Exercises: It’s Your Call – Page 2

Category Archives: Exercises: It’s Your Call

It’s your call

Posted on February 1, 2021 by Harry • 0 comment

I had the misfortune of playing against South on this hand. South did a better job of bidding than the other South’s in a BBO pairs game. Here is the hand:

What would you bid in 2nd seat after East passed? Scroll down if you would like to see my recommended bid.

You have a rock crusher — 8 and 1/2 tricks in hearts plus 17 high card points. Bergen would value the hand at 19+ starting points. But be careful. You don’t have a hand that justifies a strong 2 clubs opening bid. For that you need 9+ tricks in your hand. Open the hand one heart, planning to not to fall in love with it should your partner be weak. Most pairs overbid in the game I was in.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Plan your rebid, Points Schmoints

Sacrifice at Favorable Vulnerability?

Posted on November 24, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

You are not vulnerable versus vulnerable opponents. How would you bid this hand?

Partner passed and RHO opened one spade. Now is a good time to preempt with three hearts.

LHO then bid four spades, passed back to you. What now? Is it worth trying to boost the opponents to five spades? If they can make four spades you will be minus 620. If you can hold a doubled five hearts contract to down 3, you will be minus only 500.

South did indeed bid five hearts when I observed the hand. She went down two doubled for minus 300. But it was a phantom sacrifice. NS could not make four spades.

South should be warned away from competing further. Those ugly doubletons are not features. The initial preempt already did its job, making the auction difficult for EW.

Thanks to Kathie Dunn for suggesting this post.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Preempts, Sacrifice

Captain of the Hand

Posted on November 21, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Your partner opens 1NT in second seat (15-17 HCP). You correctly respond two hearts, transfering partner to spades. Here is your hand:

Your partner accepts the transfer by jumping to three spades. What do you do now?

Partner has shown four plus spades and top value for her opening bid. You are captain of the hand when partner opens 1NT. Your hand is to good to stop at game. I recommend you jump to six spades. No point in giving opponents and clues about what is going on.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Bidding Exercise

It’s Your Call

Posted on June 13, 2020 by Harry • 1 comment

You hold this hand in second seat (favorable vulnerability):

Your right-hand opponent opens the bidding one diamond. You pass with your ugly hand. Left-hand opponent responds one heart. Now your partner comes in with a preemptive overcall of two spades. Right-hand opponent doubles to show exactly three hearts. Summary of the auction so far:

*Support double showing exactly three hearts.

You know that partner is weak and opponents have game and possibly slam.

It’s your call. What do you do now? Let me know what you think in the comments.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Preempts, support doubles, Visualizing the Opponents' Hands, Weak Twos

A Bidding Judgment Problem

Posted on May 29, 2020 by Harry • 3 comments

See update below

Here is a bidding problem that I got wrong recently:

What would you do after the auction shown? I failed to exercise my visualization skill. What is partner doing? Why is she bidding hearts after making the negative double? How big is her hand? Can you you make a better decision than I did? Let me know in the comments.

Update 6/2/2020:

Partner would have responded 3 hearts rather than making the negative double at her 1st turn. The negative double should have told me she is near to a game forcing hand or better. The three heart bid at 2nd turn suggests she has game forcing values and is looking for me to bid 3NT with a club stopper. Having none, I should bid out my pattern by making the rebid of four diamonds. Parter’s strengh must be in diamonds and hearts, and she she should have fewer than three spades with an honor. Here is the entire hand:

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Negative Double, Plan your rebid, Visualizing the Opponents' Hands

Invitation

Posted on May 20, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Takeout Double, Weak Twos

Accept the Invitation?

Posted on May 18, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Invitational Hand

What’s your rebid?

Posted on May 18, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

*See Marty Bergen’s latest article on page 53 of this month’s Bridge Bulletin: “Secrets of accurate hand evaluation – part 10”. I recommend that you read all articles in his series on hand evaluation.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Plan your rebid, Points Schmoints, Rule of 20

The Sometimes Curse of 3NT

Posted on May 13, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

We are always reluctant to go past 3NT in the bidding, particularly when rebidding a minor suit after partner bids of 3NT. Here is a hand I held as South recently where I faced that dilemma:

My hand values at 20 points after partner rebids her clubs (the club queen will fill in her suit). I jump to three diamonds at my second turn, forcing to game and showing slam interest. Do you agree with my action so far? What would you do after partner bids 3NT?

