Monday 8 January 2024 against Oxford D

Blewbury beat Oxford D
IMPs: 100 to 50
VPs: 16.55 to 3.45

Congratulations to everyone!  That gives us three wins out of four, putting us in a very healthy second place in the Wessex League table. Click here to see all the hands on RealBridge.

There were some wild boards, by the way.

Cross-IMPs

Finn Clark & Malcolm Cochrane = BLEWBURY 2.26
Howard Arnes & Ruth Kim = OXFORD_D 1.71
Ian Van Maanen & Matt Wright = BLEWBURY 1.28
Matthew Wilkinson & Philip Casey = OXFORD_D -0.08
Nigel Carter & Dermot Paddon = BLEWBURY -0.42
Humaira Erfan-Ahmed & Sue Smith = OXFORD_D -0.78
Diane Bell & Shiv Datt = BLEWBURY -1.40
Paul Watson & Paul Smith = OXFORD_D -2.57

HAND 1 = +6 IMPs

NS can make either 7♥ or 6♣, although not all tables even reached game.  (Either slam is delicate and depends on the clubs breaking 2-2.  South has a singleton in North's suit and the points are only 12 opposite 13...  but North's shape is 8311 and South has AKJ83 in his three-card suit.)

What's the best auction?  North opens 1♣, obviously.  West should overcall 1♠, with KQJ986 of spades and an outside king, but unfortunately this makes a difficult hand much easier for North-South.  South will bid 2♥, which North can safely take as a five-card suit and so immediately knows they have an eight-card fit.  (Although of course he might easily choose to rebid his eight-card club suit.)

North-South stopped in 4♥ against Shiv and Diane...  and went one off.  Instead of setting up dummy's eight-card suit for a million tricks, declarer went for a cross-ruff and the defence got a trump promotion.

HAND 2 = -6 IMPs

One Blewbury pair stopped in 2♥+2.  (Ten tricks are comfortable.)

A surprising range of responses were chosen by the East hand after West opens 1♥.  Holding ♠ A4 ♥ 10987 ♦ K98 ♣ QJ63, two Easts bid the mainstream 3♥, but Malcolm just blasted game.  (Which worked.)

HAND 3 = +13 IMPs

Matthew and Ian beat a delicate 3NT that succeeded at another table (played by Malcolm).  Two tables stopped in the safe 3♦.

HAND 4 = +4 IMPs

N-S can make a grand slam in either clubs or hearts, but East-West can make a nuisance of themselves in the auction with spades.  I think it's hard.  In practice, everyone stopped in game.

But to give the auction at our table...  North opens 1♣ with a gorgeous 0436 13-count.  Malcolm jumped to 2♠ with ♠ AKQ987 and not much more.  South bid the obvious negative double, holding a 16-count.  I then bid 4♠, holding garbage that included ♠ J542.  (Partner's bid a Weak Two and I have only one point, so I'm expecting North-South to be in the slam zone.)  North then bid 5♣.

Personally, after that auction, I think South has a mandatory raise to slam.  E-W have bid 4♠ vulnerable on tram tickets.  South has three small spades, so partner's marked with a void and East-West can have almost no points outside spades at all.

A brave South would bid seven.  A cautious South should at least bid six.

HAND 5 = flat

Everyone bid hearts and went off against a 4-0 trump break.

HAND 6 = +13 IMPs

Absolutely hysterical.  Here are the four results:

6♥ making by North (Oxford)
5♥+1 by North (Blewbury)
5♠-1 by East (Oxford)
5♠x+2 by East (Blewbury) ... yes, with two doubled vulnerable overtricks, scoring 1250.  Which is a bigger score than North's 6♥.

All Easts opened 4♠, holding AKQJ109754 of trumps and a 9022 hand.  My favourite South bid over this is 4NT, which is neither natural nor Blackwood.  Instead, it's simply showing a big hand and saying "I have two places to play" (since if you were single-suited you wouldn't mess around and would bid your suit immediately).

That's how Oxford found 6♥.

HAND 7 = +7 IMPs

Ian and Matthew beat another delicate Oxford 3NT.  (North-South have 25 points, but only a doubleton club in each hand.  On a club lead, declarer has only eight tricks, while the defence have set up four clubs and the ♥ AK.)

HAND 8 = +2 IMPs

Two tables made 3NT, while two stopped in minor suit part scores.

HAND 9 = -11 IMPs

Oxford made 4♠+1 while Blewbury made 4♠-1.  There were also two 2♠+3 tables.

HAND 10 = -5 IMPs

Three declarers made 4♠+1, while the fourth got pushed to 5♠, was doubled and made it.

