Club News Sheet – No. 231 www.pattayabridge.com 9^th April 2007

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My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 086 6089887

It is best to use my home number to contact me unless I am at the bridge club.

Mon 2^nd 1^st N-S Paul S & Jeremy 66% 2^nd Bob & Mike 56%

1^st E-W Kjell & Tyrone 64% 2^nd Harry & Paul 61%

Wed 4^th 1^st N-S Alain & Jean-Charles 59% 2^nd Kenneth & Terry 59%

1^st E-W Janne & Lasse 57% 2^nd Arne & Oysten 57%

Fri 6^th 1^st Johannes & Jan 58% 2^nd = Janne & Lasse 55%

2^nd = Alain & Jean-Charles 55%

Bidding Quiz Standard American is assumed unless otherwise stated.

Hand A Hand B With Hand A partner opens 1♠, what do you bid?

♠ AK43 ♠ K1084 With Hand B you open 1NT and partner transfers with 2♦,

♥ Q86 ♥ AKQ what do you bid?

♦ K5 ♦ A874

♣ 8752 ♣ 64

With Hand C partner opens 1♠ and you bid 1NT. Partner

Hand C Hand D then bids 2♥, what do you do?

♠ 9 ♠ Q954 With hand D it’s unfavourable vulnerability. LHO opens

♥ Q32 ♥ 1097653 1♣ and RHO bids 1♦. (a) What do you do?

♦ A8642 ♦ A (b) Suppose you pass, LHO bids 1NT and this is passed round

♣ Q1083 ♣ A7 to you, what do you do now?

Hand E Hand F (a) What do you open with Hand E

(b) What would you open if you played Benjamin twos?

♠ AK72 ♠ A3

♥ - ♥ AKJ76 With Hand F it’s love all. Partner opens 1♠ and you respond 2♥.

♦ A103 ♦ J5 LHO bids 3♦ which partner doubles. What do you do?

♣ AKQJ54 ♣ QJ52

Hand G Hand H With Hand G partner opens 1♠ and RHO doubles. What

do you bid?

♠ QJ87 ♠ Q5

♥ J64 ♥ Q5 With Hand H it’s love all. LHO opens 1♠ and RHO bids 2♥,

♦ KQJ ♦ Q106432 what do you do?

♣ 765 ♣ A43

Hand J Hand K With Hand J partner opens 1NT, what do you bid?

♠ KJ32 ♠ K6

♥ 109842 ♥ AKJ9 With Hand K partner opens 1♦. (a) what do you bid?

♦ 2 ♦ Q8 (b) Suppose you choose 2♣ and partner raises to 3♣, what

♣ Q97 ♣ KQ762 do you bid now?

Bidding Sequences Quiz All of these sequences occurred this week

L 1♦ pass 1♥ pass (a) What is the 2♥ bid – Weak, invitational or forcing?

1NT pass 2♥ (b) How many ♥’s for the 2♥ bid?

M 1♠ pass 2♥ 3♦ (a) What is the dbl – penalties or ‘optional’?

dbl (b) Does the double show extra values?

N 1NT pass 2♣ pass What is 2♥ – weak, invitational or forcing?

2♦ pass 2♥

P 2♦ dbl 2♦ is multi, what is dbl?

Editorial

Bridge during Soncran

The Soncran days this year are Wed 18^th for Naklua and Thu 19^th for Pattaya. It is only the Pattaya day that’s a problem and as that’s a Thursday all bridge is as normal during Soncran week. On Wednesday the traffic will be OK but you may get a little wet if in a taxi or on a motorbike.

Where do the French fries go?

As some of you may have noticed, I collect all of the left-overs for my dog (please don’t throw them away, but give them to me). Cheryl noted this and said that I must have a big dog, maybe a Rottweiler? Actually, my dog out-sizes a Rottweiler by about 30% and weighs far more than me! – about 80 kilos; ask Phil if you don’t believe me. It is a huge, healthy, ginormous (I think that’s the ‘word’ Phil used) male and has an enormous appetite, eats far more than me, and simply loves fatty foods like the Tropicana French fries. I have had Great Danes and bred them for about 15 years but my current dog is the biggest I have ever had.

