[cnszsun]

Scoring: IMP

1♣-(1♠)-2♣-(2♠)
3♠-(dbl)-3N-(4♠)
ps-(ps)-?

---

First, do you agree with my 2♣ rather than 1NT on first turn?
Second, what's you call now?

[whereagles]

1. Sure, why not?

2. Dbl, due to flat shape, no extra trumps and spade wastage.

[Gerben42]

1NT for me. After all I have only four ♣. But you can also ignore me, I'm not used to 1♣-opening showing ♣ anyway.

1NT now might also stop opps from saving, BTW. Now I double, after all 2♣ showed about 5 HCP and I have 8, including two probable fast tricks.

[Codo]

I would prefer 1 NT.
Okay I would prefer to have KJx in spades for that bid too, but if you had that holding in spades, the question about 2 Club had been insulting.

Now I double. They won´t make many overtricks. Second choice is obviously pass, 5 Club or 4 NT are not realistic, even knowing that there are hands where these bids could win.

[P_Marlowe]

#1 2C is ok, although I prefer 1NT
For me 2C sounds weaker.
#2 X

With kind regards
Marlowe

[rogerclee]

I greatly prefer 2♣ on the first round to 1NT. There isn't even MP justification for bidding 1NT here. I cannot imagine expressing desire to play in 1NT with Kx as my stopper, bad spots, and 2254 shape.

Double seems pretty clear now.

[Fluffy]

We have an extra trick partner isn't expecting, 4NT

[jdonn]

Fluffy, on Jan 31 2008, 08:56 AM, said:

We have an extra trick partner isn't expecting, 4NT

I agree, partner seems to have solid clubs so I would much rather declare than defend, given that my spade stopper may not even be a trick on defense and that I have an ace on the side.

[skjaeran]

Strongly prefer 1NT first, but then I play 1♣ as 2+.

Now I bid 4NT, expecting to make that easily.

[helene_t]

Partner already knows that I have spade wastage (well, I might have the ace instead of the king) and nevertheless opted for a forcing pass. So I don't think the spade wastage is a reason for double. OTOH we do have only four clubs which means that partner's clubs may be worth more in defense than he thought.

I really don't know. 4N is an interesting bid. We do need to be able to run nine more tricks after ♠K though. Then again, partner already knows that. Maybe he will pull 4N when it's right.

[FrancesHinden]

Partner has a big club single-suiter (with two suits he would have bid a red suit over 2S). Something like

x
Axx
KQx
AKQxxx

would bid like this

now, note that we are making 6C opposite that hand....

or he could have
-
Axx
Kx
AKQxxxx

oh look, 6C makes again...

OK, as we've raised clubs he might not have solid clubs because he has the right to expect a club honour.

I think doubling 4S is insane.
What would we have bid after 1C (1S) on the same hand without the ace of diamonds? You might have passed, but you might have bid 2C. Or the same hand with a red suit queen instead of the ace of diamonds.

I'm not so keen on 4NT now, however. Opponents are at red, it is surely reasonable to expect that they have 10 spades between them. It's not matchpoints, so 5C is likely to be safer than 4NT. Try

x
AKx
Kx
AQxxxxx

and 6C is as good as 4NT (and we'd also rather defend 4Sx than play 4NT)

I think I've persuaded myself the choice is between 6C and double.
I'm not wild about the 3NT bid last round, but I suppose I had to do it.

[jdonn]

Frances I really think partner would bid on himself with all your examples. He knows you raised clubs even with a spade stopper, why would he ever want to defend with those? Maybe the first is possible but not the others.

[mikeh]

I'm midway between josh and frances (heck, that must surely mean I'm close to 'right ). Double is insane and insulting to partner. 6♣ seems inconsistent with the auction to date.. of course, it would be delicious to bid and make 6♣ when the opps could have let us play in 3N.. but I think that the slam rates to be odds against. For one thing, I doubt that partner is void in spades and I don't think that I can cover his other losers most of the time.

For me, it is close between 5♣ and 4N, but I opt for 4N since my Ace probably gives him the extra trick for which he was looking.

[jdonn]

mikeh, on Jan 31 2008, 03:15 PM, said:

I'm midway between josh and frances (heck, that must surely mean I'm close to 'right ). Double is insane and insulting to partner. 6♣ seems inconsistent with the auction to date.. of course, it would be delicious to bid and make 6♣ when the opps could have let us play in 3N.. but I think that the slam rates to be odds against. For one thing, I doubt that partner is void in spades and I don't think that I can cover his other losers most of the time.

For me, it is close between 5♣ and 4N, but I opt for 4N since my Ace probably gives him the extra trick for which he was looking.

I didn't double, I bid 4NT. So you are halfway between Josh and Josh

[skjaeran]

jdonn, on Jan 31 2008, 11:13 PM, said:

mikeh, on Jan 31 2008, 03:15 PM, said:

I'm midway between josh and frances (heck, that must surely mean I'm close to 'right ). Double is insane and insulting to partner. 6♣ seems inconsistent with the auction to date.. of course, it would be delicious to bid and make 6♣ when the opps could have let us play in 3N.. but I think that the slam rates to be odds against. For one thing, I doubt that partner is void in spades and I don't think that I can cover his other losers most of the time.

For me, it is close between 5♣ and 4N, but I opt for 4N since my Ace probably gives him the extra trick for which he was looking.

I didn't double, I bid 4NT. So you are halfway between Josh and Josh

But that can't be good, can it?

[fred]

I very much prefer 2C to 1NT.

If the call you make ends the auction then it is hard to say whether you rate to be better off in 1NT or 2C.

But if there is to be more bidding (likely in my view), telling partner about your club fit could be important. Suppose for example that LHO is going to bid 2S regardless of what you do now and that this is passed around to you. If you bid 1NT the first time you have to guess whether or not to bid 3C now. But if you bid 2C the first time, your partner gets involved in that decision.

Note that 1NT then 2NT intending it as "minors" is not a good solution since I believe that many would play 2NT as natural (I would).

Perhaps strangely, I think it is even more important to raise to 2C if you have the same hand with 2344 (ie a more "notrumpy pattern") because it is harder with this shape to know if you should compete to 3C or not.

If you bid 2C and belong in 3NT you have plenty of room to figure that out. But if you bid 1NT and belong in clubs, you might not ever get to express that.

As to what to bid over 4S, Mikeh's thoughts are similar to mine. But I would like to know who I am playing against. If I thought the opponents didn't know what they were doing I might be tempted to double them. Inexperienced players and non-regular partnerships often have misunderstandings surrounding DBLs like the one in this auction.

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com

[Apollo81]

I would definitely have bid 2♣, and now like everyone else I'd bid 4NT.

[whereagles]

Why is everybody presenting hands that seem like clear 5♣ bids over 4♠?