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This deal is from the 1989 North American Men's Swiss Team Championship. The bidding shown occurred when Eric Rodwell and Jeff Meckstroth of the winning team held the North-South cards.
Meckstroth-Rodwell were playing the Precision Club system. The sequence that led to six clubs, combined with what transpired at the other table, demonstrates how a forcing club system can sometimes prove far superior to standard bidding methods.
Meckstroth's one-club opening promised 16 or more points, and Rodwell's two-spade response showed a three-suited hand with eight or more high-card points. The two-notrump rebid asked North to clarify his shape, and the three-club response showed precisely 4-4-4-1 distribution with the singleton in spades.
South's three-diamond bid asked North for his point count, and the three-notrump response showed an 11- or 12-point hand containing two aces and a king. With his partner's hand virtually an open book, Meckstroth had no trouble bidding the club slam. When both minor suits divided normally, there proved to be nothing to the play. When the opposing team, using standard bidding methods, held the North-South cards at the other table, the bidding went:
West led a spade, and the defense quickly collected the first five tricks for down one, giving Meckstroth-Rodwell's team a 970-point gain (14 IMPs) on the deal. Tomorrow: Bidding quiz. King Features Syndicate Inc.