CHAPTER ♣5

Redealing a board after a pass out in the first round

It was fiendishly cold. A fierce northern wind howled across the secluded countryside of Groningen, and only the very brave dared to go outside. Leo and Linda arrived at the club stamping their feet, and inspected the scoreboard with mixed feelings. They had lost quite some ground since last week, and they steeled themselves to repair the damage tonight.

N/all	♠ 9 7 4 2 ♥ 10 9 4 ♦ K J 8 5 ♣ K 8
♠ K Q 3 ♥ K 6 ♦ Q 7 6 4 ♣ A 10 5 2	N W         E S	♠ A 10 8 6   ♥ 7 5 2   ♦ A 3   ♣ Q J 9 4
	♠ J 5 ♥ A Q J 8 3 ♦ 10 9 2 ♣ 7 6 3
West Piotr -   1 ♣   1 NT   3 NT	North Gert pass   pass   pass   pass	East Bea pass   1 ♠   2 NT   pass	South Gertrude pass   pass   pass   pass

In the first round Leo and Linda faced Joep and Joeri. They shared the boards with another table, where Piotr had just arrived in 3NT. Gert had found the excellent lead of ♥10, won by declarer's ♥K. Piotr had cashed four rounds of spades (south and west discarding diamonds), and then taken the club finesse. Gert had captured his ♣K and led another heart for 1 down and an even more sombre looking Piotr.

"Extremely unlucky," said Bea timidly in a futile attempt to cheer up her husband. "Everybody will reach 3NT, and without a heart lead or with ♣K onside that would have been a laydown."
Piotr was not listening and entered the score in silence.


When the board came to Leo and Linda, Leo decided to exploit the wicked habit at their club to redeal a board after a pass out in the first round. He knew therefore after two passes that West was likely to have an opening bid, and preempted with an untrue Muiderberg 2♥ call.

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N/all	♠ 9 7 4 2 ♥ 10 9 4 ♦ K J 8 5 ♣ K 8
♠ K Q 3 ♥ K 6 ♦ Q 7 6 4 ♣ A 10 5 2	N W         E S	♠ A 10 8 6   ♥ 7 5 2   ♦ A 3   ♣ Q J 9 4
	♠ J 5 ♥ A Q J 8 3 ♦ 10 9 2 ♣ 7 6 3
West Joep -   pass	North Linda pass   pass	East Joeri pass   pass	South Leo 2 ♥ *
* Muiderberg Convention: 6-10 points, 5 hearts and 4+ of a minor

As intended, this placed Joep with a difficult dilemma. He eventually chose to pass in view of the vulnerability, hoping that 2♥ would go down and that they could not make anything themselves. He led ♠K and pressed on with spades. Leo ruffed the third round and pondered for a while. He then played a small club from his hand, which made Joep think for some time. Joep eventually decided to rise with his ♣A and lead ♦6! He knew Leo and did not fully trust his Muiderberg bid.

<<<

Leo played small from dummy and Joeri took his ♦A. An inspired diamond came back, won by Leo's ♦10. Leo saw the danger, realized that ♥K was bound to be offside, and continued with ♥A and a small heart. That did not help him however, because Joep captured his ♥K and gave his partner the well-deserved diamond ruff. 1 down.

"Terrific defence", admitted Leo reluctantly. "If Joep does not take his ♣A straight away and leads a diamond, I will make 2♥. A real top-bottom action", he continued indignantly. "Up till now all East-West pairs have gone 1 down in 3NT."

"We can make 4♣, but with 25 points it is hardly possible to stay out of game", observed Joeri calmly. "A lucky one for us that Leo does not yet fully master the Muiderberg convention."
"Indeed, that was a poorly timed fantasy bid", snapped Linda. "Besides, you could have made 2♥, because..."
"True, but that is pretty hard to find", intervened Joep wittily. "After ruffing the third round of spades, declarer must play ♥Q from his hand! I have to take my ♥K, and after that we can no longer arrange a diamond ruff. Declarer can then always make four hearts, three diamonds and the ♣K. To cash the ♥A first and then exit with a heart is not good enough, because I will then take ♥K and ♣A and throw dummy in with ♣K. Declarer has nothing better than to ruff dummy's last spade and finesse against ♦Q. Joeri wins with ♦A, and throws dummy in again by playing a club. My ♦Q will then take the setting trick..."

