N.O.T. News 5 Canberra, Saturday January 16th 2010 Session Times – Sunday Women’s and Seniors Finals 9am 11.15am 1.45pm 4pm Swiss and Seniors Swiss 11am 2pm 7.30pm Grand National Pairs 9.30am 2.30pm Session Times – Monday 11am 3pm 8pm Tim Bourke’s Problem Summer Festival Bus Route 5. SUITABLE Dealer South. E-W Vul. • Hyatt Hotel - Commonwealth Ave ‐ Pickup is at back of Hotel NORTH 60minutes before 1St Session ♠ A K 8 5 4 2 • NCC ♥ K Q 5 • Olims Hotel –Cnr Ainslie & Limestone ♦ 6 4 Ave 50 minutes St ♣ A 7 before 1 Session • Fenner Hall SOUTH 45 minutes before 1St ♠ 3 Session ♥ A 9 7 6 4 3 • Rex Motel ♦ A Q 5 3 2 • Capital Executive Apartments . ♣ 3 Pickup at Marque Hotel • Quality Suites Clifton on Northbourne – West North East South ‐ Pickup at Marque Hotel 40 1♥ minutes before 1st session Pass 2♠ Pass 3♦ • Medina Apartments Pass 3♥ Pass 4♣ • NCC Pass 4NT Pass 5♥ • Liversidge Court, ANU Pass 5NT Pass 6♥ St 35 minutes before 1 All pass Session • University House ‐ Pickup on Liversidge Street After North’s strong jump shift and a check • Rydges Lakeside Hotel on controls, you find yourself playing a small • Capitol Tower Apartments ( pickup at R slam. West leads the king of clubs. What is ydges Lakeside) the best plan to make twelve tricks? • Novotel on Northbourne 30 minutes before 1St Session • NCC • Hyatt Hotel - Commonwealth Ave ‐ Pickup is at back of Hotel 15minutes before 1St Session • NCC If you wish to email material If you would like Another for NOTNews, the address is Accommodation Location Added to [email protected] the route please email The 0 is a zero not a letter The Convener at [email protected] . Pick-up times are approximate Tim Bourke’s Problem – Solution The Crocodile Coup by Richard Hills The surest way to make twelve tricks is to set up dummy's spade suit. After winning 2009 Australian National Championships the opening lead with the ace of clubs, your Burley Griffin Teams, Match 7, Board 2 first move step should be to play a trump to Dlr: East; Vul: North-South the ace in your hand. If they prove to be 4-0, The bidding has gone: you would need a 3-3 spade break and so would play the spade ace-king and ruff a WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH spade. If the spades did break, you could Elainne Richard John Hashmat then cross to the queen of trumps and play Leach Hills Brockwell Ali good spades, throwing your remaining --- --- Pass 2♣ (1) diamond losers. When the defender ruffed Pass 2♥ (2) 2♠ Pass Pass 3♥ (3) Pass Pass with his penultimate trump, you could win Pass his return and return to dummy with the trump king to en joy the rest of the spades. (1) 10-14 hcp, 6+ clubs, denies another 4- card suit When both opponents follow to the first (2) natural, non-forcing, maybe game round of trumps, this is the type of hostile invitational layout where you need to find the right play (3) now indeed game invitational to succeed: You, East, hold: ♠ A K 8 5 4 2 ♠ AQJ73 ♥ K Q 5 ♥ J8 ♦ 6 4 ♦ T43 ♣ A 7 ♣ 853 ♠ 10 7 ♠ Q J 9 6 ♥ J 10 8 ♥ 2 What is your opening lead? ♦ K 10 9 7 ♦ J 8 Solution next page. ♣ K Q J 4 ♣10 9 8 6 5 2 ♠ 3 ♥ A 9 7 6 4 3 ♦ A Q 5 3 2 ♣ 3 The way to overcome any 4-2 spade break is to play the three of spades from hand and the two from dummy! Then you will be able to win the return, cross to dummy with the queen of trumps and ruff a spade in your hand. You can then get back to dummy with the kin g of trumps, drawing West's last trump in the process, and discard your four diamond losers on the spade ace-king and the two long spades. Lewis Carroll, “Alice's Adventures in Following Suit Wonderland” It was a very ordinary 1NT contract with 14 How doth the little crocodile facing 8 and the opposition high card points Improve his shining tail, divided 10-8. As is often the case on this And pour the waters of the Nile sort of hand, it was difficult to sort out just On every golden scale! How cheerfully he seems to grin, where declarer should attack. In the first How neatly spreads his claws, round of the Seniors playoffs, Zolly Nagy And welcomes little fishes in engineered a cute little endgame to make With gently smiling jaws! his contract. Decades of top-level