Our website is www.pattayabridge.com                             Club News Sheet – No. 303

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Mon 25th      1st  Lewis & Pedro             62%       2nd    Bengt & Janne                              59%

Wed 27th      1st  Bob S & Terry             57%       2nd    Janne & Sally                               55%

Fri 29th         1st  Bob P & Robbie          60%       2nd    Hans V & Janne                           58%

 

Bidding Quiz                    Standard American bidding is assumed unless otherwise stated.

 

Hand A           Hand B           With Hand A everybody is vulnerable. RHO opens 1♥ in 3rd

seat, what do you bid?

♠ QJ10986      ♠ AKQ8                                 

♥ 42                 ♥ AK54           (a)  What do you open with hand B?

♦ 7                  ♦ 3                   (b)  Suppose you choose 2♣ and partner relays with 2♦,

♣ A976            ♣ AQ32                 what do you bid now?

                                             

Hand C           Hand D           With Hand C RHO opens 2♠, what do you bid?

 

♠ 94                 ♠ K72             

♥ AK1073       ♥ 10                 With Hand D LHO opens 1♥ and partner bids 3♠. RHO passes,

♦ K52             ♦ QJ10864       what do you do?

♣ K43             ♣ K104

 

Hand E            Hand F            With Hand E it’s 1st seat at favourable vul. What do you open?

 

♠ AKQ1052    ♠ K107632   

♥ J9                 ♥ K9852          With Hand F LHO opens a Benjamin 2♣ (usually 8 playing

♦ 1094            ♦ -                   tricks in an unspecified suit but could be balanced 22-23) and

♣ 109              ♣ 93                RHO relays with 2♦ (forcing). What do you do?

 

Hand G           Hand H           What do you open with Hand G?

 

♠ KQ108         ♠ A85              With Hand H everybody is vulnerable. RHO opens 1♥ in 3rd seat

♥ AKQ82        ♥ Q107            (a)  what do you bid?     

♦ 9                  ♦ A9832          (b)  suppose you pass. LHO bids 1♠ and RHO bids 1NT, what

♣ AQ5             ♣ A8                      do you do now?          

                       

Bidding Sequence Quiz

 

J      1♠      pass   1NT   pass      

pass   dbl                             What is dbl? – take-out or showing good ♠’s?

K     1♣     pass   1♠      pass      

1NT   pass   2NT   pass       What is dbl?

3NT   pass   pass   dbl

L      2♣     pass   2♦     3♦          2♣ is Benjamin and 2♦ is an automatic relay, what is 3♦?


The grumblers really had their day on Wednesday. Dave and I strive to make the club a friendly one whilst adhering to most of the accepted rules. There were three complaints (all totally unfounded) on Wednesday.

 

Complaints, complaints… part 1                         Board 11 from Wednesday 27th

 

Dealer:             ♠ J109543                                     West(B)     North         East          South

South               ♥ 6                                                 -                 -                 -               pass

Love all            ♦ Q106                                         2♣   (1)      pass           2♦    (2)    pass

                        ♣ J75                                             2NT (3)      pass           3♦    (4)    pass

4♥    (5)      pass           6♥            all pass  

♠ AKQ8                N             ♠ -                          

♥ AK54             W    E          ♥ J108732         (1)  What did you open with this West hand B(a)          

♦ 3                         S             ♦ KJ9742                in this week’s quiz? 2♣ is obviously fine.

♣ AQ32                                 ♣ 8                    (2)  waiting

                        ♠ 762                                       (3)  What did you bid with this West hand B(b)?

♥ Q9                                              This 2NT (semi-balanced 22-23) is correct.

♦ A85                                     (4)  Transfer     

♣ K10964                               (5)  Super-accept

 

So what’s the story? One of the N-S players complained about the 2NT rebid with a singleton. Dave said it was fine so the complainer later came to me and was told the same.

And what happened? 6♥= four times and 4♥+2 just once.

The bottom lines: -

-         Opening 1NT with a singleton is against the club rules (although we are considering revising this).

-         Opening 2NT (or 2NT after a 2♣ opening etc.) with a singleton is allowed and always has been. I believe that this is pretty universal, especially with 4441 type shape.

-         And a 1NT/2NT overcall with a singleton or even a void is allowed.

