May 2011 - 60

Bridge with the Abbot

David Bird
Beckie's stellar performance
The last set of the first-round Crockford's match began with the St. Titus
team, much to the Abbot's disbelief,
3 IMPs in arrears. Brother Xavier and
the Abbot were now facing the ladies'
weaker pair, Beckie and Rachel.
This was the first board of the final
set:
Dlr: South  J 7 4 3
Vul: N-S  K Q 7
K2
K952
-
 A 10 9 5
N
 J 10 9 5
A84
W E
 Q 10 9 7 3
J64
S
J863
 Q 10 7
KQ862
632
A85
A4
West
North
Brother Rachel
Xavier

East
The
Abbot

Pass

All Pass

4

South
Beckie
1

Brother Xavier led the J and
down went the dummy. "Eight losers,
I'm afraid, if you add one loser for
no aces," said Rachel. "I didn't like to
bid just three spades with 12 points.
Those two experts in the other room,
they would not bid three spades on
60 Bridge Bulletin May 2011

such a hand."
When the K was played from
dummy, the Abbot won with the ace
and returned the 8 to the queen.
The opponents were playing a
five-card major system, so the Abbot
was aware of the trump position. The
ladies' captain, Miriam, had proved
herself to be a strong player during
the match. If she had been playing the
contract, she would have called for
dummy's jack of trumps on the first
round. A holding of A-10-9-5 could
be caught only if East held the four
trumps; the jack was an essential start
to this process.
Beckie was still staring blankly at
the dummy, wondering if anything
could stop her from making the contract. Come on, come on, thought the
Abbot. Do your duty, madam, and play
a low trump from the table. Surely
you know the rule about playing one
of the touching honors first?
"What to do?" muttered Beckie. "Ah
well, play a low trump."
The Abbot followed with the 5 of
trumps and declarer won with the
king, West discarding a diamond.
Beckie winced at this development.
"So unlucky I am!" she exclaimed.
"With a 3-1 trump break, I would have
made it."
The Abbot sucked in his right
cheek. You would also have made it if
you had led the jack of trumps from
dummy, my dear. Ah well, you can't
play above yourself all the time. It
wouldn't be fair.
Beckie played the A and K and
ruffed a club in her hand. The K
and A came next, followed by a
diamond ruff in dummy. Declarer had
eight tricks already pointing in her

direction. This was the position:

-
 10 9
Q
J

J7
7
-
9
N

W E
S

Q86
6
-
-

 A 10 9
4
-
-

"Play the club," said Beckie.
The Abbot did not like the look of
this. If he discarded a heart, declarer
would ruff low and score one of her
trump honors for a 10th trick. Perhaps
she would go wrong if he ruffed with
the ten.
Beckie looked suspiciously at the
10 of trumps. Ace and 9 he had left,
surely? If she overruffed, West would
win the heart exit and she would lose
the last two tricks. Perhaps it was
better to throw the heart loser? She
would try that.
When the 6 appeared from
declarer's hand the Abbot had to
concede defeat. Whether he played
the trump ace and another trump or
exited with a heart, declarer would
score the two further tricks that she
needed. He chose to play a heart and
Beckie ruffed in her hand. A trump to
the jack knocked out the Abbot's ace,
and the queen of trumps gave declarer
her game.
"Such a wonderful play you make
there!" exclaimed Rachel. "You played
it like an expert, Beckie. You reminded me of those two men in the other
room."
r
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2011
