Buchanan Saturday Tournament

After a narrow 19-17 win last week Anna and I returned for another 12 boards of competition.

We started well as the opponent's missed a couple of games (or bid game when slam was there) then came my first go as declarer:

I was pleased to have a fairly normal weak 2♥ opening. South stretched to overcall 3♦ and Anna did not hesitate to bid game. South lead her ♦A.

The contract looks good, with likely two Diamonds and a Heart to lose. But the opponents also have a Diamond ruff coming. To try and avoid this, I made the standard misdirection of dropping my ♦J under the Ace. It felt like I did this smoothly without a pause, but maybe that's not quite true. South didn't fancy leading another Diamond in case declarer ruffed (setting up the ♦Q) so switched suits. Now my two losing Diamonds went away on the Clubs and there were eleven tricks.

I'm not sure what carding they played, but North did play the ♦6 on the first trick. I think Anna and I have agreed in that situation (a doubleton opposite partner's Ace lead) we will play an encouraging card too (in our case the ♦3).

On the other table the defence got the ruff and so it was one down.

Anna then had this tricky 3NT to play;

After her 1♠ opening Anna is too weak to reverse so must rebid 2♠. I make a forcing 3♦ and Anna had a very solid Diamond stop so bid 3NT. Actually, 4♥ is the best contract, but despite the communication problems there should be enough high cards to make 3NT.

North lead a Club which Anna ducked, winning the second Club. There are seven top tricks, so at least one suit needs to be developed. Anna went for the Diamonds, but also took a successful Spade finesse of the ♠8, and when South discarded too many Spades actually made 3NT+2. You can see with everything working (both Spade honours onside, Diamond 3-3), everything works. I'm not sure what the best line is, but I would also have gone for the Diamonds.

On the other table they took the misfit too seriously and finished in 3♥+1.

We had established a healthy lead so on the final board when Anna opened 2♣ opposite my 11 count I thought I would fully investigate the grand slam. I judged extremely poorly to put Anna in a perilous 7♣ on a 5-2 fit. She brought it home though, and we won the match 71-17.

Buchanan Saturday night tournament

Anna and I haven't played any competitve bridge since last August when we were on holiday on Southwold (read here). We have played a little online since and last night finally found a tournament that suits us. 730 pm start and only twelve boards.

I was quite excited, and put together a system file for us. It was based on the last convention card we did (from 2014), which I found on an email that included the phrase "I wrote it mostly on my own, and I'm not sure Anna has actually agreed everything". In that same spirit I added some intereresting singleton game tries to the system, and we were ready to go.

On the very first board I put Anna under pressure, as I doubled the opponents after a strange auction:

The 1NT opening is 13-15. After the 2♦ bid I asked "are we alerting our own bids?" really meaning "Is that actually a transfer?". It turns out it was indeed a natural bid, though still seems an odd choice. When 2♦ came round to me I felt the points were likely divided about 20-20 so doubled for takeout. They weren't of course, the opponents were resting in 2♦ with 25 points between them, and Anna was stuffed. She passed out 2♦x, which I think is the least bad choice.

On the Spade lead declarer has eight tricks (just losing two Clubs and three Diamonds), and after cashing the Ace of Diamonds could have made an overtrick by discarding three clubs. As it is 2♦x= gave them +180. Not too much of a disaster for us, especially as 3NT is making their way (sadly our other table only made 2NT+2, so the board was flat). It could have been nasty though if South had found a redouble.

As we played it slowly became apparent our opponents were playing quite an unusual system. As far as I could tell overcalls were treated like opening bids, so for example they doubled with any shape, and overcalled 1NT with any 15-17 hand. Responses to overcalls were made as if partner had opened the bidding at the one level. Looked strange but seemed to work for them.

We edged ahead when the other table went down in game, and extended that lead when I made this 3NT.

When Anna overcalls 3♣ I know there's a good chance of six club tricks plus two Spades, and "where there's eight, there's nine". South duly lead a Spade. Dummy has only five Clubs but with the ♥A I have eight tricks. With a second Spade stopper I had time to finesse twice in Hearts. I was worried when both finesses lost, but thankfully North had no Spades left to return, so I did get my two Heart tricks. It's bad luck for South, as any lead other than a Spade leaves me a trick short.

In the other room the 3♠ opener was passed out, and went two off.

With two boards to go the opponents did well to bid to a light 4♥, leaving us a narrow one IMP lead going into the final board. Could we hold them off?

I had several tough bidding decisions here. Firstly, when Anna opens 1♦ I could repond naturally in Clubs, but instead went for 1♥, reasoning that if Anna is weak then when she rebids 2♦ I can bid 3♣ and show five Hearts. But to my surprise Anna rebid 2♣, and now we're in business.

I thought about a bold jump to 6♣, but that could look foolish if Anna has all her points in Diamonds, and so has weak Spades or four small trumps. I made the technically correct but more boring bid of 4♣, which sets Clubs as trumps and is forcing as it takes us past 3NT. Anna signed off with 5♣, and I now felt obliged to respect that. Anna couldn't know how useful her Spade honours were (if she cuebids 4♠ I would jump to 6♣), so the slam was missed.

On a Spade lead then trump switch Anna ruffed all her Heart losers in dummy for a comfortable 12 tricks. This beat the 5♣= in the other room for a one IMP gain and 19-17 win!

Glasgow vs USA

This Thursday I filled in for The Glasgow Boys in their weekly match against an American Team of Four. Ted and I updated our fairly comprehensive system, given that we have only played together there or four times, (see here, and we were good to go!

The very first hand had pre-empts at the five level and and things kept going from there!. Every board seemed to be a potential slam. At the half-way point we had built up a bit of a lead and could relax a little. What sigals do you play?" the opponents asked. I was just about to type "Standard attitude" when Ted wrote "Reverse attitude"!

In the hand below I had a few decisions to make. First, to respond to 1♠?. I think the chances of improving the contract are so good I've got to bid, so I did.

1NT has decent play, the main challenge being rememebering your're not playing in Hearts.

I got a ♥Q lead. This is probably from ♥QJx(x) in which case I can pick up the whole suit by winning in hand and finessing, but doing that will block the suit. People sometimes lead from ♥Qx so I decided to win in dummy and finesse. This guarantees me five Heart tricks. As it happens that's not enough, as if the defence is accurate and get into Spades I'm sunk. But luckily when North got a Spade through to the ♠Q he couldn't wait for another Spade, cashed the ♠A and now I was home, via five Hearts, one Spade and one Club.

The other table played 3♥ after a strong 1NT opener, which just makes.

As is usual I am featuring the hand which caused the most discussion afterwards. I do not come out of it well:

I made the normal 2♣ overcall then when Ted showed a good raise decided to have a go at 3NT. I don't quite have stops in Diamonds and Hearts, but I'm expecting a Heart lead, so two Hearts, six Clubs probably plus one more from partner. When North went on to 4♥ I decided we couldn't let that go and eagerly doubled. I lead a Spade, expecting one or two tricks here, but alas all we got was my two trump tricks for an expensive 4♥x+1 conceding 990.

Fortunately, the other table had the same result. In their auction West only raised to 3♣, which I think makes East's double much more dubious (partner might have nothinig but useless Clubs).

It could so easily have been a winning board for us, if I'd simply passed 3♦ bid 5♣ or just not doubled 4♥.

In the end we won the match 44-22.