 

 

 

Play Problem               Here is a play problem that occurred on Wednesday.

 

West                East                  You are West, declarer in 4♥ after North has opened a weak 2♠.

♠ 1032             ♠ A75              You win the with ♠K lead with the ♠A, but how do you continue

♥ AQ108432   ♥ 97                 and what is yourplan to dispose of the two ♠ losers?

♦ A                 ♦ K832         

♣ A3                ♣ KQ85          Answer(s) next page.

 


Complaints, complaints… part 2                         Board 17 from Wednesday 27th

 

Dealer:             ♠ KQ9864                                     West          North         East          South

North               ♥ 65                                               -                 2♠              pass         pass

Love all            ♦ J95                                             dbl             pass           3NT         pass

                        ♣ J9                                               4♥

                 

♠ 1032                   N             ♠ A75                This was the bidding at our table, nothing    

♥ AQ108432     W    E          ♥ 97                   special. North led the ♠K, won in dummy.  

♦ A                        S             ♦ K832             Declarer crossed to the ♥A and played

♣ A3                                      ♣ KQ85            the ♥Q which South won. Declarer knew that 

                        ♠ J                                           South had no more ♠’s and so he made a  

♥ KJ                                        comfortable +2. Seems sensible to me and

♦ Q10764                               guards against North having a singleton ♥K. 

♣ 107642           

 

So what’s the story? When the traveler was opened up the board had already been played three times and all of the results up to then were 4♠ making just +1. Sally was up in arms about this, saying ‘impossible’. She called the director, Dave, who said he has seen the board played once at another table and there was no problem. Sally continued to disagree, to the extent that she called me up in the evening, claiming that the board had been mis-boarded after the third play and asking me to check it out.

There is no problem of course. As I see it, there are three reasonable plays (I am putting them in the order that they were played and not stating that any is better that any other). Everybody led the ♠K and everybody won with the ♠A. Declarer has two immediate ♠ losers if North gets in and these are the three lines of play adopted at the club: -

(a)    At the first three tables declarer crossed to the ♦A, cashed the ♣A, crossed to the ♣K, threw a ♠ loser on the ♦K and threw the last ♠ loser on the ♣Q. Unfortunately North ruffed this and exited with a ♦. With no further entry to dummy South later scored his ♥K, so 4♠+1 three times on quite reasonable play. The line makes +3 (or +4 if the ♥K is doubleton onside) if the ♣’s split 4-3 – OK Sally?

(b)   At my table (against Sally) Bob Short (my partner) was declarer. He knew that North had 6 ♠’s and could well be short in ♣'s, and so he played as I indicated at the top of the page. This is also a reasonable play and guards against North having a singleton ♥K or a singleton ♣ and pretty much ensures +2. Good safety play.

(c)    The last time the board was played it was by Ivy who simply went full speed ahead and damn the torpedoes. She finessed the ♥Q at trick two and made all 13 tricks. Very reasonable at pairs scoring.

 

The bottom lines: -

-         There really is no point in arguing with the director (Dave in this case) – especially if he has previously witnessed the board being played.

-         And if you phone me up about a board, expect it to appear in the news sheets.

 

Incidentally, Sean Burgess phoned me up for a chat and I gave him the hand – he played it exactly the same as the first three, i.e. line (a).


Complaints, complaints… part 3                         Board 27 from Wednesday 27th

 

Dealer:             ♠ -                                                 West(F)     North         East(me)   South

South               ♥ Q73                                            -                 -                 -               pass

Love all            ♦ AK108754                                 pass           2♣   (1)      pass         2♦    (2)

                        ♣ AJ5                                            3♦    (3)      pass (4)      pass (5)    dbl

3♥              pass           pass (6)    all pass

♠ K107632            N             ♠ AQ9              

♥ K9852            W    E          ♥ J64                 (1)  Benjamin. I would open 1♦.   

♦ -                         S              ♦ 963                (2)  Automatic relay which was alerted.

♣ 93                                      ♣ KQ76            (3)  Believing that he was showing both majors.

                        ♠ J854                                     (4)  I guess dbl would show good ♦’s?

♥ A10                                      (5)  East obviously thought partner has a ♦ suit.

