MON 09/11/2017 at Nite

EVENT>Monday Night Bridge      |SESSION>Monday Eve   |SECTION> A N-S
------------------------,------ ------------,-------- --------------------------
DATE>September 11, 2017 |CLUB NO.>185264    | 09/11/2017 22:13
---------------------,-- ------------------- -------------,---------------------
DIR> Mike Lipp       |RATING>Club Masterpoint (100%, 80%, 70% Open)|MOVEMENT>MITCHELL
------------,-------- ,-------------------------,--------- ---------------------
AVE>   84.0 |TOP>   7 |MP LIMITS>None/500/200   |CLUB>Mike's Games At The CBC
------------ --------- ------------------------- -------------------------------
PAIRS IN STRAT A=10/B=8/C=2                      ,---,-------------------------,------,---------,
-------------------------------------------------|   |           Section       |      |Section  |
No Name                   Name                   |Flt|Rnk-A|Rnk-B|Rnk-C| Score | Pct  |Awards   |
------------------------------------------------- --- ----- ----- ----- ------- ------ ---------
 1 Alex Grim              Patrick Lammers          B    4     3     .     88.50  52.68  0.35(A)
 2 Joy Singerman          Linda Pretz              B    .     .     .     80.00  47.62
 3 Judy Crotty Hall       Carla Runda              C    .     .     .     70.00  41.67
 4 Patrick Hoffman        Lanny Cai                B    .     .     .     86.50  51.49
 5 Cecilia Kloecker       Elmer Hubka              B    .     .     .     72.50  43.15
 6 Gail Zimmer            Joseph Kammer            B    1     1     .    109.00  64.88  1.00(A)
 7 Al Venosa              Janet Venosa             B    3     2     .     92.50  55.06  0.50(A)
 8 Joanne Oppelt          Tim Oppelt               C    .     .     1     83.00  49.40  0.14(C)
 9 Joseph Muenks          Greg Chrzanowski         A    .     .     .     61.50  36.61
10 Robert Brown           Stephen Felson           A    2     .     .     96.50  57.44  0.70(A)

                                          Totals                         840.00


                              **PAIRS**
BOARD     1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9    10
  /
   1>     5-                5-    0     5-    2-    5-    2-    1
         140   ----  ----  140    90   140   120   140   120   110

   2>     1                 1     4-    1     7     4-    3     6
        -430   ----  ---- -430    50  -430   100    50  -420    80

   3>     5                 4     1-    1-    6-    3     0     6-
         200   ----  ----  100  -300  -300   300  -170  -620   300

   4>     4     6-                 -    3      -    2     5     6-
         100   140   ----  ---- -170  -100  -170  -150   130   140

   5>     6     2-                 -    7     4-     -    2-    4-
         650   140   ----  ---- -100   960   620  -100   140   620

   6>     3-    6-                6-    3-     -    3-     -    3-
          90   110   ----  ----  110    90   -50    90   -50    90

   7>     6-    0     6-                2     1     3-    3-    5
         140  -300   140   ----  ---- -110  -200  -100  -100   110

   8>     4     7     4                 4     0     4     1     4
         140   200   140   ----  ----  140    50   140   100   140

   9>     5     1     2                 5     5     5     5     0
         -50  -620  -230   ----  ----  -50   -50   -50   -50  -680

  10>     6-    2      -    6-                3-    3-     -    5
         100  -200  -630   100   ----  ---- -150  -150  -630  -130

  11>     3-    7     6     2                  -    3-     -    5
        -110    50   -50  -120   ----  ---- -140  -110  -140   -90

  12>     1     2-    6     4                 6     2-    6     0
         -90    50   110    90   ----  ----  110    50   110  -100

  13>     3     5     6     7     0                 1-    1-    4
          90   120   140   600  -300   ----  ---- -100  -100   100

  14>     5-    1     7     3-    2                 5-    0     3-
         110  -120   280    50   -90   ----  ----  110  -150    50

  15>     5     5     1     2-    7                 2-    0     5
         660   660   170   600   800   ----  ----  600  -200   660

  16>     0     6     1     3-    2     3-                6     6
        -600   100  -180  -120  -150  -120   ----  ----  100   100

  17>     5     4      -    6-    2     6-                 -    3
        -120  -140  -430   -50  -420   -50   ----  ---- -430  -180

  18>     1     5     0     6     4     2-                2-    7
        -420   170  -530   600   130  -140   ----  ---- -140   620

  19>     1     0     5     2-    5     7     5                 2-
         -50  -100   450   420   450   460   450   ----  ----  420

  20>     4-    4-    4-    4-    4-    0     4-                1
         630   630   630   630   630   170   630   ----  ----  600

  21>     3     0     3     3     3     3     6                 7
         100    50   100   100   100   100   130   ----  ----  300

  22>     4     2     0     2     5-    7     2     5-
         100   -50  -100   -50   140   300   -50   140   ----  ----

  23>     2     7     4     3     1     5-    5-    0
         100   300   170   140  -200   200   200  -300   ----  ----

  24>     3     3     0     3     6     7     3     3
        -140  -140  -150  -140  -110    50  -140  -140   ----  ----

  25>           0     3-    1-    1-    7     3-    5-    5-
         ---- -210  -180  -200  -200  -110  -180  -140  -140   ----

  26>           0     3     5     3     7     3     6     1
         ---- -630   630   660   630   690   630   680  -200   ----

  27>           2-    0     2-    4-    6     4-    1     7
         ---- -130  -430  -130    50   100    50  -400   150   ----

  28>                 2-     -    4-    4-    6-    6-    2-     -
         ----  ---- -100  -200   110   110   600   600  -100  -200

  29>                 3     7      -    3     5-    3      -    5-
         ----  ----  140   620  -100   140   170   140  -100   170

  30>                 1     0     3     7     6     2     4-    4-
         ----  ---- -450  -590  -200   170   -50  -400  -100  -100



EVENT>Monday Night Bridge      |SESSION>Monday Eve   |SECTION> A E-W
------------------------,------ ------------,-------- --------------------------
DATE>September 11, 2017 |CLUB NO.>185264    | 09/11/2017 22:13
---------------------,-- ------------------- -------------,---------------------
DIR> Mike Lipp       |RATING>Club Masterpoint (100%, 80%, 70% Open)|MOVEMENT>MITCHELL
------------,-------- ,-------------------------,--------- ---------------------
AVE>   84.0 |TOP>   7 |MP LIMITS>None/500/200   |CLUB>Mike's Games At The CBC
------------ --------- ------------------------- -------------------------------
PAIRS IN STRAT A=10/B=6/C=6                      ,---,-------------------------,------,---------,
-------------------------------------------------|   |           Section       |      |Section  |
No Name                   Name                   |Flt|Rnk-A|Rnk-B|Rnk-C| Score | Pct  |Awards   |
------------------------------------------------- --- ----- ----- ----- ------- ------ ---------
 1 Reeta Brendamour       Pam Campbell             A    4     .     .     91.50  54.46  0.35(A)
 2 Myrna Waak             Millard Lakes            C    .     .     .     72.50  43.15
 3 Cheryl Endres          Pamela Kennedy           C    .     .     .     62.00  36.90
 4 Erin Oblinger          Betty Murdock            C    .     .     .     80.50  47.92
 5 Joan Mehl              Linda Woodham            A    .     .     .     91.00  54.17
 6 Lewis Temples          Richard Koch             C    2     1     1     94.00  55.95  0.70(A)
 7 Evelyn McCarthy        Joan Diers               C    3     2     2     93.00  55.36  0.50(A)
 8 Carol Markham          J Thomas Markham         C    .     .     .     85.50  50.89
 9 Doris Kehoe            Lilam Stanley            A    .     .     .     70.50  41.96
10 Dean Congbalay         William Cook             A    1     .     .     99.50  59.23  1.00(A)

                                          Totals                         840.00


                              **PAIRS**
BOARD     1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9    10
  /
   1>     1-          4-          1-    1-    4-    7     6     1-
        -140   ---- -120   ---- -140  -140  -120   -90  -110  -140

   2>     6           0           2-    6     4     2-    1     6
         430   ---- -100   ----  -50   430   420   -50   -80   430

   3>     2            -          4     3     7     5-     -    5-
        -200   ---- -300   ----  170  -100   620   300  -300   300

   4>     6-     -          5           2     6-     -    4     3
         170  -140   ----  150   ---- -130   170  -140   100  -100

   5>     2-    4-          6-          4-    6-    2-    0     1
        -620  -140   ----  100   ---- -140   100  -620  -960  -650

   6>     6-     -          3-          6-     -    3-    3-    3-
          50  -110   ----  -90   ----   50  -110   -90   -90   -90

   7>     7     3-     -          3-          2     5      -    6
         300   100  -140   ----  100   ---- -110   110  -140   200

   8>     0     3     3           6           3     3     3     7
        -200  -140  -140   ---- -100   ---- -140  -140  -140   -50

