Montecatini 2017: Unique Defense

8th European Open Championships

Montecatini, Italy • 10 – 24 June 2017

 Championship Site   EBL Championship Bulletin   Mixed Teams Results 

12 de Junio 2017

The curative properties of Montecatini’s waters were probably first discovered in Roman times. Evidence of this comes from a number of small statues of pagan idols found during excavation of the spring-crater at the Leopoldine Spa. The statues were most likely votive offerings to the gods, cast into the spring in thanks for a cure.

Montecatini spa waters spring from four sources, each of which boasts particular therapeutic properties. Inhalation therapy at Montecatini Spas is administered with Leopoldina water. Inhalation treatments stimulate the body’s overall immune defense mechanisms (secretory immunoglobulin IgA), they are also particularly indicated in the treatment of childhood diseases.

Today in Montecatini we could enjoy a lot of good defenses in the Mixed Teams Open European Championship, one of them had Michal KLUKOWSKI (Poland) – Justyna ZMUDA (Poland) as it main characters.

Mixed Teams QF Play-offs Board 20         

North /South arrived to a 4 contract, with South as declarer.

As you can see any lead that is not a spade allows to win the contract, the defense needs to do their tricks before the declarer can discard losers in the diamonds. It seems that Michal had no doubts and his lead was a spade.

Lead: 7

Down came dummy showing his diamond suit, Zmuda won the trick with her A, and understood that declarer had a complete diamond side suit, since if South did not have the queen, it was in West. So it was urgent for the defense to run their tricks. Her partner’s lead and the two spades in dummy, marked the declarer with two spades, so to defeat the contract the defense surely needed urgently to develop a club trick.

And yes the only return that defeats is a club.

Zmuda returned his 5, it no longer mattered the declarer’s move, since the ace of heart in Klukowski’s hand secured the club trick for the defense. At the table Jansma chose to pass a small club, and Michal won the trick with the K to continue cashing the ace of spade. The trump ace sealed the contract fate. One down.

The only lead and the only return to defeat the contract… It seems that Klukowski – Zmuda reinforced their defenses with Leopoldina water before the championship …

At the other table they played 4, declarer North, +420.

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