rmnka447

In applying the rule of 20, it shouldn't just be rotely applied. Some consideration of the number of QTs held should also be considered. Generally you want to have at least 2 QTs as well as the points and distribution that get you to 20. Occasionally, you might open slightly shy of 2 QTs if the distribution and suit quality are good enough -- something like ♠ x ♥ x ♦ KQJxxx ♣ KJ10xx. If you hold ♠ x ♥ QJxx ♦ KJx ♣ A10xxx, you get the 20 point and distribution count but only have 1 1/2 QTs, so this would be a pass. If you held ♠ xx ♥ KQJx ♦ xx ♣ AJxxx, you again get the 20 point and distribution count, but have 2 QTs so this would be a 1 ♣ opener. 5 cards in a minor are sufficient for a simple rebid of 2 of a minor. Responder needs to be aware that opener may have a 4 card major if the response precludes bidding ther major at the 1 level.

I would bid 2 ♥ originally instead of double. Given the auction thus far, I'll bid 5 ♥ and take what looks like a pretty sure positive. There's just no way to know if 6 ♥ is a make or not. So, bidding 6 is shooting for a top.

Over the years, I've become a big fan of very disciplined bidding over a strong 2 ♣ opener So, the raise to 3 ♥ would 8+ and xxxx or Hxx in trump where H is A,K, or Q. 2 ♣ 2 ♦ 2 ♥ 3 ♥ 3 ♠(1) 3 NT (2) 4 ♣ 4 ♥(3) 4 NT (4) 5 ♣ (5) 5 ♦(6) 6 ♣(7) 6 NT 7 NT (1) 1st round ♠ control (2) Waiting bid denies a 1st round ♣ control (3) Waiting bid no 1st round ♦ control (4) Still interested in slam - no 2nd round ♠ control so must have A, but also has a high ♥ honor (5) 2nd round ♣ control (6) 1st round ♦ control -- implies holding both high ♥ honors else would have used RKCB Also 2nd round ♣ control must have been useful, else would have signed off in ♥s. (7) 3rd round ♣ control - must be at least KQ not a singleton After 6 NT, responder knows opener must have all 4 As as NT wouldn't be right with a void. Since an extra trick in ♣ is held, it must be right to bid 7.

Double. The stiff ♥ A and lack of a raise by advancer increases the likelihood that pard has made a penalty pass.

1 ♠ -- primarily Because I don't want to suppress a major and will be able to show the stopper if partner takes a call. I really don't like bidding NT with two outside suits no better than Jxx either.

Pass -- not enough distribution to bid on, not enough defense to double.

+ 2 -- I agree with what gwnn said. You are in a "free bid" situation as partner still gets a chance to bid if you pass. So any bid you make shows extras in strength or distribution. That's not what you have -- you have a minimum opener so you should pass. 2 ♠ is a reverse showing 17+ presumably with ♠s and longer ♣s. Double would about 16+ and no clear cut action. 2 ♥ or 3 ♥ show 4+ ♥s with the same values you'd have without the intervening bid. 3 ♣ shows ♣ length and a decent honor holding but not necessarily anything extra. By passing, you do two things, you convey to partner that you have a minimum opener and leave room for partner to take the initiative. If partner barely had enough values to chock out a response, then partner can pass and you'll have avoided getting in over your heads. Partner can double with at least 9+ HCP (to unlimited) and no clear cut bid. You'll then know that your side has at least half the points and can compete. Your pass also opens the way for partner to rebid ♥ at the 2 level with long ♥ and some scattered values (say ♠ xx ♥ A109xxx ♦ xx ♣ Kxx) -- you'll get to a nice partscore or push the opponents up a level. Partner can bid 2 ♠ which should show 11+ with 4 ♠ and longer hearts. Partner can raise ♣ with 11+ and a club fit. Partner can jump in ♥ with 11-12 and long ♥s. After the 2 ♦ raise by advancer, you can't really know who has what at the table. The ♦ overcaller might be bidding more on guts than values and advancer might be raising on vapor. OTOH, overcaller could have a full opener and advancer could have a chunky raise OR it could be any combination of values in between. So by passing you open the way for your partnership to define what values it has and make sensible decisions to compete, bid game, or pass.

I'm bidding 5 ♣. Partner should interpret it as about exactly the hand that is held -- a 6-6 minor hand. At IMPs, I take the insurance policy against 5 ♠ and bid 6 ♣.

4 ♥ for me, too.

