Hands

Court-Martial

Nov 292002

N/S Vul
IMPs
Dealer: North
Lead: Q

	justinl A J 8 7 6 K 3 2 A Q 7 5 2 —
vcaracci 5 3 9 8 6 5 K 8 6 4 8 3 2		dkogut K 4 10 4 J 9 3 Q J 10 9 5 4
	Maestro Q 10 9 2 A Q J 7 10 A K 7 6

West

Pass
Pass
Pass

North
1

East
3

Pass
Pass

South
4

Pass

One would think that if any of Gee’s partners had mastered the intricacies of captain/crew theory by now, surely it would be Seaman Lall. And I would have agreed, until this hand the other day.

The Seaman, North, opens a spade in second seat; East makes a preemptive 3C overcall, and South, or hero, bids a fine 4C with his moose, showing spade support and slam interest.

The Seaman cooperates by cueing diamonds. Well now. Gee has a diamond stiff opposite his partner’s diamond ace. He has the two top club honors against probably a doubleton or a stiff. A grand is probably playable if the Seaman holds only the top trump honors and nearly cold (barring a possible club ruff) if he holds the heart king as well.

There are several ways to proceed. I would cue bid 5C to give my partner a chance to cue hearts, intending to bid a 5NT grand slam force over 5H and sign off in 6S otherwise. Bolder bidders might simply bid RKC or 5NT, if they are willing to play seven without knowing about the heart king.

Gee weighs the possibilities and makes the expert call of 6S, which the Seaman, flush with his extra heart king and the high spirits of youth, raises to seven. Whether this is sound judgment can be debated, but what is clear is that he has arrogated the captaincy to himself, and this will not be tolerated.

Spec #1: why blast like that?
Spec #2: deja vu
Spec #3: he’s fun anyway…
Spec #4: well this isn’t someone’s lucky day
G (to specs): crew took over captainship :(
Spec #5: g werent u afraid of missing grand?
G: nope
Gerard is no longer a spectator.
Spec #6: how prescient
Spec #5: well there u have it
Spec #7: gonna have a seaman spanking i believe
Spec #8: justin must walk plank
Spec #4: the crew took over the captainship well how about that?
Spec #3: you can’t get good crew these days…
G (back at the table): that was not warranted justin
justinl: would you say that if the KS on?
G: I bid 6S… I was captain
Spec #5: lol
G: same thing
Spec #8: and justin a lowly seaman
Spec #3: justin doesn’t know he is Tennile…
Spec #7: da captain has spoken
Spec #9: mutiny on the bounty?
G: not the result I am looking at… it’s the quality of bridge
justinl: so if i have the same hand with the SK i’m not allowed to bid 7, because you are the captain?
G: correct
G: i already made my evaluation of the situation
Spec #10: well jus zactly who is the capn?
Spec #2: cabin boy very insubordinate
Spec #8: cudnt go to phx without this final review of captain/crew
justinl: so if we have 100% grand i’m not allowed to bid it? how is that quality bridge?
Spec #10: cabin boy is going back in the brig whence he never should have emerged

The Gods Must Be Crazy

Nov 252002

None Vul
IMPs
Dealer: North
Lead: A

	kmb24 10 9 A J 8 5 A Q 9 K 10 7 3
cicatrix 7 5 3 2 Q 9 7 6 8 7 6 2 Q		Maestro Q 8 4 K 2 J 5 4 A J 9 6 5
	jdonn A K J 6 10 4 3 K 10 3 8 4 2

West

Pass
Pass

North
1

1NT
Pass

East
Pass
2

Pass

South
1

Dbl

Well, it’s another night on Planet Gee. Our hero, thanks, in part, to an unusually helpful partner, has dropped about 100 IMPs, and South, serial Gee partner and opponent Josh Donn, commiserates. “North/South are very inconsistent on weekends,” he says. Gee agrees ruefully as today’s hand comes up.

