Better Bridge in Barry County October 9 2014

Better Bridge in Barry County

By Gerald Stein

 

 

	North ♠  8    ♥  A 5 2  ♦  A K 10 8 5 ♣  10 7 4 2
West ♠  3 ♥  J 6 3  ♦  Q J 4 3  ♣  A J 9 6 3		East ♠  K J 10 6 4 2  ♥  10 8 4  ♦  9 7 6  ♣  Q
	South ♠  A Q 9 7 5  ♥  K Q 9 7  ♦  2  ♣  K 8 5

 

 

Dealer: Vulnerable: Lead:

North Neither K♥

 

North Pass Dbl	East 2♠ Pass	South Pass Pass	West Pass Pass

Today’s South showed great restraint when East opened the bidding with a Weak Two Spade bid. Promising six spades and little more, East stepped into a hornet’s nest when South smoothly passed with five good spades and 14 high card points. South was hoping that Partner North would reopen the bidding with a Take Out Double. With little to help Partner East, West passed and North, with twelve total points, did reopen the bidding with a Take Out double informing Partner South that she was short in spades but could support the other three unbid suits. East passed, and South pounced on the Take Out Double and turned it into a “Hungry Double,” a penalty double by passing. Alas, for East, there would be little smiling after this hand.

South’s choice of a lead was the standard lead of the top of a strong sequence. South led the K♥, and North encouraged with the 5♥. The trick held, and South led the 7♥ to North’s waiting A♥ for trick number two for North/South. North led back the 2♥, and South won with the 9♥ for the three tricks in the heart suit.

On trick number four, South shifted to his singleton diamond and led the 2♦. North won both the A♦ and the K♦ for two more tricks for North/South. On the sixth trick, North led a small diamond and South promptly trumped with a small spade. North/South had taken the first six tricks in a row.

With nothing to lose, South led the final heart, the Q♥, and North played the 8♠ forcing East to win with the 10♠ for East/West’s first trick of the hand. East next led the K♠ losing to South’s A♠ and the seventh trick for North/South. East would win the A♣ on the next trick and two more trumps trick for a total of four tricks taken. North/South would end up with nine tricks doubled for an expensive loss for the East/West team.

What was the final outcome for the East/West team? Down four tricks, East/West suffered a minus 800 point loss and a bottom board. North/South vaulted to the top on this hand by being patient and by playing exceptional defense. They limited East to just the four tricks that East managed to pick up. East, of course, was dazed by the outcome of the hand. Usually a weak two bid does not end up so disastrously, but this time, South, by passing smoothly and hoping that North would reopen the bidding, found the right contract to defend and to clean up. South was hungry indeed, and the Take Out Double converted to a Penalty Double paid huge dividends for the North/South partnership.

What are the takeaways for today’s hand? With East jumping into the bidding with an obstructive bid, South was in no position to bid. A double from the South hand would have been taken as a Take Out Double, and North/South would have been hard-pressed to find a fit in one of the other three suits. Even if they had ended up in hearts, the best that they probably could have taken was eight or nine tricks, and a paltry score of 110 or 140 instead of the 800 that they gained. Having a partner bid with good points, even though she had passed originally, was the key play here. When North reopened the bidding and was not content to let East steal a 2♠ contract, she set the stage for South to either bid or convert the Take Out Double into a Penalty Double. While East/West were commiserating over their bad luck, North and South were pleased with their partnership agreement to reopen the bidding if one of them ended up in the Pass Out Seat, the last spot before the auction is finished and the contract is set. In today’s hand, that is the way North/South played it, and they ended up with a top board.

Gerald Stein

October 3, 2014

Number of words: 765