mr1303

[hv=d=n&v=n&s=skq10xxxxhajxxxdxc]133|100|Scoring: IMP[/hv] You get dealt the following hand, and have the following auction at red: P 3C ? What do you try here?

Just tried the new version, and it seems pretty good. However, the issue is with the claim function. I can't work out how many tricks whoever is claiming is trying to claim. Any chance we could have it back to the method that the previous client used?

Personally, a large percentage of the time I'm going to pass 2H. KQxxxx and an outside K looks like an automatic weak 2 any seat any vulnerability, and opposite that hand, game has virtually no chance at all. I'm not going to hang partner for trying to make life difficult for the opponents.

The 2D, 2S and 2NT openings look fairly brown sticker to me. Not that there's anything necessarily wrong with that, but I'd prefer to replace them with conventions that I could play in face to face games.

Mike, I've never seen you pass holding 4-4 in any 2 suits when I'm playing a strong club.

If I play support doubles, I make one. If not, I bid 2H. This is the idea of a support double, to differentiate between 3 and 4 card support.

2H, either now, or if I forgot to bid, the second time around. But clearly I'm no expert....

I quite agree that a 1S overcall showing 13 cards should be banned, and for that simple reason; people don't disclose when they make that call and when they pass.

Mine always used to go up. Not sure how much, but I always felt unhealthy afterwards. That's why I don't play these events any more.

If that line of play worked, I don't think this hand would be posted as a problem, since you have 11 top tricks.

What does pass show? If not this hand, then pass doesn't exist. I pass (in case it wasn't clear)

Well, if we're ever going to get to hearts it has to be now. So I'll try 4H. Partner saw me not open a weak 2.

Partner opens 1NT (12-14) You hold:[hv=d=n&v=n&s=sxxhaxxxdqjt9xckx]133|100|Scoring: IMP[/hv] No Keri here unfortunately, so if you're going to invite you'll be at the 3 level. Worth a go?

And to think when I first learnt bridge I was taught Acol. For the record, I don't have any old issues of English bridge, and have never seen the hand before. I think it does make the very clear point that you do need the ability to make forcing bids at a low level to give yourself the bidding room to explore all possible contracts

Depends on who bids 7H. If LHO, if partner has a void he can make a forcing pass. If RHO I double straight off (to deny having 1st round heart control)

Yes, but you had decent defence against 6H (the ace of trumps for 1).

1H is a psyche. No other word for it.

Well, maybe I'm wrong, but I'm going to try 2C as long as partner will decide it is natural (which I think it should be). Whilst I may go off in 2 of a minor, I think it would be pessimistic to assume that would be the case, and they may try a contract at the 2 level, which I'd be happier defending.

Yes, I'm sorry about the time lag involved between the poll going out and the results coming in. Unfortunately work commitments over the past month or so have made things difficult, and I haven't been able to spend the time necessary. I think I was a bit hasty in volunteering to do a poll, since I didn't quite appreciate the amount of work involved to do a proper job if it, particularly the expert views, which I initially assumed would happen semi-automatically. However, most people who sent their answers in also provided their thoughts about why they made the bids that they did. I took these into account when assigning the scores, in addition to my own views, and also those of some local players who's views I respect. A lot of the time, the majority score did score the highest, but this was not always the case (Hand 6 for example). I did not actually take the poll myself, so as not to overly bias the poll with my own views. All in all, I hope people find the job I did acceptable (although I freely admit that I did not do the best job possible) and enjoyed the poll a lot.

Well, partner had the heap as advertised. [hv=s=s9xxxhxd10xca109xxx]133|100|[/hv] Not sure what the best spot is, but very few contracts have any genuine play. I decided that 3C could well be high enough, but on the 5-2 trump split I went 1 off.

As a result of all of the markings, this puts Michael Sun (cnszsun) as the winner, with a maximum 800 All efforts were highly commendable, including Mike Hargreaves (mikeh) who scored 760, and Phil Clayton (Pclayton) on 710. If you want to know your personal score, email me on Mark.Reeve@blueyonder.co.uk or PM me.

I felt that this hand was a tough one, and 4H could easily be correct with a tentative club stopper. However, on many occasions partner will pull 3NT to 4H, and if 3NT is ever going to right, we have to bid it now. As a result, I've given 3NT the top marks. 3NT = 100 4H = 50

Another close one, where no bid really feels correct, and so as a result the passers I feel have the best of it, since if partner can't reopen, we probably aren't missing anything big, and if partner is short in clubs then we can catch up again later. However, I had a lot of sympathy with the 3D bidders, which will often get to a makeable part score. Pass = 100 3D = 60 Dbl = 40 3H = 10

This hand has caused me a lot of grief, as despite listening to everyone's points of view, I'm still not convinced which is the right answer. I would also have opened this 1NT to save this problem. Anyway, I decided to go with my personal choice of 2H, since: a) A raise is more encouraging to partner than a simple rebid of the first suit :lol: 3D is too much with this ropey suit. Partner will expect a better trick source than this c) Neither 2NT nor 3H seemed right (2NT an overbid, and 3H suggests a better hand for hearts, with some questionable black suit values). The scores: 2H = 100 2D = 60 3H = 50 3D = 30 2NT = 20

Well, with this hand, I felt a lot stronger about the correct rebid on this hand being 2S. For one thing, getting back to clubs after a 3S rebid may well be impossible, since a 3S rebid (showing at most a 1 loser suit opposite a stiff) invariably sets trumps, and as a result later club bids will sound like cue bids as opposed to strong support which we have. Equally, letting partner know about a 7 card spade suit may well be difficult if we choose to raise clubs at this point, and as a result if we later pull a 2 or 3NT bid to clubs we'll show this sort of support and strong values, a better description of the hand. Since it seems likely that we are going to force to slam on these cards unless we're off 2 aces, the issue of 2 possible trump losers opposite a singleton spade made me upgrade the club raise over the 3S call. As a result: 2S = 100 3C = 50 3S = 30