pilowsky

[hv=https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?bbo=y&lin=ZZ%7C%7Cpn%7Cpilowsky%2CRobot%2CRobot%2CRobot%7Cst%7C%7Cmd%7C3SAK973HJTDA864C73%2CSJT6H54DQ2CAKJ962%2CS42HK9632DJT53CQ8%2CSQ85HAQ87DK97CT54%7Csv%7C0%7Cah%7CBoard%201%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C1S%7Can%7C4%2B%21S%3B%20HCP%2011-20%3B%20natural%7Cmb%7C2C%7Can%7C5%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%209-17%3B%20natural%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C2S%21%7Can%7CHCP%2010-11%3B%20cue-bid%2C%20strong%2C%20or%20no%20natural%20bid%20available%20-%20Forcing%7Cmb%7CD%21%7Can%7C6%2B%21S%3B%20HCP%2012-20%3B%206%20good%20suit%20in%20%21S%20-%20Non%20forcing%7Cmb%7C3C%7Can%7C6%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%2010-11%3B%20natural%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C4C%7Can%7CHCP%2011%3B%20to%20play%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C4N%21%7Can%7C6%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%2010-11%3B%20Blackwood%20in%20%21C%2C%20asks%20how%20many%20Aces%20-%20Forcing%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C5D%21%7Can%7C2%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%2011%3B%201%20Ace%28s%29%20-%20Forcing%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C6C%7Can%7C6%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%2010-11%3B%20to%20play%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CD%7Can%7C6%2B%21S%3B%20HCP%2012-17%3B%20penalty%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cpc%7CS4%7Cpc%7CS5%7Cpc%7CSK%7Cpc%7CS6%7Cpc%7CDA%7Cpc%7CD2%7Cpc%7CD5%7Cpc%7CD7%7Cpc%7CSA%7Cpc%7CST%7Cpc%7CS2%7Cpc%7CS8%7Cpc%7CS3%7Cpc%7CSJ%7Cpc%7CC8%7Cpc%7CSQ%7Cpc%7CCQ%7Cpc%7CC4%7Cpc%7CC3%7Cpc%7CCK%7Cpc%7CC2%7Cpc%7CH2%7Cpc%7CCT%7Cpc%7CC7%7Cpc%7CC5%7Cpc%7CS7%7Cpc%7CC6%7Cpc%7CH3%7Cpc%7CC9%7Cpc%7CH6%7Cpc%7CH7%7Cpc%7CS9%7Cpc%7CCJ%7Cpc%7CD3%7Cpc%7CH8%7Cpc%7CD4%7Cpc%7CCA%7Cpc%7CDJ%7Cpc%7CHQ%7Cpc%7CD6%7Cpc%7CDQ%7Cpc%7CDT%7Cpc%7CD9%7Cpc%7CD8%7Cpc%7CH4%7Cpc%7CH9%7Cpc%7CHA%7Cpc%7CHT%7Cpc%7CDK%7Cpc%7CHJ%7Cpc%7CH5%7Cpc%7CHK%7C]400|300| In a death-defying display of bidding gymnastics Argine attempts to make 6♣. [/hv] [hv=https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?bbo=y&lin=pn%7CSouth%2CRobot%2CRobot%2CRobot%7Cst%7C%7Cmd%7C3SAK973HJTDA864C73%2CSJT6H54DQ2CAKJ962%2CS42HK9632DJT53CQ8%2CSQ85HAQ87DK97CT54%7Csv%7C0%7Cah%7CBoard%201%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C1S%7Can%7C4%2B%21S%3B%20HCP%2011-20%3B%20natural%7Cmb%7C2C%7Can%7C5%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%209-17%3B%20natural%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C2S%21%7Can%7CHCP%2010-11%3B%20cue-bid%2C%20strong%2C%20or%20no%20natural%20bid%20available%20-%20Forcing%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C3C%7Can%7C5%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%209-12%3B%20minimum%7Cmb%7CP%7Can%7CHCP%206-%3B%20minimum%7Cmb%7C4C%7Can%7CHCP%2011%3B%20to%20play%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C4N%21%7Can%7C5%2B%21C%3B%20HCP%2012%3B%20quantitative%20invitation%20to%20slam%20-%20Non%20forcing%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Can%7CHCP%2011%3B%20minimum%7Cmb%7CP%7Cpc%7CS4%7Cpc%7CS8%7Cpc%7CSK%7Cpc%7CS6%7Cpc%7CSA%7Cpc%7CST%7Cpc%7CS2%7Cpc%7CS5%7Cpc%7CS7%7Cpc%7CSJ%7Cpc%7CD5%7Cpc%7CSQ%7Cpc%7CC4%7Cpc%7CC7%7Cpc%7CCK%7Cpc%7CCQ%7Cpc%7CC2%7Cpc%7CC8%7Cpc%7CCT%7Cpc%7CC3%7Cpc%7CC5%7Cpc%7CD4%7Cpc%7CCA%7Cpc%7CH2%7Cpc%7CC6%7Cpc%7CD3%7Cpc%7CH7%7Cpc%7CD6%7Cpc%7CC9%7Cpc%7CH3%7Cpc%7CH8%7Cpc%7CD8%7Cpc%7CCJ%7Cpc%7CH6%7Cpc%7CD7%7Cpc%7CHJ%7Cpc%7CH4%7Cpc%7CH9%7Cpc%7CHA%7Cpc%7CHT%7Cpc%7CHQ%7Cpc%7CS3%7Cpc%7CH5%7Cpc%7CHK%7Cpc%7CDJ%7Cpc%7CD9%7Cpc%7CDA%7Cpc%7CDQ%7Cpc%7CS9%7Cpc%7CD2%7Cpc%7CDT%7Cpc%7CDK%7C]400|300| Interestingly if South decides not to double the 2♠ bid from East, the 4NT (Standard Blackwood Ace asking) is passed out.[/hv]

