Women's Pairs Final - Session Three

By Brian Senior

Irina Levitina and Kerri Sanborn of USA were leading the Women’s Pairs final after two of the four sessions and, having sat behind Levitina throughout the third session, I strongly fancied them to go on and win the title as they played both well and in luck to post a 64.6% session.

Inevitably, simply avoiding error does not make for exciting reading, so many of the deals in this article involve accepting gifts from tiring opponents.

Board 1. Dealer North. None Vul.
	♠ Q J 7 6 ♥ A Q 5 ♦ A J ♣ A Q 4 2
♠ K 5 3 2 ♥ J 8 4 ♦ K 10 7 ♣ K J 7		♠ A 9 4 ♥ 10 7 2 ♦ 8 4 3 ♣ 10 9 8 3
	♠ 10 8 ♥ K 9 6 3 ♦ Q 9 6 5 2 ♣ 6 5

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Wortel	Levitina	Michielsen
	2NT	Pass	3♣
Pass	3♦	Pass	3♠
Pass	3NT	All Pass

Rising Dutch star Meike Wortel helped the leaders to a great start to the session by selecting a losing line in the popular contract of 3NT on this board.

Wortel won the club lead and played ace then jack of diamonds, ducked. Wortel switched her attention to spades, the ten losing to Sanborn’s king. Declarer ducked the club return then won the next club and tried the jack of spades from hand, but Levitina won, cashed her club winner, and knew to lead a diamond to cash Sanborn’s king; one down for –50 and 29 MPs out of 34 to Sanborn/Levitina. The diamond play was flawed as it would always establish a winner for the defence. Had declarer played on spades from the start, she would have made her contract.

Board 5. Dealer North. N/S Vul.
	♠ 7 6 4 ♥ Q 8 6 ♦ K 5 2 ♣ A K 8 6
♠ 10 2 ♥ J 7 5 3 ♦ J 9 8 7 ♣ J 10 3		♠ K J 5 ♥ K 10 9 2 ♦ 6 3 ♣ 9 5 4 2
	♠ A Q 9 8 3 ♥ A 4 ♦ A Q 10 4 ♣ Q 7

West	North	East	South
Vriend	Levitina	Arnolds	Sanborn
	1♣	Pass	1♠
Pass	1NT	Pass	2♦(i)
Pass	2♠	Pass	3♦
Pass	4♠(ii)	Pass	4NT
Pass	5♦	Pass	6♠
All Pass

(i) GF Relay
(ii) Weakest option

When you are playing well, the luck often seems to follow you around. Slam is poor on this combination as, needing a parking place for the fourth diamond, Sanborn judged to win the club lead and finesse the queen on the first round of trumps, rather than first finessing the nine then the queen, thereby reducing her chances in the suit to increase her chances on the whole deal. Of course, on a heart lead to the queen and king, she would have no option but to play spades this way. When the spades behaved as required, Sanborn could throw her heart loser on the ♣K and ruff a diamond in dummy; +1430 and 30 MPs.

Board 8. Dealer West. None Vul.
	♠ 5 2 ♥ A J 10 6 ♦ 10 8 7 6 3 ♣ K J
♠ A 3 ♥ K Q 9 8 5 ♦ A K 2 ♣ A 9 8		♠ K Q 9 8 4 ♥ 7 4 3 ♦ Q 9 ♣ Q 7 4
	♠ J 10 7 6 ♥ 2 ♦ J 5 4 ♣ 10 6 5 3 2

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Zhang	Levitina	Gu
2NT	Pass	3♥	Pass
3♠	Pass	3NT	All Pass

The leaders did the right thing in the auction by playing the popular 3NT rather than the five-three heart fit. Yalan Zhang led a diamond to dummy’s queen and Sanborn led a heart to her queen. No doubt a smooth duck is best with the North cards, but Zhang found herself thinking and, with no possibility that ducking would deceive declarer as to the position of the ace, decided that she might as well win the trick. Unfortunately, Ling Gu’s two was consistent with her holding an odd number of hearts, and Zhang now talked herself into returning the ♥J – which would have been a good idea had partner held three cards in the suit, but was disastrous when the odd number proved to be one. Sanborn won the ♥K and returned the nine, and soon had ten tricks for +430 and 33 MPs.

