Our website is www.pattayabridge.com                             Club News Sheet – No. 339

Our blogsite is www.pattayabridge.wordpress.com                                 

My home phone is 038 422924 and my mobile number is 083 6066880                   10th May 2009

It is best to use my home number to contact me unless I am at the bridge club.

My e-mail is terry@pattayabridge.com or pattayabridge@yahoo.com

My MSN messenger ID is tj_quested@hotmail.com

Mon 4th                1st  Jeremy, Sally, Tom & Tonni (teams)         67%

Wed 6th                1st  Tom & Tonni                  66%           2nd    Jean & Sally                     57%

Fri  8th                  1st  Nick T & Paul K = Janne & Sally = Dave & Robbie                         60%

 

       
bridge news sheets to news-sheet main page Bridge conventions No Trump bidding book
   
Pattaya Bridge Club to Pattaya Bridge home page
       
recommended bridge books reviewed to bridge book reviews to bridge conventions to No Trump bidding
   
   
Bridge CD's and bridge games to bridge CD's and computer games and software  

 

Bidding Quiz                    Standard American bidding is assumed unless otherwise stated.

 

Hand A           Hand B           With Hand A partner opens 1, what do you bid?

 

-                   AQ2

105               KQJ83         What do you open with Hand B and how do you plan to continue?

Q10943        A

KJ9652        AK102

                             

Bidding Sequence Quiz

 

C     2     pass   2      pass                          

        2      pass   3      pass       4NT is RKCB for ’s, what is the 5NT response?

        4NT   pass   5NT  

D     1      pass   2     pass                          

        2     pass   3                    Is 3 forcing?

E      1      pass   2     pass                          

        2     pass   2      pass       2 is 4th suit forcing and 2NT showed a stop.

        2NT   pass   3                    Is 3 forcing?

 

Signalling Quiz

 

F. You play low to encourage and are defending a 4 contract. You lead the A from AKxx, there are three small in dummy and partner plays the 7 which looks discouraging and so you switch. You get in on a trump from declarer and decide to play the K upon which partner plays the 3 and declarer plays low. Is it now correct for you to lead another assuming that partner is giving count and has just two 's and wants a ruff?

G. The same situation, you lead the A and partner plays the 4. The 2 and 3 are unknown and so you are not sure if this is a low card to encourage. But you assume that it is and partner plays the 2 on your ? K. Is partner signaling a doubleton and wanting a ruff?

 

     
Ron Klinger web site
     
 
     

Unfamiliar partnerships

 

There are simply too many silly auctions occurring because of unfamiliar partnership mis-understandings. In an attempt to minimize these I have devised the following quick check-list which can quickly be agreed by a new partnership. I will ensure that copies are available before the game for all new partnerships. Please let me know if you think I have left anything important out, but note that I don’t want too long a list.

 

 

New Partner Basic Quick Checklist

 

This sheet is designed for new partnerships to quickly agree their basic system and is not exhaustive. The entry on the left is generally ‘Pattaya Standard’.

 

Bidding

 

Standard American                 2/1                                         Other__

2 only strong bid                  2 Benjamin               

2 weak                                2 very strong                       Multi 2                    Other__

2/ weak                             Other__

5 card majors                         4 card majors              

short                                    better minor                            Other__

Jacoby transfer            

Jacoby 2NT                           Swedish style                          natural 2NT over 1♥/♠ 

Splinters                      

4th suit forcing                         4th suit natural              

Michaels/UNT             

RKCB 3014                          RKCB 1430                          Blackwood                 Other__

Lebensohl when 1NT overcalled                      

T.O. dbl usually short in suit opened                            T.O. dbl to show any opening hand      

1NT overcall in 4th seat:                                   range: __

1NT opening:

15-17                                     12-14                                     Other__

Defence to 1NT:

Multi Landy                            Cappelletti                              natural                        Other__

 

 

Signalling

 

1st discard:

Lavinthal                                 Std (high encourage)               Inverted (low encourage)         

On partner’s lead:

Low encourage                       High encourage                       Other__

When declarer or dummy leads:

Standard count                       inverted count              

 

 

Other Agreements


Nobody bids the grand                                         Board 17 from Wednesday 6th   

 

7 is cold, three pairs reached just 6 and one pair bid only 4. I give just the one ‘expert’ auction as I don’t know the auction at various tables.