North’s 1D is a catch-all Precision bid, usually showing 11-15 points and 2+ diamonds. South’s 1S reply is natural, North’s 1NT rebid shows 14-16 balanced, and Gee’s 2C overcall is…well, I’m not quite sure how to describe it. Adventurous maybe. South, knowing the trump lie as favorably as possible for declarer, cracks a Bones double, which North is delighted to pass.

South leads the SA, gets a look at the dummy, and shifts to the D3. North wins the DA and shifts back to spades, Gee covering the 10 as South wins the king. South cashes the SJ and the DK and continues diamonds. North wins the queen, cashes the heart ace for the defense’s seventh trick, and exits with a heart. Gee unblocks the king under the ace, wins the second heart in dummy and leads the trump queen, which holds. He ruffs a heart in hand and both defenders follow, leaving this:

	kev — — — K 10 7
trix 7 6 8 —		Maestro — — — A J 9
	josh 6 — — 8 2

Since North’s 1NT rebid showed at least 14 points he is marked with the trump king. (Had Josh properly alerted his Bones double he would have provided another clue.) There is only one way not to make two tricks, and our hero finds it. He cashes the trump ace, then executes a Miami endplay, leading away from his J9 into North’s K10 to lose the last two tricks, for 800, with only the vulnerability standing between Gee and a two-logo hand.

Asked about the overcall, Gee replied, “Partner, since when we play correctly we get a minus, when they do they get a huge plus, I felt I had to do something outrageous and then maybe turn the cards around.” The bridge gods, perhaps partly appeased, take only another 20 IMPs from Gee before he retires for the evening.

Mini-D

Nov 212002

Both Vul
IMPs
Dealer: North
Lead: K

	petit_g K Q 4 2 4 J 8 4 2 K J 10 9
aric 6 K Q 10 8 6 2 Q 10 7 6 3 4		srul A 7 J 5 3 9 A Q 8 7 6 5 2
	Maestro J 10 9 8 5 3 A 9 7 A K 5 3

West

2
Pass
5
Pass

North
Pass
3

Pass
Pass

East
1

Dbl
Pass
Pass

South
1

Pass
Pass
Dbl

Today’s auction is perfectly normal, even unexceptionable, until srul’s 4H bid. (Some might double 1S with aric’s hand.) Our hero, having heard a limit spade raise from his partner, holds six trump, Axx in the opponents’ probable nine-card fit, first and second round diamond control, and a stiff in the opponents’ second suit. I would worry about missing slam. Gee passes.

Mini-Gee comes to the rescue with a not-really-warranted four spade call, which East doubles, speculatively, holding two defensive tricks. West properly pulls to 5H with his useless hand defensively, and back we come to our hero. It’s hard to imagine 5S not making if Mini-Gee has his 4S bid, and in fact it makes even though he doesn’t have it. (Declarer must play East for both club honors, which works.) But I guess if you pass four hearts you double five.

Mini gets off to the fine lead of the SK, killing an entry. A trump seems natural on the auction but two rounds of trump almost force declarer to make. He wins the second round in hand, finesses a club, ruffs a club, and has just enough entries to set up the clubs and cash them, making 5. On a trump lead Gee must duck to hold declarer to ten tricks.

But with the spade lead the contract looks hopeless. Declarer does the best he can, playing CA and a small club, hoping to find either defender with Kx, which is enough to make if trump break or the ace drops. Gee shows out on the second club lead: that’s the bad news. The good news is that he ruffs the second club lead, shortening himself to two trump.

Declarer overruffs and leads a diamond, ducked, correctly, by Mini, and won by Gee with the king. He now knows declarer’s hand is either 1-7-4-1 or 1-6-5-1. (Mini must have four spades on the bidding.) Therefore two rounds of trump are 100% certain to stick declarer with at least a second diamond loser and beat the hand.

Dear reader, you must know by now that Gee continues spades. Declarer ruffs the spade, then ruffs a diamond, a club, another diamond and another club. Diamonds break, so a trump off the board finishes the hand; thanks to the early, pointless ruff, Gee has but two trump remaining, to declarer’s three, and he can win the trump ace at his leisure.

