From: varvel@cs.utexas.edu (Donald A. Varvel)
Newsgroups: rec.games.bridge
Subject: Re: You pays your money ...
Date: 14 Sep 92 21:55:27 GMT
Organization: U Texas Dept of Computer Sciences, Austin TX
NNTP-Posting-Host: muleshoe.cs.utexas.edu

It's probably time to tell what happened in the hands I posted.

In article <1992Sep14.194709.8449@ramon.bgu.ac.il> avir@chen.bgu.ac.il (Avi Roy Shapira) writes:
>varvel@cs.utexas.edu (Donald A. Varvel) writes:
>: ... and you takes your choice.  My choices last night seemed never to
>: work out, and I certainly paid my money.

>: Both vul, second seat, IMPs, what do you open with

>: S:Kx H:x D:QJ C:AKQJxxxx?

>: If you open 1C, what do you bid over a 1D response with the opponents
>: (miraculously) silent?  If you open 2C (Gag!  4 fast losers in a minor-
>: suit hand and about one defensive trick) how do you plan to continue?
>: If you open 5C, do you expect partner to bid 6 with AK and A, hoping
>: they are the right ones?

>As usual, when Don posts a problem, you can bet it is going to be a toughy

Blush.  And Avi has some good answers.

>Frankly I don't know how to bid this hand is SA. in Blue Team Club, this is
>easy. you open 3C, which describes a solid club suit, and an outside stopper.
>I am playing a version of multi 2D which includes a strong minor suit hand.
>This is a good one for it (we require a hand with 8 playing tricks).

>If you are playing Walsh, you know that partener is unlikely to hold a 4 card
>spade suit. In this case, I think that I would open 1C, and bid 2S over 1D.
>If I play 1C-1D-1S as forcing (which makes sense playing Walsh) then I'd bid
>1S. This may work, and then again it may not.

>Finally, playing SA, I would open 1C and follow with a jump to 3C on the 2nd
>round.

All reasonable.  In a typical flight of fancy, I opened a vulnerable
5C.  Partner, with Qxx Axx AKT9x xx, wasn't quite willing to raise
to 6.  (In fact I will bid in the 5-level vulnerable strictly according
to rule-of-2-and-3, since the opponents have little alternative to
doubling me.  3 top tricks were plenty.  That didn't seem like a real
high priority in our 3-minute system discussion, though.)

At the other table, it went 1C-1D; 3NT-4NT; 6C.  3NT could have worked
out very badly.  When *I* do that partner passes and the hearts are wide
open.  The usual conventional meaning for 3NT here is a similar hand
with a stiff *diamond*.

>: At unfavorable, third seat, IMPs, partner passes and RHO opens 4C,
>: preemptive in clubs.  You hold

>: S:KQT9xxx H:Kx D:QJ9xx C:--
[Note the hand should be S:KQT9xx H:Kx D:QJ9xx C:--.  A misdeal would
have been an absolute delight.]

>: I presume you bid 4S.  LHO bids 5C and partner doubles.  Do you pull?

>Yes. I am concerned that partner may be counting on tricks from diamonds.
>Partner is unlikely to hold a club stack, so he would not have doubled with a
>spade fit. It is likely that he holds the red suit tops. If this is the case,
>by sitting for the double you are risking a double game swing. Partner could
>have, for example, something like xx, Qxxx, AKxx, xxx.
>However, it depends on the opponents style of preempts.

Opponents were preempting fairly soundly in 2nd seat.  Avi goes to the
heart of the matter.  It turned out to be a double game swing when I
passed the double.  I think it's close in any case.

>: Finally, 3rd seat nobody vul, IMPs, partner bids 4S and RHO bids 5H.
>: Things haven't been going well, but you might make up some of the
>: difference by making the right choice on this hand:

>: S:KTxx H:AJx D:QJ9x C:Qx

>: Pass, bid, or double?  Assuming you pass or double, what do you lead?

> You have 2 defensive tricks, so I think that a double is out the question
>Either bid or pass. The answer depends on your agreement concerning the 4S
>opening in first seat. Do you use 4D with a strong 4S opener?

No.  4S was not closely defined.  1st or 2nd seat I would expect it
not to include much defense.  Of course, in 2nd seat I bid 5C with
the first hand, so what do I know?

>My tendency is to pass, and lead the K of spades, expecting partner to give
>a suit preference signal.

Here are the hands, as best I can reconstruct them:
                A  Qxx  xxx  Kxxxxx
  Kxxx  AJx  QJ9x  Qx         QJTxxxxx  x  Tx  Jx
               --  KT9xxx  AKxx Axx
I passed and led a spade.  Only a diamond and diamond continuation
when in with the trump sets the contract.

By the way, from an absolute standpoint pass will always be wrong.
Either you can set 5H, and double is right, or 5S is a cheap save and
you should bid it.  I passed because I thought it might not be *far*
wrong in either case.  IMP think would have alerted me to the danger
of a double game swing.  Our teammates didn't bid over 4S.

-- Don Varvel (varvel@cs.utexas.edu)