Day Five began with the Vanderbilts in full swing.
Shep's team (Shep, Eliza, Chrys & Vern Schock and Kathy
and Mike Redeller) had eliminated the heavily favoured
Kantar team on the first day.  They now went on to beat
Bev Rosenberg's team.

	Bill "Wintaka" Treble's team were pitted against
the 3rd seed Zia Mahmood team.  They were far less
successful than Shep's team in staging a second upset.

	Holding S-98xx  H-xx  D-Qxxx  C-Kxx  you pass RHO's
opening bid of 1H.  LHO responds 1NT, forcing.  Partner
doubles and RHO bids 2C, showing 4+ Clubs.  You pass,
as does LHO.  Partner now bids 2S, vulnerable versus not.
Pass.  Do you bid 3S or pass at IMPs?

	With four-card support, a doubleton and 5 working
HCPs more than I might have here, I would raise to 3S.
Indeed, I would not fault a FOUR Spade bid!

                 Dummy
                 S- 98xx
                 H- xx
                 D- Qxxx
    Opener       C- Kxx        Responder
    S- Kx                      S- x
    H- QJ108x                  H- K9x
    D- KJ                      D- 109xx
    C- AJ10x     Declarer      C- xxxxx
                 S- AQJ10xx
                 H- Axx
                 D- Axx
                 C- Q

	Against a Spade contract, Opener led the H-Queen.
Responder erred slightly in NOT overtaking with
the H-King.  If Responder can gain the lead, a Diamond 
past Declarer's D-Axx would have prevented the fate that 
awaited Opener.

	Declarer ducked this H-Queen lead to prevent
Responder gaining the lead.  Upon winning the second
Heart, Declarer played the C-Queen, which Opener won 
with the C-Ace.  

	Opener played a third Heart.  Declarer trumped
with dummy's S-9, cashed the C-King and ruffed dummy's 
last Club.  Declarer then played Ace of Spades and a 
second Spade, completing the strip and endplay.  In 
with the S-King, Opener could either lead a Diamond 
from the D-KJ or give Declarer a ruff a sluff.  

	Both tables made 4S in this manner.  The
problem is that only Zia's team bid it.  And that,
in a nutshell, is how the match went.

	After the session tonight, a wonderful guitar
soloist was contracted to give an impromptu performance
outside the playing hall.  As I watched and listened 
inobtrusively, 11,000 people filed past without giving 
the man or his music as much as a glance.  Oblivious to 
the oblivious, the guitarist played on, never missing a 
note...all for an audience of none (except me, way in
the back, on the other side of the throng of bypassers).
It was a musical marsipan.

	Even if we are playing the last hand in a 
disastrous session of a non-competitive "social" bridge, 
we must endeavour to play each card to the best of our 
ability, just as we would if we were playing in the 
prestigious Vanderbilt Knockout Teams.  I didn't learn 
this important lesson from any of the world's "household 
name" bridge players gathered here.  I learned it from
a guitarist...whose name I did not catch.

	Vancouver 1999 Spring Nationals, Final Report CLICK HERE to proceed to Colin's final report from Vancouver.
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