experience has taught ♠ A4 All Vul John Brockwell that aggressive leads are 10 ♥ A9 Dlr E more likely to be successful than passive ♦ J643 ♣ AJT75 leads, so John elected to lead the ace of ♠ J8 ♠ KT96 spades. The complete deal: ♥ J753 ♥ KT64 ♦ KT82 ♦ Q7 ♣ KQ8 ♣ 964 ♠ Q7532 Hills ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ NT ♥ Q82 N 2 2 - 2 2 ♦ A95 S 2 2 - 2 2 ♠ T 9 2 E - - - - - ♣ 32 ♥ A Q T 9 7 W - - - - - 2 ♦ Q J 5 2 Zolly sat North and opened 1♣. David Lilley ♣ replied 1♠ and Zolly closed proceedings in ♠ K 4 N ♠ A Q J 7 3 1NT. ♥ K 6 5 4 ♥ J 8 W E ♦ K 9 6 ♦ T 4 3 The ♥4 was led to the Jack and Ace and ♣ S ♣ 8 5 3 Zolly played a diamond to the 9 and Blaine Leach ♠ 8 6 5 Brockwell ♥ 3 Howe’s 10. Blaine switched back to hearts ♦ A 8 7 and Ross Stuart’s King scored. On table ♣ A Q J 9 6 2 with the ♥Q (on which he pitched a club), Ali Zolly played a spade to his Ace and continued the suit. Ross took this trick with the King and played the ♥6 to Blaine’s 7, Elainne unblo cked the king of spades into declarer discarding clubs from both hands. the gently smiling jaws of John's ace, the Crocodile Coup, so Blaine exited with the ♣K which Zolly took in the defence quickly the closed hand. He led a diamond and cashed three spade tricks, with later the trump and diamond Ross’s Queen was taken by table’s Ace to kings for one off. produce: If John had chosen a passive non-spade If anybody wants copies of any of lead, or if Elainne had the photographs in this or any eschewed the Crocodile Coup, then 3H other Bulletin, please email me at would have made since a spade loser would have disappeared on the the address on page 2 ace of clubs. ♠ On the next, it was Blaine’s turn to face an ♥ early decision. ♦ J 6 ♣ J 10 ♠ EW Vul ♠ N ♠ 10 9 3 ♥ Q982 Dlr S ♦ K876542 ♥ ♥ W E ♣ K4 ♦ K 2 ♦ ♠ AKT732 ♠ J985 ♣ Q 8 S ♣ 9 6 ♥ A743 ♥ KJT6 ♦ T ♦ AJ ♠ Q 7 5 ♣ 72 ♣ JT9 ♥ ♠ Q64 ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ NT ♦ 5 ♥ 5 N 2 5 - - - ♦ Q93 S 2 5 - - - ♣ E - - 2 5 1 ♣ AQ8653 W - - 3 5 1 Zolly cashed the ♠Q and waited see which The auction was more aggressive this time suit Blaine would discard so that he could follow suit. A diamond to the Queen then West North East South P gave Zolly a free ride to his hand for his 1♠ 3♦ 4♠ 5♦ seventh trick. 5♠ End A few boards later, Ross and Blaine were put to very early guesses. A diamond was led which Blaine took with dummy’s Ace. He played a spade to the Ace ♠ T5 NS Vul and Zolly’s diamond discard made Blaine 2 ♥ AK943 Dlr E ♦ K74 pause for thought. ♣ KQ2 ♠ AK73 ♠ QJ862 He needs to pick up David’s trump Queen ♥ 8 ♥ 5 ♦ AQJ32 ♦ T98 and his only access to dummy is through the ♣ 973 ♣ AJ64 heart suit. Therefore, Blaine has to decide ♠ 94 ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ NT right now which way he’s going to finesse ♥ QJT762 N - - 2 - - ♦ 65 S - - 2 - - for the ♥Q. E 3 4 - 4 1 ♣ T85 W 3 4 - 4 1 He can finesse now or, alternatively, cross to the heart King ♥to finesse spades. Later The auction: he can cross to the fourth spade to finesse West North East South hearts. Blaine Zolly Ross David P P Blaine played a heart to the Jack and was 1♦ 1♥ 1♠ 3♥ able to relax when David could only 4♠ End contribute the 5. The ♥Q was led and overtaken by Zolly, who In The Twilight Zone immediately switched to a club. I’ve been reporting the paranormal Ross has to decide immediately whether to performances of Jimmy Wallis and Ziggy play Zolly for King, Queen of clubs or Konig for a good many years now. They are whether to rely on the diamonds being kind. two of the leading explorers of those fringe areas of bridge where insanity reigns After much thought, he played Zolly for the supreme. Consider this example from the ♣10 by playing small from dummy. Last Train. You are at the five level, your trumps are J1083 facing 542. The One down, losing a heart, a diamond and two clubs. opposition trumps are 3-3. Do you expect to Just Deserts make your contract? Jim Fitzgerald No? Well, watch how life is in the TZ In round 1 o f the Mixed Pairs, Ellie ♠ 2 NS Vul Fitz-gerald sat South on this board 15 ♥ AK6 Dlr S ♦ 542 ♣ AT9872 ♠ KJ954 ♠ T763 ♥ J9873 ♥ T4 ♦ A76 ♦ KQ9 ♣ ♣ Q643 .