Opening hands

[0deary]

What would you bid on these hands please?

 

System: SAYC 11hcp/Rule 19

 

all pass to you

 

A: 2nd position non vul they are vul AQ97♠QT9♥QT9♦Q96♣

 

B: 3rd position all vul 9863♠JT♥AK42♦K54♣

 

Thank you!

 

sorry ps Pairs imps

[eagles123]

1 - 1C

2 - Pass

[bravejason]

1 - 1C

2 - Pass

 

Agree.

[MrAce]

What would you bid on these hands please?

 

System: SAYC 11hcp/Rule 19

 

all pass to you

 

A: 2nd position non vul they are vul AQ97♠QT9♥QT9♦Q96♣

 

B: 3rd position all vul 9863♠JT♥AK42♦K54♣

 

Thank you!

 

sorry ps Pairs imps

 

A- 1♣

 

B-1♦ (You have the boss suit of majors and boss suit of minors, you are likely to win the partscore competition cheaper than opponents + AKxx is a good suit in 3rd seat to show a lead)

[steve2005]

A- 1♣

 

B-1♦ (You have the boss suit of majors and boss suit of minors, you are likely to win the partscore competition cheaper than opponents + AKxx is a good suit in 3rd seat to show a lead)

B if you pass and opp opens in 4th seat, makes a contract and you didn't get to show diamonds later you will regret passing. If opp was passing you might make something.

[nekthen]

I do not see any argument over A; clear 1♣. Replace the tens with x and I am passing.

B is more interesting. I strain to bid in 3rd if I have spades, but here we are not really hurting them by bidding. They might even reach a spade game that could have been passed out. It seems most likely that they have a NT contract or it will be passed out. Against NT I will lead a spade, if partner is on lead, I want him to lead his best suit, not ♦ so I am passing.

 

I can also see 1♦ p 1♥ p 1N or 1♦ p 1♥ p 1♠ p 1[N] going off 4th seat may even come to life and axe you

[kenberg]

I agree that B is the more challenging question and I think I pass as well. I suppose it comes down to optimism versus pessimism. The uncontested auction P-1D -2NT might not go well. And I don't want to worry partner over bidding 2NT in the future if he has the hand for it. As for lead direction, maybe I want a diamond lead and maybe I don't. If lho ends in some number of NT holding the QJxx of diamonds, I probably don't. It's true that I have four spades, well, four to the 9, I suppose four cards are four cards, but if we belong in spades we might be able to balance into it later and if we can't we might later be happy we didn't.

 

So I pass. I've been wrong before, it's not clear cut, but I pass. My guess is that more often than not the opponents will be declaring this hand. Opening 1D might help us, but it also might help them.

[Tramticket]

I know that the opening post stated SAYC, but its not my system and I tend to think of all problems from an Acol perspective. So playing Acol:

 

1. I open 1NT - no problem. Yes, the 4333 shape is not great and all of those queens are worth a minor devaluation. but on the positive side you have plenty of intermediates (two tens and all four nines) and you have a good quality four-card spade suit and reasonable support for any suit that partner holds. No reason to do anythong except the obvious 1NT.

2. I am not upgrading this to a 1NT opening, in 3rd seat, vulnerable at IMPs, with good chances that LHO is sitting there with a penalty double. If I were to open, I would choose to open 1♦, planning to pass anything except a 1♥ response (in which case I rebid 1♠). I'm more likely to do this at match point pairs, but would probably pass.

[0deary]

Thank you for your advice

 

The Forum looked at opening KQ863 Spade hands a few weeks ago, tweaking jacks etc, and the biggest change from passing to opening was removing the 5th spade. So I was interested to see opening on flatter hands- if the modern systems found on points and most use 11+ hcp would everyone (have to?) open? If not what factors would be used?

 

Whilst waiting for some useful hands to arrive there were some interesting competitive problems elsewhere, and a lot there depended on how many defensive tricks could be relied on by opening a hand. So I wondered if defensive tricks might be an explicit factor in a decision to open

 

A third issue arose whilst typing up the hands and splits for you now- the particular imp scoring system used here

 

I’ll split my posting, first the text and splits below and a separate posting on the hands

 

 

Here are the hands and the splits

A (the AQ97 hand)- see next posting

 

Contract and result NS NS imps EW imps

 

3NW-3 150 4.2

1NW-3 150 4.2

2NW-2 100 2.9

1NN 90 2.5

1CE-1 50 1.5

1NW-1 50 1.5

2HW-1 50 1.5

Pass 0.1

Pass 0.1

Pass 0.1

1DW= -70 1.9

1NE -90 2.7

1NW -90 2.7

1NW -90 2.7

2SE+1 -140 4.1

 

 

B (the 9863 hand)- see the last posting

 

Contract and result NS NS imps EW imps

 

3NN+1 630 11.1

2SN+3 200 3.1

2HS+2 170 2.5

2HS+1 140 1.7

2HS+1 140 1.7

1SN+2 140 1.7

2SN= 110 0.6

1SN+1 110 0.6

2DN 90 0.2

Pass 2.3

Pass 2.3

Pass 2.3

2CW= -90 4.7

4SN-1 -100 4.7

3HS-1 -100 4.7

 

 

 

The hands were cut-in BBO fun and like the buses two hands cropped up one after another last week

 

On both sets of scores there are some oddities- and certainly if you can’t put the brakes on A it’ll be expensive- and unwise to draw out too much on just a couple of examples. That said:

 

Even if the system says 11+ you don’t have to open if you think it best not to!

 

Given the previous passing and the hcp on East it’s likely that there will be a bidding tussle over part scores here, and there is great advice focussed on what might best

 

On A as it happens neither NS had a major so making EW 1NT becomes the issue, and the Acol 1NT would be perfect on the diamond lead. I suppose EW has absolutely no control over whether NS actually owns a majors. And having to open 1 Club doesn’t attract a lead. Nor does East own fast defensive tricks. If a tussle did emerge and you can find a fit somewhere then you can at least make a total tricks assessment if you like. But on board A EW won’t be tested too much in the bidding- and making 1NT earns 2.7 imps. Good point about the tens here- and without them 1NT could struggle and you don’t want to lose even the 1.5 imps for a -50

 

B is a perverse hand imo! If you open, and if NS is quietened and E can manage to pass out West’s 2 Club you will get 90 and earn not just the 3 imps per the usual imp table but no less than 4.7 imps! Averaged cross imps? If so how on earth can you assess Easts hand? Certainly getting nearly 5 imps are a royal prize for sure. I hadn’t expect such a reward until I typed up the score here

 

On B NS do have a major suit so if you open 1D then South might overcall, exactly as envisaged by those above. If East pass South might not open because holding the hearts but not the spades might not be attractive as mentioned- it might depend on Souths view on the spade fragment- AJ7

 

Passing out East’s hand earns 2.3 imps. East has slightly better fast defensive tricks then the East on board A but if NS are minded they can buy 2H and more depending on the defence

 

Thank you again for the advice!

[0deary]

http://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?s=SK63HJ32DKJ64CJ75&w=ST54H9654DA872CAT&n=SJ82HAK7D53CK9843&e=SAQ97HQT8DQT9CQ62&d=n&v=o&b=1

[0deary]

http://www.bridgebase.com/tools/handviewer.html?s=SAJ7HKQ942DJTCT83&w=ST2H7653D53CAQJ72&n=SKQ54HA8DQ9876C96&e=S9863HJTDAK42CK54&d=n&v=o&b=1