Mentor-Mentee Game #2 of 2017

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Here we are with another Mentor-Mentee Game, this one far removed from the previous location, down in White Rock. And, as always, the online hands and comments are based on McBruce against the computer players inside the program JACK, the world's leading computer bridge program. 50 tables of JACK players have played these hands against each other overnight, before I come in to see how I can do. I have one computer player as a partner and two against me, so the odds are bad even before you consider than I am doing all this the week after the Victoria Regional, during which I slept about three hours a day... Hmm. I thought I should add an extra paragraph here, since the warnings I gave in the previous paragraph turned out to be more correct than I could have imagined, and the computers got so much the better of me that my score was legendarily bad. I tried to point out my own errors, but after a while it became so frustrating that I fear my comments this time are tinged by emotional exhaustion as board after board went by without getting any matchpoints! Anyhow... This website contains the commentary on the deals, which is done in advance of the game by Bruce McIntyre. First I get the computer program JACK, a first-class bridge-playing program, to play the deals 50 times with computer players. Then a program I wrote collects these results, and creates a file for me to fill in my auctions and comments as I play the deals. It also tells me whether to play South or West on each deal, choosing the more interesting hand, usually the side that declares, so that the comments will not be one-sided. When I play the hands I compare my scores against the 50 computer tables and see how I've done. This time, the 50 computers were set at a level slightly less than best possible, so we should get a fair number of different results on the hands where there are many possible outcomes. All 50 tables plus my table are playing Standard American Yellow Card. In 2017, SAYC continues to be a good starting point on the way to 2/1, the system that dominates tournament bridge in North America. Without getting into the endless different bells and whistles that players choose for their 2/1 systems, I will occasionally make a comment on how a plain vanilla 2/1 auction might differ from SAYC. To help you see what the computer players did, we show the complete deal, a sample auction (usually the one I had). Calls with an asterisk (*) appended are alertable and there will usually be an explanation in the comments. Calls with a plus sign (+) appended are not alertable but are special in some way and there will be an explanation in the comments. Beside the sample auction is the list of computer results, in order of frequency (with mine in blue at the bottom of the list, even if it matches a more frequent result). You can see how each result fared in the computer tournament by looking at the NS% column (you'll have to figure out EW% for yourself...). This is not a prediction of how well a result will score in the real game: that's almost unpredictable! On the right hand side of a wide screen, but down below if your screen is not wide enough, are my comments on the deal. Scroll down to see them all, plus the stats on the deal at the bottom. Below that are two more frequency lists. The first is a list of "six-packs": the first six calls in the auction and who made them (ignoring passes) from which you can see how auctions began at different computer tables. The second counts the most common opening lead cards. On some deals where both sides might become declarer, this list will include cards from different hands, but on deals where the same hand is usually declarer, this will show which cards were chosen by the artificial intelligence the most often. The buttons along the top of the screen allow you to jump from board to board easily instead of scrolling along forever. You can view the hands in the order you played them (sometimes this helps to jog your memory of the afternoon, try it!) or view the ones you starred on your scoresheet to take a good look at later. As always, what you see will depend a little bit on your browser and screen size. I have designed this to fit nicely on an iPad-sized screen and used specifically-selected fonts available to iOS, but I've specified similar ones when this page loads on other platforms.
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1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								None vul North dealer
1										♠		Q53
										♥		964
		W: McB								♦		Q87										East
♠		AJT862								♣		K854								♠		K7
♥		3																		♥		KQT75
♦		K4										South								♦		632
♣		AQJ7								♠		94								♣		T96
April 29, 2017										♥		AJ82								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		AJT95
										♣		32
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				Pass				Pass				Pass					4♠w=						420		48		47
1♠				Pass				1NT				Pass					4♠w-1				50				2		98
2♣+				Pass				2♥				Pass					4♠w-1				50				1		98
3♦!				Pass				4♣+				Pass
4♠				end

Lots of stuff going on here, leading to a bad result for me. Taking the West seat, I open 1♠ in fourth chair and partner responds 1NT. 3♠ is a possible rebid, but I am a bit light for that so I choose 2♣ to emphasize the two-suited nature of my hand. Partner rebids 2♥ and now we are up against JACK's idea of SAYC versus my idea. I'd like to jump to 3♠ to show 6-4 and more than a minimum. JACK claims this shows heart support and is a cuebid in spades. The only other option is a rarely-seen 3♦, fourth-suit forcing by opener! This gets a tepid 4♣ from partner: no diamond stopper, less than three spades, likely only three card club support. We're endplayed into hoping partner has some kind of spade support or this could be bad. Partner does, but I can't make 4♠. Faced with the possibilitiy of one loser in each suit, I win the diamond return after North leads the 7♦, and I play the J♠. At the table, I might get a hint of North's holding from how smooth the 3♠ is played; against a computer there is no way to tell what's happening, and I seal my fate by rising with the king and finessing on the way back. The club finesse fails and I am down one with most of the computers making the contract. Have I missed something? Yes, I have. If I win the K♦ at trick two and play a heart to the king, South wins the ace perforce. This makes it almost certain that North has the Q♠, since with the two red aces and the Q♠, South would likely have a third-seat opener. Wish I'd thought of that five minutes ago...

