Yeah I was thinking that. It turns out that the money is 1 on 1, the rake is 5 points (2 cent minimum). Your partner is a computer, and no kibitzers are allowed, so it's relatively safe from collusion. Of course, the computers are probably terrible players, who will push you too high. For example, if the auction goes 1-2-4, in which you opened, and stretched the last bid because of IMPs, the computer may invite to slam with 5 with 8 HCP.

I wouldn't play it to make money (although that would be nice); I would play it to get better at IMPs play. In that sense, do you think depositing $100, and playing 1 cent/point would be a good investment of my time/money?

I assume the computer program would be GIB, which is pretty good actually. Occasionally does slightly strange stuff but definitely wouldn't do anything as ******ed as you just suggested.

I don't see how 1 cent/point would be a bad investment, but you might have a tough time telling when you've made a mistake. Playing with a skilled partner is the best way to learn.

have you been ill or just afk? I mean I know you were ill, but is that why you've been away?

Hope you're feeling better.

Sorry for the no content posts.

It's a bit odd that there isn't more bridge for money -- the usual opinion is that, at least in total-points bridge, the variance/EV ratio is three or four times bigger than in poker (in pre-internet days, money bridge pros switched to backgammon and poker because it was a more stable living.) But for some reason that doesn't inspire the fish.

I play at the BBO money tables periodically, and the main downside is that people are in the habit of only playing one or two hands and then getting up. There are losing players, but they tend to be smart enough to notice when they're up against someone better than themselves, and quit. There is probably a whole pile of strategy here, like deliberately blowing an overtrick on the first board so as to not scare off someone. The rake, by itself, is beatable --- having an advantage of 20 points per hand over an opponent isn't impossible.

I don't much care for the money tournaments, however, where I think 20% is way too high of a rake to beat, even for an extremely good player.

One problem is that it is often glaringly obvious even to dense players when they have made a costly mistake. In poker it can always be argued that the opponent could have held some other hand which would have made the play a winner. Also, score is not kept at poker unless the player does it themselves. These two factors combine to make it a lot easier for players to delude themselves about their poker abilities.

The other thing is that gamblers don't like the fatalistic nature of the game. If I play a session vs someone and they get dealt cold grand slams every hand, I'm going to lose a ton of money no matter what I do. In practice, this is true in poker as well (for instance if I get KK vs AA or a similar cooler every hand) but there's the illusion of control over one's own destiny.

So my mom got me a little handheld bridge computer game. It is kind of fun to mess around with 4/5 card preempts just to see what happens. But anyways, an interesting hand this damn computer dealt me

R/W IMPs

North
J
AKQJT764
T
A94

South
AQT7

AQJ98742
2

South deals, how the hell do you all bid this one? I ended up at 6 NT making, other computer table made it to 7NT making. Computer cheats I swear to god.

2C (art strong) - 4NT (regular Blackwood with no suit agreement);
5H (two aces) - 7H (if it's not cold, partner opener doesn't have his 2C bid)

Or...

1D - 2H (natural strong);
2S (natural) - 3H (sets trump)
3S or 4D (should be control bids)
ace ask, then 7H

7H is a fair amount better than 7NT, so don't worry about not getting to notrump.

7NT can make if the computer leads a pointy suit, and RHO plays the K. Then, all the tricks fall down pretty easily.

MPs r/r

my hand
QJxxx
KQJxxx
xx


bidding to me is

LHO Dad RHO me
1c 3d 3nt ???

4 clubs followed by 4 hearts and then 4 spades and finally 5 diamonds. this of course assumes you get doubled at each stop. and would not sell to 6 clubs either.happy new year.

I'd probably bid 4C, and pass my partner's bid, although diamonds is probably the best spot to sac. I also wouldn't hesitate to go to 5D if necessary.

I'm bidding 4, and that's it. I think it's pretty likely that 5 is going down, particularly with a vulnerable pre-empt from an (forgive the stereotyping) older gentleman. Opponents only have ~23 HCP, and only have one fit, so I don't think there are a lot of tricks out there.

Brag: After 18 hands (only 16 of which were scored, the other two which should be tops), chuck and I are up 83 IMPs.

