Cthulhu D

Is there a good write up or Lorenzo twos in the context of a 'standard' system somewhere? Pass = 8-11 HCP balanced and 1 level openings being forcing and unlimited has to have secondary impacts on your system, and I'd be fascinated to see it.

Fixed!

Yup - though as the opponents almost certainly had an 8 card heart fit and are cold for game atleast, I think it's correct to bid at any vulnerability.

It's a good sacrifice against a part score board making at MPs, but also if I think the HCP are split relatively evenly, I'm much more comfortable playing 1NTx than 1NTxx at IMPs. It means that if XX is penalties or something you can also bid with more confidence in auctions starting 1NT-X-XX rather than if Pass forces XX. I also like that frequently the opponents will let you off the hook after an auction like: 1NT (11-13) - X - P (Alert!) - ?? RHO will ask about the alert (promises some values, but not enough to force to game), tank for ages and then run out somewhere.

Larry Cohen addresses the idea of opening a weak 2 with a void, so it's something I suspect that people have brought up before. You're mental not to do it imho. Sometimes it can be a reason to do it. Are you seriously not going to open this 2S (heck, I'd consider 3S) third in at G vs R: S: KJT987 H: - D: Q982 C: 864

And lo, in the intervening years the programmer fixed the bugs. I think that was the conclusion reached anyway.

Three singles are worth a home run under linear weights. Given that the league BABIP is .300, ~9 strikeouts and one home run has about the same run expectancy as 10 balls in play. However, you do need to remember that the type of pitchers that give up lots of homers have other advantages. Confining the discussion to quality pitchers, consider Robin Roberts. He gave up a ton of home runs because he went in over the plate with a huge percentage of first pitch strike fastballs, but he also got a ton of first pitch swings and a ton of first pitch outs. This means he can pitch a lot of innings because he can keep his pitch count down. Ground ball pitchers though do have another big advantage - you cannot turn two on a strikeout or a long fly ball. Sure, but batting average in a baseball context has much less informational content than batting average in test cricket, which was my point.

It difference is baseball has more discreet events, AND the traditional statistics are absolutely ***** useless when examining the game (RBI? Batting average? Really?). It's much harder to analyse football due to the lack of discreet events, and in cricket the traditional stats are actually pretty good, though it shares with baseball a lack of useful fielding estimates.

Its really helpful to state if you play in a jurisdiction with weak or strong NTs, and whether you play a weak or strong NT. On the basis that you're English, and thus the weak NT abounds: Defence to opponents 1NT: I'd second the clown's recommendation of 'Landy' - X = Strong, 2C = both majors, 2NT = minors, else as natural. Alternatively, consider playing Multi Landy, which is X = Strong, 2C = Both majors, 2D = Hearts or Spades, 2H = Hearts + a minor, 2S = Spades + a minor, 2NT = both minors, 3C/D/H/S = natural. Multi Landy is probably a bit more to remember, and the gains in practice are not huge, so there is a good case for simple Landy being all you need. Runouts from 1NTx: This is a bit harder, a simple natural system is probably not ideal. Pass = To play, and if responder bids/doubles again it's forcing, 2C = majors, 2D/H/S natural, XX = Clubs or diamonds is probably a good system. If you want to do some more reading/research, David Stephenson's site has an excellent library of options: Defence to opponents 1NT: http://www.blakjak.demon.co.uk/def_1nt01.htm Escapes from 1NTx: http://www.blakjak.demon.co.uk/dbl_1nt0.htm

Yes, Deep Finesse will always set the contract if there is a line of play that ensures a set. It's almost impossible to find the same line of play at the table sometimes, which is a limitation. You'll often see in club games that the limit of the hand was 9 tricks in hearts but everyone bid and made the heart game because the lead - and it's usually the lead - is impossible to find.

What are you trying to do? Bridge Master is trying to teach you good cardplay with interactive examples that you can 'solve' get an explanation for etc. Jack is a game that lets you play with and against the computer. It's a strong player - but you can get almost as strong a player here if you're as cheap as I am: http://www.wbridge5.com/ - site is french, so direct download here: http://www.wbridge5.com/Wbridge5_setup.exe Personally I'get wbridge5 'cause it's free and plays a fairly 'standard' system with a strong no trump and 5 card majors, and consider buying BM2000 if you want.

