Our New CWTC Team for 2008

After hours of discussion and lots of pain and even a few tears we finally have our CWTC team.  I am playing with Isabelle, Francine and Julie and Diana Gordon and Sharyn Reus.  We also have an NPC who will take us to the CWTC, Paul Thurston.  Paul is going to be great but there is one problem.  If we win and go on to Beijing Paul may well join us there, but as a player.  He has a terrific CNTC team this year.  All of us don’t know whether to wish Paul well in Montreal or try to get a vodoo hex doll.

 

It was very hard for those of us who played in Shanghai to form new teams.  We had a great time there and did so well.  I probably started things off because I wanted to play with Isabelle.  I love her willingness to learn and there is a lot of teacher in me.  She is a great player who grew up in bridge very fast and so she has some gaps to fill.  I am also love to learn and she is teaching me a lot along the way.  I hope that all the talented women bridge players in Canada form teams and challenge us in Montreal.  I hope we win too.

 

Sunday was the first time Isabelle and I played together.  Up to now we have been practice bidding and working on our system.  We decided to pick for our very first opponents Jeff Smith and David Sanbourn, two of the winners of last years CNTC.  They were playing a dynamic system with lots of bidding and lots of relays just to give us an added challenge.  It was great fun.  Isabelle and I both want to play against the very strongest opponents we can find.

 

The men did some good things against us and we had some tough problems to solve.  However in the end I thought it was a very good first attempt.  Here is one hand Isabelle and I bid.  I am interested in whether you think I did the right thing.

 

 

 

I had S AQ9xxx H AK10x D Kxx C void

 

I opened 1S and Isabelle bid 2C which is usually game forcing.  I bid 2H and she bid 4S.  This showed a minimum game force with 3 card spade support.  Do you bid on and if so what do you bid.

 

I know I know I had a void in her 2 over 1 suit.  But she really doesn’t need much to make a slam.  I bid 5S.  I think this should ask about trump quality but it is  undiscussed.   Isabelle bid 6S and she had the perfect hand.

 

 

 

S K10x H Jxx D xx C AKxxxx

 

With a reasonable lie of the cards this hand was no problem and we may have been the only pair to bid it.  What do you think?  Was I lucky or smart.