Marc Smith visits the Midi Alt Swiss Teams
We return to the online world this week, with the Midi Alt Swiss Teams. Sixteen teams lined up to play twelve rounds of 12-board matches. As we have come to expect from Alt events, there were world-class players aplenty to entertain those watching live on BBO VuGraph.
As usual, we begin with a couple of bidding problems for you to mull over. We will find out later how your choices would have worked. Firstly, with just the opponents vulnerable, you are East with:
What action, if any, do you take?
Next, with only your side vulnerable, you hold as East:
What action, if any, do you take:
Whilst you consider those, we begin with what may look like a routine slam hand for East/West. Evidently, though, getting to the top spot was not so easy, as only three of the 16 pairs managed to do so. Indeed, some top-class players had trouble getting even close. This was the first of this week’s bidding problems:
The Swede’s Strong Club system meant that East/West had to start their auction at the two-level. The obvious question is whether West’s 3♠ is forcing? I can certainly understand why you might not want it to be forcing, although that raises the question of what West is supposed to do with a good hand. Is 4♣ really the only forward-going bid? How do you get to 3NT when that is the right contract? Something for regular partners to discuss. Declarer managed only eight tricks in his inelegant 5-1 fit: E/W -50.
Over North’s 1♣ opening, Sandra Rimstedt was able to show both of her suits at her first turn. Gary Donner bid what he thought he could make and, although he was a level too low, E/W +420 was still 10 IMPs to DONNER.
East/West here were both former Israeli junior internationals and quarter-finalist in the 2017 Venice Cup. Ollie Powell’s decision not to open the North hand set his opponents a completely different problem. Having passed in second seat, Dana Tal then had to decide how to advance after a fourth-seat 1♠ opening from her partner and a 2♣ overcall. She elected to start with 2♥, and then got to bid her diamonds after a takeout double of South’s club raise. That then left Noga Tal with the problem. Simply giving preference to hearts proved not the winning choice on this layout: E/W +170, although I suspect the Israelis were booked to lose on the board whatever they did after this start.
After the same start we saw at one table in the other match, the judgement of England’s Charlie Bucknell’s was spot on. Who needs science? E/W +920 and 13 IMPs to RED TURTLE. It was the Israelis who enjoyed the last laugh, though, as they won the match 45-17. That was enough to earn then a meeting with the early leaders, DREAMLAND (Canada, USA, Hong Kong), at Table 1.
Dana Tal showed hearts and a minor over North’s 1NT opening, and heard her partner advance with 2♠. Her raise to 4♠ was well judged.
Noga Tal ruffed the club lead, ruffed a diamond to hand, and ruffed a second club with the ♠K. A second diamond ruff then bought down North’s ace. Declarer played the ♠A and a second trump to North’s queen. She then won the heart switch with the ace and pitched a loser on the ♦K. North ruffed with his last trump but had just one winner to cash. E/W +620.
In the replay, North’s ‘natural or balanced’ 1♣ opening presented the Hong Kong pair with a different scenario, and the second of this week’s bidding problems.
Baron Chi-Cheung Ng found himself in a similar position to the Israeli East at the other table, having shown red suits and then heard his partner bid spades. Had he contented himself with a simply raise to game, there would probably have been no story. When Ng instead showed a club shortage agreeing spades, he fatally gave Aran Warszawski the chance to double, showing club support. Now, when Kwok-Fei Mak signed off in 4♠, Dan Israeli was able to take the very cheap save (so cheap that it might even make) in 5 ♣. Mak took the insurance in 5 ♠, but it was only limiting the damage: E/W -100 and 12 IMPs to FOLLOW SUIT, who led the field after two matches.
Next up for the Israelis at Table 1 were YOSHKA (Germany, USA), and there was an element of déjà vu about the final board of Match 3:
North’s 1♠ opening was described as showing 5+♠, not 5332, with the additional note that it could be any 11-count or less. When Dan Israeli described his hand as having a maximum of 12 HCP with his 3♠ bid he could, therefore, have been appreciably worse than he was. Even so, facing a maximum of a 12-count, you can quite understand Aram Warszawski’s lack of interest in advancing beyond game. And quite right he was too. The defenders cashed their top clubs and duly came to a diamond trick in the fullness of time. N/S +620.
Shahar Zack took advantage of the favourable vulnerability to crowd the American auction with a Three Club overcall. Joel Geeske now advanced with a 4♣ cue-bid, showing game values and agreeing spades. After two red-suit cue-bids, William Watson decided that he liked his hand enough to ask for a club control via a jump to 5♠. His partner denied one by passing, but that was already one too high. Declarer could not avoid losing a diamond in addition to the two top clubs: N/S 100 and 12 IMPs to FOLLOW SUIT.
FOLLOW SUIT won the match 37-1 to open a 9-VP gap at the top of the table. Heading the chasing pack, and next up for the Israelis, was RIPPEY (USA, France, Poland).
The Israelis conducted what seems like a very sensible auction. Indeed, facing 6-9 HCP, why would Noga Tal have ambitions beyond game? E/W +480 looked likely to be a flat board, but the Poles had other ideas.
Eldad Ginossar’s weak 2♦ opening put impetus into the Polish auction. Piotr Nawrochi started with a takeout double of South’s diamond raise, and then introduced his moderate spade suit after his partner had responded at the minimum level. Piotr Wiankowski now showed a good hand for spades by cue-bidding 4♦. How good can it be, though, having bid only 3♥ in response to the original takeout double? It seems to me that the Polish West was in a similar position to his opponent at the other table. However, Nawrochi decided he was worth another try and, when his partner admitted to a heart control, he jumped to slam.
Not that this contract was a thing of great beauty. North is likely to hold the ♦K after his opening bid, so declarer’s only chance is to also find the opener with four hearts (or a very unlikely Q-J doubleton). Declarer won the diamond lead and knocked out the ♠A, He then won the club switch, drew the last trump and took his club ruff in dummy. When he then ran his trumps, North was squeezed in the red suits. A very fortunate E/W +980 and 11 IMPs to RIPPEY, who inflicted the first defeat on the Israelis, 27-23.
This hand reminds me of an old joke that circulated at a time when the great Italian Blue team was regularly defeating Polish teams in Bermuda Bowl finals. It was said that even though the Pope may be Polish, God was still Italian. It seems that John Paul II’s influence may at last be benefitting some of the younger Polish players.
The match was close enough for the Israelis to retain their place at the top of the table. Behind them, AMATEURS (USA, Egypt, Georgia) scored a big win to leapfrog RIPPEY into second place. Coming up on the rails in fourth place was the ominous shape of MOSS, perennial winners of Alt events. These were the standings after four matches:
| FOLLOW SUIT | 58.49 VPs |
| AMATEURS | 55.39 |
| RIPPEY | 52.05 |
| MOSS | 49.72 |
| YOSHKA | 49.11 |
| CANTOR | 42.56 |
With eight matches remaining, there is still plenty of opportunity for teams to make a move. We will return next week to see the best of the action from the middle matches.