Thursday, September 25, 2008

Shuffling

As I’ve mentioned before, I play most of my bridge at the Manhattan Bridge Club. In response to customer requests for hand records after tournaments, the club has recently acquired a dealing machine. This is actually a pretty cool piece of equipment, when it’s working well. It’s hooked up to the PC, and the computer tells the machine which cards belong in which hand. An ordinary deck of cards is loaded in, and the dealing machine scans the face of each card, recognizes it, and feeds it into the correct (north, south, east or west) pile. You can either (manually) take the hands from the machine and put them in the board, or (this is the really cool way), if you have special boards that open up, you can put the board in the machine and then it deals the cards straight into the board. You just take out the board, close the lid, and move on to the next hand. Since the computer knows all the cards, it can produce the hand records, including double-dummy analysis by Deep Finesse.

So much to the good. But the introduction of this machine caused an immediate backlash against “computer-dealt” hands. The customer is always right, even when he’s wrong, so the management made a change to appease the new bunch of complainers. The hands are now shuffled and dealt by hand, so there is no basis for the “computer-dealt” complaint. The results of the manual shuffle are entered into the computer, and so (using one deck of cards really) a full set of 36 hand layouts are generated that can then be used by the dealing machine. Everybody is happy now, yes?

Well I’m not. Over the past few sessions, I’ve noticed a marked increase in the number of “interesting” deals. Misfits, slams on low point-count hands, singleton kings offside, etc suddenly seem to be cropping up all over the place. I have no evidence, of course, but it seems clear to me that at least one of the people doing the shuffling and dealing isn’t just entering whatever hand comes up. He is selecting for interesting or challenging hands, perhaps even adjusting things by moving a card or two around. This is understandable, in the sense of being a very human thing to do, when you are stuck with the tedious task of dealing and entering into the computer a set of thirty six hands. But I don’t need my games to be like a scenario from one of Hugh Kelsey’s books. I would be much happier with computer-dealt (ie truly random) hands.

The reason why people don’t like random deals is, as everyone knows, that they are used to seeing human-dealt hands that haven’t been shuffled properly. That typically results in hands that are noticeably too balanced, on average. So when they get a truly random set, where 4-3-3-3 is a rare hand pattern and most hands have a 5-card suit, they feel that things are “wild”. They aren’t: the usual hands are too tame.

Almost everyone uses some form of riffle shuffle. That is OK, as far as it goes, but most people shuffle three or four times and start dealing. If you really want to use a riffle shuffle, you should do it at least seven or eight times to get something approaching randomization. When’s the last time you saw anyone do that?

Many moons ago, when I was starting my duplicate career, there was a magazine article that outlined a very simple yet very random shuffle. You actually deal the cards, into a random number of piles, in a random order. To help avoid any unconscious bias, you can have someone else specify (occasionally) which pile a card should go onto, or whether it should start a new pile. (The piles don’t have to be the same size: if one has two cards and another fifteen, it doesn’t matter). I usually finish up with six or seven piles. These are then picked up in random order (and again, someone else can have input as to which pile goes on top next). The end result is a thoroughly randomized deck. And statistical analysis had been done to prove that the results are indeed more random than typical common shuffling techniques produce.

No particular skill is needed, because all you do is deal, mechanically speaking. This makes it a good method for children who haven’t mastered the necessary dexterity for other shuffles. The chief complaint I’ve heard (once I explained what I was doing) is that it takes too long. I think this complaint is bogus. For one thing, it doesn’t actually take all that long to do. For another thing, the complaint mostly comes from the people who don’t shuffle properly themselves. If they riffled nine times instead of three, they might rethink whether dealing the deck out takes too long.

This method gained some adherents back in the 1970s, but never became really widespread. I think that’s a shame, and if I could, I would try and make it better known.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Run-outs from 1NT Doubled

The only significant problem with opening a weak no-trump is the danger of getting caught for a penalty. Going for a large number really doesn’t happen very often at all, but if you are vulnerable, getting hit for 200 or 500 on what is essentially a part-score deal is a real possibility. But we don’t have to sit still for 1NT doubled if a suit fit looks to be better.

I am not suggesting that running is always the best policy. If responder has 6-8hcp in a more-or-less balanced hand, the points are split roughly equally between the two sides. The best choice will usually be to stand your ground and trust partner to bring home 1NT. If you are not vulnerable, even when very weak, responder may do best just to sit: if declarer can escape for one or two down, you may find that they have a good part-score or even game the other way.

But then there are the times when we need to escape. There are numerous methods for escaping from 1NT doubled. For better or worse, we have decided to go with Moscow run-outs, which are among the simplest methods. The advantages that I see are that the run-outs are easy to remember, and our constructive bidding doesn’t get damaged too much when the opponents are being silly. The biggest disadvantage is that we often lose the ability to play in 1NT doubled: we can play redoubled, but not doubled. That raises the stakes to an uncomfortable level when assets appear to be roughly equally divided. But to be fair, that’s a blade that cuts both ways. (For a much bigger discussion of the philosophy of competing over 1NT and different methods for competing and escaping, see Chris Ryall’s website:

http://chrisryall.net/bridge/1nt-complex.htm

I’m not saying I agree with everything he says, but I think I agree with most of it).

There are two basic situations, 1NT – Double and 1NT – Pass – Pass - Double.

1NT – Double

In this situation, we want to play “systems on”, so that our constructive bidding isn’t disrupted too much when the opponents are being silly. The escape bids are Pass, Redouble, and 2NT, all alertable.
Redouble requires opener to bid 2C. Responder can Pass with clubs, or bid 2D with diamonds.
2NT over the double shows both minors (pre-emptive), 5-5 or better.
Pass requires opener to redouble. Responder can then pass (to play in 1NT redoubled) or bid his lowest suit holding any two suits 4-4 or better. Opener passes with 3-card support or better, or bids the next suit up if he has a doubleton in responder’s first suit. Responder then passes or corrects to his second suit. We should therefore finish up in at worst a 4-3 fit at the two level. The opponents may find that harder to double.

1NT – Pass – Pass – Double – Pass – Pass

Note that with a very weak hand, after 1NT – Pass, as responder you should often try and bid something. The best hand at the table is on your left, and if you pass it will most likely double, announcing the situation to the world. If you can transfer to a suit or use garbage Stayman, you start to confuse the issue. A weak minor two-suiter can be handled by bidding 2S and either passing 3C from opener, or if he bids 2NT, correcting to 3D. That all being said, sometimes you pass, and a double comes back around to you.


In this situation, presumably responder either has enough to pass (which is how we can occasionally still play 1NT doubled), or has a one-suit run-out to a minor via redouble (same as above) or we’re in trouble. In the latter case, if responder has two suits at least 4-4, he bids the lower one. Opener passes with 3-card support or better, or bids the next suit up if he has a doubleton in responder’s first suit. Responder then passes or corrects to his second suit. As after the pass and compulsory redouble, we should therefore finish up in at worst a 4-3 fit at the two level. Since this means we can move to a suit contract, after 1NT – Pass, a responder looking at any weak hand with a mild two-suiter can elect to pass first and run later, if staying in 1NT looks plausible unless they double.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

System Summary

A long time ago (it seems), I said I would post information about the bidding system I was playing with Agent 99. Well, there have been a few posts about specific topics, but generally I’ve been neglectful of that idea. We’ve been playing together for long enough now that the system has stabilized somewhat, so I’ve no real excuse not to write about it. Here’s a quick overview.

We play a Standard American natural system, with 2C as the artificial strong opening and a few gadgets. The basic framework is as suggested for Flint-Pender, described by Jeremy Flint about forty years ago. Key features include:
• 5-card majors with 1NT response forcing
• weak no-trump with three-suit transfer responses
• 1NT rebid has extended range, 13-17
This relatively simple basis allows for some accurate bidding, and easily accommodates some gadgets for fun and profit. Key conventions we employ include:
• 4th suit forcing
• Inverted minor suit raises
• Roman Key Card Blackwood, 1430 version
• Redwood 1430 when a minor suit has been agreed

1NT Rebid

The Flint-Pender formulation is that after 1plum – 1grape; 1NT shows 13-17hcp. Per the ACBL, this range has to be announced, since it is “non-standard” but overlaps what they consider to be standard.

Responses

Regardless of what suits have been bid, responder always has two artificial inquiries available.

2C – range inquiry. Opener bids 2D with 13-14hcp, 2NT with 17hcp, with 15-16hcp he bids two of responder’s major holding 3-card support, or two of the other major when lacking support. (If the bidding started 1C-1D, he bids two of his better major.)

2D – checkback Stayman, forcing to game. Responder is looking for a 4-card major that opener hasn’t mentioned, or for 3-card support for responder’s major.


1 Minor Opening

1 minor is natural, 3+ cards. We generally open the better minor, 1D holding 4-4 in the minors or 1C holding 3-3. Opener should have 11-20hcp in an unbalanced hand, or 15-20 balanced.

Responses

1major response may be weak (5+hcp) 4-card suit. With a balanced hand, opener will generally rebid 1NT (13-17) or 2NT (18-20), relying on subsequent inquiry mechanisms to return to a major suit if that is advisable.

1NT response to 1C shows about 8-10hcp. Holding 5-7hcp, responder may have to improvise a response in a 3-card suit to keep the auction open below 1NT.

Raises are inverted. Simple raise shows 10+hcp, 4-card support, and subsequent bidding revolves around stoppers for no-trump, unless or until one partner bypasses 3NT. Double raises are pre-emptive, 4-6hcp and often 5-card support.

Major-suit jump-shift responses are pre-emptive, based on a 6-card (or longer) suit and 0-5hcp. Jump-shifts to the other minor are pre-emptive raises of the opened minor, showing 7-9hcp and often 5-card support.

2NT response is natural and invitational, 11-12hcp. 3NT response is natural, 13-15hcp. In practice, both of these responses are very rare, and may be given an alternative (conventional) use if we find one we like.

1 Major Opening

1major opening is natural, 5+ cards, 11-20hcp usually.

Responses


1S over 1H may be weak (5+hcp) 4-card suit. With a balanced hand, opener will generally rebid 1NT (13-17) or 2NT (18-20), relying on subsequent inquiry mechanisms to return to a major suit if that is advisable.

2-over-1 suit responses are “meaty but not game-forcing”. In practice, most auctions will go to game, but it is possible to stop below game when responder is minimum (about 11hcp) and opener shows a minimum opening.

1NT response to 1major is forcing for one round, and handles many balanced responding hands plus unbalanced hands that are too weak for a 2-over-1 response. But part of the power of 1NT forcing is that it can handle some stronger responding hands. Responder can bid 1NT and then 2NT to indicate a 10-12hcp invitational hand, or 1NT and then 3NT to show 13-15hcp. 1NT and a jump to 3 of opener’s major would be a limit raise with 3-card support. And 1NT and then 4 of opener’s major, would show 3-3-3-4 distribution and game-going high-card strength, sometimes called a “pudding” raise.

Direct raises are standard limit raises.

Double-jump-shift responses, including 1H-3S and 1S-4H, are splinter raises, indicating a raise to game that includes 4+card support and a (bid) singleton.

Jump-shift responses are pre-emptive, based on a 6-card (or longer) suit and 0-5hcp.

The 2NT response is Jacoby-Roman, 12+hcp and 3+card support.

The 3NT response is currently undefined.

Other sequences


We don’t play Drury. However, 2-over-1 responses from a passed hand imply some support for opener’s suit (on the grounds that without that fit, no passed hand can be strong enough to give a 2-over-1), and if opener retreats to 2major, responder should realize that the opening bid is dead minimum or sub-minimum. By implication, opener should not simply rebid 2major when he is full value and doesn’t want to stop there.


1NT Opening

1NT opening is natural, 12-14hcp. Opener will very rarely have a 5-card major, but can have a 5-card minor in a 5-3-3-2 distribution. Rarely, 1NT may be opened with an off-shape hand, 5-4-2-2 or 6-3-2-2 where the long suit is a minor. Occasionally, opener might upgrade an 11-count with a 5-card suit.
Responses

2C is Stayman, generally either weak or strong, promises a 4-card major. New suits by responder at the two level are weak, at the three level are strong.

2D, 2H are major-suit transfers. Transfer then second suit is invitational+, forcing for one round. Transfer and single raise is 6-card suit, forcing to game, strong slam try.

2S is transfer to clubs. Opener completes the transfer with 3+ clubs, bids 2NT with a doubleton. Responder may pass 3C or bid 3D as weak takeout which opener must pass. Transfer followed by 3major is a splinter, game forcing, implying a strong 6-card minor suit (unspecified). Transfer followed by 3NT is game-forcing 5-5 with both minors.

2NT is natural and invitational, 11-12hcp.

3C, 3D are weakly invitational with a broken 6-card suit. Opener should only accept with good support.

3H, 3S are splinters, game forcing, with strong 4-4 or 5-4 in the minors.

3NT is natural, 13-18 balanced.

4C is Gerber.

4D, 4H are Texas transfers.

4S is unused.

4NT is natural, invitational to 6NT. If opener decides to accept, he may show aces as per Blackwood, and if responder then bids 5NT he must pass. Or opener may jump to 6minor to show a 5-card suit, offering a choice of slams.

5NT is forcing to 6NT, invitational to 7NT.

6NT and 7NT are natural.

2NT Opening

2NT opening is natural, 20-22hcp. Opener may have a 5-card major, and occasionally 2NT may be opened with an off-shape hand, 5-4-2-2 or 6-3-2-2 where the long suit is a minor. With 20hcp, opener has a choice between opening 1minor and rebidding 2NT or opening 2NT. Generally, responder will treat the 2NT rebid as 18-19 and the 2NT opening as 21-22, trusting opener to downgrade or upgrade 20-counts appropriately.
Responses

3C is Stayman.
 
3D, 3H are major suit transfers.

3S is a relay indicating a minor-suit hand.

3NT is natural

4C is Gerber

4D, 4H are transfers

4S is unused.

4NT is natural, invitational to 6NT.
 
5NT is forcing to 6NT, invitational to 7NT.

6NT and 7NT are natural.

2C Opening

The 2C opening is artificial and forcing to game in almost all sequences. Opener should have 23+hcp balanced, or 22+hcp unbalanced, or 18+hcp unbalanced in a hand that is within one trick of game. These unbalanced hands will have at most 4 losers, and usually 3 or less.
Responses

2H, 2S, 3C, 3D are natural positives showing 8+hcp and a suit of at least 5 cards headed by two top honors. 2NT is a natural positive showing 7-9+hcp balanced. Bidding continues naturally, and should almost always finish in a slam.

2D is a relay, negative or waiting, indicating that responder is unable to make one of the above positive responses. Opener’s rebids are essentially natural, with a couple of exceptions.

After 2C-2D, opener rebids:
• 2NT is 23-24hcp balanced
• 3NT is 27-28hcp balanced
• 2H is Kokish, either game forcing with hearts or game forcing balanced.
• Responder will normally relay with 2S, when 2NT shows 25-26hcp balanced, 3NT shows 29-30 balanced, and a suit bid is a natural second suit indicating that the 2H bid showed hearts.
• Responder can break the relay over 2H only with a very weak (0-3hcp) minor suit hand and no tolerance for hearts. Bidding 3C or 3D shows a 7+card suit headed by at best the queen.
• 2S, 3C, 3D are natural (5+cards)
• 3H, 3S show a 4-card suit with longer diamonds. This is a gadget to make sure that a 4-4 major fit doesn’t get lost when opener’s longest suit is diamonds.
After opener rebids 2NT, responder bids as after a 2NT opening. After opener rebids 3NT, 4C is Stayman, 4D, 4H are transfers.


2D, 2H, 2S Opening

We play standard weak 2s, a 6-card suit headed by two of the top three honors or three of the top five. Strength is 5-9hcp not vulnerable, 6-10hcp vulnerable.


Higher Openings

We play fairly sound standard pre-empts, plus the Gambling 3NT.





Competitive Bidding

We are playing overcalls as pretty standard. Simple overcalls are generally around 8-16hcp with a 5-card suit. Jump overcalls are weak with 6+cards, similar to a weak 2 opening. 1NT overcall is 15+-18hcp, systems on, in direct seat, about a king less in balancing seat.

We play Michaels cue-bids and the Unusual No-trump. Opponents’ minor openings showing 3+cards are treated as natural, and the UNT then shows the two lowest unbid suits. If the opponent’s minor suit may be two cards or less, the UNT shows both minors. Note that cue-bids are Michaels in both 2nd and 4th seats, but 2NT is generally Unusual only in 2nd seat, being natural and strong (about the same as a 2NT opening) in 4th seat.

We also play Leaping Michaels over opponents’ natural (not strong) 2-bids.

Our defence to 1NT is Landy.

When the opponents intervene in our auctions, we play in simple and fairly standard fashion. Doubles are negative through 3S, responsive through 2S. We don’t play support doubles or maximal doubles. Over an opponent’s takeout double, we play Jordan 2NT. Redouble usually shows 10-14hcp and a desire to penalize the opponents.

When the opponents intervene over 1NT, we play Lebensohl with slow denies.

Misadventures In Manhattan

The other day, Agent 99 and I started a session by missing two slams. That’s really not like us at all.

Game all, dlr S

          ♠ 10
          ♥ A Q 10 7 6 5 4
          ♦ 8 6
          ♣ J 7 2
♠ K 5 4 3             ♠ A Q 8 6 2
♥ 8         [ ]       ♥ K J
♦ A K 10 9 5 4        ♦ Q 7 3 2
♣ A K                 ♣ Q 10
          ♠ J 9 7
          ♥ 9 3 2
          ♦ J
          ♣ 9 8 6 5 4 3


S       W        N        E
Pass  1♦      3♥      3♠
Pass  4♠      Pass   Pass
Pass

Sitting East, I thought about making a try, since we have some sort of double-fit and I have the ♥K behind the pre-empt. But I couldn’t justify it. Of course, there is no excuse for West’s bid of 4♠ except that it was the first board and she hadn’t warmed up yet. At her second turn, her hand has become enormous. Just bidding 4NT seems reasonable, settling for 6♠ when an ace is missing.

Next board:

Love all, dlr W

                         ♠ 3
          ♥ 10 7 5 3
          ♦ 10 6 5 4
          ♣ A 8 7 4
♠ K Q 8 7 4           ♠ A 6
♥ 9         [ ]       ♥ A J 4
♦ A 9 8 2             ♦ K Q 7 3
♣ K Q 10              ♣ J 5 3 2
          ♠ J 10 9 5 2
          ♥ K Q 8 6 2
          ♦ J
          ♣ 9 6


S W N E
Pass  1♠      Pass  2♦
Pass  3♦      Pass  3NT
Pass  Pass   Pass

The system bid on my hand is really 1NT forcing, to be followed by 3NT (13-15). That would really give us no chance of reaching a slam. But once I made the “wrong” response of 2♦, we had a chance. In practice, playing matchpoints, it’s a hard choice (from either side) to suggest a diamond contract and almost guarantee bypassing 3NT. And truthfully, the two hands are a great fit which is not going to be easy to diagnose properly, while the 4-1 trump break means that I would have to be very careful playing the hand. Even though Deep Finesse says that 6♦ is always there, I can see a lot of ways to go down. So I don’t mind missing this one so much.

I’m back to playing with the guy I broke up with a few weeks ago. So far, we haven’t had any great results, but the partnership seems to be working a little better. One of the teachers at the Manhattan tends to intimidate the weaker players with boisterous bidding tactics (not out of malice, just because he has fun bouncing the bidding around). On the next hand, he was quite well-behaved, but we managed to take advantage anyway.

Game all, dlr W

          ♠ A 5
         ♥ K Q J 6 5 4
         ♦ J 6 2
         ♣ 7 5
♠ 10 2              ♠ K Q 7 6
♥ 10 8 3   [ ]      ♥ 9
♦ Q 8 4             ♦ A K 10 9 7
♣ A 10 8 3 2        ♣ K Q 9
         ♠ J 9 8 4 3
         ♥ A 7 2
         ♦ 5 3
         ♣ J 6 4


W N E S
Pass  1♥      Dble  2♥
Pass  Pass   Dble  Pass
3♣     3♥     Dble  Pass
Pass  Pass

My bidding box had run out of doubles, but I didn’t need any more. I started with my trump, and partner got in twice to lead two more, preventing a diamond ruff. At that point, declarer just conceded two down, there being no hope for more. That got most of the matchpoints, since people weren’t reaching the minor-suit games.

It’s not often that you score as high as 59% and only come in 5th, but that’s what happened to me playing with my old regular partner a few weeks ago. It was a tough field, with some visiting pros to augment the supply of regulars, and four pairs managed to get over 60%. We came 5th with 59.66%, not bad for a pair of rabbits.

The only board I remember actually came right at the end. A pair of not-bad opponents was victimized by distribution and trappy bidding.

Love all, dlr E

           ♠ Q 6 2
          ♥ K J 6 3
          ♦ K 8 6 3 2
          ♣ J
♠ J                  ♠ K 10 3
♥ Q 10 9 8 7[ ]      ♥ A 5 4
♦ A 10 9             ♦ Q J 7 5
♣ 9 7 6 4            ♣ A 10 2
          ♠ A 9 8 7 5 4
          ♥ 2
          ♦ 4
          ♣ K Q 8 5 3


E S W N
1♦     1♠     Dble  2♠
Pass  Pass  3♥     3♠
Dble  Pass  Pass  Pass

I was just about good enough to bid 3♠ at my first turn, counting about 8 losers. I figured that the ♦K would have to be downgraded with the diamond bid on my left, but against that, the heart honors were well-placed. Still, I went with prudence first, but couldn’t resist pushing to 3♠ the next time. That had the effect of drawing E-W into a penalty double that was tight at best, and in fact partner made the contract in great style, picking up the trumps for one loser by leading to the ♠Q and then finessing the ♠9 on the way back.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Major Suit Auctions

Major suit openings show 5+cards in all seats. High card strength will generally be about 11-20 hcp, depending on distribution. LTC will typically be 7 losers for a minimum opening, down to 5 or even 4 losers for a maximum. (Any hand with 3 losers or less should be opened 2C, and many 4-loser hands may qualify also). The basic responding scheme is as follows.
1S – pass usually has 0-4hcp and tolerance for spades, 10+losers.
1S - 2S is a limit raise, 3+ cards, 9 losers, usually 4-8hcp.
1S - 3S is a limit raise, 4+ cards, 8 losers, usually 9-11hcp
1S - 4S is a limit raise based on distribution: 4+ cards (often 5+), 7 losers, but usually only 6-8hcp.
1S – 4C/4D/4H are splinter raises, 4+cards, 7 losers or less, singleton or void in the bid suit.
1S – 3NT is undefined.
1S – 3C/3D/3H are natural and pre-emptive, showing a 6+card suit and 0-5hcp, with little tolerance for spades.
1S – 2NT is Jacoby-Roman, 3+ cards spade support, 12+hcp, typically somewhat balanced.
1S – 2C/2D/2H are natural, 11+hcp, showing a 5+ card suit, neither promising nor denying spade support.
1S – 1NT (forcing) catches everything else, including limit raises to 3S that have only 3-card support, balanced hands that include a doubleton spade, and hands that have a suit of their own but aren’t strong enough to make a 2 over 1 response.
Responses to 1H are similar, with the addition that there is

1H – 1S natural, showing a 4+card suit.

Generally, responding hands that are weakish 4-5 or 4-6 with spades and a minor should answer 1H with 1S so that a 4-4 spade fit can be discovered straight away. If they are strong enough to make an initial 2 over 1 response in the minor suit, they should go ahead and do that, because they are then also strong enough to mention the spades later.

After 1S – 1NT, opener rebids naturally. Repeating his suit guarantees 6+ cards: 2S shows 11-16hcp, 3S shows 17-18hcp, 4S would be 19-20hcp. Raising 1NT to 2NT would indicate 17-18hcp, raising to 3NT would show 19-20hcp. A jump rebid into a new suit (3C/3D/3H) would also be strong, no more than 5 losers, 18+hcp. With the typical 11-17hcp 6-7 loser hand, opener bids a second suit at the two level. 1S – 1NT; 2H guarantees at least 4+ hearts. 1S – 1NT; 2C or 2D may be a 3-card suit in a 5=3=3=2 or 5=3=2=3 hand.

