Summer Instant Matchpoint Game July 9, 2018 - Set 180709 Analysis by Sylvia Shi and Daniel Korbel Sylvia Shi started playing bridge in 2011. Since then, she has a meteoric rise to the top. She won her fi rst North American championship, the Lebhar IMP Pairs, in 2015, then quickly followed that up with a win in the Mixed Swiss Teams later that year. She won the Women’s USBC in 2016 and 2017, the fi rst win culminating in a Gold medal at the world championships. She has won the Women’s Board-a-Match teams and the Women’s Open Pairs. In 2017 she placed second in the Blue Ribbon Pairs, one of the most prestigious pairs events on the NABC schedule. She currently lives in Las Vegas and spends her time teaching bridge online and playing bridge at tournaments. Daniel Korbel has won the Canadian Championships four times and represented Canada six times in international competition, including a silver medal in the Transnational Mixed teams in 2012. He has won two North American Championships and placed second in fi ve others. He is a professional player with 16,000 masterpoints. Daniel has recently migrated from Canada and now he and Sylvia live in Las Vegas where he doesn’t have to worry about shoveling snow! Board: 1 ♠ K Q West North East South Results of Board 1 Dealer: N ♥ K 10 9 8 2 1♥ Pass 1♠ Vul: None ♦ K 5 4 3 Pass 2♦ Pass 3♥ Scores MPS ♣ 9 8 All Pass N-S E-W N-S ♠ J 9 3 2 ♠ 5 ... ... 100 ♥ Q 7 ♥ J 5 4 Both North and East have marginal opening bids 450 ... 98 ♦ Q 10 9 8 ♦ A J 7 6 2 (both hands have only 11 high-card points, but 420 ... 95 ♣ K 6 3 ♣ A J 7 5 qualify using the Rule of 20). If North opens, it 300 ... 92 ♠ A 10 8 7 6 4 may be diffi cult for South to restrain himself from 200 ... 91 ♥ A 6 3 bidding game, but the hands do not fi t very well 170 ... 88 ♦ — and nine tricks are the limit on reasonable defense. 140 ... 78 ♣ Q 10 4 2 If North passes and East opens the bidding, N/S 110 ... 69 are likely to buy the hand in a spade or heart 100 ... 63 partscore. Finally, if both North and East pass, South will open either 1♠ or 2♠ and 50 ... 56 probably buy the contract in 3♠. If South opens 2♠ and this passes back around to ... 50 34 East, East should reopen with a double: maximum passed hand and good distribution. ... 100 11 It can’t be right to let the opponents play at the two level when they want to be there! ... 150 5 If E/W do manage to steal the contract to 3♦, this is slated for down one, but the ... 200 3 slightest slip by the defense will let it through. In any case, any plus score for N/S will ... 470 1 score above average, since it is very diffi cult to stay low enough on these promising- ... ... 0 looking hands. Board: 2 ♠ A 9 8 2 West North East South Results of Board 2 Dealer: E ♥ Q J 9 2 1NT 3♣ Vul: N-S ♦ J 10 9 All Pass Scores MPS ♣ 10 9 N-S E-W N-S ♠ Q 7 6 3 ♠ 10 5 East has a perfectly lovely 1NT opener (don’t ... ... 100 ♥ 10 8 7 4 ♥ A K 6 3 worry about the unstopped doubleton; if you have 250 ... 99 ♦ K 8 6 ♦ A Q 7 5 3 a bid that describes your hand type accurately, 150 ... 95 ♣ J 8 ♣ K 5 make it). Although South is vulnerable, it’s hard 130 ... 86 ♠ K J 4 to imagine wanting to let the opponents play at 110 ... 77 ♥ 5 the two level with this hand, so even though it 100 ... 65 ♦ 4 2 could work out poorly some of the time, South 50 ... 41 ♣ A Q 7 6 4 3 2 should jump directly to 3♣ to make life diffi cult ... 90 24 for the opponents. This will get through West and ... 100 22 North, and probably East as well, but if East decides to take a chance and bid 3♦, this ... 110 18 will improve his score. 3♦ will probably drift down one on a singleton heart lead from ... 120 8 South, but nobody can double 3♦, and 3♣ is easy to make. ... 170 2 ... 180 1 ... ... 