Jinksy

My intuition would be to play values by the double, just as if they Xed your xfer. Then it's much easier for them to penalise you or bid to the right level.

Sheesh, what options are there for complaining about directors? That's horrific behaviour - I think I'd actually walk out mid-session if someone pulled that on me. Probably after demanding my table money back, (on the grounds that they'd falsely advertised their club as 'bridge', if anyone objected).

We try to keep them relatively honest since we think of them of constructive bids, though obviously we upgrade several 8-9 counts. Still, I passed, on the grounds that, while P might have something magic like AKxxx x Axxx xxx, it seemed at least as likely that he'd have something like KJxxxx Qxx KQx x. Even at IMPs I'd be wary of inviting (though maybe too much so?), but at MPs I didn't see much point in pushing us up two levels just to play in a minor - especially against LOLs, who're likely to ship us a trick or three in the defence and give us a good score regardless.

My problem is the TD usually *isn't* called anyway. Assuming you don't kowtow like a little lamb, these episodes inevitably end with a sanctimonious 'I'll let you get away with it this time'. It's at this point I want to say 'that's not good enough at this point - you made a huge issue of this, now deal with some ***** consequences', so they don't try this on with the next nervous-looking opps who arrive at their table. People like this are a substantial part of the reason it's so hard to get new members for bridge clubs. But if they've technically retracted their contesting claims, it's hard to justify a director call, however sourly they've done so.

[hv=pc=n&e=s9ht963d9cakqt653&d=w&v=n&b=12&a=2s(!)p]133|200[/hv] (mods, I'm not sure if this goes better in natural or non-natural - please move if you think I've misjudged) MPs against LOLs. I'll have to explain the context, but I don't think you need any deep understanding to form judgement. 2♠ showed nominally 10-13 points, 5+♠s, with a singleton outside promised if P does only have 5. Unlike most Fantunes players, our opening bids can have both majors, more or less any normal distribution (on (65) you might prefer to pass and come in later). If 5-5 in the majors, P will be lower-end strength for his nominal range (i.e. 10-11ish). Your relevant options, other than pass are as follows: 2N: feature ask (I include this more to preempt questions than because I anticipate anyone bidding it - the responses focus on HCP and major-suit holdings, and might leave you unable to stop below 3N if P considers himself max) 3♥: shows long Cs, forcing to 3♠ 3N: to play 5♣ direct is dangerous - we haven't discussed this sequence, but P might well take it as EKCB. What's your call?

I've updated the OP for the A♣ leaders - what's your next card?

I double in sleep almost regardless of my overcalls (though I usually play simple Landy by preference). I'm planning to rebid something showing a 2-suiter (for me, 2N showing Hs and an unspecified minor) if they bid Ss.

[hv=pc=n&s=s6haqj5dkj974caq5&n=sjt953h64daqt6ck6]133|200[/hv] Playing a match point game, we bid our way like champions to 3D by south (me). I received a H lead, E put on the king, and when I drew a round of trumps and all followed, I put my hand down. Obviously I can't remember the exact words I used, but as best as I can reconstruct them, I said something like 'I'll draw trumps, ruff a H which gives me 12 tricks and concede the A♠ at the end.' (but probably less concise and with more stuttering, since it has to be said I suck at claiming) At this point, W became angry, and said that I'd given an insufficient line, and shouldn't have claimed. I rose to the bait, and said that unless she thought I was planning to either duck a heart then ruff my winner, or contrive to draw trumps and then lock myself in the wrong hand, there wasn't any ambiguity. She pressed the point aggressively, I pressed back, and eventually said something like 'I'll let it go this time, but you shouldn't claim if you're not ready to'. We left it there. I have two questions: 1) Am I nuts, or are her comments ludicrous? I realise I didn't give an algorithm that a computer program would follow, and every once in a while the strictness of bridge law surprises me - but I still find it hard to believe any director would fault my claim here. 2) This is not the first time, and probably won't be the last that I've found (usually incompetent) players aggressively pushing nonsense bridge rules at the table, and it sometimes seems to me more like an attempt at bullying than anything else.* When I feel a player is bent on pushing a point of law highly aggressively at either me or my partner (or even theirs, on occasion), do I have any legal recourse on the spot, to oblige them to tone it down? Ie something better than quietly reporting it later which, realistically I'll never do, partly from a sense of distaste, partly from a lack of a sense of what to report. The problem is of course that she wasn't doing any particular thing I could easily point to as a breach of conduct, other than being (I think) factually wrong. But I would very much have liked to say something like 'I insist we call the director at this stage, and that you apologise for being so vociferous if he rules against you' with a genuine threat of being able to get their behaviour noted while they're still in full flow, or something like that.

