jchiu

I'm bidding 6♥ confidently. Once in a while, you may even entice your right-hand opponent with a black two-suiter to bid 7♣. That I'll be happy to sit for.

Anyone who doesn't vote for "Idiotic" or "Shoot Both of Them" is being quite the results merchant. At least Csaba has the balls to admit it. 1NT: I open 1NT more than most of the advanced and expert players with whom I play, and this hardly occurred to me here. At matchpoints, this goes against Woolsey's suggestion of playing partscore deals in a fit rather than 1NT. Dbl: This treatment is rare probably because it is inferior. For me, there are two sensible ways to play this double, penalty or negative. Depending on the rest of the "partnership"'s Lebensohl structure, one use should be more useful than the other. I quite like the European treatment of direct 3N shows a stopper and double is negative throughout. 3♥: I wouldn't pull a penalty double here. However, this is clearcut if the double was interpreted as negative. 3NT: I am uncertain (say if this came up in an appeals committee) whether this pair would know whether 4m is forcing or not. Besides this, 3NT is a bit wet. 4♥: Not deserving of comment. The justification of this sounded similar how my aspiring intermediate student tried to justify the last time he went for 1100 on air. 4NT: At this point, the 3NT bid precludes a sensible interpretation of this bid. Had I walked into a BBO table where the auction started as to 4♥, I would request a redeal. Failing that, I would bid 4♠ to highlight both minors and mild slam interest. 5♣: Quite possibly the first sensible call by E/W in this auction. 6♣: Quite possibly the second sensible call by E/W in this auction. Pass: Quite possibly the third sensible call by E/W in this auction.

Bergen raises is one of few popular conventions that I will not agree to play. The primary reason is that it destroys game try sequences by using most of the room between 2M and 3M. The length of trump support does nothing to indicate the degree of fit in the remaining three suits. While the ninth trump in our hands helps the thin game come through, its effect pales in comparision to a working double fit, or a working shortness in the responder hand. To this end, I play direct single jump shifts as either fit-showing jumps or minisplinters. 1♥-3♣ = 4+♥, robust 5+♣, INV or better values (fit) 1♥-3♣ = 4+♥, 0-1♣, INV values precisely (minisplinter) Note that in either of these cases, the most balanced length is the most common alternative, and opener should assume such a shape for his rebid. The game tries that I play were originally developed by Kokish. They are dubbed help suit game asks and short suit game tries, and are intended to reveal the absence while hiding the prescence of cards in opener's hand. For example, 1♥-2♥-2♠ = asks the cheapest suit in which responder accepts a game try 2NT = accepts a spade game try 3♣ = rejects a spade game try, accepts a club game try 3♦ = rejects game tries in the blacks, accepts a diamond try 3♥ = rejects all tries (see note below) 1♥-2♥-2NT = short suit game try in spades 1♥-2♥-3m = short suit game try in the minor m 1♥-2♥-3♥ = trump game try, analogous to traditional 1♥-2♥-2NT Note that the sequence 1♥-2♥-2♠-3♥ may show a trump accept if you choose to play 2♥ as constructive, namely as a hand where there is at least one game try that you would accept. Hands that would not accept game tries are routed through the forcing notrump sequence 1♥-1NT-2m-2♥. Also observe that after responder answers the help suit game ask, opener may bid any in-between steps to make a game retrial. It may be artificial (not too dissimilar from competitive sequences where their suit is two ranks below ours), or may ask responder to consider the suit bid more closely than the unbid suit.

You're playing some flavor of Moscito, wehre 1♦ shows 4+♥, 10-14 HCP, and may be canape :P Seriously though, I had to reread this one to make sure that my anti-sleep drugs weren't playing a funny trick on me. Well, I'll go back to eating those caffeine pills like M&Ms ....

