The Bassingham Bridge Club Committee wishes all members a very Merry Christmas. We hope that you will be able to join us for fun Chicago Bridge and festive refreshments on Thursday 19th December. Duplicate Bridge re-starts in the New Year on Thursday 2nd January which will be the December Individual.
Board 8 last night caught my attention.
At the Improver lesson on Wednesday evening Dave Williams pointed out that partnerships usually need a combined 33 points to bid and make 6 No Trumps and 37 points for 7 No Trumps. However, he also stressed that suit slams can often be made with fewer points than this because of distribution and cross-ruffing opportunities. Board 8 was an excellent example of this.
As West, how would you open the bidding? You would be reluctant to open 2 No Trumps with a singleton spade but it is too strong a hand to open at the one level in case partner passes. This is a four loser hand if you can find a fit. The most successful pair on this hand chose to open 2 clubs and re-bid clubs after a 2 Diamond relay. East then took control, used Blackwood to establish that there were no aces missing and, based on losing trick count, confidently bid 7 Clubs which is easily made. Congratulations to Sheila Henry and Liz Salmon who were the only pair in the Grand Slam. A mention in despatches too for the only pair in a Small Slam, Ian Paterson and Chris Pickering.
If Losing Trick Count is still a mystery to you and you would like to know more, drop me an email and I will send you a sheet that I prepared several years ago. All the best. Andy.