Our website is www.pattayabridge.com Club News Sheet – No. 270

Our blogsite is www.pattayabridge.wordpress.com

My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 083 6066880 13^th Jan 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

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Mon 7^th N-S 1^st Bjorn & Knud 57% 2^nd Jim & Nigel 57%

E-W 1^st Dave & Terry 63% 2^nd Derek & Gerard 59%

Wed 9^th N-S 1^st Willy & Guta 65% 2^nd Phil & Tomas 64%

E-W 1^st Gererd & Derek 65% 2^nd Britta & Kenneth 58%

Fri 11^th N-S 1^st Olaf & Oli O 65% 2^nd Gene & Paul Sc. 53%

E-W 1^st Dave & Royd 72% 2^nd Alan & Kaare 61%

Bidding Quiz Standard American is assumed unless otherwise stated.

Hand A Hand B What do you open with Hand A?

♠ Q ♠ AKJ73 With Hand B partner opens 1♦ and RHO overcalls 1♠

♥ 1073 ♥ Q7 (a) What do you bid? (b) Suppose you pass, partner doubles

♦ AKQJ1097 ♦ 873 and this is passed round to LHO who bids 2♥. This is passed round

♣ 52 ♣ 1053 to you, what do you do now?

Hand C Hand D With Hand C you open 1NT and partner raises to 2NT, what

do you do?

♠ A105 ♠ AJ9762

♥ AKQ10 ♥ Q109 With Hand D you open 1♠, LHO overcalls 2♦, partner bids 2♥

♦ 103 ♦ 2 and RHO bids 3♦, what do you bid?

♣ Q1072 ♣ AQ9

Hand E Hand F With Hand E partner opens 1NT, what do you do?

♠ J4 ♠ K2

♥ 7643 ♥ AJ532 With Hand F you open 1♥ and partner raises to 2♥. RHO

♦ 762 ♦ Q32 then overcalls 2♠, what do you do?

♣ AK65 ♣ K32

Bidding Sequence quiz

G 2NT pass 3♣ pass (a) What is 3♣?

3♥ pass 3NT (b) How many ♠’s does responder have?

H 2NT pass 3♣ pass What is 3NT?

3NT

When your hand Improves Board 25 from Monday 7^th

Hand evaluation is not just a matter of adding up points. Shape and a fit with partner are very important and the value of your hand may change with the bidding. Here is a typical example where West's hand improved to such an extent during the auction that he was able to confidently bid game with a combined 23 points.

Dealer: ♠ 84 West(D) North East South

North ♥ 52 - pass pass pass

E-W vul ♦ AJ764 1♠ 2♦ 2♥ (1) 3♦

♣ K1084 4♥ (2) all pass

♠ AJ9762 N ♠ KQ (1) Promising 5 ♥’s of course.

♥ Q109 W E ♥ KJ843 (2) What did you bid with this West hand D in this

♦ 2 S ♦ 983 week’s quiz? Partner’s response at the two

♣ AQ9 ♣ J32 level promises 10-11 + points and a 5 card suit.

♠ 1053 A raise to 3♥ would normally be enough but

♥ A76 with both opponents bidding ♦’s this hand

♦ KQ105 has improved immensely and is worth 4♥.

♣ 765

And what happened? Three pairs bid game, the other four did not and need to study this article.

The bottom lines: -

- If you have a fit with partner then your hand improves if you have shortage in the opponents’ suit.

Qui Culpa? Board 7 from Monday 7^th

N-S went for a big penalty on a partscore deal, who would you blame?

Dealer: ♠ KQ76 West North East South

South ♥ 76 - - - 1♦

both vul ♦ 62 1♥ 1♠ (1) pass 1NT

♣ Q10653 2♣ pass 2♥ 2♠ (2)

pass pass dbl all pass

♠ 84 N ♠ A9532

♥ QJ943 W E ♥ K2 (1) If you play negative doubles then this hand

♦ 109 S ♦ QJ53 should double to show 4 ♠’s (so a 1♠ bid here

♣ AK98 ♣ J2 promises 5 ♠’s), but I believe that this North

♠ J10 was unfamiliar with this treatment.

♥ A1085 (2) South assumed that North had 5 ♠’s, but even

♦ AK874 so this is a very poor bid. The opponents are

♣ 74 obviously in a 5-2 fit and this hand has excellent defence against a ♥ contract. The opponents have bid one above ‘The Law’ and this 2♠ bid is also one above the law.

And what happened? 2♠ doubled went for 500.

The bottom lines: -

- Obey The Law of Total tricks, especially if vulnerable against competent opponents.

- Understand Negative Doubles.

