Swedish Open Pairs Final

by Sven-Olov Flodqvist

Swedish Open Pairs tends to be a lively and interesting event. This year’s final begins today with 170 pairs playing a 66-board qualification from which the 52 best placed will make it into the A-final. The nicest play from last year’s final was this hand from the qualification:

	ª Q J 3 © 7 6 5 4 ¨ J 3 § A K 7 2
		ª 10 6 5 © A K Q 9 ¨ 6 5 § Q 9 8 4

West opened a Multi 2¨ and 2ª showed some interest in a high heart contract. Why East doubled 4¨ is unclear. It might be that he felt that his side could do better than +50 or +100 in a spade part-score.

Anyway, West led the ace of spades and East played the ten. West switched to the two of hearts, third or fifths, and South followed to two rounds of hearts playing the ten on the second. What next?

	ª Q J 3 © 7 6 5 4 ¨ J 3 § A K 7 2
ª A K 9 8 7 2 © J 3 2 ¨ 10 9 § J 10		ª 10 6 5 © A K Q 9 ¨ 6 5 § Q 9 8 4
	ª 4 © 10 8 ¨ A K Q 8 7 4 2 § 6 5 3

South was much too strong for a 3¨ first in hand pre-empt and he didn’t like the alternative of opening1¨. East returned the nine of spades and declarer ruffed. After drawing trumps in two rounds, declarer could have claimed the contract. West’s original distribution was obviously 6-3-2-2 and East must thereby have been born with four hearts and four clubs.

Four more rounds of diamonds, pitching black losers from dummy, gives this end position

	© 7 6 § A K
ª K © J § J 10		© A 9 § Q 9 8
	¨ 4 § 6 5 3

East will still have to play a card. If he throws a heart, declare can establish dummy’s heart with a ruff. In practice East pitched another club, but Micke now won the §AK and his hand was good.

East should have played a third heart to kill the menace for the ruffing squeeze, after which South would have been doomed to go one down.

At another table the first round of the bidding was the same, but then South tried 3¨, and after 3ª by East she persisted with 4¨. East passed and misdefended, but sadly enough South failed to see how to make her contract.

Nobody knows how over-heated a bridge player’s brain may become.

Dealer West. None Vul.
	ª A 10 9 © Q 4 ¨ K J 7 § 10 7 6 5 3
ª K Q J 5 4 © 7 6 3 2 ¨ Q 8 § 9 4		ª 7 6 2 © A J 10 8 5 ¨ 9 5 § K Q 2
	ª 83 © K 9 ¨ A 10 6 4 3 2 § A J 8

West	North	East	South
Pass	Pass	1©	2¨
2©	3¨	Pass	3NT
Pass	Pass	Pass

West lead the king of spades and East showed his length by playing the seven and played the two on the jack of spades to indicate some interest in clubs. If West has the jack of clubs it might be essential to shift to clubs and avoid establishing declarer his ninth trick with a heart switch. But since West had no help in clubs he played a heart to the ten and king. South crossed to the king of diamonds, cashed the ace of spades and took the heart finesse over East, who after all had opened the bidding.

West ruminated for quite some time on whether to play a heart or a club before deciding to return a club, only to learn that a heart would have been more successful.

“Could I know that I should have played a heart instead of a club?” asked West.
“Well, you might have cashed your two high spades, to see my discards.” answered East ?

Things went very well for Frederic Wrang on this board against Altmae – Hjelm.

Dealer Eeast. None Vul.
	ª 10 9 © J 9 8 6 ¨ A 7 § K Q 7 54
ª Q 2 © Q 10 5 4 3 ¨ K 8 4 § 8 6 3		ª K 5 4 3 © 7 ¨ Q J 10 5 3 § A J 10
	ª A J 8 7 6 © A K 2 ¨ 9 6 2 § 9 2

East opened1¨ and Freddan bid 1ª

West	North	East	South
		1¨	1ª
2¨	Dble	3¨	Pass
Pass	Dble	Pass	3©
Pass	Pass	Pass

The eight of diamonds was led to the ten and another diamond to dummy’s ace. The ten of spades was run to the queen and West played a club to the king and ace after which West continued a third round of diamonds, ruffed in dummy.

South played a spade to the jack and continued with the ace, ruffed and overruffed. Queen of clubs and a club ruff and a spade towards dummy meant that all West could make, despite his stack of trumps, was the queen for -140.

The wildest board of the first day was this one,

East dealer, All vuln.

	ª --- © J 10 7 5 ¨ A K J 10 9 3 2 § 9 7
ª A K Q 6 3 © Q ¨ Q § A Q J 10 8 2		ª J 8 4 © 9 6 4 2 ¨ 8 6 4 § 5 4 3
	ª 10 9 7 5 2 © A K 8 3 ¨ 7 5 § K 6

which was not entirely obvious from my position in South-East.

West	North	East	South
Jan-Erik	Peter	Hakan	Fredrik
Thomasson	Bertheau	Straaf	Nystrom
		Pass	1ª
2§	2¨*	Pass	Pass
3§	3¨	All Pass

I don’t know who was most amazed, Håkan to see the auction end, or Fredrik to see his partner make eleven tricks. Anyway, Fredrik’s opening bid becalmed both West and East.

At one table did West, rather unwisely, decide to open 1ª and then bid his clubs vigorously. When East later on - very ambitiously - bid 5ª over 5¨ West was not too happy with that decision, but had he opened 1§ instead he would not have ended up paying an 1100 penalty in 5ª doubled. E/W can be held to nine tricks in clubs if the defenders cash the red kings and ruff a spade, before exiting in a red suit.

Nevertheless, one E/W-pair got +750, maybe after two rounds of diamonds and an innocent looking spade towards dummy. Maybe South had bid spades, so that North did not want to ruff his partner’s trick? A club finesse after the jack of spades is followed by another round of trumps and the fifth spade can be ruffed in dummy.

South might, however, make twelve tricks in hearts. After a heart lead, ruffed in dummy, declarer must play the jack of hearts to the king, dropping the queen and draw trumps with the ten and finesse East’s nine.