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A “Key” Convention.

Cast away on a desert island with just a pack of cards and just three conventions, I would have to select my conventions carefully. Both Stayman and Transfers would be with me and the third would be a form of ace asking. There is a raw excitement in bidding a slam. I hate the deflation which follows when dummy is exposed with insufficient aces or a trump suit of A875 opposite 10632. Not too many chances of bringing that suit in for one loser!

So, my third convention is Roman Key Card Blackwood (RKCB) as it not only tells me when we are a little short of aces but focuses on two other very important cards when about to play a trump contract, the king and queen of trumps.

Missing the trump queen and one ace with 9 trumps is a “will I, won’t I” situation, like bidding a slam needing a finesse to work. You can choose to risk the 6 level or not. With only 8 trumps and the same two cards missing, the odds become worse. More things can go wrong. You may not have the jack. Stay low.

Recently, there was a board which showed up “Key Card” in its finery.

 

You are playing Pairs, 5 card majors. Partner reverses (2) but shows no inclination to cue-bid after you show three card heart support. You cue first and second round controls together though perhaps partner’s 4 semi sign-off is because you hold all the side-suit aces.

Undeterred, you use Key-Card Blackwood, the response showing two key cards but no Q. What is your next bid?

Your partner has reversed, showing at least 15 hcp and you have 19. That’s a minimum of 34 and possibly more. Exciting times. Your partner has the AK and no doubt a couple of black kings to get close to the number they need for that reverse bid.

Yet. The warning is there. The “Key Card” response exposed it. The Q is missing...maybe J too. Unless your partner has 7 hearts and 4 spades, the absence of the Q is going to cause you concern, stress, should you attempt 7NT. Playing Pairs, you are certainly going to bid the slam in no-trumps not hearts, for the key extra 10 points.

There is always some degree of stress when you play bridge. Some of us cope with it better than others. However, looking at the hands below, would you rather be playing in 6NT or 7NT? I know the answer, no stress for me…6NT.

 

West led Q. Declarer’s mood will depend on the level at which they are at. I won, played a heart to the ace, high club and a spade to the ace and played a second heart to…the jack. No worries whether the finesse worked or not. There were 9 declarers, nearly a quarter of the field, who cared a lot as they were in grand slam. Four took the anti-percentage line and were successful when the queen dropped doubleton off-side. Five took the better line (finesse works when West has Qxx or Qxxx and only fails when West three small hearts) but recorded very few match-points. See below, we will presume those in 7NT who made played as indicated below the hand to make their contract.

 

While it was not a good idea to bid 7NT, the location of the Q could be determined if South played out 4 rounds of each 4 black suit, one top heart and the top two diamonds. That's 11 tricks. West has to keep J  and 7 which means when South leads a heart at trick 12 (dummy's last 2 cards are KJ), they know when the Q does not appear that it must be with East.

Roman Key-Card Blackwood told South all they needed to know. Had North held Q as well as the AK, then South could have checked on side-suit kings. Note, though, that the grand-slam may still have depended on one defender not holding  Jxxx…not this time but if partner held the Q. Therefore, bidding grand when partner has the Q is not certain. When they do not, it is no better than tossing a coin. Do you always call correctly?

Key Card or Blackwood is not the total answer

wrong question

The above does not mean you should always use Key Card or indeed any form of Blackwood when you are looking for slam. One common situation when these conventions may not give you the answer you need is when you have a void. A few deals after the above slam came the following:

 

This was the situation South had created for themselves. 2NT was Jacoby, 4 card spade support and at least game values. After West’s intervention, North jumped to 4 to show a minimum hand. South tried Key Card with the response showing two and no Q.

The lack of the Q was expected but which two key cards did North have? On a really bad day, they would hold K and A giving 6 virtually no chance while if North did not hold A, then this slam looked likely to make. Given West’s intervention, I was rather surprised South went the conservative way and signed off in 5.

Yet, West did not hold the A and the slam still made:

 

Ruff the club lead, draw trumps and claim 12 tricks or ruff 2 clubs and make all 13!

However, South could not tell from the Key Card response whether slam was good or impossible. A better action would have been a 5 cue-bid after 4. Even if you show first and second round controls together, the cue of a suit for the first time above the game level should be first-round control.

From North’s point of view, if their partner could move above game without either top trump, they just would have to bid 6 after that action. Indeed, they might wonder if they were missing 7!

Note that had Key Card shown up that North had three key cards, South could not have risked the grand-slam in case one of them was the A.

Key Card...whereever you are!

So, Roman Key Card is an excellent convention. So is Blackwood itself. However, neither may provide the total answer on every potential slam. Yet, if you want to check on the number of aces/ Key Cards held by partner, including the trump king and queen, then Roman Key Card is just the best. Ask those who saw the dummy in the first hand above in a 7- level contract. Five of them will not be so lucky next time.

One of the next modules to be published on the NZ Bridge website, Intermediate section, is on Splinter Bids and Roman Key Card Blackwood (Module 13). It will be there within a few weeks. Whether you play bridge at a club, at home, on-line or on a desert island, and you do not use Key Card, I suggest you have a look.

 

After South calls 1, you were about to call 1. You do have a reasonable hand, after all. However, you suddenly have a dream, a dream where South ended up in 3NT. How good would that be?

So, you decided to wait a round…. and when the next round came, the bidding had got rather high…and look, dreams have become reality!  So, maybe not 4now…but do you bid or remain silent?

Tomorrow, all is revealed.

Richard Solomon

 

 

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