Dealer: N Vul: Nil
NORTH
♠ AKJ92
♥ 653
♦ A5
♣ Q94
WEST EAST
♠ 865 ♠ Q104
♥ K1092 ♥ A874
♦ 105 ♦ 9643
♣ J865 ♣ 107
SOUTH
♠ 73
♥ QJ
♦ KQJ72
♣ AK32
Bridge is largely a game of skill, but from time to time luck plays a part. In the featured hand, Board 1 from last Friday, no North/South pair should have been playing in a no-trump contract, because of the weakness in hearts. Yet, four out of the five Norh/South pairs did play in 3NT or higher.
Waiting for East to lead, North who became the luckiest declarer, must have been rehearsing apologies to partner for bidding 6NT with no stopper in hearts. North may even have fantasised about receiving a spade lead. Guess what! East led the four of spades, which was won by North’s nine. A careful declarer, wary of the possibility that East held four spades, including the Queen, would cash five diamond winners, then three clubs before switching to spades. The remaining spades were always winners. All thirteen tricks were won, despite such miserable hearts. One other declarer received the lead of the nine of diamonds and duly made ten tricks for 430, losing only two hearts and the Queen of spades. Those defenders who led a heart would have been disappointed to find that the defence could win only four tricks, thereby allowing declarer to make 3NT for 400. The chance of East and West holding exactly four hearts each was well below 50%. The hard luck story was that of the remaining pair who decided to play in diamonds, which would normally have been the correct choice. The best score available in diamonds was 130 – an absolute bottom. To protect the guilty, no names have been recorded.
Results, Monday, 16/03/26 (5-table teams Rd. 1): Milne (84 IMPs) 1; Rose (28 IMPs) 2; Hart (20 IMPs) 3. Friday, 20/03/26 (5 & 1/2-table Howell): P. Kelly D. Moran (65.4) 1; J. Smith R. Hart (65.1) 2; N. Bonnell T. Hinde (59.8) 3. L. Don C. Duggan (56.9) 4.