0 Board: 3 ♠ Q 5 3 West North East South Results of Board 3 Dealer: S ♥ A 7 2 Pass Vul: E-W ♦ 9 7 5 Pass 1♣ Pass 1♠ Scores IMP ♣ K Q J 4 2♥ Dbl Pass 2♠ N-S E-W N-S ♠ 4 2 ♠ A J 10 6 All Pass ... ... 100 ♥ K Q 10 8 6 ♥ J 3 110 ... 99 ♦ J 6 4 2 ♦ K Q 10 Boy, what a trap hand for N/S! North has a 100 ... 97 ♣ A 10 ♣ 9 8 3 2 perfectly normal third seat 1♣ opening bid, and 90 ... 95 ♠ K 9 8 7 South has a perfectly normal 1♠ response. West 80 ... 92 ♥ 9 5 4 overcalls 2♥ as a passed hand, and North faces Pass 90 ♦ A 8 3 the first critical decision of the deal. Holding such a ... 50 83 ♣ 7 6 5 square minimum opposite a passed-hand partner, ... 90 74 it would be reasonable (and also successful) not to ... 100 65 make a support double. If North does not raise spades in some way, the final contract ... 110 55 will be 2♥ by West, +140. If North does make a support double, the deal becomes a ... 120 50 classic matchpoint battle. South will retreat to 2♠, which is slated to go down two ... 140 31 tricks, for -100. This would be a good result for N/S, since E/W have an easy +140 at ... 150 10 many tables, and now East faces the second critical decision of the deal: if East doubles, ... 170 6 she will get +300 for a sensational result, but if East timidly passes 2♠ out, she will ... 200 5 receive only 35% of the matchpoints. ... 300 4 ... 500 2 ... ... 0 Board: 4 ♠ A K Q 7 4 West North East South Results of Board 4 Dealer: W ♥ J 8 1♠ Pass 2♦ Pass Vul: Both ♦ K 9 3 3♣ Pass 3NT All Pass Scores IMP ♣ 5 4 3 N-S E-W N-S ♠ 10 9 6 5 2 ♠ 8 3 The West hand may have only 10 high-card points, ... ... 100 ♥ A 2 ♥ K Q 9 6 but with the exciting 5-5 distribution it’s a long- 200 ... 99 ♦ 8 ♦ A Q 10 7 6 run winner to open the bidding. This has the twin 100 ... 97 ♣ K Q J 7 6 ♣ A 10 effects of both silencing North as well as making ... 110 92 ♠ J it easy for E/W to bid to their cold 3NT. If East ... 130 87 ♥ 10 7 5 4 3 guesses to finesse the ♦Q for an overtrick, she will ... 150 78 ♦ J 5 4 2 take 10 tricks, which looks like the correct guess if ... 200 70 ♣ 9 8 2 one is greedy, because even if the ♦10 forces the ... 500 67 ♦K, the defense will probably be able to shift to ... 600 59 spades profitably on most layouts). However, if East gets cold feet and simply cashes ... 630 29 her nine tricks, that will swing 30 more matchpoints to N/S. Woe to any North who ... 660 5 tries a fancy Lightner double of 3NT asking for a spade lead — now East will have the ... 750 3 pleasure of choosing between +750 and +950! ... 800 1 ... ... 0 Board: 5 ♠ J 10 8 5 3 2 West North East South Results of Board 5 Dealer: N ♥ A Q 9 3 2 Pass 1♦ Pass Vul: N-S ♦ — 1♠ Pass 2♦ Pass Scores MPS ♣ 10 5 3♦ Pass 3NT All Pass N-S E-W N-S ♠ A K 7 6 4 ♠ 9 ... ... 100 ♥ 7 5 ♥ K J 10 What an unlucky deal we have here! For bidding 730 ... 99 ♦ 10 9 8 ♦ A K Q 5 4 3 to the excellent 3NT, E/W will get punished by 300 ... 98 ♣ Q 9 7 ♣ J 6 3 going down two or three tricks. Those E/W who 200 ... 97 ♠ Q stop in 3♦ and make it will score very well (if a 150 ... 96 ♥ 8 6 4 little undeservedly). 100 ... 74 ♦ J 7 6 2 50 ... 43 ♣ A K 8 4 2 If West passes 2♦ (an error, in my view, with this ... 90 33 good of a hand for diamonds), this may allow N/S ... 100 32 to back into 3♥, which can be made with (very) ... 110 26 careful play. ... 150 18 ... 200 16 ... 400 10 ... 430 5 ... 470 3 ... 500 1 ... ... 0 Board: 6 ♠ K Q 6 2 West North East South Results of Board 6 Dealer: E ♥ 9 1♥ Pass Vul: E-W ♦ K J 8 7 6 3♥ Pass 4♥ All Pass Scores IMP ♣ 10 9 2 N-S E-W N-S ♠ 10 9 7 ♠ J 3 West should stretch to give a limit raise, upgrading ... ... 100 ♥ K Q J 2 ♥ A 10 8 6 3 for the singleton and East, with his exciting 590 ... 98 ♦ Q 5 4 3 2 ♦ 9 distribution and control-rich hand, should accept, 500 ... 94 ♣ J ♣ A Q 8 7 6 despite holding a minimum.