Cthulhu D

Use the edit button rather than triple post. It's bad practice.

I think psyching sometimes has to be optimal.

Note of caution - this is 1st and 2nd seat only. But with that said opening 1D light is about 55% vs 45% against pass, whereas 1C has only a 2% edge, so I suspect it's more complex than that, but it might just be that a more aggressive 1D opening gives better positioning in competitive auctions.

Maybe it should be, but I've found this Fascinating. My favourite findings are A) Weak NT rules strong NT drools, Weak NT winning when the strong no trumpers open 1NT or 1m. Why is this the case? B) Multi 2D's surprising efficiency - a lot of boards are where the opponents don't open, but there are quite a few where they do open 2H/S and multi triumphs. This is very peculiar. C) Opening light every day with a minor is a winner D) Don't open 1S light.

Had a similarly ridiculous action last week, where which went something like: NV vs NV North deals and opens, I am west holding a good 16 count with a stiff spade. (2D)-P-(2S)!-X (2D being multi and 2S being a paradox response showing hearts). (XX)-P-(3C)-X (3S)-P-(P)-X All Pass Open has corrected back to spades on KTxxxx and goes several off. This was the first board of the segment so we got to put up with North chewing out south about bidding three clubs for the next three boards, and how they should have passed the redouble? I'm pretty sure that turned -1000 into -800 regardless of anything else.

Yeah, now I preempt on general principles when this goes down, which is usually hilarious. They are all hyped up to pull 2C, then I make some random bid or psyche or whatever and they go through the stages of grief, where they first go to pull 2C, have this look of annoyance that I should interfer with their auction etc before making another bid with great reluctance.

I always sit the same direction with my regular partner because it makes discussing the results afterwards much easier, particularly when reviewing results several days after the session. Secondly, we both hate being the stationary pair, so it works out as I am east, he is west.

Yeah sure, there are lots of reasons not to play transfers, but they are so prelevant that you need to understand them imho even if just to defend against them. If you don't have a working understanding of them, you don't know what's going on in common auctions like (1NT) - P - (2H!) - X are. If you don't have an agreement about what that means, in my view, you are a beginner. I do agree that you can get by without knowing the difference between 1NT-2H-2S-4S and 1NT-4H-4S is. 100% of ACOL players at my club understand transfers - not everyone plays them, but understanding is universal and people have a clear understanding of what doubling a transfer means etc.

That's great cardplay though, and a great discrepency between the two parts of your game - it's obviously not a one dimensional question what your skill level is, and secondly they are employing transfers, which more or less makes my point I guess :D

How can someone who doesn't understand transfers be classified as intermediate?

I've been reading up about MOSCITO and several posters have stated that there is a new set of continuations for 1D/H openings that goes something like 1D: 1H: Invitational+ Relay or some NT hand 1S: Natural 1NT: TRF 5+ Clubs 2C: TRF 5+ Diamonds 2D: Constructive 3+ raise 2H: Non constructive raise. But then say that you need to change the continuations for 1D-1H and 1H-1S to account for the NT option in responders hand. But no-one provides these - anyone tell me what they are or where I can find a writeup?

Yeah, I use it for diamonds, and 1NT is to play opposite a weak NT.

Except of course after you have both done it a few times, you have an implicit agreement to play encrypted signals, and thus an illegal agreement.

The biggest obvious winners are going to be preempts and overcalls because they are frequent and the gains are closely linked to the point at which you use the method. For us it is: 2C: Weak with diamonds or some strong hands 2H: Ekrens - Both majors weak (4+/4+) For bids we can play all the time, these are our biggest winners - the amount of time people go wrong in both auctions is phenomenal, and the annciliarly benefits (the 2C bid frees up 2D for multi at minimal cost, which then frees up 2H for ekrens. I have yet to come up with a good use for 2S). For brown sticker stuff, (1x)-1y: 3-4 cards in the suit bid, 5 cards in an unbid suit is a huge winner against bad pairs in competitions where you can play it, because you can pick off their suit and bad pairs struggle to get back. The biggest losers we play atm imho are the (1x)-X = 15+ semi balanced power double which results in average or bad results basically every time - the room has overcalled 1NT and then had an auction on firm footing to the normal spot, but you're in a much less certain place and it's tricky to get to the right spot. We've only got +800 once. I think of the constructive methods we play, 1M-2NT-3C as a minimum opening is a subtle winner every time it comes up. Transfer responses to one club is a less clear winner - 1C-1X-1NT is good, but 1C-1S-?? has had ups and downs. I tend to think it's a plus but the business case is less clear.

Sure - I think you should have to hold them for a 10 year minimum period and have some exposure to downside risk. Similarly, I think politicians wages and pensions should be linked to average incomes. But that's not where we are with 'Captains of Industry' at the present time.

It's because of the way stock options work - if you get options today, that's the right to by Stock A at price $X on date Y. If the cost of the stock on date Y is less than X, your stock option is worthless - and it doesn't matter how much under X it is. So say coming up to stock option day your current share price is $X-2, so your stock options are worthless. You can make a 25% bet that will increase the stock price by $10, 50% do nothing and 25% send the company bankrupt. The rational CEO will make that bet every time, because then he has a 25% of cashing it at $8 an option, and if it doesn't work he's not out of pocket.

I think you improve the most by playing in the toughest game you're not just getting hammered in. Try out the B strata and see how you do. Step down to the lowest strata you are eligable for when playing in a big event/tournament where winning matters more imho.

It depends on the contract - if you're in a normal contract, 1 overtrick = 1 imp. As Vul game swing is 11 imps, so you should take the safety play unless the line for the overtricks is 91% or better. If you're not sure the other team will be in the same spot, it becomes even less rewarding. A more intresting question is when you should tke the safe line for off one, or an uncertain line to risk making vs off three.

IMHO there are two categories of lost IMPs. Dumbassery, where you squander imps because you do something stupid, and missed opportunities which are situations in which you've created a chance to gain IMPs and then miss the boat. I would consider poor judgement in slam bidding getting you to 6S and going off dumbassery, whereas a preempt not made in the rest of the room resulting in the opponents playing a poor 5D that you let through rather than the ice cold 3NT is a missed opportunity. In my main partnership, in both cases our single biggest loser is sloppy defense, with declarer play coming second, poor judgement in the slam zone 3rd and other bidding 4th, but in a typical session cardplay is 70-80% of our dumbass mistakes and missed opportunities.

If we agreed that after an NT action in which we can tell declarer has 24 or 25 points, if one of us held 10+ HCP they'd signal natural count, otherwise upside down, that would be an encrypted signal. Agreeing to give natural count with a bust and discard randomly with a 13 count or better is the same agreement...

It is an encrypted signal yeah.

that's why you have a progressive taxation regime...

No, the point is, how can you proclaim to be a follower of Christ, and then be against generously helping your fellow man. Then those self same Christians rage about welfare, foreign aid, etc. How can you be against the state helping out the starving, and yet claim to be a Christian? It's hypocrisy. Of course, if you're not a Christian that's a completely different thing, but when the Baptists are out protesting against this sort of stuff, you have to wonder.

Yeah, typographical error - point still stands.

Religion in the US has completely changed from what it says in the actual text to justify capitalist culture and rich elites. Consider the passage in the Bible where Jesus states that a rich man can no more go to heaven than he can pass through the eye of a needle, in the context of asking a dude to give all his stuff to the poor. This is of course a condemnation of capitalism, but yet Baptists are somehow obsessed with the idea that there was a historical gate of Jerusalem or something, and somehow this lets them off this obligation. Of course, the idea of the gate was apparently made up in the 9th century, but this doesn't stop Baptists from buying into this crock to justify their hating of welfare etc. It's completely bizarre - but it's because the Baptists etc in the US are less 'Christian' than the liberal atheists.