1:
?
...............986
...............975
...............1065
...............K874
QJ7.........................5432
10............................J82
8432.......................QJ9
AJ1092...................Q65
...............AK10
...............AKQ643
...............AK7
...............3
?
Here we had a clear 2C opening bid; it must be that it was Board 1 and not everyone was in game mode yet that made two Souths open 1H. All told five pairs stopped in a partial - 1H twice, 2H twice and 3H. Everyone else got to game. One North declared 4H, presumably after a 2H response. I might recommend that such a response not contain a king (it should definitely not contain an ace), but that's a minor point. South declared 4H six times; one South went looking for slam but stopped in 5H.
?
If hearts were 2-2, declarer could have forced eleven tricks by leading towards the club king. As the cards lay there was no entry to the North hand if E-W defended sufficiently passively. Only Keianne and Rom produced the optimal defence. West has to be careful after a natural lead of the spade queen. Assuming declarer wins, draws trumps and leads a club, West has to get off lead with a diamond. South wins and has nothing better than playing two more diamonds, hoping West began with Hxx in diamonds and will have to win the third round and then lead a black suit. Not the easiest defence to find; ten declarers took eleven tricks, including all five in the partials. Eric took twelve tricks for the N-S top; West continued with a second club after winning the ace; later in the hand East unguarded the diamonds.
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4H S +2
4H N +1; 4H S +1 (3); 5H S =
4H S = (2)
1H S +4 (2); 2H S +3 (2); 3H S +2
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2:
?
...............9752
...............K96
...............AK32
...............J8
10...........................KQJ4
AJ842....................73
J109.......................654
K1095....................A763
...............A863
...............Q105
...............Q87
...............Q42
?
There were three passouts: Janda/Keianne, Jerik/Dane and Matty/Louff. Six Wests opened 1H in third seat. As the hand has to rebid if East responds 1S I prefer a 2H opening bid. Contracts after a 1H opening bid were 1NT W, 2C W, 2H W, 2S N, 3C W and 3NT W. When West passed four of the seven Norths opened 1D in keeping with the Rule of Fifteen. One South was left in a 1S response, another (likely after a 1S overcall from East) declared 1NT; the other two played in 2S, perhaps after a direct raise, perhaps after a pass and a balance.
?
No-trumps contracts are pretty straightforward; par is seven tricks for N-S whichever suit is attacked by either side. Larbot attained the par result of defending 1NT W -1 as did Jatin did as declarer in 1NT S =. Owbot had a good chance to be N-S top when their opponents got all the way up to 3NT W but declarer escaped for -1. With three trump losers par in spades was seven tricks if East did not crash West's ten of trumps. Paubhi, Pheileen and Milbot, all defending 2S S, took their six tricks to share E-W top. Eric, in 1S, made an overtrick when the first spade was led from the North hand and East put in an intermediate. Even that was not necessarily fatal, as there was still a chance of a heart ruff. Declarers in hearts or clubs all bettered par by one trick. Del, in 2C W =, was the only E-W successful declarer on the hand, joining Paul (J) and Bob in going plus after opening the bidding. After starting with three rounds of diamonds and a heart, North switched to a trump at trick five and there was no trump loser.
?
1S S +1
1NT S =
1NT W -1; 2H W -1; 3C W -1; 3NT W -1
Passed Out (3)
2C W =
2S N -1; 2S S -1 (2)
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3:
?
...............A
...............K6
...............KJ7542
...............A862
KJ764.........................Q108532
9842...........................AQJ3
A93.............................8
K.................................75
...............9
...............1075
...............Q106
...............QJ10943
?
I did not get to check if any Souths opened 3C, but it would have worked nicely; North can jump to 5C which is almost sure to end the auction or even bid an enterprising 3NT. If South passes West may open 1S, or East will overcall if North opens 1D. E-W will compete vigourously once the spades enter the auction. Contracts were 3C S, 3S E, 4C S, 4S E 4S W thrice, 5C S, 5Cx S, 5S W twice and 5Sx W twice. N-S likely sacrificed against 4S multiple times, but with E-W holding an eleven-card fit E-W took the push.
?
