Our website is www.pattayabridge.com Club News Sheet – No. 279

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My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 083 6066880 16^th Mar 2008

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Mon 10^th N-S 1^st Hans V & Jean-Charles 58% 2^nd Claudia & Tony 57%

E-W 1^st Ken & Richard 59% 2^nd Dave & Ivy 58%

Wed 12^th N-S 1^st Ann B & Ivy 61% 2^nd Bob P & Lars G 60%

E-W 1^st Hans V & Lars B 68% 2^nd Mike & Terry 55%

Fri 14^th N-S 1^st Mike & Ursula 58% 2^nd Ken & Sally = Dave & Per 54%

E-W 1^st Paul K & Richard M 60% 2^nd Hans V & Lars G 58%

Bidding Quiz

Hand A Hand B With Hand A you choose to open a ligh 3^rd-in-hand 1♣. LHO

overcalls 1NT and partner doubles. What do you do?

♠ K764 ♠ KQ2

♥ K986 ♥ AQJ1065 With Hand B it’s unfavourable vulnerability. You open 1♥ and

♦ 87 ♦ J5 LHO overcalls 2♦ which is passed to you, what do you do?

♣ A107 ♣ AJ

Hand C Hand D With Hand C it’s favourable vulnerability. RHO opens 1♥,

what do you bid?

♠ 763 ♠ K1042

♥ 743 ♥ J987 With Hand D it’s favourable vulnerability and you decide to

♦ A10832 ♦ 7 open 1♣. LHO overcalls 1NT (15-17) and partner doubles.

♣ Q4 ♣ AQJ9 RHO then bids 2♥, what do you do?

Hand E Hand F With Hand E partner opens 1♣ and you bid 1♥. Partner bids 1♠,

what do you bid now?

♠ K3 ♠ AJ3

♥ AKQ872 ♥ 5 With Hand F partner opens 1♣ and RHO overcalls 1NT (15-17),

♦ Q963 ♦ KQJ942 what do you do?

♣ 5 ♣ 862

Bidding Sequence Quiz

G 1♣ 1NT dbl What does the double mean?

H 1♣ 1NT dbl 2♥ What does the pass mean?

pass

J 1♣ pass 1♥ pass Is 3♥ invitational or forcing?

1♠ pass 3♥

K 1♥ pass 2♦ pass Is 3♥ invitational or forcing?

3♥

It’s not forcing Board 7 from Friday 14^th

Dealer: ♠ K3 Table A

South ♥ AKQ872 West North(E) East South

Both vul ♦ Q963 - - - 1♣

♣ 5 pass 1♥ pass 1♠

pass 3♥ (1) pass 4♥ (2)

♠ Q65 N ♠ J742 all pass

♥ J653 W E ♥ 104

♦ AJ52 S ♦ K8 Table B

♣ Q7 ♣ 109864 West North(E) East South

♠ A1098 - - - 1♣

♥ 9 pass 1♥ pass 1♠

♦ 1074 pass 2♦ (1) pass 3♣ (3)

♣ AKJ32 pass 3♥ (4) pass 3NT (5)

pass pass (6) pass

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this North hand E in this week’s quiz? North knows that there are values for game – but unfortunately 3♥ is not forcing here!

(2) Luckily for North, South thought that 3♥ was forcing. I would pass with this minimum with no trump support.

Table B: (1) This North got it right, the way to make a 3♥ bid forcing is to go via the 4^th suit. This also has the advantage that you find out more about partner’s hand.

(3) Denying both ♥ support and a ♦ stop.

(4) Now 3♥ is forcing.

(5) South does not really like ♥’s, but since he has already denied a ♦ stop he can offer 3NT as an alternative contract (to 4♥) if North has something reasonable in ♦’s.

(6) With good ♦’s in context, North is happy to play in 3NT.

And what happened? Most pairs ended up in the inferior 4♥ but made it when E-W did not find their ♦ ruff. 3NT +1 was the top spot.

The bottom lines: -

- Sequence J (1♣ - 1♥ - 1♠ - 3♥) is invitational. The way to make the 3♥ bid forcing is to go via the 4^th suit.

