Unit 149 (WUMBA) - District 13
 
Review Please 2003

Review Please
March - July 2003

Ring up a win

It's the final of the top bracket KO at the ex bunny club. The first half was a 32 to 32 tie but the score in the second half was 42 to 41 for the other team (rats!). However, the other team was fined 3 IMPS for a cell phone violation! Be forewarned, the ACBL enforces this rule. None of the players involved on either team were happy with this situation.

How good is good?

This is the last hand of a KO and north deemed her hand worth a strong 1C call and I responded 1D (usually 0–7 HCP). North bid a forcing 3D and I showed some points and a spade suit with a 3S bid. North bid 5S over this and you have to 1. figure out what the bid means and 2. make the winning call (see above). The default meaning is "how good are your spades"? Well how good are your spades? I thought they were good enough and they were when the opening lead was the diamond queen and the spades divided. +1010 versus –800 in the other room.

Destroy this hand with me

It's IMPS and west opens 2H, X by partner, P on your right and it's your bid. 4S looked like the proper call so I made it. Partner pulled to 5C and it's your turn again. What does it all mean? One possibility is that partner was too strong to just overcall, but doesn't have spades. Another is that it is a slam try in spades. I went for the first scenario and bid 6C passed out. Well bid! Partner held

7NT is cold! You score a crummy 940 which gains 13 (count em) IMPS when the pair at the other table played the hand in 4C!

Next you hold (same match)

Partner starts with a 3C (you are VUL), passed to you, your call. I passed and it looks like both 4S and 5C might make when partner held

Well bid! However, LHO held five clubs to the QJ, spades are J fourth on your left, the heart king is offside, and you have to be careful (translation lucky) to make three clubs! At the other table the contract was four spades –200.

Mandatory false card

It's matchpoints and this is a suit to play at the contract of 3NT. You start by leading the four of diamonds to the queen. What card should east play? Answer: it's a mandatory false card. If east plays the three (he did at our table), declarer has no choice but to continue with the ace, dropping the king and running the whole suit. East should drop the ten or nine (randomly) and now the relevant positions are 1. stiff ten 2. ten-nine doubleton 3. ten-nine third. If you work it out (it's like an application of restricted choice), you will find that declarer's best line is to return to hand and run the jack. In this actual case, declarer loses an extra trick.

Oops!

Here is an example of plugging a hole and finding a leak somewhere else. We had a hand with two aces and a void and showed two aces to a Blackwood inquiry when it would have been better to show two aces and a void (by bidding 5NT). So we installed that method (it's called the Jordan–Robinson method) and the hand above came up. I (south) started with 1C (precisely), west doubled for the majors, north redoubled, east bid 2H and I bid 3C. Not sensing that danger lay ahead, north bid 4NT and I bid 5NT. Well 5NT is what north wanted to bid next, allowing me to bid 7NT as I have a big source of tricks. But north was stuck and bid only 6C making seven of course for 3/8 matchpoints (it should be worse).

Defense!

North bid 1H, east passed, south bid 1S and I came in with a 2C call. North bid 3S , east tried 5C and south bid 5S ending the auction. It's both VUL at IMPS. I led the heart ace hoping to find a position where partner could ruff, but both east and south followed. Next came the club ace which lived. What next? Either a diamond or club lead is fatal. I led a heart and east was not pleased when her possible trump trick disappeared. I asked what lead she would prefer. +100 combined with +140 at the other table so we did post a gain.

Yuk!

We thought we closed a system hole when, after I opened 1NT (13–15 HCP), north bid 3D showing 5–5 in the majors (invitational). Even though I had only 13 HCP, all the major suit cards led to accepting with a bid of 4S . Well done! After the opening lead of the club, king, I ruffed and played the ace and king of spades, leaving east with the queen. The ace of diamonds was offside also so I went down and lost six IMPS instead of having the expected pickup.

Here is another 75% contract down the tubes. After much bidding north discovered that I held 5+ spades missing the A,K or Q, 8+ HCP, and three diamonds to the queen. So he bid 6NT (slam was missed at the other table). Naturally the AJ 8 of spades was in the east hand so we lost 11 IMPS instead of a large gain. Yuk!Yuk!

Review Please
August-October 2003

You be the judge

Neither VUL at IMPS and east opens 3C. You are too strong to just bid 3D so you double. Partner next bids 4NT, and when you show two aces goes to 6S and you score –150 yuk! At the other table east was silent (east's holding was seven clubs to the QJ and the Axx of hearts) and south opened 1D, north bid 1S, east now bid 3C and south had an easy call of 3H. North tried 4S but south pulled to 5D raised to six by north, making when the hearts behaved. That's +920. Apportion the blame between north and south.

Save your winners

It's IMPS and you arrive at 3NT. West leads the diamond queen. You win the king in dummy and lead a club to the king and ace. West persists with the diamond jack and you win the ace and run the clubs pitching a diamond from your hand. Now the hearts run and when the last heart is played the cards in dummy should be a diamond and the A 10 of spades. However, declarer pitched dummy's diamond early so west could throw the rest of an original holding of five diamond. West held the spade king so you have just squandered and overtrick by messing up the squeeze. The moral is: you don't have to think but watch the spots and throw away cards that may be useful as late as possible.

