Saturday, January 15, 2011

Bridge Match 1 - Board 105

Board 105 – Dealer North – EW Vul

My hand: 9 8 7 6 4 K Q 8 2 K Q 7 2

Partner opens 1 spade. I'm going to downgrade my flat hand a little and treat it as a 9 count. I bid 2 spades. Partner bids 3 hearts. I have a maximum so even though his hearts don't help me at all I think I should accept. I bid 4 spades which gets passed out.

East leads the 9 of clubs.


NORTH
A Q J 6 5
K Q 7 3
T
A 4 3
EAST
9



SOUTH
9 8 7
6 4
K Q 8 2
K Q 7 2


West North East South
1 Pass 2
Pass 3 Pass4
Pass Pass Pass

I have 4 spades and 3 clubs. I can easily set up a heart. I can set up a diamond. I can set up the long club. I can finesse away the spade. I could try to ruff a heart, or I could try to dummy reversal. Lots of options, none of them great.

Loserwise I have a heart and a diamond for sure. I could have a spade loser. I also could have 2 more heart losers. I can get rid of one on the diamond if I bother setting it up. I could get rid of 1 with a heart finesse. Or I can ruff one.

I think my best plan is to ruff a heart, maybe two. I need to win on board to start that plan, so I rise with the Q of clubs. 9-Q-6-3. From the carding I think East started with 9-5 and West has J-T-8-6, so I don't think I can set up the long club.

I lead a heart. 6-8-Q-9. Now I have a problem. If clubs are 4-2 and I return to dummy to lead a second heart then West can win and let East ruff my club A. I think I should play a diamond now. T-A-2-7. I now have two diamonds set up. East fires back another club. What's my plan now?

Well, I have 2 tricks in and if I clear trump I have 2 clubs and 2 diamonds. As long as I only have 1 trump loser I make. East also returned the 5 of clubs, making me think he really does have a doubleton. So I'm going to run this to hand and then play A and out in spades. 5-7-8-A. Switch to spades. A-3-7-2. Q-4-8-K. West returns a club and East ruffs with the T of spades, but I don't have a winner ruffed here. Unfortunately East returns a heart to West's A and I'm down. I have enough winners but not enough tricks to take them all. I messed this up and am down as a result. Down 1.


NORTH
A Q J 6 5
K Q 7 3
T
A 4 3

WEST
K 2
A J 8
J 7 5 3
J T 8 6

EAST
T 4 3
T 9 5 2
A 9 6 4
9 5

SOUTH
9 8 7
6 4
K Q 8 2
K Q 7 2


Professor Jack disagrees with my 2 spade bid. He wants me to start with 2 clubs since I have 10 points. He then disagrees with bidding 4 spades and wants me to bid 3NT instead. I guess that wouldn't have been so bad.

During the play he doesn't like attacking hearts off the bat. He wants me to draw trump instead.
He also wants me to win the second club on board, presumably to draw trump but that would have stranded the diamond winners and forced me to lose 3 hearts, so that seems really wrong. Finally he doesn't like playing the A of spades. He wants me to lead the K of hearts instead. His play loses when East has Kxx of trump. Mine loses when he has xxx. My play seems better.. It just didn't work this time.


On the replay the bidding is different but they end up in 4 spades all the same. East leads a club and declarer wins the first trick in hand with the A. He attacks diamonds right away. East is in and plays a second club. Declarer wins on board, cashes a diamond pitching a heart, and finesses a spade. He then cashes the A, picking up the suit only when West has Kx, which he does. They end up making 5.

Nick: -50
Jack: 450
IMPs: -11 (+6 total)

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