Recap Of 4/14/2014 28 Board Imp Individual

While declarer play and defense are certainly important, I think bidding ends up establishing most of the swings in our IMP games (and in most of the IMP games in which I am involved).  That was certainly the case today, mostly in terms of opening bids (or not opening the bidding).

Board 1 was a different bidding issue (what is your system to compete over the opponents 1NT opening bid?).  I don’t know the system played by EW (at the other table), but they quietly allowed a transfer to 2♥ and sold out to 2♥, making 4, +170 for our teammates.  I was East  at my table playing Meckwell, so my double indicated various hand types including a single minor.  When my partner doubled the transfer, he indicated he wanted to hear me bid out my hand. I didn’t think passing 2♦X to show diamonds and then bidding 3♦ to show diamonds made sense.  So, I just bid 3♦ right away and bought it, making 3♦ for +110 and 7 IMPs.  At both tables, the defending side needed to compete higher.  Double part score swings are as much or more IMPs than a non-vulnerable game swing.

Clearly this hand was my ‘fault’ although I think many would not bother opening a 3=4=4=2 3rd seat hand with a modest 10 HCP and only 1 quick trick.  However, ‘Munson’ 3rd seat openers have become a bit of a legend in our group and, even though that was me sitting in 3rd seat, I failed to find an ‘opening’ bid.  How bad can that be?  You wouldn’t think a passed hand opposite what could/should be another passed hand has a lucrative penalty waiting at the 2 level?!?  Both tables played 2♥.  When I led the ♦K, declarer won, continued diamonds, and had the ♠A as an entry to procure the diamond ruff in dummy.  That got declarer’s total up to 5 tricks, down 3 vulnerable, +300.  I’m feeling pretty good.  Lose 13 IMPs!  The other table was in 2♥X and without scoring the diamond ruff, they managed just the trump ♥AK and the pointed aces for 4 tricks, -1100!!!!  What a difference that ‘opening bid’ made in 3rd seat!!  And, in my opinion, no one did anything especially crazy.  Schneider opened a “Munson 3rd seat” hand and Munson (me) didn’t!!  I think this was the bidding at the other table.

Points ended up 20-20, but NS have no  place to land.  However, if North uses the principle of ‘only leave it up to partner if it makes no difference to you’ and makes a 1♥ call at the first opportunity, it would seem to me to be extremely difficult for West to double 1♥ opposite a passed hand.  It could be right, and on this hand it is, but I don’t see the double of 1♥  happening.

Again a 3rd seat opener made the difference.  My partner (knowing, as my partner, there were expectations in 3rd seat) reported he couldn’t live with himself if he failed to open 2♦ in 3rd seat.  As you see, I quickly bounced to 5♦ and they quietly took the penalty, with my table losing -300 against the red game that our teammates bid and made, since there was no 2♦ opener at the other table to interfere with reaching their spade game.  Win 8 IMPs.

Actually, when South (4th hand) opened the bidding at the other table, I think Bruce (West, holding my hand) made a Michaels cue bid.  His partner (Jack) was saying afterwards ‘but I didn’t know which minor you held.’  Bruce and I have been ‘playing’ Questem for several years.  That is a variation on Michaels where you always know partner’s minor (2M cue is the top 2 suits; 3♣ is top and bottom; 2NT is the two lower suits).  I say ‘playing’ because every time it comes up, I forget.  Why?  Because when partner makes a 3♣ overcall of a 1♥ opening, it sounds like a club preempt, not spades and clubs!  Embarrassing!  Knowing partner’s minor makes a huge difference in many competitive auctions.

Normally, I add 1 point for a 5 card suit, and 2 points for a 6 card suit.  But, I downgraded the doubleton ♣J and just considered it a 21 point hand.   Regular partner Bruce felt that he would treat it as 22 and go through 2♣-2♦-2NT to show 22-23 (with other Kokish like sequences for stronger hands).  In any case, both tables opened 2NT with that being the final contract at the other table, but partner raising me to 3NT at my table.  The opening lead…was a long time coming.   As Mike was 4=4=1=4, he struggled quite some time with what to lead.  I’m not sure what David Bird would select for the lead against either 2NT or 3NT.  Especially against 2NT he advocates safety, don’t give anything away.  All suits look dangerous and it is a very tough choice.  In any case, 2NT is cold on any lead.  And 3NT is cold against any lead but a heart.  If a heart is led, then it comes down to a 50% game (club finesse for the 9th trick).  Sadly, I can’t take my 8 top tricks with a finesse for the 9th trick (the club finesse must come before running all the diamonds), so in the fullness of time, when the club finesse lost, I was down 3, -300 vs. the 2NT making 3 on the non-heart lead at the other table, -150, lose 10 IMPs.  We got to a decent game that can never go down if the opening leader selected something other than hearts, and he almost did.  20 IMP difference on the lead (win 10 instead of lose 10).  Darn!

The opening bid again made the difference here.  On the auction shown, I considered doubling 3♦ to show values with no clear direction, but didn’t want partner to take it for penalty, so I simply bid 4♣ (which was destined to fail).  Then, when 4♦ came around to me, I chickened out and passed.  But, down 2, +200 proved useful when our teammates took their tricks defending 3NT and scored +400, win 12 IMPs.   How did they get to 3NT?  Dealer (West – Mark) opened 2♥ which was doubled by North and South decided to venture 3NT with values and solid heart stoppers.  But after a small heart lead, the club finesse lost and 7 diamond tricks hit the table.

And, for the last board, again the opening bid made all the difference.  Jerry decided to open the 6 card major with 1♥, but Bruce, not having the values to reverse, started with 1♠.  I couldn’t decide if I should invite or make a game forcing bid, but eventually I upgraded my useful spade values and settled on a game forcing 2♦, and after Bruce rebid 2♥, I bounced to the spade game (fast arrival) to eliminate any slam notions from partner’s head.  With nice spots and nice splits, 4♠ proved easy, +650.  Our teammates defended 2♥, making 2 for -110 and 11 IMPs.

I leave tomorrow for the Regional tournament in San Diego, then leave Sunday for the Regional tournament in Gatlinburg.  So, with leaving town, producing the blog was a bit of a rush this time. I hope there aren’t too many errors/typos.  Reporting fewer hands than usual might help!