RESULT: 4♠w-1

Board #1	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	7	10	8	15
Freakness:	0	3	2	6
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	3	3	8	8
Spades:	3	3	10	10
Hearts:	5	5	7	7
Diamonds:	7	7	5	5
Clubs:	3	3	9	9

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♠w;1NTe;3♣w;3♥e;3♠w;4♠e x 50

7♦ x 49
4♥ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								N-S vul East dealer
2										♠		K7
										♥		Q654
		West								♦		6										East
♠		A985								♣		QT9832								♠		QJ6
♥		JT2																		♥		97
♦		KQ74										S: McB								♦		JT953
♣		K5								♠		T432								♣		J64
April 29, 2017										♥		AK83								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		A82
										♣		A7
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				Pass				1NT					5♣n=				600				21		78
end																	1NTs+3				180				12		41
																	1NTs=				90				8		19
																	5♣n-1						100		3		6
																	1NTs+4				210				2		55
																	3NTs-2						200		1		0
																	1NTs+2				150				1		28
																	3NTs+1				630				1		100
																	1NTs-1						100		1		6
																	1NTs-1						100		1		6

1NT is passed out and it's panic time...until dummy appears and a diamond is led. Dummy has seven points so we should try to make this, but with at least four diamonds to lose and lots of other holes it may be difficult. I win the third diamond and play the ace-king of hearts: they break. I lead the 8♥ to the queen (saving the 3♥ and 6♥ as an entry) and play a club to the ace and a club back. West wins and sends a diamond over to East, who cashes a fifth round of diamonds, and I have to get down to three cards. The Kx♠ is a must keep as is the established club, so I have to pitch the established heart from dummy. A club forces me to start spades from dummy, and I am down one. You probably did better. A spade lead toward the king, or ace and another club early, is enough to get to at least seven tricks.

RESULT: 1NTs-1

Board #2	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	7	15	5	13
Freakness:	6	1	2	1
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	7	7	3	3
Spades:	7	7	6	6
Hearts:	11	11	2	2
Diamonds:	5	5	8	8
Clubs:	11	11	2	2

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1NTs;5♣n;End x 24
1NTs;End x 24
1NTs;3NTn;End x 2

5♠ x 14
9♥ x 11
K♦ x 10
Q♠ x 10
J♦ x 3
J♥ x 2

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								E-W vul South dealer
3										♠		952
										♥		A8732
		West								♦		Q2										East
♠		JT8								♣		A73								♠		A643
♥		Q9																		♥		54
♦		KJ9763										S: McB								♦		A
♣		T6								♠		KQ7								♣		KQJ942
April 29, 2017										♥		KJT6								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		T854
										♣		85
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				-				Pass					3♥n=				140				42		59
Pass				1♥				2♣				2♥					3♥n-1						50		8		8
3♦				Pass				Pass				3♥					3♥n-1						50		1		8
end

Another bad result for the human chump in the computer tournament. I press on to 3♥ even though partner has opened in third seat, and become dummy, but computer programs like to let the human play the hand when he is dummy so that they can snicker and laugh electronically as you fail miserably. I win the club lead and play a spade from dummy, East grabbing the ace. East. now cashes the A♦, which on this auction screams singleton. He then bravely underleads his KQJ♣ to West's ten, and West cashes the K♦. Suddenly I need the rest, and a third diamond is led, which East will be ruffing. The 8♥ or 7♥ works, but that isn't very likely: a better shot is to ruff with the ace and finesse the Jhh. This fails and I am one down. When your best score in the first three hands is 8%, you have some catching up to do!!!

RESULT: 3♥n-1

Board #3	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	10	9	14	7
Freakness:	2	1	6	4
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	6	6	5	5
Spades:	5	5	7	7
Hearts:	9	9	4	4
Diamonds:	5	5	8	7
Clubs:	5	5	8	8

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♥n;2♣e;3♣s;3♥n;End x 50

K♣ x 44
A♦ x 6

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								Both vul West dealer
4										♠		JT975
										♥		AK3
		W: McB								♦		9763										East
♠		Q								♣		7								♠		62
♥		Q542																		♥		JT976
♦		AQ854										South								♦
♣		K43								♠		AK843								♣		AQJ862
April 29, 2017										♥		8								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		KJT2
										♣		T95
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
1♦				1♠				Dble				3♦+					5♥Xw-2				500				32		68
3♥				3♠				4♥				4♠					5♥Xw-1				200				18		17
Pass				Pass				5♥				Pass					5♥*w-2				500				1		68
Pass				Dble				end

Opening bid, overcall, shapely negative double, and a jump cuebid! Very exciting first four bids, and now it is time to get serious and decide how far we should go. Opener confirms heart support and responder bids the heart game, but N-S push on to 4♠. East has an easy 5♥ call, but there could be trouble if West decides to think about bidding over 4♠. It looks to me like East has the 5♥ call based on the cards he sees and not the huddle by West, but why give the Director the chance to roll back your good score? Pass with minimum hands when you have the chance and let partner make his choice unburdened by extraneous information! A club lead against 5♥* is vital to get the club ruff for two down.