“On that sort of auction, Efes,” says Gee, “it’s usually not a good idea to lead our suit.”

The Unbearable Lightness of Being Gee

Nov 192002

Both Vul
MPs
Dealer: West
Lead: 9

	e48400 K 6 4 2 A J 7 K 10 7 6 10 4
francis A 9 3 10 6 4 3 2 2 K Q 9 7		Maestro 8 Q 9 8 5 A Q 9 8 3 J 6 5
	howies Q J 10 7 5 K J 5 4 A 8 3 2

West
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

North
Pass
2

Dbl
3NT

East
Pass
2

Pass
Pass

South
1

Pass
2

Pass

Bridge, it cannot be overstressed, is a cooperative game. And on defense communication is essential. Today’s hand shows Gee and his partner in a seamless performance, each contributing mightily to achieve the result that they deserve.

South applies the rule of 15 and opens a subminimum 1S in fourth seat. North, the aptly named e48400, bids reverse Drury, and our hero, East, throws in a rather irresponsible 2D vulnerable overcall, with South unlimited, partner possibly broke, and 47 losers. On the layout, 2DX is down only 2 on best play, which loses most of the matchpoints but not quite as many as the actual result. (It would be prescient but not impossible for West to run to hearts.)

2D is passed around to North, whose double looks like penalty to me but is taken out to 2S by his partner. North figures, incorrectly, that his partner’s hand is unsuited to defense and, hoping for long runnable spades, takes a wild stab at 3NT, which is where we end up.

Gee kicks off the defensive communications by leading the H9. This communicates a heart honor and length in the suit. Wait. It doesn’t? OK, never mind. It does show the eight though. Probably.

Declarer wins HK and plays spades. West ducks the first round and wins the second, as Gee discards the H5, eliminating the remote possibility of West returning a heart, which beats the contract two tricks. Had Gee kept his hearts and discarded one of his useless diamonds instead, West might have bothered to count the hand, placed North with the diamond ace or king for his notrump bid, and concluded that Gee must have a heart honor for his overcall and was leading from an “interior sequence.”

A club return still beats the contract a trick; but if declarer holds J10x it is a disaster. So West, suboptimally but understandably, leads his partner’s suit. Our hero wins the DQ and thinks matters over. North is marked with the DK for his 3NT bid. He has already shown up with SK, HA and probably HJ as well. Either club honor makes 13 points and an opening hand. Partner holds KQ of clubs, therefore, and two club tricks, two diamond tricks and a spade put the contract to bed. There’s only one thing to do: he returns a low diamond.

A grateful declarer wins the D10 and promptly plays a diamond back, establishing a second diamond for nine tricks. Communication, that’s what I’m saying. Gerard couldn’t have done it without Francis, and Francis couldn’t have done it without Gerard.

The Best Line

Nov 152002

Both Vul
IMPs
Dealer: West
Lead: A

	Maestro Q J 9 7 6 — A K 5 A K Q 10 2
dond 3 10 9 8 7 5 9 3 J 9 8 7 5		otherguy K 5 4 2 A 3 J 10 8 6 6 4 3
	re34 A 10 8 K Q J 6 4 2 Q 7 4 2 —

West
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

North
1

4NT
7

Pass

East
Pass
Pass
Pass
Dbl

South
2

Pass

I often hear complaints that I never show Gerard in a favorable light. Of course most of those complaints are from Gerard himself, but fair enough. Today’s hand, on which Gee, as declarer, takes an unusual but optimal line, not once, but twice, should quiet the nay-sayers for a while.

The bidding, too, has points of interest. Gee opens his superb hand a normal 1S in second seat and hears a game-forcing 2H response from his partner. He rebids 3C and his partner jumps to 4S, showing three-card support. 5NT, the grand slam force, asking partner to bid a grand with two of the top three trump honors, is the forced choice for those of us with only standard bidding arsenals. Gee launches into RKC Voidwood, the Cohen treatment. Ordinary Voidwood has special bids for responder to show voids as well as keycards. Cohen Voidwood, on the other hand, is a method allowing the asker to show a void. (Note that the void is not guaranteed, and the suit is not specified.)

