|
Hand played on |
October 16th 2008 |
|
Board number |
Red Section, Board 23 |
|
Dealer |
South |
|
Vulnerability |
Both Vulnerable |
|
Submitted by |
Alaric Cundy |
|
|
North ♠Q ♥53 ♦Q7642 ♣QT963 |
|
|
|
|||
|
West ♠AJ8752 ♥9742 ♦void ♣874 |
|
East ♠KT6 ♥AK ♦AJ953 ♣AKJ |
|
North |
Bidding:
East |
South |
West |
|
|
♠943 ♥QJT86 ♦KT8 ♣52 |
|
|
No No No No No
|
2♣ 2NT 3♦ 3NT 6♠ |
No No No No No End
|
No 2♦ 3♣ 3♥ 4♠ |
On this hand the play was straightforward, but the bidding posed challenges. Most pairs reached a spade contract on the East / West cards, but the slam was bid rarely.
First of all let's look at the play: So long as Declarer doesn't do something silly - e.g., lose to the singleton Queen of trumps - there are 11 top tricks, and a twelfth appears courtesy of a heart ruff in the East hand, and a thirteenth then materialises courtesy of a winning finesse in clubs, having discarded a heart on the Ace of Diamonds. All very straightforward.
Every pair has their favourite bidding gadgets and partner and I were lucky that this hand fitted our chosen methods so well. With the exception of pairs playing a Strong Club system, the first three bids - or something equivalent - are likely to have been echoed at every table. On our methods the 2♦ response is part of a control-showing style - promising less than 8 High Card Points and less than 3 controls (Ace=2, King=1). 2NT shows a balanced 23-24 HCPs. 3♣ is Baron - seeking a 4-4 fit in any suit - and 3♦ is natural and shows 4+ diamonds. 3♥ pinpoints a 4-card heart suit and 3NT denies holding 4 spades or 4 hearts, though the hand could still contain 4 clubs.
So what does East make of West's 4♠ bid? This deduction is critical. It is clear that West has hearts and spades - but how many of each? East knows that the West hand includes precisely four hearts - both the use of Baron AND the lack of a transfer to hearts confirm that point. Our style is that if West had held five spades and four hearts he would have bid 3♠ rather than 3♣ - 3♠ shows precisely 5 spades with four hearts. [With five hearts and four spades, East can transfer to 3♥ and then bid 3♠. With 5+ hearts AND 5+ spades East would deploy transfer bids.] So the bid of 4♠ must show SIX spades and four hearts. Furthermore, there must be a few values in the West hand, constrained by the original 2♦ bid, otherwise surely with six spades and little / no strength West would have simply transferred to spades over the 2NT re-bid and then signed off in 4♠. And just to add some icing on this cake - clearly East knows that West can only hold three cards in the minors, and East's top cards there will take care of all of them, however they lie.
East's problem was not a question as to whether or not to raise to six but whether there was any realistic possibility of a Grand Slam... There was room for West to hold six spades headed by the Ace and Queen, and courtesy of Roman Key Card Blackwood, East could have checked for that holding. However, on reflection there would be lots to do to get up to 13 tricks even with such a convenient holding opposite, so East settled on a safe small slam.
Not long afterwards, a pleased-looking West gathered up 13 tricks for a top score. The hand was bid perfectly by West, and the vibes registered perfectly across the table.