I have no problem with burglars/intruders.

Great Danes are fabulous dogs; they are gentle but when necessary will defend you to the death. My dog ‘Engine’ follows me wherever I go. Unfortunately my beautiful female died during her pregnancy (she had 19!! pups inside her – simply too many – her death was devastating for me) and I am currently looking for a female Great Dane (black, blue or harlequin). If anyone knows of one for sale or for breeding, please let me know. My male is a spectacular black and in his prime (ask Phil, Hugh, Sally or Jeremy who have all seen him). He is imported from the UK and now lonely and looking for a good partner (just like a number of players at the Pattaya bridge Club).

Play Roman Keycards and count 13 tricks Board 23 from Monday 2^nd

Sometimes Roman Keycards Blackwood comes in very handy even when you have no intention of playing with the key suit as trumps: -

Dealer: ♠ J Table A

South ♥ 83 West North East South

Both vul ♦ AKQJ764 - - - 1♠

♣ AQ6 pass 2♦ (1) pass 3♣

pass 4NT (2) pass 5♥ (3)

♠ K652 N ♠ Q108 pass 5NT (4) pass 6♥ (5)

♥ J9762 W E ♥ 1054 pass 6NT (6) all pass

♦ 85 S ♦ 1093

♣ 93 ♣ 10852 Table B

♠ A9763 West North East South

♥ AKQ - - - 1♠

♦ 2 pass 2♦ (1) pass 3♣

♣ KJ75 pass 4NT (2) pass 5♣ (7)

pass 5NT (8) pass 6♦ (9)

pass 7NT (10) all pass

Table A: (1) If you play traditional strong jump shifts then you can bid 3♦.

(2) This pair play Normal Blackwood.

(3) So two aces

(4) Kings?

(5) Two kings.

(6) North has no idea which king is missing and so chickened out.

Table B: (2) This pair play RKCB, so 4NT here asks for keycards with ♣’s ‘agreed’

(7) Zero or three (so two aces and the ♣K here) playing standard RKCB.

(8) Kings (excluding the ‘trump’ king).

(9) One.

(10) North does not care which major suit king is missing – he can count a minimum of 7 ♦’s, 3 ♣’s, ♥A, ♠A and whichever major king partner has, so 13 tricks off the top provided that the ♦’s run.

And what happened? Four out of seven bid 7NT, although I don’t know how many punted it. Two stopped in 6NT and one pair stopped in an ultra safe 3NT.

The bottom lines: -

- With 13 top tricks, bid 7NT.

- RKCB can often locate a key king (or queen) even if you do not want to play with that suit as trumps.

Dave’s Column Boards 11 (& 24) from Wednesday 4^th

Here is this week’s Dave input involving the best play for the contract.

♠ AK43 You play in 6♠ as South.

♥ Q86 What is the best line for making the contract?

♦ K5

♣ 8752 Answer next page.

♠ QJ1072

♥ AJ10

♦ A

♣ AK93

And what happened at Pattaya Bridge Club? The board(s) was played a total of 15 times. 6♠ was reached 10 times, 7♠ twice and 4♠ three times. Just three players bid and made 6♠.

Terry’s comments: Not everybody at the Pattaya bridge club reached 6♠; Dave’s book gives a somewhat old-fashioned way to reach 6♠; I give one auction from the club that failed and an ‘expert’ auction: -

Table A ‘Expert’ table

North(A) South North South

- 1♠ - 1♠

2♣ (1) 3♣ 4♦ (1) 6♠ (4)

4♠ (2) pass (3) all pass

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this North hand A in this week’s quiz? You have the values for 4♠ but a direct 4♠ bid is a pre-emptive bid with a weak hand and 5 ♠’s. If you do not have a more sophisticated method like Jacoby 2NT or Swiss then it’s best to start off with two of a minor …

(2) … and then jump to 4 of partner’s major – this shows a sound raise.