Beat: Two negative IMP boards

One of the hands not scored was +6.4, the other was +1.1

4/4 on hands where the opps doubled us. One was a 3S where opp had a 20 HCP hand

1 grand slam

1 hand where we ended up in 3d-1 after I opened 2h to show 5h+5another. They were cold for 6S

Fun little session.

We also played a 4X contract that's a cold 6 for them (7 if they guess a finesse right). Sacs ahoy!

up 115 IMPs, not bad.

Chuck deals and passes. R/W.

RHO passes.

A Q J 8 7 4
K 5
A J 8 6
8

We're playing precision and I open 1. LHO bids 3. Passes back to me. Do I just pass here? Or should I donk off with another bid?

It depends how lightly partner will negative double (or raise) your third-hand openings. For instance, what does he do with this hand?

Tx
xx
Qxxx
Axxxx

That hand should rack up three spades. You will lose a spade, two hearts and a diamond but that should usually be all. If partner is going to stay quiet with hands like these, you should bid 3S. If he's doubling with this, you should probably stay quiet.

r/r IMPS. We're playing precision. 3 passes to me:

4
Q T 5 4
A K J 92
A K

I open 1 (strong), and Chuck bids 2, which shows 5+ diamonds, and 8+ points (although he's a passed hand). Then, RHO overcalls 2. What's my bid?

I'd just bid 3D and see what develops. If partner is unable to cue either hearts or spades then I'd settle for 3NT. Otherwise I'd ask for aces and go to 6D if he has one.

I had an answer to Myrmidon's question typed up, but then realized I'd missed some stuff, and then some more stuff... it's a great hand. On serious reflection, I still don't know what's best, though I think most reasonable roads lead to about the same place most of the time -- but there are important differences.

Assumptions:

• After the interference, your bidding is basically natural. It is reasonable to agree otherwise, but you probably haven't.
• Your opponents do not completely suck, so RHO's failure to open either 1H or 2H in third seat has meaning. Your opponents may be tricky and/or expert, but they probably aren't.
• Your partner can be trusted to realize that you are in an absolute game force, even though he is a passed hand.
• Your partner is thoughtful.
• You don't have any special keycard asks for diamonds (you should, by the way, but you probably don't).

Where do we want to go? Maybe 3NT, maybe 5D, maybe 6D. 7D requires a pretty specific hand for partner (heart void + club queen + [spade king or four to club jack], so you'll probably not find it. You can't find out everything you want to know, but you can find some of it. the most important piece of information is your partner's heart length, you should be able to find that.

What do we know about partner's hand? Five diamonds (rarely six). Probably the (wasted) diamond queen. Probably three or four spades. Short hearts, but how short is a mystery. One or two black honors -- RHO's overcall had to be in part for lead direction against a likely 3NT (it consumed no room, and LHO didn't open), so partner is rarely turning up with heart ace or king. 8-10 HCP -- if you open shapely 10-counts, then he has 8-9, because he does have a shapely enough hand to open (though his long suit is poor, but whatever).

What do we know about RHO's hand? He has (probably) five or six hearts (if he's doing this with xxxx AKJx x xxxx, then you shake his hand after the match and see whether he wants to play teams some time). He didn't open 1H in third seat, so he does not have AK A. Given that he has some shape (most of the time), he probably doesn't have AK K. (Check to see whether they play drury -- if not, he might have those cards.) He didn't open 2H, so he doesn't have six hearts or even a good five card suit (if he's aggressive) -- unless he also has four spades, which could easily the case. Almost certainly 7-10 HCP, but if it's 10 his black cards are soft -- maybe both black jacks. Not five spades, or he would have opened (something).

What do we know about LHO's hand? Little, but if he's decent he doesn't have seven spades -- a spade overcall of a strong club is too effective for him to have passed up, even with a yarborough -- and we also know he doesn't have a yarborough, he has 3-7 HCP, because that's what's left. He really shouldn't have six spades, though realistically he could if he's passive and the suit is weak.

That leaves at least seven spades between partner and RHO, with partner having at least three. That leaves four or five rounded cards. If it's two hearts, then the opponents have eight clubs, which is possible. Darn it.