With the hearts behaving E-W lost only the black aces in a spade contract and all declarers in spades took eleven tricks. This gave Reynolds and Phyllis (B) the shared E-W top playing 5Sx =, the double costing three matchpoints when it would only have gained one had 5S been defeated. Club contracts turned out to have been wrong-sided with South declaring. West on lead had the opportunity to lead a heart and later give East a diamond ruff to give the defence a total of four tricks. Randi were the only pair whose opponents produced the optimal defence, but 5C S -2 still scored 9/12. George in 4C and Marie in 3C both took ten tricks, their opponents missing out on either the ruff or the second heart. Erik played 5C +1 when the opening lead was the diamond ace and West then followed with a spade. Happily for Erik the club king dropped singleton and he had twelve tricks.
?
5C S +1
3C S +1; 4C S =
5C S -2
3S E +2
4S E +1; 4S W +1 (3); 5S W = (2)
5Sx W = (2)
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4:
?
...............J942
...............4
...............AK98
...............A1063
AQ10.......................653
K863.......................AQJ52
J42..........................Q107
942..........................J8
...............K87
...............1097
...............653
...............KQ75
?
It makes a minor difference to South whether North opens 1D or 1C this time, as East overcalls 1H. Had North opened 1D and if a negative double would have promised four spades South would have had trouble finding a call, while a 1C opening bid would have had the good luck of South's being able to raise to 2C. That may have made some difference to the auction, perhaps making it easier for N-S either to balance or to compete to the three-level. If/when they did, West pushed on in hearts. Contracts were 2H E five times and 3H E eight times. West fared better raising simply to 2H; even being able to cue-bid 2D and have East sign off in 2H allows North an easy balancing double, although South probably ought to have found such a double anyway, and perhaps some Souths did.
?
The flat E-W hands did not allow for anything interesting in the play. Declarer had two diamond losers when the suit split 4-3, two club losers, and lost one of the spade finesses. Everyone took the par eight tricks, giving Gareth, Dianne, Louise, Liz and Milagros a tie for E-W top on +110 and creating an eight-way tie on +100 for N-S top between Janda, Paun, Haorge, Jerik, Matty, Glotin, Heve and Conndy.?
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3H E -1 (8)
2H E = (5)
?
5:
?
...............A2
...............10762
...............AQ954
...............K10
7.............................KJ643
AKQ54...................9
K10832..................76
J6...........................98532
...............Q10985
...............J83
...............J
...............AQ74
?
Will West come in with hearts after 1D-P-1S? The heart suit is good; the badly placed diamonds argue against bidding. This time passing comes out way ahead. South would like to be able to make a speculative penalty double of 2H, especially if North's not making a support double denies three spades. If West passes North rebids 1NT and then South might try leaving it there or rebidding 2S if in a conservative mood, or perhaps trying 2C otherwise. Contracts featured the rare occurrence of both sides playing in the same denomination in two different denominations: 2H W thrice, 2S S thrice, 3D N twice, 3D W, 3H W, 3Hx W, 3NT N and 3NTx W.
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Twelve contracts failed for a total of 29 undertricks. Par in hearts was only four tricks for E-W, although the winning opening lead was North's club ten - Club to ace, diamond jack (overtaken if West ducks) to North, second diamond winner, diamond ruffed or overruffed by South, North re-entered once with the club king and once with the spade ace for two more diamond ruffs, at which point West is down to all trumps having lost every trick, and North still has a trump winner. Randi settled for eight tricks and +800, not quite good enough for top, as Boric took their par nine tricks against 3NTx W for +1100. Phoebot managed to set 3NT N - after Phoebe took her heart winners, declarer missed a squeeze or endplay against East in the black suits and finished -2. Matty took nine tricks against 3H undoubled to score 10/12. South could force eight tricks in spades even against the optimal defence of three hearts and a diamond ruff off the top. As that requires a trump coup, however, even a relatively easy one, only Jatin made 2S, the only contract to succeed of all the thirteen. Par in diamonds was eight tricks for N-S, but the only declarer in diamonds to take eight tricks was West; a heroic effort for a middle board. E-W top was a tie on +200 between Keianne and Pheileen against 3D, Limes against 2S and Phoebot against 3NT.
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3NTx W -5
3Hx W -4
3H W -5
2H W -3
2S S =
2H W -1 (2); 3D W -1
2S S -1
2S S -2; 3D N -2 (2); 3NT N -2
?
6:
?
