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Kathy Yule.

Long Suits: Long Way on Jan’s Day

Back to 1990 for today’s Jan’s Day article which throws up an opening lead problem and a somewhat offbeat double. Let’s deal with the opening lead first and see if you made the same lead as Kathy Yule did 31 years ago.

 

2 was an artificial force. Your decision?

Oh, and while you are pondering that, what are you going to bid with the following:

 

Jan Cormack

“It was a long flight to the far South but Kathy Yule and I were well rewarded when we played in the Kelvin Hotel South Island Pairs in Invercargill.

Joseph Mitchell and Michael Joseph, of Otago, managed to head off Kathy and myself for first place with Joan Scarlet and Hamish Ryan, of Winton, third.

All pairs played 3 sessions at the end of which the top 14 qualified for the championship with 50% carry forward. Barometer scoring was used in the final.

Thus, all boards were duplicated with all pairs playing the boards at the same time. While I waited impatiently for our score to flash up on the screen at the end of each round, Kathy preferred to ignore our progress.

Kathy certainly found the right lead of the A on this deal:

 

She hoped I held a singleton club and was not to be disappointed. I ruffed the second club, Kathy playing 4 asking for a diamond return. Diamond to the ace and then a second club ruff was the only way to defeat this game.

On then to the bidding problem above.

 

Let us presume you are a direct descendant of Leo the Lion and jump straight to 5! Now you have to play it!

 

Partner’s double was optimistic, to put it mildly!"(I wonder how East felt when game was bid…perhaps relief at the lack of a double!)

"North led A which was ruffed and was followed by 5 to the king and ace. Next came a successful diamond finesse, followed by AK, Q, then9 to the J and another club ruffed, setting up dummy’s fifth club for a spade discard. A provided an entry to that club, the contract making for the loss of just one spade and Q.

It just goes to show that aggressive bidding pays off…well, it did this time."

So, how aggressive here?

How aggressive do you feel like being here? What plan have you for this hand, you know the kind of hand you moan about getting all the time? Moan away…

 

Few would argue against your initial pass or your 2bid….but what now? Any plans to prolong the auction? 2NT shows 23-24 balanced. Pairs.

Richard Solomon

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