Proper hand evaluation leads to a good score.
Bridge Column for July 22, 2005, Harvey Bernstein
Special To The Plain Dealer
East-West vulnerable.  North deals.
                              North
                              S: K Q 6 3          
                              H: K 2       
                              D: K 6 5       
                              C: K 8 7 6 
            West                             East
            S: J 10                          S: 9 5          
            H: A Q 8 7                       H: J 9 4      
            D: A 10 9 7 4                    D: Q J 8 3 2         
            C: J 3                           C: Q 9 5       
                              South                         
                              S: A 8 7 4 2
                              H: 10 6 5 3   
                              D: Void      
                              C: A 10 4 2  
          The Bidding:  
                  North    East    South    West                  
                   1C      Pass     1S       2D 
                   2S       3D      3S      Pass
                   4S      Pass     Pass    Pass
     The point count that is used for most standard bidding
systems tends to undervalue aces and kings and over value queens
and jacks.  Here is a hand from the regional bridge tournament at
White Plains, NY on July 2 that illustrates that point.
     North dealt and opened the bidding.  The North hand has
fourteen high card points and a doubleton heart.  The hand is
also ace-less.  If you add a point for the doubleton heart and
then subtract a point for having no aces, you have a nice,
fourteen point opener.  East passes and South bids one spade. 
South has eight high card points and a diamond void.  There are a
number of ways of counting this hand, but it is obviously worth
more than eight points.
     West makes a two diamond overcall and North raises spades. 
East can now raise diamonds.  South can evaluate his void better
now that both opponents have bid diamonds.  He still doesn't have
enough to go to game by himself, but three spades, freely bid, is
certainly correct.  North likes the position of his kings and
bids four spades, which ends the auction.
     West has a difficult hand to lead from and selects the jack
of spades.  Declarer draws trump in two rounds and leads a heart
toward the king.  West jumps up with the ace and trys to cash the
ace of diamonds.  Declarer trumps in the closed hand and cashes
the ace and king of clubs.  He gives up a club to the queen and
claims eleven tricks for a good score.  
     In looking at the results after the game, one pair made six,
three pairs made five, and four pairs played the contract in a
part score making either five or six.  The pairs making twelve
tricks probably faced an opening lead of the jack of clubs.  
     The tip here is to bid a little more when your hand is rich
in aces and kings and a little less at other times.
 
     The All-American Regional Bridge Tournament was held in
Independence from May 24 to 30. Congratulations to the following
players who were successful in their respective events on May 30. 
Other results appeared in previous columns.  This is the last
listing from this tournament.
     Morning Knockout Teams (15 teams). 1. Laurie Kranyak, Bay
Village, Harry Stratton, Columbus, Les and Gloria Bart,
Gambrills, MD, Linda and Dennis McGarry, Stuart, FL.  
2. Molly and Stanley Jaffe, Beachwood, Dave Anthony, East
Liverpool, and Mary Southwick, Lisle, IL.    
     Bracketed knockout teams.  Bracket 1 (11 teams). 1. Don and
Kathleen Sulgrove, Twinsburg, Martin Baff, Beachwood, and Roger
Tiktin, Lakewood. 2. Dennis and Linda McGarry, Stuart, FL, Gloria
and Les Bart, Gambrills, MD. Bracket 2 (10 teams). 1. Paul and
Barbara Libby, Tonawanda, NY, Jacqueline Merkel, Lexington, KY,
and Daniel Dopps, Mansfield.  2. Eugene Harvey, Lackawanna, NY,
Joanne Kelley, Fredonia, NY, Judy Graf, Clarence, NY, and Michael
Ryan, Buffalo, NY.  Bracket 3 (12 teams) 1. Lynne Ostrow,
Morgantown, WV, Sandra Harris, South Park, PA, Elaine Universal,
Derby, NY, and Teresa Fraas, Buffalo, NY. 2. Alex McCrea, Shaker
Heights, William Collis, Daniel Neill, and Sam Den, Lexington,
KY.  Bracket 4 (12 teams)  1. William and Carol Jaras,
Brecksville, Betty Williams, North Royalton, and Peg Eppele,
Lakewood.  2. Suman Agarwal, Hilliard, Jacqueline McNamara,
Newark, Kanti Chavada and Nancy Moore, Columbus. 
     Flight A Swiss Teams (24 teams). Stratum A1. 1. Phillip
Becker and Brian Ellis, Beachwood, James Zimmerman, Shaker
Heights, and Kumar Bhatia, Pepper Pike.  2. Lloyd Loux, Westlake,
Jim Bachelder, Columbus, Phil Leon, Grosse Pointe, MI, Robert
Sulgrove, Spring Valley, and Richard Rudolph, Westerville. 
Stratum A2. 1. Stan Dub, Shaker Heights, Michael Abramson, Akron,
Paul Facinelli, Avon Lake, and Bernie Greenspan, Beachwood. 2.
Kermit and Catherine Wolford, Aurora, Sylvan and Sally
Rosenfield, Warrensville Heights.
     Stratified B/C/D Swiss Teams (37 teams).  Stratum B. 1. Kay
Varga, North Olmsted, Judy Ryland, Avon Lake, Barbara Zink,
Olmsted Falls, and M. Peterson, Chula Vista, CA. 2. Darlene
Mannheimer, Carnegie, PA, Sidney Metzger, Mary Louise Tracy, and
William Lesser, Pittsburgh.   Stratum C. 1. Lynne Ostrow,
Morgantown, WV, Sandra Harris, South Park, PA, Elaine Universal,
Derby, NY, and Teresa Fraas, Buffalo, NY. 
2. Tucker Marston and Gordon Berry, Chagrin Falls, J. Lawniczak,
Novelty, and Russell Stambaugh, Gates Mills.  Stratum D. 1.
Marston, Berry, Lawniczak, and Stambaugh.  2. Thomas Watts III,
Shaker Heights, Lynda Hirsch, Cleveland, Constance Bogan,
Strongsville, and Louise Folkman, Beachwood.
_______________________________________________________
Bernstein is a free-lance writer in Solon. 
To reach Harvey Bernstein:
hjb19@adelphia.net