Clues from the bidding

[pclayton]

Playing in the MBC earlier you pick up NV vs NV at IMPs: Txx, Kxxx, AJxx, AQ. You open 1♦, 1♠ on left. Neg x by pard and pass on your right. You try 2♥ and pard invites with 3♥.

 

A little voice comes on inside your head and says:

 

"We have roughly 22-24 points and 8 hearts. The opponents have 16-18 and have overcalled 1♠. There is an excellent chance that pard has 3 or 4 spades, since RHO didn't raise and LHO didn't rebid a 6 bagger. Accordingly, while game looks right on values, the worry about pard holding duplicated spade length is enough of a reason to pass 3♥".

 

Agree or disagree, and what is your decision over 3♥?

[awm]

I agree that partner's likely to hold some spades, although it's possible RHO has three and was just too weak to raise.

 

But I'm bidding 4♥ anyway. I'd be much more concerned if I held a spade honor, because it seems likely to be a worthless card. As things stand, partner could have something like:

 

AQx Axxx xx Jxxx

 

Nothing particularly good about this hand, but the spades are well positioned. I expect to lose one heart, one diamond, and either a club or a spade. Of course, the hearts could break badly, but there's no strong reason to expect them to.

[Miron]

LHO can have six, RHO can have three... (few points and/or weak suit forces them to pass).

But: I'm bidding 4♥ here. FTL speaks it could be good (and "be optimistic" is a part of FTL). I have some nice points and partner invites, maybe I don't use FTL at all, I just bid 4♥.

[P_Marlowe]

I would reflect, how good my intuition

was in the past, if it was great, I would

follow the advice, i.e. pass, if not, after

all I am male, I would simply bid 4H.

 

With kind regards

Marlowe

[Walddk]

As things stand, partner could have something like:

 

AQx Axxx xx Jxxx

I do not chase borderline games NV at IMPs, and I don't think partner can have the hand Adam shows. That hand would be more suited for a 2NT rebid. At least that gives me some useful info: I've got spade values on a relatively balanced hand.

 

3♥ is a general invite, yes, but it's not very helpful. He has 2♠, 2NT, 3♣ and 3♦ available as game tries, and yet he chose neither.

 

I don't believe in game and I pass.

 

Roland

[Gerben42]

I think here you have to bid 4♥. Partner asks: Do you have a minimum hand? Well it's not a GREAT hand but not minimum either, and at least my points are not in ♠. Here's an example how much worse my hand could be:

 

Kxx, Txxx, AJxx, Ax

 

Quite the difference. So I bid 4♥.

[hatchett]

I would bid 4♥. Partner has invited and a have a fairly nice hand in context.

 

I hate trying to be too clever and double-guessing how many spades partner has got to base my decision. I just look at my hand.

 

Anyway surely he has the same inferences about my spade length and he has still invited. :blink:

[adhoc3]

The little voice was so convincing. I'd not bid 4.

 

However, is it worth to try 3NT?

[whereagles]

I'll bid 4♥. I stopped playing against the field in situations like these unless it's really obvious 4 is in jeapordy (like for instance holding Kxx or QJx of spades).

[Finch]

3♥ is a general invite, yes, but it's not very helpful. He has 2♠, 2NT, 3♣ and 3♦ available as game tries, and yet he chose neither.

 

I don't believe in game and I pass.

 

Roland

So let's work out what sort of hand he has to bid 3H rather than make one of these other game tries, rather than say he's not been helpful.

 

He didn't bid 2NT, so he hasn't got a lot of soft spade values (although he could have the Ace or the AQ/AK).

 

He didn't bid 2S - but he might think 2S is game forcing and he might be concerned that we would think he didn't have four hearts. (I think 2S is game forcing - just because you have so many other ways to invite - but I don't think it's obvious).

 

He didn't bid 3m, so he won't have concentrated honours in one minor to the detriment of the other.

 

So what's he got? I can think of two hand types:

i) A five card heart suit that wasn't good enough to bid 2H (possibly because it had weak hearts and honours outside) with honour in both minors - something like

 

Kx

J10xxx

Qxx

Kxx

 

(whether he can have more than this depends on your minimum for a forcing 2H bid)

 

ii) Good hearts and, again, values in each minor

xxx

AQxx

Qx

Kxxx

 

We don't want to be in game opposite this hand, we do opposite the first one.

Seems a bit of a toss-up. Game isn't going to be cold, but it's quite likely to have play. So I really don't feel strongly either way.

[mikeh]

I'm with Frances...altho that doesn't tell me if I'm in game or not :blink:

 

I feel like my decision is the cat in Schrodinger's box... I'll need to open the lid to find out if I'm in 3 or 4♥... it's sort of random on this hand.