Possible paths:

1. Rebid 2NT. This shows the hearts, but nothing else. It will get you to spades (wrongly) occasionally, as when partner is 5=6 in the pointed suits. It will also wrongside notrump, and you could find yourself going down on a spade lead. You will miss slam almost always, and you will almost never get to a making 3NT instead of a failing 5D, when different paths wouldn't end up in the same place. Hence, this is the wrong call; don't do this.
2. Double (if negative). Bad. Partner will often show his four-card spade suit, and you will not be able to talk him out of it in time. It also buys you nothing you couldn't get otherwise. Don't do this.
3. Double (if penalty). Bad. Partner will sit, you are missing a very likely game, hearts is usually not going for 800, and even if it is you may be missing a slam. Don't do this.
4. Bid 3D. Establishes trump. He will probably follow with 3H, you will bid 3S (showing a heart stopper, else you'd have bid 4C or 4D), and he can choose between 3NT (rightsided) or a diamond contract. Thsi is a reasonable path.
5. Bid 3H. Establishes trump, sort of, while implicitly denying spades (assuming double would be negative), but what is partner to do over it? He doesn't stop hearts so he won't bid 3NT; he'll have to bid 3S with most hands, and when you then bid 3NT, what does he know? That auction shows doubt, often about the heart stopper. He may pull with a stiff heart, which is what you want; the problem is when he pulls with a small doubleton. It's also (barely) possible that RHO could double his 3S bid for a lead -- barely possible because his heart bid was for lead direction, and wanting a spade lead on the auction to that point gives him way too many honors. Meanwhile, if double would be penalty then this is Stayman-like, so after partner's 3S and your 3NT he won't often pull, and if he has only three spades you'll often miss 3NT when it's wrong to do. Bottom line: this is a reasonable call if double would be negative, a poor one if double would be penalty. I don't think it's best, though, because when you go slamming partner will often play the 3H as an advance control bid, i.e., the ace or king of hearts, and you don't want that.
6. Pass. Partner will reopen (if he doesn't, get a new partner). If he doubles (meaning he often has four spades, but may be planning a prepared sequence), you deny spades by bidding 2NT, and he works out that you were looking for more -- with a slam-suitable hand he will often show you what's up with a heart control bid. If he bids 2S instead that's odd (and theoretically shows 5=6), but it almost certainly confirms a singleton or even void heart, and you are off to the races (possibly to a grand, as all he needs for that is a heart void, the spade ace, and either the spade king or the club queen). If he bids 2NT that's odd, and now I'd worry that the bad guys are beating 3NT in spades, but I can find out with a 3C bid -- doubt about spades should be clear soon, and notrump has been rightsided if he has something like Kxx Kx xxxxx Qxx. If he bids 3D you will wonder what the heck, but will try 3H -- he will probably bid 3S, you will bid 3NT, and maybe he will work out what's going on, and if he doesn't bid spades you can jump to 5D. If he bids 3C he is probably 3=1=5=4, and you can follow with 3D and see what he does -- you'll often stop in 3NT here.

Unfortunately, we don't know that 4NT is safe -- if partner has a single spade stopper, a spade shift at trick two may leave us with insufficient tricks -- so going beyond 3NT is wrong unless it's right, as it were.

Basically, we want to distinguish between:

• KJx xx Qxxxx Qxx -- 3NT is the only good contract;
• Qxx J Qxxxx QJx -- rare, but 5D makes and 3NT is down a fair amount of the time;
• Axx xx Qxxxx Qxx -- 3NT and 5D are each fine;
• KJxx x Qxxxx Qxx -- 3NT and 5D are each fine;
• Axxx x Qxxxx Qxx -- 6D is good;
• Axxx -- Qxxxx Qxxx -- 7D is good;
• KQxxx -- Qxxxxx Qx -- 6D is good;
• Axxxx -- Qxxxxx Qx -- 7D is good (and would be even better if the club queen were the spade king).

