What & Why (10)
Some more What and Why, this time all from a match point session. Thanks to our panel, here are some answers.
1. Match Points Dealer South NS vul.
 AQJ3 |
 8 |
 T7532 |
 AK5 |
You are SOUTH
The bidding has been:
| South | West | North | East |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pass | 1 | Pass |
| 1 | Pass | 3 | Pass |
| ? |
What do you bid and why?
Some of our panelists believe that the bidding by North is forcing, but others don’t think it is any different to a normal raise to 3D, i.e. 10-12 HCP and diamond support. Nevertheless there is good reason to now bid 3NT. Why? Because North will either have good cards in diamonds or have good hearts, and even with a minimum of 10 HCP, there should be a good play for 3NT. The club suit is obviously what partner does not have anything in, and South does have the ace and king. So, there is good reason to bid 3NT whether you think the jump to 3D is forcing or not, but do discuss such a situation with partner. I can see why in this sequence North could be a bit stronger and have no other suitable alternative to a jump to 3D, but open for discussion.
2. Match Points Dealer N All Vul
You are South and your hand:
| 86 |
| AK875 |
| T5 |
| QJ95 |
The bidding has been:
| South | West | North | East |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | 1 | Pass |
| 1 | Pass | 1 | Pass |
| 2 | Pass | 2NT | Pass |
| ? |
What do you bid and Why?
Your 2C is ‘fourth suit forcing’, but what else are you going to bid? And if it is, then is it forcing for one round, or is it forcing to game? There are different views on this, I certainly do not see it as forcing to game, but some others might. Judging by the number of panelists who would pass 2NT, the bid should NOT be forcing to game, after all, if you want to force to game surely you can bid THREE clubs? But maybe I am being too simplistic. The main thing here is that you do need to have an agreement with partner, and most of our panelists have the view that: “The fourth suit bid has forced partner to bid again, and partner has shown no interest in hearts and a MINIMUM hand by bidding 2NT, therefore PASS is best at match points”. Were it a teams match, I would not hesitate and would bid 3NT, there is too much to lose by not bidding a close game, and even given North’s minimum bid of 2NT, we should go on to 3NT. Totally different in a match point game, do you not agree?
3. Now for a declarer problem. You are West this time and again it is match points. You are Not Vul, against NS Vul. You open 1D, Double from North, 2C (forcing, 10+ HCP and natural) from East, 2S from South, 3D from you, 3S from North, 4D from partner, all pass.
| South | West | North | East |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | 1 | X | 2 |
| 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Pass | Pass | Pass |
|
|
North leads the SA and then switches to the HQ.
a) do you agree with the 3D bid or would you have done something else and if so, what?
Most panelists are in agreement here, with a good six card diamond suit despite what could also be vital club support
b) do you agree with passing 4D?
Yes, passing 4D is reasonable, at MATCH POINTS. I would definitely give 5D a crack at teams, another hand where there is a big difference between match points and teams.
c) How will you play this? Please be as specific as you can.
Since this is match points, you really want to make as many tricks as possible, and do so safely. North has led a top spade but then switched to a heart. That presents you with quite a problem, a good problem. Why? Because you can now make absolutely sure of making 4D, simply by leading another spade and then later ruffing a spade in dummy, because your own trumps are so solid. If North had switched to a trump, you would not have been able to ruff a spade. But, if you do take this line, you might lose another spade trick later if you lose a club. But if there is no club loser, you don’t need to lose a spade that North has forgotten to take. So, do you play to make sure of ten tricks and lose a spade so you can ruff one of your spade losers, or do you draw trumps and pin everything on a successful club finesse?
North has been bidding, and reasonably strongly at that, but then again South has also piped up, so the location of the queen of clubs is not certain. Is there a way you can combine your chances to give yourself the best chance of making as many tricks as possible given the opening spade lead and heart switch? I believe there is, and that is by taking a club finesse immediately after winning the HA. If it loses, South might revert to spades but could also be tempted to try and cash the HK, in which case you will probably make the rest of the tricks.
My tip when playing a trump contract has always been: do NOT draw trumps unless you have nothing better to do.