Doubling mode – part 1 Board 27 from Monday 7^th

After an opening, double and redouble, the opening side is usually looking for a penalty.

Dealer: ♠ A82 West North East South

South ♥ 8765 - - - pass

Love all ♦ 32 1♦ (1) dbl (2) redbl (3) 2♠ (4)

♣ AQ87 dbl (5) all pass

♠ KJ75 N ♠ 93 (1) It’s one short for the rule of 20, but the great

♥ 103 W E ♥ KQJ4 ♦ suit and all of the points in the long suits

♦ AJ10986 S ♦ Q74 make it a sound opener in my opinion.

♣ 4 ♣ KJ95 (2) With a 3-card major and the 4-carder headed

♠ Q1064 by the eight, this is a dubious double.

♥ A92 (3) 9+ points, usually a mis-fit.

♦ K5 (4) South enquired about the redouble and was

♣ 10632 told as above. He unwisely decided to show his 9 points with a jump. Perhaps he should have taken the caliber of his partner and the opposition (me and Dave) into account?

(5) My favorite bid.

And what happened? 2♠ doubled went for 800.

The bottom lines: -

- Be cautious if there appear to be 50 points in the deck?

Doubling mode – part 2 Board 15 from Monday 7^th

But even when in doubling mode – do not make a penalty double with just two trumps: -

Dealer: ♠ 109864 West North East(B) South

South ♥ KJ65 - - - pass

N-S vul ♦ K 1♦ (1) 1♠ pass (2) pass

♣ A62 dbl (3) pass pass 2♥

pass (4) pass dbl (5) all pass

♠ Q5 N ♠ AKJ73

♥ A8 W E ♥ Q7 (1) A (strong) 1NT is an off-beat alternative.

♦ QJ10954 S ♦ 873 (2) What did you bid with this East hand B(a) in this

♣ KQ7 ♣ 1053 week’s quiz? Playing negative doubles pass is

♠ 2 correct (and pass partner’s re-opening double).

♥ 109432 (3) Automatic

♦ A62 (4) I do not have good enough ♥’s to double.

♣ J984 (5) What did you bid with this East hand B(b) in

this week’s quiz? With just two ♥’s double is a poor choice. Since partner has shown no ♥ values and no more than a minimum, pass or 3♦ is best.

And what happened? 2♥ doubled made +2 for 1070 and a clear top to N-S.

In the post-mortem, East attempted to justify his double by suggesting that West could have had North’s ♥’s. That is untrue, with decent ♥’s West would have doubled at (4), just as he did at (5) in the previous deal.

The bottom lines: -

- Do not make a penalty double with just two trumps, , especially if the opponents appear to have a fit.

Missing the 4-4 major suit fit – part 1 Board 5 from Monday 31^st Dec

Dealer: ♠ K973 Table A

North ♥ 52 West(E) North East(C) South

N-S vul ♦ Q984 - pass 1NT pass

♣ J93 2NT (1) pass 3NT (2) all pass

♠ J4 N ♠ A105 Table B

♥ 7643 W E ♥ AKQ10 West(E) North East(C) South

♦ 762 S ♦ 103 - pass 1NT pass

♣ AK65 ♣ Q1072 2♣ (1) pass 2♥ pass

♠ Q862 3♥ pass 4♥ (3) all pass

♥ J98

♦ AKJ5

♣ 84

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this West hand E in this week’s quiz? Actually this is quite a decent eight points (AK in a 4-card suit is a big plus). The hand is worth a try for game but you should not deny a 4-card major (even if it is only 7-high).

(2) What did you bid with this East hand C in this week’s quiz? It’s only 15 HCPs but the four tens make it a maximum and worth accepting.

Table B: (1) This West got it right, bid Stayman and then invite.

(3) A clear accept for the same reasons as (2) above.

And what happened? Only these two pairs reached game. 1NT was passed out at three tables and the other contracts were 2♥ and 3♥. Everybody made game.

The bottom lines: -

- With a good 8 points, invite opposite a 1NT opener and don’t worry about weak suits.

- Four tens are worth a couple of points.

Missing the 4-4 major suit fit – part 2 Board 24 from Friday 4^th Jan

Dealer: ♠ Q1074 Table A

West ♥ Q876 West North East South

Love all ♦ 103 - - - 2NT

♣ 852 pass 3♣ (1) pass 3NT (2)

all pass

♠ 83 N ♠ J62

♥ K10 W E ♥ 432 Table B

♦ QJ982 S ♦ A765 West North East South

♣ J964 ♣ Q103 - - - 2NT

♠ AK95 pass 3♣ (1) pass 3♥ (2)

♥ AJ95 pass 4♥ all pass

♦ K4

♣ AK7

Table A: (1) With two majors it’s totally obvious to bid Stayman.