(3) Obviously South should bid slam but he did not understand the delayed game raise – instead he totally incorrectly criticized partner for not bidding 4♠ at (1).

(as it turned out he only made 11 tricks anyway!).

Table B: (1) Many experienced players will bid a Jacoby 2NT here and I expect that that will be a popular choice of answer to question A. But to bid Jacoby 2NT with anything from 12 points upwards is not a good idea. Our experts play Keycard Swiss with 12-15 and so 4♦ here shows 12-15 points without 2 keycards plus a feature (third keycard, singleton or trump queen).

(4) That enough for South to bid the slam and also enough information to stay out of the grand slam. He could perhaps check on keycards with 4NT just in case partner has a ♠ suit of xxxx.

The Keycard Swiss/Jacoby 2NT combination is excellent and is written up on the club web-site (Conventions > Section 3 > raising partner’s 1♥/♠ opening with a big hand).

Dave’s Column answer

An elimination and throw-in Boards 11 (& 24) from Wednesday 4^th

Dave again put two virtually identical boards in on Wednesday. West had the South hand when it was board 24. South ends up in 6♠. How do you play the hand on the ♦Q lead?

Dealer: ♠ AK43 Hint: It looks like you need the ♥ finesse but

South ♥ Q86 there is no need to rely on this immediately.

E-W vul ♦ K5

♣ 8752 Tip: In an elimination situation with trumps left

in both hands look for a suit such as AKxx

♠ 6 N ♠ 985 opposite xxxx. When you exit in the suit after

♥ K743 W E ♥ 952 taking the AK it may be that the defender with

♦ QJ1074 S ♦ 98632 the Q has to lead into your tenace or give you a

♣ Q106 ♣ J4 ruff and discard.

♠ QJ1072

♥ AJ10

♦ A

♣ AK93

Play: After winning the ♦ lead you should play 3 rounds of trumps ending in dummy. You then play the ♦K throwing a ♣ from the South hand. Then you play ♣AK and another ♣. If East wins the 3^rd ♣ or the ♣’s do not split 3-2 you will then have to take the ♥ finesse. As the cards lie West has to win the 3^rd ♣ and is end-played; having to lead away from the ♥K or concede a ruff and discard. Since you have a further discard to come on dummy’s 4^th ♣ you will make the contract.

______________________________________________________________________________

6NT making with three aces and a king off the top? Board 32 from Monday 2^nd

This result caused a great deal of comment on Monday. It was scored as 6NT doubled making for 1660 but a little detective work (consulting the score chart) indicated that the contract was actually 6♠ doubled.

Dealer: ♠ 6 Table A

West ♥ 9653 West North East South

E-W vul ♦ 962 1♠ pass 2♣ bla…(1)

♣ 98632 bla… bla… bla… bla…

6♠ pass pass dbl (2)

♠ AK109532 N ♠ QJ87 all pass

♥ KJ10 W E ♥ 4

♦ 743 S ♦ QJ (1) I don’t know the exact bidding (thus all the

♣ - ♣ KQJ1074 bla’s…) but the final contract was 6♠.

♠ 4 (2) With presumably four top tricks South

♥ AQ872 doubled. North took this as a Lightner

♦ AK1085 double and dutifully led the obvious ♣.

♣ A5

And what happened? West ruffed South’s ♣A. He then has a total of 7 ♠ tricks, 3 ♣ tricks (North has a ♣ stopper) and a couple of ♥ ruffs in dummy – so 12 tricks on a ♣ lead having drawn trumps and pitched 3 ♦’s on the ♣’s and conceded one ♥. Much the same happened at another table where the final contract was a modest 5♠ doubled plus one.

