September 2021 - 62

Advanced Players
My Bridge and Yours
I
n a sectional Swiss teams, we have
won our first two matches - one
with a blitz - and face tough opposition
in the match before the lunch
break. After two indecisive deals, I hold
as South:
J 8 7 4 2 kA J 9 8 3 2 l- '8 4.
Only the opponents are vulnerable,
and my partner deals and opens 1'.
East passes. We could be cold for a
slam, but I must tread carefully; I
could just as easily be facing a nasty
misfit.
In some circumstances, I might
handle a 6-5 hand by bidding the fivecard
suit first. As dealer with:
A K J 6 4 kQ 10 6 5 3 2 lK 5 '-,
I would consider opening 1. The
hand would lack the high-card
strength to open 1k and reverse into
spades next. (In a two-over-one style,
opener might be able to open 1k and
rebid 2 after a two-level response
without promising extra strength.)
Here, my hand is so weak in high
cards that my main worry is getting
too high. So, I respond 1k. If partner
next bids 1, great; otherwise, I will
let the spades go.
BY FRANK STEWART
frs1016@centurylink.net
In fact, partner surprises me by
raising to 2k. Now that we've found a
trump fit, my hand has playing potential.
I may establish my second suit
with ruffs in dummy, and my void in
the suit partner didn't bid is encouraging.
I jump to 4k. It's IMPs, where
bringing home games is the goal, but
I would make the same call at matchpoints.
All
pass, and West leads the l10.
Dlr: North  A 6 3
Vul: E-W k K 10 5
l J 2
' A 9 7 6 3
 J 8 7 4 2
k A J 9 8 3 2
l -
' 8 4
West North
East
1' Pass
Pass 2k Pass
All Pass
South
1k
4k
I agree with North's raise to 2k.
If he was going to open that hand -
and with two and a half quick tricks
and a five-card suit, most players
would consider opening mandatory
- to raise my major-suit response
was best. Confirming a trump suit
promptly made our auction easy.
East plays the king on the first diamond
and looks deflated when I ruff.
To make this game, I must pick up the
trumps, but there is no rush. I lead to
the A and return a spade. East takes
the king - West follows with the 5
and 10 - and shifts to the '2: 4, jack,
ace. On the next spade, East discards
a diamond, and West takes the queen.
He cashes the 'K and leads another
62 | Bridge Bulletin | September 2021
diamond, and I ruff again.
I try to piece together the East
hand. He started with K 9 and
apparently 'Q 10 5 2. He had some
number of diamonds headed by the
A-K. But with at least 12 points and
five decent diamonds (and 2-2-5-4
shape), many Easts would have
climbed in with a 1l overcall, so I'm
placing East with only four diamonds
- and so three hearts.
I lead a trump to the king - both
defenders play low - and return a
trump. East follows low, and I finesse.
Maybe my reasoning was sound; West
discards a diamond, and we are plus
420.
The full deal:
 A 6 3
k K 10 5
l J 2
' A 9 7 6 3
 Q 10 5
k 4
 K 9
k Q 7 6
l Q 10 9 6 5 4 3 l A K 8 7
' K J
 J 8 7 4 2
k A J 9 8 3 2
l -
' 8 4
My teammate in the East never
met a hand he didn't like. At the other
table, when North opened 1', East
got his entry fee's worth by overcalling
1l. I am no fan of four-card
overcalls, but my teammate's action
gained here. South bid 1k, but West
leaped to 5l. Nobody could act over
that, and East-West achieved a rare
vulnerable-against-not paying sacrifice.
North-South managed to take
their three aces for plus 100, and we
gained 7 IMPs.
' Q 10 5 2
September 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September 2021
