PhilG007

Bridge is a game. It's played for fun and recreation. But the game has gained an unenviable reputation that,at times,make this difficult to believe. Its been responsible for broken friendships, divorces,stand up rows,tears and in one well known extreme case...MURDER Bridge players have all the failings that the flesh is heir to and exhibit them more than most. They come in every guise. The merry,the morose,the chatty,the taciturn, the ladies and the gentlemen,the bitches and the b******ds. When I was learning this game,I thought the best way to learn the ropes was to play with some close friends. I soon realised why playing cards were known in olden days as "The Devil's Picture Books" I never dreamed that 52 bits of pasteboard could turn normally decent sweet people into ogres. I quickly became aware that an essential asset at this game is to grow a tough hide. In 30 years of playing I've seen it all. So can anything be done to improve the standard of etiquette at this game? I doubt it. Human nature will always be human nature.

Don't be a bore please

Your bad manners are exceeded only by your bad manners. This game doesn't revolve around you alone although you might like to think so(!) :angry:

My problem with this is... IS it a Michaels bid(?) I'm of the old school where a direct cue bid of the enemy suit showed a rock crusher of a hand equivlant of a 2♣opener and forcing to at least Game. It gravitates back to the old chestnut of partnership agreement.

The North hand actually has 12 points. 1 point being added for the club doubleton as a major suit fit has been found so a game invite of 3♠ is perfectly justified. South should only go to game if he is maximum for his NT opening.

I have been in this situation countless times and have profited by it. Partner opened 1NT (both weak and strong) I bid 2♣ Stayman Partner responded in my major and I bid game.It transpired that we were missing the top three trump honors. Partner had replied holding xxxx in our suit. Result we were set 1 or 2 tricks. This clearly shows that Stayman,while a very useful convention, has its flaws and should be treated with caution.

The poster gave no indication whether the partnership concerned was established or casual. I was assuming the latter.

I'm very wary of using cue bids with an unknown partner. I would prefer to compete to the 5 level in our suit. If the opponents push to 5♠ I would pass and try to set the contract.

The poster shouldn't beat him/herself over this. Even the Grandmasters don't get it right 100% of the time. The bidding system hasn't been invented that covers all the bases.

I would pass. The side suits are too flimsy to risk going on. And there could be communication problems in the play of the hand.

I was taught many moons ago that a 5-4-2-2 distribution pointed to a trump rather than a NoTrump contract. I would open 1♦ and if partner responded in spades would 'borrow' a point and rebid 2♥ rather than rebid the skinny diamond suit.

When assessing whether a suit is good enough to overcall,it's important not to forget the intermediate cards. 10's and 9's can take tricks,3's and 2's don't. As an example look at these two suits :- A K1098xxx B Kxxxxxx Suit A is quite a decent holding and may easily take more than 1 trick whereas suit B is a King heading a load of rubbish. So when evaluating suit quality,always include the middle cards.

I don't think the ♥ suit is long enough for a 2♥ jump overcall which should show a 6+ suit even it does contain 3 honors one of which could fall to the Ace. 1♥ is quite sufficient. And if partner can support the ♥...well..... :)

Ideal hand for the unusual 2NT but this would require pre-agreement or showing on a players profile. Otherwise 1♥ is the sensible alternative.

If this deal came from a tournament,I would be curious in learning what contract(s) the other tables were in. It should make for interesting reading(!) ;)

Agreed. An tennis doubles equivilant of this bidding is partner swooping to your side of the court screaming "MINE PARTNER" poaching the ball and smashing it into the net.... Some players need reminding that they are only half a partnership(!) :angry:

IMHO the 5♣ jump is ridiculous. Why waste bidding space like that? What's the rush???? A simple 3♣ response gives the same message. It's game forcing and shows a good club suit. Over the 3 club bid,North can then start slam investigations by cue bidding his first round controls. 6♣ would be a par contract on this deal.

4 spades after a lot of soul searching. Not at all happy bidding such a flimsy suit at the 4 level in second seat vulnerable. And it would serve me right if the rest of the ♠ suit was bunched on my left and a "DOUBLE" in a voice of thunder was heard there.

It depends on partnership agreement. In a casual pairing,I would be inclined to view the second double by North as penalty orientated since partner has already bid. I've never really liked responsive doubles. I found them to be a two edged sword.

It would really depend on the pointage With a hand like ♠Jxx ♥xx♦AQxx ♣KQxx I would favour opening 1♦ partially because the suit can potentially yield 1.5 quick tricks as opposed to just 1 in clubs. It also makes the rebid easier if partner responds in a major. But what if you held ♠AKx♥AK ♦xxxx♣xxxx ? Does it really matter which minor you open? I would choose to open 1♣ on this hand,keeping all my options open and hope partner might respond 1♦ when you can rebid 2♦ with a clear conscience.. :)

The reason why 4th highest is led at NTs is simple...for partner to use the so called "Rule of Eleven" but it should be remembered not to apply the procedure too rigidly. Only an automaton plays the same way all the time(!) Other ways of leading could be leading a suit partner has bid, or leading 'top of nothing' It should also be remembered that a rule,ANY rule no matter how old it is is just a guide,not a muzzle. Even a top darts player doesn't hit the bullseye every time(!)

"I MAY NOT AGREE WITH EVERYTHING YOU SAY,BUT I'LL DEFEND TO THE DEATH YOU'RE RIGHT TO SAY IT" - Voltaire Mikestar13 take note.

The 1Club bid could be short suit. The majority of the field will be in 3NT so that would be my bid on the North hand.

North's bidding is ambiguous. His first double was for takeout showing a diamond shortage, his second double is obviously for penalties. But he denied diamond length with his double on the first round. How can he double for penalties without trump length?

Yet another example of the dangers of using fancy gadgets in a casual partnership. I will never play complicated systems or conventions with an unknown partner. They are just a recipe for disaster. The only safe system for strange partnerships is K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid)