Semi, second half...
So I sit out the first six boards of the second half, and play on playing the fourth quarter. After six boards, I am told we're in an okay position. I dont know any of the hands, and obviously don't know the outcome IMPs-wise, but I can tell you this...we picked up 15 IMPs on those six boards, so we're sitting ahead about 27 IMPs with our six boards yet to come...would it be enough?
First board out, Jam opened a strong NT.
I held:
KJT8
65
A
J87632
So, what do you do? I am happy, very happy, in retrospect with my call. Do I really care if pard has fillers in clubs? Apparently have Tx of clubs and all outside cards isnt enough? who knows...so I start with 2C. LHO bids 2D, and partner lowers the boom. Do you sit?
I could give you another hand that we won imps on that match, but what is the point? It was a straightforward-to-bid game that the opps didnt bid. Life goes on.
I sat out the double of 2D above and collected 800...its not clear to me we're making 3NT while I am bidding the hand, is it? I know we're going plus in this contract considering I dont have to have ANY HCP for this action...much less a misfit and the ace of trumps...
The result? Lose 11. Ugh...check out Jam's hand (at least there was no stiff this time!)
A4
K87
K762
AQT5
So you're off two key cards...the king of trump is stiff in the pocket, which happens to be the location of the HA also. 11 imps down the drain. And here I thought we might win a couple for the 800...NOPE...
Then, I had to declare 3D after some aggressive bidding...
9862
A98
Q43
1042
A3
J65
K109652
A9
LHO...CHO...RHO...ME
1C........P........1S.......2D
X!........XX!!.....3C......3D
(all pass)
! = support
!! = Rosenkranz - raise with one or more of the top three honors.
The opening lead is, mercifully, the DJ. You thought I was gonna say a heart, right? How do play it. By the way, IF you make, you lose 3 imps. heh...dont make it? lose 7. RHO wins the DA as I played the 5 (might need the entry), and RHO backs a spade. I duck, LHO wins and plays another diamond. I win the Queen in the dummy, both following...now what?
so we lose this set of six 19-21. That's still plenty to hold on to victory. Off we go to the finals, to take on the team that is 12 IMPs ahead of us...Personally, I have a long history playing against two of the four players on this team. I have been crushing them to a fine powder for nearly a decade...but to that end, I have had my share of solid CHOs to help me...not the least of which is my wife...
If I may digress a little...a few years ago was my last hurrah in flight B (under 2000 masterpoints). I asked my wife to please play with me in the final event of my career - because I wanted to have fun, and hell, if we happened to win the NAP qualifier in the district, we got paid to go to Dallas to play for a national championship! She accepted...Long story short, if was a four session qualifer...and our session scores were:
In order:
1st - 43%
2nd - see below
3rd - 44%
4th - 53%
In the second session, Notre Dame was playing USC in college football that day (the infamous USC-cheating day where the QB pushed the RB into the endzone...). I told Lori I was gonna go watch the game at a local pub, while she took a nap cuz she was not feeling well. So, I come back five minutes before game time, knock on our door, and she is in her pajamas and bleary eyed. This is not good for our side. So I told her to enjoy her salad, get dressed, and head down to the playing site at her leisure - of course I offered to withdraw if she so chose because she was clearly not feeling well...she disagreed w/ the idea of withdrawal...
SO she gets to the site about 5 minutes after the boards are duped, and off we go. So we get to this pairs table (the pair I have been crushing for a decade), and they are talking about the rest of the field. Mind you, Lori and I had a 43% in the first session, and these guys are not even considering Lori and I as opponents...they referring to everyone else, and comparing themselves to them, blah blah blah. Meanwhile, we fail to balance on a hand and it appears to be a total zero...and it was. our only one...
So in the back of my mind, I am hoping..NAY...begging for us to pummel these clowns for the session...and we did. We beat them by 7.5 boards. Bastards...truth be told, we beat everyone by 4.5 boards...we had an 80% game. I promised Lori I would take over, and I did just that. She played 1 hand.
so we went to dallas and got rocked...but so what...we went to dallas (free!)
see the next post for the finals discussion....