♦ QJ2                                      (6)  East thought partner had both red suits but

♣ 10842                                        was reluctant to give preference at the 4-level.

 

So what happened? North led the ♦A. Dummy put his hand on the table and explained that he did not give preference (back to 4♦) because that would be at the 4-level. Declarer ruffed the ♦A and at this point North put his cards face down on the table exclaiming “what’s going on here’’. The director (Dave) was called and play continued. West apologized for his mis bid but made 3♥+1 for a top. Dave (and I) said that it was unfortunate but the result stands. North refused to fill in the traveler. South suggested that I should have alerted (I should not as I believed all of my partner’s bids to be natural).

At the other tables three North’s made 10 tricks in ♦’s and one South made 3NT. West can make 4♠ easily enough but it seems that nobody (except my partner in an incorrect way) made a real effort.

 

The bottom lines: -

-     Occasionally the opponents make a mistake but are lucky – learn to live with it.

-         The rules of bridge are very, very clear on this topic. If you make an incorrect bid then there is absolutely no penalty and you are under no obligation to inform the opponents that you have misbid.

-         Of course you cannot misbid intentionally, frequently, or in a way that partner knows what is going on, that is psyching/cheating and not allowed.

-         If opponents ask about a bid - say I had been asked about 3♦ and I give the correct statement according to our agreements (I would have said I assumed it to be natural and pre-emptive) then there is no problem.

-         The only time a problem occurs is if one is asked and gives an explanation which is contrary to the partnership agreement – then there may well be an adjusted score.

-         With a good hand and a minor suit, you really need 8½ -9 playing tricks to open a Benjamin 2♣ with a minor suit, this North hand is nowhere near good enough in my opinion.

-         This is a friendly club – isn’t it?

Truscott Defence to a strong ♣

 

♠ K107632            So what did you bid with this hand F from the previous page?       

♥ K9852                There was an interesting discussion about the deal on Friday before

♦ -                         the game started. Lewis said that he would bid either 3♣ or 3♦ and

♣ 93                      would assume that partner could work out that he had both majors later in the auction. 6-5 come alive. Paul Q said that he would pass and wait to see what type of hand opener has. Bob Short said that he should have bid 2♠ and maybe come in later with a ♥ bid. I later gave the hand to Sean Burgess and he said he would bid 2NT.

 

So what’s really best? I totally disagree with Lewis as I take any bid as natural in this situation unless you have agreements to the contrary. I don’t like Sean’s Unusual 2NT because both bids so far were not natural and so it’s unclear which two suits this shows. Bob Short (2♠) and Paul Q (pass) are both reasonable in my opinion.

But Lewis has a point when he said he wants to show his hand before the bidding gets too high and actually this situation is analogous to a Precision Club auction. I think that the best treatment is to play the Truscott defence (or some other defence to the Precision club if you prefer). The Truscott defence enables the opposition to describe all two suited hands, it is weak and pre-emptive and may make it difficult for opener to show his hand type, or may enable the Truscott bidders to find a good contract. Over a Benjamin two opening the Truscott defence is: -

 

Over RHO’s 2♣ opening: -                       After LHO opens 2♣ and RHO bids 2♦: -

 

dbl    =       ♣’s and ♥’s                            dbl     =        ¨’s and ª’s

2♦    =       ♦’s and ♥’s                            2♥      =        ♥’s and ♠’s

2♥     =       ♥’s and ♠’s                            2♠      =        ♠’s and ♣’s

2♠     =       ♠’s and ♣’s                            2NT   =        ♣’s and ©’s

2NT  =       ♠’s and ♦’s                            3♣     =        ♣’s and ♦’s

3♣    =       ♣’s and ♦’s                            3♦    =        ♦’s and ♥’s

 

The hand should be at least 5-5 in the two suits shown and strength is weakish with an eye on the prevailing vulnerability. It’s easy to remember: a suit bid is always that suit and the one above (♣’s are above ♠’s); that leaves two combinations of non-touching suits – dbl shows the suit last bid and the non-touching suit and 2NT shows the other two non-touching suits.

This defence (with all bids one level lower) was designed by Alan Truscott to combat the strong Precision 1♣ opening.

The Truscott defense is defined on the website: Conventions > Section 1 > Truscott.

