South
should not bid over partner’s 4Clubs because that bid should be preemptive.
Here, North is too good to preempt. North should start with 2Clubs, not 4.
Over
2Clubs, South can try 2Spades. North will bid 3Clubs. That will probably end
the auction, though an enterprising South might chance 3NT.
The purpose of the bidding is to make a JOINTLY educated
guess about the outcome of the play. That's why I always analyze the play in
some of the plausible contracts that were reached at this table or might have
been reached at other tables where they had a chance to bid and play the same
hand. A couple of bidding mistakes were made by both sides with the final
result favoring E-W based on the actual distribution of cards.
The first 2 passes (by S then W) are fine. Assuming
N-S play weak 2s, North's pass is a mistake. That hand is tailor made for a
weak 2 heart bid. Not only the suit, but the vulnerability and bidding
position. Last week we discussed preemptive judgment. In 3rd position (Partner
and RHO have passed and LHO's strength is unknown) you want to bend over
backwards to preempt, especially when not vulnerable. In this case, a 2 heart
opening creates a headache for East (That's what you hope to do with a
preempt), who should bid 3 diamonds over 2hearts. South then raises to 3
hearts. W should keep passing, so 3 hearts comes back to E who has enough
strength to bid 4 clubs, S passing happily, W corrects to 4 diamonds back
around to South who will pass or bid 4 hearts as a sacrifice or as an attempt
to push E-W higher.
Back to the actual auction, I don't quite agree with
W bidding 1 spade with that weak a hand when vulnerable. Even if partner can
supply a spade fit, E would be likely to fly past the makeable level. You
should pass for now and partner will not get excited if you get a chance to
mention spades at the 1 level.
East has a really good hand even though it is
concentrated in the minors and the long suit lacks the high honors. There are
18 high card points (HCP), though you downgrade for the singleton heart Q.
bidding only 2 diamonds over partner's 1 spade response is a mistake in that it
risks missing a game (which would be a real risk if W actually had the strength
for the 1 spade response. E should have bid 2 clubs at that point, which is
forcing and descriptive.
To summarize the end- point: The HCP are evenly
divided between the sides. E-W make 4 diamonds with any plausible play and
defense. N-S make 3 hearts with any plausible play and defense. Both sides
should bid accordingly because of their strength and distribution. E-W might
bow out early because of worry over the vulnerability. N-S might (should) bid 4
hearts if necessary because they are not vulnerable and -100 for 4 hearts
doubled is still cheaper than -130.
Answer: This hand does not
deserve to make slam. So I guess it follows that it does not deserve to be
bid/played in slam.
Ain't bridge a great game?
The goal of a preemptive bid is, while giving up some
constructive accuracy, to deprive the opponents of constructive accuracy. The
first question is whose hand is it more likely to be? There's a big difference
what your order is in the auction. If you are dealer, you know nothing but your
13 cards. What's favorable about preempting with the North hand (if they were
dealer) is that spades takes up lots of bidding room. When both opponents'
hands are potentially strong you like the odds of getting in their way,
compared with your partner being strong.
When you are in 2nd position, as in this case, you
know that your RHO has passed. LHO and partner are equally likely to have a
strong hand and by preempting you could block your side as likely as the other
side. It's a roll of the dice, but I tend to be least enthusiastic about
preempting in 2nd position. A secondary consideration in deciding on a preempt
is when your suit is a major but you also have sort of a nice holding in the
other major. Still, the powerful honor holding in spades makes a preempt more
attractive.
If I were dealer, I would preempt that hand. The
question is whether to open 3 or 4. In 3rd position I would absolutely preempt.
In 2nd or 4th position it's a close decision, but I'd be inclined to preempt.
It wouldn't surprise me if some excellent players would disagree with me about
2nd and 4th seat. I'm confident 1st and 3rd would be close to unanimous.
As the cards lie, 3 spades is the perfect contract.
If played and defended competently, it will make exactly 9 tricks, so who's to
argue with that? No better contract is available. Even though there's an 8 card
fit in both majors, spades is easier to play with these cards.
In addition to showing a strong hand, a jump shift to another suit describes a two-suited hand. The North hand is not two-suited. It is balanced. North should not "want" to jump shift to anything other than NT.
The Pass by South showed less than 6 HCPs. The 2C bid by West was apparently Michael's, promising the two majors (5 - 5). Subsequent to those two bids, North should not "want" to bid anything. What they should want to do is Pass.
