WTP?

[JLOL]

Q

KTx

AQxxx

KQxx

 

You are w/r and LHO bids 4S and partner bids 5H. Do you raise?

[whereagles]

I suppose this is to guess whether pard has a normal overcall or

 

xx

AQJ9xxxx

Kx

x

 

Raise, yes.

[rogerclee]

LOL

[Echognome]

I'm all for cutting partner some slack when he's under such pressure, but I just have so much that I would take the push. I wouldn't be surprised if we made 7, but not going to try for it with all the bad breaks that are likely.

[Hanoi5]

I would raise, though I wouldn't be surprised if we lose two tricks.

[quiddity]

Can partner use 4NT followed by 5H to show a weak hand, or is that likely to be a disaster?

[jdaming]

I am guessing that partner has a good hand I raise. I could be convinced to do somthing differently if I knew if the prempter was sound/shady or if partners overcalls were generally leaning either way. It is close.

[Phil]

Can partner use 4NT followed by 5H to show a weak hand, or is that likely to be a disaster?

No this shows a great 5♥ overcall.

 

I take the push. If its wrong, I explain how I was doubling when it came around to me and would pass when pard bid 5♥.

[jdonn]

I don't raise. Close though. I mean the singleton spade and all these queens make the hand look nicer than it really is IMO, and it's also true partner showed the worse of two possible 5♥ overcalls (I used to not like playing 4NT then 5♥ as that but Justin convinced me once).

[MarkDean]

Can partner use 4NT followed by 5H to show a weak hand, or is that likely to be a disaster?

No this shows a great 5♥ overcall.

 

I take the push. If its wrong, I explain how I was doubling when it came around to me and would pass when pard bid 5♥.

haha, so you raise, but if you are wrong, you tell partner it is his fault? B)

[kfay]

This depends greatly on the form of scoring to me because at MPs I'd almost certainly pass with most of the people I play with. 5♥ making 6 will not be a zero.

 

At IMPs I am not sure. I might have to ruff a spade for partner and now if he/she doesn't have the J I'm in trouble because you need to guess whether to hook 1st round. Is it possible that partner is missing 2 aces? Of course. It would be difficult for him to have a hand that would bid 4N...5♥ and if he did do that I'd be worried about grand so that argument doesn't mean too much to me as far as whether to bid here or not. If I do bid 6♥ is enough, don't need 5NT.

 

I bid. I expect to make this more often than not.

[keylime]

I'm bidding here. As long as 5NT isn't GSF, I bid it to show this hand - a good heart raise to six.

 

And I also play the 4NT and correct to 5♥ treatment too.

[mikeh]

I raise.. there are limits to my conservatism, and this hand exceeds them, barely

[dake50]

If I'm taking the push, what do 5S, 5NT, 6C, 6D mean? Can I invite the right monster distribution to 7H? Are they all to play or suggest higher in H? Which controls may I show?

[mtvesuvius]

I'll raise... but it won't be the first time I have bid a slam off 2 cashing aces. Or a Grand Slam off a cashing ace... :)

[JLOL]

I just posted this to prove that jdonn would pass :)

[andy_h]

I had thought the 4NT-->5H was normally a route to show a good raise to 5H when both opponents have bid (something like 3S-X-4S-4NT-blah-5H).

This direct 4NT over 4S to show a good 5H hand is new to me. If partner bids 5D as p/c, doesn't 5H show the round suits or am I missing something?

[OleBerg]

Raise. Less likely to be wrong than pass.

[OleBerg]

Can partner use 4NT followed by 5H to show a weak hand, or is that likely to be a disaster?

If next hand bids 5♠, you are in trouble, if 4NT is a two-way bid. But it is not likely.

[gnasher]

If next hand bids 5♠, you are in trouble, if 4NT is a two-way bid. But it is not likely.

Why isn't it likely?

[Finch]

If you use 4S - 4NT - (something) - 5H to show a good 5H overcall, what do you do on a 1516 type hand? I use a 4NT overcall to show any two suits, and I thought everyone else did too...

 

(4S - 4NT - P - 5C - P - 5H certainly shows extras, but it's not obvious to me that it shows a single suiter)

[the hog]

If you use 4S - 4NT - (something) - 5H to show a good 5H overcall, what do you do on a 1516 type hand? I use a 4NT overcall to show any two suits, and I thought everyone else did too...

 

(4S - 4NT - P - 5C - P - 5H certainly shows extras, but it's not obvious to me that it shows a single suiter)

I'd say it shows a big hand forcing to slam in H or a minor.

[gnasher]

If you use 4S - 4NT - (something) - 5H to show a good 5H overcall, what do you do on a 1516 type hand?  I use a 4NT overcall to show any two suits, and I thought everyone else did too...

 

(4S - 4NT - P - 5C - P - 5H certainly shows extras, but it's not obvious to me that it shows a single suiter)

No meaning is obvious unless you have an agreement about it.

 

The idea is that 4NT-5♣;5♥ is a one-suited slam try, but 4NT-5♦;5♥ is ambiguous. In the latter case advancer assumes hearts and clubs, and the 4NT bidder doesn't get to show his slam try. As he wouldn't have been able to show a slam try by bidding 5♥ directly, the argument is that he's no worse off than he would have been.

 

There are plenty of other ways to show a slam-forcing two-suiter, so the sequence 4NT-5♣;5♥ isn't really needed for anything else.

 

The main disadvantage of this approach is that advancer may misjudge over further competition. Also, he can't drive slam because he knows of a good fit in one of the minors.

[OleBerg]

If next hand bids 5♠, you are in trouble, if 4NT is a two-way bid. But it is not likely.

Why isn't it likely?

Depends what "likely" means.

I prefer 4Nt to be an unambigous two-suiter, because of the "few" times next hand raises.

[jdonn]

The fear of partner bidding 5♦ and not knowing that you are good with hearts as opposed to hearts and clubs is unfounded (Jlall taught me!). You can just bid 5♥ anyway since partner already said he prefers hearts to clubs, or you can use the info of that preference to bid 6♥ instead, but in either case you are no worse off.

 

The fear of next hand bidding 5♠ is a bit more relevant, but either you can guess to bid 6♥ which presumably your hand is not far short of anyway, or you can double and most likely defend 5♠x which should generally turn out ok.