Super-accept with AKQ of trumps? Board 4 from Wednesday 4^th

My views as to whether or not to super-accept with 3 card support are stated in the No trump bidding book. I personally prefer to always have 4 trumps but accept that the view to super-accept with a maximum and just three good trumps is popular. However, I do not consider a good 16 points with three trumps (even AKQ) good enough: -

Dealer: ♠ K1084 Table A

West ♥ AKQ West North(B) East South

Both vul ♦ A874 pass 1NT pass 2♦

♣ 64 pass 3♥ (1) pass 4NT (2)

pass 5♣ (3) pass 6♥

♠ QJ9 N ♠ 76532 all pass

♥ 86 W E ♥ 97

♦ J92 S ♦ 10653 Table B

♣ AQ1032 ♣ J7 West North(B) East South

♠ A pass 1NT pass 2♦

♥ J105432 pass 2♥ (1) pass 4♥ (4)

♦ KQ all pass

♣ K985

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this North hand B in this week’s quiz? This North chose to super-accept, I prefer table B’s auction.

(2) RKCB for ♥’s.

(3) 3 key cards.

Table B: (1) With only three (good) trumps expert opinion is divided as to whether to super-accept or not. I personally only super-accept with a non-minimum and four trumps, but if I chose to super-accept with just three trumps then I would certainly need 17 points, not 16. So I agree with this 2♥ bid.

(4) With no super-accept South does not even think of slam.

And what happened? Four out of seven bid 4♥, either making or making +1. One stopped in 3♥+2 and two went one down in 6♥

The bottom lines: -

- Whether you super-accept with a maximum and just three trumps is up to partnership agreement, but if you do then it really does need to be a maximum, i.e.17 points.

- I personally prefer to guarantee 4 trumps and 16-17 points for a super-accept.

- Note that there are more sophisticated methods of super-accepting than simply jumping to three of the major. The one I recommend is in the NoTrump bidding book. I like to bid a weak doubleton – so if North chose to super-accept he would bid 3♣ and South would then know that there could well be two ♣ losers and would stop in game. South could re-transfer with 3♦ but in this case it’s best for him to protect his ♣K and bid 4♥ directly.

Beware of mis-fits Board 24 from Friday 6^th

E-W got way too high on this mis-fit when East pulled his partner’s ‘penalty’ double.

Dealer: ♠ 10842

West ♥ 983 West North East(F) South(H)

Love all ♦ 97 1♠ (1) pass 2♥ 3♦ (2)

♣ K1096 dbl (3) pass 4♣ (4) pass

4♥ (5) pass 4NT (6) pass

♠ KJ976 N ♠ A3 5♦ pass 6♥ all pass

♥ 1042 W E ♥ AKJ76

♦ AK8 S ♦ J5

♣ 87 ♣ QJ52

♠ Q5

♥ Q5

♦ Q106432

♣ A43

(1) A light opener, but with good top cards and intermediates it’s acceptable.

(2) What did you bid with this South hand H in this week’s quiz? It’s in the sandwich seat and you should pass. A 3♦ bid is far too dangerous with two unlimited opponents – you are very likely to get doubled for penalties…

(3) … penalties! West does have a fit for partner but it’s a poor one and he thought that the penalty at the three level would get the best score (he was right).

(4) What did you bid with this west hand F in this week’s quiz? This East believes that this double (sequence M) is ‘optional’ and showing a big hand – I disagree, but never mind. Even if the double is ‘optional’ then East should pass – it’s a mis-fit (partner has shown ♠’s and ♦’s and not supported ♥’s) and the opponents are doubled up at the three level.

(5) This is simple preference and would normally be just a doubleton, maybe singleton, ♥.

(6) Going slamming, on probably a 5-2 fit, is suicidal in my opinion. West’s expected shape on the bidding is 5242.

And what happened? West had one more trump than East could reasonably expect and East got a trick on the lead when a low ♦ was led and his ♦J won; but 6♥ was still one down. Amazingly, this was not a bottom as one pair went two down in 5♥ and another went two down in 4♠ by West. 4♥ making exactly was the top spot (three times) but 3♦ doubled would have gone for 500 and scored a top, as would a modest 4♥+1.

The bottom lines: -

- Sequence M is penalties.

- Do not pull partner’s penalty double when holding two trumps, good top cards, and a mis-fit.

- There is a guide as to what doubles are penalties on the web (Conventions>section 3>Double!)

