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A Pairs …or Anytime Bid?

Most players at clubs around New Zealand play mainly Match Point Pairs bridge. The tactics in this form of the game are very different from playing Teams/ Swiss Pairs. You can score almost as well for playing a part-score for an extra overtrick as for bringing home an over-aggressive game. Risking a bad score in overbidding and getting lucky is unwise.

Another aspect to successful Pairs play emerged on this deal. Yet, perhaps, the winning action is also relevant in other forms of the game, too.

For many pairs these days, there is nothing between a 1-level opener and a Game Forcing 2 opener. We are in the age of Weak, Very Weak and absurdly Weak Two openings, showing 4/5/6 card suits. “ Every dog has its day” but this one was not a good day for those who had to open the following hand, 1.

 

  9 playing tricks, 19hcp, too good for 1. One might argue the hand is not good enough for a Game Force opening but it is pretty close. Our partner shows a remarkable lack of interest in the auction with two negative responses. What now?

If partner produced K or maybe K with North holding A, or maybe a high heart honour, you could/might come to 10 tricks in 4.You might also have wished you had opened at the 1 level and played there.

Yet, a few seconds ago, you were saying "9 playing tricks". If your long suit were a minor, you would have no qualms about trying 3NT. So, seeing as you cannot guarantee 10 tricks in spades….and partner’s second bid denies more than 2 spades, why not try for those same 9 tricks in what may be the only making game contract…surely guaranteed on any lead except a diamond…and if partner is short in spades, they should have enough diamonds to stave off a serious diamond attack.

So, 3NT it is…and partner will become a very surprised declarer. As it happened, 4 was unbeatable but one other aspect of Pairs bridge came into play…the extra 10 points for scoring the same number of tricks as those in spades.

 

+ 430 outscores + 420, the maximum score available in a spade contract, barring careless defence. South led a heart against 3NT, which East ducked but had to be satisfied with 10 tricks when North switched to a diamond.

Lucky? You be the judge. There seemed enough good reasons to try 3NT here. Those who opened the West hand at the 1-level will cry “unlucky”. Blame all those weak 2 openings now in fashion. Perhaps, in this case, at any form of the game, the West hand is worthy of a slight upgrade to be followed by a calculated gamble.

Richard Solomon

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