The Malta Open pairs championships, sponsored as usual by Marsovin, were won this year by Marie Farrugia and Albert Sacco with an average score of 56.62%.
They took pole position in the first round of this four-session competition and held on to it all the way through.
Anna Vella and Nathalie Marlin were second with 55.3% and Charles Assouline and Graham Penney third with 54.56%.
The Sigma Tournament at the Union Club was won by Anna Vella and Yvonne Muscat Inglott.
Over the six-round competition, this pair played consistently well and averaged a fairly high 59.25% score.
Wendy Busuttil and Nathalie Marlin were second with 55.41% and Josephine Gerada and Albert Ganado, third with 54.62%.
The performance prize, awarded to the pair with the best result compared to their average throughout the year, went to Marielle Salo-mone and Celia Portelli.
In the following hand from the first round of the Marsovin tournament, four out of five declarers bid the North South game of three no trumps.
Even where East opened a weak two Spades, it should not have been too difficult for the opposition to reach three no trumps.
The play of the hand is not so easy. Take the South seat and plan your play after West’s inevitable Spade lead.
Dealer North. East West vulnerable.
West leads the six of Spades, to the seven, Queen and presumably you duck. Now East continues with the Ace and then the four of Spades. How do you continue?
Prospects of making nine tricks do not look good. So you begin reckoning on cutting down your losses.
There is very little one can do about the major suits.
There are four top tricks, one Spade and three Hearts and if the sun is shining, the Heart Knave is short, promoting the ten for a fourth Heart trick.
Still only five top tricks. Either minor seems to stand a chance of yielding three tricks. But which one should you try?
This is where the good card players shine. They keep track of cards where it really matters.
Whether East opened a weak two Spades or not, at trick three, we know he had exactly J432 of Spades left in his hand.
He can afford to play any of these cards, even the Knave, to eliminate the King. Depending on which card he plays, he should be signaling to his partner in which suit he is likely to regain the lead.
The Knave would have been a signal for a Heart and the two for a Club.
Yet he played the four. Looks like he has the King of Diamonds.
What would he have done with neither King?
Ducked the second trick of course, hoping partner originally had three Spades.
If you trust East’s card play, your best chance is to play West for having the King of Clubs. And your only chance to make this contract is for East to also have the knave of Clubs.
As the cards lie, if you play your cards on this assumption, you will pull in nine tricks.
In teams play or Butler scored pairs, that should undoubtedly be your chosen line of play.
In match points, as the Marsovin tournament scoring was, all declarers decided to cut their losses and finished two down.
The next important local tournament is the Malta Bridge Club teams championships which will be played this month.