Pages 44-63 as PDF - ACBL District 9

SLEWFOOT HARRYFROM TUCUMCARISTRIKES AGAIN!by Harry RossThat marvelous mind which is possessedby imagination, inventiveness anddeviousness seldom rests. That outlandishmind, twisted and irreverent...themind that I envy, was operating in highgear.It was a high stakes game organized byBig Julie, who liked the odds in his favor.He insisted that Nathan Detroit, a steadydependable sort, be his partner andSlewfoot Harry play with little orphanNancy, who was by all accounts still awide-eyed beginner.Thus handicapped, and certainly notwishing to incur Big Julie's displeasure,Harry had to work on minimizing his losses,for winning was out of the question.Julie was "carrying". Therefore, winningcarried with it real physical danger.The game went along quite nicely, thecards fairly even. Nancy and Slewfootencountered occasional slippage, droppinga trick here and there. Big Julie andNathan enjoyed a modest lead.Then came the hand that prompted thisstory.Slewfoot picked up this uneventful collection:♠Q9876 ♥Q2 ♦J987 ♣32. Hisopponents were vulnerable and he wasnot. Oh how that condition inflames theinventive mind.Nathan, his Left Hand Opponent, holding♠Ax ♥AK ♦109876 ♣Q876,opened the bidding with 1♦ and Nancy,shyly, with a question mark in her voice,overcalled 1♠.Double was Big Julie's call and though itwas negative in meaning, there was anunmistakable threat in his tone. He held agood hand with bad ♥s and a shortage in♠s: ♠-5 ♥98765 ♦A6 ♣AKJ109.Slewfoot Harry was next to speak. He stillheld: ♠Q9876 ♥Q2 ♦J987 ♣32. Hecertainly considered a pre-emptive ♠56 ACBL - District 9raise...but, he quickly discarded thethought as far too mundane and insteadchose to stir the pot with 3 ♣s!Nathan Detroit's hand was decent, butwith modest ♣s and bad ♦s, he found aquiet pass. Nancy wasn't quite surewhether 3♣ was strong, weak or somethingelse, so she passed.Back to big Julie... Do you remember hisholding? ♠5 ♥98765 ♦A5 ♣AKJ109.Though he suspected skullduggery, sugarplums danced in his head... Saliva glandswere extra active...Jingle Jangle... Shouldhe double? What would he do if they ranout in ♠s? Or his partner pulled the double?After all, ♣s was clearly his choice ofcontract and if he passed, they were there.He passed!Here was the whole hand wrapped withyellow tape to suggest a crime scene:♠KJ1098♥J1043♦KQ♣54♠A2♠3♥AK♥98765♦109876 ♦A5♣Q876♠Q7654♥Q2♦J432♣32♣AKJ109The auction repeated with West dealingwas: 1♦-1♠-X-3♣-PASS-PASS-PASS!Big Julie was furious. He was confusedas to where he should direct most of hisfury: his partner, his LHO or himself.He finally decided that he would notdirect his anger to himself. He had tochoose Nathan or Harry...but Harry wasputting on his coat and asking how muchhe owed. He had a date with the Save aSoul Mission down the street.Vero Beach Bridge Center0-299erSectional TournamentMarch 8-9, 2008Vero Beach Duplicate Bridge Center1520 14th AvenueVero Beach, Florida(772) 562-3008www.verobridge.comSearch for the Silver!!Saturday, March 8 Stratified Pairs 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.Sunday, March 9 Stratified Swiss Team Play-through 10:00 a.m. Lunch IncludedStrats: A=200-300 B=100-200 C=0-100Tournament ChairPartnershipsNancy ConwayPat Finn(772) 234-5801 (772) 299-5133nanke1@aol.comPfinn43683@aol.comGreatest Hospitality on the East Coast!Directions to the Bridge Center: From I-95 exit #147 (SR 60)East on SR 60 for 7.2 miles to 14th AvenueTurn right (south) for 0.6 miles; Bridge Center is on left.Lodging: Comfort Inn, 950 U.S. Highway 1, (772) 569-0900Our Orlando Regional Began This Year OnNew Year's Eve--So Of Course We Had A New Year's Eve PartyFor Bridge Playerswww.District9ACBL.org 57