 

Dealer:             87543                                         Expert” table

East                  764                                             West(B)     North         East          South

N-S vul            KQ32                                         -                 -                 pass         pass

                        5                                                2   (1)      pass           2    (2)    dbl

2    (3)      pass           2    (4)    pass

AQ2                   N               -                         3   (5)      pass           3    (6)    pass

KQJ83           W    E            A1092               4              pass           4    (7)    pass

A                        S                J9875                4NT  (8)     pass           6    (9)    pass

AK102                                 QJ76                  7              all pass

                        KJ1096                                     

5                                                

1064                                         

9843                                         

                                                                             

(1)   What did you open with this West hand B in this week’s quiz? The hand has good shape and evaluates at 9½ playing tricks and is worth your strongest bid. So 2 playing Standard.

(2)   Waiting, game forcing playing two hearts negative.

(3)   Either ’s or 25+ playing the Kokish Relay.

(4)   Forced.

(5)   Showing a strong hand with a 2nd suit.

(6)   Confirming ’s and stronger than 4 (slow arrival).

(7)   A cuebid

(8)   RKCB

(9)   1 keycard and a void in a suit higher ranking than trumps (so obviously ’s).

 

And what happened? 6+1, 6= twice and 4+3.

The bottom lines: -

-         I don’t really know why nobody bid the grand which is easy as long as you avoid giving North a ruff. I know that there was a bidding mis-understanding at at least one table.

-         I have written up the recommended (by Eddie Kantar) void  responses to Roman keycard Blackwood in the news sheets a number of times and they have been on the website for a few years. They are from Eddie Kantar’s conventions book and also in his book on RKCB.

-         Basically, 5NT shows 2 keycards and a useful void and a 6-level bid shows 1/3 keycards and a useful void. With 1/ 3 you bid 6 of the void suit if it is lower ranking than trumps and bid 6 of the trump suit if the void suit is higher ranking. Some people play it the other way round but there is no obvious advantage and I see no reason to disagree with Eddie Kantar who is acknowledged as the world’s expert on Roman Keycard Blackwood. I strongly suspect that Eddie’s reasoning behind his chosen method is that 1 keycard is the most likely response (that’s why 1430 was invented) and the void response for 1 keycard is more explicit than that for 2 keycards. Works for me.

 


Incorrectly blaming partner   Board 4 from Wednesday 6th   

 

E-W got unnecessarily high here, and deservedly got doubled; who would you blame?

 

Dealer:             107432                                       West          North         East(A)    South

West                942                                             1              pass           2   (1)    2

E-W vul           J82                                             2              pass           3   (2)    pass

                        A3                                              3NT   (3)    pass           4   (4)    dbl

all pass      

AKJ865              N               -                  

K76                W    E            105              

K65                    S                Q10943             

7                                          KJ9652             

                        Q9                                             

AQJ83                                       

A7                                            

Q1084                                      

                                                                             

(1)   What did you bid with this East hand A in this week’s quiz? This 2 bid, with just 6 points and a mis-fit for partner is preposterous of course. It is 4-5 points shy of the required good 10-11 for a two level response. 1NT or pass are the sensible options.

(2)   East overbids again, presumably there are no green cards in his bidding box? Partner has shown a 6-card suit and pass is clear if you had got yourself into this ridiculous situation in the first place. Stay low on mis-fits!

(3)   With a presumed 25 or more points between the hands West reasonably tried 3NT as she had already shown 6 ’s.

(4)   I can count only 6 ’s here, hardly a suit worth bidding three times? In fact I would not have bid the suit at all!