(2) But two South’s actually bid 3NT here! One did not understand that 3♣ was Stayman and the other had some ill-conceived notion that 3NT showed both majors!

Table B: (2) Obvious.

And what happened? This should be a trivial hand, but no less that three out of eight ended up in the ridiculous 3NT, all going down when 4♥ (or 4♠) is cold.

The bottom lines: -

- Unless you agree something to the contrary (like Baron 3♣), 3♣ over 2NT is Stayman.

- The Idea of responding to Stayman (either 2♣ over 1NT or 3♣ over 2NT) with a NoTrump bid to show both majors is total nonsense. Apart from anything else, the wrong hand will end up as declarer.

A classic gambling 3NT Board 20 from Monday 31^st Dec

Dealer: ♠ J43 Table A

West ♥ KQ982 West(A) North East South

Both vul ♦ 83 1♦ (1) pass 1♠ pass

♣ J98 2♦ (2) pass 3♠ pass

5♦ (3) all pass

♠ Q N ♠ A10976

♥ 1073 W E ♥ A5 Table B

♦ AKQJ1097 S ♦ 642 West North East South

♣ 52 ♣ A64 3NT (1) pass pass (4) pass

♠ K852

♥ J64

♦ 5

♣ KQ1073

Table A: (1) What did you open with this West hand A in this week’s quiz? If you chose 1♦ then you really need to read up on the Gambling 3NT.

(2) Timid with 7 playing tricks!

(3) 5-of-a-minor is rarely the correct contract, and this is no exception.

Table B: (1) A classic 3NT opener.

(4) With every suit stopped and a ♦ entry, East obviously passes.

And what happened? Three out of seven apparently do not know about the gambling 3NT and all ended up in 5♦ to share the bottom when it made exactly (3NT makes +1).

The bottom lines: -

- The gambling 3NT is described on the website.

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

North South You are South, declarer in 6♥ after West has opened with a

♠ AJ84 ♠ 75 weak 2♠. West leads the ♠K, how do you play?

♥ K743 ♥ A10986

♦ AKQ ♦ J65

♣ AQ ♣ K86

Dave’s Column answer Board 8 from Wednesday 9^th

Dealer: ♠ AJ84 West North East South

North ♥ K743 2♠ dbl pass 4♥

Love all ♦ AKQ pass 4NT pass 5♦

♣ AQ pass 6♥ all pass

♠ KQ10632 N ♠ 9 How do you play in 6♥ when West leads the ♠K?

♥ 2 W E ♥ QJ5

♦ 742 S ♦ 10983 Suppose you win with the ♠A and then play two

♣ J94 ♣ 107532 trumps, discovering that you have a trump loser. If

♠ 75 you can cash all of your minor suit cards you will be

♥ A10986 able to throw East in with a trump and he will have

♦ J65 to give you a ruff and discard. Unfortunately, the

♣ K86 ♣ suit is blocked. After playing the ♣A,Q you will

have no entry to the South hand to cash the ♣K.

You have to play the ♣A,Q before playing the 2^nd round of trumps to your ♥A. You can then cash the ♣K followed by three ♦’s. East is doomed. You throw him in with his master trump and he has to give you a ruff and discard.

And what happened? Five pairs bid the slam and all went one down. The other three pairs were in 4♥+1 twice and 3NT +2.

The bottom lines: -

- Sometimes you can force a defender to give you a ruff and discard.

Dave’s 2^nd Column Board 6 from Wednesday 9^th

This article from Dave’s book is all about the ‘Law of Total Tricks’.

Dealer: ♠ 962 Table A

North ♥ A954 West North East South

Love all ♦ 875 - pass 1♠ 2♥ (1)

♣ J107 2♠ pass (2) pass dbl (3)

pass 3♥ pass pass

♠ Q873 N ♠ AKJ104 3♠ (4) pass

♥ K2 W E ♥ 76

♦ J64 S ♦ Q103 Book Auction

♣ K832 ♣ A65 West North East South

♠ 5 - pass 1♠ 2♥ (1)

♥ QJ1083 2♠ 3♥ (2) pass pass

♦ AK92 3♠ (4) all pass

♣ Q94

Table A: (1) This is a much better bid than double.

(2) Quite why North did not raise is beyond me.

(3) Take-out, showing 5 ♥’s and playable in the other two suits.

(4) Obeying ‘The Law’

Table B: (2) This North made the obvious raise.