Since the bidders are bidding 1st or 2nd round controls, South's failure to initially cue bid 3 ♥ over 3 ♦ marks the hand with at least a doubleton ♥. North should also realize that after the encouraging pass of 4 ♥ doubled that South must have 1st round controls in both minors, otherwise a signoff in 4 ♠ would be appropriate. It should also be apparent that South must hold ♠ K because South could not make any slam try without it. So South is known to have at least something like the following 9 cards -- ♠ Kxxxx ♥ xx ♦ A ♣ A For South to make a sane slam try, the missing cards must fill in some strong holding in one of the minors. North's minor doubletons are both working and useful opposite whatever minor South must hold. Also, holding the ♠ Axxxx, North knows there are no likely spade losers -- something that South may never be able to visualize. So, North has to make some forward move over the pass rather signoff. Lacking any other agreement other than that Redbl would show the ♥ A, I think the practical bid by North should be 6 ♠. Something like 5 ♥ might show the ♥ KQ, but will South ever be able to infer that North must have the ♠ A to make that bid? It would seem pretty hard to do so. Exactly the same issue/problem exists with a 5 ♠ bid by North.

Playing stone age 2/1 --- 1 ♥ - 2 ♦ 2 ♥(minimum) - 3 ♥(GF in ♥, some slam interest) 4 ♥( minimum minimum, no slam interest unless responder has a really huge moose) - P

One key factor in the play of most 4-3 fits is who will have to take any ruffs that are necessary. Usually, it's important that the 3 card support be able to do so. That way declarer with the 4 card suit won't have to be forced into ruffing and potentially losing control of the trump suit. Defender's trumps are more likely to be 4-2 than 3-3, so a single ruff by declarer can be very detrimental to making the contract. It's something to consider in deciding whether to raise with 3 or not.

Pass, the worst we can lose is a partial swing at IMPs. Like aguahombre said, you don't want to buy it expensive at IMPS. It's just possible if the 1 ♥ balancer is fairly weak that LHO has opening values behind you. If so, it means that there's a ♣ stack behind you as well.

Sometimes, you eat the bear, sometimes the bear ... Everyone has had those nights when things don't go well. Hand 1 was a fix. Once the 2 ♦ bid was made, you weren't getting a good board. Hand 2 was also a fix in a way. I don't think there are going to be many good players who will overcall 1 ♦ with your RHO opponent's hand with red pockets. It looks like you're sort of stuck once that bid occurs. But your hand does have some defensive prospects against a ♦ contract. You know that between your hand and overcaller's hand there are at least 10 diamonds. So the question is whether you compete immediately or wait to see what develops. Your choices are between 1 NT, 2 ♣, and Pass. There's just no way to know what's right because you don't know what kind of hand partner has. With so many minor cards in your hand, it seems more likely partner will hold the majors than long ♣s. If partner does hold ♣, then the opponents must have a big fit somewhere in a major. Pass has the additional advantage that LHO may bid and clarify what's going on. I'm not sure it's right but something to consider. Pay your money and take your choice. This time, you bid 2 ♣ and it didn't work out. Big deal, next time it may work out better. Hand 3 is the kind of mechanical error everyone makes from time to time. We all hate to have them occur, but better at a session that's not going your way than one where you are close to winning. As long as you and your partner aren't tossing a lot of boards to the opponents, you have to accept that sometime you can't win or even place because of what the opponent's do. In those sessions, all you can do is to continue to grind out whatever results you can get. But you should not get upset with, angry at, or second guess your partner. That will never help your game. If you avoid that, you'll find that sometimes as bad as the results seem, others struggled as much or more and you'll end up winning or scratching.

I was bidding 4 ♠ originally anyhow because of having 10 cards in 2 suits and at least 4 trumps. RHO can't be making a frivolous preempt red vs. red. With shortness in ♣s and a very distributional hand, I'm bidding on to 5 ♠.

Definitely a 2 ♥ bid IMO. Did your partner have trouble envisioning how many tricks your side might take if you hold some normal WJO suit like AJxxxx, AQxxxx, or even QJxxxx with a little something outside? It certainly looks like at least 9 tricks should come home. The question is whether you can find a 10th trick. I think partner's contention that you "shut him down" is a red herring. If partner made a forcing call over 1 ♥, you'd simply show less than an opener. The difference is that partner couldn't be sure exactly how many ♥ you had and 4 ♥ might not play so well if you have only 5 ♥s. With red pockets (vulnerable), I'd think a 4 ♥ bid would be automatic with partner's hand. But not vulnerable, the decision is not so clear because bidding game or not is about a wash at IMPS. Personally, I'd still bid 4 ♥ because I find it easier to explain going down than why I wasn't there when it makes.