   9>     6     2     5           2           7     2     2     2
         620    50   230   ----   50   ----  680    50    50    50

  10>     3-    6-    6-     -          2            -    3-    5
         150   630   630  -100   ----  130   ---- -100   150   200

  11>     3-    1     6-    5           2           3-    6-    0
         110    50   140   120   ----   90   ----  110   140   -50

  12>     4-    1     1     3           7           6     1     4-
         -50  -110  -110   -90   ----  100   ----   90  -110   -50

  13>     1     5-    0     3     7           4           2     5-
        -140   100  -600  -100   300   ----  -90   ---- -120   100

  14>     0     7     3-    3-    5           1-          6     1-
        -280   150   -50   -50    90   ---- -110   ----  120  -110

  15>     6     7     4-    2     0           2           2     4-
        -170   200  -600  -660  -800   ---- -660   ---- -660  -600

  16>     1     3-    1     5     7     3-          1           6
        -100   120  -100   150   600   120   ---- -100   ----  180

  17>     6-     -    4     5     2      -          3           6-
         430    50   180   420   120    50   ----  140   ----  430

  18>     4-    1     0     3     6     4-          2           7
         140  -600  -620  -130   420   140   ---- -170   ----  530

  19>     4-    4-    2     6     0     7     2           2
        -420  -420  -450    50  -460   100  -450   ---- -450   ----

  20>     2-    6     2-    2-    7     2-    2-          2-
        -630  -600  -630  -630  -170  -630  -630   ---- -630   ----

  21>     4     0     4     4     4     7     1           4
        -100  -300  -100  -100  -100   -50  -130   ---- -100   ----

  22>           1-    3     0     5     5     7     1-          5
         ---- -140  -100  -300    50    50   100  -140   ----   50

  23>           6     5     1-    0     1-    3     7           4
         ----  200  -100  -200  -300  -200  -170   300   ---- -140

  24>           1     4     0     4     4     7     4           4
         ----  110   140   -50   140   140   150   140   ----  140

  25>     5-          0     7     3-    3-    1-    5-    1-
         200   ----  110   210   180   180   140   200   140   ----

  26>     4           0     7     4     4     1     2     6
        -630   ---- -690   630  -630  -630  -680  -660   200   ----

  27>     2-          1     4-    2-    7     6     4-    0
         -50   ---- -100   130   -50   430   400   130  -150   ----

  28>           2-           -    4-     -    6-    4-    2-    6-
         ---- -110   ---- -600   100  -600   200   100  -110   200

  29>           4           1-    4     4     0     6-    6-    1-
         ---- -140   ---- -170  -140  -140  -620   100   100  -170

  30>           0           1     6     5     7     2-    4     2-
         ---- -170   ----   50   450   400   590   100   200   100
Monday Night Bridge, Monday Eve, September 11, 2017

Board 1
North Deals
None Vul

♠	J 10 9 4 3
♥	10 9 4
♦	A K 7 4
♣	8

♠	K 7 6
♥	J 7 5
♦	Q 5 3
♣	A 10 6 4

N
W		E
S

♠	A 8
♥	A 8 3 2
♦	J 10 9 6
♣	7 3 2

♠	Q 5 2
♥	K Q 6
♦	8 2
♣	K Q J 9 5

NS 3♠; NS 1N; NS 1♣; Par +140

West	North	East	South
	Pass	Pass	1 ♣
Pass	1 ♠	Pass	1 NT
Pass	2 ♠	Pass	Pass
Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♠	N	3	♦ J	140		5.50	1.50	1-Grim-Lammers	1-Brendamour-Campbell
2 ♠	N	3	♥ 2	140		5.50	1.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	6-Temples-Koch
1 ♠	N	3	♦ J	140		5.50	1.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	10-Congbalay-Cook
2 ♠	N	3	♥ A	140		5.50	1.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	5-Mehl-Woodham
1 NT	S	2	♦ 3	120		2.50	4.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 NT	S	2	♦ 3	120		2.50	4.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	7-McCarthy-Diers
2 ♠	N	2	♦ J	110		1.00	6.00	10-Brown-Felson	9-Kehoe-Stanley
1 NT	S	1	♦ 3	90		0.00	7.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	8-Markham-Markham

If North isn't sure what to do with a weakish hand and five Spades after partner rebids 1 NT, they might try thinking this way--what would they have done with three points fewer (same shape hand) if partner had opened 1 NT (15-17)? They would have transferred to Spades and passed. With that in mind, they have an EASY 2 ♠ rebid.

N/S lose two Spade tricks, one Club, and one Heart, making three. East will lead the ♦ J.

Board 2
East Deals
N-S Vul

♠	9 8 5
♥	8 4
♦	K 9 4
♣	J 9 8 5 4

♠	7 4 2
♥	K 6
♦	A Q 10 8 7 6
♣	10 7

N
W		E
S

♠	A Q
♥	Q 10 7 5 3
♦	5 3 2
♣	A K Q

♠	K J 10 6 3
♥	A J 9 2
♦	J
♣	6 3 2

E 3N; E 3♥; EW 4♦; W 2♥; W 1N; Par −400

West	North	East	South
		1 NT1	Pass
3 ♣2	Pass	3 ♥3	Pass
3 NT	Pass	Pass	Pass

15 to 17
Alert, artificial bid asking for a 5-card major
Alert, opener has a 5-card Heart suit

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
5 NT×	E	−1	♠ 3	100		7.00	0.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	3-Endres-Kennedy
1 ♠	S	1	♥ K	80		6.00	1.00	10-Brown-Felson	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 NT	E	−1	♠ 6	50		4.50	2.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	8-Markham-Markham
5 ♦	W	−1	♠ 8	50		4.50	2.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	5-Mehl-Woodham
4 ♥	E	4	♠ J		420	3.00	4.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 NT	E	4	♣ 6		430	1.00	6.00	1-Grim-Lammers	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 NT	E	4	♠ 6		430	1.00	6.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	6-Temples-Koch
3 NT	E	4	♠ 6		430	1.00	6.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	10-Congbalay-Cook

West fishes for a five-card Spade suit in partner's hand, and when that doesn't pan out, they park in 3 NT. E/W take three Club tricks, five Diamonds, and one Spade, making three. South can't effectively lead a Spade on the go--if they do, E/W will make four. That said, South is totally leading the ♠ J (♠ J from ♠ AJTxx).

Declarer will win trick one with the ♠ Q and lead a small Diamond covering the ♦ J with the ♦ Q. North can win, but they'll probably duck to see if declarer makes a mistake. Declarer will return to their hand with the ♣ A and lead a second Diamond. When South shows out, declarer will simply play the ♦T from dummy. North can't duck again, since their ♦ K would fall under the ♦ A, so they'll win and return a second Spade. Declarer will grab and claim.

Board 3
South Deals
E-W Vul

♠	9 8 5
♥	6 5 3 2
♦	K 10 8
♣	K 10 2

♠	—
♥	A Q J 8 7
♦	Q 9 4 2
♣	Q J 8 6

N
W		E
S

♠	K J 6 4
♥	K 10
♦	A J 7 6 5
♣	4 3

♠	A Q 10 7 3 2
♥	9 4
♦	3
♣	A 9 7 5

EW 3♥; EW 4♦; E 2N; NS 2♠; E 1♣; Par −130

West	North	East	South
			1 ♠1
Dbl	2 ♠2	3 NT	Pass
Pass	Pass

Rule of 20 opener
Alert, artificial BROMAD bid showing three Spades and 0-6 HCP

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♥	W	−3	♠ 8	300		6.50	0.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♥	E	−3	♠ 8	300		6.50	0.50	10-Brown-Felson	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 NT	E	−2	♣ 5	200		5.00	2.00	1-Grim-Lammers	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 NT	W	−1	♠ 8	100		4.00	3.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	6-Temples-Koch
3 ♦	E	6	♠ A		170	3.00	4.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	5-Mehl-Woodham
4 ♠×	S	−2	♦ 2		300	1.50	5.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	8-Markham-Markham
4 ♠×	S	−2	♣ Q		300	1.50	5.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	10-Congbalay-Cook
5 ♦	E	6	♠ A		620	0.00	7.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	7-McCarthy-Diers

East gambles on 3 NT being right, and unfortunately it isn't. If South leads a small Spade, declarer can win trick one with the ♠ J, but when North gets in, E/W are going to lose a TON of Spades. Declarer will have to try and cash out for down one--one Spade trick, five Hearts, and two Diamonds. Oh well.

Board 4
West Deals
Both Vul

♠	8 3
♥	J 10 5 3
♦	Q 9 7 5 4 2
♣	Q

♠	K 7
♥	9 7 6 2
♦	A 8 6
♣	A K 10 3

N
W		E
S

♠	A 10 5 4 2
♥	—
♦	K J 3
♣	9 8 5 4 2

♠	Q J 9 6
♥	A K Q 8 4
♦	10
♣	J 7 6

EW 6♣; EW 5♠; EW 2N; NS 1♥; EW 1♦; Par −1370

West	North	East	South
1 ♣	Pass	1 ♠	2 ♥
Pass	Pass	3 ♥1	Dbl
Pass	Pass	5 ♣	Pass
Pass	Pass

Do you have a Heart stopper for notrump?

