smerriman

Last call for entries. We currently have 31 (28 who voted, and 3 who posted without voting..), so it would be nice if that wasn't a prime number ;)

As others have stated, the problem with Blackwood is that you won't have any idea what the correct contract is regardless of partner's response. Question for others - suppose partner responds 2NT to your double. How do you then proceed as South? I may be mistaken but I suspect part of the reason thepossum bid Blackwood straight away is because it can be hard (impossible) to bid it later after a 2NT response. It may be a weakness in GIB's system - not sure what the right continuation is.

You may play it that way, and that indeed is up to you, but thepossum is playing with GIB, and I can promise you, 1NT is not forcing at all.

Firstly, North is a passed hand, so 1NT is not forcing (that only applies to unpassed hands). Secondly, both 2♥ and 2♠ seem normal. A 5-2 fit is always preferable to a 4-3 fit, and you don't want to pass 1NT with that shape (even when it's nonforcing).

^ this.

If you're playing with GIB then 2NT is a transfer to clubs, but not necessarily weak. You can follow up with 3 of another suit to show shortness in that suit; if partner bids 3NT and you're still interested in slam, you can keep bidding.

These two similar hands came up tonight within the space of 4 boards: [hv=https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?sn=smerriman&s=ST9HA9754DT854CA4&d=w&v=o&b=30&a=P1HP]200|300[/hv] [hv=https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?sn=smerriman&s=SA962H7DA9754CT85&d=s&v=o&b=33&a=PP1SP]200|300[/hv] Are either of these hands "too good" to preemptively raise to 4? If so, what would you bid instead (both in the above cases, and if you were/weren't a psssed hand respectively). Playing two-way Drury in the passed hand cases.

Pass doesn't deny a diamond control - it promises the king or singleton (ie no two quick losers, which is when you'd want to avoid Blackwood). So 5♥ is a normal signoff, while your other options assume you didn't have two quick losers to start with.

You can always see a definition of your own passes when deciding what to bid. Just not what passes mean by other players. But Helene, surely if you don't have a diamond control, you cue 4♠ rather than 4NT. I know that doesn't normally work well with robots who don't understand cuebidding, but I would say that would be the thing worth fixing, vs trying to allow you to recover when the opponents help out with a double.

Can you clarify what you mean by "the 2C opening on Bridge Base"? If you mean the GIB description, I specifically didn't mention GIB because you said not to. GIB's description is not a good description of what 2♣ means. The issue you raised what was I would bid as a human, and not what GIB describes it as. Let me know if you meant to ask something else.

If I got that hand, then I would open 2♣. Wouldn't suffer any ire from anyone nor be against any guidelines.

Yeah, 16 or less, not 16 or more. GIB puts an arbitrary points range of 16 or less points on its initial pass; the transfer doesn't have any point range, so it combines the two descriptions. (Even though it's not possible to have 5 spades and anywhere near 16 points).

2♣ is any one-suited hand; 2♦ is forced and doesn't demand anything.

I can't see it. South is guaranteed to have the spade ace and two club winners.

If you lead the K, you *do* have the Q and either J or T, and overtaking and returning a club is the only option. If partner isn't able to figure that out, I don't think they'll be able to figure out what you *might* have when leading the Jack (especially when it's unlikely you'll hold the King).

Entries are closed. Draw will be announced as soon as advanced robots are assigned. Since we played MPs last time, let's do another IMP best-hand challenge event. (And for those die-hard fans of MP-non-best-hand, I promise that will be the next one :)) This will all be the same format as Event 13. Register via the poll above (but see below if you haven't registered before). Will make the deadline for registration two weeks today (14 December 11:59pm EST); will be a little lenient on deadlines for the first round given Christmas, but if you're taking an extended break perhaps sit this one out. For anyone who has not participated before: This is a forum event based on friend challenges. You will be playing challenges against other members in a round robin / knockout format, with an expectation of around 3 16-board challenges a week. No prizes, just fun. To prove you are capable of creating/accepting challenges, if you have never played in a challenge event before, send me an 8-board IMP best-hand challenge. I will accept promptly - you must complete the challenge before expiry to prove you are capable of participating. (If you've competed in any previous event, voting in the poll suffices).

Finesse the jack, play AK trumps, then diamonds from the top.

Random point I expected someone else to make - if you open 1♣, you're only going to need to think about reversing if partner responds 1♠ (or 1NT, I guess). If partner responds 1♠, and you're worried about reverse follow-ups, 2NT doesn't seem a terrible rebid.

As TylerE said, bidding 5♥ now says "I want to be in slam if you have a diamond control". So you're not lacking a bid (and there's no need for partner to skip 5♣).

4NT appears to be an impossible bid where the description has been pieced together from other auctions. A quantitative invite to 6NT opposite 11-12 would require 21 points; your 1♠ bid limits you to 18, and it can't combine 18- and 21. It tries to by saying both 18+ HCP and 18- total points in the description, but it's not possible to have a hand which accepts opposite 18.

You'd pass 3nt? :) Given you were guaranteed to get to 4♠ anyway, how could it hurt cueing along the way in case partner was really close to going further?

Pass and pass.

4♠, not because I think 4♦ will be passed, but because GIB's cuebidding system is silly and it promises a much stronger hand than you have.

Out of interest, IRL, do you say 'queen or a 10-card fit' each time you're asked to describe the bid?

Also, tweak the hands slightly: [hv=https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?sn=thepossum&s=SAJ875HKT65D84CAJ&wn=Robot&w=S9H432DJ52CQ98542&nn=Robot&n=SKT432H7DAKQT7C76&en=Robot&e=SQ6HAQJ98D963CKT3&d=s&v=n&b=5&p=H2S2H9H5SKS9S5SJS3S6SAC9D4D2DAD6DKD9D8D5DQC3CJDJDTH7H6C8D7H8HTC4D3CTHKC5&c=13&a=6SPPP]400|300[/hv] If you bid Blackwood and GIB responds 5♥, denying the queen, then you are forced to sign off in 5♠, since you are missing a keycard and the queen of trumps. But you make 6♠ easily, since the queen of trumps turns out to be irrelevant. That is one example where 5♠ gives a better result than 5♥. If you believe GIB should respond 5♥, I challenge you to name a single hand where you're better off in slam when partner has the queen, and out of slam when partner has 5 card support. Just one.