Sunday, March 3rd 2013

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Board 3 South Deals E-W Vul	♠ 10 3 2 ♥ 10 8 ♦ J 10 7 5 ♣ 10 9 4 3
♠ A J 8 4 ♥ A 3 ♦ A Q 9 3 ♣ A 6 5	N W E S	♠ K 7 5 ♥ Q J 9 7 6 ♦ K ♣ K Q 8 7
	♠ Q 9 6 ♥ K 5 4 2 ♦ 8 6 4 2 ♣ J 2

 West could upgrade to 20 hcp for the four Aces, but the hand has great slam potential in diamonds and it can be difficult to reach minor suit slams after the space-eating 2NT opening. After 1D-1H, West jump shifts to 2S, creating a game force. I hear some people describe such as jumps as "at least 17 points"; where did that come from? Regardless of high card strength, the bid is game-forcing opposite a presumed six "points", not necessarily all in high cards, so it indicates a hand worth 20 or more. East adds his 14 hcp, or 13 deducting for no Ace; partner must have some Aces for his jump so slam chances look bright. Best move is to rebid 2NT; this shows club values and gives partner maximum room to clarify his shape. Opener would bid 3C with 4-1-4-4 or 4-0-5-4 shape; 3D with 4-6; 3H with 4-3-4-2 or 4-3-5-1; 3S with 5-6; otherwise 3NT, as on today's layout. This balanced rebid suggests opener has at least 19 hcp for the jump shift -- a balanced 18 should simply rebid 1S in case partner's response was on the light side. So, East can reasonably raise to 6NT in standard methods. If partner is known to be frisky with his jump shifts, East can invite with a quantitative 4NT. As a raise of notrump and following his own notrump rebid, this should not be mistaken for any sort of Blackwood. West should certainly accept.

South can assume partner is virtually broke, and should not risk leading from an honor; I'd try the six of diamonds, second high from a poor four-card suit. East wins and counts 2 fast spades, 3 diamonds, 3 clubs, and at least 2 hearts with a probable loser. Hearts may provide up to four tricks (enough for slam), spades and clubs have extra chances, and there are squeeze possibilities in every suit. Best is a low heart to the Ace, then back toward the Queen, hoping to catch a stiff King, Kx(x) with North, or to smother 10x(x) in either hand. North's ten on the second round brings home the slam.

If East tries running the Queen of hearts, South should not cover -- the bidding tells him that there is little hope of promoting anything for partner, and simply ducking insures the King cannot be captured. If East had QJ109x, running the Queen would be correct. Three of nine pairs bid and made slam; someone apparently passed opener's jump -- I doubt they'll do that again!

Board 9 North Deals E-W Vul	♠ 7 ♥ K 8 4 ♦ 9 8 4 3 ♣ K J 5 3 2
♠ K Q 2 ♥ A Q J 6 ♦ K 6 2 ♣ Q 8 6	N W E S	♠ A J 10 5 ♥ 3 2 ♦ A 10 7 5 ♣ 10 9 7
	♠ 9 8 6 4 3 ♥ 10 9 7 5 ♦ Q J ♣ A 4

No slam here; every West player landed in 3NT and failed on the normal club lead. With only seven fast winners, declarer should aim to keep more than one threat for an eighth trick: pitch a heart and a diamond from each hand. After cashing the setting trick North exits with a spade or diamond. West cashes the King of diamonds; when South drops the Queen or Jack, the odds are 2-1 he did not start with both, so a diamond finesse offers good odds. But declarer may as well cash his spades first, playing off the KQ in hand first to avoid blocking the suit. He can pitch another heart on the fourth spade. North must find three red-suit discards, and West should watch those carefully. Let's say North pitches two diamonds and one heart. Declarer can play for the drop in one suit and then finesse in the other; I wouldn't cash out for down two. Although the diamond finesse offers better odds, so does playing for the drop in that suit. Guessing correctly (or a defensive error) ties for a top at down one.

Board 15 South Deals N-S Vul	♠ 7 5 ♥ K 8 4 2 ♦ 8 5 ♣ K Q 6 5 2
♠ K 6 4 3 2 ♥ J 10 5 ♦ K ♣ J 8 4 3	N W E S	♠ Q 10 8 ♥ Q 9 7 6 3 ♦ 9 6 4 3 ♣ 10
	♠ A J 9 ♥ A ♦ A Q J 10 7 2 ♣ A 9 7

South might open 2C if his long suit were a major, but with diamonds game is unlikely if partner passes 1D. A 1S response would be awkward, but over North's expected 1H South can simply leap to 3NT, suggesting a long suit as a source of tricks. Over a 1S response I'd manufacture a 3C jump shift, hoping to reach 3NT, 4S or five of a minor. (The direct 3NT leap would not be be safe on the expected heart lead.)

North suspects slam may be possible, especially if partner fits clubs; but 3NT typically suggests 7 or 8 running tricks and anything beyond 3NT could be risky. West leads his fourth-best spade, East plays the Queen and South wins, leaving the J9 as a partial guard. To keep East off lead, declarer crosses to dummy with a club and leads a diamond to his Queen. If West persists with spades declarer finishes with 12 tricks; a heart shift into North's empty suit will probably hold him to +660. +660 or better scores well as several pairs missed game: 1D-1H; 3D, North passing for lack of a spade stopper and doubts about the five level. South is clearly to strong for any non-forcing, non-game rebid.