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Removing the bidding cards before the auction has ended

In the next round Leo and Linda met the long-suffering politicians. In spite of new budget cuts however, the mayor greeted them good-naturedly, apparently satisfied with their scores so far. Leo and Linda were distinctly less happy with proceedings, and picked up their cards with a grim expression.

E/-	♠ - ♥ J 10 7 6 5 2 ♦ J 9 3 ♣ 9 8 6 4
♠ A Q 10 6 3 ♥ A K 4 ♦ K 8 5 2 ♣ 2	N W         E S	♠ K J 9 4 2   ♥ Q 8 3   ♦ Q 7 6   ♣ K Q
	♠ 8 7 5 ♥ 9 ♦ A 10 4 ♣ A J 10 7 5 3
West councillor -   4 ♣   ...pass	North Leo -   5 ♣   pass	East mayor 1 ♠   double	South Linda 2 ♣   pass

<<<

The mayor opened 1♠ as dealer, and Linda overcalled 2♣. The councillor splintered 4♣, and Leo sacrificed in 5♣. The mayor doubled without pause, but the councillor still had something to think about. With her enormous hand it could well be 5♠ or even 6♠ for them.

The mayor observed his partner's lengthy contemplation in alarm. Holding ♣KQ bare and no aces he had the worst possible 13-count, and he absolutely wanted the councillor to pass. He started to remove his bidding cards from the table, upon which the councillor indeed decided to pass.

Leo and Linda glared at their opponents suspiciously, and the councillor spun ♠A onto the green baize. That was not the best lead, a trump would have been more productive. Linda ruffed in dummy and led a club to her ♣A. That wasn't the best play either, she should have continued with ♦J instead. She ruffed another spade and only now played ♦J, hoping that East would cover this card. The mayor however defended well by ducking, and the trick ran to West's ♦K.

The councillor straightened her back to analyze the lay of the cards. It looked as if declarer had ♦A and six clubs headed by ♣AJ. In that case the mayor had to have ♥Q to make up for his 12-13 points opening bid. She took a deep breath and then placed ♥4 on the table, underleading her ace-king!!
Linda played small from dummy, and the mayor hesitated in irritated fashion. Why did the councillor jeopardize his ♥Q like that? He eventually played this card anyway, and rubbed his eyes in astonishment when Linda produced ♥9.

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E/-	♠ - ♥ J 10 7 6 5 ♦ 9 3 ♣ 9
♠ Q 10 3 ♥ A K ♦ 8 5 2 ♣ -	N W         E S	♠ K J 4   ♥ 8 3   ♦ Q 7   ♣ K
	♠ 8 ♥ - ♦ A 10 ♣ J 10 7 5 3

Suddenly he saw the light, and quickly cashed ♣K followed by ♥8. Linda ruffed, but had no trump left in dummy to take care of her last spade and repeat the diamond finesse.

"3 down doubled is a top for us", announced the mayor triumphantly. "Superbly bid and superbly defended by us. 5♠ has no chance."
Leo opened his mouth, but Linda sighed wearily: "I know, after the friendly spade lead I could have gone 1 down by playing ♦J from dummy at trick two. And even now, without that brilliant ♥4 lead from the councillor, I would still have gone only 1 down."
The mayor, pretending not to have heard this remark, gestured at a waiter as if he wanted to order a drink...

<<<

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Giving unrequested explanation during the bidding, or as defenders after the bidding

Half way through the evening Leo and Linda opposed the lawyer and surgeon who had fled Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Leo knew they were slick and strong players, and contrary to his usual demeanour he dreaded the confrontation. Somehow or other he felt that disaster was just around the corner.

S/NS	♠ A 8 6 3 ♥ J ♦ A K 10 7 6 2 ♣ 10 2
♠ K J 7 4 ♥ Q 9 ♦ J 8 3 ♣ 8 6 5 3	N W         E S	♠ 10 5   ♥ 10 8 7 5 2   ♦ Q 9 5 4   ♣ 9 7
	♠ Q 9 2 ♥ A K 6 4 3 ♦ - ♣ A K Q J 4
West Linda -   pass   pass   pass   pass	North Dr. Snijder -   2 ♦   4 ♥   5 ♦ *   pass	East Leo -   pass   pass   pass   pass	South Mr. Pleiter 1 ♥   4 ♣   4 NT   6 NT
* 0 or 3 key cards (♦K included!)

