daveharty

I'm sure it's been done here before, but I'm posting a list of my Top 10 Albums Of All Time, in the hope that others will do the same and give me some inspiration for expanding my musical collection. Okay, actually it's the Top 15 Albums Of All Time; I couldn't narrow it down any further. In no particular order: The Velvet Underground, "The Velvet Underground & Nico" Genesis, "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" Massive Attack, "Mezzanine" Stereolab, "Mars Audiac Quintet" R.E.M., "Reckoning" The Police, "Synchronicity" Beth Orton, "Central Reservation" Liz Phair, "Exile in Guyville" My Bloody Valentine, "Loveless" Jane's Addiction, "Nothing's Shocking" PJ Harvey, "Dry" Yo La Tengo, "Prisoners of Love" Sugarcubes, "Life's Too Good" Talking Heads, "Speaking in Tongues" Cowboy Junkies, "The Trinity Session" What are your favorites?

Make sure you provide lots of snacks.

[hv=pc=n&s=skhaj7643d74ck752&w=s63h52dqt8632cq83&n=sa872hkqt98d5cj64&e=sqjt954hdakj9cat9]399|300[/hv] We played 6♦X, an unfortunate spot since 5♥ wasn't making. 5♠ looks interesting, I wish I had tried it.

No love for pass?!? 1♠

I try not to play with such people, because it's obviously frustrating to feel like your results are at the mercy of Captain Clueless over there. If I show up at the club without a partner, I would rather just kibitz one of my friends who is a known decent player. However, every now and then, I fill in with a pickup partner in order to complete a movement or something like that. And if you agree to play with someone, regardless of their abilities, surely they will give you their best game if you are cheerful, nonjudgmental, and refrain from obvious "pro tactics." Pat them on the back if they do something positive; say nothing at all if they do something ridiculous. A bad player is not the same as a stupid player, and unless you're being paid to get them masterpoints (I have no experience with that scenario, so I can't speak to it), surely many players will be aware of, and resent, being herded and manipulated as some have suggested. Maybe it will boost your short-term results; but you're not really playing with this person for the results anyway, are you? I would rather take my lumps and be thought of as a good partner. The better players who are beating up on you and your CHO will notice that, too, and maybe one of them will ask you to play next time. I'm not a perfect partner by any stretch, which is one reason I don't play with pickup partners very often. But when I do, I make a concerted effort to remember that the results for that session aren't nearly as important as helping my partner have an enjoyable game. We have all been the weaker partner at some point in our bridge career, try to remember what it felt like. If you absolutely can't refrain from eye-rolling at your partner's gaffes, then do as others have recommended: find another partner, or stay home.

I am surprised to see this Timo, surely you are aware of how many small Texas towns revolve around the Friday night high school game. College football fans in places like Columbus OH, or Lincoln NE, or Tuscaloosa AL, or dozens of other football enclaves would be surprised to hear that soccer fans are more passionate about their sport. And while the NFL offseason is indeed long, fans still find ways to get their fix...the NFL draft regularly gets better ratings than live broadcasts in other sports, for crying out loud. More than 25 million watched the first round this year. This is a football-mad nation, and the NFL's recent preoccupation with things like concussions, "bounty systems", etc. doesn't seem to be hurting its popularity at all. As others have suggested, the only thing that is really going to put a long-term dent in football's popularity here is for loads of parents to decide not to let their sons play. FWIW, I really like watching soccer; I don't understand the argument that it's inherently boring. Certainly it can be, but have you watched a baseball game lately?

[hv=pc=n&e=sqjt954hdakj9cat9&d=s&v=n&b=15&a=1h3d4d]133|200[/hv] Matchpoints. Your partner is normally a pretty sound overcaller/preemptor; clearly this is one of his rare flights of fancy. What is your call? If you bid 4♠: If you bid 5♦: If you bid 6♦: If you pass: If you bid 5♥:

Sounds like How to Defend a Bridge Hand.

I would have tried 3H with the North hand rather than 3C, assuming that it would be a splinter in your partnership. But after 3C, I think I would have tried 3H as South, which must surely be a probe for notrump. North might continue with 3S, and then might pull South's 3NT bid to 4C, and they might reach the excellent slam.

Easley Blackwood's Complete Book of Opening Leads is pretty comprehensive. For a more recent book, check out How the Experts Win at Bridge by Burt Hall and Lynn Rose-Hall (I believe Larry Cohen's name is also attached to later editions of the book, but not the one I have). The chapters on defense and opening leads are worth the price of admission, with very clear treatments of fundamental concepts. Welcome to the Forums!

Here's a playable system for beginners: After 1NT: 2C = Stayman (with a non-invitational club hand, rebid 3C next; any other new suit rebid shows a big hand) 2D = to play 2H = to play 2S = to play 2NT = natural, invitational 3C = natural, invitational 3D = natural, invitational 3H = natural, invitational 3S = natural, invitational 3NT = to play I'm actually not being flip. Obviously this system is not optimal; but what is lost? Yes, you will "wrongside" most suit contracts; but in beginner games where system "forgets" are a serious issue, wrongsiding really isn't what you should be worrying about. Rightsiding contracts isn't the primary goal of transfer sequences, anyway; that's just an ancillary benefit. The real benefit comes because transfers open up a host of new sequences to describe various hand types. But beginners shouldn't be worrying about that; they should be worrying about knowing their basic system well enough that they don't have silly avoidable results based on partnership misunderstandings. Get to reasonable contracts, work on your defense and declarer play, and the more complicated system stuff will start to take care of itself, because as you gain experience, you will start to encounter situations where you will say to yourself, "Self, it would be really cool if our system had a better way to bid this type of hand." That's when you should start adding conventions, organically. Of course, if you're a beginner but you already know that you're a system wonk, throw all this out the window.

