Friday 3 February 2012

Thursday 2 Feb

Managed to come first N/S, but with a meagre 56%. Should have been a much higher score but I managed a few calamities.

Board 1 was a good score where we reach 4H after I open and rebid hearts. I made 11, one pair made 12 but everyone else 10 tricks. It is one of those hands that makes MPs so interesting but frustrating. Against Sheila and Elizabeth, Sheila led a club and Elizabeth switched to 6H. So what is the best line? Go up with AH, ruff a club, AK of diamonds, throwing your other club and, after the club, just lose 1 spade and hopefully 1 heart for 10 tricks. Unfortunately, it is possible to make 11 or even 12 by finessing this heart and bringing in the diamonds, but how to play diamonds? Anyway I finessed QH and decided on the diamond finesse being best, that lets me take the second heart finesse and guarantee 11, 12 if diamonds break. However the QD won, but I make the rest.

Ian and John managed to bid and make 6H on this board.  Adrianne was the only other player to make 12 tricks so we still got a good score. Adrianne opened a weak 2H, but I would never do that with this hand, two outside Aces is not what weak twos are about. Still, you would do very well to get to 6H even opposite a 1H opener and the slam depends on the trump finesse on a spade or diamond lead. How the rest failed to make 12, I have no idea.

Had a complete disaster against Izzy and Gerry.  I opened 2H passed round to Izzy who bid 2S.  Gerry now bids 2NT?!? Izzy now bids 4S.  I lead AH to the 2, 5 and 4. Adrianne showing normal count. Now who is going to be singleton here? Well I get it wrong of course, but what to switch to? Well the diamond still defeats this silly contract, so of course I play a club.  10 tricks made. Nobody else of course is bidding 4S, just 1 down is a top instead of a bottom.
Still, got my own back on the next board.  Adrianne opened 1NT and 3NT looked a good punt from my point of view. A heart lead will defeat this, but Izzy leads a club.  Adrianne plays diamond to gerry's Jack and another club to Adrianne's Ace. Another diamond to Gerry's King and a third club. Adrianne, not seeing through the cards, sensibly lets a diamond go and finesses JS, but no matter she has 9 tricks. Nobody else in game.
However, Izzy and Gerry aren't through with us yet. Izzy opens 1S and Gerry bids 2C?!?! (they play 5 card majors). Adrianne comes in 3H (I prefer 4H with this sort of hand, 3NT another possibility, but should be 6-6). Anyway Izzy has a magnificent 12 count so bids 3NT?!?  I pass, confident this will be well off and Gerry now bids 4S. This comes round to me and I go into a huddle. Why didn't Gerry give a limit raise the first time, has he a delayed game raise? Izzy must be at least 14. Has Adrianne just got 8 hearts, spade void, nothing else. Do I bid 5H, can I still beat 4S? What did I do?  PASS!!! Really stupid, I think the obvious bid is 5H.  Adrianne should have nothing, but we still make 10 tricks, possibly 11.  I can't believe I passed.  Anyway we put this 4 off undoubled and of course we make 12 in hearts!

Here is a very simple way to get a top. Against Ronnie and Elizabeth, Elizabeth opens 1D, passed round to me and I bid 1NT.  Elizabeth doubles, Adrianne bids 2C Stayman, Ronnie 2D and I bid 2S passed out.  Nothing in the play, 8 tricks is straightforward after my long club was set up following the obvious AKQ of clubs lead. Everyone else defended 1or 2 diamonds. 3D should never make due to lack of dummy entries.
Finally, another real stupidity by me against Bob and Ian who easily won E/W. Bob opened 1H, I doubled, Ian bid 2H, Adrianne 3C and Bob 3H. Now everyone has bid perfectly, why should I? So, feeling this is more our contract, I though a match point double might be in order.  As I covered Bob's QH, no guess was required and 10 tricks made.  That however is not the worst of it, we were last to play the hand and when the results came up on the Bridgemates everyone else had beeen in 4H. How to turn a top into a bottom, I'm becoming expert at it.















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