This is what Dave’s book says about the deal: -

On many competitive deals you side will have a good fit in one suit and the opponents will have a good fit in another. How high should you compete? A sound general rule is that you should bid to the level dictated by the total number of trumps that you and partner hold. With 9 trumps between you, compete to the 9-trick level. Strange as it may seem, the total number of trumps is more important (in making a decision to bid on or not) than the number of points you may hold. Why is that? Extra high cards will increase the chance of you making your own contract, yes, but they will also assist in beating any enemy contract. So, holding an extra ace or king is not necessarily a reason to bid higher (assuming that you are still at the part-score level). You might do better to extract a penalty from the opponent’s contract.

In the deal above, E-W hold 9 ♠’s between them and should therefore be willing to compete to the three level. How will they fare in 3♠? They will actually go one down, losing two ♦’s, two ♥’s and one ♣. Does that mean that they were wrong to compete so high? Not at all, because N-S would have made their contract of 3♥. Thus N-S would lose 50 (or 100 if doubled) instead of 140.

You may think that success or failure of key finesses will have a bearing on this matter. Not necessarily! Suppose that East held the ♥K instead of West. South’s contract of 3♥ would then have gone one down (losing two ♣’s and one trick in each of the other suits). It would still have been correct for West to bid 3♠, though, because with the ♥K in the East hand, East would have made 9 tricks playing in 3♠.

The same logic applies when you move a high card from one side to the other. Suppose you swap South’s ♣Q with East’s ♣5. The N-S contract of 3♥ would now fail even though the ♥ finesse was right. They would lose one ♠, one ♦ and three ♣’s. Once again though, it would be worthwhile for E-W to compete to 3♠ because they would make the contract, losing only two ♥’s and two ♦’s.

One deal proves nothing and you may suspect that I have chosen it specially to justify the concept of bidding to the level dictated by the total number of trumps. No, the concept of ‘total trumps’ is one aspect of the Law of Total Tricks – a highly respected dictum that links the number of tricks available to the total number of trumps.

It’s time to see how you can take advantage of the knowledge that you should bid to the three-level when holding 9 trumps between you. Look back to the previous deal, If West is playing a system where his partner promises 5 cards for the 1♠ opening, he already knows that his side holds at least nine trumps. He should bid to the three-level immediately. His will put great pressure on North, the fourth player to bid. When your partner’s opening is overcalled, you should play this scheme:

After a start of West North East South

1♠ 2♣ ?

East can express a ♠ raise with any of these bids:

2♠ 6-9 points and only three card support

3♣ 10+ points and 4 card support

3♠ 6-9 points and 4 card support.

4♣/♦/♥ splinter

4♠ 6-9 points and 5 card support.

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? Only two tables out of eight got it right (3♠ - 1). Two E-W’s bid too high to 4♠, two N-S’s bid too high to 4♥, and two E-W’s were left to play peacefully in 3♠.

The bottom lines: -

- Understand the Law of Total tricks – compete to the total number of trumps. It appears that only 25% of the Pattaya Bridge Club do.

Cheating? – part 1 West hand G, no particular board.

♠ K2 West(F) North East South

♥ AJ532 1♥ pass 2♥ 2♠

♦ Q32 ?

♣ K32

This is not a hand from the club, but a typical example that I made up. What did you bid with this West hand F in this week’s quiz? To anybody but a beginner pass is very clear – you have already bid your hand and have nothing more to say. If you are past the beginner’s stage and make a long pause before passing (presumably to convey the impression that you have a better hand and were thinking of bidding) then that is CHEATING. There have been a few allegations of one particular individual cheating like this and I will be more diligent in keeping an eye on it. Offenders will be warned and penalised. If you are the other side and an individual pauses for a long time and then passes when he has a clear pass, please inform me and I will take the appropriate action. Very slow players need to speed up their game in this area (a very clear pass) if they do not wish to be called cheats.

The bottom lines: -

- It is unethical/cheating for a player, way past the beginner’s stage, to take a long pause and then pass when he has a very clear pass. In future, offenders will be penalized.

Cheating? – part 2 Board 4 from Wednesday 9^th

Alex is no longer with us, but we have a member who has also been called a cheat by at least two players. On Wednesday he managed two dubious manoeuvres on two successive boards.

Dealer: ♠ J752 West North East South

West ♥ 1053 pass pass 1♦ pass

Both vul ♦ Q8 1♥ pass 1NT pass

♣ KQ32 2♦ all pass

♠ 84 N ♠ A1062 There’s nothing special about the bidding, East’s

♥ AJ86 W E ♥ 94 1♦ promised 4 ♦’s and the contract is very sensible.

