Pairs Tactics by Andrew Robson Be Bold When Protecting AFTER TWO passes, you are in the West North East South to 3 ´ over the opponents’ 3 ™. Ever. He protective, or balancing seat. If you pass, 1™ must remember that you couldn’t act over the bidding is over. Because of this, you Pass 2™ Pass Pass 1™, so do not have a good hand. should generally be bolder and normal ? Hand B: double. You were short of high criteria for bids are loosened – hence why cards to do this over 1 ™, but the fact that you are in what is sometimes referred to as the opponents have found a fit means that ‘the Cheat Seat’. Hand A Hand B your side almost certainly has a fit (if the Bold protecting can backfire, however. ´ 9 7 4 3 2 ´ Q 9 5 3 opponents have an eight-card fit, you will This is not so much because the oppo - ™ 9 5 2 ™ 8 5 always have an eight-card – or better – fit nents suddenly wake up and bid game t A J 8 5 t K 7 4 2 too, unless you have three seven-card fits). (although that may happen if they ® K ® A 9 6 And the fact that they have stopped at a unearth a fit that had remained hidden low level means that your side likely holds until your protection). Generally, if the Hand C close to half the points in the pack. opponents thought they could make ´ A 10 Hand C: 3 ®. More dangerous than game, you would not find yourself in the ™ 9 5 4 3 Hands A and B because you’re at the protective position (below game level). t 9 8 three level – and you would probably The main danger of protecting is that your ® K J 9 8 4 have reluctantly to pass if you were vul - side has insufficient values and no good fit nerable. However, letting the opponents and instead of bidding one more (which is play undisturbed in 2 ™ simply isn’t win - what you normally hope they’ll do), the Answers ning pairs tactics. Your four small hearts opponents stop off and double you. are interesting: partner rates to have a Yes, you should worry a bit about this Hand A: you should protect with 2 ´. Yes, single ton. Therefore partner has twelve danger of being doubled after a light you might be doubled in the proverbial outside cards and you’d be very unlucky protection. But we are back to that familiar voice of thunder and ‘go for a number’. Pay to find him with fewer than three clubs. pairs principle: do not worry about the odd off to those rare occasions. Most of the If, after you bid 3 ®, it goes (Double) – disaster if most of the time your action time, you’ll push the opponents to 3 ™. Pass – (Pass) – back to you, you’ve works out. It’s frequency of gain, not Maybe they will make it – in which case probably earned your side a zero. But amount of gain, which is all-important at your protection has achieved nothing (but those occasions will be far fewer than pairs: how often , not by how much . cost nothing); maybe, though, they’ll go those where you push the oppo nents to Now, an exercise for you. You are West down. And now your protection has gained 3™, then beat it by a trick. on the following auction with neither side handsomely. Note that your well-trained Now look at our featured deal on the vulnerable: partner will not punish you by bid ding on next page: ‹ in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere " !" " ! 35-/ %< )37'7 " " 267> No Fear pairs, Men’s, Ladies’ and Mixed pairs ! 35-/ '7267> 29267> !" " ! 8/<267> );'/8(-1+*/-+,76 Championship Pairs " 81)> !" " Green Pointed Swiss Teams ")5)7851727,)3238/%5%1();')//)17 "# Full details from and entries to: !# *25285,5-670%65)%. /)%6)5)48)67*8//()7%-/6 Anne Swannell, Stantway House, Westbury-on-Severn, ;75%-+,76%9%-/%&/)%7%//9)18)683215)48)67//)9)176%5),%/*&2%5();')37*25%67&2851)%1(,5-670%6 Gloucester, GL14 1QF :,-',-1'/8()/81',//)9)176-1'/8():)/'20)5)')37-21*8//(83/-'%7)&5-(+)352+5%00)6)0-1%56%1(35-=)6 13)6..'