RESULT: 5♥*w-2

Board #4	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	8	11	8	13
Freakness:	4	4	9	4
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	6	6	6	6
Spades:	9	9	3	3
Hearts:	3	3	9	9
Diamonds:	8	8	5	5
Clubs:	3	3	9	9

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦w;1♠n;Dbl-e;3♦s;3♥w;3♠n x 50

7♣ x 32
A♥ x 10
J♠ x 8

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								N-S vul North dealer
5										♠		KT84
										♥		K532
		West								♦		K										East
♠		J9762								♣		Q842								♠		A53
♥		AT6																		♥		Q8
♦		T84										S: McB								♦		QJ762
♣		T5								♠		Q								♣		AJ7
April 29, 2017										♥		J974								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		A953
										♣		K963
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				Pass				1♦				Pass					2♠w-2				100				36		62
1♠				Pass				1NT				Pass					2♠w-1				50				12		13
2♠				end													2♠w=						110		1		0
																	2♠w-3				150				1		100
																	2♠W-2				100				1		62

Two mediocre hands (North and South) cannot find a way into the auction and we have to defend 2♠. Partner leads the 2♣ to my king and it seems useless to continue clubs, so I switch to a heart. This turns out to be a key play, assuring three trumps, a heart, a club and two diamonds for the defense. Let declarer set up diamonds and the contract might go down only one or even make, for a much different score.

RESULT: 2♠W-2

Board #5	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	11	10	14	5
Freakness:	3	3	2	2
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	6	6	7	7
Spades:	7	7	6	6
Hearts:	8	8	4	4
Diamonds:	6	6	7	7
Clubs:	8	8	4	4

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦e;1♠w;1NTe;2♠w;End x 50

2♣ x 34
2♥ x 16

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								E-W vul East dealer
6										♠		KJ765
										♥		KQ2
		W: McB								♦		K98										East
♠		Q932								♣		92								♠		T
♥		A54																		♥		J986
♦		A6										South								♦		QT743
♣		A763								♠		A84								♣		T84
April 29, 2017										♥		T73								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		J52
										♣		KQJ5
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				Pass				Pass					3♠n-1						50		23		24
1♣				1♠				Pass				2♣+					3♠n=				140				14		79
Pass				3♠				end									2♠n+1				140				7		79
																	2♠n=				110				5		52
																	3♠n-2						100		1		0
																	3♠n=				140				1		79

Partner leads the 8♣ against 3♠, and declarer plays the jack from dummy. I win my ace and have to find the best play. My hand and dummy's is 25 points and declarer has an opening bid, so partner will not be much help. It looks like I have one trick in each suit, and a second in any suit will defeat the contract. I decide to try for a second spade, either a natural spade trick if partner has some helping card in the suit, or via a diamond ruff: I continue with the ace and another diamond. This does not trouble declarer in the slightest; he wins the K♦, plays the K♠, two more clubs pitching his third diamond, then a heart from dummy. I duck and the K♥ wins. A spade to the ace and a third spade through me forces me to win my queen of trumps and hope partner has the Q♥. Not this time. Hard to say why so many declarers went down.

RESULT: 3♠n=

Board #6	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	12	11	3	14
Freakness:	2	0	4	1
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	8	8	4	4
Spades:	9	8	4	4
Hearts:	6	6	6	6
Diamonds:	6	6	7	7
Clubs:	7	7	5	5

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♣w;1♠n;2♣s;3♠n;End x 38
1♣w;1♠n;2♣s;2♠n;End x 12

8♣ x 49
6♥ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								Both vul South dealer
7										♠		AT3
										♥		T852
		West								♦		73										East
♠		6								♣		QT73								♠		KJ42
♥		J97																		♥		AK64
♦		J954										S: McB								♦		Q862
♣		98542								♠		Q9875								♣		6
April 29, 2017										♥		Q3								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		AKT
										♣		AKJ
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				-				1♠					4♠s-1						100		21		68
Pass				2♠				Pass				4♠					4♠s-2						200		16		26
end																	4♠Xs-1						200		4		26
																	4♠s=				620				4		93
																	4♠s-3						300		2		3
																	4♠s+1				650				1		98
																	4♠Xs-2						500		1		0
																	4♠Xs=				790				1		100
																	4♠s-2						200		1		26

The auction is straightforward but there are minefields in the play and I do not escape unharmed! A diamond is led and it looks like game depends on losing only one spade. There are two equally reasonable ways to play the spades, and I choose the worst one, leading the queen and running it to East's king. A club comes back to my K♣ and next I play the T♠ and get the bad news. I duck and give East his second trump and back comes ... a diamond. I win this and there is a way out. I can ruff the last diamond in dummy with the A♠, then use a club to come back to my hand, pull trumps, and overtake the jack of clubs for a heart discard on the ten of clubs! Alas, East rufs the club return, cashes two hearts, and down two I go...

