CONTRACT BRIDGE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 48, 26 February 1937, Page 6

CONTRACT BRIDGE.

A STRENGTH-SHOWING BID. (By ELY CULBERTSON.) "But I had passed three honour tricks, and I had to show you the strength of my hand," wa* the remark of a rather inexpert player to her partner after playing the hand below in the absurd contract of four no trump. She thought she was u*ing the four-no-trump bid in its conventional meaning of showing two Aces and the King of a bid suit, hut her partner construed it as simply making a possible game practically impossible. In further extenuation of her unusual bid. the lady continued: "I had support for both your suits and I never thought you would drop me."

Perhaps South, her partner on this unfortunate occasion, should have bid five Clubs, which could have been made, but to him it was amazing that North could have passed the opening 'bid and then, without either supporting a suit or showing one of her own, jump to four no trump. Slightly afraid of such unusual things, he decided to pass. The

1. —-North should not have passed this hand. The correct opening bid is one Club. 2.—South's hand is barely more than a minimum. but fully conns up to the requirements for an openin* bid.

3.—North, having passed an opening bid,'is in some difficulty in finding a good call at this point. Slie chooses the fairly strong bid of two no trump rather than showing immediate support for the Clubs.

4.—Of course, South i« not interested in no trump with his distribution, and now bids the shaded Spade suit, hoping to find anadvantageous spot to play the hand. 5. —Having support for both suits bid by her partner. North now makes another strong, but very bad, bid.

6. —Completely at sea as to exactly what is happening. South decides to pass.

The result. when the battle was over, was that North and South had taken seven tricks and East and West siv. Tn other words, the four-no-trump contract was defeated three tricks.

The hand plays best at five Clubs, which cannot be defeated. A four-Spade contract would bo set if a Club were opened by West, allowing East to trump it; but even a fourspade contract, though unsuccessful, could not be criticised. But a no-trump contract had no chance to succeed.

Had North's subsequent bidding 'been correct. she would 7iot have suffered at all from her unsound original pass of a strong hand. She was fortunate in that her partner opened the bidding and pave her a chance to show her real values; but she should not have attempted to correct her error by such a contradictory bid as four no trump. The beet bids by all concerned would have been:.