- And I have just written a new page specifically on this topic – open-pass-response-overcall-double. It’s on the web (Conventions>section 2>Bidding in the Sandwich Seat).

- Don’t go slamming on a possible combined 28 points with no known fit!

- Don’t let opponents get away with ridiculous overalls at the three level.

Don’t abuse Benjamin Board 17 from Wednesday 4^th

I am a great advocate of Benjamin twos, but people always seem to want to abuse the system. We had a couple of cases in recent news-sheets and here’s another when opener should have started with a game forcing 2♦ rather than a Benjamin 2♣ and jumping to the 4 level!

Dealer: ♠ AK72 Table A

North ♥ - West North (E) East South

Love all ♦ A103 - 2♣ (1) pass 2♦ (2)

♣ AKQJ54 pass 4♣ (3) pass pass (4)

pass

♠ J109 N ♠ Q654

♥ AQ103 W E ♥ KJ94 Table B

♦ QJ65 S ♦ K984 West North (E) East South

♣ 83 ♣ 7 - 2♦ (1) pass 2♥ (5)

♠ 83 pass 3♣ (6) pass 3♥ (7)

♥ 87652 pass 3♠ (8) pass 5♣ (9)

♦ 72 pass pass (10) pass

♣ 10962

Table A: (1) What did you open with this North hand E in this week’s quiz? This is a huge hand and well worth your strongest bid. So 2♣ (standard) or 2♦ (Benjamin). This pair play Benjamin but North decided to open 2♣. It’s far too good.

(2) Automatic relay playing Benjamin.

(3) Showing 10 playing tricks in ♣’s ?! Here we see why the choice of a Benji 2♣ was wrong – North cannot sensibly get the power and shape of his hand across having failed to open 2♦.

(4) South had no idea what was going on – this Benji sequence does not exist.

Table B: (1) This pair also play Benjamin and North correctly opened 2♦.

(5) Automatic relay playing Benjamin.

(6) It’s easy now, game forcing and a level lower!

(7) South has a miserable hand but should mention his ♥’s – just imagine if North’s majors were reversed!

(8) It does no harm to mention this good suit.

(9) Fast arrival – South has zero points and does not think there is slam.

(10) With every suit controlled North could think about bidding 6♣.

And what happened? Nobody bid 6♣. 4♣ made +1 for just below average, just 4 pairs played in 5♣ and one went down in 7♣!

The bottom lines: -

- With 21 points, 10 playing tricks, and first round control in every suit, open your strongest bid.

If partner doesn’t like 1NT then he won’t like 2NT Board 14 from Wednesday 4^th

Three out of seven N-S’s got too high on this deal

Dealer: ♠ 9 Table A

East ♥ Q32 West North(C) East South

Love all ♦ A8642 - - pass 1♠

♣ Q1083 pass 1NT pass 2♥

pass 2NT (1) pass pass (2)

♠ QJ107 N ♠ 863

♥ 8654 W E ♥ J9 Table B

♦ Q10 S ♦ KJ95 West North(C) East South

♣ AK6 ♣ J75 - - pass 1♠

♠ AK542 pass 1NT pass 2♥

♥ AK107 pass pass (1) pass

♦ 73

♣ 92

Table A: (1) What did you bid with this North hand C in this week’s quiz? 2NT here is terrible. Partner has said that he does not like 1NT so he sure as hell won’t like 2NT!

(2) This happened at three! tables. One South passed and others went on to 3♥ and 3NT. All went down of course.

Table B: (1) This North got it right.

And what happened? The best spot for N-S is 2♥ and just three played there. The Moysian fit played well with South getting two ruffs in the North hand and making +1. At the other two tables it made exactly or went one down.

The bottom lines: -

- If partner does not like 1NT then he won’t like 2NT.

Too high Board 12 from Friday 6^th

All but one N-S’s bid too high on this deal

Dealer: ♠ 109642

West ♥ AK87 West North East South (G)

N-S vul ♦ A6 pass 1♠ (1) dbl (2) 2NT (3)

♣ 82 3♦ (4) 3♠ (5) pass pass

pass

♠ A5 N ♠ K3

♥ 102 W E ♥ Q953

♦ 108742 S ♦ 953

♣ QJ103 ♣ AK94

♠ QJ87

♥ J64

♦ KQJ

♣ 765

(1) A sound opener according to the rule of 20, and I agree; well I have to as I was North!

