Club News Sheet – No. 178 www.pattayabridge.com 1^st April 2006

Mon 27^th N-S 1^st = Clive/Dave 61% 1^st = Chuck/Paul Kelly 61%

E-W 1^st John/Kenneth 57% 2^nd Bjorn/Kees 56%

Wed 29^th 1^st Dave/Ivy 61% 2^nd Bob Short/Alan 59%

Fri 31^st 1^st Hans(Hol)/Gerry 62% 2^nd Chuck/Paul Kelly 58%

Bidding Quiz Standard American is assumed unless otherwise stated.

Hand A Hand B What do you open with Hand A?

♠ A9 ♠ AK742 With Hand B you open 1♠ and partner bids 1NT. Now obviously

♥ AK86 ♥ 10 you would now bid 2♦, but RHO intervenes with 2♥ in front of

♦ KJ43 ♦ AK984 you – so what do you do?

♣ A84 ♣ 102

Hand C Hand D With Hand C it is favourable vulnerability. Partner passes and

RHO opens 1♠. What do you do?

♠ 7 ♠ AJ74

♥ K98532 ♥ 7543 With Hand D partner opens 1♦ and you bid 1♥. Partner then bids

♦ 32 ♦ A10 2♦, what do you do?

♣ Q642 ♣ 985

Hand E Hand F With Hand E you open 1♥, LHO doubles and partner redoubles.

What do you do?

♠ AJ6 ♠ A1093

♥ KQJ93 ♥ J9 With Hand F RHO opens 1♦, what do you do?

♦ K4 ♦ AKQ7

♣ J93 ♣ 1087

Bidding Sequences Quiz

G 1♥ 1♠ 1NT pass What is 3♣? Is it forcing?

3♣

H 1♥ 1♠ 1NT 2♠ What is 3♣? Is it forcing?

3♣

J 1♥ dbl redbl pass What is 1NT? (this is a ‘trick’ question’)

1NT

K 1♠ pass 1NT 2♥ What is 3♦? Is it forcing?

3♦

L pass 1♠ dbl pass What sort of hand (and how many points) is 2NT?

2♣ pass 2NT

M pass 1♠ dbl pass What sort of hand (and how many points) is 2♠?

2♣ pass 2♠

N 1♠ pass 2♣ 2♥ What does dbl mean?

dbl

P 1♥ 1♠ pass pass What does 2♥ mean?

2♥

No Psyches please Board 6 from Wednesday 29^th

Dealer: ♠ 7

West ♥ K98532 West North East South(C)

E-W vul ♦ 32 pass pass 1♠ ?

♣ Q642

What was your answer to hand C in this week’s quiz? It’s favourable vulnerability and partner has already passed – a classic psyche situation? Maybe, but psyching is not allowed at this club. A 2♥ bid here should be close to an opening hand. With this hand you either have to pass or make a weak jump to 3♥ - and at this vulnerability I have no problem with 3♥ and I would not argue if you chose 4♥ or an off-beat 2♠ Micheals. But 2♥ simply is not allowed at this club by experienced players.

And what happened? E-W missed an easy 6♠ +1 bid at most tables. I awarded this E-W pair that same score. I did not penalise South as this is, to my knowledge, his first (and presumably last) psyche and so they got the same score as most of the field who defended 6♠.

The bottom lines: -

- Please report all psyches. The score will be adjusted if necessary.

- Psyching is not allowed at this club.

- Six points off the expected is a psyche in my book.

Zero Tolerance

There was an incident on Monday but I am unsure about all of the facts. I have heard that one player was rude/abusive but I do not know the details.

The Pattaya Bridge club operates a (close to) Zero tolerance policy. Inexperienced players are welcome and rude/arrogant players will be summarily dismissed - they can always go along and play with Henrik, John Gavens, Jan, Alex and all of the other drop-outs who are not welcome at this club.

Zero tolerance is all about creating and maintaining a friendly club. I have copied a list of guidelines off the web and it’s reproduced on the next page and is in our rules section on the web. I have printed out a few copies of the club rules if you want one.

Zero Tolerance

Expected Behavior

Anything that makes bridge more enjoyable for others

1. Greeting others in a friendly manner prior to start of play on each round.

2. Be a good "host" or "guest" at the table.

3. Making your convention card readily available to your opponents and filling it out completely.

4. Do EVERYTHING possible to make bridge enjoyable for yourself, partner and opponents.

5. Give credit when opponents make a good bid or play.

Unacceptable Behavior

Anything makes bridge less enjoyable for others

1. Publicly criticizing partner or opponents.

2. Badgering, rudeness, insinuations, profanity, threats or violence.

3. Negative comments concerning opponents' or partner's play or bidding.

4. Gloating over good results.

5. Objecting to a call for the director.

6. Disputing or arguing with a directors ruling.

7. Poor personal hygiene, grooming or dress.

Many Bridge Organizations Have Adopted Zero Tolerance
The organizations follow the following guidelines for Zero Tolerance:                 There should be NO warnings
1	First Offense - a procedural penalty of one quarter board or three IMPS.
2	Second Offense - Ejection from the game.

