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Dougal McLean Wide Open.

Wellington’s Seniors and Women’s teams will need to improve their current lowly positions if that region is to retain the Dougal McLean Trophy. Wellington’s Intermediates appear to have their competition sown up with a lead of 24vps over Canterbury with just three matches remaining. Meanwhile, in the Open competition, it is Auckland-Northland and Wellington fighting in their own private battle for the top spot with Auckland-Northland 25 vps in the lead (they have won all 9 matches to date with scores of 14 vps or greater) and Wellington a further 27 vps ahead of third place.

These are the current Dougal McLean standings:

1.	Auckland-Northland	33
2=	Otago-Southland	28
2=	Wellington	27
4.	Central Districts	26
5=	Canterbury	25
5=	Waikato Bays	23
7.	Top of The South	10

 
  Otago-Southland's Jeff Elton and Jo Smith take on Top of The South's
Thomas Pyatt and Peter Bone in the Intermediate competition.

Both Women’s and Seniors events are close. Waikato Bays have their noses in front in the Women’s field by 8vps from a rejuvenated Auckland-Northland and Otago-Southland. Only 0.19 vp separates Canterbury and Central Districts at the top of the Seniors ladder with Otago-Southland and Top of The South also within striking distance. Plenty, therefore, to play for in the final three matches of the competition this morning.
          A Playing Chef

That's Waikato Bays' Karen Martelletti. She got drafted into her Region's
Women's team at the 11th hour because of sickness. Karen is doing a pretty good
job at the table too as her team leads the way. Here, she can relax as dummy against
Top of The South's Kathryn Brookes  and Pam Dravitzki.

Is Nick Jacob a better player than Michael Ware?

What a dangerous question to pose! You can draw your own conclusions but when Nick manages 12 more tricks as declarer with the same suit as trumps…well, you just have to wonder! Wonder a few minutes longer.

Every Convention has its Day

And for Evelyn and Bob Hurley of the Central Districts Seniors, Board 17 of Match 7 enabled them to have a particularly good day for one of theirs:

 

The convention, coming from Norway, is called Ekren where the 2 opening shows both majors and 4-7 high card points. Evelyn was maximum when she started the action, even if most of her points were elsewhere. She did strike gold when Bob produced wonderful hearts and forced their opponents into taking meagre pickings, just 100 from 5x, when Bob had even less diamonds than Evelyn had. Their teammates were allowed to make a very comfortable 11 tricks in diamonds at the other table, giving Central Districts a nice 7 imp pick-up.

Relay’s one way

It’s not the only way to bid the following nice slam but it certainly helped Central Districts’ Wayne Burrows and George Masters in their Round 9 match yesterday.

 

 

2 was 11-15 with 5+ diamonds and no 4-card major. East's first three bids were asking bids and artificial. 3 showed West’s exact shape and 4 0 -3 controls (ace 2, king 1). 4 showed either no spade honour or AKQ and holding three spades and six diamonds, East’s money was firmly in favour of no wasted spade honour.

A natural auction might start:

                        West                         East

                           1                           2

                           2                          3 (shortage agreeing diamonds)

after which West can place all their partner’s high cards in hearts and clubs. 4NT would then produce a very satisfactory response with West bidding to 6.

Where ever you finish, you do not want to be in 3NT which is where Central’s opponents rested….down 1. 7 Open and Senior pairs bid to slam though only one pair in the Women’s and no Intermediates. In total, five pairs played in no-trumps with three making their contract….even after a spade lead!

A Bad Workman Blames his Tools.

Well, Michael Ware did not blame a lack of good tools when he tried to do his best in this 2 contract. In fact, he was delighted with his dummy even though he failed to make a single trick!

 

So, what do you do at favourable vulnerability and a Precision style1 opening on your right? Bid! Something: anything! 2!

That was Michael Ware’s choice as West. North fancied their chances of a large penalty when their partner reopened for them (a fairly accurate prediction, except East may not have stayed there!). Thus, North passed…but… the double never came! South reasoned with their clubs that North must have absolutely nothing and therefore decided to defend this contract, undoubled!

     Bad dummy: good dummy

That is what Tom Jacob (right) produced for Michael Ware in their match against Canterbury.
Here they are in action in their top of the table battle against Wellington's Anthony Ker and Alan Grant

Michael did admit to falling down in the play as he did not even score the one trump trick that was his due, though that was not going to concern him, if his teammate made his 6 contract, from the South seat.

Nick Jacob received a diamond lead and got some immediate bad news in the trump suit. East discouraged spades with their first discard. Thus, Nick played Q, covered, which West would not do with more than two spades.

Then followed three more rounds of trumps and, a second spade and three more rounds of diamonds, with a heart and a spade being thrown from the South hand. West did not ruff but their fate was sealed whether they ruffed or not. With three cards remaining, Nick exited from dummy with his final trump discarding a second heart from hand. West was left to lead away from Kx at trick 12. Very nicely played….and I am sure Michael Ware would have played his club contract for 12 more tricks than he got had he been in Nick's seat with a somewhat better dummy than the one he received!.

On then to the drama of the last three matches.

Richard Solomon

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