 

It’s interesting to list the answers I got in response to question F: -

 

pass     Paul Q

2♥        me (assuming the Truscott defence)

2♠        Bob Short upon reflection

2NT     Sean

3♣       Lewis

3♦       Bob Short at the table

 

Looks like it was a difficult one.

 


It’s all about body and shape                              Board 23 from Monday 25th

 

Dealer:             ♠ A5                                              Table A

South               ♥ KQJ65                                       West          North         East(A)    South

both vul            ♦ AK2                                          -                 -                 -               pass

                        ♣ Q82                                           pass           1♥              2♠    (1)    4♥    (2)

all pass              

♠ K72                    N             ♠ QJ10986             

♥ 10                   W    E          ♥ 42                         Table B

♦ QJ10864            S              ♦ 7                          West(D)     North         East(A)    South

♣ K104                                 ♣ A976                    -                 -                 -               pass

                        ♠ 43                                              pass           1♥              3♠    (1)    pass (3)

♥ A9873                                       4♠    (4)      dbl   (5)      pass         pass (6)

♦ 953                                            pass

♣ J53      

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you bid with this East hand A in this week’s quiz? This is an excellent hand for a pre-empt and I expect that most found this 2♠ bid.

(2)   A general rule is that there’s no such thing as a pre-empt over a pre-empt, but 4♥ here is clearly South’s best bid – it shows weakness and 5 ♥’s. With a sound raise to 4♥ South should cue bid 3♠.

Table B:     (1)  As I said above, this ♠ suit is the ideal pre-empt (Marty Bergen’s quote – ‘topless but with good body’). But I am not ‘most people’ and with this shape I bid 3♠ and this was the answer to question A that I found at the table. The 2nd suit makes all the difference, move a ♣ to the ♦ suit and 2♠ is enough.

(3)   Now South has a problem of course, as 4♥ would no longer show a weak hand and partner will doubtless go leaping about if you bid. So pass is possibly best.

(4)   What did you bid with this West hand D in this week’s quiz? I love this bid by my partner! I have frequently stated in the news sheets to always raise partner’s pre-empt with three card support, especially with great shape like this. So my partner, George, put me to the test.

(5)   With a balanced 19 points and no knowledge of partner’s five ♥’s, double seems pretty clear here.

(6)   South reasonably passes, there are only 10 ♥’s between the hands and partner has said that he expects to set 4♠.

 

And what happened? 4♥ was bid at two tables and went one down. 4♠* at Table B made comfortably enough when the ♦’s set up for a clear E-W top. Quite how the other N-S ended up in 2NT by North (seemingly missing the 5-5 ♥ fit) is a mystery to me, but it made for the N-S top; doubtless Dave will tell me about it sometime.

The bottom lines: -

-         Always raise partner’s pre-empt with three card support.

-         A good pre-empt suit is topless with a good body, also a side suit and singleton are good assets which should prompt you to bid one more than the field.

-     Note that this deal complies with the (full version) of the Law of Total T ricks. There are 19 total trumps and 19 total tricks (9 for N-S and 10 for E-W).

Too High                                                               Board 21 from Friday 29th 

 

N-S got too high at table A – who was to blame?

     

Dealer:             ♠ KQ108                                       Table A

North               ♥ AKQ82                                      West          North(G)    East            South

N-S vul            ♦ 9                                                -                 2♣   (1)      pass           2♦  (2)

                        ♣ AQ5                                           pass           2♥              pass           3♦  (3)

pass           3♠    (4)      pass           4♦  (5)

♠ AJ94                   N             ♠ 62                         pass           6NT           all pass

♥ J1093             W    E          ♥ 654                

♦ Q3                      S             ♦ J52                       Table B

♣ 864                                    ♣ J10972                 West          North(G)    East          South

                        ♠ 753                                             -                 1♥    (1)      pass         2♦

♥ 7                                                pass           2♠    (6)      pass         3♦

♦ AK10874                     .           pass           3NT (7)      all pass

♣ K3                              

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you open with this North hand G in this week’s quiz? This 2♣ opening is way over the top in my opinion. A 2♣ opening is described as a hand with power and quality – either 22+ points if balanced or else one trick short of game. This North hand is at most 8½ playing tricks and does not qualify. Also, two-suiters are very often best not opened with 2♣ unless extremely strong (you run out of bidding space and all too often go past the best spot of 3NT).

