| West | North | East | South |
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What is your call as South holding: S-4
H-KJ10965
D-94
C-AQJ6 ?
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Negative doubles make offensive bidding much easier, but they sure complicate defensive bidding. Here, there’s a good chance that partner is lying in wait. Can we (must we?) double with an offensive-oriented hand? Or does double promise more defense?
WARD: “3H. I have no defense, so the mad doubler must wait until another day.”
WALKER: “3H. A double promises defensive strength, and this hand doesn’t qualify. A double can endplay partner into passing with lots of hands where 2S is cold. Even if it isn’t, do we really want to sweat out a chance at +100 when we’re cold for 140 or 420?”
It’s very tempting to bid 3H with seven winners. Double, on the other hand, lets partner participate in the decision. After all, he knows more about the hand than we do.
DODD: “Double. An awful lot of strength is missing here. If partner has the expected trap pass, I hope he’s looked at the vulnerability and knows that +300 is going to lose a bunch of IMPs if we have an easy 3NT.”
KESSLER: “DBL. I think Pass has a lot of merit. However, we may still have a red game, and it is IMPs. I’ll correct 2NT or 3D to 3H, and pass 3C or 3NT. If partner passes, I pray.”
SPEAR: “DBL. Systemic, unless holding length in their suit or unprepared for some response. Here, I can convert 3D to 3H. If we weren’t playing negative doubles and pard had doubled for penalties, it wouldn’t be right to pull with this hand, would it?”
As some passers pointed out, there are some differences between a direct penalty double and a pass of your reopening double. A direct double sends a stronger message because it’s totally voluntary. A pass of your reopening double, though, might be based on the knowledge that you had good defense (implied by your willingness to let him sit the double), and, in some cases, on the fact that you’ve put the pressure on and he has to do something.
Still, I think SPEAR gets to the heart of it. If you would sit a penalty double, then it seems that you have to cover partner by doubling here ... even if it feels a little uncomfortable.
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What is your call as South holding:
S-KQ
H-54
D-A10532 C-KQ102 ?
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Partner’s reopening is one of those “do-something” doubles that seem to come up more and more often in modern bidding. He’s telling us he has good values, that it’s our hand, and that he doesn’t think it’s right to defend 3H undoubled. And he wants us to make the “right” decision.
The panel was evenly split among three alternatives. Since the majority opted to pull the double, the pass was demoted slightly in the scoring.
If you play support doubles in this situation, that would work well, since our failure to double on the last round would confirm that our retreat to 3S was a doubleton. The panel’s dilemma was whether to support spades now, trusting partner to work it out, or to show our clubs, or to defend.
SIEVERS: “4C. I’m tempted to pass, since it seems like 3H will go down and I’m not sure we have a game. At IMPs, though, I’m conservative. 4C shows my shape and prevents partner from getting tapped in a spade contract.”
Neither hand can stand a tap, come to think of it. Tap or not, the strong doubleton swayed several panelists:
POPKIN: “3S. My honors should make it easy to pull trump. Give partner two black aces and the diamond queen and we should be able to avoid getting tapped out. I’m not bidding game with two fast heart losers.”
Both arguments are good, but flexibility is often best in these situations.
KESSLER: “4C. I have a good hand for this auction, but I’m afraid to bid 3S, as partner could pass and miss a game. 4S seems wrong with only two trumps and the suit probably breaking badly. Partner’s hand is totally unlimited and our best spot may be clubs. If he bids 4D over 4C, I’ll bid 4S. Here in Springfield, we hang ‘em high.”
I think Mark failed to note that partner’s “totally unlimited” hand passed in first seat. Speaking of hanging:
DODD: “4S. I’m sure some will quote the Law here, but with our side holding game values, I may as well bid the game most likely to make. Partner has 5+ spades, and my KQ isn’t exactly peanuts. Give him some garbage like AJxxx, Qx, Kxx, Jxx and where do you want to play this baby?”
If that’s his hand, I think these panelists would be happy to defend:
WARD: “Pass. Also my second choice. I can hope that partner noticed I opened third hand and has a maximum, but it doesn’t really matter. I just hope he leads a trump.”
MATHENY: “Pass. Pard will lead a trump and I’ll lead another when I’m in. We’ll then hold this to -730.”
WALKER: “Pass. If you won’t pass for penalties with this duke, you never will. Partner has to have a max in aces and kings, and I expect +500. Those who think EW are ”Law-protected" in their 9-card fit are forgetting that there’s zero Law protection for us if we declare. Pulling the double to 3S in a 7-card fit or 4C or 4D in an 8-card fit violates the Law by two tricks."
After that application of the Law, she’ll need a good attorney herself.
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What is your call as South holding:
S-102 H-AKJ53 D-Q875
C-Q4 ?