I chose to pass. That was a mistake in retrospect. By rebidding four diamonds, we can reach a minor suit slam in diamonds or clubs. My hand to too unbalanced to sit for 3NT.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call, Interesting Hands | Tags: Plan your rebid, slam bidding, Unbalanced Hands

It’s Your Call

Posted on May 10, 2020 by Harry • 2 comments

What would you say and why?

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call

Game or Slam?

Posted on April 10, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

You are in 2^nd seat holding this fabulous hand.

Counting 9+ tricks, you open two clubs. Partner responds two diamonds, waiting. Your rebid is two spades, and partner raises you to three spades. How do you interpret partner’s bid and what is your next call?

Note that partner did not go right to game as she might have done with a minimum hand and spade support (known as “fast arrival”). She is suggesting your side may have potential beyond game. With that in mind, cue bid four clubs to show 1^st round control.

Good news: Partner cooperates further by cue bidding four hearts, showing 1^st round control of hearts and denying 1^st round control of diamonds. Now you should jump to six spades, knowing you have a good play for the slam.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Cue Bids, Fast arrival, slam bidding

Overcall?

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Your right-hand opponent opens the bidding one diamond, and you must decide what to do with this nice hand (none vul):

Your hand seems too good to pass. An overcall of 1NT seems to be out of the question absent a stopper in diamonds. A takeout double might work, since you have tolerance for the majors. But partner will think you have four hearts. Keep in mind that partner and left-hand opponent likely have no more than 11 points between them.

How about overcalling one spade with that powerful 4-card suit? That gets you into the auction with little risk. It also gives partner encouragement to lead a spade if LHO gets the contract.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Overcalls, Takeout Double, Visualizing the Opponents' Hands

Planning your Rebid

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Here is a common situation. You have a minimum opening hand, so you must plan a rebid that does not get the auction too high should partner respond one spade.

I recommend opening one diamond, planning to make a comfortable rebid of two clubs. That distorts partner’s image of your shape, but she will clearly know that your opening bid was minimum.

You may want to change that plan if opponents interfere. For example, say your left-hand opponent overcalls one heart, and your partner responds one spade. Since your partner did not make a negative double, you know she has at least five spades (double would promise exactly four spades). In that situation I recommend you switch your rebid to 1NT. Partner will know that you have fewer than three spades. And even though your spade is singleton, it sure is a nice one!

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Negative Double, Plan your rebid

Rebid Dilemma

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

I was too cautious and we missed our game.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Plan your rebid

What’ Your Call?

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Partner’s double is for penalty, so don’t worry about your crummy hand. Partner knows its crummy. See my last post on this situation here.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Penalty Double

Your Call with this Nice Hand?

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

Make sure you discuss this situation with partner when filling out your convention card. Here is what that portion of convention card looks like:

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Penalty Double

Eye Opening Slam Bidding

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

I discovered new slam bidding insights when kibitzing this hand recently on BBO. East-West were world-class players Robert Levin and Geoff Hampson.

East forced to game in spades with his Jacoby 2NT response. His hand was too good to make a splinter response of four clubs.

When East next asked about kings, West denied having any by jumping to six spades (East already knew about the king of spades from the RKCB inquiry). Eye opening slam bidding by EW.

*25 Conventions You Should Know by Barbara Seagram and Marc Smith, p. 86. Entire book is highly recommend: https://www.amazon.com/Bridge-Conventions-You-Should-Know/dp/189415407X

FYI nicesummary of RKCB http://web2.acbl.org/documentLibrary/play/Commonly_Used_Conventions/romankeycard.pdf

Levin also demonstrated how to play this well-bid hand. Here is his puzzle for you: How did Levin hold his heart losers to one after lead of a low diamond by North? I will get to that tomorrow.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Cue Bids, Jacoby 2NT, Roman Keycard Blackwood, slam bidding, splinters

Quote of the Day

Posted on March 25, 2020 by Harry • 0 comment

The control-showing cuebid was the single most significant advance in bidding theory ever made, and is far more useful for accurate slam bidding than Blackwood* can ever be.

*I would add Roman Keycard Blackwood as well.

This is from 25 Conventions You Should Know by Barbara Seagram and Marc Smith. Use cuebids whenever possible.

Category: Exercises: It's Your Call | Tags: Cue Bids, slam bidding