Some Problems from the Toronto Nationals: Answers

Today's Panelists: Barry Rigal, Mike Shuster, Kenneth Rexford, David Caprera, David Weiss, Bobby Bodenheimer
  1. MPs, unfavorable, you hold

     S:9x H:1087x D:xxx C:K654

    RHO You LHO CHO
    1C: Pass1S: 2S:
    3C: PassPassDbl
    Pass?

    BARRY
    [Pass.] My partner had this hand and guessed to bid 3S:. I know it didn't work, so I'm less enamored of this action than pass. I realize if the first spade gets ruffed, I'll regret my choice...but tant pis!
    MIKE
    Pass. With spades as trump, I don't even have an entry, so I'm contributing to the defense, but not the offense. While it is possible partner has four hearts, he will more often hold only three.
    KENNETH
    3S:. This one seems super easy. I must be missing something (perhaps a brain?).
    DAVIDC
    3H:
    DAVIDW
    Pass. I presume (a) 2S: was natural, and (b) partner has his bid (i.e. a big hand). I am hoping RHO has chosen this moment to overbid a little. Admittedly, I am concerned because you specifically typed my lousy club spots to scare me. As I am planning to start a tapping defense, I hope the length will be enough to produce two tricks. It's not like I have an attractive alternative in 3S:, which I would expect to go down.
    BOBBY
    Pass. Tough between 3S: and pass. Opponents are not in a fit auction and my C:K rates to be useless to partner. Also, I know what to lead.
    JEFF AT THE TABLE
    3S:.
    CONSENSUS
    ActionVotes
    Pass4
    3H:1
    3S:2
    About a 50-50 split between bidding and passing.
    WINNING ACTION
    3NT. Maybe. Partner held  S:AKJ10xx H:AKx D:Q10x C:x. Passing leads to -470. Bidding 3S: leads to -500. If you bid 3H:, you get doubled and probably chicken out to only -500. Dunno. But 3NT...if they duck the first club or play two rounds, it might make!
    JEFF UPON REFLECTION
    No clue. My style here is to bid and hope partner's spades are good enough to avoid the lash, but I can't tell you that it is best. The winning action never occurred to me.
  2. IMPs, favorable, you hold

     S:Jx H:K108xxx D:xxx C:10x

    LHO CHO RHO You
    Pass1NT Pass?

    1NT was 12-14.

    BARRY
    4D: Texas for hearts. Can't think of a sensible alternative—regardless of how it turns out.
    MIKE
    2H:. The opponents have both passed already, so this rates to be a partscore battle. Passing 1NT and conceding 150 isn't my idea of a fight, so I'll try to go plus.
    KENNETH
    [2D:] I thought that last one was easy. Why would I do anything except to transfer to (or bid if no transfers) 2H:?

    I suppose to psych here makes sense. I mean, it crosses my mind, but I don't in "what would you do" questions include "I would psych" unless it is really obvious. I might do it at the real table, though.

    DAVIDC
    Texas. Cute hand. I considered 3NT but 50 a trick can be expensive.
    DAVIDW
    2C:. You are trying to get me to steal, expecting the bad guys to be on for a spade, or possibly a no trump, game. And like Oscar Wilde, I can resist everything but temptation. The question is what thievery will sound most convincing. I am afraid that if I blast to 3NT, they might double for a spade lead. If I could bid 2S: natural, I might get away with that, but the transfer route gives them an extra shot at me. Over my 2C:, if partner bids 2D:, I will bid 2H: as garbage Stayman. If he bids either major, I will pass.
    BOBBY
    2D: then pass. Yes, opps could have a game, but I think it will be harder for them to find it on this sequence than just passing.
    JEFF AT THE TABLE
    2D:.
    CONSENSUS
    ActionVotes
    2C:1
    2D: (or 2H:)4
    4D:2
    WINNING ACTION
    Texas. You have to steal. I transferred to 2H: and passed. Pepsi balanced with a double. Lev bid 4S:. Pepsi started hooting and jeering at him. Until he scored an overtrick.
    JEFF UPON REFLECTION
    OK, so you know they probably have a game. But they've both passed, so you don't expect them to bid it. To greed out a plus score in 2H: or to make sure to avoid the big minus in 4S:?