A high reverse? – part 1 Board 24 from Monday 27^th

A high reverse is something like 1♥ p 1NT p 3♣ and is game forcing. But what if RHO intervenes? What was your answer to sequence H (1♥ 1♠ 1NT 2♠ 3♣) in this week’s quiz?

Dealer: ♠ AJ984

West ♥ K64 West North East South

Love all ♦ Q94 1♥ (1) 1♠ 1NT 2♠

♣ Q8 3♣ (2) pass pass (3) pass

♠ 3 N ♠ 10652

♥ AQJ93 W E ♥ -

♦ 8 S ♦ AKJ63

♣ A105432 ♣ J976

♠ KQ7

♥ 108752

♦ 10752

♣ K

(1) A 1♣ opening (followed by bidding ♥’s twice if necessary) is an alternative.

(2) What would you bid with this West hand? Do you consider 3♣ here as forcing? There was no room for it in this week’s quiz and I would have opened 1♣ anyway.

(3) East thought that West was just competing and so passed. This East hand is a super max with no ‘wasted’ points in ♠’s and I think that 4♣ is justified even if you think that partner may be just competing.

So then, is 3♣ competing or forcing? If South had passed then a jump to 3♣ is clearly a high reverse and forcing. But when South bids 2♠ it’s not so clear. My gut feeling is that without any prior agreement it should be forcing, but I agree that it’s difficult as West cannot make the same bid with a competing and forcing hand and he would be stuck with a weaker hand that’s 1525 shape. Unfortunately South’s bid means that you cannot show both a competing and forcing hand. To summarize: -

- 1♥ 1♠ 1NT pass 2♣ is competing.

- 1♥ 1♠ 1NT pass 3♣ is game forcing.

- 1♥ 1♠ 1NT 2♠ 3♣ is ? Up to you, I say forcing without prior agreement.

- 1♥ 1♠ 1NT 2♠ dbl is competitive. It is not penalties as opponents have bid and

agreed the suit and you are under the overcaller. However, West cannot bid that with this hand as partner is bound to bid ♦’s.

And what happened? There are 11 tricks there in ♣’s

The bottom lines: -

- With 1516 shape and a hand that’s worth game if partner can respond (as this West hand) it is usually best to open the longer suit.

- Had West opened 1♣ then it would have gone 1♣ 1♠ 1NT 2♠ 3♥ and that is very clearly a reverse and game forcing.

A high reverse? – part 2 Board 13 from Friday 31^st

Dealer: ♠ AK742

North ♥ 10 West North(B) East South

Both vul ♦ AK984 - 1♠ pass 1NT

♣ 102 2♥ 3♦ (1) pass 3♠ (2)

all pass

♠ 10986 N ♠ QJ

♥ A97543 W E ♥ J2

♦ - S ♦ Q10753

♣ AQ7 ♣ K983

♠ 53

♥ KQ86

♦ J62

♣ J654

(1) What did you bid with this North hand B in this week’s quiz? I guess it’s up to you but I play 3♦ here as a good hand and (game!) forcing. (Chuck and) I consider it to be a high reverse. Now with no intervention North would have bid 2♦, but the overcall has reduced the bidding space. Unfortunately double here is played as penalties by most (including me) and so there is not room enough for both a competitive and forcing ♦ bid. It’s very difficult and since North does not really want to give up I suppose that 2♠ is the best competitive bid? Let me know (politely please) what you think.

(2) North criticised this bid and thought that South should have passed. I disagree, I would most certainly give partner ‘false preference’ back to ♠’s even if 3♦ was not forcing.

And what happened? 3♠ went two down for a poorish score, but many others suffered a similar fate and also got too high.

The bottom lines: -

- You can play otherwise if you wish, but I agree with Chuck that sequences H and K are game forcing (high reverse) unless you have agreed otherwise.

