msjennifer

To give you one example.My LHO dealt a 16/18 NT.My partner bid 2D ( ASTRO),I held J10xx,-xxx-Qxx-xxx RHO passed-and I bid 2S confirming four card spades.My LHO passed and partner bid 3D confirming an 8losers hand.RHO passed.and I bid 4S making comfortably.So one NT does not pose a problem at all these days.

We don't mind that.They can also find it if you open 1NT.These days no one is afraid of RHO or LHO S 1NT.There are many conventions available to obstruct opponents 1NT constructively or destructively.Your fears are therefore unjustified.Even if they come in at one spade level we have the gadgets to cope up that also and Lebensohl is just one of them.(Don’t confuse this with the Lebensohl used when partner opens 1NT and opponents intervene..)There are SIX situations where Lebensohl can be used.

Personally since nowa days 3Sx is a negative double I have no sensible bid.However.I can assure that my partner will not open that wretched hand .

I play Precision most of the time and hence I always open 1Of the 5 card major as opening is limited to 11/15 HCP and 1NT is also 13/15.HCP.As such I do not face any problem.However,Playing a standard system and where one thinks of so to say Preemption one can safely open a 5332 hand with any five card suit as 1NT.The only requirement is that then your Partner must know puppet Stayman or any other method of finding out a five card major suit in Openers hand.With a partner who knows only simple Stayman it is advisable not to open 1NT with a 5 card major.

5322as you have given adds to 12 cards only

The North hand was revealed later.My argument about what North should /could have bid arises now.A simple overcall suggests a limited hand and a single suiter,usually 6 carded semi strong suit and at the two level a 7 loser hand.A 2H bid serves the purpose of semi preempt as also a clue for any sacrifice if necessary later.It also makes clear to partner that he should not expect a support in his suit.The North hand does not fall in this category.There is quite good support for diamonds and not a bad support for clubs .There is nothing to be very proud of the heart suit.A last intention of a simple overcall is lead direction.Here North can withstand any lead of interest which S may make.All these and the possession of 16 HCP and only 6 losers makes this hand a clear cut bid of Double and not 2H .Of course this is strictly my personal opinion .I think a double of a major suit bid as a TOD also promises an honour to four in the other major OR a single suiter strong hand.This hand has at least one of the qualifications if not more for a TOD.

2S bid ,if made now,has to be natural as the hand has passed the 2H bid . What else can it be unless discussed earlier .? However,personally,I would not make it opposite a stranger.

In good old times the requirements to open a four card major suit were at least Q10xx and any five card suit was biddable.In modern days the restrictions no more are adhered to.A five card major must never be suppressed and that is followed by almost all the system when opening a normal 11/14 hand.So the hand has to be opened 1S and not 1D .The theory of a convenient rebid has to be kept in mind always.The hands are almost borderline openers and there is the convenient rebid of 2D available in the first hand.As regards the second example also the opening bid is 1S.One has to deviate sometimes in a hand of No trump pattern.A hand like say S-AKQx-H-AKx D-xxxC-xxx is hard to describe if you open 1C or 1NT either of which may go PPP and go down when opponents can not make anything..AN expert ,Ina vulnerable against nonvul,opened 1NT holding xx, AKxx-AKJx-xxx .It went all pass.Result was three down for minus 300 when opponents double dummy could have made 3S only that is 140 .He deservedly got a zero.On other tables it was opened 1D and opponents played in 2S.In short,the vulnerability,and other factors have to be kept n mind in opening a hand particulately in 1St and to some extent 2nd seat.

And this hand will be opened not 1D but 1NT.

Opener has not supported hearts nor bid spades or clubs so he has to have at least 4 diamonds.His 1NT rebid is not an encouraging bid at all since with an apparently balanced hand he has not opened 1NT. His hand is a limited 12/14 hand.No point in fooling around and a straightforward 3NT is what I shall bid.

If it's any passed hand then nonforcing (as when he did not want to preempt).If a non passed hand then we play it as F1.( not interested in spades obviously and with a tolerance for diamonds).

I shall first ask them if they play 4C/D as respective transfers to 4H/S as hands 012 in any chair and 4H/S as 123 respectively.A suitable action can then be taken considering the pros and cons as per vulnerability,scoring method and one's mood at the time.

In the SAYC system which is used by most on BBO,it is clearly written under negative doubles,1It is used upto a level of 2repeat 2spades.2) It CAN be played at higher levels also.3)The higher level upto which it is played is decided by previous agreement.4)All the comments which I express or the opinions I give are normally adhering to the SAYC System.

Sir,kindly read my statement in full context.I have written that ,” Unless previously discussed” 4Cx is a penalty double as one has already specified in his convention card that mention “upto 3S” under the column “negative doubles”.I know that Larry Cohen has advised negative doubles “ upto infinity”.I was referring to “ non expert “ players who will certainly be flabbergasted to know “upto infinity”.One gets a different partner every two deals and it is in their profiles negative double is played upto 2/3 Spade only and it is not at all wrong to conclude that 4Cx is a penalty double.Whenever not able to do that they simply PASS hoping that partner may make a TOD.It is for these reasons that I have said I shall bid 4S with the South hand.And believe me ,I never consider myself as an EXPERT.Compared to Benito and Hamman I may fall only in the intermediates class only.I sincerely hope that you will appreciate my comments in light of this.

Almost all players play negative double upto 3S only unless previously discussed.Personally I would bid 4S ,which many will consider absurd, with the South hand.Unless previously discussed 4Cx Is a penalty double.

Agree to disagree.

Cancelled

Of course it does not need wisdom to construct hypothetical imaginary hands to justify ones bids.It is very easy to say “if partner has this and partner has that then we make” .It is a big relief to see that quite a few have made the same 2D bid.

Sir,and on which sequence did they reach 4S?Do you FULLY agree with the sequence?

A 1D opening CAN be a prepared bid. The hand does not have enough strength either to reverse with a Bid of 2H or bid a false 2S.It is not good enough to rebid3D just now.The hand is a normal11/15 HCP hand.Game is not possible unless partner can make a bid over 2D.Considering all these points my bid is a straightforward 2D.

I do not like to presume “if he has that and that”..A 5loser hand it is and remains that way.A straight 4H bid is good enough to tell my partner to proceed if he can provide 4Cover cards outside spades.

I agree almost fully with you.

The partnership does not play 2/1.SAYC System.Responders 2C bid does not deny 4 carder spade suit and promises 11 plus HCP.I normally play Precision and hence am curious.What are the exact requirements for these two sequences ? 1H-2C-2H-2S-2NT-3H and 1H-2C-2H-2S-2NT-4H.

No! You expect partner to have stoppers In all the three remaining suits! Bidding 3H is stretching the imagination TOO FAR even In a regular partnership.2H is normally a weak hand.If one bids 3 H then the meaning will have to be very well defined even with an expert partner beforehand.