Tuesday, August 2, 2022

Weekly Hand Analysis - Vic Johnson - August 8, 2022 - Slam Captain


Question:

In this example E/W have lots of points and miss the slam opportunity. Who “carries the ball”, and takes the bid up to slam?

Vic:

Assuming the hand is well defended, looks to me like EW have a Club loser & a Spade loser. That would mean they do not deserve to make slam. Anyone who does “carry the ball” to take the bid up to slam deserves to take the blame for ruining a good hand. 

The final contract of 3NT is correct. I disagree, however with East second bid of 3D. East is strong enough to make that bid, but they do not have the two-suited hand that bid implies. They actually have what is often referred to as a semi-balanced. hand.  

A more descriptive second bid for East in my opinion would be 3C which also shows a strong hand, but with a 6-card club suit. 

Over 3C, I would expect West to make the same 3NT call they made over 3D, ending the auction.


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