Are you looking for voice or written commentary, Art?

I think there was a recent thread on the distinction between Lebensohl and Ingberman, but I'm too lazy to search for it. To summarize what I believe to be the case: Lebensohl (over reverses) and Ingberman are identical EXCEPT in the case where opener reverses into 2D. In that case, Lebensohl uses the lower of 4th suit/2NT as the artificial weak bid; Ingberman always uses 2NT as the artificial weak bid. Therefore, in Jillybean's original post, North (if 2NT was intended as the artificial weak bid, whether or not 3NT was a planned followup) was playing Ingberman, not Lebensohl. I think it's confusing to use the term "Lebensohl" in this context, because many people assume that it has the same structure as Lebensohl in other auctions, so that all weak responder hands go through 2NT. I'd suggest using Tim Bourke's designation, "Modified Blackout", if I thought anyone would listen.

This situation is easily handled via a convention known locally as the "Buckeye Fumble" (I understand it has a different name south of the Michigan/Ohio border). When your RHO opens the bidding, take the following steps to show a hand with some values that is otherwise unsuitable for a takeout double: 1. Square your hand on the table and fan them; study them closely 2. Turn your attention to the bidding box; pinch the entire set of bidding cards in the box and raise them one quarter inch; drop them back and study them intently 3. Pull out the pass card and place it on the table well to the left of center. A seasoned practitioner can accomplish all of this within the space of 3-4 seconds, thus avoiding any "hesitation." West had an easy BF on this hand; East could then confidently bid 3S, and West, having already bid his hand, could pass. There are a couple of local pairs who use this convention quite effectively.

I will attempt to win the first seven tricks in the side suits and crossruff the last six. How'd I do?

3♣, in GIB's system, apparently guarantees four. Of course I considered doing it anyway, but it doesn't seem much of a distortion to pass with a flat 12-count; I would hardly characterize it as "silly."

[hv=pc=n&s=sa962hjt9643d32cj&w=skj3haq75dkcqt865&n=st4hk8djt7654ca94&e=sq875h2daq98ck732&d=w&v=e&b=16&a=1c2dppdppp]399|300[/hv] Matchpoints. Taking advantage of the vulnerability, North made a, ahem, "frisky" jump overcall. E/W slipped a trick and collected +300, but even +500 would have been a poor matchpoint result. Did North just get extremely lucky? Or should E/W have shrugged off the overcall and bid their game?

Beat me to it

The fact that Han's post came out of the wreckage of this thread makes me want to go buy a puppy for a sick kid and then give everybody a cookie.

The following auction took place at my local club tonight: [hv=d=n&v=0&b=1&a=1cp1s1n(%22red%20suits%22)p2d2s2np3dppp]133|100[/hv] The facts: 1. 1NT was alerted and explained by East as "the red suits." 2. At the end of the auction, when West was asked if they play Sandwich NT, she responded "No." 3. When the E/W convention cards were reviewed, both were marked identically: "Sandwich NT" was indicated in the "Notrump Overcalls" section; "Systems on" was checked next to "Direct" overcalls, with a "15-18" range indicated. 4. 3♦ made exactly for +110. 5. West's actual hand was: ♠AK ♥J53 ♦AJT6 ♣QJ93. The director was called at the end of the auction, and again at the conclusion of play. N/S argued that East's alert woke West up to the fact that 2♦ was not a transfer, and that 3♦ was not a retransfer. (3♦ would have been a retransfer in an uncontested auction in which the NT opener superaccepted, but E/W had no agreement about whether that would apply in a contested auction.) They argued that West's hand was quite suitable for play in hearts, which is what West "should have" assumed was East's intention. A heart contract by E/W would have made either seven or eight tricks depending on the defense and line chosen. What do you think?

http://tinyurl.com/93g5mx2

It's all true, you know. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mkZUBdtu5A

I don't much like the 3D bid either, but I'm really surprised that several people are passing 5D. It seems to me that at matchpoints, MickyB's point is crucial: 4S is likely to be a common contract and it's going to outscore 5D most of the time. Absent the hesitation, I would bid 6D. From the responses here, it seems clear that passing 5D is a LA to bidding 6, so I think you have to pass.

This is clearly the crux of the problem, I don't skimp on jump shifts so for me this auction could show a hand right up to "just shy of a game-force." But I don't have much more than a vague sense of how MUCH extra opener should have to bid on over the preference.

I agree with everything lalldonn wrote, but I'm still a little in the dark about what to do in the specific case I mentioned: playing a system where 1♣ is either any 17+ or 11-13 balanced, 1NT is 14-16, and you pick up a 5332 hand with a 5cM in the 11-13 range. Is this type of hand best opened 1♣ with the plan of showing a balanced 11-13 next time around, thus guaranteeing that your 1M openings are unbalanced, or is it better to open 1M, because the preemptive effect of bidding 1NT is no longer valid when you need to do a two-step to show the weak NT type hand? Obviously, with a 14-16 5332 hand, I would just open 1NT; my own (admittedly limited) experience has been the same as that of those who claim it is a big winner in the long run. But I'm just not sure how to balance the positives of treating the slightly weaker hand as a NT hand (describes the essential nature of the hand, possibly conceals the major from the defense, 5cM openings become unbalanced and thus more useful) with the negative (opening 1♣ with such hands is obviously not very preemptive, and a 5-3 major suit fit could more easily be lost in competition). Maybe this is an argument not to play a two-way club system...