PriorKnowledge

Lead QH... If that loses to KH, lead another heart and finesse the 9. This makes your contract on any 2-2 except KJ offside and all 3-1. If you play AH and small heart, you lose to KJx in either hand.

1C 1H 1S is forcing under modern expert interpretation. That reserves the 1C 1H 2S for distributional monsters or true game-force hands. 20 years ago, it was non-forcing, but problem hands kept coming up. The 18-point hands are a problem. If you game force with a jump-shift when partner gives u a courtesy 5-6 response, you end in a hopeless game. If you bid a non-forcing 1S, you may play there when game if available. Take this hand: AKx Qxx x AKQxxx... You open 1C, partner bids 1H. Now what? A forcing 1S is perfect. If partner has S-Qxxx and goodies, 4S may be the best spot or 3N or 5C. Or maybe not even game. You need the bid forcing and you don't want to waste space with a 2S or GF the hand prematurely.

I guess few here have ever actually taught beginners.... SAYC 1988 is simple and well documented. There is a short summary on the www.acbl.org site somewhere (2 or 3 pages). Although it is true that bad bidding will hurt worse than bad play, you cannot understand bidding until you learn the play. That is why EasyBridge is such a good way to learn bridge. Also, bidding is not near as much FUN as the play (except special people). Teach by letting them play. Few lectures. The order of teaching.... 1) Teach play first by letting them play. hrothgar's post was excellent method. Teach counting suits by what is outstanding rather than the natural "count to 13" method. Bad habits are hard to break. Have them just sit and play... never lecture except a short one after the lesson to reinforce a few principles that came up during play. 2) Explain game bonus, but not scoring. For some reason, scoring is the hardest to learn. Ignore slams for the time being. 3) Teach bidding slowly... short lectures, long play. Keep it fun and competitive. 4) Teach scoring last. Never criticize There is also two excellent free computer programs on www.acbl.org called Learn To Play Bridge and Learn to Play Bridge 2. (I think written by FG, but not sure.) Play... play...play

Maximal dbl? No. 1) No suit established and 2) 2H is too unlimited Snapdragon dbl (tolerance for hearts & 5 of unbid suit)? No, even if playing Snapdragon. With clubs, overcaller is forced to bid 4C. Advancer would have taken action over 1S if advancer were that strong or that distributional. If advancer has a heart fit, advancer can bid 3H or 4H, so advancer does not have a heart fit. So logically, this dbl is penalty. Which also fits nicely with the rule: Once partner has bid, dbls are either conventional or penalty. Since there is no defined conventional dbl, it must be penalty. A penalty dbl of 3D, nothing more, nothing less. If responder bids 3S, overcaller can X with 4 good spades.

Actually, it is exactly the opposite. Computer dealt hands are much more random than shuffled hands due to poor shuffling. The simplist computer algorithm I have ever seen does not repeat for 3,000,000,000 hands and most software uses a much better algorithm. But since these hands were in separate decks, the point is mute. I'll take helene_t's word. Once every 5 years sounds about right.

At IMPs, Grand slams are risky. Assuming the small is sure, NVul you risk 14 IMPS if wrong and gain 11 if right. So you need a 56% chance to break even. Vul it is +13 to -17 needing a 57% chance. At MP, the risk is much higher. In a mixed field several pairs will miss the slam altogether and few will bid the grand. So you risk turning an above average board into a zero in order to turn an above average board into a top. And that does not count the fact that 6 making 7 will garner even more MP if the play for 7 is difficult. In that case, you risk turning an already near top into a zero for almost no extra MP. A good rule-of-thumb is bid the grand if at worse the grand depends on a finesse.

I used to play it non-forcing, but I am convinced the modern practice of 100% forcing is superior. And I agree with Inquiry that it may only be a 3-card suit (fragment bid). And I agree with pclayton that "almost forcing" is nonsense and is the same as non-forcing. A bid is either forcing or not. "Almost forcing" is as useful to bidding as "almost survived" to a patient. There are too many hands where a GF J/S showing a 2-suited hand is not appropriate, but you need to continue the auction. If you wish to respond a 1/1 with 3-4, you must be prepared to play the hand in at least 1N. If that frightens you, I suggest you pass the opening bid.

This simple Modified Ogust was recommended by Meckstroth at a lecture I attended. After 3C rebid, 3D asks for strength, with 3H=min & 3S=max. He recommended opening weak 2's with 5 or any 6, with voids, with 2nd 4-card majors and broad point range. He said it was important to keep opps from using their expert tools as much as possible.

7H, showing diam singleton or void. With ♦K, would bid 6N. With ♦KQ, would bid 7D.

2C is forcing and may be strong!?! What purpose are we bidding now? Is it to give the opponents the option of doubling us instead of playing a misfit partscore with suits breaking poorly? Or maybe locating the honors and distribution for better declarer play? And you are vul and this is IMP scoring! Pass

2H is good call, but could not argue with X Advancer dropped the ball, big time. Whether you bid 3H or 4H, you cannot pass. LOTT says bid 4H, but with ♠Qxxx and 2-2 in minors, 3H might work out better. But pass with 5-card support because you only have 5hcp is poor bidding.

3D, followed by 5C. I hope partner will have an ace to make, but not 2 aces to miss slam.

2D is not a reverse. You are raising partner's diam. But I think 2C is best here. You can't pass 1SX. 1N is poor with 10hcp and 1h. Where would you get tricks? If your club suit does not work, you might only get 3 or 4 tricks. If your club suit does work, you want to be in clubs anyway. 2C any style of scoring.

So what is 3N? No 5-card suit (else 2/1), no 4s, and exactly 13-15. So must be 3334, 3343, 3244, or 2344... Have I missed any? But after 1H 3N 4C 4H, must have 3h. Resp would not take a preference with 2h and 4c. I can't think of any other meaning to 5D except exclusionary RKC.