First board out, Jam opened a strong NT.
I held:
KJT8
65
A
J87632
So, what do you do? I am happy, very happy, in retrospect with my call. Do I really care if pard has fillers in clubs? Apparently have Tx of clubs and all outside cards isnt enough? who knows...so I start with 2C. LHO bids 2D, and partner lowers the boom. Do you sit?
I could give you another hand that we won imps on that match, but what is the point? It was a straightforward-to-bid game that the opps didnt bid. Life goes on.
I sat out the double of 2D above and collected 800...its not clear to me we're making 3NT while I am bidding the hand, is it? I know we're going plus in this contract considering I dont have to have ANY HCP for this action...much less a misfit and the ace of trumps...
The result? Lose 11. Ugh...check out Jam's hand (at least there was no stiff this time!)
A4
K87
K762
AQT5
So you're off two key cards...the king of trump is stiff in the pocket, which happens to be the location of the HA also. 11 imps down the drain. And here I thought we might win a couple for the 800...NOPE...
Then, I had to declare 3D after some aggressive bidding...
9862
A98
Q43
1042
A3
J65
K109652
A9
LHO...CHO...RHO...ME
1C........P........1S.......2D
X!........XX!!.....3C......3D
(all pass)
! = support
!! = Rosenkranz - raise with one or more of the top three honors.
The opening lead is, mercifully, the DJ. You thought I was gonna say a heart, right? How do play it. By the way, IF you make, you lose 3 imps. heh...dont make it? lose 7. RHO wins the DA as I played the 5 (might need the entry), and RHO backs a spade. I duck, LHO wins and plays another diamond. I win the Queen in the dummy, both following...now what?
so we lose this set of six 19-21. That's still plenty to hold on to victory. Off we go to the finals, to take on the team that is 12 IMPs ahead of us...Personally, I have a long history playing against two of the four players on this team. I have been crushing them to a fine powder for nearly a decade...but to that end, I have had my share of solid CHOs to help me...not the least of which is my wife...
If I may digress a little...a few years ago was my last hurrah in flight B (under 2000 masterpoints). I asked my wife to please play with me in the final event of my career - because I wanted to have fun, and hell, if we happened to win the NAP qualifier in the district, we got paid to go to Dallas to play for a national championship! She accepted...Long story short, if was a four session qualifer...and our session scores were:
In order:
1st - 43%
2nd - see below
3rd - 44%
4th - 53%
In the second session, Notre Dame was playing USC in college football that day (the infamous USC-cheating day where the QB pushed the RB into the endzone...). I told Lori I was gonna go watch the game at a local pub, while she took a nap cuz she was not feeling well. So, I come back five minutes before game time, knock on our door, and she is in her pajamas and bleary eyed. This is not good for our side. So I told her to enjoy her salad, get dressed, and head down to the playing site at her leisure - of course I offered to withdraw if she so chose because she was clearly not feeling well...she disagreed w/ the idea of withdrawal...
SO she gets to the site about 5 minutes after the boards are duped, and off we go. So we get to this pairs table (the pair I have been crushing for a decade), and they are talking about the rest of the field. Mind you, Lori and I had a 43% in the first session, and these guys are not even considering Lori and I as opponents...they referring to everyone else, and comparing themselves to them, blah blah blah. Meanwhile, we fail to balance on a hand and it appears to be a total zero...and it was. our only one...
So in the back of my mind, I am hoping..NAY...begging for us to pummel these clowns for the session...and we did. We beat them by 7.5 boards. Bastards...truth be told, we beat everyone by 4.5 boards...we had an 80% game. I promised Lori I would take over, and I did just that. She played 1 hand.
so we went to dallas and got rocked...but so what...we went to dallas (free!)
see the next post for the finals discussion....