USA2 - Netherlands (Bermuda Bowl Quarterfinals 3, 4)

Night and day - by Brent Manley

In their Bermuda Bowl quarter-final match against the Netherlands, USA2 saw a comfortable lead reduced to 3 IMPs after the third set of the day on Sunday. The Americans were able to rebound in the opening set on Monday to regain the lead, although it was far from substantial. What follows are key deals from the Netherlands’ 44-11 win in the third set, and USA2’s improved performance in the fourth of six stanzas.

Set 3

The Dutch started the set just as they wanted to with a big swing.

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

The play was trivial. Simon de Wijs won the opening club lead with the ace, cashed two trumps ending in dummy, played a spade to the ace, cashed the ♥K, ruffed a spade and discarded a club on the ♥A. Plus 920.

Ton Bakkeren’s 4♠ bid blew Bob Hamman and Zia Mahmood out of the water, and they settled for the diamond game. That was 11 IMPs to the Netherlands. There was only one other double-digit swing for the Dutch, but they just kept chipping away, gaining 5 IMPs here, 6 IMPs there. For example:

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

After Bauke Muller’s aggressive 3♥ bid, Rodwell simply bid game with his powerful hand.

De Wijs led the ♠K, taken by Rodwell to fire one right back. De Wijs cashed two spade tricks before exiting with his heart. Muller won the ace and continued the suit. Rodwell ran his five clubs, reducing North to ♦Q 7 3. Rodwell played the ♦J from hand the winning play if North had both diamonds honors. De Wijs covered with the queen and Rodwell unblocked the ♦10 from dummy, but Muller was having none of it. He overtook the ♦Q with the king and cashed the ♥10, the setting trick.

Bakkeren started with three rounds of clubs, Zia ruffing the third to play a spade. Bakkeren won the ♠A and played a fourth round of clubs, ruffed by Huub Bertens with the ♦10 and overruffed by Zia with the king. Zia led a diamond to the queen in dummy and played a diamond to Bakkeren’s jack. The trump ace was the last trick for the defense. Plus 100 was good for 6 IMPs to the Netherlands.

The Dutch had whittled the margin, once at 46 for USA2, to 4 IMPs, when this deal came along:

Board 12. Dealer West. N/S Vul.
	♠ J 10 7 ♥ K Q ♦ Q J 7 6 5 ♣ A 6 4
♠ A 6 3 2 ♥ 10 6 5 4 2 ♦ 8 ♣ K 8 3		♠ K 9 5 ♥ A J 9 3 ♦ A 10 9 2 ♣ Q 7
	♠ Q 8 4 ♥ 8 7 ♦ K 4 3 ♣ J 10 9 5 2

Muller’s 2♣ contract did not look terrible but he was caught by a perfect defence.

The defense was brutally accurate. Rodwell led his singleton diamond to Meckstroth’s ace. Rodwell ruffed the diamond return, put Meckstroth back in with a heart to the ace for another diamond ruff, then played the ♠A and a spade to Meckstroth’s king for a fourth round of diamonds, allowing Rodwell to score his ♣K with an overruff. Meckstroth still had a trump trick coming in the ♣Q, so that was plus 800 and 9 IMPs to USA2. It was just their third swing of the match and the other two were 1 IMP each.

Board 14 seemed to typify the run USA2 was having in that set.

Board 14. Dealer East. N/S Vul.
	♠ ♥ A 6 4 2 ♦ 10 8 7 6 5 4 ♣ 7 5 3
♠ K 10 8 5 ♥ J 8 7 5 3 ♦ K Q 3 ♣ J		♠ A Q 9 4 2 ♥ 9 ♦ A ♣ A K Q 8 6 2
	♠ J 7 6 3 ♥ K Q 10 ♦ J 9 2 ♣ 10 9 4

Bakkeren and Bertens cruised into the cold 6♠ on the East-West cards and scored up plus 980 with ease.

1♣ Strong
1♠ Hearts

Somehow, East-West’s nine-card spade fit got lost and, in fact, they stopped in a contract that, with inspired, double-dummy defense, could have been defeated (spade lead for a ruff, heart to the queen, spade ruff admittedly very unlikely). Muller led his partner’s suit, however, and Meckstroth took all the tricks for plus 440, but still an 11-IMP loss.

Thanks to the 44-11 win in the third set, the Netherlands was back in the game, trailing by only 3 IMPs.

