[bhall]

Scoring: IMP

You are W (Mike Lawrence), playing against a then-unknown bunch of Canadians: Kokish-Nagy at your table (N-S) and Silver-Mittleman at the other. You have a slight lead going into the final quarter, when you hear the following convoluted auction:
1♦-2♣-2♦-2♥-3♥-3♠-4♦-4♥-5♣-5♦-6♥

Bemused, you lead a trump.

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Your partner, Bobby Goldman, follows as Nagy rises with the A. He then plays ♣A, K, x, pitching a ♠ on the ♣K and ruffing with dummy's K, while Bobby pitches the ♠8. ♦ low, 10, K, 2; another ♣, ruffing with the J, and Bobby underruffs! Now, small ♥ from dummy and Bobby follows! Nagy, who started with ♥Q10x, pulls your last trump, discarding a ♦ from dummy, while Bobby also parts with a small ♦.

The stage is now set: You hold ♠K93 ♥___ ♦94 ♣___.
Dummy holds ♠1076 ♥___ ♦AJ ♣___.

Nagy leads a good ♣ and you pitch the ♠9 and dummy the ♠6. Bobby glares at your discard and grinds the ♠Q into the table (his mistake). Now, Nagy leads the last ♣. Your turn.

[Gerben42]

Silly question: Is this the same Nagy now playing for Australia?

Partner underruffed because he didn't want to discard. Declarer has 6♣ 3♥ so that leaves 2 other cards. One round of ♦ has been played and partner is protecting the ♦Q. I think declarer started with 1336 and partner has ♠A.

I discard the NINE of ♦, partner has to discard the ♠A next, leaving:

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[skjaeran]

Gerben reasons just as I would.
So I agree with discarding the highest diamond now (not sure if that's the 7 or 9, there's a mixup in the OP.)

[bhall]

I'm sorry for the misprint, your highest ♦ was indeed the 7.

I think you both have neglected the fact that Bobby discarded a ♦, but otherwise you have arrived at the same mistake that Mike Lawrence made. Declarer holds ♠Jx and ♦x. Nagy was trying desperately to get Kokish to bid 3N, hence the peculiar auction. (I don't know if he is now playing in Australia.)

After the ♦ discard, Nagy played his ♦ to the A and the ♠10, making the slam and winning the match! Notice that if Bobby had simply discarded his small ♠, instead of the dramatic ♠Q, he could have covered Mike's mistake.

The only person to write up this hand during the next year was Lawrence's teammate, Eddie Kantar.

[skjaeran]

bhall, on Jul 6 2007, 05:15 PM, said:

I'm sorry for the misprint, your highest ♦ was indeed the 7.

I think you both have neglected the fact that Bobby discarded a ♦, but otherwise you have arrived at the same mistake that Mike Lawrence made. Declarer holds ♠Jx and ♦x. Nagy was trying desperately to get Kokish to bid 3N, hence the peculiar auction. (I don't know if he is now playing in Australia.)

After the ♦ discard, Nagy played his ♦ to the A and the ♠10, making the slam and winning the match! Notice that if Bobby had simply discarded his small ♠, instead of the dramatic ♠Q, he could have covered Mike's mistake.

The only person to write up this hand during the next year was Lawrence's teammate, Eddie Kantar.

I see. So west keeps ♠K ♦74, dummy must throw a ♠ and east keeps ♠x ♦Qx. When south tries a ♠, west wins the king and can lead a ♦ through dummy.

[pclayton]

Gerben42, on Jul 5 2007, 11:32 PM, said:

Silly question: Is this the same Nagy now playing for Australia?

Partner underruffed because he didn't want to discard. Declarer has 6♣ 3♥ so that leaves 2 other cards. One round of ♦ has been played and partner is protecting the ♦Q. I think declarer started with 1336 and partner has ♠A.

I discard the NINE of ♦, partner has to discard the ♠A next, leaving:

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No this is Peter Nagy. He died suddenly in 2003. The Aussie is Zoltan Nagy.

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