    Upon reflection, I like a compromise. Transfer to hearts and invite game in hearts. If partner rejects, they won't tend to double 3H:. If he bids game, he'll probably have enough trumps that they won't double. And it'll sound as if their partners are broke.

  3. IMPs, unfavorable, you hold

     S:J9xx H:— D:Qxxx C:AQJ9x

    RHO You LHO CHO
    1H: Dbl 4H: Dbl
    Pass?

    Yeah, we all tell our partners we won't double on these hands, but in reality, we all do.

    BARRY
    4NT, pick a minor. What can you do (passing is NOT an option)?
    MIKE
    4NT. Partner would just bid spades most of the time we belong in 4S:. It is close between 4NT and 5C:. Getting diamonds into the picture means we get to trump hearts with little trumps. In clubs, we might be able to navigate a spade ruff with a small trump, too. But in diamonds, clubs can be a source of tricks, so I think I need to cater to both minors. By the way, I would never tell a partner not to double on this hand type.
    KENNETH
    [Pass] Anything but passing is bad partnership bidding. Live with 4H: making if all goes poorly. Partners understand semi-psychic BS doubles more than semi-psychic BS doubles AND PULLING.
    DAVIDC
    [5C:] I think I saw this. [Yes, I give the problem around up there. --Jeff] I was a bidder (5C:). I am not playing partner for heart cards.
    DAVIDW
    4NT. I would double the first time, and now I am reaping the reward of that gamble. Of course, it could be right to pass, but my hand says it probably is not. I expect partner to have fewer than four spades, and at most three hearts. So I can anticipate a minor suit fit. With equal length, he will pick clubs, which suits me.
    BOBBY
    5C:. Time to put my best suit forward.
    JEFF AT THE TABLE
    5C:. 4NT is technically better, but 5C:, even if not best, is less likely to start the doubling. And yes, I was worried.
    CONSENSUS
    ActionVotes
    Pass1
    4NT3
    5C:3
    Almost everyone bid. It appears that the choice is what to bid, not whether to bid.
    WINNING ACTION
    Pass, big time. Partner held  S:10xx H:AKx D:AJxxx C:10x. We ended up in 5Dx for -500. At the other table, my hand passed 4H:x and collected 500 (though it should have been 300, not that that mattered.) No, the bad guys were not playing Precision. At either table.
    JEFF UPON REFLECTION
    I'm bidding again. Yes, 5C: tends to be 4135, but I think avoiding the double if I'm wrong is important. I'd bid 5C: again.

    A fine player once told me, "I have won more IMPs by taking out takeout doubles of 4H: than any other way." I, too, have been very successful using that strategy. Here's 14 to debit from that column.

  4. IMPs, unfavorable, you hold

     S:A9xxx H:9 D:x C:AQJ98x

    LHO CHO RHO You
    3D: PassPass?

    You are playing standard methods, so 4C: is not clubs and a major here. Feel free to argue why it ought to be, but it isn't this time.

    BARRY
    4C:. No idea what is right but bidding one's long suit rarely goes completely out of style.
    MIKE
    4C:. Ick. I'll get my best suit in first (and possibly last) and hope to get another chance. At some level, I know 3NT is right, but I just can't get myself to do that with 5-1-1-6 shape and no stopper.
    KENNETH
    4D:. Then, 4S: pick again.
    DAVIDC
    I bid 4C: natural. Not a fan of 4C: M+m. Leaves me no call when I have clubs. Not sure this is good enough, even if available.
    DAVIDW
    4C:. I agree 4C: ought to be two-suited, as it is otherwise a narrow target. Here, I will bid it anyway, hoping to survive. I do not have any reason to suspect partner has spade length; 3S: is a shot in the dark. The clubs are good enough to survive a misfit; the spades are not.

    Another possibility is to double, hoping partner's diamonds are good enough for him to suppress his hearts. Most likely, though, he will bid his major, and I will have to bid 4S:. Even if he somehow were to divine that I had the black suits, we would likely be too high already.