The flawed 2S bid by North is a "Reverse" which does promise a strong hand (19+). But like a jump shift, a Reverse promises a two-suited hand (clubs longer than spades in this case).
I am not sure if West
intended their DBL to be for takeout (choose the major) or penalty. But East
did well to Pass, leaving the DBL in for penalty. Turns out EW deserve to take
8 tricks in spades. That would put North down three (doubled), giving EW a nice
tidy 500 point score for a board on which they could not make more than a part
score contract.
Ain't bridge a great game?
I
would open 1NT with the West hand. Yes, there are negative features:
“only” 15hcp and a fair amount in queens and jacks. But there are significant
positives as well: some 10s and 9s, and most especially a very strong 5-card
suit. That suit adds significantly to the hand’s trick-taking potential to the
point that I would value the hand at 16, not 15.
With
five spades and four hearts East can transfer to spades and then bid hearts.
That should lead to a contract of Four Spades by West, a fine contract.
Since the bidding isn't provided, I have to try some
inference. The wording of the question suggests that N-S have done some bidding
while East has passed, otherwise, it wouldn't be an overcall. The most likely
sequence before it got to West is N opening 1 club and S responding 1 spade.
This gives W an easy choice: DOUBLE. This shows both of the unbid suits. It
doesn't have to be so strong or so distributional, but it's within the meaning
of the call.
If there had been only one suit bid before it got to
West, presumably clubs or spades, there are ways to show a highly unbalanced 2-
suiter. Over 1 of a major (spades in this case) 2 spades would show hearts and
a minor, probably 5-5 or better. Over 1 of a minor (1 club in this case) 2NT
would show the 2 lower unbid suits, hearts and diamonds in this case. In either
scenario, whichever unbid suit partner chooses, W, having well over minimum
strength for the takeout double,Michaels or Unusual NT, would raise the suit
partner bid. There's no need to jump to game. A raise is plenty strong in this
case and allows for the possibility that partner has very little to contribute.
Remember that (unless partner has unusual strength and length in the suit that
was doubled for takeout, partner is forced to choose one of the suits
suggested by the call, even is the responder's best choice is a doubleton,
rarely even a singleton!
If there had been no prior bid when it was West's
turn, it would be more appropriate to open 1 diamond, then to bid and even
rebid hearts. That would show 5- 6 in hearts and diamonds as well as a
strong hand. The reason it's recommended to open 1 diamond on this hand is that
the hand is strong enough for a reverse. With a weaker hand (For example, the
same heart suit but KQJxxx in diamonds) it is best to open 1 heart to try for a
major suit fit. You aren't strong enough to keep bidding if partner gives no
encouragement.
As you can see, 4 hearts is easy to make and should
be bid by E-W, provided W bids as suggested and E understands the strength
partner is showing, as well as the fact that the partnership owns an 8 card
fit.
Vic:
No, East does not have a Stayman hand.
A typical partnership
agreement is that a Stayman bid should promise a 4-card major & at least 8
points. The East hand above has neither.
Mark:
I'm looking for a nice way to say this. It looks like South
was having a long snooze. To begin with, South needs to open the bidding at the
first chance. Yes, the minor suit queens are downgradable, but having a 4
card spade suit upgrades the hand a bit and the heart queen isn't a deficit
along with the ace. If the ace of hearts was hidden, South should still bid,
though now he thinks he has only a doubleton. If South forgot to open and hears
partner open, this would not be a time to make a highly invitational bid
or explore for a fit in a suit other than hearts. You just bid 4 hearts
right now, knowing that you have the combined points to belong in game and
partner would pass if they opened with a minimum. North could have easily had
20 points and 6 or 7 hearts to open 1 heart. The hand would have been cold for
a slam, maybe a grand slam and here you are in 1 heart.
You asked what the bidding should have been. Here it is:
With E-W passing throughout, South opens 1 club north responds 1 heart, South
bids (up the line) 1 spade.
Now, North has a choice. The one bid that North
should not make is 2 hearts. That shows 5 or 6 hearts, but a minimum original
response, not a hand that is either interested or insistent on game. North
could bid 3 hearts, highly invitational and suggesting a 6 card suit and that
should propel them to game. South will surely bid 4 hearts at this point. In
expert circles North bids 2 diamonds over 1 spade. That is the 4th suit and is
forcing beyond the level of 2 spades, usually forcing to game, but expresses
uncertainty about suit vs. NT. South now bids 2 hearts over 2 diamonds, showing
3 card support (South didn't raise hearts initially, so he denied having 4.)