I've had the robots use GS on at least two occasions. But it comes up very rarely - <= 8hcp and 4441.

Possibly the problem posed by the possum doesn't relate to variance associated with dealing the cards (an issue 'dealt' with many times here). Suppose you sit down in an average tournament with an average partner on an average day. What is it in Bridge that causes such enormous variance that, say compared to chess or go or football, the pair that is known to be excellent doesn't necessarily defeat a weak pair? Clearly, many factors are in play. Tiredness of a person could be major source of variance. Unexpected gifts another. As noted above randomness doesn't mean blandness. So one pair could get lucky and find a sequence of deals that particularly suit their style. In this way Bridge seems to have many more non-skill uncontrollable elements than many other games. One advantage (there are quite a few) of the robot game is that many of these sources of variance are stabilised.

[hv=https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?bbo=y&lin=ZZ%7C%7Cpn%7Cpilowsky%2CRobot%2CRobot%2CRobot%7Cst%7C%7Cmd%7C1S7632HAK95DT9CAJT%2CS54HQT87DKQ7652C6%2CSJ8HJ6DAJ83CQ9875%2CSAKQT9H432D4CK432%7Csv%7CB%7Cah%7CBoard%207%7Cmb%7C1N%7Can%7Cnotrump%20opener.%20Could%20have%205M.%20--%202-5%20%21C%3B%202-5%20%21D%3B%202-5%20%21H%3B%202-5%20%21S%3B%2015-17%20HCP%3B%2018-%20total%20points%7Cmb%7C2C%21%7Can%7CCappelletti%20-%20single%20suited%20--%2014-%20HCP%3B%2010%2B%20total%20points%7Cmb%7CD%7Can%7CStayman%20--%20%20%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C2H%7Can%7C2-5%20%21C%3B%202-5%20%21D%3B%204-5%20%21H%3B%202-4%20%21S%3B%2015-17%20HCP%3B%2018-%20total%20points%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C2N%7Can%7CInvite%20to%203NT%2C%20no%204-card%20major%20--%203-%20%21H%3B%203-%20%21S%3B%209%20HCP%7Cmb%7C3H%7Can%7C14%2B%20HCP%3B%2015%2B%20total%20points%3B%20forcing%20to%203N%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C4D%7Can%7C14-%20HCP%3B%2010%2B%20total%20points%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C4S%7Can%7C4%2B%20%21S%3B%2014%2B%20HCP%3B%2015%2B%20total%20points%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7C5D%7Can%7C14-%20HCP%3B%20biddable%20%21D%3B%2010