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Passing this hand makes no sense to me, but maybe it willto you. You might think the passers were planning to sit the presumed reopening double, but most had something trickier in mind:
FEILER: “Pass. I’m not going to play 1H doubled, but I want to see how the auction continues. Maybe West will bid spades, in which case I can cuebid to look for a stopper. If nothing exciting happens, I can always jump to 3NT at my next turn.”
Well, it might be pretty exciting if we let the opponents find their spade fit or if we advertise that we don’t have a stopper. That doubleton heart that West was fingering for his opening lead will now be replaced by a spade. If you’re going to bid 3NT eventually, why not do it now, without allowing them to exchange more information?
POPKIN: “Pass. Wait for the reopening double and see what happens. I can always bid notrump later.”
KESSLER: “Pass. There’s no good bid now. Next round, I should be able to make an intelligent decision.”
The appropriate number of notrump is not a good decision at this point? Unless you intend to defend 1H double, why not head for home now?
SIEVERS: “2NT. I might be a bit strong for this, but my 5-card suit doesn’t count for much.”
There was a strong Solver vote for 2NT, but several thought it was forcing. After the overcall, 2NT is invitational and partner can pass. This hand isn’t exactly a maximum game- force, and there’s a good case for 2NT at matchpoints. Red at IMPs, though, I think you have to go with:
MYERS: “3NT. Someone is always quoted in these forums as saying that if 3NT seems to be the right contract, then bid it. I have to be the one since I have the heart stoppers.”
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What is your call as South holding: S-A7653
H-AQ10 D-Q92 C-A4 ?
| Action | Score | Votes |
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MYERS’ comment in the last problem leads us right to this one, which proves that Hamman’s Rule (if 3NT is a possible contract, bid it) lives on.
WARD: “3NT. With my 5 spades looking like 4, I’ll glub 3NT. Qxx is horrid for this, but I’ll take delight in the fact that my RHO more than likely has a broken suit at this vulnerability, in which case it won’t matter.”
DODD: “3NT. Sure, we might miss 4S, but a 3S overcall on this suit is insane and double is worse, unless North can bid spades. Yeah, right.”
FEILER: “3NT. If partner has a diamond honor, this is probably the right contract. If he has two or three small, major-suit contracts will probably fail as well. Finally, if he has a singleton or void, he may bid something.”
3NT certainly won’t be the most confident bid we’ve ever made, but what’s better? We do have a diamond stopper, and that queen will pull some weight only if we play in notrump. And as Kent points out, 3NT doesn’t have to be a command decision.
KNIEST: “3S. If partner bids 3NT, you’re in the right spot. If he has a good hand and long suit, he’ll bid it. Failing to double loses only when he is weak with long hearts, but other bad things can happen after double — like playing in your 7-card club or heart fit instead of your 5-3 spade fit.”
You also lose when partner thinks you actually have spades and raises with Qx or Jx.
MYERS: “3S. I hate this suit, but I don’t want to be shut out. The alternative is 3NT, but one ducked diamond lead and I’m wide open.”
I agree that you can’t pass here; that puts way too much pressure on partner to balance. And yes, if opening leader has two diamonds, we may be in trouble in 3NT. Or we may have nine runners. Still, I don’t understand the panel’s willingness to bid a suit at the 3-level that they would really prefer not to bid at the 1-level. If RHO had opened 1D, what would you bid? I’ll bet most every panelist would overcall 1NT, probably with some disparaging comment about that spade suit.
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What is your call as South holding: S-K85
H-KJ D-K743 C-KQJ3 ?
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The conventional wisdom is that a balancing 1NT shows a 10-count or so. With a “real” 1NT overcall, we double and then bid notrump. But does this really make sense over a major-suit opening?
WALKER: “1NT. A balancing 1NT over a major should not show as few as 10 points, especially vulnerable. Mike Lawrence recommends a range of something like 12 to a bad 16, and this aceless hand certainly qualifies.”
KNIEST: “1NT. Try to go plus and protect my hand from the lead. This is not a great 16. On the other hand, you have your notrump system in place and maybe a chance to bid game if partner has enough to invite.”
DODD: “1NT. An underbid, but the dearth of aces makes me want to pull in a notch. And it IS matchpoints, so why not make sure of a plus score? What else? Double, then bid 2NT over the expected 2H? Yuck.”
Tom’s example demonstrates the wisdom of using the heavier range when balancing over a major. Over a minor, we have more room to maneuver, and we can use a range of 10-14 for 1NT and 15-17 for a double-then-notrump auction. But here’s the problem over a major:
BIEVENUE: “Double. I don’t see the problem. I have 16 points, and 1NT in the balancing seat should show 12 to a bad 15. I can show this hand by doubling and then bidding 1NT.”
Except that partner is going to bid 2 of something, so your next bid will have to be 2NT. In this case, trying to sneak through an insufficient bid is probably your best strategy.
FEILER: “Double, and probably bid 2NT bid at my next turn. It’s just too strong for an immediate 1NT.”