                  (2)  Waiting

(3)   The first chance to show the suit is at the three level (because of the 2♣ opening bid)

(4)  I don't like this. This hand is sub-minimum for the opening and it now looks like a mis-fit. What is the point of bidding a 4- card ? suit that partner has denied instead of 3NT to play from the hand with the ? AQ tenace?

(5) This goes past 3NT and is looking for slam, obviously this South hand should be looking for slam opposite a real 2♣ opener.

Table B:     (1)  This North made the fairly obvious opening bid in answer to question G, 2NT is an alternative but I don’t like it with two very strong majors and 9 cards there.

(6)   A forcing reverse, showing a powerful hand.

(7)   North has now described his hand reasonably well, he has a bit in reserve but it’s a mis-fit and 3NT is probably the best bid now.

 

And what happened? 6NT went -2 and 3NT made +2. The other two tables reached silly contracts of 4♠ and 6♥.

The bottom lines: -

-         Keep your 2♣ openings up to strength – 9 tricks or 22+ points.

-         North at table A did not like his partner’s 4♦ bid. When I suggested to North that the problem was not his partner’s 4♦ bid but his opening bid, he asked ‘are you joking?’.

I was not, it is not worth 2♣.

Take-out or penalties?

 

E      1♠      pass   1NT   pass             I had an interesting discussion with one of the club’s

pass   dbl                                   top players over this sequence. He said that the doubler

clearly had ♠’s and thus was unable to bid on the first round, i.e. the infamous ‘trap pass’ asking for a ♠ lead.

I disagreed, suggesting that the doubler could have classic take-out shape but not enough values to double directly, so it’s a balancing take-out double. Who is right? I guess you have to agree, but in “Acol in Competition”, Eric Crowhurst says on page 192 ‘this double is made in the protective position, and is clearly showing a weakish distributional hand with support for the other three suits’. Paul Q also agreed that it’s take-out.

 

A poor double                                                 Board 10 from Friday 29th 

     

Dealer:             ♠ A85                                            Table A

East                  ♥ Q107                                          West          North(H)    East            South

both vul            ♦ A9832                                        -                 -                 pass           pass

                        ♣ A8                                              1♥              pass (1)      1♠              pass

1NT           dbl   (2)      pass           2♣

♠ K10                    N             ♠ J7632                   all pass

♥ AK852           W    E          ♥ 63                  

♦ 104                     S             ♦ J75                       Table B

♣ K632                                 ♣ Q109                   West          North(H)    East          South

                        ♠ Q94                                            -                 -                 pass         pass

♥ J92                                             1♥              pass           1♠            pass

♦ KQ6                             .           1NT           2♦    (2)      all pass

♣ J754                            

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you bid with this North hand H(a) in this week’s quiz? It’s not good quite enough for 1NT and pass is clear. But with these intermediates I would not argue with a 1NT overcall. Of course there are those who will ‘double to show an opening hand’ but I obviously ignore opinions from these people.

                  (2)  What did you bid with this North hand H(b) in this week’s quiz? LHO passed originally and so partner is known to have values. This double is take-out (similar to what’s explained above) but in my opinion it’s a very poor bid. It should be playable in the two unbid suits. I would simply pass - you can be pretty sure that partner will bid ♣’s in which you have only a doubleton. Balanced hands should play in (or defend) NoTrumps.

Table B:     (2)  This North also decided to take action at the 2nd turn. Although this ♦ suit is far from perfect, ♦’s is the only feature of this hand and this bid is far better than double if you do choose to bid.

 

And what happened? 2♣ went -4 for a complete bottom to N-S. 2♦ made exactly for the N-S top. Had West been left to play in 1NT then Deep Finesse says it goes two down and so -200 and for outright top to N-S.

The bottom lines: -

-         Do not make take-out doubles with flat hands and length in the suit opened.

-         A take-out double when two suits have been bid should be playable in the other two suits.

