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Spade Freak


hrothgar

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4S. Double is totally off with the faeries and deserves high level D bids from partner - not even worth discussing.

 

This is interesting opposite a non passed hand. I would try 3H - Californian cue, and pull partner's 3NT to 4S to show this sort of hand.

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For what its worth, here's what happened at the table:

 

I'm firmly in the pressure bidder's camp. I also decided that I'd be completely miserable if I bid 4 and heard RHO compete in Diamonds. So, being the obstinate sort that I am, I decided to get the hand off my chest and overcalled 5.

 

I was curious whether anyone else would feel the same way...

This drew a double from LHO, which RHO passed after a very long tank.

Oh well...

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I have a LOT of sympathy for 5 myself.

 

If you assume that opponents have hearts (reasonable); and have values / shape to bid and make at 5 level (perhaps); then 5 is fine.

 

If you had one less spade (and tried 4) with the same hand then I'd crack 5 to show a good preempt and an outside trick.

 

I'm this close to converting to NAMYATS overcalls for this type of headache.

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Let's look at this from a LOTT perspective. Your side figures to have 10 spades, they figure to have 9 diamonds. This is 19 total tricks, but you have a void, no soft values and a long suit--plus they might have a double fit in the red suits. A trick total of 21 is not unlikely.

 

21 total tricks is enough to bid 5 over 5 (at least one 5 level contract will make).

 

The question then is, are they going to bid it, especially if their fit is in diamonds.

 

I bid 4S and double their 5 level bid to show extras if this is our agreement: partner will leave in with some defense and bid 5S without defense.

 

However, many player will bid 4S with long spades and substantial high cards as a trap in this position, giving up on slam but hoping to double the enemy--if partner expects this type of hand and treats the double as pure penalty, he will leave it in without defense. So without the above agreement I bid 5S over 5 of a red suit.

 

I have much sympathy for 5S: it is indicated by the advice given in Kit Woolsey's Matchpoints: bid to the level where you don't know what their correct bid is--odds are they won't know, either.

 

But I think there is too much chance we can buy it for 4S--they can't be certain that I have an eight card suit and a void, and their estimate of the trick total will be lower than mine. On a lucky day they might even double 4S (their fit is 5-4 in diamonds) then the result ranges from -1 against a laydown game to making overtricks. So this may be a hand where they don't know their correct action even though I do.

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Imo too much diffenence for 5S, i will feel ok to double 5D showing what i have, a long spade and a good hand.

For anyone who cares, here are the complete hands[hv=n=sakqt9853h64dca64&w=s4hakq985dqjt74c2&e=sj72hjt7da865cj75&s=s6h32dk932ckqt983]399|300|[/hv]

 

5SX actually worked pretty well after a trump lead...

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I'm this close to converting to NAMYATS overcalls for this type of headache.

I like namyats overcalls myself (3NT broken minor, 4m namyats, 4M bad preempt).

 

I just wonder whether resolving by agreement the ambuguity between ggod/bad 4M will help more pard or opps... :)

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:rolleyes: I don't see any alternative but dbl unless I were playing some exotic form of Namyats on defense. Worrying about a penalty pass in this vulnerability is just playing scared bridge. On the actual hand we would bid accurately to 4 or 5S, probably going

 

1H-dbl-2H-3C-4H-4 or 5S- all pass

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