RESULT: 4♠s-2

Board #7	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	6	19	13	2
Freakness:	1	2	3	4
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	9	9	4	4
Spades:	9	9	4	3
Hearts:	7	7	6	6
Diamonds:	6	6	7	7
Clubs:	8	8	4	4

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♠s;2♠n;4♠s;End x 42
1♠s;2♠n;4♠s;Dbl-e;End x 6
1♠s;2♠n;3♠s;4♠n;End x 1
1♠s;2♠n;3NTs;4♠n;End x 1

8♣ x 20
4♦ x 20
7♥ x 7
9♥ x 2
J♦ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								None vul West dealer
8										♠		A6
										♥		QJ98
		W: McB								♦		T5										East
♠		KT742								♣		J8542								♠		J9
♥		532																		♥		KT64
♦		A3										South								♦		K964
♣		AK7								♠		Q853								♣		Q96
April 29, 2017										♥		A7								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		QJ872
										♣		T3
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
1♠				Pass				1NT				end					1NTe+1						120		39		59
																	1NTe+2						150		9		10
																	1NTe=						90		1		100
																	1NTe+3						180		1		0
																	1NTe+1						120		1		59

As a 2/1 player, it has been a while since I saw this auction. In 2/1, a response of 1NT to a major suit opening is forcing for one round, so you can never play notrump. On this hand, opener would rebid 2♣ (a 2♠ rebid would promise six), and responder would settle for 2♠, which has a good chance for nine tricks, losing two spades and two hearts. In 1NT I get the Q♦ lead and I duck a round, win the second with dummy's A♦, and cross to the Q♣. The J♠ lead at trick four draws the whole royal family and I have three spades (losing another to the 8 later), three clubs and two diamonds for a decent score. Lucky for me the entire computer tournament is playing SAYC and nobody plays spades for a chance at 140...

RESULT: 1Ne+1

Board #8	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	8	9	9	14
Freakness:	3	3	1	2
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	4	5	8	8
Spades:	4	4	9	9
Hearts:	4	4	8	8
Diamonds:	6	6	7	7
Clubs:	5	5	8	8

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♠w;1NTe;End x 50

Q♦ x 50

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								E-W vul North dealer
9										♠
										♥		J53
		West								♦		975										East
♠		QJ82								♣		KJT7642								♠		AK7543
♥		84																		♥		AT92
♦		J86										S: McB								♦		K2
♣		9853								♠		T96								♣		A
April 29, 2017										♥		KQ76								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		AQT43
										♣		Q
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				3♣				Dble				3♦+					4♠w=						620		50		49
Pass				Pass				4♠				end					4♠e-1				100				1		100

After partner's pre-empt collects a takeout double on my right, I throw in a lead-directing 3♦ call, since it seems likely partner will be on lead. LHO passes and RHO bids 4♠ and I am on lead. I choose a club, which is won by the ace. Declarer pulls trumps in three rounds ending in dummy and leads a heart to the ten and my queen. It doesn't seem likely that declarer bid 4♠ by himself without the K♦, and if declarer has the AJ♥ as well, I am endplayed. The only hope is that partner has the J♥, so I return a low heart. Partner plays ... the jack and declarer wins the ace. Declarer can ruff a heart in dummy but eventually I get two diamonds and a second heart for down one and a top! The way to secure the contract, it turns out, is to abandon trumps after the first trump lead to dummy reveals the bad split. Instead, duck a heart in both hands. South wins and leads a second trump, but declarer can still ruff two hearts in dummy, using the A♥ as the first entry back to hand and a high club ruff as the second. Once the hearts are ruffed, a club ruffed low may entice South to overruff, leaving him to break diamonds for eleven tricks! But if South discards instead, you still have ten.

RESULT: 4♠e-1

Board #9	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	5	13	18	4
Freakness:	8	4	6	1
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	4	4	9	9
Spades:	3	3	10	10
Hearts:	7	7	5	5
Diamonds:	8	8	4	3
Clubs:	10	10	3	3

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

3♣n;Dbl-e;3♠w;4♠e;End x 42
3♣n;Dbl-e;3♠w;4♣e;4♠w;End x 8

5♦ x 25
3♥ x 16
J♣ x 9

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								Both vul East dealer
10										♠		J9872
										♥		AK5
		W: McB								♦		QJ83										East
♠		A43								♣		A								♠		KQ5
♥		J8742																		♥		T63
♦		6										South								♦		AKT42
♣		8753								♠		T6								♣		KQ
April 29, 2017										♥		Q9								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		975
										♣		JT9642
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				1♦				Pass					3♥w-1				100				31		48
1♥				1♠				2NT				Pass					4♥w-2				200				9		89
3♥				end													3♥w=						140		9		8
																	4♥w-4				400				1		100
																	3♥w-2				200				1		89

It seems natural for the defenders here to start with a spade (or lead the A♣ and switch to a spade) and eventually get a spade ruff and/or a club ruff to go with their three top trumps and A♣. One countermeasure is to play the AK♦ and pitch the A♠, forcing South to ruff the third spade with a natural winner. But how you get around all the pitfalls is beyond me: I was two down for yet another bad score.

