The Rombauts at Memphis NABC
Hi everyone!
I’m Léo from Team Funbridge, and I played with my dad at the NABC in Memphis in mid-March. I’d like to tell you all about our journey through the various events.
Enjoying basketball in Memphis
We arrived in Memphis on Monday evening.
As soon as we’d dropped our bags at the hotel, we were off to watch two NBA games: first, Memphis vs the Suns and then another against the Cavaliers, who are first in the league!
Dad is a basketball fan, so this was the perfect way to kick off the week.
The World Bridge Tour final
The WBT (World Bridge Tour) final officially started on Wednesday with two days of intense competition. The concept? The 16 best pairs available come together for an ultra-competitive championship. Each pair takes on the 15 others in mini-matches of 6 deals with Butler format.
Selection is made on the basis of results in transnational championships, the Winter Games, the NABCs and so on. Of course, the top 16 pairs were not necessarily available, but the 16 pairs present were in the top 25-30.
Day 1. We finished in the middle of the rankings. Nothing crazy, but no drama either. With +3 IMPs, we were still in the running. The next day, a bit more success (and a bit of luck), and with two matches to go, we were second in the overall rankings!
🎯 A first deal from the WBT
Against Giovanni Donati and Giacomo Percario, two Italians from the Open team we often meet, I was sitting South, non-vulnerable. Here we go.
I had a very nice hand… but little room to express myself.
I knew I was going to overcall but 5♥ would be insufficient with my hand as the slam required few points opposite.
So I tried 4NT, an artificial two-suiter in this context. I crossed my fingers for a 5♣ response because 5♥ over 5♦ would be a bit vague.
Lucky me! Dad responded 5♣ as expected, which allowed me to say 5♥, a stronger bid than 5♥ directly over 4♠.
Then he quietly signed off in 6♥ with an ace and the trump king. Result: 6♥= after giving a diamond.
The full deal:
Some very good play to step onto the podium? 🔥
We were second and up against the leaders with two matches left. I was sitting South.
1NT to the right, I passed. Pass, then dad doubled, showing a long minor and a 4-card major (although the double is more flexible in the 4th seat). Without certainty, I decided to transform the double by passing in South. We needed to score.
Spade lead to dad’s jack of spades singleton. It pushed out the queen and declarer was left with no trick. They played the king of diamonds towards North’s ace. North returned a club to my king. I switched to the king of spades to show the 10 and also the king of hearts. Result: -4 for 1100. Big performance!
With two deals to go, we were perhaps in the lead. Unfortunately, the penultimate game hurt us badly: -12 on two deals. They could just as easily have given +12. Here’s one of them, which probably cost us the tournament…
Decisive (and fatal) deal
I was sitting South. Dad aggressively opened 3♥, Sabine Auken in East tried 3NT, and I doubled. West didn’t bid 4♠ and 3NT doubled became the final contract.
I led the king of diamonds. Dad played low, so he was singleton.
I cashed the ace of diamonds and then dad did not discard the 8 of clubs to signal, but he gave count with the 5 of hearts.
So I returned a diamond to try to establish the suit, hoping my partner gains the lead in spades or hearts… but we gave the contract away.
3NT doubled has been given away at quite a few tables. A tricky deal.
We made up for it on the last deal with a nice win, but in the end, we finished 4th, just 3-4 IMPs off the podium and 15 off the top. It was obviously a bit frustrating considering our position with two matches to go. Here are the final results:
The NABCs are very popular among young players, especially those from Team Funbridge (Christian, Sofie, Finn, Ella…).
The Platinum Pairs, one of my favourite events in the world 💎
Then we moved on to a pairs event: the Platinum Pairs. Typically American. You need a minimum number of points to register. It’s one of my favourite events in the world because the level is very high. With 110 registered pairs, we finished 4th in the first day’s qualifiers and qualified for the second day (they eliminate half the field at each stage: from 110 to 63, then 55).
Day 2. This time with screens. We made it through both cuts (62 then 52 remaining pairs), still in the top 4.
In the final, we started with a big carry-over: 53.5. We were in the top 5-6 at the start. A rather average second session (51%), and in the end we finished 6th out of 28. A good result, but once again, that little taste of “almost there”…
In pairs, we fight!
I was sitting South, red against green.
1♦ at my right. I really wanted to overcall, but 1♥ bothered me given the poor quality of my hearts compared to my spades, which I probably won’t be able to bid.
I decided to pass so as not to distort the lead if we defend.
Pre-emptive 3♦, pass, pass… I took the plunge with 3♥.
Pass, pass and 4♦. Well, I did my job. Dad doubled and we defended 4♦X -1 thanks to club ruffs.
In pairs, it’s important to reopen, even if sometimes you score -500 or -800. You have to fight, and too bad if you score zero once.
A last deal from the Platinum Pairs – Semi-final
I was sitting South. Here things got interesting.
I wanted to aim for slam, the splinter didn’t fit my hand too well with a bare king, but 3♥ didn’t appeal to me either…. I still bid 4♣.
Dad responded 4♦. Positive but not to the Blackwood level.
I hesitated: 4♥ or Blackwood? In the end, I chose the second option and we played in 6♠.
The full deal
If I’d temporised with 4♥, we’d probably have stopped in 5♠. Here, both finesses worked, so we scored 6♠ +1. My hand wasn’t easy to assess, but I think that aiming for slam was justified. Often at 75%, at worst 50.
The Vanderbilt
Then it was time for the big KO teams event with “Team France”: Baptou, Colin and the two Pierre. A great young team, full of potential.
The snag is dad and I had some points, but not our partners.
Picture by Karine Meyer (Le Bridgeur)
So, some teams (including the best) were exempted, some played a 60-deal match, and the others – like us – played a 30-deal “forway”: if you win, you advance; if you lose, you are given a second chance against another loser.
Our forway was tough: we lost our first match by 10.
We made up for it at the repechage with a win by 12 and qualified for the round of 32.
Next up, the big game: Team Zimmermann. We led by 7 at half-time, but then fell apart and lost by around 30.
Despite everything, we’re proud of the way we played. Losing to Zimmermann doesn’t hurt as much as it would against a weak team.
Cédric Lorenzini, winner of the Vanderbilt👑
Congrats to Thomas Bessis and him!🎉
The week ended with a few bonus events. All in all, it was a great experience, full of top-level play… but we’re a little bitter about not having been able to turn our good positions into real feats.
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