Ethics?

[Hilver]

Matchpoint pairs

West dealer / all vulnerable

 

Sitting South You hold:

♠ 10 8 7 3 2

♥ A 6

♦ A K 10 9 6

♣ 9

 

After displaying the STOP-card from the biddingbox, West opens 4♥. After West removing the STOP-card after 10 seconds, North still thinks about 10 seconds and then passes.

Your RHO, East, passes too.

Should South pass or is South still allowed to double, or make a bid of 4♠, 4NT or 5♦?

 

Thx

 

Jan

[weejonnie]

What would North have done with

♠876

♥QJ874

♦QJ4

♣43

 

He would have passed - so the UI is that he has values, but not enough to take action. It is unlikely he has values in spades as he would have passed quicker.

 

I think I would have to find out (if possible) if North has a reputation for taking time for making calls - some people are naturally quick and others slow.

(As a matter of course, South can do what he wants at the table, the director will make a record and then come back if requested.)

So now we have a BIT (I assume double is for takeout)

 

So we look at 73C and 16B1

 

C. Player Receives Unauthorized Information from Partner

When a player has available to him unauthorized information

from his partner, such as from a remark, question, explanation, gesture,

mannerism, undue emphasis, inflection, haste or hesitation, an

unexpected* alert or failure to alert, he must carefully avoid

taking any advantage from that unauthorized information.

 

B. Extraneous Information from Partner

1. (a) After a player makes available to his partner extraneous information

that may suggest a call or play, as for example by a remark, a question, a

reply to a question, an unexpected* alert or failure to alert, or by

unmistakable hesitation, unwonted speed, special emphasis, tone, gesture,

movement, or mannerism, the partner may not choose from among logical

alternatives one that could demonstrably[/b1] have been suggested over another

by the extraneous information

 

So the LAs seem to be - Pass, X, 4♠, 5♦, 4NT

 

The UI suggests values so X, 4♠, 5♦, 4NT are suggested over the pass. (This is subject to discussion, some of these may turn out not to be LAs - but 73C still applies)

Note that if very few players would pass then Pass stops being an LA and any bid is acceptable.

 

Ergo - THOSE calls are contra indicted. South can bid 6♦, 5♠, 5♥ or some such as they definitely aren't LAs

 

If you feel very strongly about this your best argument to avoid a PP would say that you felt that at matchpoints pass was not a LA - good luck with that!

[helene_t]

It is of course possible that North was thinking of bidding 5♣. This might make it less attractive for South to bid. But I think that on balance the hesitation makes it more attractive to bid (or double). So the ethical choice is to pass.