I'm bidding 2 ♠. After the opponents intervene, I raise pretty aggressively especially at the 2 level. If partner sacrifices and goes for a number, that's partner's problem.

I think Vampyr makes a very good point about Lebensohl 2 NT still being on and offering advancer many options to show hands with all levels of values. 4 ♥ must show a hand with a few values and lots of ♥. But the hand does illustrate that it's sometimes just as important to consider what partner didn't bid as much as what was bid.

South is about a K shy of having enough for a slam try. So 4 ♣ is the worst call.

Our auction would be 1 ♠ - 3 ♠ - 4 ♠ with just about any of the good players I play with. There's just no way to get there after a limit raise.

I'm not particularly a point counter with this hand. The ♠ K really doesn't rate to be worth anything in front of the ♠ bidder. so this hand looks to me like basically a ♦ hand. I'm bidding 2 ♦.

Sorry, but I disagree with those who say that the 4 ♠ rebid shows a good or very good spade suit. The 4 ♠ rebid over any response and especially over a 2/1 GF should show a freakish opener with a broken 7 card or longer spade suit. It says there is virtually no interest in slam -- ♠ KJ87xxx ♥ x ♦ Kxxx ♣ A or something like it. With ♠ KQJ10xxx ♥ xx ♦ KQ ♣ xx, depending on your bidding style and partnership agreements, bid 2 ♠ over 2 ♣ and jump to game in ♠ on the next round OR jump to 3 ♠ over 2 ♣ if partner would be able to field that you might have a 6 loser player rather than the more normal 16+ point hand with a good spade suit.

Yeah, I'd like to have more points to bid with the East hand, but it is a 7 loser hand. Also, if opener and responder find a fit in responder's suit, I'd really like a Heart lead from partner. So, especially at MPs, I think 2 ♥ is right with the East hand. You might run into the occasional buzzsaw, but it's only one board. Given the actual auction, I'd probably pass but would be torn by really wanting to bid. Hopefully, I'd pass in tempo like Messr. Gibson and give partner a chance to act. With competent defense, 5 ♣ should be down 3. ♥ A, ♥ 4 from West (suit preference) ♦ switch, ruff ♠ A ♠, ruff ♦, ruff But that's not going to be good enough as over a natural bidding 1 ♣ opener, virtually all Easts will make a 1 ♥ overcall and East/West will find the ♥ game.

I'll join in with those preferring 4 ♣. The ♦ suit isn't good enough for 4 ♦. You do have a 4 loser hand, but really don't have good honor texture in the pointed suits you hold. So 4 ♣ seems the most descriptive. It also assures you'll get to game which your loser count indicates is right. If you held something like ♠ Axx ♥ AKxx ♦ AJ10xxx ♣ - , you might consider a jump shift to 2 ♠ followed by a jump in ♥s. 4 ♥, I think, should be reserved for those flattish 19-20 point mooses where you're bidding game on the powerfulness of your hand.

The probability of bringing in the 7 card ♥ suit without a loser is about 52%. That's assuming partner is void. That's 36% for a 3-3 break plus the probability that you can drop the ♥ J doubleton in a 4-2 break. There are 15 possible combinations for the suit in a 4-2 break. 5 of those will include the J doubleton (i.e. J with each of the other other small cards). So the probability of J doubleton in a 4-2 break is 5/15 or 33%. The probability of a 4-2 break is approximately 48%. So dropping a J doubleton is 33%(48%) or 16 %. ------------------------------------------------------------ Ok, now to the auction. If the heart suit wasn't so solid, you might open 1 ♥ and over any repsonse bid 4 ♥. That's a good way to bid a freakish hand with opening values and a 7 card or longer broken major suit. But with the quality of the suit, it would seem better to open 1 ♥ and then either keep bidding ♥ at the minimum level 1 ♥ - 1 ♠ 2 ♥ - 3 ♦ 3 ♥ - 3 NT 4 ♥ or take a rosier view -- upgrading the ♠ K after the 1 ♠ response and looking at only 6 losers make a jump rebid in ♥ 1 ♥ - 1 ♠ 3 ♥ - 4 ♦ 4 ♥ - ? ? - probably getting to a slam 6 ♥ BTW although NT might just score better at MPs, the hand is probably better off in ♥s. There's no guarantee that you'll be able to get to the ♥ suit and you may need 2 entries if ♥s don't break. Conversely, responder's stoppers and high cards are working at a ♥ contract.