Our website is www.pattayabridge.com                             Club News Sheet – No. 276 

Our blogsite is www.pattayabridge.wordpress.com                                 

My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 083 6066880                   24th Feb 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 18th  N-S     1st    Gerry & Per-Ake           60%       2nd    Ken & Tomas                        54%

                E-W     1st    Hans V & Lars G           54%       2nd    Agne & Britta                         52%

Wed 20th N-S     1st    Bob & Jo                       62%       2nd    Val & Terry                            53%

                E-W     1st    Lars G & Tomas            67%       2nd    Sean B & Tom Hanlon           60%

Fri 22nd     N-S     1st    Ivy & Wolfgang              60%       2nd    Britta Borg & Sally Watson    55%

                E-W     1st    Dermont & Joron           61%       2nd    = Hans V & Lars G                60%

2nd    = Kees P & Paul S                 60%

Bidding Quiz                   

 

Hand A           Hand B           With Hand A you open 1 and partner bids 1, what

do you rebid?

A654            QJ7           

KJ7              J85               With Hand B LHO opens 1 and partner overcalls 1. RHO

1086             94                 doubles (negative, showing 4 ’s), what do you do?

KQ4            109874     

 

Hand C           Hand D           With Hand C you open 1, LHO bids 1, partner bids 2 and

RHO bids 2. What do you do?

K4                K72                     

AQ104         9742             With Hand D partner opens 1 and RHO overcalls 2, what

A1085          3                   do you bid? Note, this is the hand that should have been 

632              A10962        Hand D Last week.

 

Hand E            Hand F            With Hand E partner opens 1 and RHO overcalls 1, what

do you bid?

1083             J1085                  

K743            J62                                      

32                 3                   With Hand F LHO opens 1 and partner doubles, what do

AKQJ          KJ652          you do?

 

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

 

A964            A963         

AKQ4          Q54              With Hand H partner opens 3, what do you bid?       

K872            AQ10942                            

10                -

 

 

Bidding Sequence Quiz

                               

J      1      pass   2     pass       Is 3 forcing?

3     

K     1      1      2     2          (a) How many points is 2NT,

2NT                                     (b) and does it show a stop?


Error in last week’s news-sheet

 

K72              Hand D on the front page of last week’s news-sheet was incorrect (it was

9742             correct in the inside pages of the news-sheet). This is the correct hand and

3                   you were asked what to do when partner opened 1 and RHO overcalls

A10962        2. The hand has been put in again this week again as Hand D.

 

Never deny a 4-card major – part 1.                   Board 13 from Monday 18th  

Here we go again, with East at Table A getting a poor score for ‘showing the points’ rather than showing the 4-card major.

 

Dealer:             KQ7                                           Table A

North               95                                               West          North         East(A)      South

Both vul            K752                                          -                 -                 1             pass  

                        J1082                                         1              pass           1NT (1)      all pass

 

10982                N             A654                    Table B

AQ106          W    E          KJ7                      West          North         East(A)      South

J3                      S              1086                   -                 -                 1             pass

763                                    KQ4                   1              pass           1    (1)      pass

                        J3                                              2              all pass      

8432                                          

AQ94                                        

A95                                           

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you bid with this East hand A in this week’s quiz? The hand is totally flat but you should still try for a 4-4 fit; since partner has 4 ’s, if he also has 4 ’s then he has shortage in one minor and you will score an extra trick with a ruff (or two).

Table B:     (1)  This East got it right.

 

And what happened? INT went one down for a poor score. 2 was bid 3 times and made twice. The bottom lines: -

-         The 4-4 fit virtually always makes an extra trick.

-         Never deny a 4-card major.

 

Play Problem

 

Dealer:             1083                                           West          North(E)    East            South

East                  K743                                          -                 -                 pass           1

Both vul            32                                               1              2   (1)      2              2NT   (2)

AKQJ                                        pass           3NT           all pass

 

A9652               N                 You are West, defending against 3NT.  You choose to lead the

96                  W    E              K and partner plays the 9 (count, probably a doubleton).                

KQJ76              S                  What card do you play next?         

