Vikings in Space

Hi all

Here’s a slam from Dombo, starring Hendrik and yours truly.

1. Unbalanced or 15-19NT
2. Inverted (10+ hcp)
3. 15-17NT
4. I hadn’t promised any so far
5. It’s pairs

I felt I could do a little extra over Hendrik’s raise to 3NT. I still hadn’t shown my more than excellent trump support, and I was charmed by the possibility of a ruff in my own hand. Had Hendrik signed off in 4NT after my 4, it would have been the end of the auction, but he took a very straightforward plunge to slam.

Dummy puts down a fine collection, but only four trumps. I was expecting at least five of them and a little more shape. Well, there’s no point in crying about things that should have been. Play! Slam depends on a little more than a finesse. There are a couple of 4-1 trump splits you can cope with, so I estimate the odds of this baby coming home somewhere around 40%.

As you can see, luck was with the brave.

Hi all

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away I was a happy-go-lucky and worryfree bridgeplayer. I used to bid fairly high (read "insanely" here), but often I would compensate with thoughtful play or I could rely on partner for damage control.

Here, from a butler session at Dombo:

I think everybody agrees with me it’s an opening bid.

1. 4th suit forcing
2. 5-6+ distribution
3. let partner continue…

I thought I was too light to continue myself over 4 and I didn’t feel unhappy when the auction ended there.

On a lead I had a safe route to ten tricks, I ruffed three in dummy.

It feels unsettling that more than half of the pairs present bid the slam. And made it too! I guess South got carried away with his/her nice collection. You need a favourable split, nothing nasty in trumps and preferably no lead. Apart from that slam is okay.

Did the fat lady sing already? Is it time for me to visit the old man’s home for retired vikings?

Hi all

I have this opponent, let’s call him cigar. Enemy is too strong a label, but he is definitely scheduled under "less favourite". He creates a lot of heat at the table, to his opponents and sometimes his partner gets some of it too.

Hoek and I sit down and the first game his partner summons 10 tricks in a partscore when our defence is suboptimal. But cigar is not satisfied, his partner should have doubled our non-vulnerable intervention for takeout and he would have laid down the perfect defence for down two.

Right. I’m familiar with heat too. Inside I feel a blaze starting, a small hot spot turning and twisting into a living firestorm. I need to control it, it could easily backfire.

I pick up garbage:

I notice cigar is surprised by his partners raise to game. His 3 wasn’t invitational, he was just taking away space competitively. The time feels right to start a fire, I double. I take Hoek’s overcall into account, my solid trump trick and some sidevalues to set free my inner storm. I see cigar’s expression change to annoyed and when dummy comes down it changes to angry.

Down 1. A magic +200 for us. Cigar, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine, his name is Pain.

Howdy

Hoek and I weren’t really there last time at Star. I was still suffering from a jet lag and Hoek had one of his not-so-good days. Some 42% isn’t something to write home about. But it’s true, and there were some nice games.

Here’s a nice one:

A fine sixteencount. But it’s not your turn yet, you’re sitting 4th position, all vulnerable.

* Lightning fast

Hoek shattered the window of sane bidding with a completely unexpected 4, my RHO doesn’t even waste half a second in bidding 4. I have excellent trumps and some other nice values so I decide to jump too, to 6. LHO believes my confident look and resorts to 6. I double, ending the sequence.

I spend half a moment thinking about calling the director, because neither opponent followed to the stop rule. And the director is there to protect me against any unauthorised information that moves across the table. With a small sigh I let it pass.

When Hoek started with the Queen, it was the end of the defence. Declarer threw a from hand while ruffing in dummy, and after two rounds of trumps I was thrown in with to lead away from my Ace of . Down 1. Well, it’s a plus, and there are only 11 tricks for us to buy in a contract, but down 1 just doesn’t really quench my thirst for tricks.

A lead is obviously the most rewarding defence. On that lead it’s not even game for EW! After two rounds of and a ruff declarer still has to have a keen eye and let the King of hold the trick. The ensuing ruff and sluff lets declarer get rid of the losing .

Howdy

My mouth is dry. We’re on a mission, a perilous one. Captain asked us to do a covert operation in an unnamed country. Hoek is my wingman and together we fly, deep into enemy territory.

I was close to raising to 3 on the first round, but I thought I was a shade too light. I don’t want to crash in a razorsharp 3NT when it’s pairs. But I could show my slight values and good shape with a double when the opponents retreated to my shortest suit.

Hoek launched his missile when he decided to pass for penalties.

Hoek started with his stiff , and when I saw dummy I knew the result would be brutal. Eventually declarer scrambled together 4 tricks. I’m happy I had my eye on the ball when I doubled 2 for takeout. I aimed, Hoek pulled the trigger.

Scorched earth, mission accomplished.

Hi all

Here’s an interesting hand from Star.

1. Unbalanced with , or any balanced 15-19

A bidding problem in round one. What to do? I think it’s a fair assumption partner is holding a strong NT, so the fit is established. What bid do I have available to express my happiness about the lucky suit? And how do I cope with the expected heavy interference in ?