Given i'm NV I'd open hand 3 in 1st through 3rd, but pass it in 4th. I'm playing a mini no trump so this isn't as much a distortion as it might be. I'd open hand 2, but I might dump it in 4th just because partner shares my opening philosphy

I play a short club so 1D is unbalanced. Then 1D-1S-1NT promises 4H, and and 1D-1S-2C promises 5 diamonds and 4+ clubs. But yeah here you have to open 1D so you can make the rebid.

Or even just put the 4 card limit raises and game forces in 2NT, then use the 3C as minimum style response structures you have advocated before. That strips the top end of the 6-12 bid out and makes it much more managable. A straight upgrade on the existing structure.

The security guards in schools thing is dumb. Didn't Columbine have a security guard? I see that was super effective in preventing the massacre.

Isn't it? I play it that way and it seems superior because partner can pass much more often without giving them the chance to double an artifical bid. edit: That said, I'm unconstrained by brown sticker stuff so maybe I could play 1H-3C as clubs or clubs and diamonds , though that seems kinda rubbish.

How DARE you critique the free market? How can unrestricted markets ever result in anything less than the optimal allocation of capital? /sarcasm.

Has the reasoning ever been published? Things would be greatly improved if an article or whatever accompanied each of these decisions.

Eh, I mean what defines that. To give two cases that happen to me with alarming frequency (as someone who has been playing for a bit over a year) A) Sometimes partner and I are (still) sometimes not on the same page as to what is trumps (or not) in no fit auctions where we have a slam try, which often leads to bidding an invitational 4NT and the other guy responding to RKCB blackwood or whatever (though this is typically him hedging his bets with an accept). The most complex agreement in play here is usually 4th suit forcing, and blackwood itself. B) Someone busts out the 4H pre-empt or whatever and you want to try for slam, the auction is often so cramped that it's not hugely clear what's going on. I mean, I got fixed by the pre-empt already and now don't have any space, booting me out of the event because I don't have the methods to try for slam and have to try something free-wheeling seems a bit ridiculous.

I am just as curious as you are, and am gonna ask my partner what he would do with openers hand. I think if you do find out about the club shortness someone is going to devalue their hand to a bare minimum, and the other guy doesn't have any extras. I think RHM's broader point is though that to make slam you need three things: A) Decent trumps B) Controls to ensure you're not off two quick losers C) A source of tricks such as a cross ruff, a secondary fit or just a huge pile of HCP And merely finding out about A and B doesn't really get you there. I guess, for example ,I'm going to have an auction like this: 1H - 2NT; Std - Limit Raise Plus 3C - 3D; Minimum - do you have a shortness 4C ; Yeah, club shortness - now responder can see the values are duplicated and nothing is really happening, even with controls you're looking at 28ish HCP with no ruffing values or a secondary fit. However, we define a minimum as 'less than an ace more than a minimum opener' so there is a reasonable chance that we'll get something like this instead 1H - 2NT; Std - Limit Raise Plus 3D - 3H; Good hand with unspecified shortness - Which shortness? 4C ; Clubs - and now responder has to make the call, and that could be awkward and may very well end poorly.

Doesn't it really come down to the duplicated club shortness, which you should be able to find out about below the level of game?

It's obvious the defintion of encrypted is bunk though, because it's very easy to redefine signals such that they are not encrypted. I struggled with this when I asked for the sterotypical 'shows an odd or even number of black cards' signal was encrypted or not.

Haha, sure, add me to friends in BBO and hit me up if you see me online.

Bah, though this is the problem. I only play with a pickup partner when I cannot cajole my face to face partners from logging in and I decide to play some hands instead of war thunder or whatever, which is infrequently. Yeah, I do periodically meet people that extend an offer to play again, but because I play an irregular schedule, I don't actually see the same players very often. It's quite a perpetuating cycle, because it's so annoying to find someone to play with, I just play with the free bots, which means I meet less people, wash, rinse repeat. That's why I harp on about matchmaking endlessly - it would greatly improve my BBO experince and I am nothing if not selfish ;)

With the FD cards who cares if the entire thing is fully defined? You really only need the opening, responses, and maybe opener's rebid to give 95% of the benefit to opposition.