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Cards partner does NOT hold!

Nice Hand, Partner!

Two on-line events took place over this past weekend, Teams on Saturday and Swiss Pairs yesterday, the events being a thank you from New Zealand Bridge for those who have endured many cancelled and altered events since the start of Covid. We may have what is termed “the new normal” for our game looking forward. These two free events were thus a thank you.. and with 44 teams and 98 pairs taking part, they were well supported.

Congratulations to the winners, notably Alan Grant- Anthony Ker and Martin Reid- Peter Newell in the Teams and Andi Boughey- Carol Richardson in the Swiss Pairs.

We may have a “new normal” but we still have the same old problems. By some route, most North players propelled themselves to 4 on the board below from an early round of the Teams. We have two questions for you:

 

East leads the 10.

Plan the play.

Oh, did you thank partner for their glorious dummy? Hope so. Is any particular card a good card in partner’s hand..that is apart from the J?

North might have taken it a little more slowly though the jump to game saved South having one of those ugly problems bridge players hate, had North forced with 2. While 3 is unquestionably correct, had South bid 2NT and North raised to 3NT, it takes a low spade lead to beat this contract.

That’s just speculation. How have you gone in 4?

At one table, North played a round of trumps and then a small club won by East who continued with 9. Declarer ruffed and played A and another club won again by East but there was no joy for the declarer:

 

East played K and West able to over-ruff dummy and with a diamond still to come for the defence, that was one down. Had North played a second round of trumps before playing A, they would not have made their contract as a third round of trumps would prevent a club ruff in dummy.

However, there was a better way to play, certainly on this day. Had clubs broken 3-3, all routes should lead to 10 tricks. Julie Atkinson was successful and after thanking Patrick Carter for his usual fine dummy, proceeded to make 10 tricks. She cashed two high hearts after winning A and noted the fall of the J from West.

Next came Q. Aside from the fact that that is a hard card for West to duck, they can be relieved by the fact that it did not matter whether they won the trick or not. When they did and played K, Julie could ruff, draw trump and play 3 rounds of diamonds discarding a club. All Julie lost was K and two clubs.

Yet, Patrick had produced a good dummy, (seriously). Say West ducked Q. Next would come A and a third diamond. West wins to play K which Julie ruffs high and enters dummy with a heart to the 9 to enable one club loser to be discarded on the established 13^th diamond.

One useful jack and one very useful 9. What more could Julie have asked for!

Thanks to the directors and scorer, Allan Joseph, Lorraine Stachurski and Kevin Walker for two well-run events. Now is the time for a Christmas break from bridge, though a break that gets shorter every year, part of “the new normal”.

To bid or not to bid?

And if you do bid, what is your choice?

 

It’s Teams and N/S are vulnerable. 1 promises at least a 5-card suit.

Richard Solomon

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