Tuesday 11 December 2012

Monday 10 December

 Came 5th playing N/S with a Butler score of 16.  We made a few errors on the way, Adrianne unsure of a common sequence after playing this for 20 years leading us to a wrong game contract.  On another, we play 2N in the pass out position is 20 points but  I decided (?) Adrianne would forget this as it never comes up (she didn't) and I just doubled.  Failed to reach an easy 3N.

 Ally Gordon opened 3C 3rd in hand (3C statistically is the most productive opening bid you can make, in fact I do it with say a 12 count and 6 clubs 3rd in hand).
Anyway, I would like to bid 3N with my 15 count (if opener has say 8 points, the other two hands have 17 between them and you can 'expect' about 8 points in partner's hand). However I am aceless and pre-empts mean bad breaks, I just don't quite have enough.  I passed and Adrianne is a bit short for protecting so 3C it was. I led a spade and we forced declarer in that suit and didn't open up diamonds so put it 3 off.
3N is the winning bid.  You find the QH perforce as after a club lead, then knockout AS and club continuation, you can't possibly finesse into the hands with the clubs.  Four pairs were in 4S, this is not a good contract as you must lose two black Aces and two diamonds (the third going on a club) also the heart finesse is two way.  However all four made 10 tricks, the defence obviously thought they had to lead diamonds.

One good board for us against Miller and Maureen.  I opened 2N and Adrianne went through Puppet Stayman to 3N.
Maureen led her 4th diamond to Miller's King and he returned a club taken by my Q.  I played 2 rounds of hearts  and as it looked like 4-2 split and I have no entry to dummy so I then played a diamond.  Maureen took the Ace and Miller showed out (if she ducks I'll take a losing spade finesse and go off). Another club to my Ace and my only hope was three rounds of spades, Maureen wins Q but is end played to give me two diamonds and my 4th spade.
Well 'honest Guv' that is how I would have played it when Miller had shown out in diamonds and I had a count of the hand.  However when Maureen won her AD she played a spade by mistake which I took with the Jack.

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