(2) I would pass, but there are a huge number of players who double ‘to show an opening hand’. Despite my continual writings, which are in accordance with every bridge book written in the last 50 years, that seems to be a popular ‘Pattaya style’.

(3) What did you bid with this South hand G in this week’s quiz? After a double 3♠ is a weak pre-emptive bid. This South chose the Jordan (or Truscott) 2NT convention – showing a sound raise to 3♠. This hand is a point short and totally flat, but with 4 good trumps I think it’s very reasonable. I prefer 2NT to the alternative of 2♠ which could be a lot weaker.

(4) With a decent hand and a 5 card suit, West reasonably bid it.

(5) North is in charge now – South has stated his hand and cannot bid again.

And what happened? This N-S pair got it spot on, but there were the usual amazing results from the Pattaya bridge club. The board was played just six times but three N-S’s overbid to 4♠ for 200 away. At the other two tables one N-S again overbid to 4♠ but E-W bid 5♣ – minus two doubled, serves them right, don’t they know about the LAW? – just 8 trumps! And at the last table it was passed out (I was North at the table given and would always open this North hand – it complies with the rule of 20 and has an easy rebid.)

The bottom lines: -

- Obey the LAW.

- If partner opens and RHO doubles, then 2NT shows a sound raise to three of opener’s suit, the Jordan (Truscott) 2NT. A direct raise to three of partner’s suit is pre-emptive.

- This Jordan/Truscott 2NT bid is conventional and must be alerted.

Garbage Stayman Board 21 from Friday 6^th

It was played 6 times, but nobody found the 4-4 ♠ fit as N-S at a sensible level on this deal!

Dealer: ♠ Q654 Table A

North ♥ Q6 West North East South (J)

N-S vul ♦ K95 - 1NT (1) pass 2♦ (2)

♣ AK64 pass 2♥ all pass

♠ A9 N ♠ 1073 Table B

♥ AKJ5 W E ♥ 73 West North East South

♦ 98743 S ♦ AQJ10 - 1♣ … ? (3)

♣ 82 ♣ J1053

♠ KJ32

♥ 109842

♦ 2

♣ Q97

Table A: (1) This pair played Precision, so 1NT was 13-15.

(2) What did you bid with this South hand J in this week’s quiz? It does not matter what range partner’s 1NT is, the best method is to bid 2♣ and then pass a major suit response from partner. If partner bids 2♦ then you bid 2♥ - weak showing 5 ♥’s and 4 ♠’s (sequence N).

Table B: I have no idea how the bidding went at the other five tables. Playing a strong NoTrump the sequence 1♣ pass 1♥ pass 1♠ pass 2♠ allpass seems fairly automatic to me, but NOBODY ended up in 2♠!

And what happened? 2NT by North -4; 4♥* by North -3; 5♠ by North -3; and 3♣* by West +1 and one other N-S in 2♥-1. So at my table we got a near bottom for defeating 2♥ when 2♠ by the opponents is cold. Sometimes I wonder if we are all playing bridge?

The bottom lines: -

- I have no idea how every N-S (except the ones way up there in 5♠) missed the 4-4 ♠ fit, can somebody enlighten me?

- Play Garbage Stayman – it’s the same if you play a strong NT or weak NT.

Balance! Board 3 from Wednesday 4th

Don’t let LHO play peacefully in 1NT when you have a 6 card major!

Dealer: ♠ 632 West North East(D) South

South ♥ Q8 - - - 1♣ (1)

E-W vul ♦ 10542 pass 1♦ (2) pass (3) 1NT

♣ K983 pass pass (4) pass (5)

♠ K107 N ♠ Q954 (1) I always open 1♣ when equal length in the minors

♥ A42 W E ♥ 1097653 (2) N-S play a short ♣ and North was unwilling

♦ QJ96 S ♦ A to pass, I agree.