I think the best path starts with pass, and trusts partner to work out that passing, declining to bid spades, and only going 2NT, not 3NT, over his double, indicates interest in alternative contracts, and eventually he sees that you must be slam-suitable (thus holding good diamonds when you don't ask about his). Let's see how the above hands will go if we do that (yes, I know some of these sequences are non-trivial, but I'm trying to come up with our best chance):

• KJx xx Qxxxx Qxx:
  • P - X
  • 2NT - 3NT (correct result)
• Qxx J Qxxxx QJx
  • P - X
  • 2NT - 3S? (expressing doubt) or 3NT (oops)
  • if 3S above, then 4C - 4D
  • 5D - P (hooray -- but admittedly not easy)
• Axx xx Qxxxx Qxx
  • P - X
  • 2NT - 3NT? (or paths that get to 5D; correct regardless)
• KJxx x Qxxxx Qxx
  • P - X
  • 2NT - 3NT -- correct -- or pard may go beyond 3N, but you're still OK.
• Axxx x Qxxxx Qxx
  • P - X? (or maybe 2S)
  • 3D -- 3S
  • 4C -- 4D
  • then ace ask of otherwise get to 6D -- correct.
  • If P - 2S, then
  • 3D - 4H (splinter)
  • 5C - 6D (correct)
• Axxx -- Qxxxx Qxxx
  • P -- 2S?
  • 3D -- 4H (splinter)
  • 5C -- 5H (void)
  • 6C -- 7D? (and if you only make it to six, you still at least push the board).
• KQxxx -- Qxxxxx Qx
  • P -- 2S
  • 3D -- 3S
  • 4C -- 4D
  • 4S -- 6D (correct)
• Axxxx -- Qxxxxx Qx
  • P -- 2S
  • 3D -- 3S
  • 4C -- 4D
  • 4S -- 5H
  • 6C -- 7D (hooray).

On the other hand, if we start with 3D:

• KJx xx Qxxxx Qxx:
  • 3D - 3S
  • 3NT - P (correct)
• Qxx J Qxxxx QJx
  • 3D - 3S? (probably)
  • 3NT - P (whoops)
• Axx xx Qxxxx Qxx
  • 3D - 3S
  • 3NT - P (correct)
• KJxx x Qxxxx Qxx
  • 3D - 3S
  • 3NT - P (correct)
• Axxx x Qxxxx Qxx
  • 3D - 3S
  • 3NT - P? (oops), or maybe partner bids 4H at his second or third turn, but it's risky from his perspective.
• Axxx -- Qxxxx Qxxx
  • 3D - 4H (splinter)
  • 5C - 5H (void)
  • 6C - 7D? 6S? (again, you may not make it beyond six, but that's OK)
• KQxxx -- Qxxxxx Qx
  • 3D - 3S
  • 3NT - 4S?
  • 5C? - 5D (then you raise to 6D) or 5H (should be OK) or 6D (correct)
• Axxxx -- Qxxxxx Qx
  • 3D - 3S
  • 3NT - 4S
  • 5C? - 5H
  • 6C -- 6D? May well miss it the grand here.

Hence, I think passing is best. It leaves more room for partner to describe his hand, and on some of the possible hands he can hold, that extra room will pay off.

Incidentally, obviously you're not going through all that crap at the table. In practice, your first thought should be that establishing trump is good, so 3D is a good choice. Then, maybe you realize that if partner is short in hearts you have very few losers, and you also don't have to worry too much about competition (if LHO raises hearts, you can safely compete to at least 5D) -- so you look for a stranger action, and in general pass-and-pull is stronger than just bidding directly, so you reason that that should be better.

Stronger action, not stranger. Though sometimes my bidding can be pretty strange, in this case it isn't.

I think you accounted for all the butterflies in china too. I am a bit confused in the sequences after 3d...but that may be because 3d seems worse and leads to more confusion. I'm particularly confused when partner has the 5-4-4 pattern he splinters but 6-5-2 with agreed trumps he bids spades a bunch.

Well, those sequences could be wrong and I didn't spend forever on them -- they were just off the top of my head -- but basically, below the five level responder has to allow for the possibility that four spades is better than five diamonds when he is 6-5, and the only way he can show the fifth spade is by bidding spades (arguably twice). That's what I had in mind anyway.

Upon reflection it seems clear that pass is better than 3D, but I think a lot of people are going to argue for 3D so I wanted to go into some detail to confirm that it actually is worse.