...............Q9
...............QJ6
...............A1084
...............KJ104
632...........................J8754
K95...........................A1054
KQ2..........................J95
Q752.........................A
...............AK10
...............732
...............763
...............9863
?
Only Gloria had the good fortune to pass the hand out as North. East was sure to come in over 1C, perhaps with a double, and maybe less sure to come in over 1D. E-W are not likely to go beyond 2S and the vulnerability may keep N-S quiet, or they may go to 3C. Contracts were usually low: 1D N, 1NT S thrice, 2S E four times, 2NT S, 3C N, 3D N and 3S E.
?
East can make 2S, but against a club lead has to be careful not to lead trumps too soon. If the lead is a club and East returns a spade, South can force a club ruff, draw dummy's trumps after North wins either the diamond ace or heart queen and then forces out East's last trump too soon. Happily for the declarers in spades the opening lead must have been usually a diamond; declarer took eight tricks four times and Gareth took nine. Par was eight tricks for club contracts, seven for diamonds or no-trumps. Cindy played 1NT +1 after a club opening lead instead of either major or a low diamond. Rich also took eight tricks in 1NT, tying for N-S top. E-W top was Gel's for defending 3D -3, one trick better than par.
?
1NT S +1 (2)
3S E -1
Passed Out
1D N -1; 1NT S -1
2NT S -2; 3C N -2
2S E = (3)
2S E +1
3D N -3
?
7:
?
...............10965
...............862
...............1098
...............K85
A2............................KQJ873
AK94.......................105
QJ63........................AK2
A104........................Q3
...............4
...............QJ75
...............754
...............J9762
?
Here was our grand slam. West generally opened 1D and rebid 2NT, after which East could have jumped to 6S or 6NT on force but could see the possibility of a grand slam. As East has the good fortune to be missing only to ace in spades, if one is going to ask for key cards, it is advantageous to ask in diamonds because East would very much like to know if West holds that queen. If so, that queen, three aces and either king will provide reasonable play for 7NT. West will hold four diamonds on the auction; the diamond jack or club AKx will provide the thirteenth trick; the only danger hand would be Axx AJxx Qxxx AK and even that has play for 7NT.
?
The grand slam was bid four times, thrice by an identical auction of 1D-1S; 2NT-4C; 4NT-7NT, the path taken by Rom, Pheileen and Keianne. Pharah had an extra exploratory bid: 1D-1S; 2NT-3C; 3H-4NT; 5C-7NT. Three pairs sadly stoppen in game, with lower contracts of 3NT W, 4S E, 4NT W, 6S E, 6S W twice and 6NT W thrice.
?
The three declarers who stopped in game kindly protected dummy's feelings by taking only twelve tricks; everyone else took the top thirteen.
?
4S E +2
3NT W +3; 4NT W +2
6S E +1; 6S W +1 (2)
6NT W +1 (3)
7NT W = (4)
?
8:
?
...............1075
...............Q952
...............876
...............942
J9642........................KQ3
10..............................A8743
AQ2...........................K1054
A873..........................J
...............A8
...............KJ6
...............J93
...............KQ1065
?
Although in a sane world I would hope that West would not open 1S unless perhaps playing a One Club system. In the good old days before the negative double became nearly universal (it was once Alertable), E-W could have punished bold Souths on the auction P-P-1H-2C; X with a four-trick set. It ought not to matter whether West opens or not or whether South overcalls; possible auctions are 1S-2H followed by 3S from East and eventually 4S whatever gruesome rebid West has to choose over 2H, P-P-1H-2C; 2S, raised by East and eventually settling in game, P-1H; 1S-2D; 2NT-3S; 4S or P-1H; 1S-2S; 2NT-3H; 4S. Contracts were 2D E, 2S W, 2NT W and 4S W ten times.
?
Declarer can take eleven tricks in spades. One club loser can be ruffed and another goes away on the fourth diamond, or declarer can conduct an elaborate cross-ruff. Phoebe was E-W top, taking twelve tricks on a pseudo-squeeze when South did not know whether North or West held the thirteenth club (had North held it, it would have been a good discard to give South the information). Heve were N-S top setting 4S, a very possible outcome if declarer is sufficiently careless - club to ace, club ruff, spade king, spade queen to ace will suffice. The other declarers in 4S were evenly divided between taking ten and eleven tricks.