In any event, all reasonable auctions and even
some not so reasonable should land in 4 hearts.
At first, it may look like there could be a slam,
since there's only one loser. However, to make a small slam you not only need
to have no more than one loser, you need to have 12 winners. If E-W defend
patiently. and make no major mistakes, 12 winners will not materialize. Even
with the friendly break in trumps, even 11 tricks could be too much of a
challenge. However, 10 tricks is a pretty safe goal on the actual deal.
Vic:
No, North should not have
bid 2D. Their 1NT bid was appropriate.
Turns out NS deserve to make either 1C or 1D. Their EW opponents deserve to make 1NT or 2S or 3H.
Holding the East hand, l would have overcalled 1S. Wonder where the auction would have gone from there?
Ain't bridge a great game?
Rich:
The
short answer is no. North and South both have balanced or semi-balanced
distribution. They have a combined 33 hcp. Those factors justify bidding to
6NT, but not 7NT. In the absence of a long, running suit, the partnership
should not bid 7NT without at least 37 hcp.
Note
that the hand makes 7NT only because of the highly favorable diamond position
(queen-third on side).
I would recommend against bidding these cards to the 7 Clubs
also. Notice, however, that 7 Clubs has a significantly better chance than 7
NT. That’s because with clubs as trump, the diamond suit can be established
with the aid of a ruff whenever either opponent has queen-third.
Mark:
First let's go back to the first round of bidding after
North bid a normal, routine 1 diamond. E has a hard decision. Nothing quite
fits as a description of this hand. A suit overcall generally requires a 5 card
suit. A double of an opening in 1 of a minor doesn't guarantee 4 card support
for both majors, but implies at least tolerance for both, not a
singleton. What would double, as on the actual hand, followed by a bid of
spades. The spade bid wouldn't be a cue bid in this auction, it would promise a
5 card or longer spade suit with a hand too strong for a simple overcall.
The best course of action by E after 1 diamond by N, is to pass! At least 90% of strong players would choose that.
If E passes, most South players would drive to game looking at an opening hand (yes, a minimum opener) opposite an opening hand (Also a minimum) N-S are likely to end in 3NT with virtually no chance to make it. If they do make it, it would be due to a defensive error or two, coupled with good guessing after E gives away valuable information with a painfully slow pass.
When E does make the ill-
advised double, South should pounce and make them pay dearly. With 10 or more
points, South should redouble. Where can E-W find shelter? W will surely bid
hearts. Every possible E-W contract should be doubled and set multiple tricks.
Given that N-S can't make game, even +300 will be a terrific score. .
Given the vulnerability, I can understand an aggressive South player might
worry that with a likely vulnerable game, setting the opponents non- vul may
not be enough.
In summary, when you have a really nice hand and an
opponent bids one of your excellent suits, don't be afraid to pass.
When your partner opens the bidding, you have a nice hand and your right
hand opponent enters the auction, look for a possible lucrative penalty. Don't
hesitate to double and keep doubling if they run.
Yes, East should overcall
with either a TO DBL or a bid of 1H.
Problem (Takeout Double): A TO DBL by East does show their opening hand. But it also promises "tolerance" in the unbid suits. It would be hard to argue that East's spade suit meets a reasonable definition of tolerance. Especially given that they are vulnerable, East should be very nervous about making a TO DBL & hearing a spade response from West.
Given that North showed an opening hand, East knows that Responder (South) & Advancer (West) have roughly 13 HCPs between the two of them. More likely than not, those 13 HCPs are split fairly evenly. I think my choice holding the East hand would have been to Double & hope the suit West bids is a long one (especially if that suit happens to be spades). My plan would be to Pass whatever West bids.
All bridge players know it is
not always possible to tell partner the absolute truth. Some lies, however, are
better or worse than others. The two lies that tend to cause the most regrets
are undervaluing or overvaluing your hand.
Ain't bridge a great game?
Yes,
North’s opening bid should be 1NT. I recommend 1NT for almost every hand that
has 15-17 hcp and balanced or semi-balanced distribution. In particular, it is
not necessary to have a stopper in every suit.