You are right, on the subject hand, there are perfect min hands with diam strength that opener can have that still make slam, and the splinter will miss those. But there are many more with diam strength and no slam that any other bid may take to the 5- or 6-level. I like anonymous splinters. 3oM = anonymous splinter, over both a 1M opener and a 2M stayman rebid. It is more commonly played over a 2M stayman rebid, but it fits well with 3m Bergen responses over a 1M opener. Over spades you can even tell void. 1S 3H = anonymous GF splinter 3S 3N = void 4C = where? 4D = diam void 4H = heart void 4S = club void 4C = club singleton 4D = diam sing 4H = heart sing 1H 3S 3N = where? 4C/4D/4H = void or singleton

Agree with Stephen Tu. On preempts: Against weaker opps, I preempt soundly. No sense giving them a top with an easy double - Make them earn it. Against stronger opps, I preempt more freely to disrupt their "fancy toys."

Splinters work based on the math of high-card points, Oh Seeker-of-Wisdom. Take these hands: Dealer: AQJx Axxx AKxx x 1) Respo: Kxxxx KQx xx xxx 2) Respo: Kxxxx xxx xx KQx 1) 1D 1S 4C .... 6S 2) 1D 1S 4C 4S p In hand 1) the 26 hcp between the 2 hands are all located in 3 non-splinter suits. That is an average of 8+2/3 points per suit and responder can easily see that the only loser will be the missing ace. In hand 2) the 26 hcp are spread across 4 suits. In particular responder sees the 5 hcp in clubs is wasted opposite partner's shortness and can sign off in 4S. You will notice that even 5S may not make. If you splinter on wildly distributional hands that have few hcp, the math will not work. Partner may drive to a hopeless slam. So on weak, wildly distributional hands, just jump to game and don't splinter. Finding the rare slam is a total crap-shoot. This is a quick splinter explanation. There are better write-ups all over the Internet.

very close between 3S & 4S With 7hcp, you can't make a strength bid. So no 2H, 2N or 3N If you splinter with this hand, you don't understand splinters.

You have 11 hcp... How is that not 11-13 hcp? This is a textbook splinter hand. It asks partner a specific question: If you have wasted honors in diam, return to 4S. Let me repeat... Since you think splinters take up too much space and you don't splinter on this obvious splinter hand, remove splinters from your CC. You will never bid them. I'll go even farther.... I will give up ALL my fancy slam bidding including Blackwood before I give up splinters. Splinters allow you to find slam on game-strength hands when the hands fit together well. No other bid does so much so easily.

1C 1S 2C 2N 3H What is 3H? Forcing, showing 6c & 4h and game (14+) opposite responder's invitation. Obviously, opener is concerned about 3N. Opener's clubs may be full of holes. If responder is short in clubs, responder should consider playing a 4-3 heart fit. If responder has club length but no honors, responder should consider playing 5C. If responder has a club honor, responder should bid 3N.

Dbl. I understand passers thinking, but if partner has as little as S-Axxxx and a minor King, we have a good chance for game and may set 4H only 1 trick. Note: All high level dbls are offensive. If you have a trump stack, you'll have to play it undbled. If your partner passes with a mediocre hand and no defense, then your partner needs a talking to.

AJxxx J10xxx - KQx p 1S p ? GF splinter in D (Whatever that is in your system). You want to opener devalue diam honors. Not 2H - Your hearts are too weak and partner's shortness is not a deficit. Not J2N or any other bid that does not show shortness in diam If opener has KQxxx KQx xxx Ax, you want to be in slam If opener has KQxxx xxx KQx Ax, you don't want to be in slam, you don't even want to pass 4S. The only way for opener to properly evaluate the partnership assets is if you splinter in diam. If you don't splinter on this obvious splinter hand, remove splinters from your CC as you will never use them.

Notes: 1) 1S 2D 2H 3C 3C is not 4SF. You already have a GF. 3C is natural. There is no reason to play this any other way. 2) 1S 2D 2H 2N/3N 2N = 12-14 or 18-19... With 18-19 responder will bid 4N over 3N 3N = 15-17

Agree with Chamaco Some details. After 1C 1H 2D. 2D is 1RF. Responder's bids: 2H = 5+h, weak hand. Opener can pass or rebid 2N with min reverse and few h. Any other bid by opener is GF. 2N = 4h, weak hand(probably). Opener rebids 3C with a hand that does not want to play game opposite a min response. Any other rebid except 3C by opener is a GF. Over 3C, responder can then pass or sign-off in one of opener's suits. If responder then bids something else it is a GF, with specific meaning. Any other bid by responder is a GF, including raising opener's original suit.

Let's look at some scenarios: 1. You are a young, brilliant bridge player. You play with a young, brilliant partner. But you don't have the money to play in Nationals and few Regionals. After 2 years, you have close to maxed out on your bridge playing ability. You only have 400 MP. You see players with 600-1000 MP that still don't know how to use Stayman properly. You claim the bridge MP system sucks. 2. You are a middle-aged bridge player with a middle-aged partner. You play in many Nationals and Regionals. You have slowly grown in ability with experience. After 30 years, you know how to kick the pants off most players, including those brilliant youngsters. You have 6000 MP. You think bridge MP system is perfect. 3. You are an old chess player. You love playing in tournaments and won many when you were younger. You know some openings so well, you even remember the analysis. Unfortunately, your mind is too slow now and you have watched your rating fall over the last 5 years from almost Master to Class C player. Where is the respect for your knowledge and experence? You hate the ELO chess ratings and wish chess used the bridge system of accumulated points.