Pulling trumps

I opened 1D (precise neoroman canape style), north bid 1H (shows 5+), I rebid 1S (5+ spades, 4+diamonds, north bid 1NT (forcing), I bid 2S (showing the sixth spade), north bid 3C, I bid 3H and north figured me for a minimum with 6–2–4–1 distribution. North bid 3S and I carried on to 4S ending the auction. West led a diamond to the four, queen and ace and the problem is how to avoid a loser in the trump suit. Here's the answer: play a spade to the ace, back to the heart ace, spade king dropping the queen. Next a heart to the king and ruff a heart establishing the suit. Now a club to the ace and play hearts past east. East cannot ruff without losing his trump trick so he discarded on the hearts as did I. Then a club ruff, exit with a diamond and you have just completed a double trump coup and won 2 IMPS for your team.

What do you lead and why?

NS VUL at matchpoints. East passed and I opened 2C (precisely), west bid 2D and north doubled (asks for further description). East bid 2H and I bid 2NT (6+ clubs with two outside stoppers). This did not stop west who bid 4NT!, and when partner showed an ace, went on to 6H. I felt obliged to double and it's your lead. A club honor is a standout and I led one. Any other lead lets the slam through.

Three no chance

North passed, east opened 1S and I bid 1NT raised to three by north (why not?). It's matchpoints and you have to take as many tricks as possible (not very many are possible on this layout as I did not hold the club king). The spade lead went to the eight and queen and I led to club eight to the king (east ducking). Next came the club queen and east didn't have the count yet and ducked again. Now I led a heart to the king and got a second spade trick and the diamond ace but no more. –150 was worth 4/12 matchpoints (it felt worse). However, the matchpoints came back on the next hand.

Bid this hand with me

East passed and I opened 1C, west passed and north bid 1S. East passed and I bid 2D. North bid 2S and I bid 3C. This set north off and she bid 4NT. When I showed one ace the final contract became 6S. On a heart lead it was easy to take all the tricks and we got 9/12 matchpoints.

Why were we playing matchpoints instead of IMPS – the reason is that we were KOed earlier by Meckwell.. We could have won – here's a problem hand.

Both VUL and we got the bidding right when south opened 2H and I raised to four. At the other table the contract was 3NT which had to go down when west held four clubs and the KQxx of hearts.

You get the lead of the spade nine and it's up to you to plan the play. How would you proceed?

Review Please
November 2003 to February 2004

Pulling trumps

This is IMPS and your partner (north) opens 1C (precisely) and you respond 1D(usually 0-7 HCP), west bid 2H, partner doubled, I bid 4S, west bid 5D and partner raised to 6S. The opening lead is the heart king and it looks like you have missed a grand slam. But the play's the thing. I ruffed with the king and played the spade eight to the nine and followed with a small club towards dummy, inviting west to ruff if he were void (he was) with a 'useless' trump (which he didn't have). I should have played the club jack right now and be plus 1430, instead of minus 300. At the other table they blasted to six clubs, which was easy to play.

Use your machinery

This is IMPS and your partner opens 2C (precisely). You bid 2D (asking for clarification of partners hand) and partner bids 2NT (2+ outside stoppers and 6+ clubs). What next? I made the speedy gonzalez bid of 4H and got what I deserved when partner had the major suits aces instead of one of the aces being the club ace. All you have to do is ask (with a bid of 3C) and partner will show control in both majors and you can bid 6H with confidence.?

As the stomach turns

This is IMPS and your partner (north) opens 1H and east bids 2H(michaels). On the same auction south at the other table bid 4NT and when north showed two aces went directly to 7H making when the spade finesse was on. Yuk! We were pleased when -1510 was a push.

The gambling 3NT

This is IMPS (NS VUL) and south opens the gambling 3NT! One nice feature of this bid is that the hand is always played from the wrong side! North had stoppers in the outside suits so he passed and the carnage was not long in coming. West led the spade deuce but the king was topped by the ace. After seven spades and the club ace were cashed, the result was -400 and a bunch of IMPS flew out the window.

Select the losing option

This is matchpoints (yuk!) and you open 1D. LHO bids 1S, partner bids 2C and you bid 2NT ending the auction (with a maximum opener you would have bid 3NT). LHO leads the spade jack and east plays the ace followed by the queen. Do you take this or do you hold up? It depends who has the club ace. If west has it you should take the king now. If east has it you should duck the second spade lead. I guessed wrong and my partner indicated the correct play.

Play to win

More matchpoints. You (south) open 1C(precisely), north bids 2D, you bid 2Hand partner launches blackberry and the auction ends in 6NT. This hand is almost a pianola after east leads a low club. Just lead a heart to the ace and pass the diamond queen. On this line, the heart queen fell offside on the first lead and the diamond queen was covered by the king. Now when you lead a second heart to dummy and play a second diamond west follows so slam is assured by finessing the nine. In fact this holds and you score +1470. Some declarers finessed the heart on the first lead and made twelve tricks or less and many pairs failed to bid slam. So this was overkill.

As the stomach turns

Next hand same round. Matchpoints again. West opened 1H,north passed, east bid 1S and I bid 2C. West decided to try 4NT and east/west were soon in six spades on the combined twenty count. This slam is at least 50% and six made easily. How many matchpoints did we get? (hint: you won"t need many fingers on one hand to count).

The gambling 3NT

We got some matchpoints back on this hand. West opened 1H in third seat and north bid 1S. East bid 2NT and west retreated to 3C. This should be a warning to east who persisted with 3NT passed out. Ignoring partners overcall I led the diamond king which holds the contract to down two. However, east tried to make the contract and we got seven tricks for a top.