When your side opens 1NT two things happen. One, the rest of
your auction is on a solid foundation because the opening bid is narrowly
defined. Two, opponents have a hard time competing: the one-level is used up
and competing against 1NT is dangerous.
This is an interesting question. Most players who are likely
to read this are still building skills in straightforward, constructive
bidding. The East hand isn't strong enough to make a free bid that suggests
competing to a higher level at that vulnerability. With limited strength and
(minimally) decent support for partner's overcall suit, 3 diamonds is a good
bid. High level players visualize the further auction as well as the play of
the hand. In a high level game, everyone at the table anticipates that N-S will
end in 3 or 4 hearts and that it's unlikely E-W can afford to push higher than
3 hearts. In that case, East can afford to bid 2 spades to set up the best
defense against a heart contract. East would know that West will not be carried
away, because there just aren't 50 points in the deck.
On the actual hand it probably doesn't matter. 3 hearts will
be bid as expected and will fail by a trick, which is better than allowing 3
diamonds to play. 3 diamonds will be made at 99% of tables with human and
probably robot defenders, even though the "double dummy" limit is 8
tricks. Why? Because to achieve holding E-W to 8 tricks, South has to be on
lead at trick 2 after N leads a trump and South must find a club shift.
Otherwise, 1 of the 2 club losers in the West will disappear on the third
spade. Unless N and South are each a 7th son of a 7th son, the defense to
prevent 3 diamonds from making will not be found. Note that 3 diamonds is
surely going to make, but not 3 spades, even with the friendly 3-3 split. There
is no parking spot for a club loser and no avoiding the losers in hearts and
diamonds. E-W have to settle for +50 (or +100 if they like to live
dangerously.) Needless to say, any E-W or N-S that are allowed to score +110
will get a great match point result. Both sides need to show some gumption to
prevent that.
The correct interpretation of DBL by East on their first chance would be "Takeout" DBL, promising an opening hand plus "tolerance" in the three unbid suits (especially the two majors). East has the opening hand, but lacks "tolerance" in hearts by any stretch of the imagination.
So no, clearly East should
not double on their first chance to call. Especially, they should not
double on their first chance to call, expecting West to read their mind
& interpret it as a "Penalty" DBL.
Rich:
North
opens one spade. South bids two hearts, game-forcing with five or more hearts.
North jump rebids to three spades, forcing and showing a spade suit that will
be good as trump opposite a small singleton.
South
should now realize he has strong slam potential. Qx of spades is excellent
support on this auction. Plus South has excellent controls for slam: AK of
Clubs and A of hearts. Start cue bidding controls with 4C, the cheapest cue bid
available. North should realize this is a cue bid with spades agreed as trump,
for South should not be proposing clubs as trump when North has promised a
self-sufficient spade suit.
North
now cue bids 4D and South cue bids the A of hearts.
North now can bid 5H to promise the king, a critical card because it helps set
up partner’s heart suit.
North-South
now know they have an excellent play for at least Six Spades.
South
should not sign off too quickly. Partner still doesn’t know about the king of
clubs or queen of spades..
The
bidding goes to six, or even seven, spades.
The
answer is highly dependent on the E-W agreement about the meaning of 2 clubs
and of 2 NT. Most experienced tournament players play 2 clubs as showing an
excellent raise, inviting game but not forcing to game. If that is the
agreement, then 2NT shows a hand slightly better than an absolute minimum,
maybe a nice 14 or 15. East could gamble that there will be 6 club tricks and
another 3 for 3NT, but the hand is really minimum. The actual pass is
reasonable, but 3 clubs, showing a minimum and a 6 card suit fits the hand
perfectly. This gives W a chance to correct the prior mistake and bid 3NT. West
should jump to 3NT over 2 clubs even if the original 2 clubs wasn’t a game
invitation.
This
hand highlights 2 important principles. First that partners should have
agreements clear to both about the meaning of very common bids. Second, that
having made a bid, if you get a chance to make a second bid, ask yourself if
you described your hand fully the first time. If yes, did partner make a
forcing bid? If partner didn’t force you, pass. If you are obliged to bid with
nothing beyond what you said’ make the cheapest non-committal bid, careful that
you don’t make a bid that partner will interpret as forcing or invitational.