Who is to blame? Board 16 from Monday 10^th

N-S missed a comfortable 4♥ here. South asked my opinion about this hand, stating that North’s bidding was wrong (N-S were playing Acol). Who would you blame?

Dealer: ♠ J54 West North East South

West ♥ 1032 pass pass pass 1♥

E-W vul ♦ A10 pass 2♣ (1) pass 2♦ (2)

♣ AJ1084 pass 2♥ (3) pass pass (4)

♠ A1083 N ♠ Q9762 (1) South’s opening promises only 4 ♥’s in Acol

♥ 86 W E ♥ 974 and so this is obviously correct.

♦ J42 S ♦ K85 (2) This is acceptable, North’s response only

♣ KQ95 ♣ 72 promises 8-9 points playing Acol.

♠ K (3) I was asked what I would bid here and I said

♥ AKQJ5 2♥. South thought that North should bid more.

♦ Q9763 I disagree, North has little more that the 8-9

♣ 63 points and 3 ♥’s that this bid promises.

(4) This is where it really went wrong. South’s bidding to date has only promised 11-12 points. With a good 15 opposite ♥ support with around 9+ points, South should make a try here (I would bid 3♦).

And what happened? This pair were the only ones to miss game. The bottom lines: -

- If you have 3 more points than partner can reasonably expect, them inform him.

Co-operate with partner – part 1 Board 19 from Monday 10^th

Dealer: ♠ J6 West(D) North East South

West ♥ K4 1♣ 1NT (1) dbl (2) 2♥

N-S vul ♦ AK62 pass (3) pass 3♦ all pass

♣ K10832

(1) A shade light at this vulnerability.

♠ K1042 N ♠ AQ3 (2) This says that E-W have the majority of the

♥ J987 W E ♥ 105 points and that East is looking to defend a

♦ 7 S ♦ QJ9854 doubled contract.

♣ AQJ9 ♣ 74 (3) What did you bid with this West hand D in

♠ 9875 this week’s quiz? Partner says that he is

♥ AQ632 looking to penalize the opponents and with

♦ 103 these ♥’s double is very clear. If you cannot find

♣ 65 double here then you should not have opened.

And what happened? 3♦ went -1 for about average. 2♥ doubled would have gone -1 for a complete top to E-W.

The bottom lines: -

- Trust your partner – if he thinks it’s best to go for the penalty and you have good defensive tricks (as this West hand) then go along with him.

Co-operate with Partner – part 2 Board 19 from Monday 10^th

Dealer: ♠ 763 West(B) North(C) East South

South ♥ 743 - - - pass

E-W vul ♦ A10832 1♥ 2♦ (1) pass (2) pass

♣ Q4 2NT (3) pass 3NT

♠ KQ2 N ♠ J105 (1) What did you bid with this North hand C in

♥ AQJ1065 W E ♥ K9 this week’s quiz? Even though it’s favourable

♦ J5 S ♦ KQ96 vulnerability, this hand is nowhere near good

♣ AJ ♣ 10932 enough for a 2-level overcall; neither is it good

♠ A984 enough for a weak jump overcall. Pass is clear.

♥ 82 (2) With game uncertain and an excellent defensive

♦ 74 hand East decided to pass (and pass partner’s double)

♣ K8765 (3) What did you bid with this West hand B in

this week’s quiz? E-W had discussed the

‘automatic re-opening double’ and West ‘knew’ that partner had ♦’s. Presumably he looked at the vulnerability and decided to try for the vulnerable game. I think that this is terrible – double is automatic, especially with Jx in trumps and good top cards.

And what happened? 3NT made +1 (630) for a poor score, 4♥+1 (650) was the top spot. 2♦ doubled would have gone -4 for 800 and a complete top to E-W.

The bottom lines: -

- Trust your partner – if he thinks it’s best to go for the penalty and you have good defensive tricks (as this West hand) then go along with him. Since this West was the same as the previous deal, it seems that he does not like to double the opponents?

- 1♥ 2♦ p p 2NT is simply a nonsense sequence that has no logic whatsoever.

