Value of a Hand by Alfred Sheinwold

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The Dispatch – 11 Ene 1982

When today’s hand came along in the semifinals of the 1982 world championships, 24-year-old Jeff Meckstroth and 23-year-old Eric Rodwell of the victorious U.S. team gave their opponents a bidding lesson. aaxx

Meckstroth made three bids with the seven high-card points of the South hand, and Rodwell made three bids with the 12 high-card points of the North hand. (The other team was down one at three hearts when it held the North-South cards at the other table of the match.)

SETS UP DIAMONDS

At five clubs, Meckstroth ruffed the ace of spades and led the king of diamonds to force out the ace. Declarer took the heart return with the ace, ruffed a spade and cashed high diamonds to discard a heart and a spade. Then he ruffed a heart, ruffed his last spade with dummy’s last club and gave up one trump trick.

If the defense had led two rounds of trumps after taking the ace of diamonds, I’d be pointing out that you mustn’t make three bids with only seven points.