Close calls?

[Edmunte1]

All boards are from Romanian National Division, you're sitting South:

 

1.[hv=d=n&v=n&s=s10752hqj3d10983c82]133|100|Scoring: IMP

2NT(20-bad 22)-(pass) - ?[/hv]

 

2.[hv=d=n&v=n&s=s10752hqj3d10983c82]133|100|Scoring: IMP

2NT(20-bad 22)-(pass) - ?[/hv]

 

3.[hv=d=n&v=n&s=s10752hqj3d10983c82]133|100|Scoring: IMP

2NT(20-bad 22)-(pass) - ?[/hv]

[Cascade]

1. Pass

 

2. 4♦ The standard is for partner to play me for a few values so maybe he can raise. 5♦ could easily work out better or much worse.

 

3. 4♣ Splinter

[655321]

(1) 3♣ Simple Stayman.

 

(2) This is tough. 5♦ is too many, so for me the choice is between the nothing bid of 4♦, and the possibly-losing-the-first-seven-tricks bid of 3NT. I choose 4♦, but my guess is that 3NT will often work.

 

(3) 4♥. I don't want to splinter with the Ace, and the hand has too many Aces and Kings to bid 3♥ only.

[rogerclee]

1. Stayman, then either 3N or 4♠. If partner has the 'wrong' hand, we may not be making 2N anyway.

 

2. 4♦. 5♦ is too many, especially since partner may be offshape. Partner will raise to 5♦ on many hands where this is right. I admit 3N could work, but I am not willing to risk 3 or 4 vulnerable undertricks if I'm wrong.

 

3. 4♥. I don't like to splinter with stiff A. 3♥ is really conservative and I would never seriously consider it.

[gnasher]

1. Pass. Even opposite four spades, game is unlikely to make - having all my strength in a short suit is a big minus.

 

2. 4D. As others have said, partner will play me for some values anyway.

 

3. 3H. I may have a lot of controls, but I also have a singleton ace, and no pips in any of my suits. Partner will play me for the equivalent of a balanced 18-count, and that's roughly what I have.

[whereagles]

1. Pass

2. 4♦. 3NT could be a big winner but pard, short in spades and with 4 hearts, might be a tad LIGHT.

3. 4♥. I dont like splinter with sing AKQ.

[helene_t]

1. Pass, altough 3♣ could be the longterm winner. I don't know.

2. 4♦, my first thought was 3N but thinking more about it p needs xx or A of spades or maybe K if LHO underleads ♠A for some reason, and even then it may still go down for other reasons.

3. 3♥ is enough for me. Maybe 4♥ if playing with someone who rarely responds with less than 6 HCP. No splinter with an ace please. I like 2N with this shape but we can't sign off in 3♥ then, 2N is either NF or GF AFAIU.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

 

#1 Pass, we may start talking if

you had Kxx instead of QJx in hearts,

and even than it is close

 

#2 4D, ... I am not tough enough to pass

or to bid 3NT, and 5D is a long way to go

 

#3 3H, but there do exist days I would bid

4H, but 4H overstates the power and

misdiscribes my shape

 

With kind regards

Marlowe

[Sambolino]

pass

3nt

3h

[Fluffy]

1. Pass

2. 3NT, but don't think I'll stand a double

3. 4♣ splinter.

[whereagles]

2. 3NT, but don't think I'll stand a double

You got 9 hcp. No one's gonna dbl your 3NT. They'll just let you go down in peace :)

[Codo]

1. pass at MPs, bid 3 Club at imps.

 

2. I am still not convinced that the minority view of pass is bad, so I´ll do that at mps. At Imps, I am a chicken and bid 4 Diamond, believing that pass had earned me more points at ther table.

 

3. 4 Heart.

Pd knows that I have 18+ points but no splinter and no 4 Diamond bid. So he plays me for a hand like 3442 with around 19 HCPS. sounds like a good describtion of myhand.

[Gerben42]

1. If you confidently bid Stayman and 3NT, no one is going to Dbl you I guess. Only bad if 120 was our top score.

 

2. Pass is bad - where are our tricks coming from? The choice is between 3NT and 4♦ as 5♦ is too much. Given that we're vulnerable I'm going for 3NT. Maybe the ♠ are

 

AQTxxxx opposite K

 

or we don't have a stopper but opener is trying to get partner in with a different lead and we pick up 9 tricks.

 

3. 4♣ splinter. I guess I'll pass if partner goes 4♥ after that.

[mikegill]

1) This looks like a normal pass to me. We're not even red.

