Our website is www.pattayabridge.com Club News Sheet – No. 332

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My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 083 6066880 23^rd March 2009

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Mon 16^th N-S 1^st Lars B & Jean 67% 2^nd Eddie & Dave H 59%

E-W 1^st Ado & Derek 60% 2^nd Paul Q & Terry Q 56%

Wed 18^th 1^st Paul Q & Terry Q 63% 2^nd Bob S & Johan 53%

Fri 20^th N-S 1^st Hans V & Per And.. 59% 2^nd Bob P & Robbie 56%

E-W 1^st Paul Q & Terry Q 58% 2^nd Dave & Royd 56%

Bidding Quiz Standard American bidding is assumed unless otherwise stated.

Hand A Hand B With Hand A partner opens 1♥ and you bid 1♠. Partner then

jumps to 3♣, what do you do?

♠ K105432 ♠ Q9872

♥ 93 ♥ A86 With Hand B it’s favourable vulnerability. LHO opens 1♠ and

♦ J5 ♦ 102 partner doubles, what do you do?

♣ J72 ♣ 532

Hand C Hand D What do you open with Hand C?

♠ K108 ♠ A8 With Hand D you open 1♥ and partner bids 1♠

♥ AK2 ♥ AKQJ6 (a) What do you bid?

♦ AK10 ♦ 3 (b) Suppose you bid 3♣ and partner bids 3♠. What now?

♣ AJ87 ♣ K10943

Gold Cup = Best 30	Silver Plate = Best 10	Bronze Medal = Best 5
Current standings 21-March-2009	628.8 Janne Roos 617.6 Hans Vikman 612.8 Paul Quodomine 603.8 Lars Broman 602.3 Bob Short 601.1 Sally Watson 588.6 Derek & Gerard 586.4 Johan Bratsberg 574.6 Jean Wissing 568.9 Lars Gustafsson	326.0 Janne Roos 321.3 Hans Vikman 320.1 Bob Short 316.7 Sally Watson 316.1 Lars Broman 314.3 Paul Quodomine 311.4 Eddie Richart 310.7 Per Andersson 307.1 Derek & Gerard 303.9 Per-Ake Roskvist

Everybody bid the slam Board 15 from Wednesday 18^th

We played this board in the first round on Wednesday against Eddie Richart and Janne Roos (N-S). They bid confidently to the ♥ slam and we had to sacrifice in 6♠. My partner (Paul Q) was apprehensive that we would get a poor score as not many would bid the ♥ slam. But the standard has improved! – and in fact every N-S pair bid the slam and all but one E-W pair found the 6♠ sacrifice, so we actually scored slightly above average on the board. Well done everybody. This is the bidding at our table: -

Dealer: ♠ J6 West North East South

South ♥ AKQJ64 - - - pass

N-S vul ♦ QJ109 2♠ 3♥ (1) 4♠ 5♠ (2)

♣ 2 dbl (3) 6♥ 6♠ pass (4)

pass dbl all pass

♠ AK8432 N ♠ Q10975

♥ 10 W E ♥ 9 (1) dbl is the alternative, but I prefer 3♥.

♦ 742 S ♦ 5 (2) presumably showing a void and supporting ♥’s.

♣ 654 ♣ AQJ983 (3) Showing good values in spades, and by

♠ - inference not much outside, so this may aid

♥ 87532 partner if he is thinking about sacrificing at

♦ AK863 the 6-level.

♣ K107 (4) Forcing.

So good bidding all round, and it was presumably similar at all of the other tables.

And what happened? 6♠* by West went -2 for just 300 away at four tables. At the other table 6♥ made for 1430.

The bottom lines

- When partner opens a weak two, you have 5 cards in the suit, and partner shows good cards in the suit then do not expect partner to make any tricks in defence.

- I would play the 5♠ bid at (2) as Exclusion RKCB, but this N-S pair were unfamiliar with each other and presumably do not play that.

Leading Quiz Here is an opening lead problem from Monday 16^th

South West North East South

♠ K - pass 1♠ dbl

♥ KJ74 pass pass pass

♦ Q65

♣ AKJ84 You are South and partner has converted your take-out double into penalties, what do you lead?

Good enough for a penalty pass? Board 9 from Monday 16^th

Dealer: ♠ Q9872 Table A

North ♥ A86 West North(B) East South

E-W vul ♦ 102 - pass 1♠ dbl (1)

♣ 532 pass pass (2) pass

♠ 63 N ♠ AJ1052 Table B

♥ Q1053 W E ♥ 92 West North(B) East South

♦ K98743 S ♦ AJ - pass 1♠ dbl

♣ 10 ♣ Q976 pass 1NT (2) all pass

♠ K

♥ KJ74

♦ Q65

♣ AKJ84

Table A: (1) This dbl is far better than the 2♣ overcall found at another table.

(2) What did you bid with this North hand B in this week’s quiz? This pass (going for the magic 200 at pairs) is very tempting but I would have a good look at declarer (is he any good?) and also at partner (does he know to lead a trump if you pass?). I personally would like better trumps and a better hand to leave the double in.

