Halo

3C Minors extra values.

Apologies for being so slow to respond. I just want to check we are not building castles on sand. It is the final board of the Bermuda Bowl stardate xyz. $1,000,000,000 rests on the outcome. dburn needs four tricks from our suit combination to win the money. RHO (playing after QJ9x) is, by significant agreement, the best card player in the world. He also works at the game and has read everything dburn has ever said in public. RHO is on record as saying he prefers table feel to other peoples's strategies. dburn plays the Queen from 'dummy'. RHO covers with the King. dburn advance an x and LHO follows x. Drop or finesse for $100,000,000. Does dburn have an edge here?

Auction is 'very high expectation it's not finished'. Opener's double shows the top heart or top of range - so if AQxxx is within agreements it's a double for me.

You certainly added yourself to a list of prime suspects. You are not obliged to do anything in particular - but you better have an exceptionally convincing story ready.

Double Let's add some chances when opener bids 3H, or partner doesn't have 4S. Not affected by scoring.

4D It's what I'd do. Can I ignore the fact that I have a very distributional hand.

OK If you know the player (and therefore his strategy) you are clearly correct.

Does this even work a priori Stephen - against anyone whose eyes are half closed and they cannot see whether they have Kx or K10?

This is very much a bidding forum. So I will ask dburn - why play the Jack on the way back round when the Queen is covered? I can see no reason to do that.

3S

1 Finesse against the ten 2 Play the Jack.

This is very difficult because we have a strong player on our left who was probably able to visualise our hand exactly after trick two (except maybe the club ten). So I don't think I can read much into anything, and I'll just play for the drop.

I opted for 2C because that's what my hand looks like. It would be really convenient if double showed a hand this extreme, but it doesn't for me. Like others I will bid 3H over 2S. If I had been given the problem as what do you bid over 3S when partner passes 2C, I suspect I would pass.

I liked 3H, and 4D, and 4H. Why can't East bid 5D. Seems to emphasise the concentration of values and black suit losers. Is the five level so dangerous.

Q♦ I think that we will take it off because of partner's long diamonds.

What did we do over pass (the only imaginable bid).

I'd make them correct the bid. Otherwise, I'm going to have an agreement about this, no thanks.

Yes we are all agree, but I assumed that the poster wanted the best line before you see the oppos cards - maybe I was wrong.

It's a little difficult looking at the full layout. But... if I play off three rounds of diamonds and a heart, I guess West will throw three clubs. I could now play to make Jack of hearts and squeeze East in the minors, but if West wins the queen of hearts he can play a club. If East led a top diamond, I could play for him to have three hearts to the queen and throw him in. If he led a small diamond he could exit in diamonds. I could just play to make the Jack of hearts and find spades breaking. Or of course I can play East for 2254, cashing spade KQ, second top heart and Queen of diamonds, exiting with another diamond. East leads into North's spade, heart, club AQ. I'm going to argue that playing for 2254 is best, because the opening lead suggests majors wont break, and I make wherever the King of clubs is.

5NT I wouldn't bid 6C without first round control. I'll await someone telling why they couldn't possibly play with anyone who bids that way.

I think I would bid 5D, in fact I know I would. We all have our limitations.

why not? How does 1♦ deny a spade suit? Surely, with say AKQx x AKxx Qxxx his correct call over 1♥ is double, and surely his best call over 1N is a gf 2♥? I am with jdonn on this one, altho I would be bidding 3♦ either with better diamonds or without the heart 10. Must be a difference of style. Apart from a one time French partner, I have never played with anyone who would double rather than immediately cue bid on the hand you have given. I don't know where Jdonn is on this one. Why does it matter?

I agree with Fred. Traditionally restricted choice refers to cases that can also be solved with probability/vacant spaces. If your argument is based on what a class of players will mostly do, in solving a Bridge problem, the results may be similar to restricted choice, but only incidentally.

I'd have to let you know the names I play under, because to me it is obvious my auction is clubs and encouraging but not forcing beyond 5C. What do you do with very strong hands, six hearts and four clubs. Why do you think partner, forced to bid has cooperated in a heart slam.

3NT For me, partner doubled, so doesn't have a GF/slam invite diamond fit. Now he bids 2H, so he is GF (for better or worse). With my rubbish diamonds and rubbish spades, I'm bidding 3NT. If 6C is the best contract, we can have a chat later about my lack of subtlety.