Players who master the dance of inviting, forcing, declining, describing and
deciding, each when appropriate, can be considered solid A players. Many Life
Masters and beyond haven’t quite reached that level of the game. Don’t be
discouraged if you are still working on it.
In Bridge when is the Rule of 11 Applicable?
Vic:
Absolutely, East should Pass.
West, by the way, was wrong to rebid their hearts which promised partner a six-card suit. As a result of that unfortunate decision, West found themself at the two level, outnumbered in trump by their opponents. They deserved to be down one.
The proper second call for West was 1NT, which East should also Pass. Playing in no trump, EW deserve to take eight tricks. But the blame for not finding a no trump contract falls on West (not East).
Ain't bridge a great game?
Mark:
I
think North was slightly cautious, but bid very reasonably. The 2 spade bid was
not forcing and suggested 6 spades but didn’t necessarily promise it. South is
forced to bid over 2 diamonds and might not have a better option. I think South
was much too cautious to bid only 2 spades. In an expert game there would not
be any votes for 2 spades. I’d expect the votes/bids to be split between 3
spades and 4, over 2 diamonds and 100% would go to 4 on the actual
auction. That’s a 7 card suit headed by AK, a powerful suit that should be re-
evaluated positively after partner bid 2 diamonds and S has a King. 3 spades
was a voluntary invitation and South should be quick to make amends for
underbidding on the previous round.
Vic:
On the Convention Card, 3C is
referred to as a "Double Raise" (not a Jump Raise). It can be
marked as "Forcing" or "Invitational" or
"Weak". So I am not sure what EW mean by "strong".
The most common agreement, by far, for a Double Raise (not in competition) is "Invitational" (10-12 Pts).
Partners can agree that a jump to a different suit (Jump Shift) by Responder (West), is either "Weak" or "Not Weak". In Competition the common agreement is Weak (no alert required if that is how you play it). Not in Competition the common agreement is Not Weak (must be alerted if played as Weak).
Weak or Not Weak, a Jump Shift by Responder promises a 5-card suit. West does not have a 5-card suit other than clubs. A Jump Shift would consequently be dangerously misleading.
My first choice of calls holding the West hand would be 3NT. That would be after taking a deep breath & hoping that either Opener had a heart stopper or that hearts would not be led.
West knows the partnership should have more than enough points for game. Giving East a bid they can Pass is a shame. And that is exactly what East did. Holding the East hand, I would also have passed 3C.
Turns out EW deserve to
make 5NT. They can also make 5C or 4S.
Rich:
Occasionally
it’s alright to overcall at the one level on a four-card suit. All the
following conditions should be met:
1.
The overcaller’s hand has opening strength or better (12+ hcp and 2+quick
tricks);
2.
The overcall suit is “chunky “, approximately KQTx or better;
3.
Overcaller has length (four or more) in the suit opened on the right.
The reason for this third condition may not be immediately
apparent. It’s this: partner may well raise with three-card support. When the
opponents lead opener’s suit you want to ruff in the hand with three trumps so
as to maintain trump control. In other words, you want partner to be short in
opener’s suit. The odds strongly favor that when you have length in that suit.
When you go to a beginning bridge class, one of the terms you encounter is either vulnerable or vulnerability. Vulnerable means susceptible to harm and you wonder what this has to do with bridge. You later find out vulnerability involves scoring dependent on the hand and the number of tricks taken. You wonder who ever invented this? Which of these people are responsible?
.In 1925, while on board SS Finland, he originated changes to the scoring system through which the game of contract bridge supplanted auction bridge in popularity. Three years later he endowed the Vanderbilt Cup awarded to the winners of the North American team-of-four championship (now the Vanderbilt Knockout Teams, or simply "the Vanderbilt", one of the North American Bridge Championships marquee events). In 1932 and again in 1940 he was part of a team that won his own trophy; it remains one of the most prized in the game. Vanderbilt also donated the World Bridge Federation Vanderbilt Trophy, awarded from 1960 to 2004 to the winner of the open category at the quadrennial World Team Olympiad, and since 2008 to the winner of the corresponding event at the World Mind Sports Games.