 

And what happened? 4* went three down for -800 and an obvious bottom on a partscore deal. Other results were 3*(W)-1, 4(E)= and 3(s)-3.

The bottom lines: -

-         A new suit response at the two-level is a good 10-11 points or more.

-         Apparently East tried to blame West for not letting him play in 3; when it is you yourself who has made two appalling bids it is bad manners to try to blame partner who has bid perfectly. Note that 8 tricks were made in ’s at another table.

 

To answer the question (who is to blame), it is clearly East.

 

 

 

Dave’s Column                     Here is Dave’s 1st input concerning the play of the hand.

 

North               South                   You are South declarer in 7.  West leads a trump and the

10                 AKQJ975         trumps split 3-2, plan the play      

A9642          K3                                       

QJ109           A32                                     

AQ10           2

 

 

Dave’s Column answer                      Board 25 from Wednesday 6th

     

Dealer:             10                                               Book Auction

North               A9642                                        West          North         East          South

E-W vul           QJ109                                        -                 1              pass         2    (1)

                        AQ10                                         pass           3              pass         3

pass           3NT           pass         4NT (2)

832                     N               64                       pass           5              pass         5NT (3)

QJ105            W    E            87                      pass           6      (4)    pass         7    (5)

87                       S                K654                 all pass

K843                                   J9765          

            AKQJ975                             (1)  strong

K3                                        (2)  presumably Blackwood, although if you read

A32                                           Easley Blackwood’s book ‘Blackwood on

2                                                slams’ he says that this is quantitative.

(3)   Specific king ask

(4)   No kings

(5)  To quote the article, pass is prudent.

 

So, the book has made a shambolic auction to 7. A trump is lead, and they break 3-2, plan the play.

You should give yourself two chances. Draw trumps, discarding a and a from table and then play the K, A and ruff a . If ’s are not 3-3 cross to the A and take the finesse.

 

And what happened at the Pattaya bridge club? 7NT=, 6NT+1 twice and 4+3.

 

 

Dave’s 2nd Column       Here is Dave’s 2nd input about the play of the hand.

 

West                  East                You are West, declarer in 6. North leads the 2, plan the play.

AKQJ1065     9432        

AJ103            Q95                                   

-                      A3                                    

J8                   KQ54                         

                                                 

                                                 


Dave’s 2nd Column answer              Board 26 from Wednesday 6th  

     

Dealer:             87                                               Book Bidding

East                  K8765                                        West          North         East            South

Both vul            K1052                                       -                 -                 1   (1)      4       

                        A6                                              6              all pass

 

AKQJ1065         N             9432               (1)  I would not dream of opening this hand      

AJ103            W    E          Q95                      in first or second seat.

-                          S             A3                      

J8                                       KQ54                  North leads the 2, plan the play  

                        -                                               

4                                               

QJ98764                              

109732

 

It is an error to take the A at trick one as West has no good discard yet. If declarer relies on the finesse that will fail and the A means one down.

By leaving the A in dummy, declarer has a chance to produce a “Morton’s Fork”. Play the 3 and ruff in hand. Then draw trumps keeping the lead in hand.

You have to hope that the A is with North and so the next move is to lead the 8 (NOT the J as at least one player did). If North ducks then dummy’s honour wins and you discard the loser from hand on the A and try the finesse for a possible overtrick.

If North takes the A and plays a , you discard a on the A, cross to the carefully preserved J, return to dummy with the 9 and discard the other two losers on the K,Q.   

And what happened at the Pattaya bridge club? 6=, 6-1, 5= and 4+2.