A reverse guarantees 5+ cards in the first bid suit Board 27 from Monday 27^th

Dealer: ♠ 9865

South ♥ A102 West North East(D) South

Love all ♦ K73 - - - pass

♣ 632 1♦ pass 1♥ pass

2♦ (1) pass 2♠ (2) pass

♠ Q10 N ♠ AJ74 4♥ (3) all pass

♥ KQ8 W E ♥ 7543

♦ QJ9654 S ♦ A10

♣ KJ ♣ 985

♠ K32

♥ J96

♦ 82

♣ AQ1074

(1) 1NT is a reasonable alternative.

(2) What did you bid with this East hand D in this week’s quiz? I don’t think that the hand is even worth an invitation and I would pass as quickly as ethically allowed. This 2♠ bid is a reverse and apart from the fact that the hand is not good enough, it guarantees 5 ♥’s with every bridge player in the world except John Gavens.

(3) With excellent ♥’s West quite correctly bid 4♥.

And what happened? It should be two down, but East played it well for just one down and a joint bottom.

The bottom lines: -

- A reverse (by either opener or responder) guarantees 5+ cards in the first bid suit.

- 9 points and a mis-fit is not enough to reverse opposite a minimal opener even if it had the required shape.

Supporting the 4^th suit

♠ - Jean-Marc gave me this hand. You open 1♦ and partner responds 1♠.

♥ KQxx (a) What do you bid? I said 2♥ but Jean-Marc said that he did not think it’s

♦ AJ10xx worth a reverse because of the void in partner’s suit. OK, I’m easy, so ...

♣ KQ10x (b) ... you rebid 2♣ and partner bids 2♥ (4^th suit), what do you bid?

As it happens, I mentioned this just last week. 3NT is reasonable but the best bid is 3♥. This is best played as natural when it’s a major and when partner may hold 4 cards in the suit (as in this situation).

A penalty missed again Board 10 from Monday 27^th

I’ve recently mentioned a number of occasions where a penalty was missed by people not understanding negative double or support double theory. It appears that we have a similar problem with bidding after a redouble: -

Dealer: ♠ 1093

East ♥ 108652 West North East(E) South

Both vul ♦ 832 - - 1♥ dbl (1)

♣ Q5 redbl pass 1NT (2) pass

2NT pass 3NT all pass

♠ 7542 N ♠ AJ6

♥ A4 W E ♥ KQJ93

♦ AQ106 S ♦ K4

♣ 1087 ♣ J93

♠ KQ8

♥ 7

♦ J975

♣ AK642

(1) I like to have 4 ♠’s for a double of 1♥, but I agree that double is best with this hand.

(2) What did you bid with this East hand E in this week’s quiz? Unless you have a very shapely hand you should pass – partner is the captain. I cannot dream up any hand where 1NT would be a sensible bid – simply pass and let the opponents stew. There is absolutely no need to bid here in front of partner and you get another chance anyway.

And what happened? 3NT made but it should go one down. On the ‘obvious’ ♣4 lead it’s down off the top. Anyway, E-W making 9 tricks scores 600 which is less than the 800 they would have got for whatever South floundered into. And if 3NT had gone down it would have been a complete disaster.

The bottom lines: -

- Sequence J - 1♥ dbl redbl pass 1NT does not exist.

- When partner redoubles you have the majority of the points. He is often looking for blood and you should only bid with a very shapely opener that is unsuitable for defense.

Editorial

Those of you who look at the web site will realise that I’ve been doing a lot of work on it - out with the old (rubbish) and in with the new. Anyway, one addition is the guest map, and it’s interesting to note that there are a number of people out there rooting for Dave to win the Gold Cup this year. Seems he has a load of mates in Australia, USA, wherever! There is even an encouraging note from Henrik who’s apparently back in Norway. Check it out.

6-2 better than 4-4?? Board 3 from Monday 27^th

Somebody asked me to look at board 3 as they thought that the 6-2 ♠ fit played better than the 4-4 ♥ fit. I was surprised; so I did look at it and, as usual, the 4-4 fit played far better: -

Dealer: ♠ KQ10852

South ♥ QJ52 West North East South(A)

E-W vul ♦ - - - - 2NT (1)

♣ Q75 pass 3♥ (2) pass 3♠

pass 4♥ pass 4♠ (3)

♠ J76 N ♠ 43 pass 4NT (4) pass 5♣

♥ 10743 W E ♥ 9 pass 6♠ all pass

♦ Q976 S ♦ A10852

♣ J3 ♣ K10952

♠ A9

♥ AK86

♦ KJ43

♣ A84

(1) What did you open with this South hand A in this week’s quiz? I would open 1♦.

(2) Transfer.

(3) I don’t really understand this. Apparently South wanted to be declarer to protect his ♦ holding; but at the cost of not playing in the 4-4 fit?

(4) North assumed that South had 3 ♠’s (and not 4 ♥’s) and naturally went zooming off into the ♠ slam.