RESULT: 3♥w-2

Board #10	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	15	3	17	5
Freakness:	4	4	2	4
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	5	5	7	7
Spades:	6	6	6	6
Hearts:	4	4	9	9
Diamonds:	6	6	7	7
Clubs:	7	7	5	5

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦e;1♥w;1♠n;2NTe;3♥w;End x 40
1♦e;1♥w;1♠n;2NTe;3♥w;4♥e x 10

A♣ x 26
7♠ x 24

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								None vul South dealer
11										♠		AJT5
										♥		AK942
		West								♦		853										East
♠		97632								♣		J								♠		K84
♥																				♥		T87
♦		KQJT9										S: McB								♦		A2
♣		T32								♠		Q								♣		A7654
April 29, 2017										♥		QJ653								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		764
										♣		KQ98
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				-				Pass					4♥n-1						50		28		30
Pass				1♥				Pass				2♣*					4♥n+1				450				10		84
Pass				2♠+				Pass				3♥					4♠Xw-2				300				4		63
Pass				4♥				end									4♠Xw-3				500				3		98
																	4♥n=				420				3		70
																	4♥n-2						100		1		0
																	5♥n=				450				1		84
																	4♥n-1						50		1		30

Doug Drury, a Vancouver-born player who moved to Toronto and joined the group of expert bridge players there in the 1950s, created the convention that bears his name, mostly to protect himself from some of the ultralight third-seat openers the expert clique were experimenting with. Imagine the North hand with small cards instead of the K♥ and A♠: that would be sufficient. Drury's 2♣ convention today shows values for a limit raise (at least four-card support and about 10-11 points) but unwillingness to proceed to that level until opener confirms that he is not just fooling around in third seat. 2♥ is the bid that shows a light opener and keeps you at the two-level; other bids, like 2♠ here, promise full opening bids in any seat. It looks like a ridiculous game to be in, but it is really just unlucky to have three diamond losers in both hands: had they broken 4-2 between declarer and dummy, 4♥ would be laydown.

RESULT: 4♥n-1

Board #11	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	13	10	11	6
Freakness:	4	4	2	7
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	6	6	6	6
Spades:	4	4	8	8
Hearts:	9	9	3	3
Diamonds:	6	5	7	7
Clubs:	4	5	8	8

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♥n;2♣s;2♠n;4♥s;End x 15
1♥n;2♣s;2♦w;4♥n;End x 15
1♥n;2♣s;2♠w;4♥n;4♠e;Dbl-n x 8
1♥n;2♣s;2♠w;4♥n;End x 7
1♥n;2♣s;2♠w;Dbl-n;4♥s;End x 4
1♥n;2♣s;2♦w;3♥n;4♥s;End x 1

A♦ x 27
4♠ x 10
8♥ x 3
A♥ x 2
J♣ x 2
3♦ x 2
A♣ x 1
K♠ x 1
5♠ x 1
5♣ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								N-S vul West dealer
12										♠		A86
										♥		QJ85
		West								♦		A763										East
♠		JT753								♣		QT								♠		K4
♥																				♥		A973
♦		Q95										S: McB								♦		KJT
♣		KJ982								♠		Q92								♣		7653
April 29, 2017										♥		KT642								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		842
										♣		A4
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
Pass				1♦				Pass				1♥					3♠w-2				100				20		62
1♠				2♥				2♠				3♥					3♠w-1				50				14		25
3♠				end													4♠Xw-2				300				7		94
																	3♠w=						140		3		7
																	4♠Xw-1				100				2		62
																	4♥Xs-2						500		2		1
																	3♠w-3				150				1		86
																	4♠w-2				100				1		62
																	3♠w=						140		1		7

I hate passing 3♠ out, but there is no real alternative, partner has a minimum opener and I have only nine points, so there is no game here. Declarer ruffs the opening heart lead and plays a diamond to the ten, then leads a club from dummy. This is my chance to be brilliant, but that's just not happening today. We're going to get two spades and two minor suit aces, and a second club is a possibility if I duck and declarer misguesses, but it is not to be. I hop with the ace and yet another bad score quickly follows.

RESULT: 3♠w=

Board #12	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	13	9	11	7
Freakness:	1	2	1	7
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	7	7	6	6
Spades:	5	5	8	8
Hearts:	8	8	5	5
Diamonds:	7	7	6	6
Clubs:	3	3	10	10

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦n;1♥s;1♠w;2♥n;2♠e;3♥s x 50

Q♥ x 44
Q♣ x 3
J♠ x 2
5♥ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								Both vul North dealer
13										♠		KQ3
										♥		QJ732
		West								♦		95										East
♠		87								♣		A83								♠		T952
♥		T9654																		♥		K
♦		QJ2										S: McB								♦		AT76
♣		762								♠		AJ64								♣		KQJ5
April 29, 2017										♥		A8								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		K843
										♣		T94
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				1♥				Dble				1♠					3NTs=				600				37		56
Pass				2♠				Pass				4♠					3♠s-1						100		4		6
end																	3♠s=				140				4		15
																	3NTs+1				630				3		96
																	3NTs-1						100		1		6
																	3NTs+2				660				1		100
																	4♠s-2						200		1		0

I just don't have it together. East's takeout double and what it means completely eludes me on this hand. I should be in 3NT with a great chance to make it; instead I am in a virtuallt unplayable 4♠. After partner's raise I should have bid 2NT, and in 3NT we lose the ace of diamonds and three clubs. (The takeout double makes it unlikely that East has the K♥, so the correct play is A♥, then small toward the dummy, which in this case drops the singleton K♥ from the East hand.). I hope you're having a better game than I am!

