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WOMEN TEAMS R10 - Egypt v USA
by Phillip Alder
The American team is one of the favorites for the women's event. Round 10 saw the clash against an Egyptian team that was doing worse than expected.
I went into the Open Room to watch Janice Seamon-Molson and Tobi Sokolow take on Marguerite Homsy and Maud Khouri, a new lineup in an attempt to turn their luck around. If I had known, I would have watched at the other table, where Mildred Breed and Marinesa Letizia played against Nessrine Hamdy and Sophie Sarwat, because their Internet service failed, so none of the play was broadcast.
There were a few interesting deals and an auction that has surely never happened before. (See page 6)
After four boards, Egypt led by 3 IMPs to 0. On Board 21, poor declarer play by an Egyptian gave the United States 13 IMPs. Then came ...
| Board 22. Dealer East. East-West vul. |
| | ♠ J 7
♥ A K Q 3
♦ Q J 6
♣ A Q J 6 |
♠ 10 9 4
♥ J 10 7 6 4
♦ K 9
♣ 5 4 2 |  |
♠ A K 6 5 3
♥ 5 2
♦ A 8 7 3 2
♣ 8 | | | ♠ Q 8 2
♥ 9 8
♦ 10 5 4
♣ K 10 9 7 3 |
| West | North | East | South
|
| Homsy | Seamon-Molson | Khouri | Sokolow
|
| | | 1♠ | Pass
|
| 1NT | Dble | 2♦ | 3♣
|
| Pass | 3NT | All Pass
| |
| West | North | East | South
|
| Breed | Sarwat | Letizia | Hamdy
|
| | | 1♠ | Pass
|
| 1NT | Dble | 2♦ | Pass
|
| 2♠ | Dble | Pass | 3♣
|
| Pass | Pass | Pass
| |
The idea of using the forcing 1NT response with a weak three-card major-suit raise works particularly well in an uncompetitive auction. But if the opponents intervene, stopping you from supporting partner's major, especially spades, it might prove expensive. Here, note that four spades is down only one (not that anyone would bid that over three notrump given the adverse vulnerability).
The swing came because Sokolow gambled a three-club advance. She did not expect three notrump to make, but it was unbeatable. The defenders started with three rounds of diamonds, and Seamon-Molson took her nine tricks: three hearts, one diamond and five clubs.
At the other table, North had no idea her partner had any values. Is this another position for a lebensohl-style continuation, three clubs promising some values, and two notrump being bid when South is destitute? Even worse, three clubs had five losers: two spades, two diamonds and a diamond ruff.
Plus 400 and plus 50 gave the United States 10 IMPs.
If you were East-West, where would you like to play here?
| Board 23. Dealer South. Both vul. |
| | ♠ 8 3
♥ J 7 5
♦ 6 3
♣ K 10 8 7 5 4 |
♠ A K Q J 10
♥ K 10 9 8
♦ Q
♣ A J 6 | |
♠ 2
♥ Q 6 2
♦ K J 10 8 7 5 4
♣ 9 3 | | | ♠ 9 7 6 5 4
♥ A 4 3
♦ A 9 2
♣ Q 2 |
| West | North | East | South
|
| Homsy | Seamon-Molson | Khouri | Sokolow
|
| | | | Pass
|
| 1♠ | Pass | 1NT(a) | Pass
|
| 2NT(b) | Pass | 3♦(c) | Pass
|
| 3NT | Pass | Pass | Pass
|
(a) Forcing.
(b) Artificial game-force, any shape except 5+-5+.
(c) Natural, but denying four hearts (she would have rebid three clubs).
| West | North | East | South
|
| Breed | Sarwat | Letizia | Hamdy
|
| | | | Pass
|
| 1♠ | Pass | 1NT(a) | Pass
|
| 3♥ | Pass | 4♥ | All Pass
|
(a) Forcing.
Three notrump made easily when Sokolow led a low heart and Seamon-Molson played her jack. Maud won with the queen, drove out the heart ace and had nine tricks: five spades, three hearts and one club.
Four hearts was much more difficult. South took the diamond lead and shifted to the club queen. Declarer won with her ace and cashed two top spades, discarding dummy's remaining club. Now came the spade queen, which North ruffed with the heart seven. Breed overruffed with dummy's queen, cashed the diamond king for a club pitch, and played a trump. If declarer had guessed to rise with her king, she would have made the contract. But when she finessed her ten, Sarwat won with her jack and accurately returned a trump. Hamdy won with the ace and led a club to North's king for down one.
Plus 600 and plus 100 gave Egypt 12 IMPs, cutting the U.S. lead to 8.
I checked all the other results on this board. Three notrump made 27 times, but went a collective 65 down at the 23 tables it did not make. Four hearts made 33 times, and seven times 11 tricks were taken. But 31 declarers failed to take 10 tricks. Five diamonds, which looks like an excellent spot, was bid only 15 times, going down one three times, making eight times, and collecting an overtrick four times. Maybe we still bid as if it were a pair event even at imps.
Another poor piece of Egyptian declarer-play cost 10 IMPs. Then America gained 5 IMPs when Seamon-Molson made two notrump with an overtrick, but accurate defense by Breed-Letizia defeated three notrump in the Closed Room.
With only the opponents vulnerable, you pick up:
| | ♠ 10 7 5 3
♥ 10 7 6 4
♦ A 4
♣ Q 9 5 |
The auction starts like this:
| West | North | East | South
|
| Pass | Pass | 1♣ | Pass
|
| 1♥ | Pass | 2♠ | Pass
|
| ?
| | | |
Two spades is equivalent to a reverse and you treat the continuations similarly. So, any bid at the three-level is game-forcing. Two notrump asks partner to bid three clubs, whereupon you may pass or bid three spades to show a weak hand with four-card support. What's your choice? (I first heard this idea more than 20 years ago from Steen Moller, who is playing on the Danish senior team.)
Homsy took the cautious route, rebidding two notrump and following up with three spades. Maud thought for a while, but eventually passed. At the other table, Breed bid four spades because two spades was game-forcing.
Maud won 10 tricks and Letizia 12, so the United States gained 7 IMPs.
I think Homsy should have jumped from two spades to four spades. Yes, her trumps were poor, but she had an ace and the surely valuable club queen. IMP scoring, even nonvulnerable, favors bidding game.
The final sizable swing came on this deal.
| Board 30. Dealer East. None vul. |
| | ♠ J 8 3
♥ A K J 2
♦ A 10 3
♣ 7 6 2 |
♠ K 5 4
♥ Q
♦ K 9 8 7 6 4
♣ Q 8 5 | |
♠ A 7 6
♥ 8 7 4
♦ J 5 2
♣ K J 4 3 | | | ♠ Q 10 9 2
♥ 10 9 6 5 3
♦ Q
♣ A 10 9 |
In the Closed Room, South made three hearts exactly. In the Open Room, Sokolow opened two hearts with the South hand, showing at least 5-4 in the majors and 0-10 high-card points.
After West passed, Seamon-Molson raised to four hearts.
Now it came down to the lead. A low club would have set up four defensive tricks. But West selected a low diamond. Declare ran that to her queen, drew trumps, discarded a club loser on the diamond ace, and conceded three tricks: two spades and one club.
Minus 140 and plus 420 was worth 7 IMPs to the United States.
The final result was 53 - 21, which gave the United States 23 victory points and Egypt 7.
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