Don’t double with a 5-card major                        Board 18 from Monday 25th   

 

Dealer:             ♠ 87                                               Table A

East                  ♥ 86                                               West          North         East(E)     South(C)

N-S vul            ♦ QJ6                                            -                 -                 2♠            dbl   (1)

                        ♣ AJ8762                                      3♠    (2)      4♣   (3)      pass         4♥    (4)

all pass              

♠ J63                     N             ♠ AKQ1052           

♥ Q542              W    E          ♥ J9                         Table B

♦ A873                  S             ♦ 1094                    West          North         East(E)     South(C)

♣ Q5                                     ♣ 109                      -                 -                 2♠    (1)    3♥    (2)

                        ♠ 94                                              pass (6)      all pass

♥ AK1073                                   

♦ K52                                           

♣ K43    

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you open with this East hand E in this week’s quiz? This is a problem – it’s a bit good for a weak 2♠ but not good enough for 1♠ in some people’s opinion. One player passed and then came in later with disastrous consequences. For me there is no gap between 1♠ and 2♠. Because of the great intermediates I would open 1♠ but not argue with 2♠; for me pass is totally out.

                  (2)  What did you bid with this South hand C in this week’s quiz? This double is pretty pointless.

(3)   This West knows to raise partner’s pre-empt with 3-card support.

(4)   With a decent 6-card suit, this is worth a free bid opposite a double.

(5)   Upon looking at his hand again, South now realized that he only had ♥’s and so he bid them a round too late and a level too high. This shows a very big hand of course, which South simply does not have.

Table B:     (2)  This South got question C right – a simple 3♥ describes this hand perfectly.

(6)  Presumably this West does not know about raising partner with three cards.

 

And what happened? 4♥ went -2 for a well deserved bottom. The other results were a bit random as they often are.

The bottom lines: -

-         Always raise partner’s pre-empt with three card support.

-         Do not double with a mediocre hand with a 5-card major – overcall.

-         Double and then bid a suit shows a very big hand.

 

 

Dave’s Column           Here is this week’s Dave input involving the play of the hand.

 

North               South               You are North, declarer in 3NT. East leads the ♠3 and West

♠ AJ6               ♠ 84                 plays the ♠K. Do you win this trick and what is your plan?

♥ AJ5              ♥ K32                                     

♦ QJ9              ♦ A10832                               

♣ K543           ♣ AJ2

                                                                 

                                               

                                               


Dave’s Column answer                      Board 25 from Wednesday 27th  

     

Dealer:             ♠ AJ6                                             West          North         East            South

North               ♥ AJ5                                            -                 1NT           pass           3NT

E-W vul           ♦ QJ9                                            all pass

                        ♣ K543                                        

 

♠ K95                    N             ♠ Q10732               

♥ Q1076            W    E          ♥ 984                

♦ K65                    S             ♦ 74                  East leads the ♠3 and West produces the ♠K,

♣ Q106                                 ♣ 987                Do you take the trick? What is your plan?  

                        ♠ 84                                        

♥ K32                                     

♦ A10832                              

♣ AJ2                             

 

Outside of ♦’s, your best suit, you have 5 sure tricks; 1 ♠, 2 ♥’s and 2 ♣’s. Clearly you are going to have to work on the ♦’s.

The ♦ finesse, perforce, goes into the West hand. If you win the first ♠ and the ♦ finesse loses your ♠J will be vulnerable to an attack from West.

Obviously it is in your best interest to duck the opening lead and win the third round of ♠’s. Now if the ♦ finesse loses either West has no more ♠’s, or if he does the suit is presumably divided 4-4 and you lose just 3 ♠’s and a ♦.

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? 3NT+1 twice, 3NT= once and 3NT-1 twice.

 

 

 

Dave’s 2nd Column   Here is Dave’s second input involving the play of the hand.

 

West                East                  You are East, declarer in 4♠, South leads the ♣Q which you cover

♠ A542            ♠ KQJ6           and North wins. North continues with a ♣ to South’s ♣10 and

♥ A109543      ♥ 6                   South continues with the ♥2. Plan the play.

♦ 2                  ♦ AK8743    

♣ K4               ♣ 95

 


Dave’s 2nd Column answer              Board 26 from Wednesday 27th 

     

Dealer:             ♠ 9                                                 West          North         East            South

East                  ♥ KQJ85                                       -                 -                 1♦              pass

Both vul            ♦ Q10                                           1♥              pass           1♠              pass

                        ♣ A7632                                        4♠              all pass

 

♠ A542                  N             ♠ KQJ6                  

♥ A109543        W    E          ♥ 6                    

♦ 2                         S             ♦ AK8743        

♣ K4                                     ♣ 95                       

                        ♠ 10873                             South leads the ♣Q, you cover and North wins.     