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♥	S	3	♣ A	140		6.50	0.50	2-Singerman-Pretz	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♥	S	3	♣ A	140		6.50	0.50	10-Brown-Felson	8-Markham-Markham
2 ♣	W	4	♦ 2	130		5.00	2.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	6-Temples-Koch
2 ♠	E	−1	♥ A	100		4.00	3.00	1-Grim-Lammers	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 ♥	S	−1	♠ K		100	3.00	4.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 ♣	W	5	♦ 5		150	2.00	5.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 ♣	W	6	♠ 8		170	0.50	6.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 ♣	W	6	♥ 3		170	0.50	6.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	1-Brendamour-Campbell

When West doesn't have a Heart stopper for notrump and doesn't have a third Spade (i.e., West didn't make a support double over 2 ♥), East knows that West has at least four Clubs. How do they know that? Well, if West had five Hearts, they would have opened 1 ♥. If West had four Diamonds, they would have opened 1 ♦. Therefore, they have at most two Spades, four Hearts, and three Diamonds. That leave four Clubs (minimum). It's sorta like magic but with fewer ladies sawed in half.

E/W lose only one Club, making six. North will lead the ♥ J, ruffed in dummy. Declarer should pull two rounds of trumps with the ♣ AK, play the ♠ K, small Spade to the ♠ A, and ruff a Spade in the closed hand. When North shows out, declarer knows that North has WAY MORE DIAMONDS than South, so they'll play ♦ A and a Diamond to the ♦ J. South may ruff the second Diamond, but that's the last trick for the defense since declarer can ruff one more Spade and claim.

Board 5
North Deals
N-S Vul

♠	Q J 10 8 3
♥	K 8 4
♦	K 8 7 6
♣	K

♠	K
♥	10 9 6 3
♦	10 9 3 2
♣	A Q 7 3

N
W		E
S

♠	7 6 5 4
♥	A 7
♦	Q J 5
♣	10 9 8 2

♠	A 9 2
♥	Q J 5 2
♦	A 4
♣	J 6 5 4

NS 5♠; NS 3♥; NS 2N; NS 2♦; EW 1♣; Par +650

West	North	East	South
	1 ♠	Pass	2 ♣
Pass	2 ♦	Pass	2 ♠
Pass	4 ♠	Pass	Pass
Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
1 ♠×	N	5	♥ A	960		7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	9-Kehoe-Stanley
4 ♠	N	5	♣ 10	650		6.00	1.00	1-Grim-Lammers	10-Congbalay-Cook
4 ♠	N	4	♣ 10	620		4.50	2.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	1-Brendamour-Campbell
4 ♠	N	4	♥ A	620		4.50	2.50	10-Brown-Felson	8-Markham-Markham
1 ♠	N	3	♥ A	140		2.50	4.50	2-Singerman-Pretz	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♠	N	3	♥ A	140		2.50	4.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	6-Temples-Koch
3 ♠	N	−1	♥ A		100	0.50	6.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	7-McCarthy-Diers
4 ♠	N	−1	♦ Q		100	0.50	6.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	4-Oblinger-Murdock

South's 2 ♣ bid, while forcing to game, doesn't guarantee five Clubs. N/S lose one Heart trick, one Club, and probably one Spade when declarer finesses into West's stiff ♠ K. Oops. East may lead the ♣T.

Board 6
East Deals
E-W Vul

♠	A 10 9 5
♥	K 6 5
♦	A K 10 4
♣	10 2

♠	Q 6 4
♥	Q 9 8
♦	3 2
♣	A Q J 8 7

N
W		E
S

♠	J 8 2
♥	A 4 3 2
♦	Q 9 5
♣	9 4 3

♠	K 7 3
♥	J 10 7
♦	J 8 7 6
♣	K 6 5

S 2♠; S 1N; NS 2♦; N 1♠; EW 1♥; EW 1♣; Par +110

West	North	East	South
		Pass	Pass
1 ♣1	Dbl	1 ♥	Pass
Pass	Dbl2	Pass	2 ♦
Pass	Pass	Pass

Light third seat opener
Do something smart, partner

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♦	S	3	♣ 3	110		6.50	0.50	2-Singerman-Pretz	2-Waak-Lakes
2 ♦	S	3	♣ A	110		6.50	0.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	7-McCarthy-Diers
1 NT	S	1	♣ 8	90		3.50	3.50	1-Grim-Lammers	10-Congbalay-Cook
2 ♦	N	2	♣ 3	90		3.50	3.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	9-Kehoe-Stanley
2 ♦	S	2	♥ 8	90		3.50	3.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	4-Oblinger-Murdock
2 ♦	S	2	♥ Q	90		3.50	3.50	10-Brown-Felson	8-Markham-Markham
3 ♦	S	−1	♥ 8		50	0.50	6.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	1-Brendamour-Campbell
2 NT	N	−1	♥ 2		50	0.50	6.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	6-Temples-Koch

When you open light in third seat, it's usually in a major. When you open a minor with a sub-opening hand in third seat, be prepared to pass partner's major-suit response or rebid your minor. Don't rebid 1 NT with fewer than 12 HCP.

N/S lose one Spade trick, one Heart, one Diamond, and two Clubs. West will lead a trump.

Board 7
South Deals
Both Vul

♠	J 10 7 4
♥	7 5 3
♦	A K 7 3
♣	7 2

♠	5
♥	A K 10 4
♦	Q J 9 6 2
♣	Q 6 4

N
W		E
S

♠	A 9 8 6
♥	Q J 8 2
♦	10 8 4
♣	9 3

♠	K Q 3 2
♥	9 6
♦	5
♣	A K J 10 8 5

NS 3♠; EW 2♥; NS 1N; EW 2♦; NS 1♣; Par +140

West	North	East	South
			1 ♣
1 ♦	1 ♠	2 ♦	3 ♠
Pass	4 ♠	Pass	Pass
Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♠	N	3	♦ 10	140		6.50	0.50	1-Grim-Lammers	9-Kehoe-Stanley
2 ♠	N	3	♦ 8	140		6.50	0.50	3-Hall-Runda	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 ♣	S	3	♠ 5	110		5.00	2.00	10-Brown-Felson	7-McCarthy-Diers
4 ♠	N	−1	♦ 4		100	3.50	3.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	2-Waak-Lakes
4 ♠	N	−1	♥ Q		100	3.50	3.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	5-Mehl-Woodham
2 ♦	W	3	♣ 7		110	2.00	5.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	8-Markham-Markham
3 ♠	N	−2	♥ A		200	1.00	6.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	10-Congbalay-Cook
4 ♠	N	−3	♦ 4		300	0.00	7.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	1-Brendamour-Campbell

South's hand is clearly worth a 3 ♠ raise, and North has an easy 4 ♠ bid. Unfortunately, the bad trump split dooms the contract. East will lead the ♥ Q and continue with the ♥ J. West should overtake the ♥ J and continue with another high Heart. Declarer is forced to ruff in dummy, but now there's no way to ruff a Club and pull trump without losing two trump tricks--try it.

Board 8
West Deals
None Vul

♠	K 7
♥	A 10 4 3
♦	Q J 7 6 4
♣	K 4

♠	Q 5 3 2
♥	8 7
♦	9 8 5
♣	10 8 3 2

N
W		E
S

♠	J 8 6 4
♥	K 9
♦	A K 2
♣	A J 7 5

♠	A 10 9
♥	Q J 6 5 2
♦	10 3
♣	Q 9 6

NS 3♥; NS 3♦; NS 1N; EW 1♠; EW 1♣; Par +140

West	North	East	South
Pass	1 ♦	1 NT1	2 ♥2
Pass	Pass	Pass

15 to 18
Natural and to play

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♥	S	5	♠ 2	200		7.00	0.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	1-Brendamour-Campbell
2 ♥	S	3	♠ 2	140		4.00	3.00	1-Grim-Lammers	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 ♥	S	3	♠ 2	140		4.00	3.00	3-Hall-Runda	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 ♥	S	3	♠ 2	140		4.00	3.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	8-Markham-Markham
2 ♥	S	3	♦ 5	140		4.00	3.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	2-Waak-Lakes
2 ♥	S	3	♠ 2	140		4.00	3.00	10-Brown-Felson	7-McCarthy-Diers
1 NT	E	−2	♦ 3	100		1.00	6.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	5-Mehl-Woodham
1 NT	E	−1	♥ 5	50		0.00	7.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	10-Congbalay-Cook

South's hand is almost worth a penalty double, but with E/W not being vulnerable, the payoff is too small. N/S lose one Heart trick, two Diamonds, and one Club, making three. West may lead the ♦ 8 (MUD).

