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Tony Hinkley (right). The player on the left just happened to slip into the picture!

No Sad Ending…. From 20 years ago.

Today, we have a story from 20 years ago, which bears repeating. 

It’s one of your usual hands, today. That’s right: not too many high card points to count…perhaps a little bit of “shape” but otherwise its main feature as described by Nelson’s Tony Hinkley was a quartet of sixes, or as per Tony “sixyness” which headed the article. 

So, you should all be well used to handling such hands as you hold them so regularly:

 

No yarborough here! Redouble is a single-suited take-out. So, there is no need to bid, or is there? What’s your plan? The double was penalty oriented. 

Well, the lady with this “beautiful hand” was Naida Sadd from Blenheim. A bid before the opponent’s suit is revealed is really a sign of weakness. No problems on that count. However, Naida did hold both major suits. Over then to Tony:

“Naida bid what she hoped would be an auction ending 2, her longest (and strongest!). She was to be disappointed:

Let’s see all four hands and why Howard, her husband and partner, was somewhat aggressive:

 

Let’s follow the bidding from Howard’s point of view. He had a mere 27 count! When North opened 1NT, Howard could place 39 hcp between North’s and his East hand. There surely could be only a diamond loser with spades as trumps. What about entries to Naida’s hand? Howard was prepared to gamble there would be at least one.

 4 (Gerber) was an interesting bid. As Tony said, “maybe North had psyched 1NT and Naida did hold A.” She denied it by bidding that suit. Howard then did not ask for kings.

It is not often you can put down a hand as dummy knowing that all three finesses would be working. Naida received a small club lead. She could draw trumps in two rounds, and then exit a diamond from dummy. After the club return, she could ruff a diamond, take a heart finesse, ruff dummy’s remaining diamond and take a second heart finesse. Contract made.

Note that while playing a third trump to the West hand to lead a diamond does not in itself spell disaster for West, if declarer does discard a heart on the K, the contract will fail. The discard is in effect a winner and declarer will still need two entries to the West hand to play hearts. Discarding a heart on the K is a red herring in every sense of the word. Naida did not fall into that trap.   

Only three of the 16 East-West pairs bid the slam with Tony commenting that “other West players did not volunteer to bid their five card spade suit.” Howard certainly produced one of the best of dummies, one that Naida certainly needed.

Did you notice the similarity to the hand a couple of days ago when the declarer had to ruff 2 diamonds holding a singleton opposite AKQ trebleton to make their contract. Shape is sometimes more important than strength, as Naida realised. 

Richard Solomon

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