RESULT: 4♠s-2

Board #13	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	12	12	13	3
Freakness:	2	1	3	2
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	9	9	4	4
Spades:	9	9	4	4
Hearts:	9	9	4	4
Diamonds:	7	7	6	6
Clubs:	8	8	5	5

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♥n;Dbl-e;1♠s;2♠n;2NTs;3♣n x 50

Q♦ x 31
8♠ x 10
7♣ x 9

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								None vul East dealer
14										♠		AKT3
										♥		KJ53
		West								♦		T										East
♠		975								♣		AT42								♠		J42
♥		A9																		♥		T764
♦		J952										S: McB								♦		763
♣		K953								♠		Q86								♣		Q76
April 29, 2017										♥		Q82								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		AKQ84
										♣		J8
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				Pass				1NT					3NTs+2				460				32		55
Pass				2♣				Pass				2♦					3NTs+1				430				11		12
Pass				6NT				end									3NTs+3				490				7		94
																	6NTs-2						100		1		0

I step out a bit and partner gets very excited. 14 with a solid five-card suit is worth an extra point isn't it? 3NT making four was only worth 12%, so it didn't cost much, because I don't see an easy path to eleven tricks on these cards...

RESULT: 6NTs-2

Board #14	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	15	14	3	8
Freakness:	3	2	0	1
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	11	11	2	2
Spades:	11	11	2	2
Hearts:	11	11	2	2
Diamonds:	11	11	2	2
Clubs:	10	10	3	3

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦s;1♥n;1NTs;3NTn;End x 50

9♠ x 30
3♣ x 19
7♠ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								N-S vul South dealer
15										♠		2
										♥		QT8764
		West								♦		K4										East
♠		J63								♣		T843								♠		KQ9
♥		9																		♥		J5
♦		J73										S: McB								♦		AT985
♣		KQJ952								♠		AT8754								♣		A76
April 29, 2017										♥		AK32								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		Q62
										♣
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				-				1♠					3NTe-3				150				33		52
3♣+				Pass				3NT				Dble					3NTe-2				100				4		15
end																	3NTe-1				50				4		7
																	5♥n+1				680				4		93
																	4♥n+2				680				2		93
																	5♥s+1				680				2		93
																	3NTe=						400		1		2
																	3NT*e=						550		1		0

Falling fast, I double a gambling 3NT by the computer and make a boneheaded opening lead. Ace of hearts would give us seven tricks off the top and a top score; my choice of the fourth best spade was inane and shows that I haven't caught up on lost sleep from the Victoria tournament last week.

RESULT: 3NT*e=

Board #15	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	5	13	14	8
Freakness:	6	7	2	5
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	6	6	6	6
Spades:	8	8	4	3
Hearts:	12	12	1	1
Diamonds:	5	5	6	6
Clubs:	3	3	8	8

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♠s;3♣w;3NTe;End x 42
1♠s;3♣w;3NTe;4♥n;5♣e;5♥s x 4
1♠s;3♣w;3NTe;4♥s;5♣e;5♥n x 2
1♠s;3♣w;3NTe;4♥n;End x 2

A♥ x 37
A♣ x 3
7♠ x 3
2♥ x 2
K♣ x 2
K♠ x 2
6♣ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								E-W vul West dealer
16										♠		T3
										♥		AKJ
		W: McB								♦		AJ										East
♠		2								♣		QT9865								♠		QJ9874
♥		Q983																		♥		4
♦		K84										South								♦		7632
♣		AKJ72								♠		AK65								♣		43
April 29, 2017										♥		T7652								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		QT95
										♣
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
1♣				Pass				Pass				1♥					4♥s=				420				41		56
Pass				2♣+				Pass				4♥					5♥s-1						50		3		10
end																	4♥s-1						50		2		10
																	6♥Xs-2						300		2		3
																	4♥s+1				450				1		99
																	6♥Xs-3						500		1		0
																	4♥s+1				450				1		99

I lead the 2♠ and declarer wins in hand and plays a trump to the king, ruffs a club, diamond to the jack, club ruff, diamond to the ace, club ruff, diamond ruffed with the ace, and yet another club ruff. Declarer, out of trumps, now leads the Q♦ from hand; I have Q98♥ and the A♣; dummy has a small spade, the J♥, and QT♣. Somehow I find the one play that leads to only two defensive tricks: pitching the A♣! Did I say I was tired?