Partner replies 5C, showing one keycard, and Gee leaps to 7S, giving N/S a rare chance at a freely bid grand missing both of the top trumps. This is just as promptly doubled by East, who holds both of the missing key cards and has a certain trump trick assuming dummy has no more than three.

East leads the HA. Gee ruffs in hand and now needs only to bring the trump suit in to make. He leads the SQ. It holds. Gee infers that trump are breaking and the king is onside, and claims. Indisputably the optimal line, but no luck: East declines. Another trump to the 10 reveals the bad news. And now the key play: a high heart from dummy, discarding a small diamond from hand, killing his outside entry. A pedestrian player would still survive for down 1 by continuing hearts until East ruffed in. Gee takes a more elegant approach. First he cashes the trump ace, removing his last entry to dummy. Then he plays hearts. East ruffs in, and Gee claims down 1, again optimally. This second misclaim has a real chance to work — it’s certainly better than the alternative, hoping East returns a club — but East unfortunately notes that he can return a diamond, sticking Gee with a club loser at the end. Down 2, one off for each superb play. Life is so unfair sometimes.

Hitting the Gee Spot

Nov 122002

Both Vul
IMPs
Dealer: South
Lead: 10

	mytmouse 10 9 7 5 J 10 4 2 10 9 6 3 5
Maestro Q 6 4 A 6 5 A K Q 7 5 7 3		sophie A K 8 3 K 8 3 J K Q J 9 4
	snag J 2 Q 9 7 8 4 2 A 10 8 6 2

West

1NT
Pass

North

Pass
Pass

East

6NT

South
Pass
Pass

We can absolve our hero of any malfeasance in today’s auction at least. East’s leap to 6NT is perhaps a trifle rash, when we consider that the seven or eight missing points might include two aces, or likelier, and worse, the ace and king of diamonds. Six clubs, six spades and even six hearts may be better than 6NT, and there are several levels and available bids to find out. 6NT does rate to play better than 6D, however.

But 6NT turns out to be a superb contract, and we aren’t here to talk about the bidding anyway. Declarer has eleven tricks after he knocks out the club ace, and many possibilities for a twelfth. Diamonds can break, spades can break, the club ten can drop, and there are squeeze chances all over the joint. I make the contract in the hands of a competent declarer about 95%.

Of course it is Gee who is declaring. The S10 is led, and Gee goes right to work on severing his communications. He wins in hand with the queen, leads a low diamond to dummy’s jack, and crosses back to his hand with the HA, removing his last entry. He now cashes two top diamonds, carefully discarding a spade first and then a heart, preserving the crucial fifth club. Both defenders follow.

The reader who says to himself at this point that the contract is making anyway underestimates the master. Gee cashes a fourth diamond, discarding a club finally as South does the same, and shifts to the C3, stranding his fifth good diamond in hand. (The alert reader will note that the C3 is not next to the diamond, but one card removed. This weakens the motor impairment defense.) Unlucky again: the club ten doesn’t drop, and it didn’t matter that he killed his spade threat because spades don’t break anyway.

Gee’s line requires that diamonds break (or if they don’t, that the defender with the CA is short diamonds), and that the C10 drop. We add in the 1% and change that the club ace is stiff onside and arrive at 32% or so. So our Gee spot becomes 95% – 32% = 63%, or 63. Not bad, but not 100. The search continues.

The Blackboard Jungle

Nov 092002

Both Vul
IMPs
Dealer: East
Lead: K

	petit_g 10 A 9 4 2 Q 10 8 2 A 10 6 5
janiner 9 6 3 K 10 9 7 K Q J 7 4 3		justinl K 7 5 4 7 6 5 A K J 5 3 9
	Maestro A Q J 8 2 Q J 8 3 6 4 8 2

West

Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

North

1NT
3
Pass
Pass

East
1

Pass
Pass
Dbl

South
1

Pass

Bridge teaching is difficult. Ordinarily keeping your student’s spirits up produces the best results, but sometimes, as in today’s hand, harsher measures are called for.