- There are very few exceptions where you should not re-open with a double after opening, overcall, pass, pass…? The exceptions are noted on the website (and this West hand is not one of them): -

Conventions > Section 1 > Negative Doubles.

Co-operate with Partner – part 3 Board 6 from Wednesday 12^th

Dealer: ♠ Q95 West(A) North East(F) South

East ♥ AQ2 - - pass (1) pass

E-W vul ♦ A5 1♣ (2) 1NT (3) dbl (4) pass

♣ KQ543 pass (5) pass

♠ K764 N ♠ AJ3 (1) 2♦ is a possibility I suppose, but E-W were

♥ K986 W E ♥ 5 playing Benjamin. The hand does not quite

♦ 87 S ♦ KQJ942 conform to the rule of 20 and so East decided

♣ A107 ♣ 862 to pass.

♠ 1082 (2) A reasonable enough opening in 3^rd seat.

♥ J10742 (3) Pretty obvious.

♦ 1063 (4) What did you bid with this East hand F in

♣ J9 this week’s quiz? East knows that E-W have the

balance of power and with a clear lead and an entry a penalty double is called for.

(5) What did you bid with this West hand A in

this week’s quiz? Finally this East found a partner willing to take the huge penalty on offer. Despite opening very light, West is obliged to trust partner and pass the penalty double.

And what happened? 1NT doubled went -4 and so 800 and a clear top to E-W.

The bottom lines: -

- Trust your partner – if he thinks it’s best to go for the penalty and you have good defensive tricks (as this West hand) then go along with him. Do not take into account that you are a bit light for previous bidding. Once you decide to open you have to continue as if you had your bid.

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

West East You are West, declarer in 7♠ and North leads the ♣10,

♠ AKQ10973 ♠ J82 plan the play.

♥ 9 ♥ A7532

♦ AKJ ♦ 765

♣ AQ ♣ KJ

Dave’s Column answer Board 20 from Wednesday 5^th

Dealer: ♠ 64 West North East South

West ♥ QJ8 2♣ pass 2♥ pass

both vul ♦ Q1092 2♠ pass 3♠ pass

♣ 10987 4NT pass 5♦ pass

6NT pass 6♦ pass

♠ AKQ10973 N ♠ J82 7♠ all pass

♥ 9 W E ♥ A7532

♦ AKJ S ♦ 765 North leads the ♣10, plan the play.

♣ AQ ♣ KJ

♠ 5 Your only possible loser is in ♦’s, a suit which offers

♥ K1064 a finesse. Save finesses as last resort measures!

♦ 843 You have been blessed with a 5-card ♥ suit in dummy.

♣ 65432 You have a singleton ♥ in your own hand leaving the

opponents with a total of seven ♥’s. If those 7 ♥’s are divided 4-3 you can ruff three ♥’s in your own hand and establish the 5^th ♥ for a ♦ discard.

You must realize that outside the ♥A you going to need three additional dummy entries to set up the 5^th ♥. Do you have them?

Yes. The ♣K and the ♠J,8.

Win with the ♣A, cash the ♠A, play a ♥ to the ♥A and ruff a ♥ high. Enter dummy with the ♠8 and ruff another ♥ high. Back to dummy with the ♠J and ruff yet another ♥. The 5^th ♥ is now established and you can reach it with the ♣K.

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? One pair bid 7♠ and made it (when North kindly led a ♦). 6NT made exactly and three pairs bid and made 6♠ exactly. Looks like these all bid to the level of their play. Two pairs bid just 4♠ making +2.

The bottom lines: -

- A 5 or 6 card suit in dummy is a gift – use it.

- Leave finesses as a last resort. They are do or die and only 50%. A 4-3 split is 62%.

- Note that had the ♥’s split 5-2 or worse, declarer can then always fall back on the ♦ finesse later.

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

North South You are North, declarer in 7♥ and East leads the ♣Q, plan

♠ 84 ♠ AK2 the play after you draw ♥AK and discover that West started with

♥ AKQ1053 ♥ 64 ♥Jxxx.