?
4S W -1
2D E +2
2NT W +2
2S W +3
4S W = (4)
4S W +1 (4)
4S W +2
?
9:
?
...............AQ3
...............AKQJ
...............Q82
...............Q42
10754.....................K9
8.............................1096542
J1064.....................K97
A863......................J9
...............J862
...............73
...............A53
...............K1075
?
We finally got everyone into the same contract, this time of 3NT N. North had a 2NT opening bid and South eventually reached 3NT after some form of Stayman.
?
This would be a fascinating hand if the eight and nine of diamonds were exchanged, as West would then be squeezed on the run of the hearts, except that so would South. E-W should have little trouble holding declarer to ten tricks, if not nine, as three spade tricks will not result from the most natural way of playing the suit. Results spread from seven tricks to eleven with a 1-3-3-4-2 spread. Paul and Larry tied for N-S top on +460, Paul after the spades were unguarded on trick nine. Limes were E-W top defending 3NT -2.
?
?
?
3NT N +2 (2)
3NT N +1 (4)
3NT N = (3)
3NT N -1 (3)
3NT N -2
?
10:
?
...............7532
...............1073
...............43
...............KQ76
A............................1084
J52.........................KQ86
AK964....................QJ72
AJ104.....................32
...............KQJ96
...............A94
...............108
...............985
?
P-P-1D-P; 1H-1S. West presumably either makes a support double or bids 2C. N-S have the trumps to compete to 3S but not the vulnerability. If North competes to 3S and West doubles East might leave it in or return to 4D. If North passes a support double East can bid 2D. Contracts were 2D W twice, 3D W thrice, 3H E twice, 3S S twice, 4D W twice and 4H E twice, with no one-offs.
?
With 2-2 trumps, diamond contracts were quite straightforward. Five declarers in diamonds out of seven took the par eleven tricks, and that struck me as being on the low side. Glotin held declarer to ten tricks and Pally to nine, on declaring errors that were less than obvious. Spade contracts could have been severely punished, held to six tricks if E-W found their club ruff. Even without finding the ruff 3S -2 and +200 still scored 10/12. Abhi and Liz were the only declarers in game, playing 4H in the 4-3 fit. With trumps 3-3, declarer can come to eleven tricks after the lead of either major suit, but needs to be careful to ruff only one spade in dummy, in the end losing one spade and one heart. Both declarers at the table did take eleven tricks. A lead of either minor suit would have held declarer, a club by setting up the third trick for the defence, a diamond by eliminating a key entry to hand which would have enabled East to draw trumps.
?
3D W =
3D W +1
2D W +3 (2); 3D W +2; 4D W +1 (2)
3H E +1
3H E +2; 3S S -2 (2)
4H E +1 (2)
?
11:
?
...............6
...............AJ10863
...............54
...............AK95
KQ9832..................A74
K7...........................Q952
QJ96.......................A72
4..............................Q76
...............J105
...............4
...............K1083
...............J10832
?
P-1S-2H and then probably 3H to invite game. It would seem that both East and West will be conservative as both are likely to devalue the heart holding. Yet it did not come about. Contracts were 3S W four times, 3NT W and 4S W eight times.
?
3NT is held to eight tricks by a club lead; a heart lead gives declarer enough time to establish a ninth trick, although a little care is still required. Boric defended 3NT -2 when declarer naturally tried to make the contract by taking the diamond finesse late in the hand. More importantly 4S is defeated if N-S find the heart ruff. Janda defended 4S -2 while five pairs defended 4S -1. Only Geoff and James (S) were allowed to make 4S to tie for E-W top. Of the four declarers in 3S only Phyllis (B) took ten tricks; the others took nine.
?
3NT W -2; 4S W -2
4S W -1 (5)
3S W = (3)
3S W +1
4S W = (2)
?
12:
?
...............K763
...............Q96
...............K98
...............986
----...........................QJ92
K8432......................A107
J7652.......................AQ3
A102.........................Q53
...............A10854
...............J4
...............104
...............KJ74
?
1NT from East. South probably did not come in often, but when one South did come in with 2S it succeeded in pushing West out of the auction. Otherwise West had a tricky time of it deciding how to follow up after a transfer and 2H from East. Three Wests left it there; everyone who moved ended up in game - 3NT E thrice and 4H E six times.