<<<

Mr. Pleiter opended 1♥ first in hand. Dr. Snijder responded 2♦ and Mr. Pleiter jumped to 4♣. Dr. Snijder committed her first transgression by alerting this, and made things much worse by explaining spontaneously that 4♣ was a cue bid agreeing diamonds as trumps.
Mr. Pleiter, who had intended 4♣ as natural, would normally have passed on his partner's 4♥ bid. It was clear however that this was not to play, so he improvised with 4NT. This revealed ♦AK in the North hand, and with a double diamond stopper in dummy he called 6NT. Not because this was necessarily the best contract, but because it was the only certain way to silence his partner.

Dr. Snijder sent a withering glance across the table, but had no other option than to pass. Linda wisely did not ask anything, and after ample contemplation led a risk-free ♣5. Mr. Pleiter took the trick with dummy's heaven-sent ♣10, and retreated into a huddle. He had nine top tricks in clubs, diamonds and hearts. So he needed three tricks from the spade suit. ♠Kxx with East was one possibility, ♠Jx or ♠10x with East was another. Poor odds in any case, only 18% and 15% respectively, but he had to make do with it. ♠Kxx with East was marginally better on paper, but Linda with all her experience had chosen a risk-free club lead. That was a slender hint that she might possess ♠K.

Mr. Pleiter decided to place East with ♠Jx or ♠10x. Among other things because this was more spectacular and therefore would boost his ego. He continued with ♠3 at trick two, and when East produced ♠5 he played ♠9 from his hand. Linda, who had so far utilized every available second to analyze the hand, smoothly captured the trick with ♠K!

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S/NS	♠ A 8 6 ♥ J ♦ A K 10 7 6 2 ♣ 2
♠ J 7 4 ♥ Q 9 ♦ J 8 3 ♣ 8 6 3	N W         E S	♠ 10   ♥ 10 8 7 5 2   ♦ Q 9 5 4   ♣ 7
	♠ Q 2 ♥ A K 6 4 3 ♦ - ♣ A K Q J

The club continuation was for South's ♣A, who proceeded to run the rest of his club suit (diamonds away in dummy, red cards away from East-West). Mr. Pleiter then cashed ♠Q, on which East produced ♠10. Next came the ♠2, and when Linda followed with a small spade Mr. Pleiter took another pause. If West had the ♠J he would have to finesse dummy's ♠8. If East had the ♠J however he would have to play dummy's ♠A. West had won the first round of spades with ♠K, suggesting that she did not possess ♠J. But if East had started with ♠J105 he could and should have beaten the contract with certainty by inserting an honour card straight away.

Was Linda good enough to win the first round of spades smoothly with ♠K while holding ♠J? Was Leo bad enough to play the ♠5 from ♠J105? And more importantly: What about his own reputation?! If he finessed the ♠8 and Leo had ♠J he could at least maintain that the contract had no chance in the first place and that Leo had blundered. But if he played ♠A and Linda had ♠J he would have to admit that she had fooled him. That settled it!

<<<

"I am going to pay both of you a compliment by playing ♠8 from dummy", said Mr. Pleiter solemnly.
When Leo showed out Mr. Pleiter claimed the contract with a sigh of relief, and he warmly addressed Linda:
"It will not improve your score, but what a great defence! You almost tricked me there. If you win the first round of spades 'normally' with ♠J I can later catch your ♠K and Leo's ♠10 by leading ♠Q from my hand, and eventually finesse against your ♠7."

Leo was not in the mood to receive compliments, and opened his mouth to pass some critical comment.
"I know", Linda grinned awkwardly. "6NT fails on a ♥Q lead. Rather hard to find, don't you think? And we would not have been able to witness Mr. Pleiter's outstanding piece of dummy play in that case. The lead of ♥9 would be even more bizarre. This immediately presents declarer with his eleventh trick, and probably also with his downfall. He then requires no more than a straighforward 4-3 heart break or alternatively the ♠K with East, both options failing..."

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Asking for the obvious

The evening progressed, and in the penultimate round Leo and Linda played against two new members, Jo and Ko. They were of indeterminate age and had an indeterminate home address. They had been Jass champions of Groningen in their younger years, and the authorities had put them on a bridge course as part of their resocialization program. BC The Sugar Beet, always in the heart of the local community, had subsequently agreed to a free-of-charge membership for one year.

