Too Cute By Half
This entry was posted on 9/23/2007 11:14 PM and is filed under The Ugly.
Had a nice 12 board ACBL IMP Pairs tourney with Peter on Sunday. We got off to a huge start, going +47 and change on the first 8 boards. Then this board happened and it kind of killed our momentum. We ended up +34 and change, still good enough for a section top.
Favorable 1st
T / 9763 / KQT85 / AQ3
I opened 1 Diamond and Peter bid 1 Spade.
Now what?
To me, it's a toss-up between 2 Diamonds and 2 Clubs. The problem with 1NT isn't so much that you don't expect 1NT to play well, it's that too often partner rebids 2 Spades and ends up in a 5-1 fit.
I bid 2 Clubs.
Peter, of course, passed.
Doh.
Lefty led the 6 of Diamonds.
KJ532 / T42 / J9 / JT5
T / 9763 / KQT85 / AQ3
After a Diamond to the Ace and a Diamond back, how do you play the hand?
I won the Diamond in Dummy and led the Jack of Clubs, hoping for a cover, planning to switch to Diamonds and hoping that the person with 4 Clubs ruffed in and maybe I escape for down 1.
The Jack of Clubs lost to the King and three rounds of Hearts left Righty on lead. He cashed the Ace of Spades for down 1 and exited a Diamond, ruffed by Lefty and overruffed.
KJ53 / - / - / 5
- / 9 / KQ / AQ
At this point there are still 4 trumps outstanding and if they're 2-2, my hand is good. But with 5 Spades outstanding I was pretty sure a Spade would cash and I figured that if trumps didn't break I'd better take my Spade trick while I can.
Of course that was lazy and sloppy thinking. The opponents have no Hearts left and only one Diamond. So if Clubs don't break, I switch to Diamonds and now they'll have nothing but Spades left and have to lead them for me.
My boneheaded play cost a third downtrick. Did I mention that it was a FAST IMP Pairs?
-150 cost us 3 IMPs and change. -100 would have been 2 IMPs and change away.
