The Women's Trial (I)

by Phillip Alder

The trials to select seven of the eight United States teams for this year's world championships were played in Schaumburg, IL, from May 10 to June 9. (USA 1 for the was decided last year.) First, here are three bidding problems.

1a. With both sides vulnerable, you pick up:

‰ – Š Q 10 7 6 2 ‹ 9 8 6 3 2 Œ A 9 2

The auction starts slowly:

West North East South Responder Partner Opener You Pass 1‹ 1‰ ??

What would you respond?

2. With only the opponents vulnerable, you are dealt:

‰ A 10 6 5 Š Q 2 ‹ J 9 4 3 Œ 7 6 4

The bidding begins like this:

West North East South Partner Responder You Opener Pass 1‹ 4‰ Pass ??

What would you do?

1b. You should have made a negative double, showing four hearts and six-plus points or five or six hearts and 6-9 points. Try to find a major-suit fit first. However, the auction leaps skywards:

West North East South Responder Partner Opener You Pass 1‹ 1‰ Dble 3‹ (a) Pass 4‰ ?? (a) Mixed Raise: typically four-card support, 7-9 high-card points and nine losers

What would you do now?

1 Only five women's teams entered to try to claim one of the two berths in the Venice Cup. The event started with a round robin of 14- matches played in two 7-board halves to eliminate one team. Then came two 60-board semifinals. The winners competed over another 60 boards to select USA-1. The losing semifinalists had their own 60-board battle to choose the team to play a further 60 boards against the loser of the USA-1 final to select USA-2. In those semifinals, one match was not close. Hjordis “Disa” Eythorsdottir-Linda Lewis, Cindy Bernstein-Sally Wheeler and Lynn Deas-Janice Seamon-Molson defeated May Sakr-Allison Howard- Kristen Onsgard and Gen Geiger-Gigi Simpson by 154 international match points to 49, the losers conceding after 45 boards. The other match between Lynn Baker-Karen McCallum, -Kerri Sanborn and Beth Palmer-Sylvia Shi, and Cheri-Bjerkan-Rozanne Pollack and Peggy Sutherlin-Pam Wittes was much closer. After the first quarter, Bjerkan led by 40 imps to 19. In the second session, that lead was extended by 5 imps. The third set was low-scoring, taken by 16 imps to 5 by Baker . The last session began with Bjerkan ahead by 77 imps to 62. Bjerkan gained another 4 imps (5-1) over Boards 46 and 47. Then:

2 North Dlr: East ‰ 9 Vul: N-S Š K 9 7 3 ‹ Q 10 6 2 Œ A 10 9 5 West East ‰ K Q 8 7 4 3 2 ‰ A 10 6 5 Š A 10 8 6 Š Q 2 ‹ 5 ‹ J 9 4 3 Œ K Œ 7 6 4 South ‰ J Š J 5 4 ‹ A K 8 7 Œ Q J 8 3 2 Open Room: West North East South Bjerkan Palmer Pollack Shi Pass 1Œ 4‰ Pass Pass Pass

Closed Room: West North East South Sanborn Wittes Levitina Sutherlin Pass 1‹ 4‰ Pass 5‰ Pass Pass Dble All Pass

Notice South's choice of opening bid. (I am in the one-club camp, preferring to bid my longest suit first. If partner responds one spade, I rebid one notrump and hope for the best. If you open one diamond and rebid two clubs, that's a good way to end in a 4-2 diamond fit. I would prefer to pass this unimpressive 12-count. Kaplan-Rubens evaluates this hand at 11.7 points.) Then, after West overcalled four spades, Pollack wisely passed and Levitina ambitiously raised. Wittes, with nine points opposite an opening bid, felt that enough was enough. As is so often the case, the pair in four made five and the pair in five made four! In the Open Room, North led the heart seven (lowest from an odd number or third-highest from an even number). Bjerkan put up dummy's queen, drew the trumps and claimed, conceding tricks to the minor-suit aces. Wittes did better, leading the diamond six. Now the defenders had to take one trick in each side suit. Plus 450 and plus 100 extended the Bjerkan lead by 11 imps. The next board was flat. Then:

3 North Dlr: West ‰ 10 8 7 Vul: Both Š A 3 ‹ K Q J 4 Œ J 10 8 6 West East ‰ K J 5 4 3 ‰ A Q 9 6 2 Š 9 8 5 4 Š K J ‹ 10 ‹ A 7 5 Œ Q 7 4 Œ K 5 3 South ‰ – Š Q 10 7 6 2 ‹ 9 8 6 3 2 Œ A 9 2 Open Room: West North East South Bjerkan Palmer Pollack Shi Pass 1‹ 1‰ Dble 3‹ (a) Pass 4‰ 5‹ Pass Pass Dble All Pass (a) Mixed Raise: typically four-card support, 7-9 high-card points and nine losers

Closed Room: West North East South Sanborn Wittes Levitina Sutherlin Pass Pass 1‰ Pass 3‰ (a) Pass 4‰ All Pass (a) Mixed Raise

Palmer and Shi open almost all 11-counts. This made it easy to find the profitable five-diamond vul- nerable . With the excellent club spots, Palmer lost only one heart, one diamond and one club. (After a low-diamond lead, declarer immediately played two rounds of hearts. East shifted to a club.) Four spades could have been held to contract, but South discarded a club on a . This allowed Levitina to play a club to the queen and on the way back to bring down the ace. Minus 200 and plus 650 gave Baker 10 imps, reducing the Bjerkan lead to 20 imps (92-72) with ten boards to go.

To be continued

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