But is it too strong? Even if you don’t adopt Lawrence’s 12-16 range, the worst that can happen is you’ve made a slight underbid, which isn’t always fatal at matchpoints. If partner can scrape up a response, you’re golden.
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What is your call as South holding:
S-AKJ975 H-AK74 D-Q108
C-Void ?
| Action | Score | Votes |
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This was a difficult one to score. 4S got the most votes, but many more panelists made strong moves toward slam, so I’ve promoted those bids in the scoring.
Partner has shown a good hand, but he’s screaming that he has club strength opposite our known shortness. Still, several panelists didn’t want to give up on spades.
POPKIN: “4S. Partner bid 3NT knowing I have at most a singleton club, but he didn’t know I had 6 spades. I can’t stand watching her struggle with entries as she tries to set up her diamonds and clubs, apologizing for not knowing that her 10x of spades was all I needed to make 4S.”
DODD: “4S. I wouldn’t be in this predicament had I properly planned the auction. Since I had no intention of letting this die in 3NT, I should have bid 3Slast time, then 4D over 3NT. Now, anything I do is a shot in the dark.”
It’s possible that 3S would have worked better, but is there really anything wrong with an early confirmation of your 8-card fit for partner’s suit? It’s virtually guaranteed that he holds 5+ diamonds, since he’s at best 2-3 in the majors, and he would have bid 2C with 4-4 in the minors. If you accept that, maybe a shot is best:
WALKER: “6D. Partner has 5+ diamonds and extra values — with a minimum game-force, he would have bid 3NT instead of 2NT. He’s also denied Qx of spades (else he would have bid 3S over 3D), so I’ll give up on 6S.”
KNIEST: “6D. So partner has AKQ of clubs and Kxxxx of diamonds. Even with that, all he needs to find for slam is the diamond jack — a good chance, since they’ll probably lead a trump to stop the club ruffs in dummy.”
Here are two more slam approaches:
SIEVERS: “5S. This shows the 6th spade and should be forcing to 6D or 6S. Bids of 4C, 5C and 6D might also work, but none of them show the extra spade or the club void.”
WARD: “5C. To give up below slam with this hand is a travesty of bridge. If partner bids 5D over 5C, I’ll give him 5NT. If this doesn’t show a mountain with a club void, I don’t know what does. I’ll honor anything he bids over 5NT, but if he bids past 5D over my 5C, it’s the 7-level for him.”
Another panel contingent wanted to save space with a gentler cuebid:
FEILER: “4C. It’s just barely possible that we don’t have a slam. If partner bids 4NT now, I’ll pass.”
SPEAR: “4C. Cuebids are always 100 pts., right? Actually, at the table I’d bid 4NT, trusting partner’s notrump bids and trusting his judgment again for slam prospects. If only my partners would trust me so much.”
All good arguments, but once again, I’ll go with the flexibility We can still get to 6D from 4S, but we can’t get back to 4S from 6D. A 4S bid shows my shape, and if it’s right to bid on, partner can make the decision.
If you’d like to read up on our bidding system,
Bridge World Standard, see: www.bridgeworld.com/bws/bwsmainpage.html
I hope you’ll all try the new
problems for December. Please send your
solutions as soon as possible (by Oct. 24) to:
- How the Panel Voted (Panel/Staff average: 532)
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| Midge Beiger, Champaign IL | DBL | 3S | Pass | Pass | DBL | 4S | 540 |
| Kent Feiler, Harvard IL | DBL | Pass | Pass | 3NT | DBL | 4C | 550 |
| Mark Kessler, Springfield IL | DBL | 4C | Pass | 3NT | DBL | 4C | 570 |
| Larry Matheny, Bloomington IL | DBL | Pass | 2NT | DBL | DBL | 4C | 510 |
| Mason Myers, St. Louis | 3H | 3S | 3NT | 3S | DBL | Pass | 490 |
| Nancy Popkin, St. Louis | DBL | 3S | Pass | 3S | 1NT | 4S | 550 |
| Lisa Sievers, Champaign IL | 3H | 4C | 2NT | 3S | DBL | 5S | 480 |
| Jack Spear, Kansas City MO | DBL | 3S | 2NT | 3NT | 2NT | 4C | 520 |
| Mike Tomlianovich, Bloomington IL | 3H | 3NT | 3NT | 3NT | DBL | 4S | 520 |
| Nate Ward, Champaign IL | 3H | Pass | 3NT | 3NT | 1NT | 5C | 530 |
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| Tom Dodd, Boerne TX | DBL | 4S | Pass | 3NT | 1NT | 4S | 540 |
| Mike Jones, Champaign IL | DBL | 4S | 3NT | 3NT | 1NT | 4S | 580 |
| Tom Kniest, Clayton MO | DBL | 4C | 3NT | 3S | 1NT | 6D | 540 |
| Karen Walker, Champaign IL | 3H | Pass | 3NT | 3NT | 1NT | 6D | 530 |