Dealing with preempts #14323

[whereagles]

Hi all. Here's a nice one from this week-end's team trials.

 

Venue:

- matchpoints across an expert field of the country's top 32 pairs

- 1st board of 1st session (you'll be playing 100 boards lol)

 

You are V vs NV and hold:

 

♠ KQ8643

♥ AJ43

♦ T6

♣ 4

 

RHO you

4♣ ..??

 

RHO is your beloved (evil) author, whereagles :angry:

 

Bid away!

 

Edit: added a poll doh!

[Jlall]

4S obv

[gwnn]

huh? 4♠.

[jjbrr]

same for me

[Fluffy]

pass, not happy about it.

[pooltuna]

4S obv

another transfer and the completion transfers the last guess. :)

[MFA]

4♠ but this is really a marginal bid.

[Apollo81]

What does 4♣ even mean coming from you? Wouldn't you have just bid 3NT or something?

[jdonn]

I didn't realize 4♠ is that obvious, but I suppose I have to.

[Jlall]

I didn't realize 4♠ is that obvious, but I suppose I have to.

You can make game opposite normal hands from partner that he will pass 4C with. The argument of o know what if partner has 0 doesn't mean much since he is very unlikely to be that weak when we have 10 and RHO has a preempt. More likely partner also has something like 10 without much in clubs, and 4S is cold. He could have as much as 14 and not be able to balance over 4C since he has some length there though, so I really do think 4S is that obv.

[akhare]

Color me 4♠. If it goes for 1100, chalk another one up for "preempts work"...

[Siegmund]

If whereagles is the one who posts the poll, instead of one of the respondents, we are allowed a unanimous response, right?

[Free]

pass, not happy about it.

I also choose pass, was surprised that 4♠ is so extremely obvious to almost everyone else.

 

Although I agree with the arguments for 4♠, aren't there too many hands where partner will try for slam and we'll go down in 5 or 6?

[gwnn]

- matchpoints across an expert field of the country's top 32

<snip>

RHO is your beloved (evil) author, whereagles :)

hm? :rolleyes:

[jdonn]

I didn't realize 4♠ is that obvious, but I suppose I have to.

You can make game opposite normal hands from partner that he will pass 4C with. The argument of o know what if partner has 0 doesn't mean much since he is very unlikely to be that weak when we have 10 and RHO has a preempt. More likely partner also has something like 10 without much in clubs, and 4S is cold. He could have as much as 14 and not be able to balance over 4C since he has some length there though, so I really do think 4S is that obv.

Could easily go for a huge number too, even opposite some strength. I still bid 4♠ but I also still think it's close...

[whereagles]

Thanks all. Hands were:

 

[hv=d=s&v=e&n=sahkqt965dak973c8&w=skq8643haj43dt6c4&e=st9h872dqj85cqt93&s=sj752hd42cakj7652]399|300|Scoring: MP

South West

4♣ ..??[/hv]

4♠ really looks appealing, given the club shortness and consequent high likelyhood of pard passing.

 

That was indeed what LHO bid. North had an easy axing of it (where are their tricks coming from??), but let it ride for 4 down undoubled and a mere 55% of the matchpoints when 90%+ was possible. Pard later argued "I thought it was best not to double because the auction looked a bit fishy" LOL.

 

Were I West, I'd probably try 4♠ as well, but I'm glad I was given the South hand instead :)

[Echognome]

Looks like you take it down 5 on the heart lead.

 

1. Heart ruff

2. ♦ to K

3. Heart ruff

4. ♦ to A

5. Heart ruff

6. ♣A

7. ♣K if ruffed, over-ruffed with the A, then 8a. Instead if ♥A discarded, then you still score ♠A in 8b.

 

8a. Heart uppercut

8b. ♠A

[hanp]

(where are their tricks coming from??)

Spades are trump?

[bid_em_up]

Pard later argued "I thought it was best not to double because the auction looked a bit fishy" LOL.

What was he afraid of? That they might run to 5 of a red suit? :(