Had this hand come up in a practice match against a couple of teammates this week. There were a couple of interesting points in the bidding, namely is 6D a place to play or a cue-bid of some kind. I assumed it was a Cue-Bid and proceeded to the grand.
Here is the hand 7H Hand
The bigger problem was my play of the hand. I screwed up at trick 5 and pitched the wrong card from dummy and the squeeze did not operate. I have to throw the Spade from dummy, and keep the Diamond threat card there, rather than the way I did it with the Diamond in my hand and Spade on dummy. Then when I cash the 2 Clubs, I can throw my Diamond, cash the 2 Diamond winners in my hand, and on the last Heart, both LHO and RHO are squeezed down to 2 Spades to protect their suits. In the actual end position I set up, the squeeze did not operate and I went down 1. And I should get it right, since it appears from the lead and then Heart shortness, that LHO is now more likely to have the Diamond length.
Of other interest to note, is that if LHO pitches 2 Spades instead of 2 Clubs, no squeeze appears to operate, since that person can always protect Clubs and Diamonds, while RHO protects Spades. Or at least I could not see one that worked, maybe the audience can find one.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
How Good is Good - Part 2
Here is the first part of the post from the other day.
Have a tough hand for people to decide what to do on, will post what the other hand is tomorrow.
Playing IMPS Vul vs Not, you pick up this collection 542 86 KQ95 KT74 and hear it go 1H on your left, 2H (std Michaels) by Pard, Pass on your right. You elect to bid 2S with this hand, and it now goes 3H on your left, 4S (!) by Pard, P on your right.
Your hand has suddenly grown up a lot, but do you take another bid, and if so, what?
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The other hand was KQT86 --- AT8 AQ965. When the A of Spades was doubleton onside and no suits broke bad, 12 tricks were available in Spades and Clubs. At our table, the above hand passed 4S, not sure what the best bid is, since the Michaels hand should be good, but does it have to be a 1 loser hand.
Have a tough hand for people to decide what to do on, will post what the other hand is tomorrow.
Playing IMPS Vul vs Not, you pick up this collection 542 86 KQ95 KT74 and hear it go 1H on your left, 2H (std Michaels) by Pard, Pass on your right. You elect to bid 2S with this hand, and it now goes 3H on your left, 4S (!) by Pard, P on your right.
Your hand has suddenly grown up a lot, but do you take another bid, and if so, what?
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The other hand was KQT86 --- AT8 AQ965. When the A of Spades was doubleton onside and no suits broke bad, 12 tricks were available in Spades and Clubs. At our table, the above hand passed 4S, not sure what the best bid is, since the Michaels hand should be good, but does it have to be a 1 loser hand.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
How Good is Good
Have a tough hand for people to decide what to do on, will post what the other hand is tomorrow.
Playing IMPS Vul vs Not, you pick up this collection 542 86 KQ95 KT74 and hear it go 1H on your left, 2H (std Michaels) by Pard, Pass on your right. You elect to bid 2S with this hand, and it now goes 3H on your left, 4S (!) by Pard, P on your right.
Your hand has suddenly grown up a lot, but do you take another bid, and if so, what?
Playing IMPS Vul vs Not, you pick up this collection 542 86 KQ95 KT74 and hear it go 1H on your left, 2H (std Michaels) by Pard, Pass on your right. You elect to bid 2S with this hand, and it now goes 3H on your left, 4S (!) by Pard, P on your right.
Your hand has suddenly grown up a lot, but do you take another bid, and if so, what?
Thursday, May 26, 2011
The Trouble with Pre-Empts
Playing IMPS at our weekly game, you pick up the following hand that would go well in a Master Solver's problem. Vul vs Not at IMPS, you hold A75 QJT7 J53 A83 and hear it go 3D on your left, Double by partner, 5D on your right, so now what?
I would love to make some kind of invitational bid, but partner is not going to interpret 5H as forward going, I think this is all up to you. Are you going on to slam, or are you bidding 5H. I do not think too much else other than perhaps Double enter the picture.
On the plus side for the 6 level, partner made a Vul Double at the 3 level, so should have a decent hand, and there is a good possibility that partner is void in Diamonds, the opps have shown a lot of them. On the minus side, any tenaces that you need to pick up through partners hand are not likely to be working, and partner may have stretched a little for the double, since he is short if not void in Diamonds.
I think it is around 50-50 whether you go on, and partnership style probably plays a lot to do with it, along with perhaps state of the match. In a grinding match, you want to take your probable plus and go for 5H or Double, in a swingy match, or if you feel you are down, lean a little more towards the 6 level.
At the table, I opted for 6H, which was not a success when partner put down the wrong good hand, KQxx Kxxx x KQJx. I like the TO double, but RHO put the pressure on when she bid 5D with a balanced hand and the KQ tight of Diamonds. But that is what Bridge is all about, pressure, and it worked this time. Have to see about next time :)
I would love to make some kind of invitational bid, but partner is not going to interpret 5H as forward going, I think this is all up to you. Are you going on to slam, or are you bidding 5H. I do not think too much else other than perhaps Double enter the picture.