 

2) If behind, and I could do it in tempo, I would bid 3n. 4d looks normal to me. It's not even clear we have game values, so even if we avoid the down-3-off-the-top, I still need partner to have diamonds with me, plus another 3 or 4 top tricks to make 3n.

Think passing is asking for -730.

 

3) If it were not red IMPs I wouldn't force game with this hand. Yes aces and kings are great but 4x1 is overrated, I have no spots at all, and stiff A really detracts from the value of this hand. I would either splinter or not based on which I thought was more likely to buy a club lead against these particular opponents (since I really want to avoid a lead through my pointed suit Ks). I think not splintering is normal, though.

[Apollo81]

1. 3♣

2. 4♦

3. 4♥

 

#1 is the toughest call. Looks like a pass but 3♣ has more ways to win. I'm OK with playing this in 3NT if we don't catch a spade fit, it might make.

[gwnn]

1) pass. I would want to be in game only if pard has 5 spades and that sounds like too narrow a target to aim for.

 

2) 3NT Lord help us. I hate this bid but I like it more than 4♦. This one is very ugly.

 

3) definitely 4♥ with the added safety that partner doesnt look like someone who has stretched to respond on an OK suit and nothing outside.

[pclayton]

1. Pass. GLP

 

2. 3N. Pard has a 1/2 stop, they block, bla bla.

 

3. 4♣ I suppose.

[han]

2. 3NT.

[mikeh]

1. 3♣. Right on the cusp, but I have too many spots to pass and just enough shape as well: make this 4=3=3=3 and I pass.

 

2. 3N. Someone has to bid it if it's there. Of course, it may not be.

 

3. This is really close. My intellect tells me that 3♥ is the 'correct' bid, but I doubt that I could hold back from bidding 4♥ at imps with all those controls. I hate the 4441 shape. I would never splinter this hand.... that is just too encouraging a call, and splinters on stiff Aces should be resorted to only if there is no other way of conveying the power of the hand.. and this hand isn't that powerful.

[Cascade]

3. 3H. I may have a lot of controls, but I also have a singleton ace, and no pips in any of my suits. Partner will play me for the equivalent of a balanced 18-count, and that's roughly what I have.

Controls and especially aces are great for suit contracts. Admittedly the ♣ A is not pulling full weight but this hand has seven controls plus the ruffing control in clubs. An average 18 count has just over 6 controls. From this perspective this is a very good 18.

 

The lack of of a five-card suit is the only negative on the hand.

[skjaeran]

1. Pass. We're most probably not making any game here.

2. 4♦, 5♦ is just too much.

3. 3.49♥, NOT splinter. (I'd rebid either 3 or 4♥, probably 3 a little more often than 4.)

[Edmunte1]

1. Partner held: ♠KQJx ♥AKxx ♦♣Qx AKx. I passed, opps bid game, lost 7.

2. Partener held ♠K ♥KJxx ♦Kxx ♣AJ10xx, Diamonds were 4-1, but surprisingly ♣ finesse worked this time, so 3NT was the lucky call this time.

3. Partener held: ♠QJx ♥10xxx ♦x ♣xxxxx, but all cards were lying well so the game was on

[gnasher]

2. Partener held ♠K ♥KJxx ♦Kxx ♣AJ10xx, Diamonds were 4-1, but surprisingly ♣ finesse worked this time, so 3NT was the lucky call this time.

But presumably it was down 5 on a heart lead. Heart to the queen, spade to the ace, heart to the ace, spade.

[Edmunte1]

2. Partener held ♠K ♥KJxx ♦Kxx ♣AJ10xx, Diamonds were 4-1, but surprisingly ♣ finesse worked this time, so 3NT was the lucky call this time.

But presumably it was down 5 on a heart lead. Heart to the queen, spade to the ace, heart to the ace, spade.

Of course you're right

[Cascade]

1. Partner held: ♠KQJx ♥AKxx ♦♣Qx AKx. I passed, opps bid game, lost 7.

Partner has a good maximum - that hand is pretty good for a "bad 22" - and game is on.

 

Oh well.

 

2. Partener held [sp]K [he]KJxx [di]Kxx [cl]AJ10xx, Diamonds were 4-1, but surprisingly [cl] finesse worked this time, so 3NT was the lucky call this time.

 

Another marginal game.

 

Oh well.

 

3. Partener held: ♠QJx ♥10xxx ♦x ♣xxxxx, but all cards were lying well so the game was on

 

Another.

 

Oh well.

 

We can't expect to get all of these marginal hands right and not even close to that when they are lucky.