Washington Bridge League Solver's Club  -  Jan/Feb 2003

Moderator: Steve Robinson

     Congratulations to Hailong Ao and David Rodney who tied for first with a perfect score of 500.  They win a free entry to the Unit Game and will be invited to be on a future panel.  I will play with them at a future Unit Game.  Tied for third were Bruce Kretchmer and Dave Smith with a score of 470.  Tied for fifth were Brad Theurer, Seymour Baden, Ellen Cherniavsky and Gerald Lerner, with a score of 460.  Tied for ninth were David Chechelashili, Marvin Elster, Ron Zucker, Pete Whipple and Mike Richey with a score of 450.  Tied for fourteenth were Bob Klein, JJ Wang and Ransone Price with a score of 440.  Tied for seventeenth were Yi Zhong, Al Duncker, Bulent Demirer, Razvan Spiridonescu, Mel Yudkin, Kevin Barnes, Lee Bauer, Saul Penn and Ted Guthrie with a score of 430.  Tied for twenty-seventh were were Todd Zimnoch, Doug Waffle, Randy Thompson, Andy Gofreed, Barbara Israel, Audrey Warren, Hy Chansky, Steve MacArthur and David Abelow with a score of 420.  The average score of the 208 solvers was 365.  The average score of the experts was 428.

    Do or don't you and if you do, what?  Pass, 4 and double are the three choices.  Eight experts pass.  They think it’s too dangerous to jump in.  If partner holds xxxxxxxxxxxxx you go for 1400 if you bid 4 or –990 if you double.  Four experts agree with me and jump in.  On bad days partner has nothing.  On good days partner has some help for you.  For the jumpers who hope this is a good day, there are two choices - 4 and double.  I think that if you decide to do something other than pass, you should jump in with 4.  Give partner Q98xxKxxxxKJx, you will make 4 if the king of spades is onsides.  If you double, however, partner will bid 5, which has three losers.  Another reason to do something is that partner could have KxxxxxxxAJxxx.  They easily make 4 and you easily make 4.  You lose 13 IMPs if you go for 1400, you lose 15 IMPs when both games make.

    Two experts agree with me and jump in.  They’re following Lublin’s Law.  “When they have hearts we have spades.”  RHO usually has five hearts for his jump to 4 which makes it more likely that partner has some spades.  Even if bidding 4 is wrong, the opponents might save us by bidding 5.\

Lublin: ”4---Lublin's Law - When they have hearts, you have spades.  Never bid 5 over 5 save so I bid 4.”

Cappelletti: "4---Certainly better than double.  Another problem might be if opener doubles.  Do you redouble or stay in pocket."

    By the way, if the opponents are playing a forcing club system, bidding 4 is very dangerous.  RHO could have an opening hand and only three hearts.  He knows his partner’s hand is limited to 15 HCPs by his failure to open 1.

    Two experts double.  Double has the advantage that if this is a bad day you might hold your losses to –990.  Double breaks even when partner has four spades but loses when partner has three.

Parker: "Double---They may have just got me, but I have to assume that partner has at most two hearts and therefore a fit somewhere, plus 10+ points.  I can make a slow double here and not put partner under pressure, but not a slow pass.  Bidding 4 is too unilateral."

    Partner, having at most two hearts is a very good assumption.  However, partner might not have many HCPs.

Shaw: "Double---Takeout for spades.  I'd like to bid 4 but could go for a telephone number.  Partner will bid 4 with four spades.  If partner passes the double; most they will make is a doubled overtrick plus we could be cold for 4."

    The problem with double is that partner might have only three spades.  There are some hands that make 4 opposite honor doubleton.  Wouldn’t you want to be in 4 opposite KxxxJ109AKxxxx.

    Eight experts passed and they have some good arguments.  The best argument for passing is that bidding is a crap shoot.  It could be a disaster if partner is short in spades.  Another good argument is that partner needs very little to beat 4.  You have two defensive tricks and if partner has two, 4 will be defeated.  Bidding is bad if both games are going down.  The biggest disaster is when partner has a stiff spade.  4 will easily be defeated and 4 will go down like the Titanic.

Woolsey: "Pass---Partner didn't overcall 1, and he didn't make a takeout double.  These factors are sufficient to indicate that we probably don't have a game.  We might or might not defeat 4, and we may be going for a big number if I bid, so passing seems right."

    Right.  Partner could have a weak hand but might have enough in queens and jacks to sink 4.

Hopkins: "Pass---Normally partner is not long in hearts on this auction so he could have acted directly if he had reasonable values.  My values are not such as to expect to make a game or set them doubled often enough to make up for the expected and possibly large minus score.”