Vanderbilt invented the first strong club system, which he called the "Club Convention" but which has since become more usually known as the Vanderbilt Club. The strong club, or forcing club, family of bidding systems has performed exceptionally well in world championship play. He wrote four books on the subject.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Stirling_Vanderbilt
Mark:
The quick and simple answer to the question is NO! Why, you ask? 2 spades looks very likely to make, possibly with an overtrick or 2, depending on the efficiency of the defense. It's easy to know that if E-W can see each other's hands, or have some improper way to communicate their holdings. Assuming everyone is being ethical and playing within the rules, East should be too occupied with praying that partner doesn't re- open with a 2 heart bid to be looking for a good contract in spades or diamonds.
What to
do if partner does re- open with 2 hearts? Now it's a tossup between passing
and bidding 2 spades. I agree with West's pass of 1NT. It looks risky to re-
open opposite a passed partner. Remember that 2 spades by East directly over
1NT, is constructive and, in many partnerships, forcing at least 1 round. It
might propel E-W to 4 spades, which is likely to be set.
Most less than expert bridge players are familiar
with basic strategy of casino Blackjack. Do you "take a hit" if you
are dealt 18? What if you stand pat and see that the next card turned up is a
3? Does that mean you made a mistake by not taking the hit? The best question
is what to do if faced with the same choice 10 times? If you take the hit and
make similarly risky decisions, you will lose a lot of money while scoring the
occasional brief gain. This is one of those times when East has an
"opportunity" to make a winning but ill- advised bid. If W bids 2
hearts when 1NT comes back, that bid is also ill- advised, but becomes a winner
if E now escapes to 2 spades (Also not necessarily a wise bid, but happens to
be successful). The actual auction is what I would expect at a table with all
"A" players. Good going, you 4! E has to choose a lead against 1 NT.
It looks like a tossup. Some players would be a little reluctant to lead away
from that spade holding, but most "A" players would lead it. Other
things being equal, if the opponents have bid NT and made no attempt at finding
a major suit fit, they might have a hidden minor suit fit that you could be
helping them develop, but they are much less likely to have such a major suit
fit. After a spade lead, 1NT probably goes set, but after a 4th best diamond, N
might make an overtrick. It's a difficult hand to predict with a lot to think
about for everyone, depending on the contract.
Answer: It depends.
Hard to bid these hands to slam with only 26 combined high
card points. The perfect fit makes 6Hearts a reasonable contract, but even that
is in jeopardy after a club opening lead, needing declarer to pick up the Queen
of Hearts. That works here. Stretching to bid slams like this one is a losing
proposition in the long run at match points.
I can't blame anyone in this case. The hands fit magically,
and I don't think there's a legitimate way to discover that in a standard
auction. The hands have a combined 22 high card points. In a mostly A level
game, I expect that slightly more than half N-S pairs will get to 4 hearts.
Among those pairs that do reach the game, it will be South, re- evaluating the
hand as being worth an opening bid opposite a six card heart suit. I would bid
4 hearts directly over my partner's 2 heart re-bid, but not with absolute
confidence. You can't expect North to bid again. South's 3 hearts, which is conservative
but reasonable, asks North if they have anything extra beyond what has already
been said. The answer is: Nothing significantly extra.
Now remember, the bidding is only an estimate of what
will happen in the play. If you look at only the N-S hands, not knowing how any
suits are divided or cards located in E-W, 4 hearts is a little better than
50%. Hearts and/or diamonds could break 4:1( about 50% combined), which would
put 4 hearts in jeopardy. As it happens on the actual deal, East has no
damaging lead to make and would be very unlikely to prevent N from taking 11
tricks. To hold the hand to 10 tricks, E must underlead the ace of clubs and W
must return a spade to establish a spade trick. If E-W found that defense, they
would be suspected of being totally clueless or cheating.
Answer: NO!
Common advice from the experts urges caution with respect to two level overcalls, especially against experienced opponents eager to collect big scores via penalty doubles.
Ideally, two level overcalls should reflect a strong 6-card suit. If only 5-cards, the suit should be especially solid. Given the three small spot cards, that is not true of the West hand.
Given that they are not Vulnerable & already a passed hand, a frisky West might consider a Takeout DBL on their second chance to call. That creates two chances to find a golden fit with partner. Turns out EW deserve to make 4S.
North/South deserve to make game in clubs & dropped the ball big time by not bidding it.
Ain't bridge a great game?
Rich:
Generally,
avoid preempts in first chair unless the hand is close to ideal. That rule
applies even more so in the second seat. The reason is that your partner may
have a good hand. Your preempt may interfere more with partner than with the
opponents.