HAND 11 = +1 IMP

A mixture of 3♣ and 4♣ contracts, half of which made.

HAND 12 = +10 IMPs

I made a slightly wild overcall (pass pass 1NT 4♥), got lucky with my dummy, misplayed the hand and then got the contract handed back to me by an Oxford player who'd been having a bad time with his defence.

I have an 11-count with AJ97632 of trumps and dummy's given me a ten-count with a useful trump doubleton (104).  Should you play for the double finesse or the drop?  Normally, this would be a close decision and you'd definitely go for the drop if you're not rich in dummy entries (as was the case here)...  but that logic is overlooking the evidence from the auction.  South has 12-14 of the defence's 19 points, so the double finesse is massively odds-on.

HAND 13 = -10 IMPs

A part-score hand where it all went Oxford's way.  Afterwards, Ian asked me:

Matt and I had a misunderstanding after the bidding went South: 1NT, West: double. Matt transferred to spades and I thought he bid hearts genuinely. You mentioned what you consider a good way of what North/South should do after 1NT is doubled. Would you mind repeating what you said during the match?

If partner opens/overcalls 1NT and the opponents double, I suggest the following wriggle.  (Other systems are possible, but this has the great advantage of simplicity.)

Bidding a suit = lower of two 4-card suits.
Redouble = you have a 5-card suit.  Partner will continue with a pass-or-correct 2♣.
Pass = happy to play in 1NT doubled.

(Alternatively, Stuart and I swap the meaning of "pass" and "redouble" there.)

HAND 14 = -9 IMPs

Blewbury went off twice in no-trump contracts, while Oxford made 1NT and 1NT+1.

HAND 15 = +10 IMPs

Another totally mental hand.  Here's what happened:

4♦ making by West (Blewbury)
4♦ making by West (Blewbury)
3NT making by East (Oxford)
4♥ making by South (Blewbury)

South deals and holds a 4441 twelve-count with a singleton diamond.  The textbook opening on that is 1♣.  I opened a slightly whimsical 1♥ and caught Malcolm with five-card support.  (But that's not to say that my opening was correct!)

If South opens 1♣, West can shut you out of the auction in diamonds.

HAND 16 = +6 IMPs

6♦ is a good but unlucky slam, losing to the 3-0 trump break.  At our table, I downgraded my hand because I was nervous of my ♣ Kxx underneath an opponent who'd been bidding clubs and clubs.  (As it happens, Malcolm had Ax.)

Everyone bid game, either 3NT or 5♦, except for an Oxford pair.

HAND 17 = +10 IMPs

Malcolm and I were allowed to play in 4♥, while everyone else got pushed to 5♥-1.  (I raised Malcolm straight to game on a six-count with lots of shape, whereupon my LHO declined to support her partner's clubs on king to four and a 2254 shape.  I'd have competed on her hand, but I have some sympathy for the pass...  it's a pretty ugly-looking pudding.)

HAND 18 = +3 IMPs

Various part-scores.

HAND 19 = -3 IMPs

No two results the same.  East-West can make 4♥.  Our North-South competed to 4♠ and I chickened out of doubling.

HAND 20 = +8 IMPs

There's a bad heart break, so 4♥ went off...  but it's makeable if declarer guesses to make a safety play in trumps.  I think it's possible to work it out.  The clue is that declarer has 11 points and dummy has a monstrous 16, yet the opponents have competed up to 3♠ vulnerable.  This makes a bad trump break quite likely, since the opponents must have something to justify their bidding and it certainly isn't high cards.

Shiv and Diane won this board for us by bidding and making a vulnerable 5♣.  (3NT is unmakeable on a spade lead.)

HAND 21 = +6 IMPs

South made 2♠+1 or 3♠ at three tables, although I don't think nine tricks are ironed on.  Declarer's missing all four aces, there's a trump jack to find, the defence could theoretically get a heart ruff, etc.

At the fourth table, Malcolm and I were allowed to bid and make an impossible 3♦.  Visit RealBridge and click through if you fancy a laugh.

HAND 22 = -6 IMPs

Various part-scores.

HAND 23 = +1 IMP

Either 1NT or 2♥ for North-South.  Nothing to choose.  Both succeed.

HAND 24 = flat

...but in fact it's a dramatic hand.  3♥+1 twice and 4♥ twice.

If partner opens a Weak 2♥, what should you reply holding ♠ AK85 ♥ A75 ♦ K9632 ♣ 3?  Two Easts immediately blasted 4♥ (which I think is correct) and were rewarded.  You're unlikely to have enough points for game, but you're bristling with playing strength.

Anyway, thanks and congratulations to everyone!