The Washington Post - USA (2022-03-02)

C6 EZ RE THE WASHINGTON POST.WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2 , 2022

BREWSTER ROCKIT: SPACE GUY! TIM RICKARD

CURTIS RAY BILLINGSLEY

SHERMAN’S LAGOON JIM TOOMEY

RED AND ROVER BRIAN BASSET

FRANK AND ERNEST TOM THAVES

RHYMES WITH ORANGE HILARY PRICE

LIO MARK TATULLI

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE CHRIS BROWNE

BLONDIE DEAN YOUNG & JOHN MARSHALL

MIKE DU JOUR MIKE LESTER

AGNES TONY COCHRAN

WUMO MIKAEL WULFF & ANDERS MORGENTHALER

MARK TRAIL JULES RIVERA

MOTHER GOOSE & GRIMM MIKE PETERS

BALDO HECTOR CANTU & CARLOS CASTELLANOS

SALLY FORTH FRANCESCO MARCIULIANO & JIM KEEFE

CLASSIC PEANUTS CHARLES SCHULZ

CLASSIC DOONESBURY GARRY TRUDEAU PICKLES BRIAN CRANE

SUDOKU

NORTH

♠ Q 7

♥ A Q J 8

♦ 9 4

♣ K J 6 4 2

WEST (D)

♠ None

♥ 9 5 2

♦ A Q J 10 8 3 2

♣ Q 8 7

EAST

♠ A K 9 5

♥ 10 7 3

♦ K 7 6

♣ 10 9 5

SOUTH

♠ J 10 8 6 4 3 2

♥ K 6 4

♦ 5

♣ A 3

The bidding:

I

n the final of the Soloway

Knockout Teams at the

ACBL Fall Championships, the

team captained by Warren

Spector (Bathurst, Demuy,

Hurd, Kranyak, Wolpert)

faced a multinational squad

led by Antonio Palma.

Many experts have a

penchant for aggressive pre-

empts. At one table, West for

PALMA opened 3NT, conven-

tionally showing a weakish

hand with a long minor. East

bid four clubs — “pass or

correct” — and West duly bid

four diamonds.

After two passes, South

for SPECTOR, Vincent

Demuy, boldly came in with

four spades. East doubled,

though how he expected to

beat the contract if West had

only a string of diamonds

is unclear. South lost two

trumps and a diamond, plus

590.

At the other table,

SPECTOR’s West opened one

diamond! East responded

one spade, silencing South,

and raised West’s two-

diamond rebid to three

diamonds. All passed, and

West made three on a trump

opening lead, 12 IMPs to

SPECTOR. That opening bid

of one diamond was more

preemptive than the 3NT

opening!

DAILY QUESTION

You hold:

♠ Q 7 ♥ A Q J 8

♦ 9 4 ♣ K J 6 4 2

You open one club. Your

partner bids one spade. The

opponents pass. What do

you say?

ANSWER: You are obliged

to do something. A rebid of

two clubs would suggest a

six-card or longer suit or at

least a stronger five-carder. A

bid of two hearts would be a

“reverse” and would promise

substantial values — in some

styles, enough to commit to

game. Bid 1NT though your

pattern isn’t quite balanced.

NEITHER SIDE VULNERABLE

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

3 NT Pass 4 ♣ Pass

4 ♦ Pass Pass 4 ♠

Pass Pass Dbl All Pass

Opening lead — ♦ A

BRIDGE

©2022, TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.

— Frank Stewart