Loading ...a style thing
Okay, the hand from yesterday wasn’t that quick. To review, Partner opens 1S and we hold:
S Axx
H AKQJ9x
D Kxx
C x
Over 2H (forcing to game) Partner bids 3D; which, by agreement, tends to deny six spades, shows four or more diamonds and says nothing whatsoever about hand strength. Partner holds:
S KJ9xx
H x
D AQTx
C Qxx
It’s a style thing, as Peg points out. I’ve heard from people who think it’s perfectly normal to bid 3D with Judi’s hand, several people who think it’s a clear-cut 2S rebid. Then there are the people who think 2S is sick, sick, sick. Tucked away in a remote corner in Canada sits somebody who thinks 2NT is obvious. In my partnership, 3D is the bid for this hand. It just is. “There are no extras in two-over-one,” Judi said, “We’re already forced to game, I need to know what you have.”
When I asked George to bid Judi’s cards, he started by rebidding 2S at which point I really loved my Axx (”Partner has rebiddable spades!”), taking Bob’s initial view of the six solid as a good side suit. I was thinking grand slam. I bid 3S, he bid 4D, I bid 4H, he wimped out with 4S. With first round club control my Partner would cuebid 4C, so I guess from 4D we’re off the club Ace.
Do I want to play 6S missing Queen-fifth of trump and an Ace? No. How about Queen-fourth? Would it surprise you to learn this is a conversation Judi and I have had? By agreement, we bid slams when we are off a keycard and Queen-fourth (but not Queen-fifth) of trump.
Is 6H any better? Is 6H enough better that I should bid it? Is it a state of the match issue? Over 5S, what is 6H? If I’m determined to bid a slam, perhaps the time to do so is immediately after 4D. 4D-6H? But what if Partner (who’s been known to play a hand nicely on occasion, after all) has six spades — 4D-6S? Maybe the best slam to bid is the one Partner plays, since we certainly have eight or nine of her suit.
In real time, I bid 3S with the six solid over Judi’s 3D. Judi bid 4S. I asked for aces, she showed two without the Queen and I bid 6H, intending it as an offer to play. I was thinking: good spades in her hand, great hearts in my hand, she has some diamonds, I’ve got King-third … slam looks pretty good. I’d like to puff it up a bit and tell you I bid 6H to play, having gone (spade) Queen hunting with a heart grand in mind, but that’s a bunch of bunk. I intended 6H rather more like “pick a slam, Partner,” with a heavy dose of “I hope you pick yours!” on the side. Working on getting over that.
August 14th, 2008 at 2:45 am
Great auction for the right reasons. Keycard in the suit where you elicit the more useful information. Bid slam in the suit with the tickets. Hope pard was on the same page (I got your 2nd round Heart control right here! 7 Spades!)
August 14th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
What a great hand!!
(1) The actual hand confirms my (belated) analysis that it should be played in hearts for two reasons:
(a) You can make slam if either the spades or diamonds are good enough to pitch a loser or two from the other suit.
If you play in spades you HAVE pick up the suit without a loser.
(b) You can bid a grand if it turns out that opener has the missing two aces AND has a source of tricks (either spades KQJ10 or AQJ10 and the K of clubs permitting the sequence 4N-5H-5N-7H if running spades or 4N-5H, 5N-6C-6D-7H with K of clubs and running diamonds.
(2) The play on the actual hand if in 6 hearts is very interesting. Obviously assuming nothing horrible in hearts, it makes if diamonds 3-3 or J singleton or doubleton. If not then after pulling trump and testing diamonds there is a show up squeeze in diamonds and spades if the long diamond is left of the hearts.
But there are also other possibilites since you have a spade threat card in the hand with hearts.
Thus depending on the heart split and club division, if the long diamonds are on your right, you may elect to play rho for both spades and diamonds.
Also depending on the likely club lead you may determine the K of clubs is on your left leading to more analysis and play possibilities with the Q of clubs as a threat card.
Essentially this is about a 90+% 6H slam.