%2B%20total%20points%7Cmb%7CD%7Can%7C3-%20%21H%3B%203-%20%21S%3B%209-%20HCP%3B%2011%2B%20total%20points%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cmb%7CP%7Cpc%7CHJ%7Cpc%7CH2%7Cpc%7CHA%7Cpc%7CH8%7Cpc%7CHK%7Cpc%7CH7%7Cpc%7CH6%7Cpc%7CH3%7Cpc%7CCA%7Cpc%7CC6%7Cpc%7CC7%7Cpc%7CC2%7Cpc%7CH9%7Cpc%7CHQ%7Cpc%7CD8%7Cpc%7CH4%7Cpc%7CC9%7Cpc%7CC3%7Cpc%7CCJ%7Cpc%7CD6%7Cpc%7CDK%7Cpc%7CDA%7Cpc%7CD4%7Cpc%7CD9%7Cpc%7CC8%7Cpc%7CC4%7Cpc%7CCT%7Cpc%7CD7%7Cpc%7CDQ%7Cpc%7CD3%7Cpc%7CS9%7Cpc%7CDT%7Cpc%7CD5%7Cpc%7CDJ%7Cpc%7CST%7Cpc%7CH5%7Cpc%7CSJ%7Cpc%7CSA%7Cpc%7CS2%7Cpc%7CS5%7Cpc%7CCK%7Cpc%7CS3%7Cpc%7CS4%7Cpc%7CCQ%7Cpc%7CSK%7Cpc%7CS6%7Cpc%7CD2%7Cpc%7CS8%7Cpc%7CHT%7Cpc%7CC5%7Cpc%7CSQ%7Cpc%7CS7%7C]400|300| For 1100. The second best score was 300[/hv]

Bears an uncanny similarity to the hand posted on BBO (BBO Vugraph - Australian Summer Festival 2) where Helena Dawson (West) opened 1♥ with: ♠T ♥AQJ984 ♦AKJ764 ♣- Now that was a scientific auction.

Things were a little tense between the USA and Russia (USSR) a few years back. .It's hard to imagine how the call would go between Trump and Putin ... it's great to be fine.

If your partner had bid 1♠, how would that affect the bidding and final contract?

OK - now I get it. Argine knows that the bid of 3♣ means that I have 7+♣ but it was concerned that I might have forgotten the system. So it pulled the 3♥ bid out just in case? Verschlimmbesserung.

Argine expresses a preference: [hv=pc=n&s=sahq94dq65ckj9753&d=e&v=n&b=2&a=1s3c(7+!C;HCP5-11;pre-emptive)p3h(1%2B!H%3B%20HCP%2011-%3B%20preference%20for%20this%20suit)ppp]400|300| What was it that North had that led it to prefer hearts?[/hv]

What kind of North hand would bid 2♥?

[hv=pc=n&s=s63hk3dkj762caq83&n=sj2haj9654d43c954&d=e&v=n&b=2&a=p1d1s]266|200| This comes from todays Daylong No. 1 - MP's. Best hand South. Quite a few people had a bad result after opening 1♦ with this hand. What did the North Robot bid? What would you bid?[/hv] Sample movie

In the Trump-world it's no longer possible to tell. Back in the '70's Truman Capote and Hunter S Thompson popularised "New Journalism" where the tools of the novel were used to describe actual events. In the post-truth world, where everyone has their own truth, fiction is no longer necessary.