Musso: "Pass---4 over 4 is always tempting especially with the power of AJ10.  However, partner with likely holding of two or possibly one small heart did not overcall or double 1.  Doubling here is a distant third choice, which risks -790 or -990 as well as -800 or -1100."

    If you double, partner, with a weak balanced hand, should pass and hope that you can take four tricks on defense. 

Schwartz: "Pass---Not enough offense for 4, not enough defense for double which partner rates to pass.  Queen of hearts big negative for action."

    If RHO has five hearts, your queen is worth nothing either on defense or offense.

Adams: "Pass---Bidding is guessing.  At matchpoints, where minus 500 could be a big gain, I'd bid 4, but partner is unlikely to have four spades and an opening bid.  Might be that neither 4 nor 4 makes.  Only reason to consider bidding is that 4 might push them to 5, but that rationale never scores well in bidding challenges.  I would rather double than bid at IMPs.  At least then, partner can convert and we might still get a small plus."

    Partner does not need an opening bid for 4 to make.  Suppose partner has QxxxxxxxAKxxx.  4 makes when the spade finesse works.  Give partner QxxxxxxAKxxxx and 6 makes when the spade finesse works.

Bauer: "Pass---4 may be our last plus score.  Advantage in the bidding game goes to he who guesses least."

    Advantage goes to he who guesses right.

King: ”Pass---It is close but I don't think this hand is quite good enough.”

    I have found that this is a bidders game.  Those who are aggressive get good results.

    You opened this hand intending on showing partner 5-5 in the majors but something happened on the way.  You can no longer bid your best suit.  You have four horrible choices.  You can bid three notrump but you have no source of tricks and no help for partner's suit.  You can rebid your weak spade suit.  You can bid 3 but bidding a three-card suit can lead to problems.  You could pass which in effect ends the auction.  This keeps the auction low but could ruin your partnership.  What would your partner say if you passed 3 and he held AKxxKxAKxxxxx?  The problem with bidding is that you are very likely to get too high.  If you can’t make anything, partner will let you out in game and you will go down quietly.  You might even get doubled if East has clubs and spades bottled up.  If partner has enough strength that game makes, you will find yourself heading towards slam.

    Two experts join me in ending the auction.  You can’t do this if partner can bid 3 with very good spade support.  I have the advantage that my partner supports me when he has support. 

Schwartz: "Pass---Wouldn't take this action at the table as I have to worry about partner's blood pressure, but here I can take what I feel is the percentage action.  Partner shouldn't have a big spade fit as he should fear heart preemption.  Thus having enough for game is unlikely with the misfit and likely entry problems, particularly with the overcall."

Bauer: "Pass---I hate it when this happens.  Partner had ample tools to establish spades as trumps and did not.  This is as cheap as we can get out of this misfit and the only person I really want to hear bid again is LHO."

    Ten experts keep the auction open. Two experts bid three notrump.  If three notrump is going to make, partner has to be strong enough to move towards slam.

Woolsey: "Three notrump---Bidding notrump can be a dirty job, but somebody's has to do it.  On this hand that somebody is me.  Partner isn't going to have a heart stopper.  We are forced to game, and unless partner has three spades, in which case he will surely get us to 4, three notrump is our most likely game."

Shaw: "Three notrump---I'd like to pass and forget the whole thing but will maintain discipline."

     Eight experts bid a three-card suit.  Great!  You have next to nothing and you are misdescribing your hand.  How many aces are you going to show if partner bids RKC? 

Lublin: "3---Looks like 3 to me.  Only bid I can make."

Cappelletti: "3---This is definitely an "uh-oh" hand.  Might as well gamble a bit, with disaster when partner has Kxxx of diamonds, to try to achieve parity.  If partner bids 3 or 3 or 4, you are probably OK."

Hopkins: "3---I can see the grinch stayed around for this hand!  I am leaving partner room to show spade support (please, please, please!), but the situation does not appear promising.  Since this is only matchpoints, I would probably pass a 4 rebid by partner."

Musso: "3---Since 3 is forcing, passing is instantly out of the question.  Choices are 3 and 3.  Since spades are so poor, bidding 3 is the selection.   Hopefully, partner will support spades next."

Adams: "3---This is in the spirit of keeping the bidding low.  Perhaps partner given a chance to take captaincy has an easier hand to bid."

Roman: "3---Not because I like it, but what else?"

Parker: "3---This should work out fine.  Partner's most likely bid will be 3 to try for three notrump and I will unhappily bid it.  If for some reason he raises diamonds I will pass and watch him turn red.  If he bids 4 I will also pass."

    Are you going to pass four notrump.

King: ”3---I think this is the best waiting bid.  Let's hear what partner says.” 

    At the table, where I passed, we achieved a plus score.  Partner made six clubs for +170.  I have a feeling that if I had kept on bidding we would have gotten too high and gone minus.