W/EW	♠ K Q 9 4 ♥ A 10 7 ♦ Q 6 2 ♣ Q 8 3
♠ 8 6 5 2 ♥ K 9 3 2 ♦ J 9 8 4 ♣ 10	N W         E S	♠ J 3   ♥ J 8 4   ♦ A 7 3   ♣ A K J 9 5
	♠ A 10 7 ♥ Q 6 5 ♦ K 10 5 ♣ 7 6 4 2
West Jo pass   pass	North Linda 1 ♣   pass	East Ko ...pass   pass	South Leo 1 NT

<<<

They shared the boards with another table, and the players soon picked up these cards. Jo passed as dealer, meanwhile admiring the sweater she had been donated by the Salvation Army. Linda opened with 1♣, and Ko viewed his hand in bewilderment.
"What does 1♣ mean?", he asked uncertainly.
"We play five-card majors", Leo replied unhelpfully, annoyed by all their bad scores so far.
"Ah, I see", nodded a mystified Ko. "And how many clubs does North have now?"
"At least two", said Leo bluntly. "But it could be more."
"Oh", murmered Ko, having no idea what to do. "Eh, I pass."
Leo pointed at the green cards in Ko's bidding box, and bid 1NT which ended the bidding.

Jo had more than enough ringcraft to understand that Ko held a good club suit. She had not yet learned what Unauthorized Information was, and unscrupulously led an absurd ♣10. Leo ducked in dummy, hoping for a mistake by East. But Ko, after some thought, overtook with ♣J and contentedly cashed all his clubs. No Trump contracts were great, he thought. Playing Jass there was always a trump suit, but at bridge in No Trumps one could reel off a long suit without interruption.

Leo discarded a heart, Jo a diamond, two hearts and a spade, and dummy a diamond and a heart. Ko, guided by some magic force, continued with ♠3 taken by dummy's ♠9. Leo pondered unhappily how to proceed, and eventually led a small diamond towards his ♦10. In line with the whole evening Jo won with ♦J and returned a diamond for Ko's ♦A.

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"1NT -1 is a shared top for us!", exclaimed Ko exultantly. "Bridge isn't nearly as difficult as everyone says!"
Leo eyed him with a pained expression, but could not muster the energy to explain that his unexperienced opponents had done something unethical.

A few moments later the board moved to another table, where Daphne-Jolijn as North also opened 1♣. The mayor, like Ko, elaborately inquired how many clubs this bid promised, and then passed. Diederik-Jan was soon declarer in 1NT.

W/EW	♠ K Q 9 4 ♥ A 10 7 ♦ Q 6 2 ♣ Q 8 3
♠ 8 6 5 2 ♥ K 9 3 2 ♦ J 9 8 4 ♣ 10	N W         E S	♠ J 3   ♥ J 8 4   ♦ A 7 3   ♣ A K J 9 5
	♠ A 10 7 ♥ Q 6 5 ♦ K 10 5 ♣ 7 6 4 2
West councillor pass   pass	North Daphne-Jolijn 1 ♣   pass	East mayor ...pass   pass	South Diederik-Jan 1 NT

<<<

The councillor contemplated her lead. She had just followed a workshop on "Ethics in Politics", and decided not to exploit the knowledge that her partner held good clubs. After prolonged consideration she placed ♠2 (fourth best) on the baize, miraculously succeeding not to present South with the contract straight away.

The first trick ran via the mayor's jack to South's ♠A, and Diederik-Jan continued with ♠7 to dummy's ♠K. When the mayor produced ♠3 he retreated into deep thought. The spades appeared to be 4-2, and like the councillor he suspected that the mayor was strong in clubs. Based on this, he decided to let his pompous opponent do the dirty work.

After one more look at the ceiling Diederik-Jan firmly said "queen of clubs" to his twin sister!
The mayor won with ♣K and cashed the rest of his clubs. South threw a heart, West a diamond, two hearts and a spade, and dummy a diamond and a heart. The mayor subsequently found himself endplayed in the red suits, and eventually continued with ♦A and another diamond to dummy's ♦Q. That would have been effective if the councillor had held ♠10. As it was however, Diederik-Jan was able to cross to his hand with the carefully preserved ♠10 and cash ♦K. Dummy's ♥A and ♠Q brought his total to seven well-deserved tricks.

"Well played", murmered the councillor under her breath.
"He goes down on a club lead", complained the mayor.
"That didn't look like a sound action to me", said the councillor with a straight face...