Set 4

This set belonged to USA2, at least until right at the end. The lineups were changed for the fourth of six sets: Meckstroth-Rodwell versus Bas Drijver and Sjoert Brink in one room, Nick Nickell and Ralph Katz against Bakkeren and Bertens in the other.

The set was relatively quiet through the first eight boards, USA holding an 8-4 advantage to that point, when the roof caved in for the Dutch.

Board 25. Dealer North. E/W Vul.
	♠ 10 ♥ Q J 10 9 8 ♦ 10 9 7 2 ♣ Q 5 2
♠ K J 7 4 ♥ 7 5 3 ♦ K J 6 ♣ A 8 6		♠ A 8 5 3 2 ♥ K 6 ♦ A Q 8 5 ♣ 10 9
	♠ Q 9 6 ♥ A 4 2 ♦ 4 3 ♣ K J 7 4 3

Brink led a diamond, taken in hand by Meckstroth. With the weak two-bid by North as a clue, Meckstroth played the ♠A and a spade to the jack. He lost a club and two hearts, but he had his 10 tricks for plus 620. At the other table, declarer did not have any clues from the bidding.

Bertens also got a diamond lead, but he won and played his ♠A followed by his ♠K. Down one meant 12 IMPs to USA2. There was more bad news on the next deal.

Board 26. Dealer East. All Vul.
	♠ 3 2 ♥ A K 10 6 2 ♦ A 10 ♣ Q 10 6 4
♠ A 9 5 4 ♥ 9 ♦ J 9 7 6 3 ♣ A J 7		♠ K Q J 8 7 ♥ ♦ K Q 8 5 4 ♣ K 9 8
	♠ 10 6 ♥ Q J 8 7 5 4 3 ♦ 2 ♣ 5 3 2

Brink led his singleton diamond, and Meckstroth falsecarded with the king when Drijver played the ace. The contract was doomed on a diamond return, but Drijver tried to cash a heart. Meckstroth ruffed and pulled trumps, his only other loser being a club. Plus 650.

Katz led his singleton diamond, which could have led to plus 200, but Nickell also tried to cash a heart. He was saved by the fact that the ♣J was with West instead of East. Another13 IMPs to USA2.

After board 27, the Dutch might give some credence to the old wives’ tale that bad news comes in threes.

Board 27. Dealer South. None Vul.
	♠ 8 7 5 4 ♥ 9 ♦ K 7 5 3 2 ♣ 10 8 5
♠ K Q J ♥ J 10 7 ♦ 8 6 ♣ A K Q J 6		♠ A 9 ♥ K Q 8 5 ♦ A J 10 9 ♣ 9 4 3
	♠ 10 6 3 2 ♥ A 6 4 3 2 ♦ Q 4 ♣ 7 2

The bidding record indicates that North overcalled 1♦, which makes Brink’s opening lead of a low heart difficult to understand. All Meckstroth needed for 12 tricks was a non-diamond lead, so he was soon claiming 12 tricks for plus 990.

Nickell was the hero on this deal, starting with a low diamond. Bakkeren’s only hope and a very slim one at that was the Nickell had led low from the ♦K Q, so Bakkeren played dummy’s 9. Katz won the ♦Q and cashed his ♥A for one down and 14 IMPs to USA2, now leading by 46 IMPs.

The Dutch got a much-needed swing on board 30.

Board 30. Dealer East. N/S Vul.
	♠ J 10 ♥ K 5 4 3 ♦ K 2 ♣ A K Q J 6
♠ 4 3 2 ♥ J 10 9 7 ♦ 7 4 ♣ 9 8 7 3		♠ K Q 6 5 ♥ 8 6 ♦ J 10 3 ♣ 10 5 4 2
	♠ A 9 8 7 ♥ A Q 2 ♦ A Q 9 8 6 5 ♣

In the open room, Drijver and Brink embarked on a long relay auction to arrive at the cold 7NT. After the club lead and two rounds of diamonds, Brink claimed 13 tricks for plus 1520. There was an accident in the closed room.

According to Eric Kokish, coach of USA2, Katz couldn’t bid 4♦ directly over 3♦ because it would have been a key card ask in diamonds, and he didn’t want to ask for key cards with a void. Nickell managed plus 480, but that was 14 IMPs to the Netherlands.

They added 5 more IMPs in the set to finish with a 19-0 run and renew their hopes for the semi-final round.