TimG Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 IMPs, Both Vul, you hold ♠532 ♥4 ♦AQ76 ♣JT652. 1♥ by dealer on your right, Pass by you, 2♥ on your left, passed back to you. Do you balance? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skjaeran Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 No Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jillybean Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 No, partner has 4♥ and I dont want to hear 2♠ coming back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimG Posted February 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 No, partner has 4♥ and I dont want to hear 2♠ coming back Well, you wouldn't hear 2♠ from partner if you balanced with 2N... Not that I'm advocating one way or the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilkaz Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 No, partner has 4♥ and I dont want to hear 2♠ coming back Well, you wouldn't hear 2♠ from partner if you balanced with 2N... Not that I'm advocating one way or the other. That is true, but I want a bit more than this to balance vul at IMPs. -200 or -300 is not a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtfanclub Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 That is true, but I want a bit more than this to balance vul at IMPs. -200 or -300 is not a good thing. I don't think HCP matters that much. They didn't even explore game, so that's a good sign your partner has a balanced 11 count or so. If you had a king more, he'd probably have a king less. The spade suit is so bad that it makes me nervous. I don't want partner bidding 2♠ with four crappy spades and then playing this (effectively) in no trump. I'd be willing to bet that there is some contract that we would do well in, but I'm not convinced that we'd stumble into it. So I'm passing, reluctantly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiddity Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 I would balance with 2NT. Partner plays 'em well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 IMPs, Both Vul, you hold ♠532 ♥4 ♦AQ76 ♣JT652. 1♥ by dealer on your right, Pass by you, 2♥ on your left, passed back to you. Do you balance? I'll try 2nt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IdiotVig Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 For those of you that are passing, would white/white or favorable be enough to support taking action on this hand? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TylerE Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 Only time I'd consider a balance is WvR at MP. Even then I'd probably still pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MickyB Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 I'd pass. If I wasn't vulnerable, I'd probably double. Never 2NT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLOL Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 Wow, I find this thread pretty shocking. I thought this was a wtp X. Also I think 2N is really terrible, regardless of whether you want to pass or bid, if you are bidding it has to be double. For starters partner could easily have 5 spades, he is not just going to automatically overcall 2S with 10 to 12 points and 5 spades, and second if he has 4 spades then playing 2S will often be your best possible spot (3 7 card fits), and thirdly when 2N is wrong it can be a huge disaster doubled whereas it's going to be much harder to double you at the 2 level when you have a 7 card fit at imps, and lastly they are more likely to bid 3H over 2S than over 3m. Sure it's possible you play the 33 fit on a bad day after reopening X, but that won't happen that often relative to all the times 2S is your best spot or least dangerous spot. I don't understand the pessimism though, we will push them to 3H sometimes, and it will be our hand for a partscore sometimes, and they will almost always make 2H (and the times they don't partner probably is passing our X anyways). They are not automatically just doubling you for a number every time, even when you are going down 2 you usually won't get cracked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtfanclub Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 I would balance with 2NT. Partner plays 'em well. I don't like 2NT. I passed 1♥ the first time- my partner can probably figure out why. However, if partner has 4 spades but no 4 card minor, I'd expect him to bid 2♠. There's an additional reason to X rather than 2NT. If partner has the dreaded 3-4-3-3, he can bid 2NT, allowing me to pick the minor instead of forcing him to guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 I must admit I did assume partner would prebalance x or bid 2s with 5spades and some hcp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLOL Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 I must admit I did assume partner would prebalance x or bid 2s with 5spades and some hcp. Why would he "prebalance" with length in hearts. Even if such a thing exists, certainly it just means bidding quite light when you are the one who is short? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwnn Posted February 3, 2009 Report Share Posted February 3, 2009 I love balancing on these hands, provided partner knows when to pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted February 4, 2009 Report Share Posted February 4, 2009 IMPs, Both Vul, you hold ♠532 ♥4 ♦AQ76 ♣JT652. 1♥ by dealer on your right, Pass by you, 2♥ on your left, passed back to you. Do you balance? Tim, Excellent thread and I think this one is well worth further discussion and comments, hope to see many more posts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cascade Posted February 4, 2009 Report Share Posted February 4, 2009 Balancing is over rated. With 7 HCP vulnerable there is not much upside and a very big downside. There is dispute over who my partner was but we have an amusing story about an expert (national representative) playing against me when I was just learning commenting after my partner took a long time to pass after an auction like 1♠ P 2♠ P; ... After partner (opener) passed said expert said that might work against little old ladies but I am not going to be fooled and came into the auction. An axe and 800 other reasons taught him a lesson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobowolf Posted February 4, 2009 Report Share Posted February 4, 2009 Balancing is over rated. At expert levels, it's probably rated about as it should be. At the B/I level, it's underrated, especially at matchpoints. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiddity Posted February 4, 2009 Report Share Posted February 4, 2009 Wow, I find this thread pretty shocking. I thought this was a wtp X. Also I think 2N is really terrible... I'm not surprised that people prefer X (since I thought the choice between X and 2NT was close), but I am surprised to hear that 2NT is such a terrible bid. Is it mainly the increased risk of a huge disaster? I would have guessed that partner's most likely hand would include 3-4 mediocre spades and an 8+-card minor suit fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiddity Posted February 4, 2009 Report Share Posted February 4, 2009 I don't like 2NT. I passed 1♥ the first time- my partner can probably figure out why. However, if partner has 4 spades but no 4 card minor, I'd expect him to bid 2♠. There's an additional reason to X rather than 2NT. If partner has the dreaded 3-4-3-3, he can bid 2NT, allowing me to pick the minor instead of forcing him to guess. I don't understand this at all. I passed 1H because I have 7 hcp, and I agree that partner can figure this out, but I don't see why it should suggest anything about whether I have 3 or 4 spades. As for 3-4-3-3, I can't imagine signing up for the 3-level with 3-card support for partner's major. You'll be playing in the 3-3 spade fit. Worse, you might even end up in the 3-3 fit if partner has 3 good spades and 4 lousy clubs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcD Posted February 5, 2009 Report Share Posted February 5, 2009 I think it is too dangerous not to balance. Clearcut to double rather than bid 2NT . True I may go for a number from time to time but passing is simply giving up. Good things can happen : we can score a partscore swing or push the opponents to 3♥ when their limit is 2. I may pass if I feel we are ahead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts