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The auction:
Table 1
--------W--------N--------E--------S
--------------------------------------1NT
--------P---------2C-------P--------.2S
--------P---------3C-------P--------.3NT
--------P---------P--------.P
With only 7 hcps, some might pass, but with an A & K, (not just any 7 points), a five card suit and two tens it’s a normal bid in a team game where it pays to be aggressive when there might be a game. This was Elviras’s forte.
The 3C bid showed a second suit and was forcing to game. It is very aggressive but that’s how she plays.
Table 2
--------W--------N--------E--------S
--------------------------------------1NT
--------P---------P--------.P
With only 7 HCPs, Cupid passed the 1NT bid.
The play:
Table 1
Santa led king of diamonds. Playing upside-down attitude signals, Harry encouraged with the 5. If Santa continued with a low diamond the defense easily takes the first 5 tricks defeating the contract. But Santa counted the HCPs and knew that his partner only held 4-6 HCPs and may have encouraged thinking that a switch might do more harm than good for the defense. So Santa continued diamonds with the jack effectively blocking the suit. Harry took the ace and returned the 9 which held and Santa’s two good diamond tricks were stranded.
This was the first gift. Unwittingly given but nevertheless a gift.
But the gift was really an illusion.
Harry switched to a club at trick four. The Grinch won the ace and determined that could still make the contract with 4 tricks in each major. With the diamonds obviously blocked, Santa having 5 of them, he figured it was a longshot for the majors to come in. They might be 3-3 but if not east was likely to have the length and both possible finesse positions were through west.
The Grinch started with the ace then queen of hearts and in a moment of ill-lucidity called for the king.
Oops. This was the real gift.
Now, unless he takes a first round spade finesse he’ll be down 2. And he was.
Double dummy we know that the contract can be made with a first or second round spade finesse but that’s an unlikely line of play. All other lines lead to 8 tricks.
Note that west has to keep all his spades because he knows from the bidding that south has 4 of them.
Table 2
Price also led the king of diamonds. Playing standard signals, Fisher encouraged with the 9 which unblocked the suit and EW took the first 5 tricks.
Epilogue:
6 IMPs to Santa’s team on the hand.
When the final score was tallied, Santa’s team had won by 1 IMP. The Grinch was overheard offering holiday greetings to Harry & Santa and congratulating them on their narrow victory with a wry smile.
Rudolf showed up later in the day apologizing for his absence and explaining he got disoriented flying in, as many of the holiday landmarks he used for navigation were missing.
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