Here, the North hand is basically a textbook example of a
four-level preempt .I agree with 4C with this hand.
Should N jump to 3C (or 2 NT) instead of bidding 2C?
Mark:
Strong jump shifts have fallen out of favor, in my opinion
for very good reasons. When one partner opens the bidding and the other has a
hand good for a traditional jump shift, there's usually a good slam to be
bid, as here. The jump takes up lots of bidding room and takes away space for a
highly descriptive auction. This hand is a perfect case for the "2/1"
system. If N-S are playing this, the original 2 club response means the
partnership is forced to game and slow, descriptive bidding can lead to slam. North was much too conservative anyway. Most experienced players would look at the
North hand, "hear" partner open 1 spade and make sure of getting to
slam. Even a slam invitation is not enough this time. North should re- assess
this hand with 18 HCP and realize it becomes at least a 21 point hand in
support of a known 5 card spade suit. The 4 spade bid was a closeout, not even
inviting a slam. ^ spades directly would be a better bid.
For experts, the challenge of this hand is to get to
the excellent grand slam. In a very high level game, 6 spades making 7 would be
well below average. The magical 2 suited fit means that not only 7 spades, but
7NT has a 90% or better chance of making. (7 clubs as well) Only
experts are likely to have the bidding tools to get there with full confidence,
especially the NT. In duplicate, 6 NT making 7 would score above average,
because more than half the field will be in 6 spades only.
Here's how the expert auction would go, assuming they play "2/1": 1S - 2C as was done here. Now South, with 3 clubs to the Q supports by bidding 3 clubs. There's no worry about being dropped at 3 clubs. Remember that both partners are committed not to stop below game.
This is too
complicated for the majority of regular bridge players. Just remember that when
you hold a rock of a hand like North in this case, don't try to describe
the hand to partner and expect partner to make the decision. The stronger, more
complex hand is typically the one that should be the decider, as is the case
here.
Question: The 2nd bid by West is probably wrong because there are only 5 spades instead of 6. West knows E/W has enough points for game. Should West just bid 3NT as the second bid because West does not have a second suit to determine whether East has Spades to support the Jacoby spade transfer?
Vic:
Yes, you are exactly right. The second bid by West should be 3NT. If East has more than two spades, they can correct to 4S (if they wish to do so).
Holding only 8-9 points
(enough to only "invite" game), the second bid by West should be 2NT.
If East does not want to go to game, but has more than two spades, they can
correct to 3S (if they wish to do so).
In the Standard American Bridge Bidding System which of the following is not forcing? Forcing means the opener or responder must bid for their next bid.
Answer:
This is a case where if you look at just the N-S cards, you'd see 23 high card points, a nice 8 card fit in hearts and some mostly favorable distribution for a suit contract. North has a powerful hand and is likely to go to game if South shows any signs of life. After the very normal 3 passes North opens the very normal 1 heart. I hope no one would consider that hand worth a strong 2 bid. East could consider a takeout double, which TENDS to promise 4 spades in this situation, but not every time. With an imperfect hand for the double, E should at least be closer to a full opening bid when holding only 3 spades, so I agree with no double. Another option for E, if you are a compulsive non- passer, is 1NT by a passed hand, which suggests wanting to compete with a minor 2- suiter. That would lead to E-W buying the contract at 3 diamonds (probably making 3) or N-S getting too high.
If I'm East on this hand, I'd be headed for a below average result, because I would do what most people would do and pass 1 heart. Most players will stretch to open in 3rd seat. When my partner fails to open in 3rd seat, it's probable the opponents have the balance of strength and I'll just help them with information on how to play the hand. remember that I don't know at that point that South is intending to pass 1heart.
So, at my table 1 heart becomes the final contract, probably making 2
for 110 and a good N-S result. The actual bid of 2 clubs probably results in
down 2, -100, which isn't great, but still better than -110. The upside of the
2 club bid is that if South is a compulsive non- passer and raises to 2 hearts,
N probably jumps to game and EW will go plus even if they don't find the best
defense. I expect N-S +110 mor 140 is fairly common and the 2 club bid,
which I disagree with, is rewarded by the luck of the deal. Had I made
what I consider the 2nd best call for East (pass being my 1st choice), namely
1NT after North's 1 heart, we'd be on the road to a very good result, at least
some sort of plus.
