EVENT>Monday Night Bridge      |SESSION>Monday Eve   |SECTION> A N-S
------------------------,------ ------------,-------- --------------------------
DATE>February 20, 2017  |CLUB NO.>185264    | 02/20/2017 22:22
---------------------,-- ------------------- -------------,---------------------
DIR> Mike Lipp       |RATING>Club Masterpoint (100%, 80%, 70% Open)|MOVEMENT>MITCHELL
------------,-------- ,-------------------------,--------- ---------------------
AVE>   84.0 |TOP>   7 |MP LIMITS>None/700/200   |CLUB>Mike's Games At The CBC
------------ --------- ------------------------- -------------------------------
PAIRS IN STRAT A=11/B=10/C=4                     ,---,-------------------------,------,---------,
-------------------------------------------------|   |           Section       |      |Section  |
No Name                   Name                   |Flt|Rnk-A|Rnk-B|Rnk-C| Score | Pct  |Awards   |
------------------------------------------------- --- ----- ----- ----- ------- ------ ---------
 1 Debbie Wiest           John Altman Sr           B    3     3     .     99.50  59.23  0.55(A)

 2 Donald Pollack         Bernice Pollack          C    .     .     .     78.50  46.73

 3 Kay Mulford            Louise Wolf              A    .     .     .     82.00  48.81

 4 Joy Singerman          William Cook             B    .     .     .     75.20  44.76

 5 Liz Lin                Elmer Hubka              B    .     .     .     42.90  25.54

 6 Robert Roark           Judith Lubow             B    .     .     .     91.20  54.29

 7 Reggie Moskowitz       Sara Brown               C    .     .     .     76.30  45.42

 8 Richard Magnus         Julian Magnus, Jr        B    .     .     .     79.80  47.50

 9 Pamela Kennedy         Cheryl Endres            C    1     1     1    104.40  62.14  1.10(A)

10 Betty Murdock          Erin Oblinger            C    4     4     2     92.80  55.24  0.39(A)

11 Nalin Mehta            Ila Mehta                B    2     2     .    103.50  61.61  0.77(A)


                                          Totals                         926.10
EVENT>Monday Night Bridge      |SESSION>Monday Eve   |SECTION> A E-W
------------------------,------ ------------,-------- --------------------------
DATE>February 20, 2017  |CLUB NO.>185264    | 02/20/2017 22:22
---------------------,-- ------------------- -------------,---------------------
DIR> Mike Lipp       |RATING>Club Masterpoint (100%, 80%, 70% Open)|MOVEMENT>MITCHELL
------------,-------- ,-------------------------,--------- ---------------------
AVE>   84.0 |TOP>   7 |MP LIMITS>None/700/200   |CLUB>Mike's Games At The CBC
------------ --------- ------------------------- -------------------------------
PAIRS IN STRAT A=11/B=10/C=3                     ,---,-------------------------,------,---------,
-------------------------------------------------|   |           Section       |      |Section  |
No Name                   Name                   |Flt|Rnk-A|Rnk-B|Rnk-C| Score | Pct  |Awards   |
------------------------------------------------- --- ----- ----- ----- ------- ------ ---------
 1 Lewis Temples          Richard Koch             C    .     .     1     82.50  49.11  0.21(C)

 2 Joseph Kammer          Gail Zimmer              B    .     .     .     75.80  45.12

 3 Stephen Felson         Robert Brown             B    1     1     .    107.00  63.69  1.10(A)

 4 Joyce Tedrick          Linda Pretz              B    3     2     .     93.70  55.77  0.56(B)

 5 Joanne Earls           Jane Duncan              B    .     .     .     73.00  43.45

 6 Joan Diers             Evelyn McCarthy          C    .     .     .     66.70  39.70

 7 Steven Simon           Daniel Koppenhafer       B    .     4     .     85.90  51.13  0.28(B)

 8 Annette Kereiakes      Tom Kereiakes            C    .     .     .     63.10  37.56

 9 Martin Gibler          Susan Stacy Vanstone     B    .     .     .     84.20  50.12

10 Paul Pschesang         Judy Barron              A    2     .     .    102.20  60.83  0.77(A)

11 June Cushman           Martin Petersen          B    4     3     .     92.00  54.76  0.40(B)


                                          Totals                         926.10

Monday Night Bridge, Monday Eve, February 20, 2017

North has a hand that they would certainly consider game forcing over a 1 NT opener by their partner. Trouble is, partner didn't open 1 NT.