Opener’s rebids after 1H – 1NT work similarly, except that hands with a 4-card spade suit can be awkward. 1H – 1NT; 2S is a reverse showing 17+hcp. Holding fewer points, opener must find a rebid in a minor, which may demand a 2C rebid on a doubleton in a 4=5=2=2 hand.

Responder’s rebid after 1S – 1NT; 2C/2D/2H is basically natural. Jumps to 3S and 4S indicate flat raises with 3-card spade support. (The 4S raise is specifically 4-3-3-3 distribution, a “pudding” raise. With a more promising hand, the initial 2NT response should be preferred.) Rebidding 2NT is a natural invitational bid with 10-12hcp, 3NT would be 13-15, and in both cases a doubleton spade is implied (or perhaps a singleton with 1=4=4=4 distribution). Other bids are mostly aimed at finding a playable part-score. Bidding a new suit indicates a weak hand and opener is expected to pass. Holding a doubleton spade, responder will usually return to 2S, even with 3 cards in opener’s second suit. If opener’s second suit is clubs or diamonds, it will generally be correct to return to spades even holding 4 cards in the minor. Raising the second suit would imply maximum values (in context, 9-11hcp) and a genuine fit, 5+cards if the suit is a minor.

Bidding after 1H – 1NT; 2C/2D is similar, with opener’s club suit being even more suspect than after a 1S start.

Once a major suit has been agreed, 4NT as 1430 RKCB is our main slam-bidding tool. In some auctions, a jump to 5NT (bypassing Blackwood) will be the Grand Slam Force, asking partner to bid 6 or 7 depending on his holding of the top trump honors. The original scheme was to bid 7 holding two of the top three honors, otherwise settle for 6. Using the space between 5NT and 6H/6S (whatever the trump suit is), it’s possible to define step responses to show your holding more precisely (for instance, 6C=no top honors, 6D=Q, 6H=A or K, 6S=2, or something like that). I’m not particularly impressed, and will settle for the old-fashioned way. If we’ve agreed trumps and I jump to 5NT, I’m interested in the AKQ of trumps. If you have 2 of them, bid the grand.

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Claiming

When I was just a teenager, I had a bad experience playing rubber bridge against some little old ladies. The contract was cold, and I made a sort of hand-waving claim, and RHO started in on "you touched that card, and if you're leading that then..." and the end result was that my cold contract didn't make because I wasn't careful about making my claim. You could say that she was a nasty old bugger, and you would probably be right, but the truth is it really was my fault. Those days (more than thirty years ago), playing rubber bridge in England, the rules were on her side. You have to play by the rules. I was careless, and I deserved to pay the price (although I wish I hadn't been playing for money!).

So fast-forward: what do I do now? When declarer, I don't touch dummy's cards at all, I call them. When I plan to claim, I nearly always draw trumps first, and/or play enough tricks that the remaining line of play is super-simple. The time "wasted" by playing two or three or four extra tricks is well compensated by virtually never having to answer a question about my line of play. And I'm always careful to clearly state the line of play. You're required to do that by the laws of duplicate, but I'm continually amazed by the number of declarers that show their hand and just say "they're all there" or something like that. It may well be true, but you don't make a claim that way. And if my line involves a squeeze or something that (while guaranteed to work) is not blindingly obvious to a beginner, I usually just play the hand out. It's easier, it really is.

OK, rant over. What prompted that? Well actually, nothing bad. I just noticed a coincidence. I've had two hands in the past year or so where, at trick two or three, the remaining line of play was just draw trumps and cash winners. So on these two occasions, I made an exception to my own rule given above, and claimed. Both times, my stated line of play began "I'm drawing trumps, and I can draw trumps even if they're 5-0". Both times, believe it or not, LHO interrupted at this point to show me the five trumps in his/her hand. And as best I can recall, all the times I drew trumps before claiming, they never were 5-0.

There are times when I think there might really be a goddess of bridge, with a really twisted sense of humor.