Cui bono?

[uva72uva72]

Below are two hands from the same set (IMPs, ACBL robot individual) on which the robot savages Souths who make the system bid and rewards those who do not.

 

My link

 

In a classic application of the robot enthusiasm factor, North credits itself with 3 extra HCP and a ♠ stopper that it does not have to come up with its hideous 6NT bid. Imagine if South has ♠Ax and 6NT (or any other contract) makes only with South declaring. Those Souths who lose the ♣Q and open only 2NT with their 23-count are allowed to play in 3NT.

 

My link

 

If you show your ♣ suit in response to minor-suit Stayman on this hand, you're cooked. Despite hearing about South's ♥ stopper and holding a ♠ stopper of its own, North plows ahead to 5♣, which dies quickly on the actual layout. Those Souths who suppress their ♣ suit are allowed to play in 3NT.

 

North's unilateral actions on this hands result in a 25-IMP penalty imposed on those Souths who make the system bid.

[Bbradley62]

In a classic application of the robot enthusiasm factor, North credits itself with 3 extra HCP and a ♠ stopper that it does not have to come up with its hideous 6NT bid. Imagine if South has ♠Ax and 6NT (or any other contract) makes only with South declaring. Those Souths who lose the ♣Q and open only 2NT with their 23-count are allowed to play in 3NT.

So you're being snarky about the fact that GIB bids less when his partner limits his hand to 21HCP/22total than he does when his partner shows a stronger hand than that? Isn't that the way it should work?

 

But, my snarkiness aside, 6N is clearly bad when you can easily be off ♠AK, and it should be somehow corrected. (That's intentionally vague, since I have no idea what is "right" over 3♠.)

 

The description of 6N is interesting; I bet GIB's logic goes something like this:

• North thinks that since partner has 23+ total and I have 11, we need to be in slam, so I'm going to bid one.
  
• Simulations tell me that the slam most likely to be right is 6N, so I'm going to bid that.
  
• The part of the program that describes bids, which is separate from the part of the program that chooses bids, must then find a description for 6N.
  
• 6N requires 33 HCP. South might have as few as 19 HCP; therefore, North must have at least 14 HCP to make the bid. B-)

[Bbradley62]

On the second hand, does West require 11 total points to show majors over 1N?

[uva72uva72]

I'm not concerned that North bid 3NT in response to 2NT - I frequently complain when North bids less in response to stronger bids. I do think that North's bidding is lousy on both hands. On the first hand, I think North should double or pass, depending on which one shows values. South can see the vulnerability and is in a better position to decide where the hand should be played. North lacks a stopper and will play 6NT from the wrong side, so that just can't be right.

[1eyedjack]

Is it worth mentioning that 6C is about 50% (just very slightly less) on the second hand? Unless of course you are one of those who subscribe to the conspiracy that 90% of finesses fail v GIB.

[uva72uva72]

I'm not a conspiracy theorist. My objection is not that the ♠A is offside, but that for no reason other than knowing that South has 4+ ♣ North opted for an 11-trick contract in lieu of a 100% 9-trick contract. What was the point of bidding 3♥ if it was going to bid 5♣ all along?

[1eyedjack]

I'm not a conspiracy theorist. My objection is not that the ♠A is offside, but that for no reason other than knowing that South has 4+ ♣ North opted for an 11-trick contract in lieu of a 100% 9-trick contract. What was the point of bidding 3♥ if it was going to bid 5♣ all along?

I am not convinced that North was "opting for an 11 trick contract". I speculate that it considered itself worth a slam try. The 3N bid should certainly be discouraging. It would certainly have discouraged me, and I would have passed it like a shot. But I tend to underbid so that does not mean much.

 

If, despite being discouraged by the 3N bid, North still considers itself worth a slam try, then I think that it is still right that it should show the Heart shortage on the way. It may be resulting to point out that slam is not that bad a spot.

 

You are after all very unlucky to go down in 5, even with the Spade Ace offside.