?
Despite the not especially useful honours in spades, E-W make 4H easily. The straightforward method is to lose one trick each in hearts, diamonds and clubs, which is likely to play out that way after a club lead. After a different opening lead and then non-club switch after North gets in with the diamond king, declarer might draw two trumps and discard clubs on the diamonds, but that will still leave a club loser unless N-S allow a ruffing finesse in spades. George scored 9/12 in 2S S -2. +420 for 4H E = created a five-way tie for top between Liz, Milagros, Dianne, Eileen and Sarah. N-S top was a three-way tie when games were set two tricks, one better than par for Janda and Conndy against 3NT, two better than par for Boric against 4H. Jane was the only declarer to take eleven tricks in hearts, posting 2H +3 for a middle score.
?
3H E -2; 3NT E -2; 4H E -2
2S S -2
2H E +2
2NT E +2
2H E +3
3NT E =
4H E = (5)
?
13:
?
...............9852
...............Q108
...............1064
...............984
----......................AQJ10743
97532..................4
J93......................A87
AQ1063...............75
...............K6
...............AKJ6
...............KQ53
...............KJ2
?
If West passed South's takeout double of 1S, poor North had to find an action. One North passed (don't try this at home). The hand has neither the points nor the stopper to bid 1NT, which leaves a nasty choice between 2C and 2H. The next difficulty came in for South after East rebid 2S. South would have liked to have cue-bid 2S but over 2S from East is closer to a heavy 3H than 4H - if North can be trusted to carry on to 4H with a hand good enough to respond to an opening one-bid. The difficulty here is that N-S may play 3H as more competitive there than invitational, although one could apply the Good-Bad 2NT and take a direct 3H as good; is that more usful than being able to rebid 2NT naturally? Four different doubled contracts were attempted a total of five times. Contracts were 1Sx E, 2S E, 3S E, 3Sx E, 3NT N, 4H N twice, 4H S, 4Hx N, 4S E twice and 4Sx E twice.
?
A black-suit lead picks the hand clean and yields seven tricks to E-W against hearts declared by North. When South declared East did not get to be on lead after the second ruff to lead a third spade and force South to ruff high. Declarer performed one trick better than par thrice in hearts; Keianne scored only 7.5/12 defending 4Hx -2. Sarah took the par ten tricks in 1Sx for E-W top despite not being doubled into game, although 4Sx = would have scored thirty points more. Matty and Owbot both defended 4Sx -1, Owbot when East ducked two diamonds instead of finessing in clubs, which could have resulted in eleven tricks. Limes did a trick better than par when declarer did not cash out for 3NT -4, allowing Limes to tie with Keianne. Tom was the only declarer to take eleven tricks in spades, after South avoided leading diamonds until it was too late.
?
4Sx E -1 (2)
2S E +1; 3S E =
4H S -2
4H N -3 (2)
4S E =
4S E +1
4Hx N -2; 3NT N -5
3Sx E =
1Sx E +3
?
14:
?
...............10
...............A983
...............Q3
...............KJ9732
KQ984....................J72
J2............................7654
10752......................A6
86............................A1054
...............A653
...............KQ10
...............KJ984
...............Q
?
It looks as if N-S will find their way to 3NT if North can bid an invitational 3C after 1D-1H; 1S. Alternatively South might open 1NT; the singleton queen makes it just permissible. If North cannot bid 3C invitational over 1S then the choice is between 1NT and 2NT. I did not expect E-W to find their way into the auction but it did happen at least once. Contracts were 1NT N twice, 2H N, 2NT S, 3C N, 3Sx W, 3NT S five times, 3NT N and 4H N, a slight majority of N-S pairs reaching game.
?