On the plus side for the 6 level, partner made a Vul Double at the 3 level, so should have a decent hand, and there is a good possibility that partner is void in Diamonds, the opps have shown a lot of them. On the minus side, any tenaces that you need to pick up through partners hand are not likely to be working, and partner may have stretched a little for the double, since he is short if not void in Diamonds.
I think it is around 50-50 whether you go on, and partnership style probably plays a lot to do with it, along with perhaps state of the match. In a grinding match, you want to take your probable plus and go for 5H or Double, in a swingy match, or if you feel you are down, lean a little more towards the 6 level.
At the table, I opted for 6H, which was not a success when partner put down the wrong good hand, KQxx Kxxx x KQJx. I like the TO double, but RHO put the pressure on when she bid 5D with a balanced hand and the KQ tight of Diamonds. But that is what Bridge is all about, pressure, and it worked this time. Have to see about next time :)
Monday, May 16, 2011
Diamond Madness
Helping some friends practice for the CNTC Playdowns at the end of the month, had 2 very interesting slam hands come up involving Diamonds as the central theme. You are playing IMPS on both hands.
On the first, you pick up 4 AQ74 KJ87 T853 with everyone Vul and Pass in first seat. The opps are silent throughout and you bid a forcing NT over partners 3rd seat 1S opener. Partner now makes your hand better by jump shifting to 3D. So how do you plan to catch up in the auction now?
This hand bid 3H, planning on a delayed raise in Diamonds, but partner KO’d that idea by bidding 4H. This hand now bid 5D, and over partners 6C cue-bid, settled in 6D, the final contract. In the discussion afterward, it mainly centered around should this hand start with a Diamond raise to 4D, or show where the values are to start, and if so, how to catch up, since 5D can be a lot weaker hand. My suggestion that the person holding this hand liked, was to start with 3H, but then over 4H, show the strength and primary Diamond support by jumping to 6D, not 5D. After all, your hand has gotten awfully good on this auction, with partner virtually guaranteeing short Clubs.
This would have made it relatively easy for the other hand to raise to 7D on AKQ75 KT3 AQT64 ---. Since hearing that partner has a good hand with Diamonds and cards in Hearts is exactly what it needs.
The next hand, with everyone Vul, you pick up A943 K7 KQT8752 --- and hear it go Pass on your left, 1S by partner, Pass on your right. You make a 2/1 2D bid, and it goes 3C on your left, 4C by partner, 5C on your right, what now?
At the table, my partner bid 6C with this hand, showing the first round control and seeing where partner was going. I bid 6D, confirming that my 4C cue-bid was for Diamonds, and partner decided that I pretty well had to have the required cards on this hand to carry on to 7. Not sure if the interference propelled us to the grand, since there was a pretty good chance we were going there anyways on this hand when I showed a good hand in support of Diamonds.
This was not a play problem as I put down KQJ75 AT94 A43 T. I also liked the fact that partner played the grand in Diamonds instead of Spades. We have at least a 10 card Diamond fit, so the chances of a ruff on the opening lead are higher in Diamonds than in Spades, our probable 9 card fit.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Couple of Failures at Slam Bidding
Have not posted for a while as I have been travelling and busy a lot the last month, but home and playing again. And coming up with some not so good examples of slam bidding.
On the first, you pick up AQT74 2 --- AKJ8753 and hear partner open 4C (Namyats) in first seat. Oh well, so much for playing in a Black suit. At least you have 1 Heart and a good void, not the other way around. You bid 4D, which asks for partner to describe their hand, and partner makes a bid you have not talked about, 5S, which gets doubled on your right.
Over 4D, you have agreed to play 4H showing a suit with 1+ losers, 4N shows no suit with 2 quick losers, and 4S/5C/5D show a suit with 2 quick losers, and imply no other suit with quick losers. You have not talked about much else in the basic discussion over these bids. So you are on your own with what partner decided 5S would mean.
You eventually decide to redouble this, and partner now bids 6H. You are assuming that 5S was a void, with no suit having 2 quick losers. The question is, does partner have solid Hearts for this auction. You decide that he should, and raise to 7H. This is not a success when partner holds
--- AJT87432 AKQT 9.
I held this hand and decided with the lack of defense coupled with a 2 loser hand, I did not want to start with 1H and lose control of the hand (what if one of the opps help partners hand). But over 4D, I decided if partner was asking about my hand, I was going to slam. The problem is I kind of got too cute, and decided to try to describe my hand now, with disastrous consequences, sigh.
On the second hand, you hold AQ T843 J3 KQ852 and over partners 1D opener, decide to bid 1H. Partner bids 3S over this, showing a splinter in Spades and a game forcing Heart raise. Is this enough to move over 4H with?
I figured that when I worked on the splinter values principle, I had 10 working points to add to partners supposed 18-19 min, giving us well over the 24 required to look for a slam opposite a splinter, so moved forward. I should probably go slow and bid 4C over 3S, letting partner asses their hand, but I think we will wind up in the same spot in 6H. Partners hand is 4 AKJ7 AT854 AJ3, right at the bottom end of the splinter and with poor Diamonds, so when the Heart Q is third offside, there is no way to avoid 2 losers. On the hand, I actually just jumped to 6H over the 3S bid, getting there quicker.