RESULT: 4♥s+1

Board #16	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	15	9	3	13
Freakness:	4	6	6	4
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	9	9	4	4
Spades:	9	9	4	4
Hearts:	10	10	3	3
Diamonds:	7	7	4	4
Clubs:	8	8	4	4

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♣w;1♥s;2♣n;4♥s;End x 32
1♣w;1♥s;2♣n;2♠e;Dbl-s;3♣w x 16
1♣w;1♥s;2♣n;2♠e;4♥s;End x 2

A♣ x 43
2♠ x 7

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								None vul North dealer
17										♠		A7
										♥		QJ542
		West								♦		A6										East
♠		T6542								♣		KT93								♠		K98
♥		AKT3																		♥		987
♦		54										S: McB								♦		KQJ73
♣		72								♠		QJ3								♣		J8
April 29, 2017										♥		6								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		T982
										♣		AQ654
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				1♥				Pass				1NT					3♣n+1				130				25		26
Pass				2♣				Pass				3♣					3♣n+2				150				25		76
end																	3♣s=				110				1		0

I plead with the computer to not make me declare this hand, but apparently it is forbidden for the computer players to let a human become dummy, no matter how badly they are playing. I win the K♦ opening lead and pull trumps ending in dummy. The Q♠ is run and loses to the K♠, but East decides to have pity and leads a second spade instead of cashing a diamond trick. I win the A♠, cross in trumps to lead the Q♠ for a diamond pitch. But in the end I have two diamonds to lose along with the K♠ and the K♥. Somehow, nor surprisingly, the rest of the field has made an overtrick, and after getting one matchpoint out of the last 500 I am too despondent to figure out how.

RESULT: 3♣s=

Board #17	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	14	9	10	7
Freakness:	3	4	2	3
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	8	7	5	5
Spades:	6	6	6	6
Hearts:	8	8	5	5
Diamonds:	7	7	6	6
Clubs:	10	10	3	3

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♥n;1NTs;2♣n;3♣s;End x 50

K♦ x 49
8♠ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								N-S vul East dealer
18										♠		K65
										♥		QJT72
		West								♦		QJ93										East
♠		QT2								♣		Q								♠		J9
♥		964																		♥		53
♦		K52										S: McB								♦		A8
♣		AJ54								♠		A8743								♣		KT87632
April 29, 2017										♥		AK8								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		T764
										♣		9
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				Pass				1♠					3♠s-1						100		22		54
Pass				2♥				Pass				4♥					4♠s-2						200		12		15
end																	5♣Xe-2				300				10		87
																	4♥n-2						200		3		15
																	4♠s=				620				2		99
																	4♥n-1						100		1		54
																	4♥n-2						200		1		15

Eleven points with three quick tricks and a singleton is an opening bid. An aceless eleven count with two of them a singleton queen is no 2/1 response, even playing SAYC. 2♥ over 1♠ does show five hearts 100% of the time, so 4♥ is a sensible call. Again, unlucky that the minor suits have mirror distribution, and it is child's play to find two diamonds, a diamond ruff, the ace of clubs, and an eventual spade for two down. What a day! Good thing I'm not playing for money...

RESULT: 4♥n-2

Board #18	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	11	11	8	10
Freakness:	4	4	6	0
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	4	4	6	6
Spades:	8	8	3	3
Hearts:	8	8	4	4
Diamonds:	9	9	4	4
Clubs:	4	4	9	9

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♠s;2♥n;2♠s;3♠n;End x 22
1♠s;2♥n;2♠s;3♠n;4♥s;5♣e x 10
1♠s;2♥n;2♠s;4♠n;End x 7
1♠s;2♥n;2♠s;3♠n;4♠s;End x 7
1♠s;2♥n;2♠s;3♠n;4♥s;End x 4

2♦ x 32
A♥ x 9
A♦ x 3
A♣ x 2
7♣ x 1
4♦ x 1
4♣ x 1
4♥ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								E-W vul South dealer
19										♠		95
										♥		T964
		West								♦		AT9										East
♠		AKQ82								♣		Q854								♠		JT743
♥		53																		♥		KJ2
♦		8632										S: McB								♦		KJ7
♣		62								♠		6								♣		AT
April 29, 2017										♥		AQ87								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		Q54
										♣		KJ973
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				-				Pass					4♠w-2				200				46		55
Pass				Pass				1♠				Dble					4♠w-1				100				4		4
2NT+				Pass				4♠				end					4♠e-1				100				1		4

Yet another hand where we go plus but everyone else goes plusser; let's see where I went wrong this time. Not wanting to lead away from the AQ♥ or the KJ♣, I choose a diamond and partner wins and switches to a heart, the T♥. Declarer plays the jack and I win the queen and cash the ace. Bad move; this allows declarer to pitch a club on the K♥. I needed to switch to clubs at that point to ensure we eventually get two hearts, a club, and two diamonds. Might be easier if I open the South hand 1♣, which leads to North being on opening lead against 4♠...