♥ 2                                     and returns the ♣3 to South’s ♣10. At trick     

♦ J965                              three South shifts to the ♥2, plan the play.

♣ QJ108                         

 

Win the ♥A, play to the ♦A and ruff a ♦ low. Back to the ♠K and ruff a 2nd ♦ with the ♠A. The ♦’s are now good. Re-enter the East hand with a trump. If both opponents follow, pull the last trump and claim.

If someone shows out, play a 3rd high trump and run the good ♦’s. The opponents can take no more than one trump trick. The contract makes despite bad breaks in both key suits.

 

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? 6♠-2, 4♠-2, 4♠-1 and 4♠= twice.

 

 

The Club Championships

We now have five contenders qualifying for the Gold Cup competition.

 

 

Gold Cup = Best 30

Silver Plate = Best 10

Bronze Medal = Best 5

 

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

 

1821.3 Dave Cutler

1802.1 Sally Watson

1779.1 Ivy Schlageter

1771.5 Bob Pelletier

1707.4 Jan v Koss

 

661.8 Dave Cutler

661.1 Sally Watson

661.1 Jeremy Watson

656.9 Hans Vikman

642.0 Lars Gustafsson

641.3 Ivy Schlageter

634.3 Derek & Gerard

626.5 Bob Pelletier

618.4 Janne Roos

615.0 Lewis Berg

…

 

 

342.3 Dave Cutler

341.9 Hans Vikman

341.1 Jeremy Watson

341.1 Sally Watson

336.9 Lars Gustafsson

335.3 Ivy Schlageter

328.5 Derek & Gerard

326.3 Tomas Wikman

320.5 Bob Pelletier

320.3 Lewis Berg 

...

 

Bidding Quiz Answers

 

Hand A:     3♠. I know that the vast majority will bid 2♠, but this ♠ suit is ideal for a pre-empt and the singleton and 2nd suit make it worth 3♠ in my opinion.

Hand B:    (a)  2♣ or 2NT. It’s a bit good for 2NT in my style and I would open 2♣.

(b)  2NT (22-24). There’s no problem having a singleton for a 2NT bid.

Hand C:    3♥. Pretty obvious I know, but one player did double which is totally ridiculous.

Hand D:    4♠. Always raise partner’s pre-empt with 3 trumps – especially with a singleton.

Hand E:    1♠ or 2♠. I would open 1♠ but not argue with 2♠. I do not allow a ‘gap’ and would never pass as one player did – make up your mind first go.

Hand F:     2♥ - provided that you play the Truscott defence. With no agreement then either pass or bid 2♠ are reasonable. Note that with no agreement, 3♣ or 3♦ are natural bids, and not Michaels showing the majors, as both bids so far are artificial.

Hand G:    1♥ (and reverse into ♠’s next go). 2NT is reasonable but I don’t like it with 9 cards in the majors. The hand is not good enough for a standard 2♣ opening.

Hand H:    (a)  pass. I t's not really good enough for 1NT, although with these intermediates 1NT is reasonable. The ♦’s are not good enough for 2♦ and with just two ♣’s the hand is totally unsuitable for a take-out double.

(b)   pass. Even though both opponents are now limited (and thus partner has values)

it’s still unsuitable for double - with a flat hand, defend 1NT. 2♦ is reasonable I suppose but I much prefer pass, especially at this vulnerability.

 

 

Bidding Sequence Quiz Answers

 

J      1♠      pass   1NT   pass       dbl is take-out, a shapely hand short in ♠’s but with

pass   dbl                             insufficient values for an immediate take-out double.

K     1♣     pass   1♠      pass      

1NT   pass   2NT   pass       This double demands that partner leads dummy’s suit, ♠’s.

3NT   pass   pass   dbl

L      2♣     pass   2♦      3♦        3♦ is natural and pre-emptive unless you have agreed something different such as the Truscott defence (when it would show ♦’s and ♥’s).