Board 9
North Deals
E-W Vul

♠	J 5
♥	K 10 8 6 2
♦	9 8
♣	A 7 4 3

♠	A K 6 4 3 2
♥	Q
♦	Q 2
♣	K 10 6 2

N
W		E
S

♠	10 8 7
♥	9
♦	A K 10 7 6 3
♣	9 8 5

♠	Q 9
♥	A J 7 5 4 3
♦	J 5 4
♣	Q J

W 4♠; E 3♠; NS 3♥; W 4♦; E 3♦; EW 3♣; Par −300: NS 5♥×−2

West	North	East	South
	Pass	Pass1	1 ♥
1 ♠	4 ♥	4 ♠2	Pass
Pass	Pass

E/W don't have a 2 ♦ preempt available to them
This is why #1 was a good thing

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♥	S	−1	♠ A		50	5.00	2.00	1-Grim-Lammers	9-Kehoe-Stanley
4 ♥	S	−1	♠ A		50	5.00	2.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	8-Markham-Markham
4 ♥	S	−1	♠ A		50	5.00	2.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	10-Congbalay-Cook
4 ♥	S	−1	♠ A		50	5.00	2.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	2-Waak-Lakes
5 ♥	S	−1	♠ A		50	5.00	2.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♠	W	6	♥ K		230	2.00	5.00	3-Hall-Runda	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♠	W	4	♥ 6		620	1.00	6.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	1-Brendamour-Campbell
4 ♠	W	6	♦ 9		680	0.00	7.00	10-Brown-Felson	7-McCarthy-Diers

E/W lose one Heart trick and two Clubs, making four. North will lead the ♥ 6 to South's ♥ A, and South will put the ♣ Q on the table. If declarer fails to cover, then 4 ♠ will go down one. Why is that? Well, if declarer plays low, South will continue with the ♣ J. It doesn't matter whether or not declarer covers this time, since North can overtake with the ♣ A and give South a ruff. If North does cover the ♣ Q, then the suit gets blocked (i.e., South will be forced to take the second Club trick whether they want to or not). With the lead stuck in the South hand, the ruff disappears. Heh.

Board 10
East Deals
Both Vul

♠	J 9 7
♥	J 8 7 6 3
♦	Q 10 8 6
♣	2

♠	8 5 2
♥	Q 4 2
♦	A 4 3
♣	Q J 10 8

N
W		E
S

♠	A 6
♥	A K
♦	K 9 7 5
♣	A 9 7 4 3

♠	K Q 10 4 3
♥	10 9 5
♦	J 2
♣	K 6 5

EW 5♣; EW 2N; EW 3♦; EW 1♠; EW 1♥; Par −600

West	North	East	South
		1 ♣	1 ♠
2 ♣	Pass	2 ♠1	Pass
3 ♦	Pass	5 ♣	Pass
Pass	Pass

Do you have a Spade stopper for notrump?

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
5 ♣	E	−1	♦ J	100		6.50	0.50	1-Grim-Lammers	8-Markham-Markham
2 NT	W	−1	♠ 4	100		6.50	0.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	4-Oblinger-Murdock
2 ♣	E	4	♠ K		130	5.00	2.00	10-Brown-Felson	6-Temples-Koch
3 ♣	E	5	♥ 9		150	3.50	3.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 ♣	E	5	♦ J		150	3.50	3.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	1-Brendamour-Campbell
2 ♠	S	−2	♣ Q		200	2.00	5.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 NT	E	4	♠ K		630	0.50	6.50	3-Hall-Runda	2-Waak-Lakes
3 NT	W	4	♥ 6		630	0.50	6.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	3-Endres-Kennedy

East doesn't like the idea of being in 3 NT holding only the ♠ A, so they check to see if partner can help in that department. When West denies a Spade card but shows something in Diamonds, East decides that the Club game has good prospects.

E/W lose one Club trick and one Diamond, making five. Declarer's Spade loser will go away on the ♥ Q. South will lead the ♠ K.

Board 11
South Deals
None Vul

♠	A 5 4
♥	7 4
♦	10 9 6 4
♣	10 9 7 6

♠	10 7 6 3
♥	K J 6 2
♦	Q 7
♣	J 8 5

N
W		E
S

♠	Q 8 2
♥	A 9 8 3
♦	K J 3 2
♣	K Q

♠	K J 9
♥	Q 10 5
♦	A 8 5
♣	A 4 3 2

EW 2♥; EW 1N; EW 1♠; EW 1♦; NS 1♣; Par −110

West	North	East	South
			1 ♣
Pass	Pass	Dbl	Pass
1 ♥	Pass	2 ♥	Pass
Pass	Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 ♥	W	−1	♣ 10	50		7.00	0.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	10-Congbalay-Cook
1 ♣	S	−1	♥ 2		50	6.00	1.00	3-Hall-Runda	2-Waak-Lakes
1 NT	E	1	♠ 9		90	5.00	2.00	10-Brown-Felson	6-Temples-Koch
1 ♥	W	2	♣ 10		110	3.50	3.50	1-Grim-Lammers	8-Markham-Markham
2 ♥	W	2	♣ 10		110	3.50	3.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	1-Brendamour-Campbell
1 NT	E	2	♠ 9		120	2.00	5.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	4-Oblinger-Murdock
1 ♥	W	3	♣ 6		140	0.50	6.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	9-Kehoe-Stanley
2 ♥	W	3	♣ 10		140	0.50	6.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	3-Endres-Kennedy

East borrows a King from partner to make a balancing double giving them a full 18 count. West has to delete a King from their hand for their response, so they end up with only four HCP. Their pseudo 18 count gives East more than enough to raise partner to the two level, but West's measly four HCP suggest a pass. If that paragraph confused you, review the idea of balancing.

E/W lose three Spade tricks, one Diamond, and one Club, making two. North will lead the ♣T. South has to be careful to switch to a Spade after winning the ♣ A, or one of E/W's Spade losers will go away on the ♣ J.

Board 12
West Deals
N-S Vul

♠	Q 6
♥	A 9 6 4
♦	A K J 10
♣	10 6 3

♠	J 8 5 4
♥	Q
♦	9 8 5 4 3
♣	8 5 2

N
W		E
S

♠	A K 2
♥	J 10 8 5
♦	Q 6 2
♣	A J 9

♠	10 9 7 3
♥	K 7 3 2
♦	7
♣	K Q 7 4

NS 2♥; NS 1N; NS 2♣; NS 1♠; E 1♦; Par +110

West	North	East	South
Pass	1 ♦	1 NT1	Pass
Pass	Pass

15 to 18

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♥	S	2	♠ 4	110		6.00	1.00	3-Hall-Runda	2-Waak-Lakes
2 ♥	N	2	♠ A	110		6.00	1.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	9-Kehoe-Stanley
2 ♥	S	2	♠ 4	110		6.00	1.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	3-Endres-Kennedy
1 NT	S	1	♠ 4	90		4.00	3.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	4-Oblinger-Murdock
1 NT	E	−1	♣ K	50		2.50	4.50	2-Singerman-Pretz	10-Congbalay-Cook
1 NT	E	−1	♠ 10	50		2.50	4.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	1-Brendamour-Campbell
1 NT	E	1	♠ 10		90	1.00	6.00	1-Grim-Lammers	8-Markham-Markham
3 ♥	N	−1	♠ A		100	0.00	7.00	10-Brown-Felson	6-Temples-Koch

If East was vulnerable, they might think twice about overcalling 1 NT with such a mediocre hand. As it is....

E/W take three Spade tricks, one Diamond, one Club, and one Heart, for down one. South will lead the ♦ 7 (beer card).

Board 13
North Deals
Both Vul

♠	K Q 9
♥	Q 8 5 3
♦	10 9 6 3
♣	A Q

♠	A 10 2
♥	A 9 7 6
♦	J 5
♣	10 9 4 3

N
W		E
S

♠	8 7 3
♥	J 10 4 2
♦	A K 8 7 2
♣	J

♠	J 6 5 4
♥	K
♦	Q 4
♣	K 8 7 6 5 2

EW 2♥; NS 1N; NS 2♣; NS 1♠; EW 1♦; Par −110

West	North	East	South
	1 ♦	Pass	1 ♠
Pass	1 NT	Pass	2 NT1
Pass	3 ♣2	Pass	Pass
Pass

Alert, artificial XYZ bid asking partner to bid 3 ♣
Alert, artificial XYZ forced bid

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 NT	N	3	♦ 7	600		7.00	0.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 ♠	S	3	♣ 4	140		6.00	1.00	3-Hall-Runda	1-Brendamour-Campbell
1 NT	N	2	♥ J	120		5.00	2.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	9-Kehoe-Stanley
2 ♥	E	−1	♦ Q	100		4.00	3.00	10-Brown-Felson	4-Oblinger-Murdock
1 NT	N	1	♦ 8	90		3.00	4.00	1-Grim-Lammers	7-McCarthy-Diers
2 ♠	S	−1	♦ J		100	1.50	5.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	10-Congbalay-Cook
2 ♠	S	−1	♦ 5		100	1.50	5.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♠	S	−3	♦ J		300	0.00	7.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	5-Mehl-Woodham

N/S play XYZ, so a 2 ♣ rebid by South would be a relay to 2 ♦ most likely with invitational values. To play in Clubs after North's 1 NT rebid, South has to make an artificial 2 NT bid to force their partner to bid 3 ♣.

