Reno Red Ribbon pairs 3/18 day 1 part 2

26.

Oops!

Reno Red Ribbon Pairs 3/18 day 1 part 1

1.

The defense starts a diamond. It comes around to the K, and at this point, north decided to cash the HA, seeing the HJ out of east.

It looks like you need two club ruffs in hand to make the contract (or two spade ruffs, but I can see all the cards.) Anyway, the whole reason I wanted to post this hand was the neat technique in spades. To protect your natural spade winners, you can first cash a high one, and then lead a low one up to the K. If west ruffs, she ruffs air.

You don't have three entries to lead a spade up and ruff two clubs, but it looks like lefty is forced to give something up to you. Cash all your aces first (always looks cool), strip diamonds ending in dummy, lead a spade up to the K. Then, ruff a spade, west overruffs. Anything west does will yield a trick to you, and now you can reach dummy with the HK to ruff another club.

5.

Yes, I bid 1H.

22.

On correct defense, 3H is off 1 for the magic 200. We held them to making 4.

If I lead a trump like a normal person, we're almost forced into the correct defense. North wins the first round of diamonds, and the only shift that makes sense is a spade. The proper play in spades is to lead the T, surrounding dummy's 9. If declarer plays the J, we establish 2 spade tricks, 1 trump, 1 diamond, and 1 club. In fact, now I can receive a promotion, and we beat it 2.

If east rises with the SA, blocking the suit, and continues with a diamond ruff, then a club up, north rises with the CK, leads a spade. Now south exits with a club. This is the position:



With south returning a club, declarer can't draw trumps and play his clubs to discard his spade loser. Say declarer wins the club in hand and leads low to the HT. South wins the K, and exits another club. South will either get a club ruff, or declarer will be forced to lose a spade at the very end, giving the defense 1 club, 1 diamond, 1 spade, 1 heart, and either a spade or a heart.

Good double!

BBO 3/4

How do you declare 4S? The entire play is here, but just look at trick 1 if you really wanna think about it.

My line is pretty bleh. I don't know if I'd even call it a line. I've worked out what I believe to be the right play; too bad I was too lazy to figure it out at the table.

Stanford 3/2

Imagine you're at matchpoints and every trick matters. How do you play? My partner for GNT-C played this hand and took the maximum number of tricks. I am a lucky guy.

2/21 Burlingame GNT-C Qualifier

We managed to win, but it was too close for comfort. Here's one that I really botched.



I'm off 1 in 5C here, but they're going to go down 2 on proper defense. I think if I decide to bid again, I should double. If partner has fitting cards, he can pull it, and if not, he can sit for it. What I think is clearly wrong is 5C. Of course, partner might pull a double to 4S... I have 3 quick tricks, but I don't know. Maybe I should just sell out to 4H.



First of all, we're lucky we didn't get a 4D preempt. So after 4D (showing a good spade raise, doesn't promise a control), I tried to signoff with my balanced minimum.

From partner's point of view, SA HA CK is a slam. He cuebid 5C, and I cuebid 5D, which may actually be discouraging to partner. Should I even cuebid 5D, or just bid 5H?

If partner tried to get out in 5S, I was planning to bid 6S anyway because I had the HA and a maximum. Help, what do we do here?

2/20 Burlingame GNT-C Qualifier

Here's another one from the GNT-C qualifiers. What contract would you reach? South deals and opens 1N. You have the gadgetry to show a long club suit with a stiff spade, but would you use it?

2/20 Burlingame GNT-C Qualifier

I read Kantar's Take All Your Chances at Bridge book just a few days before the GNT, and this hand felt something that could have come from it.



So we have to deal with a club loser and a diamond loser. The first idea is that you should play a low club to the queen. If the CK is onside, the hand is already over.

Assuming that loses, you can try to ruff out the CJ. If it comes down, you have a club to pitch a diamond.

If NONE of that works, you're down to the diamond finesse. You tried everything!

At the table, when I finessed the club, RHO actually won the CK and led back the DJ. I felt that LHO had the CJ (LHO hitched when I played a club up), and the DJ looked so weird that I figured LHO had the DK as well, so I ran a squeeze instead. Both cards are onside though.

If RHO comes back a small diamond, then you have to abandon trying to drop the CJ and just go for the 50-50 diamond finesse.