Kicking self

Hi all

I’m slightly biased when telling stories. I like to talk about success and grand coups and big plusses, to keep a little balance here’s a disaster from our last teams match.

I’m in first hand no one vulnerable. I push my weak NT openings whenever I see fit, but this hand is just too lousy. LHO passes too and Hoek opens 1.

1. I intend to rebid an invitational 3
2. Minors
3. Small stretch, but I expect Hoek to hold very short and I like my fit a lot

East expresses his doubt with a double that must have been picked up by some seismology institutes. West kicks off with the King.

Here are a few thoughts and assumptions during this game.
– Trumps are 1-4 (I cannot handle 0-5)
– Lefty is holding something like a 1-2-5-5
– Because West started with the King I put a small mark East is holding the Ace of
– Locate the Jack of

Here’s my plan. I ruffed the lead in dummy and next I played a trump to hand to extract West single trump (disrupt communication between my opps). I ruffed another and crossed to the Queen of and finessed against the Jack of . The Jack was onside, but East ruffed and I lost control of the hand for -500 when they tapped me with endless streams of . If the had split a little bit more friendly I could have developed a and enter a crossruff for 10.

I still kick myself for not anticipating a 6-1 split.

As the hand lies I should have finessed against the Jack of immediately. You have to tread carefully but there are several routes to 10 tricks now.

Martin & Hendrik tried 5 at the other table with the EW cards, but a 4-0 trump split and 4-2 split was too much to overcome.