N-S can force ten tricks in hearts by running East out of spades if forces prevent anything more straightforward, but it would have been a surprise to see declarer taking more than nine tricks, the table result both times hearts were played. 3NT also makes by force, but after a spade lead requires some fancy dancing. It would be lovely if entries allowed a lead of a low diamond first from North, forcing East to duck, then clearing the hearts and endplaying East with the diamond ace. After winning the thrid spade comes a diamond to the queen. If East ducks, declarer clears the hearts and endplays East in diamonds, letting East choose whether to take the club ace and lead into North's clubs or underlead it and allow South's diamonds to score an overtrick. East takes the diamond queen with the ace. If East leads the ace of clubs declarer has nine tricks. If East leads a heart or diamond South wins, cashes the second diamond if east led a heart, then clears the hearts and leads a low club. If East takes the ace East will have to lead into North's clubs. East ducks to South's queen but West has to come down to one spade to keep the diamond ten guarded; South then endplays West with the fourth spade and wins the last two tricks in diamonds. Finally, if East leads a low club after winning the ace of diamonds, South cashes the diamond winners, clears the hearts and then gets one of the last two tricks with North on lead holding club KJ to East's A10. Can the line be found at the table? At least the first part is easy; declarer can duck exactly two spades, but is likely to try to run one suit or the other and get stuck. Four of the nine declarers in no-trumps took either nine or eleven tricks. Paul (P) was N-S top in 3NT +2 after East did not find the spade lead and presumably unguarded the clubs. Erik and Hank (V) both made 3NT S, and Betty played 1NT N +4. E-W top went to Milbot defending 3NT S -3.
?
3NT N +2
3NT S = (2)
1NT N +4
2H S +1
3C N +1
1NT N +1; 2NT S =
3Sx W -1
4H N -1
3NT S -2 (2)
3NT S -3
?
15:
?
...............----
...............AK3
...............9875
...............AKQ1064
10875..........................Q932
J96..............................7542
AQJ.............................632
532..............................97
...............AKJ64
...............Q108
...............K104
...............J8
?
6NT is a 50% proposition. After 1S-2C; 2NT North has a bucket full of tricks with eight probable winners. Two pairs reached 6NT S, Randi after the auction 1S-2C; 2NT-4NT; 6NT, South accepting the invitation with a hand close to a 1NT opening bid and with the Jx in partner's club suit presumably worth more than appeared to be the case at first. One North played 6C and another 7C. There were two accidental partials of 3C N (misunderstanding about whether 2C followed by 3C negated a game force?) and 3D N (presumably on South for passing) with a majority of pairs in game - 3NT S six times and 5C N once.
?
This hand is an excellent example of my having told people for years to make neutral leads against 6NT. At worst a club lead will give declarer a free finesse, and the same for a heart lead, though a spade into South is dangerous. Unfortunately against 6NT it appears both Wests led the diamond ace and then declarer had twelve tricks instead of ten or eleven, giving Randi and Glotin a tie for N-S top. Curiously a heart lead allows 6C to make, although declarer has to work out before playing trumps to finesse the club eight. Had South held AKJxx Q10x Kx J8x, declarer could have won the heart lead with the queen, played the top spades and ruffed the third, then played the club ace before guessing whether to finesse or to try to drop the nine on the second round. But with only two clubs the heart queen must be saved, so that declarer may at most ruff one spade after a club to the jack, just in case the queen comes down in three rounds, then draw trumps and lead to the diamond king after discarding two diamonds on the spades at some point. Dane were E-W top defending 7C -2, while Rom and Glynneth both scored 10.5/12 defending 6C -1 and 5C -1, Gareth probably leading a diamond and declarer unwisely rising with the king. Don and George took twelve tricks in 3NT S; the other four declarers took the more normal eleven. North's spade void turned out to be more of an inconvenience than an asset; it would have allowed declarer a number of options in the play, especially with South declaring.
?
6NT S = (2)
3NT S +3 (2)
3NT S +2 (4)
3C N +2
3D N +1
5C N -1; 6C N -1
7C N -2
?
16:
?
...............K6
...............1074
...............10863
...............9843
A9532...................108
K9852...................AJ6
7............................Q9542
Q6.........................KJ10
...............QJ74
...............Q3
...............AKJ
...............A752
?
West has a much easier time of it if East passes in third seat than if East opens 1D. Either way South bids 1NT. With East having passed, West either subsides or overcalls to show the majors, depending on attitudes about unfavourable vulnerability. This gives E-W a fine chance to stop in 2H. After P-P-1D-1NT; West has a much less clear-cut choice, as there is no course of action that shows both majors. Double is penalty-oriented; the hand is good enough for it but defending in a happier prospect as an unpassed hand or if the opponents were at least vulnerable. Either 2H or 2S would be non-forcing and would likely end the auction. In the end contracts stayed low: 1NT S five times, 2C N (a double had to feature somewhere in that auction, though I would not want to have to guess where), 2H W five times and 2S W twice. Interesting that there was no contract of 2H E, meaning that none of the E-W pairs among whom East passed in third seat were using either 2C or 2D to show the majors.
