It's always right to bid

[Finch]

Playing a 32-board KO match against a team you had originally expected to beat heavily, you are 14 imps up going into the last set after a large number of flat boards. This is the first board of the set:

 

[hv=d=w&v=n&s=skqjxxxxhxxdjxckx]133|100|Scoring: IMP[/hv]

 

LHO opens 2H showing 5 hearts and a 4+ card minor

Partner passes.

RHO thinks for ages, toys with the 2NT card (enquiry as to partner's minor), then eventually emerges with 4H. It's now authorised information that either he has a good hand, or his heart fit is not all it could be (or both).

 

Your team-mates are unlikely to have opened a weak 2 on a 5-card suit unless it is very pure (KQJxx say) so they might not have had this start to the auction.

 

Do you bid 4S or not?

[Walddk]

Yes, I'm a junior in my heart. On a serious note, when in doubt I prefer to run the active risk (bidding) rather than the passive one (passing). This rule of thumb has served me well over the years. Sure, I have gone for 500, 800 or even 1100 occasionally, but if that never happens, "you don't bid enough" is another rule I subscribe to!

 

Roland

[fbuijsen]

I'm passing. I'm hoping we can beat it, with a H trick, 2 tricks in the minors and a spade trick. If we don't have those, 4S will be off 3 tricks so I'm only losing 4 IMPs then.

 

(Oops, misread vulnerability -- I pass even more now when we're vul vs not -- I don't think we'll make 4S under the assumption RHO is strongish.)

 

PS: is the 2NT enquiry also a strong (15+) bid? It's played that way in Holland, but maybe the UK players play it differently.

Edited February 21, 2006 by fbuijsen

[mr1303]

I'm at red am I not? In that case I think pass is clear-cut.

[Walddk]

I'm at red am I not? In that case I think pass is clear-cut.

Interesting. That's exactly why I lean towards bidding. More to gain, and if I go for 500, it rates so be a small loss against their likely 4♥ (I hope).

 

Roland

[cherdano]

I expect to go down in 4♠, especially given the AI. Thus I definitely pass at these colours.

 

Arend

[luis]

I bid 4♠ he could have been thinking about anything

 

Luis

[Walddk]

I expect to go down in 4♠, especially given the AI. Thus I definitely pass at these colours.

 

Arend

Indeed possible, but remember that drawing inferences from the AI is at your own risk and that you can't claim damage if you chose the wrong thing, based on the AI.

 

Roland

[Guest Jlall]

I would usually bid, but if my table feel was as you say (RHO has a good hand or a poor heart fit) I would pass. Can't tell you what I would do as I was not at the table.

[mikeh]

In the forum: I bid 4♠. There could be a lot of hands that leave game on for me and yet would cause RHO to hesitate. In real life, I tend to get too conservative, and my sense is that my conservative half would seize on the hesitation as a reason not to bid :) . I think bidding is more likely right than wrong: but if you bid, bid in tempo.

[Finch]

Well, in real life, I tend to get too conservative, and my conservative half seized on the hesitation as a reason not to bid. I still bear the scars from a 4S bid on a similar auction that went for 800, the loss being greater than the margin on the 64-board match. However, the scars are slowly healing, and this is another hand where it was indeed right to bid:

 

[hv=d=w&v=n&n=saxxxhkdkxxxcqxxx&w=sxhqjxxxdq8xxxc9x&e=sxha109xxda10caj108x&s=skqjxxxxhxxdjxckx]399|300|Scoring: IMP[/hv]

 

4H made +1 on a diamond lead.

4S will probably not end the auction, RHO will likely bid 5H and partner 5S (although pass and lead the SA would be better). You are one off in 5S as long as you guess diamonds. It's not entirely obvious to get them right, but you probably will do if RHO doubles so could be -200 either way. And LHO might give club count (heart lead, spade return, heart ruff, club to the king and 9, club ducked to RHO).

 

The auction in the other room was

P P 1H 2S (intermediate)

4H all pass

 

Now you can see why we expected to beat them heavily....