Vil Gravis's blog

Season's Greetings from Vil

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Fri, 20/01/2017 - 07:16

Let's start the new year with what should be reasonably basic but is nevertheless an area in which many new partnerships have misunderstandings. This hand from Wednesday 18th January illustrates the point:
Board 19 Dealer S EW Vul

Q963
K975
653
Q5
JT7
6432
Q
AT432
54
QT8
982
KJ987
AK82
AJ
AKJT74
6

Vil's Christmas Special

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Sat, 03/12/2016 - 19:03

A Happy Christmas to all readers. As a special 'treat' for readers, here is a reproduction of a poser that will feature in the Hutt Club's “Finesse” magazine for December. Readers are asked to send me (villyn@xtra.co.nz) their solutions. This problem will be so instructive as to teach the reader just about every aspect of declarer play, so do give it a go. My 'solution' will appear in the first Wednesday review for the new year.

You are SOUTH and, after West has opened the bidding with 1C, you have somehow managed to propel yourself into 6S.

Contract: 6S by South. Opening Lead: KING OF CLUBS
North (dummy)

T8
A872
QJ
A9752

You (South)

AKQJ732
963
AK
6

  1. As closely as you can, reproduce the West hand
  2. After West leads the KING OF CLUBS against your 6S, what is your best chance of making your slam?

Who dares wins

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Thu, 24/11/2016 - 10:06

Fresh to you from Wednesday 23/11/2016.
Board 22 Dealer E EW Vul

AKQ75
Q62
JT973
93
KQT72
AT98
KQ
8
A8654
K75
A652
JT642
J93
J43
84

Slam Bidding

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Fri, 18/11/2016 - 14:25

From Wednesday 16/11/2016.
This week there were a number of hands where slam COULD be made, but only one deal where slam should have been easy to bid and make:
Board 17 Dealer N Nil Vul

7
T9632
A842
KQ9
QJ6
Q
T9765
8742
T98532
54
Q3
JT5
AK4
AKJ87
KJ
A63

Weak-Two Defence

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Fri, 11/11/2016 - 05:50

From Wednesday 09/11/2016.
Weak twos can be a double-edged sword. Fortunately for most who play weak twos, opponents are seldom capable of making the most of it in defence against the weak two. That is because they have little understanding of the TAKEOUT double. Here is a good example of how the weak two can bite the user in the bum.

Board 5 Dealer N NS Vul

AJT965
QT9
Q74
3
AK654
KJT83
KQ7
KQ87
3
A52
98654
432
J872
96
AJT2

He's BACK!! Yippee ...

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Thu, 03/11/2016 - 09:59

From Wednesday 2/11/2016
Match point bridge is all about finding the right contract and making the most of it. And if you end up defending, it is about finding the right defence and limiting declarer to what you can. Board 11 is a good example on both counts.

Board 11 Dealer S Nil Vul

43
963
QJ64
8743
K2
AQT75
T873
A5
JT9765
KJ
AK
KT2
AQ8
842
952
QJ96

Vil Re-Surfaces ...

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Mon, 31/10/2016 - 08:09

... albeit temporarily. He is still having trouble with his wrists and typing is giving him grief but Vil is happy to do this sort of thing when a reader has anything that would be of interest to others. He writes:

One of my readers has sent in some interesting deals for my comment. I am using them for this Wednesday Review though the hands did not occur on a Wednesday. But the questions asked and the points I would like to make are interesting nevertheless.

Dealer E ALL Vul

KJ854
K94
KT5
93
T62
T86
AJ9872
7
AQ97
AQJ5
Q
KQ52
3
732
643
AJT864

Worrisome news from Vil

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Sun, 16/10/2016 - 10:56

Hello all readers of these Wednesday Reviews

Please accept my sincere apologies for not being able to continue with the articles for the time being. I have an as yet not diagnosed problem with my wrists and shoulders; arthritis? Rheumatism? OOS? Who knows but writing even this message is quite excruciating. So, sorry, no more Wednesday Reviews for the time being. However I am more than happy to answer any questions that current readers may have and to forward my answers to all on the Wed Review mailing list. Hopefully, normal service will be resumed before too long.

With best wishes for better bridge and better results,
Vil

Monster Deal

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Fri, 30/09/2016 - 11:23

From Wednesday 28/09/2016
Board 4; I just could not go past it without comment. How often does one get dealt a 29 point hand? And when one does it's not always easy to reach the correct end results. This one SHOULD have been reasonably easy for NS to bid IF both partners had a basic understanding of how very big hands are bid. But......

Board 4 Dealer W ALL Vul

AQ
AKT
AKQ6
AK54
8752
9732
T753
6
J3
QJ65
82
JT972
KT964
84
J94
Q83

Devil in the Detail

Submitted by Vil Gravis on Thu, 22/09/2016 - 11:30

From Wednesday (21/09/2016).
Board 10 was easier to bid for those who play 'five card spades', meaning that an opening bid of 1S guarantees at least a five card suit. That also means that with exactly four spades and three cards in each of the other suits AND a hand that does not fit in the system's No Trump range you open 1C. An easy concept to understand, I think, but even if you open 'four card spades' the deal should not present a problem for the EW pairs that played this one.

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