 

 

Current Championship standings

 

 

 

Gold Cup = Best 30

Silver Plate = Best 10

Bronze Medal = Best 5

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

1812.8 Janne Roos

1788.5 Hans Vikman

643.2 Janne Roos

639.3 Hans Vikman

631.1 Sally Watson

625.5 Paul Quodomine

615.1 Lars Broman

611.1 Bob Short

609.2 Jean Wissing

607.6 Per Andersson

603.2 Jeremy Watson

596.2 Ivy Schlageter

 

331.8 Janne Roos

329.0 Hans Vikman

324.5 Sally Watson

321.7 Bob Short

321.3 Jeremy Watson

321.0 Per Andersson

320.9 Paul Quodomine

318.2 Ivy Schlageter

316.1 Lars Broman

315.7 Jean Wissing

 

 

 

.

                                                                         


Passing partner’s forcing bid Board 1 fom Friday 8th

 

It’s up to you if you play 4th suit forcing as a 1 round force or game forcing (the latter is much easier as you do not have to remember which sequences are game forcing and which are not). Whichever way you play it, the sequence below (sequence E) is absolutely game forcing.

 

Dealer:             AQ842                                

North               Q3                                              West          North         East          South

Love all            KJ94                                          -                 1              pass         2   (1)

                        75                                              pass           2              pass         2    (2)

pass           2NT (3)      pass         3    (4)

53                       N               96                       pass           pass (5)      pass

A10986          W    E            J742            

Q83                    S                A1052               

862                                      1094                 

 

                        KJ107                                       

K5                                             

76                                             

AKQJ3           

                           

(1)   This was an unfamiliar partnership and Jacoby 2NT had not been agreed.

(2)   4th suit forcing.

(3)   Showing a stop, I will not argue with this bid holding Qx.

(4)   Showing raise and 100% forcing having invoked 4th suit forcing. South bid this with the intention of setting ’s as trumps in a forcing sequence so that he could then bid RKCB in search of a possible slam.

(5)   North did not see it that way and passed partner’s forcing bid.

 

And what happened? 3 made +2. Other results were 6-1, 5+1 and 5=

The bottom lines: -

-         It’s up to you if you play 4th suit forcing as a one round force or a game force.

-         Playing it as a game force is much simpler and what I recommend, but either way this sequence E is game forcing as with an invitational hand South would bid 3 at (2), i.e. sequence D.

-         Using 4th suit forcing and then bidding either your own suit or partner’s suit at the three level is a standard way of setting up a game force when a direct 3-level bid would be just invitational.

-         These sorts of problem can often be avoided by playing 2/1, where in this case a simple 2 at (2) would be a game force; but most 2/1 players play Jacoby 2NT of course.


Bidding Quiz Answers

 

Hand A:    1NT or pass. The hand is nowhere near worth a 2 response as chosen at one table. The hand has the values for 1NT but pass may work out best (if the opponents come in with ’s you may be able to double to show both minors).

Hand B:    2, to be followed by 2 and maybe later a bid. The hand is 9½ playing tricks and well worth your strongest bid.

       

 

Bidding Sequence Quiz Answers

 

C     2     pass   2      pass                          

        2      pass   3      pass       You have to agree this, I play 5NT as 2 keycards and

        4NT   pass   5NT                 an unspecified void, as recommended by Eddie Kantar.

D     1      pass   2     pass                          

        2      pass   3                    3 is (highly) invitational...

E      1      pass   2     pass                          

        2      pass   2      pass      

        2NT   pass   3                    … so 3 here is absolutely forcing.

 

 

Signalling Quiz Answer

 

F. No, no, NO. Partner is NOT signaling count. His first card was discouraging and his second low card peter simply confirms this, partner does not have a doubleton nor the Q but has one more irrelevant . This is the second time recently that I have encountered a player who confuses attitude and count. I wrote an article on this in news-sheet 336.

G. No. Partner has something like J42 and the 4 was the highest card that he could afford to discourage: a 4 is not necessarily an encouraging card. With 4,2 doubleton partner would play the 2 first to show encouragement.

It really is simple, if you play low to encourage and have a doubleton and want a ruff, you play low-high. OK? If you still don't understand then I suggest that you play the normal HELD – high to encourage

 

       

 Ron Klinger web site