N/S lose one Spade trick, one Heart, two Diamonds, and one Club, down one for –100. It will be difficult for E/W to double 3 ♣ on the auction, so expect a lot of happy N/S players. Why will they be happy when they could have played in 1 NT? Well, what would West have done if South had passed 1 NT? They would have doubled to get partner to bid a round suit (i.e., Hearts or Clubs). East would have bid 2 ♥, and E/W would have chalked up +110. If South had bid 3 ♣ over 2 ♥, East would have doubled since they know their partner has at least four Clubs.

Board 14
East Deals
None Vul

♠	Q 8 6 3
♥	J 8 3
♦	K J 10 8
♣	9 5

♠	10 9 5
♥	6 4
♦	A Q 9 5 3
♣	J 8 6

N
W		E
S

♠	A 7 2
♥	Q 10 5 2
♦	7
♣	A Q 10 4 3

♠	K J 4
♥	A K 9 7
♦	6 4 2
♣	K 7 2

NS 2♠; NS 2♥; NS 1N; NS 2♦; E 1♣; Par +110

West	North	East	South
		1 ♣	Pass1
1 ♦	Pass	1 ♥2	Pass
1 NT	Pass	Pass	Pass

Don't make minimum offshape takeout doubles
Alert, showing an unbalanced hand

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
1 NT×	S	2	♥ 6	280		7.00	0.00	3-Hall-Runda	1-Brendamour-Campbell
2 ♠	N	2	♦ 7	110		5.50	1.50	1-Grim-Lammers	7-McCarthy-Diers
2 ♥	S	2	♣ 6	110		5.50	1.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 ♣	E	−1	♥ A	50		3.50	3.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	3-Endres-Kennedy
1 NT	E	−1	♥ 7	50		3.50	3.50	10-Brown-Felson	4-Oblinger-Murdock
1 NT	E	1	♠ 4		90	2.00	5.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	5-Mehl-Woodham
1 NT	W	2	♦ J		120	1.00	6.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	9-Kehoe-Stanley
1 NT	E	3	♥ K		150	0.00	7.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	2-Waak-Lakes

West's 1 ♦ bid should deny a four-card major unless they have an opening hand with longer Diamonds. With that in mind, East will rebid 1 NT on all hands that are balanced or semi-balanced (i.e., they won't rebid a four-card major unless they have a hand unsuitable for notrump).

E/W take four Club tricks, one Diamond, and one Spade, down one. If North leads the ♠ 3, E/W might make one, since declarer can rise with the ♠ A and lead a small Club towards the ♣ J. A Heart lead from North is the only lead to beat 1 NT.

Board 15
South Deals
N-S Vul

♠	A 7 5 3 2
♥	J 6 3
♦	A 2
♣	K 5 3

♠	—
♥	9 8 5 4
♦	J 10 9 7 5 4
♣	Q 10 6

N
W		E
S

♠	K Q J 10 8 6 4
♥	K 10
♦	8 3
♣	J 4

♠	9
♥	A Q 7 2
♦	K Q 6
♣	A 9 8 7 2

NS 6♣; NS 5N; NS 5♥; NS 2♦; NS 1♠; Par +1370

West	North	East	South
			1 ♣
Pass	1 ♠	Pass	2 ♥1
Pass	3 ♣2	Pass	3 NT
Pass	4 NT3	Pass	Pass
Pass

Reverse
Game forcing and natural
Quantitative slam try

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♠×	E	−4	♦ K	800		7.00	0.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 NT	N	5	♠ 10	660		5.00	2.00	1-Grim-Lammers	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 NT	N	5	♠ K	660		5.00	2.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 NT	S	5	♦ J	660		5.00	2.00	10-Brown-Felson	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 NT	N	3	♠ K	600		2.50	4.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	3-Endres-Kennedy
3 NT	N	3	♠ K	600		2.50	4.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	10-Congbalay-Cook
				170		1.00	6.00	3-Hall-Runda	1-Brendamour-Campbell
4 ♥	S	−2	♦ 2		200	0.00	7.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	2-Waak-Lakes

N/S take three Diamond tricks, four Clubs, one Spade, and three Hearts, making five. West will lead the ♦ J. The proper way to play the Heart suit, when you're missing the ♥T, is small to the ♥ Q and if it holds try and drop the ♥ K doubleton. Sweet.

Board 16
West Deals
E-W Vul

♠	9 8 4
♥	J 7 6 4
♦	10 7 3
♣	J 5 4

♠	Q 10 5
♥	10 9 5 3
♦	Q 9 5
♣	K 10 3

N
W		E
S

♠	K J 6
♥	A Q 8
♦	A J 6
♣	A 8 7 2

♠	A 7 3 2
♥	K 2
♦	K 8 4 2
♣	Q 9 6

E 3N; E 3♠; E 3♥; W 2N; W 2♠; W 2♥; EW 3♣; EW 2♦; Par −600

West	North	East	South
Pass	Pass	1 ♣	Pass1
1 ♥	Pass	2 NT2	Pass
3 NT	Pass	Pass	Pass

Don't make minimum offshape takeout doubles
Showing 18-19 HCP

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 NT	E	−1	♠ 2	100		6.00	1.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	8-Markham-Markham
3 NT	E	−1	♥ 8	100		6.00	1.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 NT	E	−1	♠ 2	100		6.00	1.00	10-Brown-Felson	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 NT	E	2	♠ 2		120	3.50	3.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	2-Waak-Lakes
1 NT	E	2	♠ 2		120	3.50	3.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	6-Temples-Koch
2 NT	E	3	♦ 2		150	2.00	5.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	4-Oblinger-Murdock
1 NT	E	4	♠ 2		180	1.00	6.00	3-Hall-Runda	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 NT	E	3	♠ 2		600	0.00	7.00	1-Grim-Lammers	5-Mehl-Woodham

E/W take two Spade tricks, two Hearts, two Diamonds, and three Clubs, making three. South may lead a small Spade. Declarer should use their entries to dummy to take two Heart finesses.

Board 17
North Deals
None Vul

♠	8
♥	6 4
♦	J 10 5 3 2
♣	Q 8 7 5 2

♠	9 3 2
♥	K J 9 8
♦	A K 9
♣	J 10 3

N
W		E
S

♠	A Q J 7
♥	Q 10 7
♦	8 7 6
♣	K 9 6

♠	K 10 6 5 4
♥	A 5 3 2
♦	Q 4
♣	A 4

EW 3N; EW 3♠; EW 3♥; E 1♦; Par −400

West	North	East	South
	Pass	1 ♣	1 ♠
Dbl1	Pass	1 NT	Pass
3 NT	Pass	Pass	Pass

Negative

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
1 ♠	S	−1	♦ A		50	6.50	0.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	2-Waak-Lakes
1 ♠	S	−1	♦ A		50	6.50	0.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	6-Temples-Koch
1 NT	E	2	♥ 2		120	5.00	2.00	1-Grim-Lammers	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♥	W	3	♠ 8		140	4.00	3.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	8-Markham-Markham
1 NT	E	4	♠ 5		180	3.00	4.00	10-Brown-Felson	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♥	E	4	♣ A		420	2.00	5.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 NT	E	4	♠ 5		430	0.50	6.50	3-Hall-Runda	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 NT	E	4	♥ 2		430	0.50	6.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	1-Brendamour-Campbell

E/W take three Heart tricks, two Diamonds, two Spades, and two Clubs, making three. If South leads a small Spade, declarer may may four when the ♠ 9 surprisingly wins trick one. Leading any other suit turns out to be safe.

Board 18
East Deals
N-S Vul

♠	Q 4
♥	A Q J 7
♦	Q 8
♣	A K J 7 2

♠	K 10 9 5 3
♥	9 6
♦	A 10 9 6
♣	9 6

N
W		E
S

♠	A J 8 7 6
♥	10 5 2
♦	K 5 3 2
♣	Q

♠	2
♥	K 8 4 3
♦	J 7 4
♣	10 8 5 4 3

NS 4♥; EW 3♠; NS 4♣; EW 3♦; Par +100: EW 4♠×−1

West	North	East	South
		Pass	Pass
Pass	1 ♣	1 ♠	Dbl1
4 ♠2	Dbl	Pass	Pass
Pass

Negative
Weak jump raise

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♥	N	4	♣ Q	620		7.00	0.00	10-Brown-Felson	3-Endres-Kennedy
5 ♣	N	5	♥ 2	600		6.00	1.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♥	N	4	♣ Q	170		5.00	2.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	8-Markham-Markham
4 ♣	N	4	♥ 2	130		4.00	3.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 ♠	E	3	♠ 2		140	2.50	4.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	6-Temples-Koch
3 ♠	E	3	♣ 5		140	2.50	4.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	1-Brendamour-Campbell
4 ♠	E	4	♥ 3		420	1.00	6.00	1-Grim-Lammers	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♠×	E	3	♣ 10		530	0.00	7.00	3-Hall-Runda	10-Congbalay-Cook

South's hand is a bit weak for a negative double, but they're safe since they have length in partner's first bid suit. West's hand isn't weak for their 4 ♠ bid, but it's still correct. E/W lose two Heart tricks, one Diamond, and one Club, down one doubled for –100. That's much better than –620 for 4 ♥ making four. South will lead the ♣ 4.