The way it was phrased, it somewhat felt like the cliche 1. What bovine animal lives on the farm? 2. What do cows drink? I immediately responded with 3♦, 3♠, and pass. Then I read the question again and said "wait, I never supported hearts". I think the only thing I'm interested in is the quality of his heart suit. If I have it agreed that 5♥ invites slam when partner holds two of the top three honors, I'll try that. Otherwise, I'll choose the low-scoring bidding poll option of 4NT.

I'm definitely late to the thread, but the topic question has one answer .... obvio :P I've played a fair amount of strong-club oriented four-card majors, and even then I overbid by putting 4♥ on the table, most of the time before waiting the required ten seconds.

Playing my favorite system Pass - 1♣ 1♥ - 1♠ 2♣ - 2♦ 3♦ - 3♠ 3NT - 4♣ 4NT - 6♠ Pass 1♣ = 16+ HCP any shape 1♥ = 8+ HCP, 2+ control points, 4+♥, may be canape 1♠ = Relay (same with 2♦) 2♣ = 4+♣, unbalanced hand 3♦ = Exactly 3=5=1=4 distribution 3NT = Two control points, now shows that ♥A is the control 4♣ = Denial cuebidding ask 4NT = Something in ♥, ♣, ♠, no second ♥ card 6♠ = Knows the hand as Qxx Axxxx x Qxxx

Yes. I still haven't touched the name and email fields :angry:

I think they purged the record, or the hard drive crashed. As you mentioned, I can only retrieve records back to February 19. A shame since I bet someone on total net IMPs for February and this will bail him out for a case of beer :-(

Unless your LHO is full of testosterone and under the age of 20, I think he means it when he sends it back with the blue card. I would not have doubled, but if this auction comes back to me, looking at my 1.5 defensive tricks, I would certainly pull to 5♥. Barring a semi-obvious trump lead, that's a game for the good guys.

A conversation I had with one of my regulars follows. Highlight for spoilers. Matt: Well that one is a bit complicated. I'm going to start DA, D ruff, S to the Q, ruff D high, spade Jason: Spades break. Matt: Both have followed to 3 rounds of diamonds? Jason: Yes. Matt: I'm down to: 9 A62 J AQ8 K Q94 --- K1062 Matt: ... and there's a spade outstanding. Jason: yes Matt: ... and I haven't seen a diamond honor yet? Jason: Nope. Matt: Ok I'm going to ruff my last diamond and play a club to the A and draw the last trump. What I have learned? Jason: LHO has three spades, diamonds are 4-4, and RHO pitches an encouraging heart on the spade. What did you pitch from hand? Matt: A heart. So the ending is: --- A62 --- Q8 --- Q9 --- K106 Jason: indeed Matt: This is such a table feel hand. Let me think of the technical aspects though. I'll play a small heart to the Q in hand. Jason: LHO wins the heart K and plays another heart. Matt: Okay I win the A. Lay down the club Q. Jason: No news. Matt: ... and finesse if righty plays low, since righty was forced to guard the clubs. Jason: I threw you a red herring by throwing an encouraging H. Matt: Yeah, but it's not so much that. Jason: Alternately, you could first finesse clubs. If it loses, LHO is endplayed if you believe his original huddle. Matt: Yeah, the problem with my line is if Ds are 5-3, I have fewer options in the heart suit. But I learned an awful lot about the hand. Jason: Indeed, but it probably boils down to guessing clubs.

Playing the last board of a long and close match at the national championships, you pick up [hv=d=n&v=b&s=skj1075hq94d7ck1062]133|100|[/hv] Your partner opens 1♣, strong and artificial (16+ HCP usually, says nothing about clubs). You respond 1♠, showing a positive response (8+HCP usually, two controls, 4+♠). Your partner rebids 1NT showing 19-21 HCP. You bid a natural 2♣, which excites partner to jump to 3♠. This bid shows at least three of the top four honors in your suits, and sets spades as trumps. You cuebid 4♣, optimisitcally, after which partner checks for keycards and signs off in 6♠. LHO takes quite a pause to consider his lead, and eventually emerges with the ♦6 (3/5 from length) as your heart races in anticipation. [hv=d=n&v=b&n=saq9ha62daj83caq8&w=shdc&e=shdc&s=skj1075hq94d7ck1062]399|300|[/hv] It's certainly not cold, but has its chances. The other table is playing a standard five-card majors system, so it seems to rests on your play. Will you come through for your team?

