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X-Clubs Play_03

The following problem came up recently in a match point session. Here is your hand (South)

Dealer South NS Vul

AKJ9
AQ64
874
62

X-Clubs Play_02

Let’s take another look at our problem from earlier.

You are declarer as WEST in a matchpoints session

Dealer E EW Vul

KJT2
K6
JT9
KJ65
A83
AJ842
Q52
QT

SouthWestNorthEast
---1
Pass1Pass2
Pass3NTPassPass
Pass

Fairly normal, if very basic, Acol bidding.

Vil Resurfaces. X-Clubs Play_01

Hi good people who have patiently answered my bridge questions. I have left you alone for a while but I am about to start another series which I shall call X-Clubs Play. From time to time I will be reviewing an interesting deal played on XClubs. This one will be of interest to all those who regularly struggle when there are many options in the play.

You are declarer as WEST in a matchpoints session

Dealer E EW Vul

KJT2
K6
JT9
KJ65
A83
AJ842
Q52
QT

What & Why (29)

This will be the final “What and Why” for now, as I will be busy with some improver lessons at the Hutt Club. These will be aimed at newer players who want to go to the next step. The lesson hands and notes can be found on the NZ Bridge web site but I will be adding one or two comments from my own perspective, hoping that these will help the improver to further understand the game.

The following deal comes from a teams match.
Dealer N EW Vul

K9
Q8
AQJ642
KQ4
AT8653
K2
93
AT9
Q7
JT9654
K5
732
J42
A73
T87
J865

The bidding was:

SouthWestNorthEast
--1Pass
1NT23NTPass
PassPass

West leads S6 How do you play this?

What & Why (28)

Two quite interesting deals from a match point session this time. I polled my panel on some of the questions that came up during the bidding of these hands, and there were some interesting answers.

Hand 1. Dealer E All Vul

QJ5
AQ842
A4
742
T976
96
T93
KJ95
K82
T5
652
AQT63
A42
KJ73
KQJ87
8

The bidding problem was:

SouthWestNorthEast
---Pass
1Pass12
?

What would you bid now and why?

What & Why (27)

My comments about Losing Trick Count and the quote about counting losers spurred some defensive reaction from one or two readers who had been converted to LTC. Fine with me if that is the way they like to convolute their bridge brain. One reader directed me to an article on LTC by a well known English bridge identity, so I thought the deals he used to illustrate the merits of LTC worth taking a look at. I will not reproduce his full article, just the two deals that he wrote about, and the bidding that he recommended using LTC.

Hand 1. Dealer S Nil Vul

852
QJ64
KQ974
3
KQT3
852
832
AQ9
J964
7
A65
KT852
A7
AKT93
JT
J764

What & Why (26)

Dealer E All Vul

J74
K842
KQ94
84
K93
JT53
7652
J7
65
A6
AJT
QT9653
AQT82
Q97
83
AK2

Most NS pairs in any teams match should reach 4S. I did say I would give you our bidding using the “TNT” guideline.

What & Why (25)

You are South and have landed in a delicate 4S in a teams match. West leads the jack of clubs.
Dealer E All Vul

J74
K842
KQ94
84
K93
JT53
7652
J7
65
A6
AJT
QT9653
AQT82
Q97
83
AK2

Would you have reached 4S if you had doubled the 1C opening? Or if you had overcalled with 1S or even 1NT? I wanted to hear from some of the people who would have doubled the 1C opening bid, and how their bidding sequence would then have proceeded. I also wanted to hear from our ‘losing trick count’ aficionados as to how the bidding should have proceeded and how the losing tricks are calculated.

What & Why (24)

You are South and have landed in a delicate 4S in a teams match. West leads the jack of clubs.
Dealer E All Vul

J74
K842
KQ94
84
K93
JT53
7652
J7
65
A6
AJT
QT9653
AQT82
Q97
83
AK2

What & Why (23)

You are South in a TEAMS match. Dealer East, All Vul.

AQT82
Q97
83
AK2

East opens 1C. What do you bid?

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