At the other table, the strong hand jumped to 4H over 1D-1H, which I think should make my hand even more interested in slam, since they think the Q of Spades is working and the Spades are protected on the opening lead. But they passed 4H and were right, winning 12 IMPS :(
Will try to get back to keeping this up to date, and stay home a little more.
On the first, you pick up AQT74 2 --- AKJ8753 and hear partner open 4C (Namyats) in first seat. Oh well, so much for playing in a Black suit. At least you have 1 Heart and a good void, not the other way around. You bid 4D, which asks for partner to describe their hand, and partner makes a bid you have not talked about, 5S, which gets doubled on your right.
Over 4D, you have agreed to play 4H showing a suit with 1+ losers, 4N shows no suit with 2 quick losers, and 4S/5C/5D show a suit with 2 quick losers, and imply no other suit with quick losers. You have not talked about much else in the basic discussion over these bids. So you are on your own with what partner decided 5S would mean.
You eventually decide to redouble this, and partner now bids 6H. You are assuming that 5S was a void, with no suit having 2 quick losers. The question is, does partner have solid Hearts for this auction. You decide that he should, and raise to 7H. This is not a success when partner holds
--- AJT87432 AKQT 9.
I held this hand and decided with the lack of defense coupled with a 2 loser hand, I did not want to start with 1H and lose control of the hand (what if one of the opps help partners hand). But over 4D, I decided if partner was asking about my hand, I was going to slam. The problem is I kind of got too cute, and decided to try to describe my hand now, with disastrous consequences, sigh.
On the second hand, you hold AQ T843 J3 KQ852 and over partners 1D opener, decide to bid 1H. Partner bids 3S over this, showing a splinter in Spades and a game forcing Heart raise. Is this enough to move over 4H with?
I figured that when I worked on the splinter values principle, I had 10 working points to add to partners supposed 18-19 min, giving us well over the 24 required to look for a slam opposite a splinter, so moved forward. I should probably go slow and bid 4C over 3S, letting partner asses their hand, but I think we will wind up in the same spot in 6H. Partners hand is 4 AKJ7 AT854 AJ3, right at the bottom end of the splinter and with poor Diamonds, so when the Heart Q is third offside, there is no way to avoid 2 losers. On the hand, I actually just jumped to 6H over the 3S bid, getting there quicker.
At the other table, the strong hand jumped to 4H over 1D-1H, which I think should make my hand even more interested in slam, since they think the Q of Spades is working and the Spades are protected on the opening lead. But they passed 4H and were right, winning 12 IMPS :(
Will try to get back to keeping this up to date, and stay home a little more.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
What Does He Mean Now?
Playing in a playdown for a team game this week, I gave my partner a tough bidding problem, yet again. Happy to say that he passed the little test with a perfect score.
No one vul at IMPS, he picked up K863 AKJ862 --- JT3 and over my 1S opener, he bid 2H, which we do not play as GF. I now bid 2N, showing a strong NT+ (and setting up a GF), and he bid 3S, which is a slam try in Spades. I bid 4D, and he correctly signed off in 4S with no Club control. Except that I now bid 5S, what does that mean and what to do?
After thinking about it a while, he bid 6H, trying for the Grand. I signed off in 6S, and even with a 4-1 Spade break, it easily made. His reasoning for going on, he had already denied a Club control, but I went on anyways, so I must not be looking for minor cards, but for how good his major suits were. Since he had great holdings in both majors, he went on to 6S.
My hand to produce this problem for partner was AJ95 Q7 KQT5 AK6. Spades were 4-1 on my right, so an opening Diamond lead might have given me some concerns, but the Club lead meant I could safety play the Spades. And yes, we do play 4 card Majors, so this is not an auction that the world would duplicate.
Next week is off to Louisville for the first part of the NABC and the NAOP pairs. Will post some of the interesting things that happen when I get back.
No one vul at IMPS, he picked up K863 AKJ862 --- JT3 and over my 1S opener, he bid 2H, which we do not play as GF. I now bid 2N, showing a strong NT+ (and setting up a GF), and he bid 3S, which is a slam try in Spades. I bid 4D, and he correctly signed off in 4S with no Club control. Except that I now bid 5S, what does that mean and what to do?
After thinking about it a while, he bid 6H, trying for the Grand. I signed off in 6S, and even with a 4-1 Spade break, it easily made. His reasoning for going on, he had already denied a Club control, but I went on anyways, so I must not be looking for minor cards, but for how good his major suits were. Since he had great holdings in both majors, he went on to 6S.
My hand to produce this problem for partner was AJ95 Q7 KQT5 AK6. Spades were 4-1 on my right, so an opening Diamond lead might have given me some concerns, but the Club lead meant I could safety play the Spades. And yes, we do play 4 card Majors, so this is not an auction that the world would duplicate.
Next week is off to Louisville for the first part of the NABC and the NAOP pairs. Will post some of the interesting things that happen when I get back.
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