5                                                                  Answer next page.   

 


Never deny a 4-card major – part 2.
                   Board 10 from Wednesday 20th 

This time North at Table A is a beginner and did not know about negative doubles. But the hand is interesting because of the play in the inferior 3NT contract that was reached.

Dealer:             1083                                           Table A

East                 K743                                          West          North(E)    East            South (C)

Both vul            32                                               -                 -                 pass           1

                        AKQJ                                        1              2   (1)      2              2NT   (2)

pass           3NT           all pass

A9652               N             QJ7                     

96                  W    E          J85                       Table B

KQJ76              S              94                        West          North(E)    East(B)       South

5                                        109874               -                 -                 pass           1

                        K4                                             1              dbl   (1)      2    (3)      3     

AQ104                                       pass           4              all pass

A1085                                       

632                                           

 

Table A:     (1)  What did you bid with this North hand E in this week’s quiz? The bidding at Table B is best.

(2)  What did you bid with this South hand C in this week’s quiz? This shows 12-14 points (partner has bid a new suit at the 2-level) and a stop and so is fine.

Table B:     (1)  This North got it right, a negative double showing 4 ’s.

(3)   What did you bid with this East hand B in this week’s quiz? I totally agree with this raise – it may make life difficult for South…

(4)   … Indeed, but with good 4-card support South really has to possibly overbid here.

 

Now the interesting thing about this hand is not the bidding, but the play at Table A. North was a beginner but all of the other three players like to believe that they are good players.

West enquired how many ’s the 1 opening guaranteed and as told ‘4’. He led the K anyway and got the 9 (count, so obviously a doubleton or perhaps singleton) from partner. What did you lead next in the problem set on the previous page?

In my opinion West went very wrong here when he continued with the Q. Declarer won with the A and cashed the A and K and then simply led the 10 to establish his 8 as a tenth trick.

At trick two West should not continue ’s as declarer is favorite to hold the 8 and you are then setting up a trick for him. A is likely to give declarer a trick and I think it’s best to passively exit with a , declarer has only nine tricks then unless he can engineer an end-play. But this South is probably not a good enough player to manage that, noting the pips is his limit.

And what happened? 3NT scored +1 for a good score, with 4= being the popular spot.

The bottom lines: -

-         Be wary of leading into declarer’s suit, especially twice!

-         Don’t forget negative doubles, 4 is easy on this deal.

 

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

 

North               South               You are South, declarer in 4 on the Q lead. Plan the play.

J876             A543

4                   A8632

AKJ1098      Q4

A3                KJ                                       


Dave’s Column answer                      Board 17 from Wednesday 13th 

 

   

Dealer:             J876                                           West          North         East            South

North               4                                                 -                 1              pass           1

Love all            AKJ1098                                    pass           1              pass           4

                        A3                                              all pass

                                                                             

2                         N             KQ109           East leads the Q, how do you play?

K75                W    E          QJ109           

7532                   S              6                     Dave’s book says:

Q9854                               10762            Win the A, cash the A and begin playing ’s.        

                        A543                                    You lose three tricks and no more. It’s that simple.

A8632                                 

Q4                            Terry’s comment. Is it really that simple? This is a pairs

KJ                            competition and if the ’s break 3-2 (68%) then you will          

make one less trick than the rest of the field.

 

I did not play this hand on Wednesday so Dave gave it to me as a play problem. I won the A and led a low at trick two, ruffed the return and then played the A. If ’s split 3-2 I would then have made 11 tricks by then playing on ’s; if ’s are 4-1 this line loses only if the player with 4 trumps also has 4 or more ’s. On this deal it failed but I believe that this is a superior line to Dave’s book at pairs scoring. And another consideration is that many players will be in 3NT making +1, so 4 making will be a bad score. You must try for 11 tricks.

The point of the hand is that you should not play the A at trick two and then continue with a as if trumps split 4-1 the opponents will draw trumps and then cash a bunch of ’s.

