Summer Instant Matchpoint Game

I enjoyed playing in the instant matchpoint game this week. Bob Klein and I racked up a 70.5% game and the hands were fun.  The analysis by Silvia Shi and Daniel Korbel was refreshing as they referred to some of the hands as "exciting".

If you want some good bidding tips from a couple of enthusiastic top pros, check out the hands and analysis at the ACBL website: http://www.acbl.org/clubs_page/summer-instant-matchpoint-game/

Here is a fun hand where, as it turns out, I didn't take their advice. At favorable vul. partner dealt and opened 2♥! (Board 12)

♠	K
♥	KQ9
♦	AQJ954
♣	AQ4

Wow-what a hand. What to do?

I decided that a slam was likely as I had at most 4 losers and partner's weak two bid will generally have 7 or 8 losers. The first item of business was to check on key cards.

I bid 4♣, Preemptive key card Gerber, and partner bid 4♥, showing one ace (and no queen of trumps). I decided to shoot it out and jumped to 6♥. A diamond was led and when I laid down my moose, partner didn't look happy. He finally forced himself to take the finesse which won. Now he was in control. 

♠K
♥KQ9
♦AQJ954
♣AQ4

♠763
♥A108732
♦87
♣106

He drew trump, took another diamond finesse, set up the diamonds and made 6. Plus 980 was worth 98% of the matchpoints on the instant matchpoint scale. A club or a spade lead would have beaten the contract as the K♣ was offside and hearts were 3-1. 

The comments from Shi and Korbel were entertaining.  First they recommend that my hand (East) should exercise restraint and simply bid 2NT, asking about partner's hand. Then, when partner makes the weakest response possible, East "should steel himself to give up on slam and simply raise to 4♥."

My response: Partner's hand doesn't need to be so weak that it has fewer than the recommended number of HCP for a weak-two bid (4) and also have 9 losers--more than generally expected!

Bridge is interesting and many hands are "exciting"--according to Shi and Korbel. Don't you agree?

See you at the table!