Had North simply played a diamond when in with the ♥A, declarer could have made nine tricks by switching her attention to clubs when the bad heart position was exposed, but she could also have gone wrong, attempting to endplay South, who was favourite to hold the ♣K, and now the contract would fail.

Board 10. Dealer East. All Vul.
	♠ A Q 10 6 3 ♥ Q 8 5 ♦ 9 2 ♣ A K 8
♠ 2 ♥ A J ♦ K J 8 7 6 4 3 ♣ J 9 6		♠ J 9 8 5 4 ♥ 4 3 ♦ A 10 ♣ 10 7 5 4
	♠ K 7 ♥ K 10 9 7 6 2 ♦ Q 5 ♣ Q 3 2

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Mariano	Levitina	De Gallego
		Pass	Pass
3♦	3♠	Pass	4♠
All Pass

The Philippines pairing of Tina De Gallego and Gemma Mariano contributed in generous fashion to the Sanborn/Levitina championship fund on two boards out of three.

Sanborn’s pre-empt looks normal enough, even if one might prefer to have better intermediates in the suit, and the first decision belonged to Mariano – should she double or overcall? It is easy to see that double would have worked out much better this time, but 3♠ was a perfectly sensible action. The spotlight turned to De Gallego, who could have passed, raised to 4♠, or tried 4♥ on the way, assuming that to be natural in their methods. Again, 4♥ would have worked out much better this time, though it can be defeated by a spade lead and subsequent ruff, but the 4♠ raise was quite reasonable. However, the combination of bids led to a dreadful contract on the lie of the cards. The defence cashed its diamond winners then Sanborn switched to a club. Mariano won in hand and cashed the king and ace of spades, then cashed the clubs, ending in hand, to lead a heart to the king and ace. She ruffed the diamond return and was over-ruffed, won the heart return but had to concede another trump to East; down two for –200 and 33 MPs to the leaders, which seemed a little harsh on the Philippines pair.

Board 11. Dealer South. None Vul.
	♠ A ♥ Q 9 4 2 ♦ Q J 7 ♣ 10 9 8 4 2
♠ K 8 4 2 ♥ J 6 3 ♦ A 10 9 8 6 ♣ J		♠ J 10 9 6 5 3 ♥ A 10 8 ♦ K 3 ♣ Q 7
	♠ Q 7 ♥ K 7 5 ♦ 5 4 2 ♣ A K 6 5 3

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Mariano	Levitina	De Gallego
			1♣
Pass	1♥	1♠	Dble
2♥	3♣	3♠	Pass
4♠	All Pass

De Gallego cashed a top club then switched to a low heart. Mariano did well on this trick by going up with the queen rather than putting in the nine, and Levitina won her ace then led the ♠9 towards dummy. She thought for several seconds before running the spade to the bare ace, but now Mariano fell from grace when she returned a club rather than a heart. Levitina could ruff in dummy, draw the outstanding trump, and set up the diamonds to get rid of her heart loser; eleven tricks for +450 and 31 MPs.

Board 15. Dealer South. N/S Vul.
	♠ J 10 8 7 ♥ 3 ♦ A K J 10 7 5 2 ♣ A
♠ K Q 9 ♥ A 10 7 5 4 ♦ 9 4 ♣ 8 5 4		♠ 5 2 ♥ J 9 8 6 2 ♦ Q 3 ♣ K Q 7 6
	♠ A 6 4 3 ♥ K Q ♦ 8 6 ♣ J 10 9 3 2

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	De Baldasarre	Levitina	Alonso
			Pass
Pass	1♦	Pass	1♠
Pass	5♠	All Pass

There are a couple of good ways to deal with the North hand when partner responds 1♠, obviously depending on your agreements. I don’t think either of them is a raise to 5♠, asking for good trumps. If 4♦ shows four-card support and a big diamond suit, that should work fine, or a 4♥ splinter should also get partner to bid on with three of the four cards you need. Five Spades went one off, of course, to give Sanborn/Levitina 31 MPs.