 

Dave’s book says that you must avoid losing control. It states ‘On this hand there are two ways of losing control. If you play A and a then that’s clearly curtains.

Alternatively if you duck a , ruff the return and then play the A (my line) you are not much better off. When you begin to play ’s East will ruff, draw your last trump and then score two tricks. Down two.’

This last paragraph is misleading (incorrect, even!). There are three errors; to start with “your last trump” should read “dummy’s last trump”. Secondly, you have not lost control – you have only run out of trumps in dummy. Thirdly, having discovered the 4-1 break at trick 4 when he leads the A, declarer will obviously ruff another in dummy and go only one down when East turns up with the remaining . Had West held 4 or more ’s (odds-on with East having 4 ’s) then the contract would make despite East holding 4 trumps.

And what happened at the Pattaya bridge Club? The board was played 6 times and 4 was reached on 4 occasions; -3, -1 and contract. The bottom lines: -

-         I think it’s best to go with the 68++% (it’s more like 80%) chance rather than a safety play to make an inferior contract at pairs scoring. But then who am I to argue with Eddie Kantar?

 

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

 

West                East                  You are East, declarer in 3NT. South leads the 7 and North   

32                 KJ9              plays the 10, Plan the play.    

A942            K3             

AJ1083         K952                                   

A10              K653                                                


Dave’s 2nd Column answer              Board 7 from Wednesday 13th  

 

   

Dealer:             1064                                           West          North         East            South

East                  Q1065                                        -                 -                 pass           pass

N-S vul            Q74                                            1              pass           3NT           all pass

                        Q97                                          

                                                                              South leads the 7 and North plays the 10,

32                       N             KJ9                      Plan the play

A942              W    E          K3                 

AJ1083               S              K952                   

A10                                    K653                  

                        AQ875                                      

J87                                            

6                                                

J842                                          

 

You have 5 sure tricks outside your strongest suit, ’s – one , 2 ’s and 2 ’s. Therefore you only need 4 tricks from the suit to make your game.

You know from the lead and North’s play to the first trick that South has the missing honours (Third hand plays high and the rule of 11 imply that North has only the one card higher than the 7).

Knowing that South has the AQ makes North the danger hand. It is North, not South, who can hurt you (with a through) if he gets the lead. Your plan should be to keep North off lead.

Lead a to the A and run the J at trick three. Even if it loses you have nine tricks and are safe from a attack with South on lead.

 

And what happened at the Pattaya bridge Club? The board was played 6 times but only one pair ended up in 3NT, making an overtrick for a clear top. The bottom lines: -

-         When you have a vulnerable holding (usually a king) it is the hand that can lead through your honour that is the danger hand, not the hand sitting over your king.

 

 

Cards on the table - Disputes over the number of tricks made.

 

There have been occasions when the sides disagree on the number of tricks made. My solution is very easy – I always leave my cards on the table in the correct orientation until the score is agreed and written down. If I am called over when there is a dispute and three players have returned their cards to the board, then I will state that the result of the player with his cards on the table is correct.

The bottom lines: -

-         Leave your cards on the table until the score has been written down.

 

Incidentally, at our club it is quite permissible (encouraged even) for anyone to mention to anyone else that they have a card the wrong way round.


Stay low with misfits                                      Board 8 from Friday 22nd  

 

Dealer:             1087                                           West          North         East(H)      South  

West                AKJ6                                         3             pass           3    (1)      pass

Love all            6                                                 3NT (2)      dbl             pass           pass  

                        AK832                                       4             dbl             all pass

 

QJ4                   N             A963              (1)  What did you bid with this East hand H in

73                  W    E          Q54                      this week’s quiz? This East has a totally

J                        S              AQ10942            different opinion about the hand than I do.

QJ107654                          -                          He thinks it’s a good hand, I think it’s a

                        K52                                           pile of junk opposite a 3 opener, and to

10982                                         make a forcing bid of 3 is sheer folly.

K8753                                        Pass is very clear.