    BOBBY
    4C:. If partner bids a red suit, I'll bid 4S:. We may lose the spade suit, but given our methods, I don't have a way to deal with that. I need to bid my shape and strength out, even at the 4-level.
    JEFF AT THE TABLE
    Wasn't there. This was partner's hand. I'd bid 3S:.
    CONSENSUS
    ActionVotes
    3S:1
    4C:5
    4D:1
    WINNING ACTION
    Double. Big big BIG time. I held  S:Kx H:J108xx D:AQ107 C:Kx. Partner bid 4C: and I bid 4NT, which we had actually discussed as natural. I made 10 tricks. 6C: isn't awful and probably makes. But 3D: goes for sticks and wheels. Believe it or not, that was the result at the other table.
    JEFF UPON REFLECTION
    I have no idea. I hate 4C:, because it passes 3NT, our most likely game, and it probably buries a 5-4 spade fit. But I hate 3S:, because I'm not a big fan of canape overcalls. And if partner passes with 1-4 in the blacks, 3S: is a really silly spot. 3NT is certainly plausible, but there are a few really striking flaws to it. I guess it's just normal to bid 4C:, but I'm very surprised to see no votes for 3NT.
  5. IMPs, none vul, you hold

     S:AQx H:10942 D:K10xx C:109

    DummyDeclarer
    1C:! 1S:!
    1NT! 2H:!
    3H: 4S:!
    5D:! 6H:
    Pass

    1C: was clubs or a balanced hand.
    1S: was various hands, see 2H:.
    1NT was 12-14 balanced, either three clubs or 3334 exactly.
    2H: was four hearts, longer clubs, GF
    4S: was key card
    5D: was two without
    Yes, that's a lot to assimilate.

    Your lead.

    BARRY
    D:10. Before declarer knows hearts arent splitting. [The 10 is better than small in case partner has D:Q9x. That way you can get it two if it's the winning lead. If you lead small, there is no way partner is failing to put up the D:Q for fear of blowing to A10. --Jeff]
    MIKE
    H:4. Lets assume declarer has either 1-4-2-6 or 2-4-1-6 shape and dummy is some x-4-x-3 shape. If declarer is 1=4=2=6, I need to lead the S:Q to prevent declarer from establishing a discard for his diamond loser. If declarer is 2=4=1=6, then the hero lead will only cost an overtrick vs. the S:A, but could possibly cost the contract vs. a passive lead (declarer will need to guess which finesse to take — this gives declarer  S:Kx H:AQJx D:x C:AKxxxx and dummy  S:xxx H:Kxxx D:AQJ C:Qxx. Meanwhile, partner could hold the H:J or declarer might have only 5 clubs and need to pick up the Q, so I'll go passive and hope to score two tricks slowly. I hate this problem, but having a terrible nationals, I might try the S:Q to get a bulletin hand.
    KENNETH
    [D:K] I don't know why the opponents did not cuebid. However, there are three possibilities. Questions might tell me, knowledge of the opponents might work, but...

    A. If I think that they are idiots, I guess S:A.
    B. If I think Declarer is a sneak, I lead the S:A, trying for two quicks.
    C. If I think Declarer is informationally confident, then he has either a stiff spade or the King, and he also has a stiff diamond or the Ace. He also has likely pitches from clubs, but possibly not enough. I might also be in a squeeze later. I might try something tricky and lead the S:Q, for complicated reasons, but I expect that my normal line will be the D:K, to transfer the menace to partner, if there is one.
    [Opponents were not idiots. They are not particularly sneaky. I don't know about confident, but Blackwood is a pretty confident convention. So I chose C for Kenneth. --Jeff]

    DAVIDC
    [D:] If I understood that, dummy is 4423 or 3433. [No, all you know is that he has exactly four hearts and three clubs and has no singleton or void. --Jeff] Hard to see how the mice are going to make my S:A go away. Possible that declarer is 1426 with S:x and D:Ax and dummy has S:K. Now I need to lead a D:, so I will.
    DAVIDW
    Low diamond. I think RHO has a singleton spade, perhaps with a pattern of 1=4=2=6. A passive trump lead will allow him to lead toward the spade king and generate a pitch for his losing diamond. He would then do his ruffing before drawing trump and running clubs.