Proceedings begin innocuously, with a standard diamond opener by Seaman Lall, East, and a 1S overcall by Gee. Mini-Gee replies 1NT, passed back to our hero, who without hesitation bids 2H. Mini, under the impression that this shows a good hand, and holding four-card support and a maximum, naturally enough invites with 3H; Gee reevaluates his loser-rich, already immensely overbid hand and plunges fearlessly into game. A Bones double by the Seaman, holding two defensive tricks at most opposite a partner who has shown nothing, ends the auction.

West leads the club king and recriminations begin immediately.

Gerard: why 3H, efes?
G: just pass 2H
petit_g: god knows how many u got.. i limited my hand with 1 nt..why 4
petit_g: ????????????
G: yes you know
G: 1S then 2H …. can’t have much
petit_g: how do i know?? 3h is a free bid… and don’t have more than 10 for sure [He must mean 2H. —Ed.]
G: not true efes
petit_g: yes u cant have 17+
G: no, I can’t… I can’t even have 13
petit_g: why not??????????
petit_g: u r not a passed hand
G: what would I rebid with more than 12 points? [I give up. What? —Ed.]
petit_g: changing colour actually shows opening or more
G: no, efes… I am only the crew
petit_g: if u dont have much pass 3h, if i pass ur 2 h and we have a game i will be responsible
G: 1S then 2H is as weak as it comes
petit_g: yes if u r a passed hand
G: no, efes
petit_g: well ok then i am sorry i am not understanding
petit_g: i don’t understand this game

Gee bites his tongue and declares to his customary standard. He wins the club lead and plays S10. If he overtakes with the jack, playing the Seaman for the spade king, which he is a big favorite to hold, he goes down 1. He ruffs a spade and plays a low club. The defenders get their two diamonds and one trump but that’s all. Gee, however, makes the key play of the spade ace, leaving himself a spade loser in the endgame for down 2, -500, and a less than satisfactory result. Out comes the hickory switch:

G: proof is in the pudding… we just made 2
petit_g: u wanna be captain in all seats… its not fair… u r telling me my bidding and playing is wrong in front of all… when u r right, u r right but not this time sorry
G: oh no… dont start that with me, efes
petit_g: ok sorry…

Uh oh. Criticizing Gee’s bidding is one thing, but taking captaincy theory in vain will not be treated lightly.

G: what did I say 5 minutes ago?
justinl: come on guys, this is just a fun game, lets all relax a bit
G: that in this auction I was just the crew
petit_g: sorry and ty all
petit_g i cannot concentrate when u do this to me
G: I did not do anything to you
G: you are doing it to yourself
petit_g: i have not made any mistake at all… when I do i accept… but i am your pd… am i not?
G: you made an error, fine… just trying to tell you where
petit_g: no it is not an error… pls check… u cannot say it is… it was totally right
petit_g: and u criticize when i do.. but dont when i dont
G: you were right because you can’t see or refuse to see where you were wrong
G: I criticized you?
G: you told me I wanted to be captain in all hands
G: that’s criticizing you?
G: that’s you criticizing me
G: you bid wrong… and I told you you did
petit_g: my bid is very very very right 100 percent… if not i dont wanna play this game coz i know nothin
G: can’t you take that and try to understand?
G: no, efes
G: you can believe whatever you want… your 3H was wrong
G: now… are you gonna calm down?
petit_g: ok it was wrong.. this is how i play this game… pls accept
G: not if you play with me nor any really knowledgeable patner.. that means expert partner
G: do that to an expert and you are out the table [Ummm…”out the table”? —Ed.]
Spec #1: once you criticize your partner in front of everyone who not only has have one opponent you have three
G: I DID NOT DO THAT TO YOU, DID I?

