goobers

Lol.

Okay, I don't know what's going on here. If I understand correctly, the C7 in UDCA is showing an odd number of cards in the suit, right? So he must have 5 (?) for his negative double, making him 5-5 in the minors? That's impossible, since declarer showed 2 clubs. I don't know what partner is up to, so I'm just gonna lead a heart and try to give him a ruff. Presumably, he has a trump left and was 2=2=5=4. But then why didn't declarer just pull 2 rounds of trump? *boggles* I don't know. (His negative double shows both minors, right?)

I mean, if there are no other clues, then it looks like a second finesse will work 75% of the time, giving you 9 tricks for your 3NT. So you have a 75% chance of making this.

Just a little nitpick. The auction is standard, not 2/1. Agree though, certainly can't let them play 2H.

What are your requirements for competing one level higher when fighting opps for a partscore contract? For example, you hold ♠QJTx ♥Jxx ♦Tx ♣Jxxx Partner opens 1S, RHO overcalls 2D, you bid 2S, LHO competes to 3D. Partner passes, and it's back to you. Should you push on with your extra trump (LOTT)? There's no diamond shortness, so we might have 2 diamond losers, and your first raise was very thin in the first place. What if you had only 3 trumps, still a doubleton diamond, but the top of your minimum raise? Do you compete then? What about with a singleton diamond but only 3 trumps? Oh, matchpoint scoring.

Echognome's right, I asked this question in the wrong way. There was no doubt that the lady thought 2C was the best description of her hand, and I knew something was obviously wrong with the bidding. In either case, thanks for all the responses.

Nice, sounds like politics. Thanks for the (non-definitive) answers. I certainly will never open a 1 suiter with no strength outside as a 2C, but at least now I know the (lack of) stance that the ACBL takes on it.

Well, to be more specific, the example that I had read looked like this: Say you held xx x AKQxxxxxx x I'm sure we all agree this is a some number of diamonds opening. I had read that opening 2C with this kind of hand is illegal.

I was playing at a newcomer club game last night, and one lady opened first seat 2C, holding: AKxxxxx xx KQx x (She may have had some decent spade spots, I can't remember, but it doesn't really affect the issue one way or the other.) Her rationale was that her hand was so good that she didn't want her partner to pass. Now certainly this hand is not a 2C opener. My question is: is this legal? Of course, I wasn't about to make a fuss over this and ruin the mood, but is opening like this okay in a higher level game? Can an opener psyche a long strong suit as 2C instead of just preempting it (or in this case, just opening 1S)? I vaguely remember reading something that said the ACBL forbid strong artificial opening psyches.

Ohhhhh. I imagined the falsecard would imply that East held a singleton, in which case declarer will always lose one trick in the suit if that were the actual layout. I didn't consider that the T or 9 might be from T9 tight, giving declarer the choice to try to pin your remaining honor. Thanks!

I don't get this one :huh: Can somebody explain?

This is a good thread. I would like to see it continued, as long as the positions aren't too complicated!

Oh right, I see it now. Haha, it took me a while to figure out how to read it. Sorry for my bad post.

You don't have a sure heart loser if you cash ♥K first, right? I think cashing the ♥K first is the safety play to guard against West having J10xx. If East has J10xx or either hand has J109x, then it's hopeless. Still, even if you cash the ♥K first and see the ♥J drop, does restricted choice apply? This slam is impossible if you misguess trumps. They'll always get a spade and a heart.

I am beginner/intermediate, and I will prove it by my play! Okay, LHO made a takeout double of spades, so he must have support for every unbid suit. He was willing to bid 3♥, so he must have QUITE a hand. In addition, he made a penalty double of 5♦, so I'm going to go ahead and place West with ♥AKQ, ♣A, and at least the ♦K, probably with 4 diamonds. I'm going to lead the ♦Q from my hand and hope to pin East's singleton J or 9. *anxiously awaits better answers* Edit: If West has ♣Axx, then there is no entry into the dummy to enjoy your club tricks. But if West does indeed have Axx, then what did he double, then bid, on? Surely 3♥ shows a self-sufficient heart suit, so he's probably got 6... I can't imagine bidding 3♥ here with a 5 card suit, but somebody please correct me if I'm wrong. Also, I can't imagine a double without a 4 card diamond suit (I'm assuming that West will not double on a void, or something sneaky like that). So this leaves West with 6 hearts, 4 diamonds, 2 or 3 clubs, and a stiff spade (or void). If he's got a stiff spade, then he's only got Ax in clubs, so you will always be able to run the club suit. If he's got Axx in clubs, then a holdup will inhibit you from reaching dummy... but I guess you can enter dummy in the second round of clubs (if east doesn't rise with his ace), pull the last trump, and hook the spade? I don't know.

Sorry. I mean when you're at 4H because you have the values for game, so a forcing pass would apply... or something like that. I'm just picturing a standard 1H opener, nothing like a 2C open or a strong NT open.

Let's say you and partner have found 4H, and the opps sacrifice in 4S. Partner makes a double. Under what conditions, if any, should you pull? Should a lack of defensive values be a concern?

I love this post. I'm FAR from an expert, but I do strive to get better, and obsess over the hand as you do, EricK. Your last post about remembering things in the middle of the hand brings up an analogy for me. When I meet new people, I need to make an effort every time to remember their names. No, it does not get easier with time, and it's not as if I can get better at it with practice. If I successfully meet and remember one person a week, it does not mean that the 8th will be any easier. So I have to make an effort. I shake their hands, I look them in the face very consciously, and I always repeat their name 2 or 3 times as I'm shaking their hands. I think bridge is the same way. For the longest time, I could not remember opening leads (either my pard's or defensive). Was the lead small? 4th best? Top of nothing? In my opinion, you have to find a method that works for you. Now, before I play a single card, and after thinking about the hand, I commit to memory what the opening lead is or what it revealed, just like how I repeat somebody's name a few times when I first meet them. This is a conscious effort every time; it does not get easier for me to remember opening leads just naturally, but the more I practice this method, the less likely I am to forget to remember what card was led, or what signal was given, or which opp showed out, etc. If you find a method that works for yourself, and then make it a habit, I think you'll be able to handle things like this.

I haven't had a chance to read all the responses, but thanks for all the feedback. Just to give some closure, this is what partner held: [hv=s=sqxxxhakq10xxxdxcx]133|100|[/hv]

Why does 4♣ not suggest a control :( Sorry, finding somewhat delicate slams like these are very difficult for me. Thanks for all responses.

Is this a common agreement? I was always under the impression that a voluntary 5 of a major inquired about trump suit quality. And yeah, crap, I should've bid 3♠... oh well, live and learn.

[hv=d=s&v=n&s=sakhjxxdakq109xcqj]133|100|Scoring: IMP[/hv] Holding this, I opened 1♦. It was a tossup between 2NT and 1♦ for me... any input would be appreciated, but this is a side point. LHO overcalls 3♣, partner bids 3♥, and I didn't know how to look for slam at this point, so I suffered over it for a while and then just bid 4♥. What would you bid? Edit: In retrospect, I could've blackwooded, and if partner shows the remaining controls, I can bid the slam with confidence. If I had tried this at the table though, the response would've just been 2 keycards, so that club control is still in the air. In fact, the response would've been 5♠, so we could be committed to the slam even if we were off the club control.