wyman

Very sorry for the omission -- this is MPs.

3H showed "not a superaccept." It did not imply 3H, and if my understanding is correct, 4N should show exactly 2 hearts and 3 diamonds

When earlier? In the system we're playing: 3S after 3D is a superaccept [should it be something else?] 4S after 4D is a cuebid

2N - 3D (--> ♥) 3H - 4D 4N - 5D 5S 2N 20-21 4N to play (does anyone think it's not?). Does 5S exist here? edit: This is MP. I didn't add this edit until after the first 2 replies.

I see what you mean... :P

opps came into our game force vulnerable. I'm sitting under LHO's spades with QJx and soft values. No way I'm axing this. 2N looks about right as long as it's natural.

Certainly it requires taking a bit of a view, but 1H-1N 3D seems like a start that could get one to grand. My feeble attempt: 1H-1N (f) 3D-4D 4H (my j/s could be 3 cards, and I have a good 6+ heart suit I want to play in) - 5D (cue, though I could be convinced otherwise, in which case you might have to RKC here and puke a little) Hmm, he has nothing in the blacks to cue, so he must have A of hearts here. If he has like KQJxx of diamonds, we're near cold for 7N, and even KQxxx of diamonds is good. Whatever grand try west makes, confirming the keycards, east can go ahead and bid 7 here. East can count 2 black aces, 6+hearts if those break ok or p has the spots, and 5 diamonds if those break ok or if p has the spots. 5N-7N I think 5N is like "nothing else to cue, but we've got everything and I want to put the ball back in your court." Too ambitious?

Can you elaborate?

[hv=pc=n&s=skj86h74da54cak73&d=s&v=e&b=3&a=1n2d(%21d)p2h(%21h)]133|200[/hv] All doubles takeout. Are we inviting P into the discussion here, or just letting the opps go?

Playing strong Walsh, which if any calls at the 1-level have to be alerted in ACBL-land?

This is a good point and something I'll discuss with my regular P. I would think 4S is to play so I'm not sure we've ever discussed the difference between 4H-->4S and 4S direct. I would think undiscussed 4m would be slammish in m, but a leaping Michael's-ish structure might make a heck of a lot of sense. Thanks for the suggestions. Now, do you guys do the same sort of thing over known 2-suited overcalls (e.g., 2H = H+S, or 2H = H+C)? We play an unusual/unusual type thing at the 3-level, but again the 4-level is pretty wide open.

Sorry. My point is that if you play 4m as a cue in spades, opener gets jammed into 4S with a lot of hands (pretty much all where he can't bid 3N, in fact), after which you'll have a hard time finding 6D when it's right.

No, I meant if 4♣ is a spade cue, then it seems impossible for you (responder, holding the given hand) to show your second suit, except over 3N.

[hv=pc=n&s=sa8haj83daj5cq543&d=s&v=n&b=15&a=1n(15-17)p3s(1%3D3%3D%5B54%5D%20slammish)d]133|200[/hv] Q1: After a normal splinter in a suit, we play that XX shows a first round control. Since we don't have a suit, is XX here typically to play? Also, what is pass? Q2: Here we have a pretty easy 4C call. What to do with 3-3 or 4-4 in the minors and a control rich hand that wants to cooperate? that doesn't want to cooperate?

[hv=pc=n&s=sa9854hat4daqj93c&d=n&v=b&b=13&a=1n(15-17)2h(natural)]133|200[/hv] Agreements: All X's negative. Lebensohl direct denies. Frequent upgrades to 1N, including many 14s with a 5+ card suit or with spot cards and including a number of 6322 hands. Q1: Is 3S the only call you consider? Q2: Is a new suit by opener natural over 3S? Q2a: If not, what's opener do with a 2326 hand? And how will you ever show diamonds (certainly we may have a 9 card diamond fit)? Q2b: In either case, what's your call with, say: xx/Jxx/AQxx/AKJx? Q3: What's your call after 1N (2H) 3S (P); 4S (P) ?

i definitely balance with a X at MP. Limited downside white on red, and the upside is pretty good. Hell, even -100 in 3X might be a fine score for us.

lol This info is pretty useless anyway unless you can normalize by opps and seriousness. If my partner and I play against JLall 90% of the time, our IMP scores are going to be decidely poorer than if we only play against BBO randoms. Or if we were testing a new system or methods just to see the effects. Also, from many (most?) of the late-night games I've played in, there seems to be some drankin' !! I don't think I'd want to hold those boards against anyone (or, conversely, reward the opps). edit: not to mention lol @ scoring across the bbo field

http://i.imgur.com/tSa3B.gif

In a double fit situation, it's often better to play in the less disparate (say 5-3) fit to take advantage of pitches from the more disparate (say, 6-2). The moral of the story, however, is that most people will agree that 9-card trump fits tend to play better than 8-card fits. One reason you might imagine is that 8-card fits are more susceptible to bad breaks. When a side suit breaks badly, you can often take advantage of other chances (ruffing out a loser to establish the suit, for example), but a bad trump break is worse.

BW suggests that puppets are a subset of transfers, and the words may be used interchangeably when the bid is in fact a puppet. Lebensohl, as in over interference over 1N is a puppet. Lebensohl, as over a reverse, is a marionette. It requests that opener bid 3C, but opener, with suitable hands, may deviate. http://www.bridgewor...y&f=glossa.html [i agree that most of these words have meanings that are understood throughout the community, especially at low levels, and in the interest of full disclosure, one should really explain bids more fully. I'm just nitting it up about the actual definitions.]

"It's fine to have one. It's fine to be proud of it. But please don't wave it around in public, and please don't stick it down my children's throats."

But where are declarer's tricks?? Certainly declarer has at most 3 trumps and likely 0 other entries.

I'm just sort of flabbergasted at this defense. We led clubs to tap dummy, I guess? Then played some spades and shifted to a trump? I'm leading a heart at trick 1, and I don't consider it that close. And after I mistake the Ace of clubs for a heart at trick one, I'm going to keep up that defense and lead another club when I'm in next time. I haven't thought about the current position.

Would have bid 1N the first time. Had I passed for whatever reason, I'd have bid 4H the second time. 100% is not enough blame to assign east here imo.

Am I missing something? [my emphasis added]