Cutting communications with a "scissors" coup.
Bridge Column for August 13, 2004, Harvey Bernstein
Special To The Plain Dealer
Neither side vulnerable.  West deals.
                              North
                              S: 9 3              
                              H: K J 10 5    
                              D: Q 4 2       
                              C: A Q 9 4 
            West                             East
            S: A K 7 4                       S: Void         
            H: 9 8 7 6 4                     H: A 3 2      
            D: A K 9                         D: J 10 7 6 5 3      
            C: 2                             C: J 7 6 5     
                              South                         
                              S: Q J 10 8 6 5 2 
                              H: Q          
                              D: 8         
                              C: K 10 8 3 
          The Bidding:  
                   West   North     East   South                  
                    1H     Pass      2H     3S  
                   Dbl     Pass     Pass    Pass
     Thanks to Jay Apfelbaum of Philadelphia for this hand from
the second qualifying session of the Life Master Pairs held last
month in New York City.  Apfelbaum held the South cards and his
partner was Ruth Grant of Tarrytown, NY.  The opponents were
David Berkowitz of Old Tappen, NJ, sitting East, and Larry Cohen
of Boca Raton, FL in the West seat.
     Berkowitz and Cohen are well known players with many
national championships to their credit, but as this hand proves,
they put their pants on one leg at a time, just like the rest of
us.
     Cohen, having doubled three spades, led the king of
diamonds to start things off.  This held the first trick and he
shifted to the two of clubs.  His plan, as you can see, was to
win one of the high trumps and then play a heart to Berkowitz 
who would return a club allowing him to score one of his small
trumps.
     Apfelbaum correctly read the situation and made the only
play to keep from going down: he won the ace of clubs and led the
queen of diamonds.  East followed with a low diamond and
Apfelbaum discarded the queen of hearts.  Cohen won this
trick but had no way to reach his partner for the club lead that
he needed to defeat the contract. 
     This nifty play by Apfelbaum is called a "scissors" coup
because it "cuts" the defenders transportation.  The "danger"
hand, in this case East, cannot make a lead that would defeat the
contract.
     Making three spades, doubled, produced a score of +530.  In
this event, with the top score on each hand worth 25 matchpoints,
this score was only worth 19 matchpoints.  Still, that is much
better than the four matchpoints that would have been awarded for
going down one trick.  That would have been the result if Cohen
had led the two of clubs at trick one.

     The North American Bridge Championships were held in New
York City from July 8 to 18.  Congratulations to the following
local players who were successful in their respective events.
     Kathleen Sulgrove of Twinsburg was a member of the team that
came in first in the Wagar Women's Knock Out Teams.  This was the
premier women's event of the tournament.
     Phil Becker of Beachwood and Niel Waletzky of Shaker Heights
were members of a team that tied for 9th in the Spingold Master
Knock Out Teams, the premier open event of the tourment.
     Ken Kranyak of Bay Village and his son, John Kranyak of New
York City, were 39th in the Life Master Pairs.  They were also
members of teams that were 1st in Bracket 1 of The Producer's
Knock Out Teams; 2nd in Flight A of the Monday Evening Swiss
Teams; 2nd in Bracket 1 of the Off Broadway Consolation Knock Out
Teams; and tied for 7th in the Wednesday Flight A Swiss Teams.
     Laurie Kranyak of Bay Village came in 5th place in the Prize
Money Bridge Tour Individual on July 17.  She joined her husband,
Ken, along with Kathleen and Don Sulgrove of Twinsberg, on the
team that finished 17th in the Mixed Board-A-Match Teams on 7-18.
     Jack Weingold of Shaker Heights, Joanne Antoniou of Boca
Raton, FL, and Dennis McGarry of Stuart, FL were members of the
team that finished 1st in Bracket 1 of the "Two Day Affair" Knock
Out Teams on 7-14 and tied for 3rd in Bracket 1 of "The
Producers" Knock Out Teams on 7-16.       
     Victor Vertes of Cleveland, Marlene Zinamon of Beachwood,
Nicholas Ogan of Moreland Hills, and Alex Ogan of Cambridge, MA,
were 1st in Bracket 3 of the Times Square Knock Out Teams on
7-12.
     Stan Dub of Shaker Heights and his partner finished 49th in
the Life Master Pairs on 7-11.  Hao Ge of Cleveland was a member
of the team that finished 1st in Bracket 1 of the Midnight Knock
Out Teams on 7-11.  Albert Aboody of Solon was a member of the
team that finished 15th in the Flight A Swiss Teams on 7-18.
_______________________________________________________
Bernstein is a free-lance writer in Solon.