    I am hoping partner's one useful card is the D:Q rather than, say the heart jack. True, I might be blowing a trick in diamonds, but I don't think it will matter given the S:K is very likely to be behind me.

    BOBBY
    [H:] With 4441 hearts around the table and 5+-3 clubs, it seems right to lead trumps. I lead a low one, because who knows what partner's stiff is.
    JEFF AT THE TABLE
    C:10!
    CONSENSUS
    ActionVotes
    C:1
    D:4
    H:2
    WINNING ACTION
    a club. The hands were
    S: Kxx
    H: AKxx
    D: Jxx
    C: Qxx
    S: x
    H: QJxx
    D: AQx
    C: AKJxx
    Pretty much as expected. On a club lead, declarer is afraid of a ruff, and if trumps are 3-2, the hand is pretty easy. When they are 4-1, he has some guesswork to do. In particular, to make, he needs to cash precisely the H:QJ and play a spade. My guy didn't find that line, but rather relied on two hooks.
    JEFF UPON REFLECTION
    This is one of the few I got right.

    I think there really are only three ways to beat the hand. 1) partner has a high trump. Lead almost anything and you beat it. Anything but a low spade. 2) partner has the D:Q. You need to lead a diamond, and I'd start with the 10. Might as well get it two if partner has the D:9. 3) you scare declarer into drawing too many rounds of trump by threatening a club ruff. That doesn't need partner to have much and there are layouts where two rounds of trump are simply fatal. This one had a chance for declarer, but not surprisingly, he didn't find it.

    Why (3) over (2)? They've just bid a power slam and you have a 9-count. It's possible that declarer is precisely 1426 and is bidding on the double fit, but more likely, partner is broke. Go for the swindle.

  6. IMPs, both vul

    S: K10
    H: J105
    D: AKx
    C: KQ8xx
    S: x
    H: AK3
    D: J9xxx
    C: J9xx

    The bidding went 3S:-4S:.

    You lead the H:A (A from AK here), and partner plays the H:8 (upside down). Over to you.

    BARRY
    [H:A] No bridge player leads A from AK against preempts? Do they? [That's up to partnership agreement. I think it's best to lead ace vs. weak 2-bids. I am pretty sure it's best to lead king vs. 4-bids. 3-bids? Some like it one way, some the other. Shrug. --Jeff]

    Can't see why not to play the H:A. You will tell me no doubt.

    MIKE
    C:. Partner needs the C:A to beat the hand. Maybe it is stiff. Hopefully I can get the heart count on his return to decide what to do next.
    KENNETH
    C:? Not sure how that could be wrong. Partner almost has to have a black Ace to discourage hearts, and he cannot have the S:A and three small clubs.
    DAVIDC
    D: hoping for 7132. ( S:AJxxxxx H:x D:xxx C:xx — not my vul 3S: bid.) Not overly optimistic as most reasonable constructions are claimers.
    DAVIDW
    [H:] Where can our tricks be? The C:A, perhaps, and perhaps a trump trick, and some hearts. In any event we need heart tricks. I play a second high heart. Partner could, after all, be encouraging from Q98. Assuming my second heart holds, partner's card will tell me whether to continue or to shift to a club.
    BOBBY
    [D:] I guess to attack the diamond entries: low diamond.
    JEFF AT THE TABLE
    H:. Oops.
    CONSENSUS
    ActionVotes
    C:2
    D:2
    H:3
    WINNING ACTION
    C:. Declarer was  S:AQJ9xxx H:9x D:x C:10xx.
    JEFF UPON REFLECTION
    I think this is simply a case of "if you think of it, you get it right." I didn't think of partner's stiff C:A, so I got it wrong.

    Partner, after giving me plenty of crap for not finding the shift, wondered aloud, "what if I played the H:Q at T1?" I answered honestly, "I'd take longer, but I am still not sure I'd come up with the right answer."

Jeff Goldsmith, Aug. 20th, 2011