Dealer: E Vul: Both
NORTH
♠ A1072
♥ K7
♦ AKQ832
♣ A
WEST EAST
♠ 43 ♠ J98
♥ 10964 ♥ QJ83
♦ 6 ♦ 5
♣ KQJ742 ♣ 109865
SOUTH
♠ KQ65
♥ A52
♦ J10976
♣ 3
A Grand Slam went begging on Board 26 last Monday. Declarer, either North or South can win all thirteen tricks in diamonds, spades and no trumps. At two of the four tables North/South played in 5D, scoring 640. At one table, after the usual three passes, North opened with 2C, showing 19-21 high card points. South apparently simply invited partner to bid game in diamonds, instead of using an Ace-asking bid. At another table, North managed to become declarer but the result was the same.
At the two remaining tables North/South chose a different path. At one table North went slowly at first with a bid of 1D, to which South responded 1S. North, unsure of how strong South’s spades were jumped to 3NT, which was passed out. One can see that there are six probable tricks in diamonds, plus two Aces. On a heart lead, declarer is a good chance to win the necessary nine tricks without any help from partner. The risk was that, after a club lead, South would need to hold just the right cards. When a club was led and South’s hand was placed on the table, declarer could see that South’s cards filled the vacant spots in hand, just like a jigsaw. Declarer played one or two rounds and then claimed all thirteen tricks if East/West’s spades split 3-2 or twelve if one of the defenders held four or five spades. Plus 720 turned out to be the top score when the other pair in 3NT managed only twelve tricks. Who was responsible for missing the Grand Slam? South must bear most of the blame by not giving full value to South’s hand, especially with that singleton. What about the two pairs who preferred no-trumps to a suit? They should buy a lottery ticket each.
Results, Friday, 26/09/25: (4 & 1/2-table Howell): L. Don T. Hinde (62.5)1 eq; P. Kelly M. Simpson (62.5) 1 eq; G. Schmidt I. House (51.7) 3; D. Moran N. McGinness (50.7) 4. Monday,06/10/25 (5& 1/2-table Howell): J. Nankervis P. Kelly (60.6) 1; T. Hinde D. Moran (59.7) 2; N. Collins M. Simpson (57.9) 3; M. Warren B. Warren (56.9) 4. Friday, 03/10/25 (4 & 1/2-table Howell) K. Steffensen C. Miller (79.2) 1; H. Price N. McGinness (56.2) 2; T. Hinde L. Don (52.1) 3; C. Duggan S. Goddard (51.4) 4.