♦ 9543 S ♦ AKJ7 South got off to the best lead of a trump and

♣ J95 ♣ 1084 later in the play declarer got to the dummy with

♠ KQ9 the ♥A. He led a low ♣ and North played low in

♥ KQ62 tempo. East then went into the tank and

♦ 1062 eventually played the ♣10.

♣ A76 So, why did East take so long to play the ♣10 when there are simply three losers in the suit whatever? Either he does not have a clue or he paused in order to make the defence think that he had a ♣ honour. If the latter is true, then that is against the rules and is cheating.

And what happened? 2♦ went one down for a reasonable score to N-S?

The bottom lines: -

- You are not allowed to pause when you have nothing to think about.

Cheating? – part 3 Board 4 from Wednesday 9^th

♠ AJ2 The very next board. Our intrepid East opened 1NT with this hand. Now the

♥ AKJ5 club rules are very clear here – you are NOT ALLOWED to open 1NT with

♦ Q8732 a singleton. You are also NOT ALLOWED to open 1NT two points out of range

♣ A (+- 1 is the limit). This East has been reprimanded on many previous occasions

- opening 1NT way out of range and/or with a singleton, dubiously bidding after partner has made a long pause etc. A number of people have complained to me about his shenanigans and I am getting fed up with it. He was awarded 40% on this board and N-S got 60%. Any future rule infractions by this individual will automatically get similar adjusted scores.

Incidentally, this had is very easy to bid – open 1♦ and reverse into 2♥. A trivial 6♦ contract was missed because of the silly doubly illegal opening. 6♦ was bid at two tables and made exactly or +1.

The bottom lines: -

- You are not allowed to open 1NT with a singleton at this club. Anybody who intentionally does this and knows the club rules will get an adjusted score.

- You are not allowed to open 1NT if more than one point outside the stated range.

- To repeatedly do both of these things despite continual warnings is, well, cheating?

- Please report all future episodes like this to me and the culprit will be penalised.

- Note that a 1NT overcall or a 2NT opening with a singleton is allowed.

Bridge Cryptogram Each letter denotes a specific letter in the alphabet.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

__	__				__			__				__		__			__			__		__		__		__				__		__		__			__		__		__	__		__		__
1	10				1			26				23		18			23			1		3		26		10				10		9		25			7		23		11	26		16		6
__	__		__			__			__	__					__			__				__		__		__		__			__			__		__		__		__		__	__		__
24	19		1			4			18	25					10			16				21		23		8		26			25			11		1		10		9		10	9		25
__		__		__			__				__		__			__			__		__		__		__		__		__				__		__
26		16		7			25				1		3			10			25		3		10		1		16		3				16		6

__	__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__	__		__		__		__		__	__	__
4	25		15		25		1		22		1		3		18		10		9		25		16		21		21		16	3		25		3		10		26	1	3
__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__		__			__		__		__		__
10		9		1		3		14		1		3		18		10		9		23		10		17		16		8			9		23		22		25

__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	__	.
26	16	13	25	10	9	1	3	18	10	16	10	9	1	3	14	23	24	16	8	10

Bidding Quiz Answers

Hand A: 3NT. A classic Gambling 3NT, 7-8 card solid minor with no outside ace or king.

Hand B: (a) Pass. You are playing negative doubles and partner will re-open with a double which you can then pass.

(b) Pass or 3♦. Partner has shown no more than a minimum and has denied good hearts (he would have doubled for penalties with decent ♥’s). Since he does not have cards in either major and the opponents have a ♥ fit then 3♦ is probably best, but a cautious pass is a close 2^nd.

Hand C: 3NT, these four tens make this a maximum, especially playing in NoTrumps.

Hand D: 4♥. Partner has 5 ♥’s and the opponents both bidding ♦’s has improved this hand immensely; but the hand is not good enough for a 4♦ cue bid.

Hand E: 2♣. This hand is easily worth an invite, so try Stayman and then bid 2NT over 2♦/♠ and raise 2♥ to 3♥.

Hand F: Pass, in tempo. This is a very, very clear pass; you have already bid the hand and have nothing more to say. If you make a long pause and then pass – with the intention of deceiving the opposition into thinking that you have a good hand, then that is cheating and it will no longer be tolerated at this club.

Bidding Sequence Answers

G 2NT pass 3♣ pass (a) 3♣ is Stayman

3♥ pass 3NT (b) The Stayman bidder must have 4 ♠’s

H 2NT pass 3♣ pass 3NT is not usually used. The idea of using it to show both

3NT majors is ludicrous; responder may be very weak and the wrong hand is declarer.