Board 19
South Deals
E-W Vul

♠	7 5 4 2
♥	A Q 10 5
♦	Q J 10
♣	K 4

♠	A 6
♥	J 9 8
♦	8 6 5 2
♣	10 8 6 5

N
W		E
S

♠	J 10 9
♥	K 7 4 3
♦	K 7 4 3
♣	9 7

♠	K Q 8 3
♥	6 2
♦	A 9
♣	A Q J 3 2

NS 4N; NS 4♠; NS 3♥; NS 4♣; S 2♦; N 1♦; Par +430

West	North	East	South
			1 NT1
Pass	2 ♣	Pass	2 ♠
Pass	4 ♠	Pass	Pass
Pass

15 to 17

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 NT	N	5	♥ 3	460		7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	5-Mehl-Woodham
4 ♠	S	5	♠ A	450		5.00	2.00	3-Hall-Runda	9-Kehoe-Stanley
4 ♠	S	5	♦ 6	450		5.00	2.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♠	S	5	♦ 8	450		5.00	2.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	7-McCarthy-Diers
4 ♠	S	4	♦ 6	420		2.50	4.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	1-Brendamour-Campbell
4 ♠	S	4	♣ J	420		2.50	4.50	10-Brown-Felson	2-Waak-Lakes
5 ♣	S	−1	♥ 8		50	1.00	6.00	1-Grim-Lammers	4-Oblinger-Murdock
6 ♠	S	−2	♦ 2		100	0.00	7.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	6-Temples-Koch

N/S lose two Spade tricks and one Heart, making four. If West makes the mistake of leading the ♠ A, N/S will make five. East has to refuse to cover any of dummy's high Diamonds, or N/S will make five. You'd be amazed how many players can't resist covering touching honors ("Cover an honor with an honor, partner."). Lordy. The only time you should cover an honor is when you can promote a trick in your own hand or in partner's hand. Which trick would you be promoting on this hand if you cover any of dummy's Diamonds with your ♦ K?

Board 20
West Deals
Both Vul

♠	A 10 7 6
♥	4 2
♦	K 5
♣	Q J 10 9 7

♠	J 9 5 3
♥	A 7
♦	9 7 4 2
♣	8 6 2

N
W		E
S

♠	4 2
♥	K 9 8 5 3
♦	Q J 6
♣	A 5 4

♠	K Q 8
♥	Q J 10 6
♦	A 10 8 3
♣	K 3

NS 4N; NS 4♠; NS 4♣; NS 2♥; NS 2♦; Par +630

West	North	East	South
Pass	Pass	1 ♥1	1 NT2
Pass	2 ♣	Pass	2 ♦
Pass	3 NT	Pass	Pass
Pass

Light third-seat opener
15 to 18

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 NT	S	4	♠ 3	630		4.50	2.50	1-Grim-Lammers	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 NT	S	4	♠ 3	630		4.50	2.50	2-Singerman-Pretz	6-Temples-Koch
3 NT	S	4	♠ 3	630		4.50	2.50	3-Hall-Runda	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 NT	S	4	♣ 8	630		4.50	2.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 NT	S	4	♠ 3	630		4.50	2.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	3-Endres-Kennedy
3 NT	S	4	♠ 3	630		4.50	2.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 NT	S	3	♦ 2	600		1.00	6.00	10-Brown-Felson	2-Waak-Lakes
2 ♠	N	4	♦ Q	170		0.00	7.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	5-Mehl-Woodham

North checks to see if partner has a four-card Spade suit before parking in 3 NT. Notice South's 2 ♦ bid. There's no reason for South to show a fourth Heart in this auction, since North may have a weakish hand such as ♠ AT76 ♥ 42 ♦ Q972 ♣T97 and is simply trying to get out in a pointy suit at the two level.

N/S take four Spade tricks, two Hearts, two Diamonds, and four Clubs, making six. Um, that seems wrong, since E/W can take two Heart tricks and a Club. Okay, N/S make four. Happy? West will probably lead the ♥ A and continue Hearts at trick two. With there being no way for N/S to take nine tricks without touching Clubs, East has no reason to cash their ♣ A at trick three.

Board 21
North Deals
N-S Vul

♠	A J 9 7 3
♥	7
♦	Q 3
♣	A J 6 3 2

♠	6 5 4
♥	K 10 9
♦	K 8 6 4
♣	10 5 4

N
W		E
S

♠	K Q 8 2
♥	A Q 8 5 4
♦	J 10
♣	Q 8

♠	10
♥	J 6 3 2
♦	A 9 7 5 2
♣	K 9 7

NS 4♣; NS 1N; NS 2♦; NS 1♠; EW 1♥; Par +130

West	North	East	South
	1 ♠	2 ♥	Pass
Pass	3 ♣	Pass	Pass
Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 ♥×	E	−2	♠ 10	300		7.00	0.00	10-Brown-Felson	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♣	N	4	♠ K	130		6.00	1.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	7-McCarthy-Diers
4 ♥	E	−2	♠ 10	100		3.00	4.00	1-Grim-Lammers	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 ♥	E	−2	♠ 10	100		3.00	4.00	3-Hall-Runda	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 ♥	E	−2	♠ 10	100		3.00	4.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 ♥	E	−2	♠ 10	100		3.00	4.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	3-Endres-Kennedy
1 NT	E	−2	♦ 5	100		3.00	4.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	5-Mehl-Woodham
2 ♥	E	−1	♠ 10	50		0.00	7.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	6-Temples-Koch

North is a bit light to sneak a 3 ♣ bid into the auction vulnerable, but they need to do something. A re-opening double seems right since they're short in Hearts, but a 3 ♦ bid by South would create problems.

N/S lose one Diamond trick, one Heart, and one Spade, making four. East may lead the ♦ J, which declarer should duck to West's ♦ K. West will cash the ♥ K and return a trump, but declarer will win with the ♣ A, cash the ♦ Q and the ♠ A, ruff a Spade with dummy's ♣ 9, and play a trump to the ♣ K (dropping the ♣ Q). Three more rounds of Diamonds follow with declarer pitching Spades from the closed hand. West is free to ruff the fifth Diamond with the ♣T, but that's the last trick for the defense. Nicely played!

Board 22
East Deals
E-W Vul

♠	Q J 9 6 4
♥	A K 5
♦	9 8 3
♣	K 6

♠	K 8
♥	J 9 8 7 3
♦	A 6 4 2
♣	10 7

N
W		E
S

♠	—
♥	Q 4 2
♦	K Q J
♣	Q J 9 8 5 4 2

♠	A 10 7 5 3 2
♥	10 6
♦	10 7 5
♣	A 3

NS 3♠; NS 2N; EW 2♥; EW 2♣; EW 1♦; Par +140

West	North	East	South
		1 ♣	2 ♠1
Dbl2	4 ♠	Pass	Pass
Pass

Weak jump overcall
Negative

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
5 ♣	E	−3	♥ 10	300		7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 ♠	S	3	♥ 3	140		5.50	1.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♠	S	3	♣ 10	140		5.50	1.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	8-Markham-Markham
3 ♣	E	−1	♥ 10	100		4.00	3.00	1-Grim-Lammers	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♠	N	−1	♦ K		50	2.00	5.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	5-Mehl-Woodham
4 ♠	S	−1	♥ 7		50	2.00	5.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	10-Congbalay-Cook
4 ♠	S	−1	♣ 10		50	2.00	5.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	6-Temples-Koch
5 ♠	N	−2	♦ A		100	0.00	7.00	3-Hall-Runda	7-McCarthy-Diers

There's no way that North can keep from bidding 4 ♠ on the known 11-card fit. Sigh. N/S lose one Spade trick and three Diamonds, down one. West may lead the ♣T, but N/S's Diamond losers won't go away.

