Sunday, June 24th 2012

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Board 3: E/W vulnerable, South deals and the auction proceeds:
1D-(pass)-1H-(2S)
1NT-(2S)-?
As North you hold: -- QJ109842 A9 8652 . What's the best bid?

With no competition, you might settle for 2H or an invitational 3H over partner's 1NT rebid. But in a competitive auction, most bids are presumed to be competitive; Kit Woolsey says more matchpoints are won or lost in the battle for part-scores than anywhere else. So 3H would be merely competitive here, perhaps with a small spade and only six hearts. As game might make, it's best in competition for North just to bid it; South might have J9xx Kx KQxx Ax, for example. That might go down on a club lead, but should be an easy 10 tricks on the likely spade lead. Even if 4H won't fetch, it has an extra chance to win on this sort of bidding: East or West will often take a phantom sacrifice at 4S. Every now and then 4S will make, but with a side Ace opposite an opening bid, North should not worry too much about that (and should double 4S if they do bid it.) As it happens, 4H makes an overtrick while 2S doubled goes off two tricks on the King of diamonds lead.

Board 6: South opens 1S and the auction proceeds as follows:
1S-2C
2H-3S

Simple bidding would continue 4NT-5D; 6S. That's what I intended, but mistakenly passed partner's 5D(!) thinking "6S looks right." At 6S, West is apt to lead a diamond and South can quickly grab five spades, five clubs and two diamond tricks for a top board.

A more scientific auction would have South control cue-bid 4D; when North signs off at 4S or cue-bids either minor, South can guess there are two quick heart losers and stop at 4S or 5S. At a team game that would be good bidding; but at matchpoints, an alert West will try a heart lead and cost you a key overtrick.

Board 7: South deals and opens 1S; North, looking at KQJ9xx x AK10 KQx may as well blast into Blackwood. South replies 5H (two Aces or key-cards) and North signs off at 6S. Declarer claims immediately after pulling trumps, conceding the Ace of hearts. Although 6NT also makes, that depends too much on the location of the enemy heart honors.

Board 21: North opens 1D or 1C according to taste; while it's normal to open 1D with 4-4 in the minors to prepare for a non-reverse 2C rebid, on today's hand North plans to rebid notrump, and opening 1C may catch a diamond fit in an up-the-line style. Assuming 1D, South responds 2C. With game-going values, South should bid naturally (longest suit first) rather than automatically bidding the major. However, this requires good agreements about opener's rebids after 1D-2C, or the major suit fit may be lost. I recommend that opener rebid 2D on almost any hand with 5+ diamonds; 2H or 2S "up-the-line" on relatively balacned hands with one or both four-card majors; 3C with club support and extra values; and 2NT on a minimum with none of the above. Unfortunately, many textbooks and players insist reversing into 2H or 2S shows extra values. This is an obsolete relic of Old Standard American where a minimum 4-5 red suit hand could open 1H and where 2C might be only 8 hcp plus some shape. Yes, 2H and 2S force the bidding to a higher level, but in the modern style 2C promises enough strength for 2NT or 3 of some suit and therefore opener does not need any extra values for these bids. If you haven't discussed this with partner, it may be better to simply repond in the major and talk about it later.

North rebids 2NT on today's hand and South shows game-going values with 3H (this might not be a ral suit if North's 2NT denies a major as recomended above.) Under the asumption South would've simly raised to 3NT if that looked correct, North proceeds with 4C. South bids 4NT and proceeds to slam after the 1 Ace or 2 Key card reply. 12 tricks are made easily as long as trumps divide 2-1.

Why shouldn't North simply raise 2C to 3C? Well, if you bid that with today's minimum, what would you bid with xx Kx Axxxx AKxx ? Suit bids at the three level must be either clearly forcing or  non-forcing, and if you play most of them non-forcing, you will have no way to describe stronger hands.

If South starts with 1H, a reasonable auction might begin 1D-1H; 1NT-? Hard to find the club slam, isn't it? I suppose 3C-4C might work, but wouldn't you bid that way with a strong 5-5 hand? Then North would rebid 3H rather than 4C with Qx Kxx Axxx Kxxx.

Board 25: North opens 1S, South responds 2H. By the way, that promises 5 hearts; with only four South should start with 2C or 2D. For example, with xxx AQxx QJx Axx, South bids 2C and supports spades next unless North bids hearts. With any other distribution South will have a four-card minor along with his four hearts.

After 1S-2H, North should rebid 2S. This would be correct even with only five spades -- once again, freely bidding a suit at the three level should promise extra values and be forcing to game. With only 12 and a void in partner's suit, North wants to slow the bidding down. South continues with 3D; this new suit by responder is not only forcing one more round but logically creates a game force since there may be no playable spot below 3NT. North considers 3NT but with KQxxxx -- Axxx Kxx either 4S or 5D looks more attractive, so North riases to 4D.  South visualizes dumping a club or two on North's spades and decides slam is a reasonable gamble. 4NT produces a one-Ace or one-key-card reply. Playing straight Blackwood South may as well bid slam; it's rarely correct to stop at 5 of a minor when either 3NT or 6 could be better. Key-card bidders, however, will know that two Aces or one Ace and the King of trumps are missing and pass the 5D reply for a good board. Four spades is actually the best contract thanks to the lucky 3-3 suit split. Six diamonds would require West to have K10 doubleton of trumps.