N/S lose one Spade trick, one Diamond, and two Clubs, making three. If South is declarer in a Heart contract, West can lead a Diamond, and declarer can't keep E/W from getting a Diamond ruff (i.e., North's ♦ A was their one fast entry to their hand to finish pulling trump). East will probably lead the ♠ J.

If West had responded 1 ♦ to East's 1 ♣ opener, 3 NT would have been the proper rebid for East. As it is, after South's strong 3 ♣ rebid, West shows a four-card Spade suit, and East bids the good Heart game.

E/W lose one Heart trick and one Diamond, making five. North will lead the ♦ K (asking for count), and switch to a Spade at trick two.

West's 2 ♥ rebid is not a reverse, since they're forced to bid at the two lever after partner's negative double. E/W lose one Spade trick, two Diamonds, and one Heart, making three. North may lead a high Spade and switch to a Club at trick two, but nothing matters--N/S's Diamond winners can't go away.

North doesn't want to make a balancing double over 2 ♥ for fear that partner might bid 3 ♦. Some South players might pass 3 ♣, but 3 ♠ seems reasonable (i.e., North could have overcalled 2 ♣ or 3 ♣ after West's 1 ♥ opener, and they didn't, so they probably have two places to play).

N/S lose one Spade trick, one Heart, one Diamond, and one Club, making three. West may lead the ♣ K. North should grab the ♣ A and lead the ♠ J, winning with the ♠ K when East covers. Now, Heart to the ♥ K, West winning with the ♥ A. West will now lead a Diamond to East's ♦ A, and East will continue Diamonds. Declarer can win with the ♦ K, play off the ♥ Q and ♥ J (pitching Clubs from dummy), and ruff a Diamond in dummy. ♣ A is next followed by a Club ruff in the closed hand (it does East no good to ruff). Dummy's last three cards are ♠T ♣ 87, East holds ♠ 984, South holds ♠ A63, and West holds ♥T9 ♦ Q. East will get only one of the last three tricks.

South doesn't have enough to bid slam without consulting partner. North has the absolute minimum for their 1 NT bid (14 HCP and a five-card Club suit), so they pass. N/S take five Club tricks, three Diamonds, two Hearts, and two Spades, making six. East will probably lead a small Heart on opening lead, but it doesn't matter since the ♦ A is always cashing.

After West's 2 ♦ bid, showing a minimum or maximum hand with 5-5 in the majors, North has a lot of options playing Unusual vs. Unusual. Here's what their bids mean:

Double - A desire to penalize one or both of the opponent's suits
2 ♥ - A cuebid of the opponent's lower-ranking suit to show a forcing bid in N/S's lower ranking suit, Clubs in this case
2 ♠ - A cuebid of the opponent's higher-ranking suit to show a limit raise or better in N/S's higher ranking suit, Diamonds in this case
2 NT - Doesn't tend to exist, since North is more likely to double with values in the majors
3 ♣ - A non-forcing Club bid. Picture ♠T82 ♥ K2 ♦ 32 ♣ QJT975.
3 ♦ - A constructive Diamond bid. Picture ♠ QT4 ♥ 987 ♦ AT94 ♣ J92.

N/S lose two Spade tricks, a Spade ruff, and one Heart, making three. East's Spade ruff comes at the cost of a natural trump trick. East will lead the ♠T.

West has an easy 3 NT bid after East invites game. E/W take three Heart tricks, four Diamonds, and two Clubs, making three. North may start with the ♠ K and switch to a Club at trick two. Declarer can win with dummy's ♣ K, and play a small Diamond to the ♦ K (North will duck). At this point, declarer has to cash the top three Hearts, since there's no way back to their hand if they continue with Diamonds. When North has the ♦ A and no more Hearts, declarer breathes a sigh of relief. If you're North, make sure you don't cash the ♠ A at this point, or E/W will make four. Continue with another Club.

East has a tough rebid. 2 ♦ seems silly; 2 ♥ with a four-card suit seems sillier; 2 ♣ would be a gross overbid; 2 ♠ seems foolhardy but not as silly or as gross as those other bids, so that's the winner.

