three level (eg 3♦ - 3♠) is forcing, showing a good 5 card or longer suit and seeking a playable game contract.’

-4- The very recent “Bridge with Brunner” (an Acol book) states on page 111 ‘… except for a change of suit being forcing for one round there are no hard and fast rules …’

-5- “Bridge for Beginners” is a very comprehensive Acol book by Zia Mahmood. On page 115 he states ‘If you, as responder, bid a new suit at the three level over partner’s pre-empt, it is a forcing bid and partner will have to bid again.’

So if you play Standard American, two-over one or Acol it makes no difference. I also have: -

-6- “Step-by-step Pre-empts”, a book solely about pre-empting. On page 26 Alan Mould simply states ‘New suits are forcing for one round’.

The bottom lines: -

- A new suit opposite partner’s two or three level pre-empt is forcing. Period. Six quotes should be enough to convince even the most adamant of disbelievers that I am right?

- All of the above books are in the library if you want to read them (or think that I am just making it all up?).

- It looks like the only point for discussion is whether the bid is forcing for one round or game forcing, either way it’s 100% forcing.

- Many people (usually Chuck) have tried (and failed) to prove me wrong when I make a resolute statement about bidding. Reminds me of the sequence Q, 1♦ - 1♥ - 3♦ - 3♥, which was discussed in news-sheets 51 and 77. It is forcing but nobody in the club (including Chuck, Eddie and Hans) believed me until I quoted a few books.

Support partner Board 6 from Friday 29^th

Dealer: ♠ A104 Table A

East ♥ K103 West North East(J) South

E-W vul ♦ 94 - - pass pass

♣ Q9764 1♦ (1) pass 1♥ pass

1NT pass pass (2) pass

♠ K65 N ♠ J73

♥ 74 W E ♥ Q952 Table B

♦ KQJ10 S ♦ 8653 West North East(J) South

♣ AJ108 ♣ K5 - - pass pass

♠ Q982 1♦ pass 1♥ pass

♥ AJ86 1NT pass 2♦ (2) all pass

♦ A72

♣ 32

Table A: (1) I would open 1♣.

(2) What did you bid with this East hand J in this week’s quiz? I much prefer the bid chosen at Table B.

Table B: (1) This West also ignores my continual advice and opened 1♦.

(2) With a balanced hand it’s often best to play in 1NT rather than 2 of a minor, but with such a weak hand there is no chance of an overtrick and 2♦ is almost certain to play better than 1NT which may well go down. Nice bid Gene.

And what happened? There were the usual spurious scores but 2♦ was indeed easily the best spot; only this one pair found it.

The bottom lines.

- Support with support. The 4-4 fit usually gets an extra trick and with minimal values it’s safer than No Trumps.

- If West had opened 1♣ then the bidding would have gone 1♣ - 1♦ - 2♦.

A Merrimac Coup lead? Board 1 from Friday 29^th

Dealer: ♠ AKQJ10 West North East South

North ♥ Q863 - 2♣ pass 2♦

Love all ♦ A8 pass 2♠ pass 2NT (1)

♣ AK pass 4♣ (2) pass 5♥

pass 6NT all pass

♠ 7542 N ♠ 863

♥ K4 W E ♥ J1052 (1) I prefer 3♦.

♦ KQ S ♦ 1062 (2) Gerber, apparently North was expecting

♣ Q7654 ♣ J108 more for partner’s 2NT bid.

♠ 9

♥ A97 So N-S were propelled into a seemingly hopeless

♦ J97543 6NT slam. At other tables 3NT by North was making

♣ 932 just 9 or 10 tricks on the normal ♥2 lead from East.

But at this table South was declarer and that meant that on the layout 6NT is making unless West finds the extraordinary lead of the ♥K! He did not of course and 6NT made.
Raise partner’s response with 3-card support? Board 19 from Wednesday 27^th

Dealer: ♠ AK10 Table A

South ♥ 83 West(B) North(C) East South

E-W vul ♦ Q1084 - 1♣ pass 1♠

♣ KJ105 pass (1) 1NT (2) pass pass

pass (3)

♠ 86 N ♠ 9752

♥ J1074 W E ♥ AK62 Table B

♦ KJ92 S ♦ 763 West North(C) East South

♣ A93 ♣ Q8 - 1♣ pass 1♠

♠ QJ43 pass (1) 2♠ (2) pass pass

♥ Q95 pass (4)

♦ A5

♣ 7642

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this West hand B(a) in this week’s quiz? You have the two unbid suits but this is nowhere near good enough for a take-out double, especially in the sandwich seat when both opponents are unlimited and you could well go for a huge vulnerable number.