Board 16. Dealer West. E/W Vul.
	♠ 9 8 4 ♥ K 8 5 4 ♦ K 8 7 6 ♣ 8 6
♠ A K Q 10 7 2 ♥ J 9 ♦ 10 ♣ A Q 9 3		♠ – ♥ A Q 10 3 ♦ A Q J 9 5 3 ♣ K 5 2
	♠ J 6 5 3 ♥ 7 6 2 ♦ 4 2 ♣ J 10 7 4

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Frey	Levitina	Reess
1♠	Pass	2♦	Pass
3♠	Pass	4♦	Pass
5♣	Pass	5♥	Pass
6♠	All Pass

Even when they reached the wrong contract something happened to rescue them – not that just making 6♠ would have been a terrible result, but 6NT is obviously better. It did not occur to Nathalie Frey that dummy would come down with a spade void and she led, yes, you guessed it, a trump. That neatly picked up Vanessa Reess’s jack to four. Sanborn drew trumps then played ace and ruffed a diamond. When that did not produce the king, she took and repeated the heart finesse; thirteen tricks for +1460 and another 31 MPs.

Board 19. Dealer South. E/W Vul.
	♠ 8 7 6 ♥ A Q 4 ♦ Q J 4 3 2 ♣ 9 6
♠ A K ♥ J 10 ♦ K 10 9 6 ♣ K Q 7 3 2		♠ J 10 9 4 3 ♥ 8 6 5 ♦ A 7 ♣ J 5 4
	♠ Q 5 2 ♥ K 9 7 3 2 ♦ 8 5 ♣ A 10 8

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Rimbaud	Levitina	Leger
			Pass
1NT	Pass	2♥	Pass
2♠	All Pass

Sanborn opened the awkwardly shaped West hand with 1NT and was transferred to 2♠, where she played on the lead of the queen of diamonds to dummy’s ace. Sanborn cashed the ace and king of spades then led a club to the jack and ace. Renee Leger switched to the two of hearts to the jack and queen and Laurence Rimbaud tried to decide whether to continue hearts or hope to put her partner in again to lead through a hypothetical ♥Kx in declarer’s hand.

I think she should have returned her club, because it is clear that partner has the ♠Q. If partner also has the ♦K, declarer has no entry to dummy to draw the remaining trumps, and partner will get in with the diamond to give North a club ruff. If partner has the ♥K rather than the diamond, no harm is done as the heart(s) can be cashed when partner wins the ♠Q. However, in practice Rimbaud returned a low diamond. Sanborn won the ten and threw one of dummy’s hearts on the ♦K as Leger ruffed with the ♠Q. She led a heart now so Rimbaud won the ace, but that was all for the defence; nine tricks for +140 and 31 MPs.

Board 20. Dealer West. All Vul.
	♠ 2 ♥ K J 6 4 2 ♦ J 10 5 3 ♣ A K 3
♠ K 7 3 ♥ – ♦ A 9 8 7 4 2 ♣ Q J 6 2		♠ A Q J 8 6 5 4 ♥ 9 7 ♦ 6 ♣ 10 5 4
	♠ 10 9 ♥ A Q 10 8 5 3 ♦ K Q ♣ 9 8 7

West	North	East	South
Sanborn	Rimbaud	Levitina	Leger
2♦	Pass	2♠	3♥
4♥	4♠	Pass	5♥
All Pass

Finally a bad board for the leaders, who had been stretching their lead ever wider throughout the session. It may be tough to go on to the cold 5♠ over 5♥, as East/West will think that they have done their job by pushing the opposition to the five level, and defending 5♥ may be the long-term winning action. But, having pushed them to 5♥, they also failed to defeat that contract.

A spade lead would have seen a prompt diamond switch from Levitina and she would have been given her ruff, but Sanborn led a club and now declarer could draw trumps and establish diamonds on which to pitch her third club; +650 and only 2 MPs for the leaders.