(2♠ was weak)

[hv=pc=n&w=sa9haq73dj98cat74&d=n&v=b&b=13&a=pp2sd4sdppp]133|200[/hv] Matchpoints against LOLs. Your lead? ETA: If you lead A♣, you see this dummy: xxxx Kxx ATxxx Q P plays the 2♣. Now what?

I've been trying it out as decent S support (typically 3), a minimum GF, and something resembling stops in the other two suits. So it's both a) a hand that would like to be able to bid 3N as a suggestion to play at some stage, but might not have the option to after raising Ss (when 3N would be Serious/Frivolous), and b) a hand which, having described itself in such detail, will often not be left to play the final contract. It hasn't come up much yet, nor contrived/precluded any significant results, so still gathering data and experiences.

That's an interesting point. You could modify it to just bid your better minor for both majors (as we do if vul), though you might still be reluctant to seek ♦/M fits. Opposite a strong NT, though, I'd be reluctant to give up a natural XX. It's surely more common to have 6/10 HCP than 9/13.

I'd expect Bird/Anthias to favour the singleton too.

♥. They've bid this to make, so P's double is presumably to stop them from making. I don't think it's based on quick tricks in diamonds, and with a C void I'd expect him to pass and hope I lead my own suit.

I'm a fan of extended Stavely: Pass, XX, and 2M are all natural. 2♣ is either natural or any two other suits (if NV and both majors, with better Ss), to be revealed by responder's next action. 2♦ is either natural or both majors (no preference or better Hs), to be revealed by responder's next action. Although one day I'd still love to play the Standard Old wriggle, as developed by the geniuses behind Rainbow Gerber: All bids are natural. Redouble is for blood. Pass forces redouble, which is for blood. Look into the whites of your opponents' eyes, and see which of them is most likely to cave to the pressure. I'm told this is less effective for online play. Also not optimal when using screens.

Some very literal-minded people here. I'm looking for bidding sequences, not spider-sense.

The former. S was dealer, though I think it's interesting to try from each side.

[hv=pc=n&s=sk3hakjt8daqjcak8&n=saqt95h762dk87cq4]133|200[/hv] Excellent grand. It goes off. Care to bid it anyway? (ETA. If so, how?)

Most people who play a weak NT will open 1♥ - not many people play weak and 5.

No comments on the first call so far, but exactly split vote! Are all the people voting aye to 7C now voting nay to 4N before and vice versa? Given that I chose not to bid 4N, I'd be interested to hear arguments for doing so.

[hv=pc=n&e=saht8dakt64ckt542&d=n&v=e&b=9&a=3hppdp4np6cp]133|200[/hv] IMP scoring. With no fancy gadgets available (or having been bypassed), except that 4N directly would have been Unusual. Now what? Would you have bid 4N before?

Yeah, my arithmetic broke there.

Pass. Things are breaking badly for them, so we might set 4S, and we're likely to be at least -3 in 5♥. Plus after all this bidding, there's little chance we'll bounce them. (ETA) -3 is clearly drivel.

Not sure it's as substantial as you're looking for, but you might want to have a look through this thread and see if there's anything suitable: http://www.bridgebase.com/forums/topic/48968-most-hopeless-clueless-comment/

Small ♦ for me. A passed P's unlikely to have good enough ♣s to set the contract, and with LHO sounding balanced, P shouldn't have more than 3Ss, just in case I was feeling fanciful. If the D lead carves a trick, we probably weren't ever setting it.