Table B: (2) This is the obvious alternative for question B and is what I would bid most of the time.

And what happened? 2♠ doubled was the final contract twice and it made on both occasions. 1NT by North was a good result and 2♦ by West scored an average. The other two contracts were 2♣* by South -2 and 2♠ by East -4 (undoubled!).

The bottom lines: -

- When you decide to pass a take-out double for penalties you must have very good trumps (particularly intermediates) that can stand trumps being led from dummy.

- Bearing this in mind, the player on lead should virtually always lead a trump if he has one as this may cut down a ruff in dummy.

Leading Quiz Answer

So the answer to the lead problem on the previous page is the ♠K. On the actual deal this prevents the ♣ ruff in dummy and leads to -1 and what should be a top score of 200. The actual lead of the ♣A was a disaster as then declarer had no problem scoring a ♣ ruff and making the contract.

The bottom line: -

- When a take-out double is passed for penalties, a trump lead is virtually mandatory.

Rebid a 6-card suit? Board 3 from Friday 20^th

At table B N-S got into a terrible mess, who would you blame?

Dealer: ♠ K105432 Table A

South ♥ 93 West North(A) East South(D)

E-W vul ♦ J5 - - - 1♥

♣ J72 pass 1♠ pass 3♣ (1)

pass pass (2) all pass

♠ 6 N ♠ QJ97

♥ 108754 W E ♥ 2 Table B

♦ K10942 S ♦ AQ876 West North(A) East South(D)

♣ AQ ♣ 865 - - - 1♥

♠ A8 pass 1♠ pass 3♣ (1)

♥ AKQJ6 pass 3♠ (3) pass 4NT (4)

♦ 3 pass 5♣ pass 5♠

♣ K10943 pass pass dbl all pass

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this South hand D(a) in this week’s quiz? This 3♣ bid is game forcing but is an overbid in my opinion. 2♣ is quite sufficient – it’s a possible mis-fit and I do not think that this south hand has the values to force to game.

(2) What did you bid with this North hand A in this week’s quiz? Maybe this North new that his partner was an over-bidder and so passed (and this worked out well as South had indeed overbid). I prefer the bid at table B but then I expect partner to have a much better hand for a game forcing 3♣ bid.

Table B: (1) This South also overbid.

(3) And I too would re-bid the six card suit here and 3♠ is my answer to question A.

(2) What did you bid with this South hand D(b) in this week’s quiz? This 4NT is clearly way over the top – partner may well have a hand just like she had (or perhaps a little stronger). 4♠ is enough. You have already overbid your hand and if slam is there partner will bid again.

And what happened? 3♣ at Table A was the only plus score for N-S but I disapprove of the bidding (I would not bid 3♣

as South and I would not pass as North). Two wrongs make a right?

At Table B 5♠* went -4 and 800 away and a clear bottom.

So who was at fault at table B? South gave North a mouthful of stick, but in my opinion South was totally at fault in both

the 2^nd and 3^rd bids and in my opinion North bid perfectly. I note that the most popular contract was 4♠ undoubled, so I guess

most North’s bid their ♠’s twice.

The bottom lines

- 17 points is not enough to force to game opposite a 1-level response which is a mis-fit.

- Generally don’t pass partner’s game forcing bids unless he/she is known to frequently overbid.

Super-Accept? Board 27 from Friday 20^th

At table A N-S got into a poor contract, who would you blame?

Dealer: ♠ K108 Table A

South ♥ AK2 West North(C) East South

Love all ♦ AK10 - - - pass

♣ AJ87 pass 2NT (1) pass 3♥ (2)

pass 4♠ (3) all pass

♠ 62 N ♠ J75

♥ 983 W E ♥ J1054 Table B

♦ Q863 S ♦ J95 West North(C) East South

♣ K1064 ♣ Q53 - - - pass

♠ AQ943 pass 2♣ (1) pass 2♦

♥ Q76 pass 2NT (4) pass 3♥ (5)

♦ 742 pass 3♠ (6) pass 3NT

♣ 92 pass pass (7) pass

Table A: (1) What did you open with this North hand C in this week’s quiz? This hand is a balanced 22, but knock off a

point for 3334 but add on a point for the two tens, good intermediates and great top cards. So it’s easily

worth 22+ points and if you play 2NT as 20-21 then this hand should open 2♣.

(3) A transfer.

(4) North realized that he had possibly underbid last go and so now super-accepted to ensure that he was in game. This is clearly wrong – partner may have no points and you need 4 trumps to super-accept in this situation.

Table B: (1) The correct opening and the answer to question C.

(4) 22-24

(5) A transfer

(6) Having said his hand pretty exactly, North has no reason not to simply accept the transfer.

(7) And with all of these points outside ♠’s North obviously chooses to play in NoTrumps rather than the 5-3 ♠ fit.