Full hand was something like [hv=d=w&v=n&n=saxxhxxxxdqxxcqjx&w=s109xxhkjxxd10xxc10x&e=skqjxxxhdakxckxxx&s=shaq109xdj9xxca98x]399|300|Only a non-jack diamond lead beats the hand.[/hv] There is always next year.

Two-part question: What would you lead if partner passed throughout? The revised auction is Pass Pass 1♠ 2♥ 2♠ Pass 4♠ All Pass

5♠. I'm bidding one more for the road here. Opposite a standard 4♠ bid, partner rates to have diamond shortness. Opposite a Precision 4♠ bid, partner can also compensate with values.

No. It is partially a question of methods. If you play one-way new minor forcing, then partner should jump to 3♠ with a maximum weak notrump and three-card support. This nuance of new minor forcing is very important. Discuss it with your regular partners. Also, you may choose to adopt 2-way NMF. Here, 2♣ puppets 2♦ and is used with invitational hands after 1Suit-1Other-1N. And opener responds to the game-forcing 2♦ as before. This method loses the possibility to play in 2♦, but removes doubt as to the forcing-ness of a subsequent bid.

[hv=d=w&v=n&s=skxhdakq7xxckqxxx]133|100|Scoring: BAM 2♥ Pass Pass ??[/hv]

that my hand (South) was more distributional ... [hv=d=s&v=n&n=shakqj105daq109752c&w=shdc&e=shdc&s=sakqj93hd4caqj1086]399|300|1♠ - 2♥ 3♣ - 3♦ 4♣ - 4♦ 6♣ - 6♦ 6♠ - Pass[/hv]

It's the last board of a long and happy tournament. You are playing a 20 VP swiss teams event with a competent partner, and your teammates are an internationalist and his client. Though you do not yet know it, this lead means the difference between placing in the overalls three times in succession, or missing the leaderboard by one victory point. [hv=d=w&v=n&s=shaq1094dj976ca982]133|100|Scoring: IMP The auction: Pass Pass 1♠ 2♥ 2♠ 3♥ 4♠ All Pass[/hv]

Nice lead dude. Phil beat me to the punch that in retrospect I think the ♦10 is most useful for its added psychological or deceptive value. I can hardly think of a case where it is sure to deceive me from rising when necessary and returning a diamond from holdings like ♦ K9x(+).

Insta pass. I have already told my story.

5♦. Bid game first, ask questions later (c.f. 'shoot first, ask questions later'). I have rarely been able to appreciate the ♠ honor, nothing wasted in ♥, and a few small diamonds when partner bids 4♦ on this sequence. So I will refrain from putting pressure on partner to do so only when it's right. I think a 4♦ bid can be made on as little as ♠ xx ♥ x ♦ AQJ98xx ♣ AQ10 I am a big fan of bidding 3NT without proper stoppers in several situations, but this is certainly not one of them. Although the diamond suit rates to come in for seven tricks opposite a singleton most of the time, partner will also misdjudge if they choose to sacrifice in 4♥. It only wins when they leave you in 3NT and partner provides an adequate stopper in dummy.

I usually play the double in this sequence as "competitive", usually showing a non-minimum hand with no other useful alternative bid. After the competitive double, limit bidding principles apply. So I agree with 3♥, since most other bids show weaker hands. The rest of the auction looks fine.

I will be in Saint Louis for the entire tournament. In theory, I am booked for the entire event, but could be convinced to play a midnight game with other BBF members. Does anyone know of good restaurants in the downtown area?

I rarely see you downgrade hands :unsure: