There is a tradition in University championships to have the city outing and open tournament on Wednesday. It was as if the organizers had access to some very accurate long-range weather forecasting, because by putting the trip on Thursday they found the first dry day of the week. The open tournament in the evening proved very popular, making the room a little too crowded.
For full results of the tournament see inside.
You editor is waiting to collect on all the beers he was promised last night in order not to reveal to your captains the times you all got in last night. He will also accept beers from those he did not see come in, in order to hide from your team-mates the shameful fact that you were in bed at some sensible hour.
In München, at the European Athletics Championships Robert Korzeniowski walked the 50 km in 3:36:39, a new world best performance ever.
Good news for our Chinese friends as Candie Kung leads the British Open Women's Golf tournament halfway through the second day
| Deal 24 W/- |
 8 7
6 A K Q J
3 K 10 3 2 4 | |
| K 2
10 9 7 4 8 A J 10 5 3 2 |
 |
J
10 8 6 2 A Q J 9 5 8 7 6 |
| A Q 9 5 4 3 5 7 6
4 K Q
9 | ||
Josh Donn led J against
3NT and South played the A
first. In an attempt to get partner in, Josh unblocked the King. 12 tricks to
declarer. If Josh had simply won the third trick and put partner in with
diamonds, three or four down would have been the result. Good for South though,
who had contributed to this error by omitting to mention his six card suit on
just three occasions.
On the first of our three boards, dealer Peter opened 1NT and played there. I asked the range (12-14) and replied "I could have guessed". On the second board, I was dealer, opened 1NT, three passes. Susan asked the range (15-17) and replied "I could have guessed". On the third board my partner was first. You guessed it: 1NT-pass-pass-pass. Nobody asked for the range.
I was happy to learn that in the first of those three, I was not the only one in the room to underlead my AK975 of diamonds only to see Peter rack up 12 tricks.
After our search for the ideal woman (most men are still looking for her…), we continue our search today with the second most important thing we'll need. So Brugge, who is your ideal bridge partner?
Of course, a lot of men answered immediately that it was themselves (and no, not only Dutch players). Tom C from the Belgian team even wants a clone of himself. Maybe a mirror at the screen will change his mind?
A lot of the married men were under pressure to say that they have their wives as ideal woman, but they were quiet sure she couldn't be the ideal bridge partner. In fact, Paul Meerbergen was the only one who said that the partner he's playing with already is perfect. Looking at your results, I doubt your partner thinks the same…
Most bridge partners have to be quiet, kind and most of all, they may not be bad tempered, even if they play bad! Marjolein, Dutch captain, also said she only wants a compliment when she deserves it. Then it will be quiet at her table…
The other Dutch guys assured us that a good bridge player wears glasses (I have to admit that one), and Bas even told me that Tom Venesoen must be it. (what can I say…, seems those Dutch people have their great moments!)
The USA made their own ideal bridge partner, who must contain the creativity of Leo, the courage of Josh, the Elvis-hair of Jason, the knowledge of Eugene and most important of all, the youthful vigor of their coach Bob.
Danish Kasper told us he would like to play with Anna Kournikova. Not sure if he wants to play bridge with her, but looking at his smile he hoped he would get another picture of the woman of his choice in the bulletin. (Too bad, then you shouldn't have beaten us…) In fact, more men wanted to play with a lady. But when you're looking for a player who is reliable and intelligent, you better play bridge with a man, boys!
Alon from Belgium wants someone with short arms (so he can't be hit under the screen), and our editor Herman is looking for a partner who laughs at his mistakes. So play with Herman, and you've got a comedy show for free!
What have we learned? The ideal bridge partner is also as hard to find as the ideal woman. So, I still believe mine is best: a beauty who doesn't come to play bridge, but who buys you a (lot of) drinks at the bar after the game! So, meet you all there tonight!
Why not combine looks and bridge ability?
Despite his powerfully masculine looks, Bart Hoekstra has some feminine characteristics: It takes him 30 minutes to dress and he has no sense of direction. Trying to reach Belgium from Holland, he first drove 70 km up to the North before he found out he had to go the opposite way. He tells with great pride that his girlfriend Mijsje (which means girl) taught him how to count in French, but he never managed to count further than to 10. After that he automatically continues with Valet, Dame, Roi and As.
Some think Bas Drijver is patronising and malicious minds even whisper he's a bully. Bas knows better: He's only preventing less gifted mortals (especially Niek) to make mistakes. The only persons he listens to are either taller, stronger or both (like his girlfriend Femmy).
Niek ´Hawkeye´ Brink is both submissive and headstrong. Bas thinks he's submissive, but he doesn't realise Niek is just too smart to start endless discussions. Towards others Niek can be himself, which means that he sometimes mixes up the occasions when he has to be either headstrong or submissive. Anyone who knows Niek's brother Sjoert admits that nobody can survive such a childhood without being a little scrambled.
Not a lot can be said about Maarten Schollaardt, except that he's tall, lazy, the proud owner of one muscle and gentle, though famous for his lack of tact. He also lives in the red light district of Amsterdam and has a peculiar fondness for older red-haired women.
Marjolein Debets is the team-captain and the girlfriend of A Man with A Muscle. She's very flattered by the fact that some people asked her if she was a player, but anyone who talks to her for a few minutes finds out that she's rather naive and easily fooled. She firmly believes she has a great influence on the team, and none of the players feel the urge to wake her up.
Grzegorz "z polykiem" Narkiewicz is the oldest player of our team. He is shy, gentle and nice. If you see a big, funny, drunken bear - it must be him.
His partner is Piotr "the rock" Lutostanski. He has started training in the gym 2 years ago. Now everyone can admire the results. He's the most experienced player of our team, known in whole Poland as a Muppet Show superstar.
Next is Krzysztof "semi-hiphop" Kotorowicz. He always wants to play with a small ball called "zoska", but the team-mates force him to play bridge. Till he was 2, it looked like he would be like his brother, but then suddenly he fell over a carpet on the floor, hurting his head - brilliant change.
He partners Jakub "you have such a hand…" Kotorowicz. Everyone loves listening to his bridge problems, but I never heard anyone answering. He is the only reason while his brother is not the world champion yet, but he plays basketball and football better than bridge.
Then comes Krzysztof "the tower" Buras. He has very strange ideas and he likes our superstar very much. Once, after few drinks, he fired Lutek, while he was sleeping in his bed. The changes of his inteligence are in reversed proportion to his growing. Anyway, each female playing bridge loves his smile.
And now our black horse. Wojciech "Gonzo" Strzemecki, from a little child growing on spiritus. Now he's older and drinks only milk and green tea. His girlfriend says he is a real sex machine (Grzegorz confirms). He is our KGB-trained spy. If you can't pronounce his name, call him "bob", just "bob".
And last but not least, our great captain Stanislaw "bubu" Golebiowski. In Wroclaw, where he lives once a week, there's a great show. Bubu plays the local tournament with Balicki. They have always many spectators, who always know the final contract even before it is bid. The only surprise is the way of reaching this contract (guess which one). If you don't believe this tactic, check the Open Pairs tournament results.
On Wednesday, Krzysztof's little ball got stuck up the ledge. We had to use a large pole to get it back. 15 minutes later it was lost again.
| Deal 4 W/= |
A Q 9 6
5 Q 7 3 Q 5 3 2 6 | |
| K 10 8
4 2 10 9 6 5
K 8 10 5 |
|
- A J 2 J 9 7 6 Q J 9 8 7 2 |
| J 7 3 K
8 4 A 10 4 A K 4
3 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Pass | Pass | 3 |
3NT |
| All Pass |
Lead: 10. Matthias
Schüller played the J to
King and Ace and saw the bad break. He played a diamond to ten and king and West
returned a club. Matthias played the 7 to finesse and came to hand with the A. He was then able to finesse again in spades. On
the fourth spade, East was squeezed. When East discarded a club, Matthias was
able to establish a heart trick.
The open tournament paved way for all four of the non-playing captains to show their players how the game should be played. Poland led the way with an amazing 72%, more than 10% ahead of the nearest opposition. Apart from the Organisers (org) and the locals (bru), there was a large delegation from the student club of Antwerp (dua).
Open Pairs - result (58 Pairs)
A harmonious mixture of attackers and defenders, and of experience and enthusiasm, the French Team has been half changed since last year and no-one understands why this perfect equilibrium does not lead to us playing a role on the first rank.
Jean-Pierre Desmoulins (24), the solid bearded one, tries, in his off days, to finish his studies at the école d'Ingénieurs de l'Aéronautique (Sup Aero) in Toulouse. He makes up the experienced pair with Vincent Pavan (26), the man with the casque, also from Toulouse, who wants to make us believe that his courses in scientific studies has really led him to seriously study the movements of sand castles.
The pair of newcomers to the team is made up of 2 Parisiens, the affable Grégoire de Loubens (23) student of Solid state Physics at the Centre d'Énergie Atomique of Saclay, and the Latin Lover Philippe Molina (20) student at the école supérieure de travaux publics (public works) of Cachan.