And what happened? This was the last board at Table A and decided the winners of both sections. Going into this last

board N-S were winning in their direction and E-W were 2^nd in their direction. However, 4♠ making exactly was a clear

bottom to N-S and so they dropped to 2^nd place and the top to E-W gave them first place in the E-W line. 3NT +2 or +3

were the popular scores. The bottom lines

- You need 4 trumps to super-accept, after either a 1NT or 2NT opening.

- With a 5-3 major suit fit, go for the NoTrump game if most of your points are outside the major suit and you have no obvious weakness.

Dave’s Column Here is Dave’s input about the play of the hand.

North South You are North, declarer in 4♠ via a Stayman sequence having

♠ Q942 ♠ K876 opened 1NT in 4^th seat. East leads the ♥A followed by the

♥ J6 ♥ 1032 ♥K and ♥Q which you ruff. Plan the play.

♦ KJ9 ♦ AQ102 Will declarer succeed if he leads a low ♠ from hand at trick 4?

♣ AKQ4 ♣ J7

Dave’s Column answer Board 2 from Wednesday 18^th

Dealer: ♠ Q942 West North East South

East ♥ J6 - - pass pass

N-S vul ♦ KJ9 pass 1NT pass 2♣

♣ AKQ4 pass 2♠ pass 4♠ (1)

all pass

♠ A5 N ♠ J103

♥ 9874 W E ♥ AKQ5 This is the bidding from the book and

♦ 764 S ♦ 853 also from our table where Paul Q was

♣9652 ♣ 1083 North and I was South.

♠ K876

♥ 1032 (1) With 10 points and two tens this is easily

♦ AQ102 worth bidding game.

♣ J7

Answer: Declarer will fail if he leads a trump at trick 4.

In order to hold the trump losers to one, declarer needs one of his opponents to hold the doubleton ♠A or the ♠J10 doubleton or else West to hold the singleton ♠J or ♠10 so that he can take a later finesse against East’s remaining guarded ♠J/10.

So the critical question is – who has the ♠A?

West must have it as East has already turned up with 9 points and with the ♠A in addition he would have opened as dealer. Therefore declarer must lead the first ♠ from dummy through West. So cross to dummy in a minor suit and lead the ♠6. If West plays low declarer wins the ♠Q and leads another ♠. Whether East plays the ♠J or the ♠10 declarer must play low from dummy, hoping that West began with ♠Ax and will have to play his ♠A on thin air.

This form of play is known as an obligatory finesse. It is not really a finesse but is a close relative.

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? 4♠= (by my partner along the lines given above), 4♠-1 twice, 3NT-1 and 2♠+2.

The bottom lines: -

- I simply cannot understand the contracts of 3NT and 2♠, surely the given auction is automatic?

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

West East You are East, declarer in 3NT.

♠ J7 ♠ AQ9 South leads the ♦3 which North wins with the ♦A and returns

♥ 53 ♥ KQJ2 the ♦10. You win and South follows with the ♦2.

♦ 865 ♦ KQ9 There is a 100% play for this contract – can you find it?

♣ J109863 ♣ AKQ

Dave’s 2^nd Column answer Board 1 from Wednesday 18^th

Dealer: ♠ 65432 West North East South

North ♥ 10976 pass 2♣ pass

Love all ♦ A10 2♦ pass 3NT (1) all pass

♣ 54

♠ J7 N ♠ AQ9 (1) I personally hate this bid – it made no

♥ 53 W E ♥ KQJ2 difference with this particular hand but

♦ 865 S ♦ KQ9 if partner has say 4 (or 5) ♥’s then you

♣ J109863 ♣ AKQ are probably in a silly contract.

♠ K108 There are various options: play Benjamin

♥ A84 twos, the Multi 2♦, or the Kokish relay.

♦ J7432

♣ 72

The 100% play is to cash three top ♣’s and then lead the ♠Q (key play). If somebody overtakes the ♠K then the ♠J is an entry to those lovely ♣’s.

If the ♠Q wins the trick there’s no problem. Knock out the ♥A and you have at least 9 tricks – 3 ♣’s and two tricks in the other three suits minimum.

Notice that if you try to knock out the ♥A before leading the ♠Q South can win, exit with a ♦ and, holding the ♠K as yet another entry, you go down.

And what happened at the Pattaya Bridge Club? 3NT+2, 3NT+1, 3NT= and 3NT-1 twice.

The bottom lines: -

- If you have a cashable long suit, look hard for an entry.

Bidding Quiz Answers

Hand A: 3♠. Partner’s 3♣ is game forcing and I prefer to rebid this reasonable 6-card suit rather than giving (false) preference to 3♥.

Hand B: 1NT, or possibly pass. The opponents are vulnerable and if you get them one down by passing then 200 will be a very good score. But I would prefer better trumps (and a better hand) and would bid 1NT unless LHO is a beginner and I’m feeling mean.

Hand C: 2♣, to be followed by 2NT, showing a balanced 22-24.

Hand D: (a) 2♣. 3♣ is game forcing and is an overbid.

(b) 4♠. Having already overbid, the only way to salvage the situation is to bid 4♠. 4NT (as bid at one table) is way over the top.