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Asking suggestive or closed-ended questions during the auction

In the last round Leo and Linda joined the cunning Paul and Pauline. Everything that had worked in the past now seemed to go wrong. Just like last week, Leo estimated their score below 40%, and he sorted his cards with a feeling of desolation. Paul and Pauline sensed the emotional tension and said nothing.

S/all	♠ J ♥ K Q J 6 3 ♦ A 10 5 2 ♣ K Q 9
♠ K Q 10 8 7 4 ♥ - ♦ K Q 9 7 4 ♣ J 5	N W         E S	♠ 9 6 5 3 2   ♥ 9 7 4   ♦ J   ♣ 10 8 7 2
	♠ A ♥ A 10 8 5 2 ♦ 8 6 3 ♣ A 6 4 3
West Pauline -   3 ♣ *   4 ♠   pass   6 ♠   pass	North Leo -   3 ♠   4 NT   6 ♥   double	East Paul -   pass   5 ♠   pass   pass	South Linda 1 ♥   4 ♣   double **   pass   pass
*   Ghestem: At least 5-5 spades-diamonds ** DOPI: 0 or 3 keycards

<<<

Linda opened 1♥ as dealer, and Pauline overcalled a Ghestem 3♣ for the pointed suits. Leo, distracted by his misery, bid a vague 3♠, and Paul impulsively asked:
"Is 3♠ natural?"
"No, 3♠ is not natural", Linda scoffed, waiving her blue ALERT card.

Paul passed, and Linda decided to cue her ♣A. Pauline, who concluded from Paul's embarrasing inquiry that he had length in spades, preempted 4♠. Leo, who had meanwhile come to his senses, wheeled Blackwood into position which Paul attempted to sabotage with a 5♠ call. But Leo and Linda had this situation clear in their minds, and they reached 6♥ without further ado.

Pauline however was not done yet. North-South could well have no spade losers, and they would probably chalk up 6♥ in that case. She herself had no heart losers, so she decided to take a shot at 6♠. Leo doubled with obvious irritation and led ♥K. Pauline ruffed, conceded ♠A, ♦A and two club tricks, and entered 3 down for -800 with a straight face.

>>>

S/all	♠ J ♥ K Q J 6 3 ♦ A 10 5 2 ♣ K Q 9
♠ K Q 10 8 7 4 ♥ - ♦ K Q 9 7 4 ♣ J 5	N W         E S	♠ 9 6 5 3 2   ♥ 9 7 4   ♦ J   ♣ 10 8 7 2
	♠ A ♥ A 10 8 5 2 ♦ 8 6 3 ♣ A 6 4 3
West Mathilde -   3 ♣ *   pass   pass	North mayor -   4 NT   6 ♥	East Constance -   pass   pass	South councillor 1 ♥   5 ♣   pass
*   Ghestem: At least 5-5 spades-diamonds

A few moments later the board moved to another table, where the councillor managed to end in 6♥ after more alert bidding by the mayor. Mathilde led a good natured ♠K, won by the councillor's ace. Declarer drew three rounds of trumps, cashed ♣KQ, crossed to ♣A and ruffed her last club.

<<<

The councillor paused for a moment, and then played ♦2 from dummy in careless fashion! She placed West with six spades and five diamonds (rather than the other way around), in any case because she was otherwise doomed. East's singleton diamond then had to be an honour card. As an economist she found this reasonable odds, and when Constance produced ♦J she gave a satisfied nod and showed her cards to Mathilde.

"If you don't overtake your partner's ♦J she has to lead a spade and concede a ruff and discard. And if you do overtake the ♦J I will subsequently finesse against your other diamond honour", said the councillor. "Either way I'm home."

"Nicely played", nodded Mathilde amiably, and replaced her cards into the board.
Constance, who looked distinctly less happy, wanted to say something but Mathilde beat her to it:
"You're right, 6♥ fails on the lead of a small diamond, but I have to admit that was beyond me."

Leo's and Linda's nightmare had come true, scoring once more below 40%. The mayor however was explaining loudly at the bar how he had finished on top. Leo's anger had deflated like air from a punctured tyre, and he was left with desolate despair. Linda offered him a beer with a hesitant smile, sipped thoughtfully from her wine, and murmered:
"I think I know why we have scored so disastrously lately. It's high time we start playing real bridge..."


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