Board 23
South Deals
Both Vul

♠	K 6 5 3
♥	A J 4
♦	4
♣	K Q 7 4 2

♠	A Q 10
♥	9 8 7
♦	A Q 6
♣	A J 8 5

N
W		E
S

♠	8 7
♥	Q 3
♦	10 9 7 5 3 2
♣	10 9 3

♠	J 9 4 2
♥	K 10 6 5 2
♦	K J 8
♣	6

NS 3♠; NS 3♥; NS 2N; EW 1♦; NS 1♣; Par +140

West	North	East	South
			Pass
1 NT1	2 ♣2	Pass	2 ♦3
Pass	2 ♠4	Pass	Pass
Pass

15 to 17
Alert, artificial DONT bid showing Clubs and a higher-ranking suit
I like every suit that doesn't look like a shamrock
My other suit is Spades

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
1 NT	W	−3	♣ 4	300		7.00	0.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♦	W	−2	♣ K	200		5.50	1.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	4-Oblinger-Murdock
1 NT	W	−2	♣ 4	200		5.50	1.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	6-Temples-Koch
2 ♠	N	4	♥ Q	170		4.00	3.00	3-Hall-Runda	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 ♥	S	3	♦ A	140		3.00	4.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	10-Congbalay-Cook
2 NT	W	−1	♣ 4	100		2.00	5.00	1-Grim-Lammers	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 NT	S	−2	♦ 6		200	1.00	6.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♣	N	−3	♥ Q		300	0.00	7.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	8-Markham-Markham

N/S lose one Diamond trick, one Club, and two Spades, making three. Declarer should play West for pretty much every missing high card. With no comfortable way to get out of their hand, West will have to eventually break Hearts, so declarer won't have to guess the location of the ♥ Q. As a matter of fact, it's likely that West will lead the ♥ 8 at trick one (MUD).

Board 24
West Deals
None Vul

♠	9
♥	J 5 3
♦	K 9 4 3 2
♣	A K Q 8

♠	Q 10 7 6 3
♥	A Q 2
♦	8 6
♣	J 9 2

N
W		E
S

♠	A J 8
♥	K 9 8
♦	A Q 7 5
♣	10 7 5

♠	K 5 4 2
♥	10 7 6 4
♦	J 10
♣	6 4 3

EW 3♠; EW 2N; EW 1♥; NS 1♦; EW 1♣; Par −140

West	North	East	South
Pass	1 ♦	1 NT1	Pass
2 ♥2	Pass	2 ♠	Pass
2 NT3	Pass	3 ♠4	Pass
Pass	Pass

15 to 18
Transfer
Showing 8-9 HCP and exactly five Spades
Showing a minimum overcall with three Spades

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♠	W	−1	♣ A	50		7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	4-Oblinger-Murdock
2 ♠	W	2	♣ A		110	6.00	1.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♠	W	3	♣ A		140	3.00	4.00	1-Grim-Lammers	3-Endres-Kennedy
2 ♠	W	3	♣ A		140	3.00	4.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♠	E	3	♦ J		140	3.00	4.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	10-Congbalay-Cook
2 ♠	W	3	♣ A		140	3.00	4.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	6-Temples-Koch
2 ♠	W	3	♣ A		140	3.00	4.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	8-Markham-Markham
2 NT	E	3	♦ J		150	0.00	7.00	3-Hall-Runda	7-McCarthy-Diers

East is a point short for a 1 NT overcall, but they have good spot cards. E/W lose one Spade trick and three Clubs, making three. South will lead the ♦ J.

Board 25
North Deals
E-W Vul

♠	7 4 3
♥	7 4
♦	K 9 6 5 4
♣	Q 5 4

♠	K J 10 6 2
♥	A J
♦	A 8 2
♣	J 6 2

N
W		E
S

♠	Q 8
♥	K 10 8 3
♦	10 7
♣	K 10 8 7 3

♠	A 9 5
♥	Q 9 6 5 2
♦	Q J 3
♣	A 9

EW 3N; EW 3♠; EW 4♣; EW 2♥; Par −600

West	North	East	South
	Pass	Pass	1 ♥
1 ♠	Pass	1 NT	Pass
2 NT	Pass	Pass	Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♣	E	3	♦ Q		110	7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	3-Endres-Kennedy
1 ♠	W	3	♥ 4		140	5.50	1.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	7-McCarthy-Diers
1 ♠	W	3	♥ 7		140	5.50	1.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	9-Kehoe-Stanley
2 NT	E	4	♥ 5		180	3.50	3.50	3-Hall-Runda	6-Temples-Koch
2 NT	E	4	♥ 7		180	3.50	3.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	5-Mehl-Woodham
2 ♠	W	5	♥ 7		200	1.50	5.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	8-Markham-Markham
1 NT	S	−4	♣ 2		200	1.50	5.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	1-Brendamour-Campbell
1 NT	E	5	♥ 5		210	0.00	7.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	4-Oblinger-Murdock

1 NT bids by advancer are not very common. They tend to be hands with somewhere around 8-11 HCP, stoppers in the opponent's suit, and fewer than three cards in overcaller's suit. On this hand, West wants to be in game opposite 10-11 HCP, so they invite with 2 NT, but East isn't interested.

E/W take four Spade tricks, three Hearts, one Diamond, and one Club, making three. North will probably lead the ♥ 7, South should play low, and declarer will win with the ♥ J. A Spade to the ♠ Q and ♠ A is next, and South should return the ♦ Q. Declarer should duck twice, win the third Diamond, cash the ♥ A, and run the ♣ J at trick 11 (North can't have the ♣ A). If declarer tries to cash their Spades before leading the Club, they'll probably end up squeezing dummy.

Board 26
East Deals
Both Vul

♠	A Q 3
♥	K 9 7 2
♦	Q 9 6 5 2
♣	J

♠	J 8 6 4 2
♥	J 8 4
♦	K 10 3
♣	5 4

N
W		E
S

♠	10 9 7
♥	10 6 3
♦	J 8
♣	K 10 9 8 6

♠	K 5
♥	A Q 5
♦	A 7 4
♣	A Q 7 3 2

NS 6N; NS 6♥; NS 6♦; NS 4♠; NS 4♣; Par +1440

West	North	East	South
		Pass	2 NT1
Pass	3 ♣2	Pass	3 NT3
Pass	4 NT4	Pass	Pass5
Pass

20 to 21
Puppet Stayman asking for a 4- or 5-card major
Alert, artificial Puppet Stayman response denying a 4- or 5-card major
Inviting 6 NT
No thanks

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 NT	S	6	♠ 4	690		7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♥	N	6	♣ 9	680		6.00	1.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 NT	S	5	♠ 6	660		5.00	2.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	8-Markham-Markham
3 NT	S	4	♠ 4	630		3.00	4.00	3-Hall-Runda	6-Temples-Koch
3 NT	S	4	♠ 2	630		3.00	4.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 NT	S	4	♠ 4	630		3.00	4.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	5-Mehl-Woodham
6 NT	S	−2	♠ 4		200	1.00	6.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 NT	S	4	♠ 2		630	0.00	7.00	2-Singerman-Pretz	4-Oblinger-Murdock

South's hand is definitely worth opening 2 NT (19 HCP and a five-card minor), but they aren't about to accept North's slam invitation. N/S win three Spade tricks, four Hearts, four Diamonds, and one Club, making six. East may lead a small Spade. This isn't a slam you want to be in needing the ♦ K onside, the ♣ K onside, Hearts 3-3, and Diamonds 3-2 (6%?).

Board 27
South Deals
None Vul

♠	A J 4 2
♥	Q 7
♦	K 10 9 7 3
♣	10 9

♠	K 3
♥	10 9 2
♦	8
♣	A K Q J 5 3 2

N
W		E
S

♠	9 8 7 6
♥	A K 6 5 4
♦	Q J 6 4
♣	—

♠	Q 10 5
♥	J 8 3
♦	A 5 2
♣	8 7 6 4

N 2N; EW 2♥; N 3♦; EW 3♣; NS 1♠; S 1♦; Par +100: EW 3♥×−1; EW 4♣×−1

West	North	East	South
			Pass
1 ♣1	1 ♦	Dbl2	2 ♦
3 ♣	Pass	Pass	Pass

Not the right hand for a Gambling 3 NT bid
Negative showing 4+ cards in both majors

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♥	E	−3	♦ A	150		7.00	0.00	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	9-Kehoe-Stanley
5 ♣	W	−2	♣ 10	100		6.00	1.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	3-Endres-Kennedy
4 ♥	E	−1	♠ 5	50		4.50	2.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	1-Brendamour-Campbell
3 NT	W	−1	♦ 10	50		4.50	2.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♣	W	4	♣ 9		130	2.50	4.50	2-Singerman-Pretz	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 ♣	W	4	♦ 7		130	2.50	4.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	8-Markham-Markham
3 NT	E	3	♣ 8		400	1.00	6.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 NT	E	4	♣ 4		430	0.00	7.00	3-Hall-Runda	6-Temples-Koch

If West tries playing in 3 NT, they won't be very happy. E/W lose two Spade tricks, one Heart, and one Diamond, making three. North will lead the ♦T, and declarer should play low from dummy, since they don't want South on lead. South, not knowing where the ♦ K is, will probably win the ♦ A and return a Spade.

