Alright another slam hand we and myrmidon screwed up

All white imps

Myrmidons hand
AKQ53
AQJ86
T4
Q

My hand
J42
K
A95
AKJ754

Myrmidon dealing. The bidding this time went

1S-4H-4S-pass

Should myr go on, or should I pick a better bid?

diamonds are broken imo?

fixed imo

Myrm's hand is so strong -- four losers -- that once he hears you have game-forcing strength and spade support, he should drive to slam, even though the actual fit isn't great.

However, I do not like the splinter bid at all -- it should promise four-card support, and should be avoided with a stiff honor if you have a better bid (and you do, in 2C). This is not like the recent hand in which I said responder's first job was to support opener's suit, because in that hand responder had four-card support. Responder's fourth trump (which is usually the partnership's ninth, and sometimes the tenth) is huge for slam purposes.

Possible auction:

1S -2C;
3H(arguable, but the club queen is very valuable now) - 3S (establishing trump at a low level, in part to establish a key card suit, as slam is now very likely);
4C - 4NT (RKC for spades, though it could be played as six-ace blackwood, including clubs);
5D (or whatever you use to show three keys) - 5H (queen ask)
5NT (spade Q, no kings, non-terrible hand in context) - and now responder has a puzzle. Jumping to 7NT is right in theory, but tough to find at the table. (7S might make more sense if opener would make his 4C bid with shortness -- but he shouldn't, so he really he has to have almost exactly the actual hand; responder can then count twelve top tricks, and the thirteenth could be the heart queen, or either black suit breaking)

If you're doubtful about the jump to seven, construct a hand that would bid as shown but with which neither grand is good. The question is not whether to go to seven, it's what strain to play in.


After the actual splinter, it should go:

1S - 4H (heart shortness, spade support);
5C (first or second round control) - 5D (same);
now opener's bid is tough, as he has no obvious way to investigate a grand. Maybe 6H (analogous to last train, but for the grand). Maybe just 6S (an underbid, but only just). Not clear how to get safely beyond 6.

So, it's all right to bid 5C or 5D with a second-round control?

I had been under the impression that any cuebid above game showed a first-round control.

Nothing is absolute with control-bidding. In this case, I think it's the best bid, because there is so much extra strength floating around that it's a reasonable thing to do. If there were an alternative, I'd choose it. For example, if the splinter had been in diamonds, a 4H bid wouldn't have to be an actual control -- it could be, by agreement or just for lack of anything better to do, something called a "last train" bid: a generic slam try, trying to stay below game (ostensibly) but interstested in bigger things.

Here, with partner splintering in hearts and opener holding so much strength, it's likely that the partnership has enough tricks -- you're more worried about two quick diamond losers than anything else, so in effect a 5C bid is a question about diamonds.

Also, there's little danger because in theory the splinterer, haing already described his hand, will not be taking control -- so again, this argues for considering 5C a question, not an answer (so the lie really isn't one). (Note this points up another problem with the splinter bid -- the hand is a little too strong for it; most of the time you'd want to have a maximum of around 15 HCP, or a super-strong hand that would drive to slam even over a signoff.)

However, in the auction in which responder bid 2C, a 5C bid would have to be a real (usually first round) control, and even the 4C bid is a stretch (and would almost never be made on simple shortness). That auction is a two-way conversation, so more care needs to be exercised. But again, the hand has lots of stuff but no obviously better bid.

The really good news? This will very rarely come up.

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If I thought I couldn't bid 5C in the splinter auction as opener, I'd probably just jump to slam.

Hey guys,l this thread inspired me to play a few hands at Bridge Base Online. I used to be a bridge obsessive when I was younger and got to a decent level, but haven'tt played properly for about 10 years.

Really enjoyed playing again, so thanks for this thread.

Any tips for getting teh best out of BBO? Are there any tournies you can enter as a single player?

There are individual tournies, or you could go to the partnership desk and find someone for any tourny, or you could call a POGGER.

Tournies are fun, there are many free ones. There are also ACBL ones that pay masterpoints.

on bbo now if anyone is free until that turbo goes

pog bridge game tonight?

in

in

in if it goes soon

im on for a little while if you guys are still around (AlternaG on BBO)

Alright fun hand with me and FCBL

MPs r/w

my hand

AJ84
KT
AK
KJ853

fcbls

Q73
QJ7653
4
T94

I opened bidding went

1c pass 1h 1nt (natural)

WTF now?

You will double planning to lead a heart. But your LHO is going to run to diamonds and your partner is going to rebid his hearts, which you probably ought to raise to 4.

^ I agree.

Incidentally, just because it looks like you should be in 4H, not defending 1NTX, doesn't mean it would be wrong, looking at only one of the hands at a time, to defend. You can't always diagnose the layout; North will take the certain penalty with no known fit, and south will trust his partner, and that's fine.

For another thing, correct defense will probably net 800 against 1NTX if east sits for it: heart king (ducked), heart ten overtaken by jack, probably ducked, south shifts to club ten, and the defense is pretty likely to score two spades, two hearts, two diamonds, and four clubs. South should know to shift to the club because he should realize that he probably has no entry for his hearts, and the club is the safest shift.

If declarer takes the first heart, he is going down about a million (actually 1100). If he judges correctly to hold up exactly once, then careful defense should allow him only two aces plus how ever many diamonds he's entitled to, probably three if East sat for the contract. 300 isn't 650, but you can't win 'em all.

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You probably asked the question because one of you didn't like 1NT doubled. From north's perspective, bidding is both silly and dangerous; you may have no fit, and you know your partner has a minimum for his bidding because there simply aren't enough points in the deck for anything else. And the fact that you're vulnerable doesn't mean you need to be looking for every game -- and not just because it's matchpoints, though that's one reason.

If north doubled and south pulled, that's understandable but still a mistake. He has exactly the strength he promised, and just one more heart than he will have on average for his bidding; the hearts lack internal solidity (try playing hearts when partner has two little ones; even that ten could easily set you, if an opponent has ATxx). Sometimes you have to take a risk.

At IMPs, I might consider a jump to 3NT with Chuck's hand, pulled to 4H. But it's far from clear.

X for penalty. This is a great auction to discuss with partner, just to make sure that if you play support doubles, they are off here.

anyone want to play some on bbo? turbo doesn't look like it's starting

in. aim me at bobman [fifty-three fifty-two]

nvm to bridge my internet is @!#@%!@#^

I will be there in about 3 hours or so if anyone is around.

my net is back and i will definitely play some. i will play wow until then. will check back here periodically.

anyone want to play?

You're presuming double-dummy defense but stipulating that declarer will make errors. Why is a heart lead automatic? If declarer wins the second heart (he may well have only 2)) and leads a diamond, N is end-played, leading to at least 6 tricks for declarer (1 heart, 3 diamonds, and 2 black tricks). The West hand is going to look something like Kxx Ax QJxxx AQx.

I think S shoiuld bid 2H: his offence/defence ratio is strongly tilted towards offence (6-card suit, singleton in unbid suit, no entry to long suit).

North's action over 1N is definitely of interest. Is a double here a support double? If North held Axxx Qxx x AKxxx you would wish it was. Some people play the double here is 3-card support or 18-19 balanced. If your discussion with pard hasn't gone any deeper than 'Support doubles' then you can't double here, leaving 2S and 2N as your choices. 3N here should show running clubs (Ax Qx Kx AKQTxxx)