RESULT: 4♠e-1

Board #19	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	6	12	13	9
Freakness:	1	4	2	3
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	6	6	6	6
Spades:	5	5	8	8
Hearts:	10	9	3	3
Diamonds:	6	5	7	7
Clubs:	10	10	3	3

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♣s;1♠w;Dbl-n;3♣e;3♥s;3♠w x 48
1♣s;1♠w;Dbl-n;3♣e;3♥s;4♠w x 2

4♣ x 33
T♥ x 15
8♣ x 1
Q♣ x 1

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								Both vul West dealer
20										♠		J
										♥		QJ954
		West								♦		KJ6										East
♠		754								♣		Q972								♠		862
♥		A72																		♥		KT863
♦		AT5										S: McB								♦		73
♣		T643								♠		AKQT93								♣		J85
April 29, 2017										♥										Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		Q9842
										♣		AK
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
West				North				East				S: McB					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
Pass				Pass				Pass				1♠					3NTn+1				630				44		45
Pass				1NT				Pass				3♦					5♠s+1				680				4		94
Pass				3♥				Pass				4♦					6♠s=				1430				1		100
Pass				5♦				end									4♠s+2				680				1		94
																	5♦s+1				620				1		0

Partner reluctantly settles for 5♦ and I'm supposed to bid six with five to the queen? The computers decided that the South hand was a 2♣ opener, and bid 2♣-2♥, 2♠-3♣, 3♠-3NT and most Souths passed 3NT with their 6-5 hand! I don't agree with any of this, but I'm the one with 19%, so I'm not exactly the best source at this point...

RESULT: 5♦s+1

Board #20	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	10	18	4	8
Freakness:	4	9	2	0
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	9	9	3	3
Spades:	12	12	1	1
Hearts:	8	8	5	5
Diamonds:	12	12	1	1
Clubs:	9	9	4	4

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

2♣s;2♥n;2♠s;3♣n;3♠s;3NTn x 50

5♣ x 33
7♦ x 6
6♥ x 5
3♣ x 4
5♦ x 2

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								N-S vul North dealer
21										♠		T54
										♥		KT6
		W: McB								♦		QJ982										East
♠		KQ98								♣		Q2								♠		2
♥		Q874																		♥		AJ953
♦		AT76										South								♦		53
♣		K								♠		AJ763								♣		AJT65
April 29, 2017										♥		2								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		K4
										♣		98743
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				Pass				Pass				Pass					4♥e+2						480		43		55
1♦				Pass				1♥				1NT*					4♥e+3						510		6		5
2♥				2♠				4♥				end					4♥e+1						450		1		100
																	4♥e+2						480		1		55

Whenever you get more matchpoints on one board than you have in the last nine combined, things are not going well.... I open 1♦ in fourth seat and partner responds 1♥. Next opponent bids an unusual 1NT (black suits, having passed originally he cannot possibly have 15-17 points). I raise to 2♥ and partner bids game. Somehow I make twelve tricks, the K♥ onside, South ducking the first spade lead, and the Q♣ falling doubleton...is this board supposed to be in this set??

RESULT: 4♥e+2

Board #21	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	8	8	10	14
Freakness:	2	6	6	3
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	2	2	11	11
Spades:	5	5	7	7
Hearts:	1	1	12	12
Diamonds:	5	5	8	8
Clubs:	2	2	10	10

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦w;1♥e;1NTs;2♥w;2♠n;4♥e x 50

8♣ x 47
2♥ x 3

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
Board												North								E-W vul East dealer
22										♠		83
										♥		Q843
		W: McB								♦		Q72										East
♠		A64								♣		9872								♠		JT
♥		T762																		♥		KJ95
♦		KJ96										South								♦		AT43
♣		AJ								♠		KQ9752								♣		K43
April 29, 2017										♥		A								Matchpoint Pairs
										♦		85
										♣		QT65
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
A Sample Auction:																	What The Computers Did:
W: McB				North				East				South					Result				NS		EW		Freq.		NS%
-				-				1♦				1♠					4♥e-1				100				18		60
Dble+				Pass				2♥				2♠					4♥e=						620		17		24
4♥				end													3NTw-2				200				7		89
																	4♥e+1						650		4		3
																	4♥e-2				200				2		89
																	3NTw-3				300				1		100
																	4♥e-2				200				1		89

Not an easy hand to end the set, so of course I mangle it for down two. With a session score of 20.55% I'd rather not go into the gory details. Suffice it to say that I will try to spend more time on this for the next Mentor-Mentee game, which will be at the Bridge Centre on August 12.

RESULT: 4♥e-2

Board #22	North	South	East	West
Highcard Pts.:	4	11	12	13
Freakness:	1	6	1	1
Tricks Available In:
Notrump:	2	2	8	8
Spades:	6	6	6	6
Hearts:	2	2	11	11
Diamonds:	2	2	11	11
Clubs:	6	6	7	7

Six-Packs
(First 6 calls)

Opening
Leads

1♦e;1♠s;Dbl-w;2♥e;2♠s;4♥w x 37
1♦e;1♠s;Dbl-w;2♥e;2♠s;3NTw x 11
1♦e;1♠s;Dbl-w;2♥e;2♠s;3♦w x 1

K♠ x 39
8♠ x 8
A♥ x 2

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0
There was a Director who played And wrote of the mistakes that he made His scores just got worse As though there was some curse You won't learn much from this, I'm afraid.... Thanks for checking this out. I'll see you all on August 12 at the VBC.
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0