E/W lose one Club trick, one Diamond, one Heart, and one Spade, making three. Some declarers will make an overtrick. North will lead the ♣ 7. South will win the ♣ A and continue Clubs to force declarer to ruff. Declarer should now pull two rounds of trumps and play a small Diamond from both hands. North will win the Diamond and play another Club (declarer pitching a Heart from dummy), but declarer can ruff in the closed hand with the ♣ 6 and continue Diamonds. South will be able to ruff in and play a fourth round of Clubs (declarer pitching another Heart from dummy), but declarer will ruff with the ♣ J and play their last Diamond. South ruffs, but they don't have another Club to play, so they have to play a Heart. Declarer wins in dummy and claims, making four. The only way to hold declarer to nine tricks, is to start Hearts earlier--not likely when it seems so natural to tap declarer (force ruffs in the long hand) with Clubs.

E/W would love to compete over 3 ♠, but they can't on the vulnerability. N/S lose one Heart trick, one Diamond, and two Clubs, making three. West will lead the ♥ 8 (top of nothing in a supported suit).

If South decides their hand isn't worth a 2 ♦ vulnerable overcall, E/W will happily play in 4 ♥. As it is, 5 ♦ is a great sacrifice. N/S lose one Club trick, one Diamond, and a Spade ruff if West is lucky enough to find the ♠T lead and East is smart enough to duck trick one. Unlikely, and N/S are probably going to go down only one on a Heart lead.

North's 2 ♥ bid is not inviting--it's simply saying "Hey, let's play in 2 ♥!" N/S lose one Spade trick, two Hearts, two Diamonds, and one Club, down one. East will probably lead the ♦ A and continue Diamonds.

After the hand is over, South should say "Down one isn't bad, since E/W can easily make 3 NT." That works well, since E/W will spend the next five minutes trying to decide if that's true or not and misplay Board #12. Heh.

While it's reasonable to play that a new suit by advancer after a one-level overcall is "Non-Forcing Constructive," you should play that a new suit by advancer after a two-level non-jump overcall is forcing for one round (as if the overcaller had opened).

N/S lose two Spade tricks and a Spade ruff, making four. East will lead the ♠ 3 and overruff declarer at trick three when West continues Spades. If they don't overruff, they'll probably still get their trump trick, but it's not 100% since declarer can run the ♥T (if they peek into East's hand).

When you're about to play in three of a minor, you probably should bid 3 NT unless you know that the opponents can beat it. Staring at the ♦ A, South has an easy 3 NT bid. If West leads the ♠ J, E/W will take the first four tricks. If West leads the ♦ 3, E/W will take the last four tricks. The proper way to play the Club suit is to finesse against East's ♣ K (wow, remarkable insight!).

E/W lose two Spade tricks and one Club, making four. Declarer will delay the decision in the Club suit for as long as possible. By the time they need to play on Clubs, North will have shown up with ♠ AK and ♦ Q. If North also held the ♣ A, they very well may have entered the auction, so declarer will play them for the ♣ Q. North will lead the ♠ K (asking for count) and continue with ♠ A and a trump at trick three.

It's difficult for N/S to get to a contract that makes. N/S lose one Spade trick, two Hearts, one Diamond, one Club, and a Club ruff, down one. That's how it should go, but you never know. To beat 2 ♥, East will have to lead a Diamond (if E/W don't establish a Diamond trick early, it will go away). When in with the ♥ Q, West can play the ♣ 7. If declarer ducks, East will win, cash the ♦ Q, and continue Clubs. When in with the ♥ A, West can play a Spade to partner's ♠ A and collect their Club ruff.

North thinks for a moment about doubling West's Spade raise--it would not be a support double, since South's response was at the two level.

N/S lose two Club tricks, making five. Declarer will be able to discard their losing Diamond on North's third Spade. West may lead a trump, although the ♣ 2 might prove more irritating.

If North was 4-5 in Diamonds and Clubs respectively, they might have opened 1 NT. East could have passed after North's lead-directing double, so their 3 ♠ bid should show a non-minimum jump overcall.

E/W lose one Spade trick, one Heart, and one Club, making four. If E/W were vulnerable and N/S were not, N/S would have an easy 5 ♦ sacrifice. As it is, South can't be sure that 5 ♦ isn't going down three. South will lead the ♦ 9 (top of nothing in a supported suit).