♣ J52 ♣ A7 (3) What did you bid with this East hand D(a) in

♠ AJ8 this week’s quiz? It’s vulnerable in the

♥ KJ sandwich seat and I too would pass.

♦ K873 (4) 2♣ is possible now (partner must have at least

♣ Q1064 4 ♣’s) but pass is OK.

(5) What did you bid with this East hand D(b) in this week’s quiz? With both opponents limited 2♥ is very clear now. Double (showing the majors) is a less attractive but reasonable option.

And what happened? 1NT by South went just one down and the 50 for E-W was a total bottom for them, with everybody else scoring 140, 170 or more in ♥’s or ♠’s.

The bottom lines: -

- It is correct not to stick your neck out in the sandwich seat, but when it comes round to you next time as the balancing seat then you can certainly bid as both opponents are limited.

Don’t bid your hand twice Board 26 from Friday 6^th

A recurring theme – this time West at Table A bid again having pre-empted and went for 1400. Absolutely serves him right! And at Table B North got some totally unjustified stick from partner for making the totally correct response at (6). At Table C, N-S did not know what they were doing, but got a near top anyway.

Dealer: ♠ K6 Table A

East ♥ AKJ9 West North East South

both vul ♦ Q8 - - pass 1♦

♣ KQ762 2♥ (1) pass (2) pass 3♣ (3)

3♥ (4) dbl (5) all pass

♠ AQ2 N ♠ J10974

♥ Q87532 W E ♥ 104 Table B

♦ J6 S ♦ 10742 West North(K) East South

♣ 109 ♣ 43 - - pass 1♦

♠ 853 pass (1) 2♣ (6) pass 3♣

♥ 6 pass 3NT (7) all pass

♦ AK953

♣ AJ85 Table C

West North East South

- - pass pass (8)

2♦ (9) dbl (10) 2♥ (11) dbl (12)

pass pass (13) pass

Table A: (1) A weak jump overcall, most would consider this suit a bit weak when vulnerable.

(2) N-S play negative doubles, so North simply waits for partner’s ‘automatic’ re-opening double and pass that for penalties – as would I.

(3) This South decided to bid rather than double – it would not be my choice (I most certainly would double) – but it worked out well …

(4) … when West, oblivious to the fact that N-S were playing negative doubles and so North very likely had a penalty double hand, decided to bid this glorious ♥ suit again when vulnerable!

(5) Penalties!! North knows that 6♣ may well be there, but a 1400 gift scores more and is safer.

Table B: (1) This West sensibly decided to pass.

(6) What did you bid with this North hand K(a) in this week’s quiz? Most experts agree that bidding the minor (so 2♣ here) and then reversing into the major (so bid ♥’s here) is the best scheme. I totally agree and would bid 2♣. This North subsequently received some totally incorrect criticism (saying to bid 1♥) from partner for this totally correct 2♣ bid.

(7) What did you bid with this North hand K(b) in this week’s quiz? You should be thinking of a club slam. I would carry on with the original plan and reverse into 3♥ but 4NT, RKCB for ♣’s, is very reasonable. Unfortunately this North understandably wanted to protect the ♠K and bid 3NT rather than the forcing 3♥ reverse. North should be looking for slam rather than signing off in 3NT.

Table C: (8) Quite why South decided not to open is beyond me.

(9) Multi – so a weak 2♥ in this case.

(10) N-S were not a regular partnership, but ‘standard’ against a Multi is 16+.

(11) After the double East does not need to bid, but it probably makes no difference.

(12) Apparently South considered this as some sort of responsive double. I don’t see it that way and would play it as showing ♥’s.

(13)And obviously North is passing whatever.

And what happened? Just one pair (well done Alain/Jean-Charles) bid the excellent 6♣ by North, scoring 1390, but unfortunately this was not quite a top as the silly 3♥ doubled at table A went for 1400. 3NT+3 was the most popular spot but did not score well.

The bottom lines: -

- A weak 2♥, vulnerable, with ♥ Q87532, is very dangerous.