9                                          (2)  What else can West do?      

 

 

And what happened? 4 doubled went -3 for a shared bottom to E-W. After the hand East ‘did a Chuck’ and proclaimed that he had a good hand and that partner should have passed 3NT. This is total nonsense (3NT fares even worse) and the disaster is 100% East’s fault.

 The bottom lines: -

-         A new suit over partner’s pre-empt is strong and forcing.

-         12 points with a void in partner’s long suit is not strong.

 

 

 

 

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

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23

24

25

26

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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-

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12

10

18

19

 

14

3

17

 

17

2

10

1

 

6

2

12

 

26

2

10

12

 

18

23

11

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24

7

6

7

6

20

7

24

 

10

1

18

10

 

18

 

16

3

2

11

 

2

23

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25

18

24

10

23

7

24

 

12

 

14

3

23

21

 

12

13

2

10

 

2

12

 

23

3

10

  __

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__

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.

18

23

 

18

12

12

7

10

 


Don’t pass partner’s take-out double                 Board 17 from Friday 22nd  

 

Dealer:             A964                                          West          North         East            South(F)

North               Q1075                                        -                 pass           pass           pass

Love all            K1084                                        1             dbl   (1)      pass           pass   (2)

                        4                                                all pass

 

K3                     N             Q72                (1)  A shade light, but with the perfect shape and  

A4                  W    E          K983                    two tens I think it’s perfectly acceptable and

AQ65                S              J972                     is the bid that I would make.

AQ973                               108                (2)  What did you bid with this South hand F in

                        J1085                                        this week’s quiz? I would need MUCH better

J62                                             trumps to even think about passing in this

3                                                position. With 4 ’s 1 is very clear.

KJ652                                       

 

And what happened? 1 doubled made +1 for a poor score to N-S. The bottom lines: -

-         Do not pass partner’s take-out double without excellent trumps.

 

 

 

16 points, so a 1NT opening?                        East hand 17 from Monday 18th   

 

A964                  What did you open with this hand G in this week’s quiz? It is 16 points

AKQ4                but it is NOT balanced. The correct opening is 1. I will take this

K872                 opportunity to remind players that a 1NT opening with a singleton

10                      IS NOT ALLOWED at this club. I would normally adjust the score, giving the non-offending side 60% but as they scored 60% anyway they just got their average. The East player was apparently unaware of the club rules and so he was not penalized this time (the board was averaged [scored as not played] and so they got their average score for the session).

 


Bidding Quiz Answers

 

Hand A:     1. 1NT is a poor bid as there may be a 4-4 fit.

Hand B:     2. It’s usually best to support partner’s 5-card suit with three card support, but this is especially important in the situation when RHO has made a negative double of a 1 overcall. This is because RHO’s points are undefined and a raise to 2 may inhibit opener from bidding 3 with a minimum opener when they have game; or alternatively ‘push him’ to bid 3 and then get too high. Not that bidding 2is consistent with the Law of Total tricks.

Hand C:    2NT. This only promises 12-14 points (and a stop of course) because it is partner who pushed the bidding up to the two level.

Hand D:    Pass, and pass partner’s subsequent re-opening double.

Hand E:    Double, negative and showing 4 ’s. You cannot bid 2 as that promises a 5-card suit.

Hand F:     1. Partner has asked you to bid a suit and you have 4 ’s. Pass is a poor bid with these ’s sitting under opener. 1NT would be OK if it were not for the fact that the hand has 4 ’s.

Hand G:    1, obviously. Apart from being a very silly bid with this hand, a 1NT opening with a singleton is not allowed in this club.

Hand H:    Pass. 3 is a terrible bid, especially as it is forcing!

 

 

Bidding Sequence Answers

 

J      1      pass   2     pass       In Standard American 3 is 100% forcing

3     

K     1      1      2     2         (a) 2NT is 12-14, it is partner who has bid at the two level

2NT                                     (b) it guarantees a stop; with 12-14 without a stop opener would pass unless he had another convenient bid.