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The entrants who made mistakes in the Christmas Competition usually went wrong in the auctions.
This was the deal:
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North
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A 10 9
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A Q 7
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3 2
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K Q 7 5 4
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West
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J 8 7 6 2
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J 8 2
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9 8
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J 10 9
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East
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5 4 3
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10 9 3
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K 6 5 4
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8 3 2
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South
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K Q
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K 6 5 4
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A Q J 10 7
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A 6
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When North was the dealer, several people opened one club, not one notrump. First, you should never worry about a low doubleton. If you open one club and partner responds one diamond (as he would), you have no rebid. If you rebid one notrump, you show only 12-14 points, when you have 15 and a five-card suit. If you rebid two notrump, you show 18 or 19 points, making this a big overbid.
Second, even if one still uses a 16-18 range for one notrump, this hand is strong enough, counting one point for the decent five-card suit.
After North opens one notrump, South should be planning to bid a slam. So he should look for a fit in both red suits. He does this by responding two clubs, Stayman. When North replies two diamonds, denying a four-card major, South rebids three diamonds, which shows at least game-going values, five or more diamonds, and a four-card major somewhere. North, with no love of diamonds, continues with three notrump. South concludes the auction by jumping to six notrump, which makes with an overtrick given the favorable layout.
If South is the dealer, he opens one diamond, and North responds two clubs. (Do not jump in notrump with a good five-card suit.) Now many competitors rebid three hearts, but this jump is unnecessary. A two-heart rebid, in traditional methods, is a reverse, promising extra values, four-plus hearts and five-plus diamonds.
I treat a three-heart jump-rebid as a splinter bid, showing a singleton (or void) in hearts, four-plus clubs, and at least game-forcing values.
The biggest problem with the competition was the wording of the last question: What is the lowest trump that could effect an uppercut, promoting a defensive trump trick for partner?
Some people thought that referred to the deal given in the diagram. Apologies to them — but most entrants did understand that I meant in any deal. Next time, I will include “in any deal” in the question.
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