Beware the Ides of March

Friends, Romans, countrymen… Lend me your ears!

I come to bury declarers, not to praise them. The evil they do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones.

The noble Brutus hath told you declarer was too ambitious; a grievous fault. And grievously shall it be answered. For Brutus is an honorable man; he hath brought down many contracts. I come to speak at declarer’s funeral to let it be known: Our defense shall be made of sterner stuff.

O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts, for declarer has lost his reason. Bear with me! My heart is in the coffin with declarer, but I must pause from mourning to consider my opening lead. -Marcus Antonius

Julius Caesar was warned. Now so are you! At least in his name we were left with a great salad, while you might not be worth a crouton. As declarer on each of these problems, you will do battle against Antonius (West) and Brutus (East). A lowly plebe will be your partner and dummy. Simply choose your play from Options A-F listed. Each option will be rated on a 1-to-10 scale per my judgment.

Bidding is standard (unless noted). For a reference see Standard American Bridge.
Warning: Leads and signals are Roman. Antonius and Brutus plan to bury you too!

In March of MMVII these six problems were presented as a contest with 922 entrants from 117 locations. The contest is closed, but you can still quiz yourself and find your score immediately. If you’re lucky, you might even win a valuable prize.*

*Prizes include free Cesarean births at any PavCo Clinic and a lifetime license for Nero CD-burning software. Winners must be at least 18
years of age and pregnant, or show proof of paternity. Void where prohibited by law or anywhere else I might end up in jail.

Watch out for the dagger hidden in East’s toga! Et tu, Brute?

Problem I

Matchpoints	A K 10 8			West	North	East	South
None vul	7 3			Antonius	Plebe	Brutus	You
	A 7 5 4						1 NT
	9 4 3			Pass	2	Pass	2
				Pass	3 NT	Pass	Pass
Lead: Q		East plays 7		Pass
	7 5 3
	A K Q 9
	K Q 3
3 NT South	J 8 6

West next leads the 5 to the ace, and East shifts to the 6. Your play?

A. Win A, finesse 10
B. Win A, finesse 8
C. Win A-K-Q
D. Win A, A, K-Q
E. Win A, lead J
F. Finesse the 9

Problem II

Matchpoints	A Q 8 6 4 3			West	North	East	South
N-S vul	Q 7 3			Antonius	Plebe	Brutus	You
	6 3			Pass	1	Pass	2
	A 6			Pass	3	Pass	4 NT1
				Pass	5	Pass	6
Lead: J		East plays 7		Pass	Pass	Pass
				1. Roman Blackwood
	2
	A K J 10 9
	A 2
6 South	K 9 7 4 3

After winning the A, what next?

A. Win A, ruff spade
B. Win A, lead spade and pitch 2
C. Finesse the Q
D. Win A, K, ruff club with Q
E. Win A, K, ruff club with 7
F. Win A, K, lead club and pitch 6

Note: If you lead clubs, West follows to third round.

Problem III

Matchpoints	7 6 5			West	North	East	South
N-S vul	A K J 7 4			Antonius	Plebe	Brutus	You
	A Q 10			1 NT	Dbl	Pass	Pass
	Q 3			2	Pass	Pass	3
				Pass	4	Pass	Pass
Lead: K		East plays 4		Pass
	A Q J 8 3
	10 5
	J 8 4
4 South	8 5 2

West continues A-J, ruffed in dummy (East plays 7-9). What now?

A. Win A, lead J
B. Win A, A-K
C. Win A, run J
D. Win A, finesse Q
E. Finesse the Q
F. Win A-K, finesse Q

Problem IV

Matchpoints	A K 6 4			West	North	East	South
E-W vul	A 6 4			Antonius	Plebe	Brutus	You
	A 6 4						1 NT
	J 6 4			Pass	4 NT	Pass	6 NT
				Pass	Pass	Pass
Lead: J		East plays 2
	7 5 3
	K 5 3
	K 3
6 NT South	A K Q 10 9

Your play?

A. Win A, A-K, duck spade
B. Win A, A-K-Q, duck spade
C. Win A, A-K-Q-10, duck spade
D. Win A, all clubs, duck spade
E. Duck, win A-K, A-K-Q
F. Duck, win A, A-K-Q

Problem V

Matchpoints	2			West	North	East	South
Both vul	A J 7 2			Antonius	Plebe	Brutus	You
	5 3				1	Pass	1
	A Q J 8 5 4			Pass	2	Pass	2
				Pass	2	Pass	3 NT
Lead: Q		East plays 4		Pass	Pass	Pass
	K Q 10 9 8
	8 3
	A K 9 2
3 NT South	10 2

You duck. West continues with the 10, won by the jack (East plays 5). What next?

A. Lead spade to the king
B. Finesse the 10
C. Win K, run 10 (win ace if covered)
D. Win K, run 10 (duck if covered)
E. Lead the Q
F. Lead 4 to the 10

Problem VI

Matchpoints	A 7 5 4			West	North	East	South
N-S vul	K			Antonius	Plebe	Brutus	You
	A K Q J 10				2	Pass	2
	A Q 10			2	3	Pass	4
				Pass	4	Dbl	5
Lead: 10		East plays Q		Pass	6	All Pass
	6 3 2
	A 8 7 5
	9 8 6 4 3
6 South	2

Your play?

A. Win A, A-K, A (overtake), ruff heart
B. Win A, A-K, A (overtake), finesse Q
C. Win A, A-K, A (overtake), finesse 10
D. Win A, A-K, K, A, ruff club
E. Win A, A-K, A, ruff club
F. Duck the first trick

Note: West has one trump.

 Click to see how you did

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© MMVII Richard Pavlicek