Friday, 28 September 2012

GENIUS ? 
INSANITY ?
OR WHAT ?
.......
.......
( A very true
story by Bridge-
meister Gibson )

The other day I
was playing an
afternoon duplicate
down at the club ,
where the standard 
of ability varies greatly.
I was with a very solid player , when next up was a pair where experience was partnering ( I presumed ) a relative beginner. 
Sitting North, I opened a spade........a slight hesitation on my left ?  2S from partner and a long think from my RHO , who eventually passed. I bid 3S to effectively end the auction .  My LHO passed in tempo as did my partner , when a nervous West.....pondered again.....only to bid 4H !   
I decided to pass hoping partner may have enough hearts herself to stick the boot in. No luck there....no double....no 4S bid either.....just another pass.
On my lead of the king of clubs ,  I was gobsmacked to see dummy come down rich with points, controls and distributional features. Quickly cashing a second top club , I noticed my partner's doubleton in the suit. Given that declarer clearly has 6 hearts and 2 clubs , it is almost certain she has a stiff spade and 4 reasonable diamonds  ( to justify the 4 level overcall ) . This of course  leaves my partner with  a 4-1-6-2 shape but very little in the way of HCP's.
Defeatist thinking persuaded me to continue with a low club at trick three in the hope that partner's ruff with a stiff king would set up my stiff queen for a winner. No such luck. Partner ruffed low and declarer over-ruffed. Two top hearts then cleared all our trumps.....giving declarer    3 quick trump tricks . With 2 top diamonds, one top spade and 4 trumps left to make separately , the contract was safely steered home.
So when I realised she had overcalled 4H vulnerable on a 9 HCP hand , 2-4-5-2 distribution with a losing trick count that was a complete embarrassment ,  I thought was she a genius ?....Was she insane but incredibly lucky ?....or was she so inexperienced that blissful ignorance  had triumphed over common sense ?   Was she a brave reckless sort of player ? Or did she read her partner's fleeting hesitation to deduce a dummy which would be of great assistance ?
I concluded that the relative beginner was a completely random bidder , but a competent declarer.....and left it at that. 
So yes....in my eyes..... this is what makes bridge such a fascinating but equally frustrating game ! 
   



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