Board 28
West Deals
N-S Vul

♠	10
♥	10 8 5
♦	9 3
♣	A K Q J 7 6 4

♠	A J 3
♥	9 6 4
♦	A J 6 2
♣	10 9 2

N
W		E
S

♠	8 6 5 4
♥	K Q 2
♦	K 7 5 4
♣	8 3

♠	K Q 9 7 2
♥	A J 7 3
♦	Q 10 8
♣	5

NS 2N; NS 2♥; NS 3♣; EW 2♦; NS 1♠; Par +100: EW 3♦×−1

West	North	East	South
Pass	1 ♣1	Pass	1 ♠
Pass	2 ♣	Pass	2 ♥
Pass	3 ♣	Pass	3 NT
Pass	Pass	Pass

Still not right for a Gambling 3 NT bid vulnerable

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
3 NT	N	3	♦ 4	600		6.50	0.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 NT	S	3	♦ 2	600		6.50	0.50	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	6-Temples-Koch
3 ♣	N	3	♥ K	110		4.50	2.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	9-Kehoe-Stanley
3 ♣	N	3	♥ K	110		4.50	2.50	6-Zimmer-Kammer	2-Waak-Lakes
3 NT	S	−1	♦ 3		100	2.50	4.50	3-Hall-Runda	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 NT	S	−1	♦ 2		100	2.50	4.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	8-Markham-Markham
6 NT	N	−2	♠ 4		200	0.50	6.50	4-Hoffman-Cai	7-McCarthy-Diers
3 NT	N	−2	♥ K		200	0.50	6.50	10-Brown-Felson	10-Congbalay-Cook

South, with an opening hand, isn't about to stop short of game. If West has been listening to the auction, they'll lead the ♦ 2, and N/S will come up a trick short when they lose four Diamonds and one Spade. Oh well.

Board 29
North Deals
Both Vul

♠	A K
♥	K 10 9 8 4 3
♦	K 7 5
♣	10 7

♠	9 5 3 2
♥	7
♦	A J 10 3
♣	K 4 3 2

N
W		E
S

♠	J 10 7
♥	A 5 2
♦	6 4
♣	A Q J 9 8

♠	Q 8 6 4
♥	Q J 6
♦	Q 9 8 2
♣	6 5

EW 4♣; EW 2♠; NS 2♥; EW 1N; Par −130

West	North	East	South
	1 ♥	2 ♣	2 ♥
3 ♣	3 ♥	Pass	Pass
4 ♣	Pass	Pass	Pass

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
4 ♥	N	4	♦ 4	620		7.00	0.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	7-McCarthy-Diers
2 ♥	N	4	♦ 6	170		5.50	1.50	7-Venosa-Venosa	4-Oblinger-Murdock
3 ♥	N	4	♦ 6	170		5.50	1.50	10-Brown-Felson	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 ♥	N	3	♥ 2	140		3.00	4.00	3-Hall-Runda	5-Mehl-Woodham
3 ♥	N	3	♣ A	140		3.00	4.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	2-Waak-Lakes
3 ♥	N	3	♣ A	140		3.00	4.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	6-Temples-Koch
3 ♥	N	−1	♣ A		100	0.50	6.50	5-Kloecker-Hubka	9-Kehoe-Stanley
4 ♥	N	−1	♣ A		100	0.50	6.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	8-Markham-Markham

North's 3 ♥ bid is not a game try--they're merely competing. West, with extra values and great shape, is more than happy to take one more bid.

E/W lose two Spade tricks and one Diamond (i.e., the Spade suit is blocked), making four. South will probably lead the ♥ Q. Declarer will win in dummy and immediately lead a Diamond to the ♦T and North's ♦ K. North will cash their high Spades, but with no way to get to the South hand, the ♠ Q will wither on the vine. It's a simple matter for declarer to pull trump, finesse again in Diamonds, pitch their losing Spade on the ♦ A, and cross-ruff the rest of the hand, making four.

Board 30
East Deals
None Vul

♠	10 9 6
♥	J 3
♦	A K 10 7 6 4
♣	J 9

♠	A Q 7 5 2
♥	A 10 8 7
♦	8
♣	8 7 5

N
W		E
S

♠	8 4 3
♥	4
♦	5 3 2
♣	A K Q 10 4 2

♠	K J
♥	K Q 9 6 5 2
♦	Q J 9
♣	6 3

EW 5♠; EW 5♣; EW 1N; NS 1♦; Par −450

West	North	East	South
		Pass1	1 ♥
1 ♠	2 ♦	3 ♦2	3 ♥
3 ♠	Pass	4 ♠3	Pass
Pass	Pass

Don't preempt in first seat if you're likely to make a Drury bid
Cuebid showing a limit raise in Spades
Holding a slew of extra tricks

Contract			Lead	Score		Matchpoints		Pair	Pair
				N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W	N-S	E-W
2 ♥	S	4	♠ A	170		7.00	0.00	6-Zimmer-Kammer	2-Waak-Lakes
4 ♥	S	−1	♣ 5		50	6.00	1.00	7-Venosa-Venosa	4-Oblinger-Murdock
4 ♦	S	−2	♣ 5		100	4.50	2.50	9-Muenks-Chrzanowski	8-Markham-Markham
3 ♥	S	−2	♣ 5		100	4.50	2.50	10-Brown-Felson	10-Congbalay-Cook
3 ♠	W	5	♦ A		200	3.00	4.00	5-Kloecker-Hubka	9-Kehoe-Stanley
5 ♣	E	5	♦ Q		400	2.00	5.00	8-Oppelt-Oppelt	6-Temples-Koch
4 ♠	W	5	♦ A		450	1.00	6.00	3-Hall-Runda	5-Mehl-Woodham
4 ♠×	W	4	♦ A		590	0.00	7.00	4-Hoffman-Cai	7-McCarthy-Diers

E/W lose one Spade trick and one Diamond, making five. North will lead the ♦ K on opening lead, and South should play the ♦ Q asking for an underlead at trick two. Declarer will ruff the second Diamond, play a small Club to the ♣ A, and lead a trump to the ♠ Q. When that holds, declarer can cash a second high Spade and run Clubs. North can ruff in whenever they want, but declarer can ruff the Diamond continuation, cash the ♥ A, ruff a Heart to dummy, and cash the rest of the Clubs.

West	North	East	South
			Pass
1 ♠	Dbl	Pass	2 ♣
2 ♠	Pass	3 ♠	Pass
4 ♠	Pass	Pass	Pass

East upgrades their hand when West shows extra Spade length, and invites game. E/W lose one Spade trick, one Heart, and one Diamond, making four. North will lead the ♣ K. Declarer should use their two entries to dummy (♥ A and ♥ J) to lead Diamonds through South's ♦ A.

West	North	East	South
1 NT1	Pass	4 ♥2	Pass
4 ♠	Pass	Pass	Pass

15 to 17
Texas Transfer

E/W lose one Heart trick and one Diamond, making five. If North leads a small Heart or any Diamond, E/W will make six. Maybe the ♣ 5? Or the ♠ 9?

West	North	East	South
	Pass	1 ♦	Pass
1 ♠	Pass	1 NT	Pass
Pass	Pass

East's 1 NT rebid shows fewer than four Spades, fewer than six Clubs, no singleton or void, and 12-14 HCP. E/W take two Spade tricks, one Heart, and four Clubs, making one. South will probably lead the ♥ Q, and the hand will be over quickly.

West	North	East	South
		Pass	Pass
Pass	1 ♦	1 ♠	1 NT
Pass	3 NT	Pass	Pass
Pass

N/S take one Spade trick, three Hearts, four Diamonds, and two Clubs, making four. West will lead the ♠ K and continue with the ♠ 9 at trick two to the ♠ Q and ♠ A. Unable to play another Spade without giving declarer two Spade tricks, East will have to exit with a small Heart to South's ♥ K. A small Diamond to the ♦ Q, the ♦ A, and a third Diamond end the drama. If West can resist leading their partner's suit at trick one, N/S will be limited to nine tricks, as declarer can't create a Spade trick on their own.

West	North	East	South
			1 ♣1
1 ♦	1 ♥	Pass	1 ♠
Pass	1 NT	Pass	2 ♣
Pass	Pass	2 ♦	Pass
Pass	Pass

Rule of 20 opener

E/W lose one Club trick, two Spades, and two Hearts, making two. North may lead the ♣ 2.

West	North	East	South
Pass	1 ♠	2 NT1	3 ♦2
Dbl3	4 ♠	Pass	Pass
Pass

Unusual 2 NT
Cuebid of the opponent's higher-ranking suit to show a limit raise or better in Spades
I like Diamonds

When the opponents have made a two-suited overcall, either with the Unusual 2 NT bid or a Michaels bid over a minor-suit opening, responder can cuebid either one of their known suits to make strong, forcing bids in either opener's suit or the last remaining unbid suit. In this case, by cuebidding Diamonds, South is showing a limit raise or better in Spades (i.e., cuebid in higher suit to show strong raise in the higher of the other suits). This agreement is called Unusual vs. Unusual.

N/S lose one Spade trick, one Heart, and one Club, making four. East will lead the ♦T.