Analysis of Hands from December 11, 2004 -------------------------------------------------------------- Bonus Section - Responses over Weak 2 Bids ------------------------------------------- During the December synagogue bridge club, my partner opened 2H, and I held the following hand: S Axx H Ax D Axxx C Axxx This is a good exercise in bidding visualization, rather than simply relying on point count. If partner's six card suit includes the KQ, we can make exactly 3NT - 6 heart tricks and 3 aces, assuming a 3-2 break. Unless partner also holds an outside K, we cannot make 4H. Fortunately, there is a useful convention over weak 2 bids that Ava and I use that can provide the necessary information. Ogust 2NT over Weak 2 Bids -------------------------- If partner opens a weak 2 bid, if you respond 2NT, you are asking partner for further clarification about his/her hand. In particular, partner evaluates 2 different aspects about the hand: Suit Strength Good: 6 card suit contains 2 of top 3 honors (e.g. AK, AQ, or KQ) Bad: suit does not contain 2 of top 3 honors Point Strength: Good: 8-10 points Bad: 5-7 points The responses to 2NT are as follows: Bid Suit Points --- ---- ------ 3C Bad Bad 3D Good Bad 3H Bad Good 3S Good Good Some people also play that a response of 3NT shows a solid 6 card suit (headed by AKQ). The responses can be fairly easy to remember if you realize that the minors show a bad point count and the majors show a good point count. On the hand above, this is what I decided the final contract would be for each of the responses: 3C - 3H 3D - 3NT 3H - 3H 3S - 3NT (4H would also be ok) Generally speaking, you should have at least 14 points before using Ogust. With anything less than that, the chances of game are remote, so you might as well keep the contract as low as possible. Direct Raises Over Weak 2 Bids ------------------------------ With 4 card support, immediately raise to 4. This is consistent with the philosophy that you should always play in 4 of a major with a 10 card fit. With 3 card support (and less than 14 points), immediately raise to 3. This is known as "furthering the pre-empt". This is consistent with the previously discussed "Law of Total Tricks" principle which says that you should be willing to contract for the same number of tricks as the number of combined trumps (e.g. your side has 9 trumps, so you should be willing to contract for 9 tricks). Hand 1 ------ S AKJ86 H J96 D A4 C J62 S 10752 S 4 H AKQ1052 H 4 D Q3 D 109865 C 7 C Q109843 S Q93 H 873 D KJ72 C AK5 Dealer: S Vulnerable: E/W Bidding ------- S W N E 1D 1H 1S P 2S P 4S P P P The first round of bidding is standard. The problem is South's second bid. North's 1S bid only promises 4, so a 2S raise generally shows 4; sometimes you can raise with 3 to an honor if your hand also contains a singleton or void. If West hadn't overcalled in hearts, South should bid 1NT. However, with this auction 1NT should promise a heart stopper, so South's only real choice is to bid 2S. Since N has 5 spades and an opening hand, the 4S bid is automatic. Play ------ Opening lead: Heart 4 North loses the first 3 heart tricks. North also has a club loser which must be eliminated to make the contract. The most likely way to accomplish this is to finesse the J of diamonds and throw a club on the K of diamonds. There is also a small chance that the Q of clubs will drop in 2 rounds, so the J of clubs will be good. Therefore, North should draw trump, noting that West started with 4. North then plays the A and K of clubs, noting West's singleton club. Therefore, West was known to start with a doubleton diamond. North now gets back to his hand with the A of diamonds. Before taking the diamond finesse, if North cashes the last spade, North knows the following about each hand: S H D x C J S S H x H D ? D ? C C Q S H D KJ C Therefore, South can lead to the K of diamonds, knowing that the Q of diamonds will appear. As a general technique, when you have a single potential loser remaining, it is usually a good idea to cash all your side winners before facing "the moment of truth". Often, your opponents will make a helpful discard. If not, you can often deduce extra information about what to do, as happened on this hand. Hand 2 ------ S 8653 H 10632 D Q42 C A9 S AKQ S 42 H 9 H AKQ7 D 8765 D AK1093 C KQJ42 C 85 S J1097 H J854 D J C 10763 Dealer: N Vulnerable: E/W Bidding ------- N E S W P 1D P 2C P 2H P 3D P 3H P 4N P 5C P 6D P P P The first round of bidding is standard. East's 2H bid is a reverse, showing a medium or high hand (15 or more points) with at least 5 diamonds and 4 hearts. West now knows that a diamond slam is likely and bids 3D to set the suit; East cannot pass because West has shown at least 10 points, so the auction is forcing to at least game. East cannot bid 3NT with no spade stopper, so the 3H bid is simply a waiting bid, allowing West to bid 3NT with a spade stopper. West bids Roman Key Card Blackwood, East shows 3 key cards (two Aces and the diamond K), and East bids the diamond slam. Play ------ Opening lead: Spade J East has a club loser, and a possible diamond loser. The most likely way to make the contract is to play for a 2-2 diamond break. East can also play for a defensive mistake, by leading towards the K of clubs, hoping South ducks the Ace, and throwing the other club loser on the long spade (unlikely, but you never know). East wins the first spade and leads a trump. When the diamond J appears, there needs to be a change of plans. There is a bridge rule known as the "law of restricted choice" which states that, when missing two honors, if a defender plays one of the honors, it is much more likely that the other defender has the other honor. (I don't understand the probability theory, but my experience definitely validates this principle.) Therefore, West should take the trump finesse against North.