Sunday 8/29/10

Right-click here for hands. Six tables each in the open and 99er sections -- very nice for a weekend game!
(Note: the results for the 99er game do not seem to match up with the boards; not sure what happened.)

Board 1: North passes, East opens 1S, South doubles for takeout. West passes and North has a choice of bids: 1NT, 2H or 3H. This depends partly on partner's doubling style: a traditional double would emphasize hearts, North can reasonably expect four card support, and 3H is probably justified. If partner tends to double just to show points, or follows the modern style of doubling aggressively to avoid balancing later, 1NT may be safer. 2H seems a distinct underbid. East has good spades, extra values and a second suit; he may compete with 2C over 1NT (West will correct to 2S) but bidding over 2H or 3H does not seem advisable --  pass and let partner compete if he can. West should balance with 2S over 2H and N/S should land in 3H one way or another, making 4 on a crossruff.

Board 6 North has a 22 point, 8.5 trick monster. After three passes, 2C planning to rebid 2NT (22-24) seems reasonable. South has just enough to raise 2NT to game. 2C followed by 3C is more awkward: you're apt to miss the best matchpoint spot of 3NT. In general, avoid 2C without a five card major, six card minor, or hand you can treat as balanced. If you don't care for the offshape notrump rebid, I suggest opening 1C, planning to reverse into hearts. Partner will usually have enough to bid and, if not, someone usually does. But North's second suit is very poor. 3NT makes with the 10 of clubs providing an entry for the winning spade finesse; 5C can make without the finesse as trumps split 2-2 and one heart ruff establishes the Nine for a spade pitch.

Board 11 South opens 2NT (20-21.) With a six card suit, known fit and 22+ hcp, I'd be tempted as North to bid game (directly or by way of a Texas or Jacoby transfer, depending on methods); but the poor trumps argue for caution and 3H making or down 1 scored well.

Board 13 North opens 1H and if East/West pass South responds 1S (the hand is not suitable for any immediate raise of hearts.) North rebid 2D and South re-evaluates: a typical minimum opening has 7 losers, the Queen of hearts and the black cards should cover three losers, and a diamond ruff makes 4, so a leap to 4H is justified. Note that Kxxxx AQx x Qxxx, despite having better trumps, would be less certain and should perhaps settle for a 3H game invitation. Aces are often more valuable outside the trump suit than in, and stray Queens are of doubtful value in suits partner has not bid (remember, he has shown 9 cards in two suits, so the chances of a Queen in one of the other suits covering a 3rd round loser are slim. On the actual hand, the Queen of clubs in combination with the Ace has a fair chance of covering a second round loser.)

At our table East doubled 1H, somewhat off-shape. South can simply respond 1S (most play a new suit forcing at the one level) and then proceed as he would without the double, with even more optimism about his black-suit honors. Redouble would show a generally balanced hand with 10+ hcp and typically 2 or 3 hearts, or perhaps a singleton heart with somewhat more strength. Never redouble with a void in partner's suit -- it's a good way to score -1000 or worse. The general purpose of the redouble is to inform partner "it's our hand" and invite him to double any suit they bid where he has 4+ trumps.With an expected 9 card fit (four card support for a major or five for a minor) it is generally fruitless to redouble, since you would never defend below the three level; most play 2NT as a raise showing the high card strength of the redouble along with the big fit (Jordan 2NT.) This is a "natural" convention since 2NT would otherwise be idle -- responder redoubles with a balanced hand. (Some use 2NT with only an 8 card fit, marking the "redouble implies no fit" checkbox; others mistakenly mark that box when, in fact, they would not bid Jordan without 4 trumps and so routinely redouble with 3 card support for a 5 card major.)

Board 14 East has opens a hefty 1D and West gives a standard raise to 2D or inverted raise to 3D. When playing inverted, I always insist that, with no intervening overcall or double, the bid promises 6-9 hcp; making the bid with Jxxxxx and out may seem clever but forcing partner to guess with a powerful hand is anything but. After a standard 1D-2D, East rebids 2H to probe for notrump. West has a minimum but five diamonds and a cheap, 3 point, double-stop in clubs, so he should cooperate with 3C. This allows East to bid the good 3NT, making 5. After an inverted 3D, getting to 3NT would be a guess unless you agree that 1D-3D-3H-3S says "I have clubs but not spades stopped", logical perhaps but rather hard to remember. The jump raise, though weak, promises a big fit and East has visions of slam. He tries 3H followed by 4S but cannot coax any enthusiasm from West. Should East settle for 5D? At a team game, perhaps; at matchpoints, probably not -- 5D is betting that both 3NT and 6D are wrong. Maybe the best "inverted raise" auction would be 1D-3D-4D (Minorwood) or 4NT (RKCB)- one key card- 6D.