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South has a chance to make 1NT if E-W do not manage to preserve the jack of hearts while dropping the queen. If West starts hearts while still holding the spade ace, East wins the ace and then gains by returning the six-spot instead of the jack (which establishes North's ten spot). If the hand starts with three rounds of hearts, -1 will result if both sides are a little careful - a spade to the ace allows a make while a club switch won by South allows -2. Curiously, the par result of -1 never occurred. Don took eight tricks (for N-S top), Linda and Marie took seven, Dane held declarer to five and Melen were E-W top holding declarer to four tricks - quite an achievement when West's spades won't establish due to East's having two high spots. Declarer cleared the diamonds early and then took the club ace on the first round of the suit. Clubs should yield eight tricks to declarer, although the one club contract was 2C -2, probably because declarer didn't start trumps soon enough. South's 1NT bid helps West as declarer in 2M find the drop of the heart queen. Par in spades is eight tricks, in hearts nine. Indeed, N-S need to force East to ruff a spade fairly early to avoid declarer's 2H +2 thanks to the kind diamonds. Ken made 2S, although it was -1 against Conndy. 2H +1 was the most common result, posted by James (S), Paul (J) and Reynolds. Phyllis (H) made the contract; Jerik posted 2H -1 to tie Conndy scoring 10.5/12.
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1NT S +1
2H W -1; 2S W -1
1NT S = (2)
1NT S -2; 2C N -2
2H W =; 2S W =
2H W +1 (3)
1NT S -3
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17:
?
...............A43
...............KJ106
...............K105
...............AJ6
K9762....................J1085
954........................A2
A76........................J42
54..........................9832
...............Q
...............Q873
...............Q983
...............KQ107
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The contract was almost 4H across the board after a 1NT opening bid and Stayman. Everyone played in hearts by North but one pair stopped in 3H while the rest went to the expected 4H.
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Declarer can take eleven tricks in hearts by force, but there is a trap if the opening lead is a spade. If declarer takes two spade ruffs right away and then starts trumps, East can win the second round and force North with the fourth spade, letting West either cash or force again with the fifth spade when in with the ace of diamonds. At least one of the aces must be knocked out reasonably early, declarer planning if the defence manages to draw South's trumps before two spade ruffs can be taken to guess the double finesse in diamonds correctly. In the end ten declarers (Peach, James [C], Sandi, Paul [P], Jim [U], Betty, Bob, Steve, Connie and Owen) managed 4H +1 to score 7.5/12. Phoebot were E-W top defending 3H +1. Paubhi and Keianne scored 10.5/12 defending 4H =. North took a spade ruff?at trick against Paubhi when a heart would have done and eventually paid the price.
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4H N +1 (10)
4H N = (2)
3H N +1
?
18:
?
...............J87632
...............2
...............Q2
...............6542
K4..........................95
764.........................AKJ985
J106.......................AK
109873...................AKJ
...............AQ10
...............Q103
...............987543
...............Q
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We ended almost exactly as we began, East's hand bearing (23 HCP with six strong hearts and two side AKs, differing only in East's holding AKJ985 in hearts instead of AKQ643) a remarkable similarity to South's hand on Board 1. Even West's hand was remarkably similar, with the fourth king only in this case holding one extra jack. As everyone was all warmed up by the end of the session, everyone reached game (recall the five partials played on Board 1). Contracts were 4H E eight times, 4H W, 4Hx E, 4NT W and 5H E twice, again two pairs going beyond game and one responder choosing 2H as the response to 2C.
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Everyone ought to have taken eleven tricks in hearts. I was pleased to see that nobody fell for the trick of taking the club finesse on the first round. Ten of the twelve declarers in hearts took eleven tricks; Louise took twelve after South won the heart queen and missed the chance then to cash the spade ace. Milagros, who scored 10/12 in 4NT +1, was fortunate to receive the opening lead of the diamond queen when a spade could have resulted in -2.
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4H E +1 (7); 4H W +1; 5H E = (2)
4NT W +1
4H E +2
4Hx E +2