Charity begins at home.

petit_g: i think u were distracted with the bidding…
G: you want to play with me, you play correct… not the Efes way
petit_g: i am sure u had a phone or something…
Gerard: again.. attacking me instead of accepting what I am telling you!!!!
petit_g: i am not attacking u.. u teach me all i know.. why should i?
Gerard: best way to defend yourself is beat me down to the ground… like aaron?

Wait a second. How’d I get involved in this?

G: you made a bad bid, efes
petit_g: pls calm down… sorry… i will leave…
G: I explained why
petit_g: just be ok and thats enuf
G: can’t you accept that without attacking me?
G: that’s ok… I’ll quit
G: efes.. your stubbornness will not help your game
G: oops he left

Oops. Still, discipline has been restored.

Jacks or Better

Nov 062002

Both Vul
IMPs
Dealer: South
Lead: 3

	o_bones A J 6 K 5 K 9 6 5 4 A J 10
pierri K 10 4 3 J 7 2 Q 7 Q 9 4 2		Maestro 5 2 A 8 6 J 10 8 2 K 8 5 3
	misu Q 9 8 7 Q 10 9 4 3 A 3 7 6

West

Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

North

1
1NT
2
3NT

East

Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

South
Pass
1

Pass

Guest columnist Phil Hernandez writes:

Today finds North/South, misu and lower-case bones (not the Bones Principle author himself but a confederate), in a pushy notrump game. They are playing weak notrumps, so the 1NT rebid shows 15-17. 2C by South is new minor forcing, showing five hearts, and 2S completes the description of a 4-5 hand with 9-11 points, or 8 with Gee on lead.

The stretch does not pay immediate dividends, as Gee opens a club, best for the defense. Declarer takes the club queen with the ace and, lacking entries to set up the hearts, decides to play for diamonds to break and the spade king onside (or ducked). As he leads toward the diamond ace our hero decides to give count and drops D8. This will figure prominently later on. Declarer continues with a winning spade finesse and plays HK. Gee wins the ace — neglecting to duck, which does no harm on the actual layout — and clears the clubs.

Declarer’s last hope appears to be diamonds breaking. But when he cashes the DK, Gee thinks better of his original echo idea and drops the ten, which must be an unblock, or a falsecard, or something. In any case, with the queen and seven falling from West, this brilliancy allows declarer to bring in the diamonds for one loser, making nine tricks.

“Why the diamond ten, partner?” Pierri asks.

Gee thinks for a moment. “The jack would have been no better,” he explains.

See Gee Spot Run

Nov 042002

None Vul
IMPs
Dealer: South
Lead: 3

	wildcats 5 K Q 10 8 6 A K 8 7 5 Q 2
bilgin 9 4 3 A 9 5 4 3 Q 4 3 10 3		sauron K Q 7 6 J 2 J 10 9 6 2 9 5
	Maestro A J 10 8 2 7 — A K J 8 7 6 4

West

Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

North

1
3
6

East

Pass
Pass
Pass

South
1

Pass

The diligent reader may recall a recent discussion of the Gee Spot, which, to review, is the percentage difference between the optimum line on a hand and Gee’s actual line.

Today, for instance, N/S reach an excellent club slam after a rather shaky auction. Myself, I wouldn’t want to sign off in my 5-card suit with a 5-1-0-7 four-loser hand after hearing my partner force twice and promise no support, but I’m funny that way. In any case North guesses to jump to 6C, and his guess proves out. Almost.

West finds the excellent lead of a trump, without which the hand is cold on almost any layout. Let’s pause and calculate the Gee Spot. The optimal line is to win in hand and lead a heart. This wins whenever West holds the heart ace, or East holds it but lacks another trump to lead, provided neither defender can ruff in on the red suit winners. Adding all the possibilities we wind up at 58% or so for the optimum line.

Gee wins the lead in hand and, postponing the problem of disposing of his spade losers (how? somehow), leads a second round of trump, discards a heart and a spade on the two top diamonds, and attempts to play AJ108 opposite a stiff for one loser. This is only a near-zero play; it wins whenever East holds exactly K9, Q9, or KQ9. The total chance of success rounds up to 5%, giving us a Gee Spot on 58% – 5%, or 53.