(2) What did you bid with this North hand C in this week’s quiz? A balanced 13 count – so 1NT of course? That’s certainly what Dave would say but I disagree and agree with the bid chosen at Table B.

(3) What did you bid with this West hand B(b) in this week’s quiz? You were not able to double last go but it’s the perfect bid now. It’s no longer the sandwich seat but the balancing seat; both opponents are limited and partner hopefully has a red suit that you can safely compete in. E-W can probably make 3♥ if pushed but even one down would be a good score.

Table B: (2) This North (Lewis) got question C right, with three good trumps it is usually best to support partner’s major suit response rather than bidding 1NT if you have a weak doubleton. This is especially true in this situation when partner has denied 4 ♥’s and you have a weak doubleton ♥. Even if it turns out to be a Moysian (4-3) fit that will still probably be better than 1NT as you can take a ♥ force with a trump in the short trump hand.

(4) And note the other effect of the excellent 2♠ bid at (2), West is in the balancing seat as at (3) above but if he competes here then he is forcing partner to bid at the three level which may be dangerous.

And what happened? Lewis/Terje at Table B got a top for 2♠ +1. Two pairs played in 1NT, one made +1 for 2^nd score and one went down. The final pair were somehow way too high in 3NT.

The bottom lines.

- A response of 1♥/♠ only promises 4 cards so a raise usually also shows 4 cards.

- But this is not always so, and it’s best to raise with good 3 card support if you have a weak doubleton.

- Raising a 1♠ response to 2♠ may prevent the opponents from finding their ♥ fit.

Bidding Quiz Answers

Hand A: Pass. Knock off a point for the totally flat shape and it’s not worth an invitation (via 2♣ Stayman).

Hand B: (a) Pass. You have the unbid suits but nowhere near enough points to double in the sandwich seat with two unlimited opponents.

(b) Dbl. Now the situation is totally different. You are now in the balancing seat with both opponents limited. Partner has values and hopefully there is a red suit fit.

Hand C: 2♠. With excellent 3 card ♠ support and a very weak ♥ suit (in which partner has presumably denied 4 cards) this is much better then a 1NT response. Even if it’s a 4-3 fit it will probably play better as you can take a ♥ ruff in the short trump hand. And bidding 2♠ will make it more difficult for the opponents to find their ♥ fit.

Hand D: (a) Pass. You do not have values to look for game and 2♠ would be forcing. 2♠ may well score better than 2♦ but you can never play there.

(b) Pass. It’s the same problem - 3♠ is forcing and you do not have game values.

Hand E: 2NT. A balanced 21 points, so easy.

Hand F: 2♣. If you gave the same answer to this question and the previous one then have another look at the two hands. If you think that they are the same, 21 points so open 2NT, then have another look – this Hand F is much stronger.

Hand G: 3NT. 4♣ (to show a ♣ feature) is an option but I would prefer better ♠’s. 4♦ would show a weaker hand (say with no ♣A) and certainly a 7 card ♦ suit. The one bid that is not an option is pass – partner’s 3♠ is forcing.

Hand H: 3♠. With a maximum and four trumps you should super-accept.

Hand J: 2♦. You have a 4-4 or 5-4 ♦ fit and no chance of making overtricks in No Trumps, so go for the safer contract.

Hand K: 3♠, forcing and seeking the best game contract.

Bidding Sequence Answers

L 3♦ pass 3♠ pass 3♠ is absolutely forcing, and most play game forcing.

M 1♦ pass 1♠ pass 3♠ is invitational

2♣ pass 3♠

N 1♦ pass 1♠ pass 3♠ is forcing; introducing the 4^th suit is the way to make

2♣ pass 2♥ pass sequence M forcing.

2NT pass 3♠

P 1♣ pass 1♠ pass 2♠ is usually 4 card support, but not always. It may well be

2♠ just three good ♠’s with a weak doubleton as with Hand C.

Q 1♦ pass 1♥ pass 3♥ is game forcing. It is discussed in detail in news-sheets

3♦ pass 3♥ 51 and 77.