[pclayton]

The vial of acid broke and the cat died :blink:

 

The entire hand:

 

[hv=n=sxxxhaqjxdxxckxxx&w=sakqxxhxxdqxxcjxx&e=sxxhxxxdkxxxctxxx&s=stxxhkxxxdajxxcaq]399|300|[/hv]

 

The little voice came on AFTER I bid 4♥.

 

Note that the actual hand was pretty darn close to the layout Frances suggested.

[hatchett]

Fair enough, but I don't think the North hand is good enough to invite.

[whereagles]

Fair enough, but I don't think the North hand is good enough to invite.

8 losers and it's imps.. invitation definitely is in the pic. The only reason not to invite is ♠xxx, and advancer not raising. Makes it quite possible that opener will have ♠Kxx or ♠Qxx. But that's a bit of masterminding... opener can also pass an invite with those holdings.

 

It's not an exact science. Next time South passes the invite and 4♥ turns out to be cold.. oops.

[hatchett]

8 losers and it's imps.. invitation definitely is in the pic. The only reason not to invite is ♠xxx, and advancer not raising. Makes it quite possible that opener will have ♠Kxx or ♠Qxx. But that's a bit of masterminding... opener can also pass an invite with those holdings.

 

It's not an exact science. Next time South passes the invite and 4♥ turns out to be cold.. oops.

 

It's an NV game. I am almost certainly opposite a weak NT, so we are somewhere between 21 and 24 high with 2 balanced hands, an eight card trump fit and I have no fitting honor in partner's suit. I would pass 2♥

[mikeh]

The vial of acid broke and the cat died :(

 

The entire hand:

 

[hv=n=sxxxhaqjxdxxckxxx&w=sakqxxhxxdqxxcjxx&e=sxxhxxxdkxxxctxxx&s=stxxhkxxxdajxxcaq]399|300|[/hv]

 

The little voice came on AFTER I bid 4♥.

 

Note that the actual hand was pretty darn close to the layout Frances suggested.

Nope: the vial broke just before I was going to bid 4♥... it was the auction that died (in 3♥), not the contract B) :P

[mike777]

It seems partner is more likely to make a long suit or short game try with the hands that do make game across from this hand?

 

I note the opening hand is an 8LTC hand with no useful tens or nines, no shortness, AQ in a short suit and 3 worthless cards in the enemy suit.

 

In FTL I am guessing my shortsuit total=4 which means I need 22 working hpc to bid 4H which is possible? On the actual hands we have 21 so that means you need to make a great FTL whcp guess.

[joshs]

Playing in the MBC earlier you pick up NV vs NV at IMPs: Txx, Kxxx, AJxx, AQ. You open 1♦, 1♠ on left. Neg x by pard and pass on your right. You try 2♥ and pard invites with 3♥.

 

A little voice comes on inside your head and says:

 

"We have roughly 22-24 points and 8 hearts. The opponents have 16-18 and have overcalled 1♠. There is an excellent chance that pard has 3 or 4 spades, since RHO didn't raise and LHO didn't rebid a 6 bagger. Accordingly, while game looks right on values, the worry about pard holding duplicated spade length is enough of a reason to pass 3♥".

 

Agree or disagree, and what is your decision over 3♥?

Yeah 3 cards in LHO suit is always bad when RHO doesn't raise. As is scattered honors, short suit honors, etc. None of those issues are overwheleming but they all add up to making this hand a clear pass over 3H.

[Codo]

IF I had known, that pd will invite so light, I had not even thought about 4 Heart. But as I thought, that he had heard my limited 2 Heart bid, I had bid 4 Heart, fter all, I am maximum for my bidding so far.

[willow23]

I would expect partner to have 10+ hcp for that invite considering opps interferance..so 24+ hcp ..14 hcp/15 dcp in yours...So I would go for it since I have close enough to the max range that partner expects from the bidding...

 

With 11-13 I would pass 3♥..but with 14+ I would press the gas...

 

For me AQ in partners !c; I may get a discard and get to cross ruff ♦ and ♣..

 

For some reason...I would expect 2(Kx/Ax) or 1(x)♠ in p's hand ..not 3...Why would he invite without something attractive...

 

All systems are go Scotty :blink: ..I would trust p's judgement...especially as opps just made one peep..Probably just a little interferance...The points are well sandwiched between you and p..

 

Hey ..you win some, you loose some...You have the points, although distribution of the cards may be cruel..:blink:

[jdeegan]

:P Agree with a pass, although it seems a borderline 4♥ bid. Spade holding is part of it. Club queen and possible diamond finesse offside also not desirable.