After the hand North, the normally mild-mannered wildcats, is moved to observe that the hand was cold — I exclude several exclamation marks — not that he means that in a negative way. The specs buzz, as ever:

Spec #1: what a surprise – the 1st time its been played off :)
Spec #2: is this an exp table??????????????
Spec #3: H trick 2 seemed auto pilot
G: I think I am too tired
G: make this the last…
Spec #4: yeah, that’s the reason
G: when I reach that point, I can’t think any more
G: but I did not want to go to bed without playing a few with you:)
Spec #1: i think the barracking from the spectators put him off and he should be allowed to replay it:)
Spec #5: not sure he makes in replay
Spec #6: that won’t help
Spec #7: I swear I might start saving these hands for a book for novices on typical mistakes to avoid

Word to Spec #7: Don’t even think about it. I’m writing that book.

Two-Part Harmony

Oct 312002

E/W Vul
IMPs
Dealer: South
Lead: 5

	daffydoc 10 7 6 2 J 8 7 5 9 5 K 10 5
harmon J 4 A K Q 10 2 A J A Q 8 6		Maestro A Q 3 4 3 K Q 7 6 4 3 2 2
	balkam K 9 8 5 9 6 10 8 J 9 7 4 3

West

1
2
2
Pass

North

Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

East

1NT
2
3NT

South
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass

Harmon and Gee weren’t always deadly enemies. As little as a year ago they were partners. Today’s hands may have played a part in the rupture.

Gee, East, hears his partner open one heart in second seat. In Harmon’s not unusual style this often shows some cards. Gee holds a five-loser hand, 11 hcp, and a decent seven-bagger. Certainly this calls for a forcing bid, perhaps, even, some forcing bid other than 1NT. Harmon temporizes with a 2C rebid; with 20 points and 7 controls I might venture 3C myself. (Opening 2NT, another possibility, also works well on this hand.)

Gee bids 2D, showing some extras, a hand like Kxx x KQ10xxx J10x. This bears only a small resemblance to his actual hand. 3D, assuming one is unwilling to bid 2D over 1H in the first place, seems warranted. Harmon replies a forcing 2S, asking for a spade stopper, one surmises. And Gee surmises the same, signing off in 3NT.

The loss is only 9 IMPs, since the diamond grand is only about 90% on a red suit lead. (100% on a spade lead, considerably less on a club).

Now let’s watch the two amigos on defense, in the same session.

None Vul
IMPs
Dealer: North
Lead: A

	daffydoc Q 7 6 3 A Q 5 3 K Q 8 2 6
harmon J 9 7 6 9 3 K Q J 7 5 3 2		Maestro A 9 8 5 4 K J 10 2 6 5 10 9
	balkam K 10 2 8 4 A J 10 7 4 A 8 4

West

4
Pass
Pass

North
1

4NT
6

East
Pass
5

Pass

South
2

Pass

Harmon and Gee do a fine job of jamming the auction here; 5CX is down only 2. South’s 2D is inverted, showing a strong hand with diamond support, and 5D shows two key cards in response to North’s 4NT inquiry. Daffy’s 6D is a bit of a flyer. Make South’s spade king a club and his club ace a spade and the slam has no chance at all. Even with Balkam’s actual, and excellent hand, it is a serious underdog, requiring four tricks in the majors.

There are extra chances, however, with Gee on lead. Either a club or a diamond beats the contract easily, provided he ducks in spades; but Gee takes his own advice and leads his ace. Harmon, of necessity, drops the jack, and Gee takes stock. With K10x in the dummy, under what circumstances would Harmon drop the jack? From Jxx, forfeiting a certain trick if partner has the 9? Nah. From Jx? No point. From QJ or QJx? He’d play the queen. From a stiff jack? Gee whiz, ya think?

Gee shifts to the deceptive ten of hearts, giving declarer his thirteenth trick. It proves not to be necessary.

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