The Pachabo
Even in the duplicate game it must be admitted that luck plays more than an insignificant part. Whilst the pure chance of holding good or bad cards is visited on all the players that will play the hand, there are other factors. Certain hand types may suit your system or your style, optimistic contracts may succeed only on an exact lie of the cards. Of course when the opponents perpetrate these flukes against you there is some justification for tales of woe. The jargon in the tournament world is being 'fixed'. Somehow, however, when you are playing well you do not get 'fixed'. Good play seems to create it's own good fortune and, correspondingly, offend the cards and they do not forget.
In the Pachabo Cup for the champion teams of four from each county, Suffolk played below their best and of course without their share of luck. Here is one example they suffered:
| ♠ A3 | |||
| ♥ AQ72 | |||
| ♦ Q73 | |||
| ♣ J1042 | |||
| ♠ K98654 | ♠ 107 | ||
| ♥ 106 | ♥ J9853 | ||
| ♦ 86 | ♦ 105 | ||
| ♣ 763 | ♣ KQ85 | ||
| ♠ QJ2 | |||
| ♥ K4 | |||
| ♦ AKJ942 | |||
| ♣ A9 | |||
| West | North | East | South | |
| 1NT | Pass | 3♦* | ||
| Pass | 4♠* | Pass | 4NT | |
| Pass | 5♠ | Pass | 7NT | |
| End | ||||
The bidding requires some explanation: One no-trump was 12-14 and the jump to three diamonds set the suit and asked the opener to describe his hand, four spades showed three to an honour and two aces. A very impressive system. Unfortunately opinions now diverged, South intended four no-trump as a request for further in formation and construed five spades as a good suit presumably AKxx and could therefore count thirteen tricks. North thought four no-trump was to discover which two aces he held as South might have a void. After the king of clubs lead North could only count eleven tricks. After a diamond to the ace and running the spade queen the spade ace and the diamonds were cashed to leave:
| ♠ - | |||
| ♥ AQ72 | |||
| ♦ - | |||
| ♣ - | |||
| ♠ J | |||
| ♥ K4 | |||
| ♦ - | |||
| ♣ 9 | |||
As west had to retain the spade king and east the club queen, neither could hold onto four hearts. In fact it was East who had to surrender the thirteenth trick. Had West, not North, held the club nine the squeeze would have been avoided but on the actual lie of the cards there is no defence.
There are other, often unseen, manifestations of fortune at the table. Another example from the same event:
| ♠ K765 | |||
| ♥ QJ104 | |||
| ♦ K32 | |||
| ♣ 73 | |||
| ♠ 10943 | ♠ A | ||
| ♥ 9732 | ♥ A | ||
| ♦ 6 | ♦ AQ1098754 | ||
| ♣ KQ86 | ♣ A102 | ||
| ♠ QJ82 | |||
| ♥ K865 | |||
| ♦ J | |||
| ♣ J954 | |||
Suffolk EW
| West | North | East | South | |
| Pass | ||||
| Pass | Pass | 2♦ | Pass | |
| 2♥* | Pass | 3♣ | Pass | |
| 4♣ | Pass | 5♦ | Pass | |
| 6♣ | Pass | 6♦ | End |
Suffolk NS
| West | North | East | South | |
| Pass | ||||
| Pass | Pass | 1♣* | Pass | |
| 1♦* | 1♥ | 3♦ | 3♥ | |
| X | Pass | 6♦ | End |
With Suffolk holding the eight card suit the auction was natural. After West's initial negative of two hearts East used three clubs as a convenience to discover any cards of value. Four clubs demonstrated just that (five clubs would have been the call with just a lot of clubs) and the six club bid was a fine effort from Chris Green who appreciated that the club king-queen were top value
In the other room Suffolk were able to interfere over the strong club sequence and whether East's double was for penalties or take-out West could not have had much idea where East's strength lay. In the play the Suffolk declarer won the lead and crossed to dummy to play a diamond to the queen and claimed when the knave fell. In the replay the diamond ace was cashed. Although this protects against a singleton king with South it loses when either small card is held alone. As it was the layout was an equal consideration for both plays - had the trump king been singleton in the South hand that really would have been a hard luck story to tell the world.
Published week beginning Monday 20.Jun.1988