I don’t like 2, to me it shows values instead of shape, primarily looking for 3NT. I have great sympathy for a splinter 3, but I’m not sure if I bring enough tricks to bring home a NT contract. I decide to 4, showing my void and perfect fit. And I have canceled out all opposition with my brutal jump, I smile with confidence.

I have been too busy with my opponents I see. Hoek is gazing at his cards and he takes half a dozen moments and then some more. Finally he bids 5 and suddenly I get scared. Maybe I have overbid my hand, I hastily bid 6 and my confidence has just evaporated. I pray Hoek has a nice hand.

Hoek wasn’t holding a nice hand, he was holding a Superman-Batman-Spiderman-Hulk “OMG-I-cannot-dream-for-something-better” hand. When the trumps split friendly 6 was yawningly laydown, but we missed our best spot in 7. I don’t think Hoek is to blame for not forcing to the grand, his trump possession is just too thin. His 5 is a nice try, but I was too rigidly focused on the suit to think of anything else.

When I’m looking at the South hand now, I cannot imagine where I got my slam aspirations from. The grand is just unbiddable, I think.

Hi all

At the Dombo tournament last week my team performed solid. Martin and Hendrik bid a nice grand in just a couple of bids. We didn’t make any big mistakes (if I recall correctly) and with the slight breeze our way we finished up 8th out of 49 teams, just a few vip from the money. The guys from Apih had a strong gust of wind helping them, they outscored the rest by a fair margin.

Here’s a game with a lot of tricks for both sides.

1. Forcing

We bid voluntarily to a vulnerable game, so Hoek’s pass is forcing. But what to do over 5? I don’t know if I’m right here, but Hoek surely would have doubled 5 had he held a lot of defensive power. And second, if I confidently bid slam, maybe they’ll save again. They sure have the vulnerability in their favour.

So 6 it is, I decide. My RHO doesn’t waste a second and returns to 6. Enough is enough, I double.

 

Though the penalty is just a meager +100, I’m glad I bid 6 over 5. For us it’s the polar express to 12 tricks and there’s no way we can defeat 5. A blistering total of 23 tricks combined. Martin and Hendrik were allowed to claim 11 in 5, so it was a double-digit gain for my team.

I’ll leave you with a picture from the Dombo tournament. It’s really my natural habitat, can’t you see?

Hi all

A couple of words on my holidays.

• Eating soup from a sourdough breadbowl in Fisherman’s Wharf / San Francisco, such delight
• Skiing in Colorado is magnificent; ultrawide slopes, groomed to perfection
• I broke my collarbone, fortunately there are no pictures of this event
• The Rosa-family, thanks for the stay and wonderful times
• Rocky Mountains national park
• I tried to park the car in the garage, but it had slipped my mind the door was still closed…

About bridge.

This partial is from an online competition, the BBO Intercity League. All vulnerable I open 3 and everybody is fine with that. LHO starts with a and dummy comes down.

East takes the trick with the King and switches to a for West’s Ace. I take the Queen and now I had my bright moment: I ruffed the third from dummy. I couldn’t go astray anymore, for this was the complete deal:

When East was in with the third round of trumps he was stripped from his safe exits and I didn’t need to find the Queen of myself. It didn’t gain much, but I’m still happy with my eye for detail on the right moment.

Hi all

Even on holidays my addiction has a strong pull on me. So Sanne and I went to a bridgeclub in Piedmont, California. The director apologized for the little amount of six tables and the not so young competition.

The first game I was dummy and I see Sanne struggling in a fair game, but the trumps split nasty. I pay too much attention to the game instead of sitting back and I notice one of my opponents revokes. Sure, can happen, her discards were of no importance to the game. I was willing to let it go by unpunished, but not unmentioned. The old bat immediately shuffled her cards with the remarks "No, I did not!". Okay, I know what I saw, and that shuffling sure gives the situation a bad taste of guilt. Sanne’s "We’re here as guests"-look made me swallow and forget about the deal.

Here’s a nice deal (NS vulnerable against not):

I ask West for the meaning of 3. Invitational. I would really like to bid 5 but the unfavourable vulnerability forces me to a reluctant pass. I could have doubled, but +50 or +100 doesn’t look to make a big difference, and it could easily be -590 if there’s some distribution involved.

Before I lead East mentions he has to correct his partner’s explanation. 3 wasn’t invitational, it was merely competitive. I am allowed to take back my last pass and reevaluate. I still don’t know what to do. I just pass, and hope for the best of it.

Here’s the full deal.

Down two, but we are cold for 5.

And now something strange happened. East called the director himself and eventually the score was corrected to +600 for us. Huh?

Sanne could have doubled 4 to show a good takeout double. I could have doubled to show values and my possible nasty trump possession. But both opponents agreed our lousy score was because of the wrong explanation only. Huh again.

We finished 4th place with some 55%.