And what happened? 6♠ went one down. 6♥ is a much easier contract – in fact Deep Finesse says that North makes 13 tricks in ♥’s.

The bottom lines: -

- Go for the 4-4 fit.

- 19 points is not enough for a 2NT opener without a 5 card suit (unless you have loads of 10’s and 9’s)

How should the bidding go? How about: -

1♦ - 1♠ - 2NT - 3♥ - 4♥ - 6♥.

Balancing – Partner is bidding your hand! Board 8 from Friday 31^st

Dealer: ♠ A1093

West ♥ J9 West North(F) East South

Love all ♦ AKQ7 1♦ pass (1) 1♥ pass

♣ 1087 2♥ pass (2) pass 2♠ (3)

pass 3♠ (4) all pass

♠ Q10 N ♠ KQ

♥ KQ8 W E ♥ K8754

♦ QJ9654 S ♦ 865

♣ KJ ♣ 643

♠ 8752

♥ 62

♦ J10432

♣ KJ

(1) What did you bid with this North hand F in this week’s quiz? Pass is absolutely correct. The other (very reasonable) alternative is 1NT and with these good intermediates I would choose that. 1♠ is a poor bid - I’ve said it loads of times and I guess I’ll have to say it again as a few people got it wrong - overcalls are 5-cards suits, 4 card overcalls are best left to the experts who are experts because they play 4-3 or 4-2 fits very well. And what about double? Again, very poor with length and strength in the suit opened.

(2) And pass is again correct here – a double would show ♠’s and ♣’s and these ♣’s are not long enough for this bid. Remember – you have a partner and hopefully he knows about balancing.

(3) Looks like he sure does! This is on the lower limit for a balancing bid but South knows that North has a good hand (the opponents have stopped bidding) and that she probably has 4 ♠’s.

(4) But this is wrong. I mentioned this a few weeks back in virtually the same sequence. Partner has bid your hand and this is ‘hanging partner’. North should only bid here if she has to (i.e. is pushed).

And what happened? 3♠ went two down but was a good score for N-S. It would not have been if E-W had doubled

The bottom lines: -

- When partner balances he is bidding your hand – it is rarely correct to raise him.

- It’s OK to bid a 4 card major in the pass-out seat if you believe that partner probably also has 4.

Bidding Quiz Answers

Hand A: 1♦. I don’t think it’s good enough for 2NT. Open 1♦ and rebid 2NT over partner’s 1♠ or 1NT response and raise a 1♥ response to 4♥.

Hand B: 2♠ (or pass). Maybe this depends upon your partnership understandings but I play that 3♦ here is a big (game forcing) hand. Since you cannot thus bid 3♦ I would bid 2♠.

Hand C: Pass or 3♥. I won’t even argue if you chose 4♥ or an off-beat Michaels 2♠, but what you cannot do is overcall 2♥. I consider this to be a psyche as a two-level overcall should be close to opening values. You can shade it a bit with a shapely hand but 5 points is way off the mark.

Hand D: Pass. 2♠ is a very poor choice as it a forcing reverse and also promises 5 ♥’s. This hand is not strong enough to bid again, let alone make a forcing bid.

Hand E: Pass. Absolutely automatic except with an extremely shapely hand. Simply pass and wait to see what good things will happen.

Hand F: 1NT (or pass). Double is very poor with just two ♥’s and length in the suit opened. 1♠ is a no-no with a 4-card suit. Pass is reasonable but with all of these intermediates I would upgrade and I think that it’s easily worth 1NT (15-18). Note that this does not deny a 4-card major (it’s best to play systems on over partner’s 1NT overcall – so still Stayman and transfers).

Bidding Sequences Quiz Answers

G 1♥ 1♠ 1NT pass 3♣ is a ‘high reverse’. It is game forcing

3♣

H 1♥ 1♠ 1NT 2♠ I would play this as the same as above.

3♣

J 1♥ dbl redbl pass What is 1NT? – A non-existent bid! Pass is almost mandatory

1NT and certainly so with a balanced hand.

K 1♠ pass 1NT 2♥ Same as H, I would play it as a high reverse.

3♦

L pass 1♠ dbl pass 2NT is a big hand (19+) – too strong for a 1NT overcall.

2♣ pass 2NT

M pass 1♠ dbl pass 2♠ is similar to L above but asks partner for a ♠ stop.

2♣ pass 2♠

N 1♠ pass 2♣ 2♥ What does dbl mean? Penalties

dbl

P 1♥ 1♠ pass pass What does 2♥ mean? A very shapely hand with no defense

2♥ against ♠’s.