♦ AJ3 ♦ KQ1062

♣ A2 ♣ K83

Dave’s 2^nd Column answer Board 17 from Wednesday 12^th

Dealer: ♠ 84 West North East South

North ♥ AKQ1053 - 1♥ pass 2♦

Love all ♦ AJ3 pass 3♥ (1) pass 4NT

♣ A2 pass 5♦ (2) pass 5♠ (3)

pass 5NT (4) pass 7♥

♠ Q107 N ♠ J9653 all pass

♥ J987 W E ♥ 2

♦ 754 S ♦ 98 (1) Forcing playing Standard American.

♣ 954 ♣ QJ1076 (2) (1 or) 4 keycards

♠ AK2 (3) do you have the trump queen?

♥ 64 (4) Yes, but no outside king.

♦ KQ1062

♣ K83 East leads the ♣Q, plan the play.

The only way to make this contract is not to lose a trick to that guarded ♥J in the West hand. In order to do that, you must reduce your trump holding to the same length as West and also arrange to end in dummy with a two card end position. Your last two cards must be the ♥Q,10 while West will have the guarded ♥J. With the lead in dummy, West will be helpless.

In order to reduce yourself to West’s size you must ruff twice in your own hand. Play the ♣K and ruff a ♣, cash the ♠A,K and ruff a ♠. You remain with two trumps and three ♦’s and dummy has 5 ♦’s. West is known to have two ♥’s and for your play to succeed he must have three ♦’s as well. Cash 3 rounds of ♦’s ending in dummy and when you lead the 4^th ♦ West is fixed and cannot get a trick.

The bottom lines: -

- Reducing your trump holding to the same length as your RHO frequently allows you to pick up an unfinesseable honour, provided that you can arrange to end up in dummy with two cards to be played.

And what happened at the Pattaya bridge Club? Nobody bid 7♥. 7NT was bid and made once with 6NT+1 twice. Don’t ask me how 13 tricks are made in NoTrumps; I believe that at one table East discarded on the first round of ♥’s and then discovered that he had one. Declarer then successfully finessed West for the ♥J.

Notes about the RKCB queen ask

- At (3) 5♥ would be a sign off and so 5♠ is the trump queen ask. The trump queen ask is always the next bid up after a 5♣/♦ response (but not 5 of the trump suit).

- In responding to the trump queen ask, a return to the trump suit denies the trump queen, a suit bid acknowledges the trump queen and shows the king of that suit (show the cheapest) and 5NT acknowledges the trump queen but denies an outside king.

Bidding Quiz Answers

Hand A: Pass. You decided to open and partner wants to go for the penalty. You have nowhere to go even if you wanted to.

Hand B: Double – ‘automatic’. Never mind the vulnerability, it’s fairly clear that partner has a ♦ penalty hand and wants to go for the penalty, so co-operate. ‘But they are not vulnerable and we are’ is a very poor excuse for not trusting partner’s judgment.

Hand C: Pass. It’s nowhere near good enough for a two-level overcall and you need a 6^th ♦ to make a weak jump to 3♦ a reasonable bid.

Hand D: Double. Partner has stated that you have the majority of the points and that he is hoping to defend a doubled contract. With 4 excellent ♥’s you have to double even though you have a minimal opener. If you pass in situations like this you will find that you will run out of decent partners.

Hand E: 2♦, 4^th suit forcing. You cannot bid 3♥ as that is invitational and not forcing. A reasonable alternative is the simple 3NT.

Hand F: Double and lead the ♦K.

Bidding Sequence Answers

G 1♣ 1NT dbl Double is penalties, saying that you have the balance of power.

H 1♣ 1NT dbl 2♥ The pass by opener indicates that his ♥’s are not good enough

Pass for a penalty double.

J 1♣ pass 1♥ pass 3♥ is invitational. If you want to bid a forcing 3♥, then bid

1♠ pass 3♥ 2♦ (4^th suit) and then 3♥.

K 1♥ pass 2♦ pass This 3♥ bid is forcing as responder has promised 10+ points.

3♥ Note that in Acol the bid id not forcing but invitational.