The 50th anniversary release of Dark side of the moon features a rainbow. The problem is related to the well-known dangers of rainbows. My understanding is that because rainbows are known to cause homosexuality Gov. DeSantis has ordered an emergency child protection order to prevent the display of dangerous colo(u)r schemes. In addition, because of the risk of accidental exposure during rain when the sun is shining, Floridians are no longer permitted to go outside when it rains - except after dark.

Timely!

Interesting Can you provide a reference/link? The two statements seem contradictory.

Strange is truther than fiction. Opp. sitting West a couple of years back told me he once wrote a report for the US govt that was promptly classified above the level that he was allowed to look at. Monty Python and the deadly joke.

This is getting stranger and stranger. 1. Exactly how litigious is the USA? - everyone appears to have a squadron of lawyers wandering around their homes. 2. Are they provided by the government? 3. Do they drink prosecco and eat prosciutto? 4. What happens if they stay in the bathroom too long? 5. Is it possible for the FBI to run out of special prosecutors? 6. How many documents does the US government classify every day?

Is it illegal to open 1NT with a void in NZ? - The NZ Bridge site refers to the WBF (2017) for its rules, not the ACBL. It's fine in Australia. When you say "well-known for..." doesn't this mean that you (and possibly opps partner) have a complete understanding of their agreements. It may be discombobulating but so are multi-2's, Precision and Acol. Why is an off-shape 1NT any different to a Precision 1♣ in this context (by which I mean you have a reasonable understanding of what the hand may contain). It's just a bid.

Mr Pearson suggests 1♠. For me it would depend a lot on my partner, the opps and the match situation.

Clockwise or counterclockwise?

[hv=lin=st||pn|~~v3fakebot,~~v3fakebot,pilowsky,~~v3fakebot|md|3SKQHQJ643DAQJTCJ4,SJ98732H8D965C632,SA4HAK972D73CKT85,ST65HT5DK842CAQ97|sv|o|rh||ah|Board%201|mb|1H|an|4+!H;%20HCP%2011-20;%20natural|mb|P|mb|2N!|an|4+!H;%20HCP%2010+;%20fit%20and%20forcing%20to%20game%20-%20Forcing|mb|P|mb|3N|an|2-4!C;%202-4!D;%204!H;%202+!S;%20HCP%2015-17;%20balanced|mb|P|mb|4D!|an|4+!H;%20HCP%2015+;%20control%20in%20!D%20-%20Forcing|mb|P|mb|6H|an|2-4!C;%202-4!D;%204!H;%202+!S;%20HCP%2015-17;%20to%20play|mb|P|mb|P|mb|P|pc|S5|pc|SK|pc|S7|pc|S4|pc|HQ|pc|H8|pc|H2|pc|H5|pc|H3|pc|S2|pc|HA|pc|HT|pc|D7|pc|D4|pc|DT|pc|D5|pc|SQ|pc|S3|pc|SA|pc|S6|pc|D3|pc|D2|pc|DJ|pc|D6|pc|DA|pc|D9|pc|C5|pc|D8|pc|CJ|pc|C2|pc|CK|pc|CA|pc|CQ|pc|C4|pc|C3|pc|C8|pc|C7|pc|DQ|pc|C6|pc|CT|mc|11|]400|300| I'm told that Acol comes in several flavours. Do any of them have slam bidding approaches that are just a tiny bit more sensitive?[/hv]

David Crosby.

I've stopped almost entirely except for one game a week to get rid of the annoying advertising bar. BBO is turning a bit of cheap fun into a subscription service. In the end playing with robots is good practice and a useful learning experience - but at nearly 10c a board it starts to feel like I'm putting money into a slot machine with no possibility of a return.

You do realise that when you make a post here, anyone can look up the hands played by you and your partner and form their own judgement about quality of bidding and play?

I interpret that to mean that after you bid 3NT the bots are going to take a lot of club tricks.