The third pair comprises a player already present at Rotterdam, globe-trotter Olivier Chapelle (25) whose studies on Artificial Intelligence have led him to New York and presently Tübingen, a fact which multiplies his chances of being selected for one or other University team. His new partner is the distinguished Eric Dannielou (23) of Lyon, where he studies Financial Sciences in order to make a career in the Insurance industry. He is the man we put forward when we want the team to create a good impression in society.
The captain, Jean-Pierre Rocafort, known as "Roqui" (we quite wonder why), a meteorologist in Toulouse, who's worth 2 juniors (by age at least) tries incessantly to persuade the troupes that the next match is the match of the century.
 |
Match of the DayNetherlands - Belgium |
 |
If one simply looks at the number of visitors, the encounter between Belgium and the Netherlands must be a candidate for match of the day. Since these are quiet days (bridge-wise) we will feature both halves of the match. This was the first set of twelve.
The line-up was:
Open Room
N: Niek Brink
S: Bart Hoekstra
E: Tom Venesoen
W: Alon
Amsel
Closed Room
N:Tom Cornelis
S: Kevin Peeters
E: Bas Drijver
W:
Maarten Schollaardt
| Deal 1 N/- |
Q 8 6
4 A K J 7 6
3 2 4 3 | |
| A 7 3
2 Q 10 8 5
A K 9 7 K |
|
K 4 Q J 8 5 4 3 J 10 8 5 2 |
| J 10 9 5
9 2 10 6 A Q 9 7
6 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Maarten | TomC | Bas | Kevin |
| 1 |
3 |
Pass | |
| 3NT | All Pass |
Tom leads A, followed by
4. After six diamonds,
Maarten played the 2, not
covered by South and 430 to the Dutch. If South covers, the contract is 1 off.
| West | North | East | South |
| Alon | Niek | TomV | Bart |
| 1 |
2NT | Pass | |
| 3 |
Pass | 3(1) |
Pass |
| 5 |
All Pass |
(1) 5 to 6 losers
Here, the lead was also the A, followed by the 6. Declarer ruffs three clubs and also scores 400. If North switches to
a trump at trick two, declarer has a problem because South will also play trumps
after A. Declarer can make
11 tricks either by playing Q and 10 (8 will become the winning trick),
or by playing J, making a
club trick.
1 IMP to the Dutch.
| Deal 2 E/NS |
8 7
5 4 K J 10 8 5 2 9 8 4 | |
| A K Q
2 9 6 5 Q 6 A J 10 2 |
|
J 10
9 A K 10 8
3 9 4 K 6 3 |
| 6 4 3 Q
J 7 2 A 7
3 Q 7
5 | ||
In Board 2, the Netherlands are in 4 in the closed room. .North leads the J to the Ace. South now played a
spade and declarer was home. 420.
In the open room, South did not find the diamond lead against 3NT and declarer racked up 430.
So board six saw the first swing of the match:
| Deal 6 E/EW |
K
2 K 4 3 Q 5 3 A Q 9 7 2 | |
| A Q J
6 3 Q 10 2
10 8 7 8 4 |
|
10 8
5 A J 9 5 A K J 9 4 10 |
| 9 7 4 8
7 6 6 2 K J 6 5
3 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Alon | Niek | TomV | Bart |
| 1 |
Pass | ||
| 1 |
2 |
Pass | 3 |
| All Pass |
Bart's 3 prevents
East/West from bidding a nice 4. I think that West can bid 3 after 3, but
surely East has to double if 3 is passed round to him. Only 50 to the Belgians.
| West | North | East | South |
| Maarten | TomC | Bas | Kevin |
| 1 |
Pass | ||
| 1 |
Pass | 2 |
Pass |
| 2NT(1) | Pass | 3(2) |
Pass |
| 3 |
All Pass |
(1) trial
(2) 3 spades and short clubs
Tom leads 2 - the killing
lead? Not at all. Maarten plays very safely and scores 200. 4 IMPs to the
Netherlands.
| Deal 7 S/= |
5
3 9 7 A K J 10 7 10 4 3 2 | |
| 9 6
Q 8 5 2 Q 6 4 A Q 8 5 |
|
Q J 7
4 A K 6 3 8 5 3 7 6 |
| A K 10 8 2 J 10 4 9
2 K J
9 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Alon | Niek | TomV | Bart |
| 1 | |||
| Pass | 1NT | Pass | 2 |
| Pass | 2 |
All Pass |
Alon leads the 5 to Tom's
ace, switching in clubs. Alon takes Q and A, followed
by another club, ruffed. Tom now played K and another heart to shorten dummy in trump. 100
to EW. Well done, Tom.