Several Norths played 3NT; perhaps South manufactured a 2S jump shift: 1D-1H; 2S-2NT-3NT. Fudging a major suit is always risky but responder should be aware that opener has limited choices for forcing rebids. Responder should never jump-raise opener's reverse or jump-shifted second suit; say responder had KQxx Kxxx xx xxx and the bidding starts 1D-1H; 2S. The 2S bid is game-forcing, so responder need simply raise to 3S. If opener now bids 3NT or 4D or 4H, responder should suspect the jump was into a manufactured suit and avoid insisting on spades as trumps.

With North as declarer it is not automatic for East to lead a spade, and certainly unlikely if South jumped in that suit. East may avoid leading one of the bid suits (hearts and diamonds) and so may try his singleton club, hoping partner has some length there and entries. This gives declarer time to set up the fifth club for +690; one declarer appears to have dropped the King of diamonds, but I don't see any reason for that play at matchpoints.

Sunday A

Board 16 West Deals E-W Vul	♠ K 6 ♥ — ♦ A K Q J 7 6 4 ♣ K 8 7 4
♠ 7 5 4 3 ♥ K 9 8 5 4 3 ♦ 10 2 ♣ Q	N W E S	♠ A Q J 9 8 ♥ Q J 7 ♦ 3 ♣ 10 9 6 3
	♠ 10 2 ♥ A 10 6 2 ♦ 9 8 5 ♣ A J 5 2

North opens 1D, East overcalls 1S and South doubles (negative) to show hearts. West should raise preemptively to 3S; an invitational hand could redouble or cue-bid or perhaps 2NT as an extension of the Jordan convention (same logic, redouble = balanced with strength, don't need 2NT as a natural bid, but don't try this without explicit discussion and agreement beforehand.)

North must guess; with 8 tricks on the likely spade lead I'd gamble 3NT, which likely ends the bidding -- East should not risk 4S vulnerable. On lead, East expects the long diamonds and Kx(x) in spades; he may try a low club, hoping declarer will come up a trick short without the free spade finesse. North counts ten fast winners; West must be kept off lead, so it seems right to try the Jack of clubs at trick one rather than winning the Ace or King and testing the clubs later. Unfortunately West's singleton is the Queen (it could as easily have been the ten or nine) so there is no immediate gain in clubs. North will cash winners but careful defense may hold declarer to +430. That's better than many pairs managed, languishing in a minor-suit partial or a mere +400 at 5D. Hamman's Rule (paraphrased): When 3NT might be right, don't make a bid that excludes that possibility. Against 3NT, two Easts appear to have led the normal-looking Queen of spades and failed to guard clubs, allowing declarer to run all the tricks.

Board 27 South Deals None Vul	♠ K Q 7 6 3 2 ♥ A ♦ A 9 3 ♣ A 10 2
♠ 9 8 ♥ 10 9 6 ♦ Q 6 2 ♣ K J 5 4 3	N W E S	♠ J ♥ 8 7 5 4 3 2 ♦ K 10 7 4 ♣ Q 9
	♠ A 10 5 4 ♥ K Q J ♦ J 8 5 ♣ 8 7 6

North opens a hefty 1S and South shows a limit raise, either with a simple jump to 3S or using 2C as the passed-hand Reverse Fit Drury convention. That's a nice gadget but not crucial and oh so easy to forget -- put this way down on your list of things to add to your card. Over 3S North counts five losers; the invitational jump suggests 3.5 cover cards -- a simple raise ranges from around 1.5 to 3, while with four likely tricks responder should force to game. (An opening bid tends to have seven losers, so 7-4 = 3, or ten winners.) So, slam is possible but not too likely. North can take at it with a 4C control cue-bid -- clearly a slam try since it commits the side to the four level and the jump raise leaves no doubt about which suit will be trumps. South cooperates with a 4H control bid; this suggests duplication of values and North's 4S ends the bidding. You should have several such "slam interest" auctions which end at game for every hand that actually bids six.

If anyone does play Reverse Fit Drury, the N/S auction proceeds pass-1S; 2C (Alert! -- limit raise or better.) Have you discussed opener's rebids after this point? The usual agreements are that 4S is to play; 2S shows less than an opening bid (light opening after partner has passed); while 2D confirms opening bid values but generally rejects the game invitation. Although both bids aim to stop at 2S, the distinction can be important if the opponents decide to compete. Meanwhile, today's hand can jump to 3S as a slam invitation. Note how an incomplete agreement can leave N/S in worse shape than without the gadget -- what can North bid if he isn't certain what bids are forcing? Many gadgets sound simple when first explained, but hidden dangers appear when you have a hand out of the ordinary. Aim to be thoroughly familiar with basic methods before you load up on gadgets -- good bidding is much more about good judgment than complex agreements.

Absent any slam suggestion East should try a low diamond, hoping to catch some help from partner; on the stronger sequence leading from the worthless hearts is safer, hoping not to pickle an honor in partner's presumably weak hand. Declarer takes 11 tricks on any lead for a near-flat board -- one pair over-reached to 6NT; perhaps North thought this was a 2C opening, or just got over-eager after the jump raise.