This real deal comes from the 2010 Blue Ribbon Pairs in Orlando. The South players held:

A J 9 7 6 3
--
9 8 6
K 8 6 4 .

With nobody vulnerable, what would you open? I like 2--which was the choice of my table opponent (a many-time National champion). I won't embarrass him by giving you his name, but I will tell tease you by telling you he is a columnist for the ACBL Bulletin.

Some of my students ask: "Can you open a weak two-bid with a side void?" Sure--why not? If the void makes the hand too strong for a two-bid (like picture this hand with AQJ973), then I would open with a one-bid instead.

After 2, partner bids 3. And you? Discipline says to pass. Partner's raise could be based on nothing other than 3 trumps. Nobody sent for you. However, if you were to break discipline, this sure feels like the time. Anyway, you buy the hand in 3 (which turns out to be the field contract) and you see:

Q 10 5 A 7 4 3 Q 7 3 2 A 9

A J 9 7 6 3 -- 9 8 6 K 8 6 4

The lead is a high heart, so it looks like you have missed a good game (with a diamond lead, game wouldn't be as good).

You win the A and throw a little diamond, of course. Should you draw trump?

Of course not. You want to ruff clubs in dummy. So, at trick 2 you play the A and then a club to your king. On your next club, LHO follows low. Do you ruff high or low in dummy?

You can afford to ruff this one (and the next one) high. No reason to risk an overruff. On dummy's 10, RHO follows harmlessly with a club. You ruff a heart to hand and play your 4th and final club. LHO discards a heart and you ruff (might as well ruff low since RHO is following) in dummy to leave:

Q 7 4 Q 7 3 2 --

A J 9 7 6 -- 9 8 --

On dummy's Q, RHO plays low. And you? Surely you won't try to drop a singleton king offside (if West held a singleton king, he could have ruffed in on the 4th round of clubs). You run the Q and LHO follows low. You come off dummy with a heart ruff and lay down the A. LHO shows out (RHO started with Kxx) so you have to lose a spade and two diamonds for +170.

What kind of score would you expect for +170 in the Blue Ribbon Seminfinals? I'd expect a near-zero. Not because you missed game (the field was in a partial), but because you failed to make all of your overtricks. What's this?

You should have made 11 tricks. There was no need to lose a spade trick. Let's look at the full deal:

Vul: None Dir: South	Q 10 5 A 7 4 3 Q 7 3 2 A 9
4 Q J 9 8 6 K J 10 4 Q 5 2		K 8 2 K 10 5 2 A 5 J 10 7 3
	A J 9 7 6 3 -- 9 8 6 K 8 6 4

After the heart lead won in dummy, you should have immediately ruffed a heart in hand at trick two. This counter-intuitive play of ruffing in hand and shortening your own trumps was the way to make 11 tricks.

Next comes the A and another heart ruff in hand. Then the K and a ruff in dummy. Then a third heart ruff in hand. By the time you ruff the final club in dummy, you remain with only AJ9 in hand. You lead dummy's Q and East can't afford to cover. The Q wins and you still have the AJ in hand. You have to score both of them. It's an easy 11 tricks if you get the timing right, but surprisingly the most common score was +170 for only a little below average. The players who carefully took 11 tricks for +200 got nearly a top board (losing only to the few North-South pairs who reached game).