- And bidding this suit again certainly deserves an absolute bottom. One can hardly call it playing bridge and it robbed Alain/Jean-Charles of a top for bidding a fine 6♣.

- Be wary of bidding again having overcalled if the opponent’s play negative doubles.

- Shame on you (West Table A) – but no names.

- When partner opens and you have a strong hand with a 5 card minor and a 4 card major, then it’s usually best to bid the minor first and then reverse into the major.

- Note that 6♣ is cold on these N-S cards regardless of the location of the ♠A provided that North is declarer. If South had bid ♣’s first then 6♣ would hinge on the location of the ♠A, well bid the French guys.

- Responsive Doubles are described on the web (Conventions>section 3>Conventional doubles) and are only applicable when the opening and response are natural.

Bidding Quiz Answers

Hand A: 2♣. If you do not have an agreement for showing a strong raise for partner’s major then bid 2♣ and then bid at the 4 level next go; this delayed game raise is the traditional way to show a sound raise and a direct 4♠ bid is pre-emptive. If you play Jacoby 2NT then some people may prefer that, so 2NT – showing 12+ points, 4 ♠’s, and no shortage. But I personally do not like to bid Jacoby 2NT without a hand that is definitely interested in slam (so 16+) and with 12-15 points I prefer to use Keycard Swiss. So with this hand it’s 4♦, showing a sound raise with 4 card support but lacking two keycards and a feature (feature is ♠Q, singleton, or 3^rd keycard).

Hand B: 2♥, complete the transfer. Experts disagree on whether it is wise to super-accept with just three trumps, but if they do then it has to be a maximum and this hand is not maximum in my opinion.

Hand C: Pass. It’s a mis-fit so stay low, and the 4-3 (maybe 5-3) ♥ fit should play quite well anyway. 2NT is terrible and any other bid gets you way too high.

Hand D: (a) Pass. Although it’s a 6-carder this is a poor suit and bidding 1♥ (or double) is very dangerous in the sandwich seat with both opponents unlimited and you vul against not. You will always get another chance.

(b) 2♥. And here it is (your other chance). Things are totally different now with both opponents limited. With shape like this you should balance, and with a 6-card suit I prefer 2♥ to double.

Hand E: (a) 2♣. It’s 10 playing tricks and easily worth your strongest bid.

(b) 2♦. It’s 10 playing tricks and easily worth your strongest bid. 2♣ (8-9 playing tricks) is a gross underbid and you have no sensible rebid after partner’s automatic 2♦.

Hand F: Pass. Partner’s double is penalties. He did not support ♥’s and so probably has two or less and it’s a mis-fit. With nice top cards for defence and two trumps there is absolutely no reason to remove the double.

Hand G: 2NT, the Jordan 2NT convention showing a sound raise to 3♠.

Hand H: Pass. 3♦ has no pre-emptive effect whatsoever and with such a miserable suit you are very likely to get doubled for penalties.

Hand J: 2♣, Stayman. If partner bids 2♥ or 2♠ then pass and if partner bids 2♦ then bid 2♥ - showing a weak hand with 5 ♥’s and 4 ♠’s.

Hand K: (a) 2♣. With a game forcing hand it’s best to bid out the shape, so start with 2♣ with the intention of reversing into ♥’s next go – showing a good 5+ ♣’s, exactly 4 ♥’s and game forcing – perfect.

(b) 3♥. I would carry on with the plan of describing my hand. Partner may have 4 ♥’s and that may be a better slam than 6♣. 4NT (RKCB for ♣’s) is a reasonable alternative.

Bidding Sequence Quiz Answers

L 1♦ pass 1♥ pass 2♥ is weak, usually with 6 ♥’s.

1NT pass 2♥

M 1♠ pass 2♥ 3♦ Dbl is penalties.

dbl

N 1NT pass 2♣ pass 2♥ is weak, showing 5 ♥’s and 4 ♠’s.

2♦ pass 2♥

P 2♦ dbl Dbl of a multi is generally played as 16+.