In the closed room, Kevin passed on 1NT and Tom made 5 diamonds and 2 spades. 5 IMPs to Belgium and the match is all square.
| Deal 8 W/- |
10 9 3
2 9 5 4 4 Q J 10 5 3 | |
| Q 7 6
5 K J 3 2
8 3 2 9 4 |
|
A
4 A 10 8 6 J 10 7 6 5 K 6 |
| K J 8 Q
7 A K Q 9 A 8 7
2 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Alon | Niek | TomV | Bart |
| Pass | Pass | 1 |
Dble |
| Pass | 1 |
Pass | 1NT |
| All Pass |
Alon leads 8 for ten and
ace. Bart plays A and a
small club towards dummy. The Belgians now cash 4 heart tricks and Tom follows
with the 4, creating a
problem for declarer, but Bart correctly inserted the K making an overtrick. 120. to the Dutch.
| West | North | East | South |
| Maarten | TomC | Bas | Kevin |
| Pass | Pass | 1 |
Dble |
| 1 |
Pass | 2 |
Dble |
| Pass | 2 |
All Pass |
In stead of passing and defeating 2, Kevin decided to put his partner in a hopeless contract. 6 IMPs move
north.
Then a disaster for Belgium.
| Deal 9 N/EW |
K 8
5 K 9 7 J 10 9 K 9 6 5 | |
| A 9
Q J 4 3 A K Q 6 5 3 Q |
|
J 10 6
4 3 2 10 8
2 - J 10 8 3 |
| Q 7 A 6
5 8 7 4 2 A 7 4
2 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Alon | Niek | TomV | Bart |
| Pass | Pass | Pass | |
| 1 |
Pass | 2 |
Pass |
| 3 |
All Pass |
one down and 100 to NS.
2 was weak, so why did
West bid 3? Punishing his
partner or underestimating the opponent? Maybe the latter because in the closed
room, Maarten raised 2 to
4!!
Kevin led the 5 to the 3,
9 and ten (first success). After a long pause, Bas played the Q to South's ace. And now: spades to
dummy's ace, three times diamonds, discarding two hearts and a club; then some
help from North. On the fourth heart, he ruffed the king, and played the K, ruffed in dummy. That meant 12
IMPs to the Netherlands.
The Netherlands picked up some loose IMPs on boards 10 and 11 and then came a very nice board:
| Deal 12 W/NS |
K 10 9
8 6 3 2 10 A Q J 8 6 | |
| A 5
A Q 7 5 2
7 5 2 K 9 4 |
|
Q 7
4 9 8 4 3 K 9 8 A 7 3 |
| J K J
6 10 6 4 3 Q J 10 5
2 | ||
| West | North | East | South |
| Alon | Niek | TomV | Bart |
| 1 |
3 |
All Pass |
2 down
| West | North | East | South |
| Maarten | TomC | Bas | Kevin |
| 1 |
3 |
4 |
All Pass |
1 down, and a swing of 6 IMPs in Belgium's favour.
But … West should make his contract of four hearts.
The lead was 10. Declarer
takes dummy's queen and continues with the 3 to the queen, followed by the A on which North discards a spade. Now
declarer plays the A, ruffed
by South with his K. South
continued with the Q, taken
by the Ace. Declarer led another club to his king and the situation is now:
| K 9 8
6 - A Q J - | ||
| -
7 5 2 7 5 2 9 |
|
4 9 4 K 9 8 7 |
| -
- 10 6 4 3 J 5 2 | ||
At the table declarer continued clubs and went one off.
He has to play diamonds and North is powerless: if he plays the ace and continues with the queen, declarer will ruff the spade and return diamonds to North who must play in double ruff; if North plays jack or queen, declarer takes in dummy, ruffs the spade and plays North in with the diamond.
To avoid this endplay, defenders have to collaborate: at trick three, North
has to discard the J and
when South takes the trump trick, he has to switch to diamonds, not clubs. Now
North can win his ace and exit with his Q. If declarer refuses, North can safely play
clubs. But … declarer can still endplay North - he takes the Q, plays 2 clubs ending in dummy and throws
in North with the 7. (with
thanks to HvdP, MM and GM - PM)
So the half time score was 26-11 in favour of the Netherlands.
Come and see tomorrow the finish of this same match.