(5$,.42.($4(5(.(2+10(+,.,2600 " /$,. 3$558'4-8&1/7(%4,5( 777+1.,'$847,5+%3,'*(&16- # ! ? ! ?$ ? www.ebu.co.uk February 2013 English Bridge 5 Continued from Page 5 CAPTION COMPETITION bare ace. Love All. Dealer South. Refraining from cashing the king of ´ J 2 clubs (which would let declarer home), ™ K 7 2 West accurately switched to a trump. t K J 5 3 2 Declarer beat East’s queen with the ace ® 10 5 2 and led a second diamond. East beat ´ A 10 ´ K 9 8 6 4 dummy’s jack with the ace and led the N ™ 9 5 4 3 W E ™ Q seven of clubs, West beating declarer’s t 9 8 S t A 10 7 6 queen with the king and then leading the ® K J 9 8 4 ® 7 6 3 jack, declarer ruffing. ´ Q 7 5 3 We have reached this five-card ending, ™ A J 10 8 6 with declarer needing the rest of the tricks: t Q 4 ® A Q What do you mean, ‘Find a lead’? ´ — THE winner of our December com pe ti - ™ K 7 tion, with the cap tion above, is Don West North East South t K 5 3 Smedley of Aston-on-Trent, Derby, who 1™ ® — will re ceive an elegant bridge mug Pass 2™ Pass Pass ´ — ´ 9 8 6 from our sponsors, Bridge and Golf N Gifts Direct (see page 11). Other excel - 3® Pass Pass 3™ ™ 9 5 4 W E ™ — All Pass t — S t 10 6 lent cap tions were: . and that is why you must never tell your wife what she ® 8 4 ® — should have led! (Tom Crawley, Cambs); West would have been able to scramble ´ Q 7 See, Fido – we should have drawn our eight tricks in 3 ® (that’s only minus 100 ™ J 10 8 trumps! (Jill Entwistle); I played bridge all even if you’re doubled), so South really t — the time when I was at university (Jane had to bid on to 3 ™ to try to score his ® — Jones, Manchester); The Homeless Team +140. It was a nip and tuck affair. said I had to be vulnerable before they West kicked off with the nine of can help (Dave Robinson, Yorks); If only diamonds – the ace of spades would be far Declarer can get tantalisingly close but I hadn’t called my wife out of that too active (and would enable declarer to cannot quite do it. Best is to lead the double! (Frank Tomlin, Essex); Now, an ace counts as 4 points, a king as 3 . make nine tricks) – as would a club from queen of spades, but West ruffs low. (John Shaw, Notts); and OK, so I ruff, the king around to declarer’s ace-queen. Dummy overruffs with the seven and a what next? (Richard Perryman, Essex). The nine of diamonds ran to South’s diamond is ruffed with the ten. The seven The cartoon for our new competition queen (East correctly ducking – play his of spades is now ruffed with the king, but is below. Please send your bridgy ace on nothing and again there would be West holds nine-small of trumps over captions (multiple entries accep ted) to no way for the defence to win the requisite declarer’s jack-eight and must score a the Editor, English Bridge, 23 Erleigh five tricks). further trick. Road, Reading RG1 5LR or by e-mail to At trick two declarer led a spade (best), Down one and an 80% board. All those [email protected] not later than 20th the trick going ´3, ´10, ´J, ´K. East quiet good boards will more than com - February 2012. Don’t forget to include your full postal address! switched to the six of clubs (the seven – pensate for the odd minus 500 or minus then low – might be taken as top of a 800 when North holds the equivalent of: doubleton). Knowing the king was offside, ´ 8 5 2 ™ J 6 2 t 7 6 ® A Q 10 6 5 declarer rose with the ace and led a second and stands on his chair and doubles 3 ® in (low) spade, West winning with his now a voice of thunder. r Congratulations . to Andrew Robson upon his award of an OBE for services to Bridge and Charity in The Queen’s New Year Honours list. Sponsored by Bridge & Golf Gifts Direct 6 English Bridge February 2013 www.ebu.co.uk.