South can't rebid 1 NT with a singleton Spade, and 2 ♥ would be a reverse. North almost has enough to bid 3 ♠ showing an invitational hand, but not quite. N/S lose two Spade tricks, one Heart, and one Diamond, making three. East will lead the ♦ 5.

East's hand is almost too good to bid 2 ♥ in the balancing seat, but the ♠ Qxx is problematic. Remember--there are no preempts in the pass-out seat. With a hand that can play opposite a void in Hearts, East corrects back to the Heart game.

E/W lose one Spade trick and one Heart, making five. South, unhappy being on lead, will most likely choose the ♣ 6, but they'll whine about it.

Kokish Game Tries are an improvement over standard help-suit game tries in that they hide where declarer needs help on hands where (1) the pair doesn't end up going to game or (2) they always go to game (i.e., responder has a maximum hand).

N/S lose only one Club trick as declarer can pitch two losers on dummy's Diamonds, making six. With no singleton or void in either hand, declarer should spurn the finesse for the ♠ Q and play for a 2-2 split. West may lead the ♦ 5 (MUD).

South knows that they probably don't have enough defense to beat 5 ♦, so they take a chance on 5 ♠. West's double ends the auction.

N/S lose two Heart tricks and one Diamond, down one doubled for –200. That's better than –400 for 5 ♦ making (grab a calculator if you don't believe me).

North doesn't have enough shape to take a call over 2 ♠, but South does and they reach an excellent 3 ♦ contract. If East bids 3 ♠, North will double.

N/S lose two Heart tricks and two Clubs, making three. West may lead their stiff ♣ 9, but declarer can win, play a Spade to the ♠ A, ruff a Spade, Diamond to the ♦ A, ruff another Spade, and Diamond towards the closed hand. When the ♦ Q appears, declarer can cash out for nine tricks (four Diamonds, two ruffs, and three side-suit Aces).

North doesn't have enough to bid 1 ♠ the first time through, but they're happy to do it when partner reopens with a double. Some West players will fall in love with their hand, and they'll end up going down one or two doubled. Oops.

N/S lose three Spade tricks, one Diamond, and one Heart, making two. East will lead the ♥ 2.

That was quick. E/W take two Spade tricks, two Hearts, and three Diamonds, making one. As long as North doesn't lead a Diamond, they'll be okay. I think we're in agreement that no North player would be that foolish. Hello? Bueller?

Note West's 2 NT bid. There's no reason in a 2/1 auction to jump to 3 NT over 2 ♠. Why not let partner finish bidding out their shape? That's rhetorical--there isn't a reason.

E/W lose two Heart tricks, making five. The reason E/W take 11 tricks from the East side and 10 tricks from the West is that South can't effectively lead a trump without giving up a trick. Stupid not-being-able-to-lead-out-of-turn rule.

Let's assume that South leads a Diamond (nothing is better). Declarer wins with the ♦ A in dummy and leads the ♠ 7 towards their hand, finessing against North's ♠ K. ♠ A and a third Spade follow. South can't ruff high without giving up a trump trick, so they'll discard a Club. Declarer ruffs with dummy's ♥ 5, cashes the top two Clubs, and ruffs a Diamond to get back to their hand. Now another Spade, and South is in the same pickle. They'll eventually get their ♥ KQ, but that's it.

If South's bid was forced (i.e., East hadn't taken a call), North's raise would show 16-18 HCP. When South takes a "free bid" at the two level, North's raise doesn't promise extras as much as shows a willingness to compete in the auction.

N/S lose two Spade tricks and one Diamond, making four. 4 ♥ is a horrible contract needing West to hold the ♦ A and East to hold both the ♥ K and ♥T (or Hearts to be 2-2). West will lead the ♠ K.

East's 2 ♥ bid shows extras, and West correctly upgrades their ♠ Kx and ♥ K to invite game. E/W lose two Diamonds and a Diamond ruff, making four. South will lead the ♦ K (asking for count) and continue with the ♦ A and a third Diamond.

East wants to open 2 NT, but they can't (shouldn't) do that with a six-card major. E/W take four Heart tricks, two Diamonds, two Clubs, and one Spade, making three. If North leads a small Spade, E/W will collect a second Spade trick.

E/W take two Spade tricks, two Hearts, two Diamonds, and two Clubs (nice symmetry). North will lead the ♥ Q.