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of the Century?

You have a very decent opening hand, so much so that you feel like opening 2 clubs. Hey, only 19 hcp but it seems to conform to our “Rule of 29” guideline. (our hcp and 2 longest suits’ length equals at least 29). Yet, it is not our turn to open:

 

2is spades and a minor less than an opener. 3 is pass or correct style showing at least 4 cards in each minor. Any plan? We are playing Pairs.

So, any plans of opening 2 are well gone. What then to do with one opponent showing spades and a minor and the other both minors? Some of our Panel tried to show a 2-suiter:

Michael Cornell “3: The whole problem is what is 3?

I guess most would play it as Michael’s so this is the obvious bid, in fact what else?

It does beg the question though as to what do you do with Jx Kx AKQJxxx Ax?

(I will answer my own question- bid 3NT but get some egg on my face a fair chunk of the time).

Michael Ware “4: although I haven't discussed this auction in detail with my partners. So, it would be risky doing it at the table.  4 should be non-leaping Michael's. I have discussed that double is values, t/o of spades
not t/o of clubs so could do that instead but 4 non-leaping Michaels is much better.”

 

Kris Wooles “3: The fact South hasn’t passed 2 suggests partner has at least 4 even 5 spades. I prefer 3 to 3 or double neither of which paints a full picture. If partner reads me as strong 2- suiter, he may choose to bid 3NT with something like Jxxxx xx KQx Qx .”

 

Nigel Kearney “3: 5-5 in hearts and a minor which is what I have. I'd like to play hearts from my side to protect the K but 3 is too little and starting with double will make it hard for me to ever get my hand across.”

A kind of unity in purpose though there is some doubt that our partner will read our hand for what we are showing. Also, not total unity in the bid chosen.

You may or may not agree with the next three options but their meaning is at least clear:

Stephen Blackstock “3: Clearly 3 (hearts and a minor) better describes the shape of the West hand, but I have two concerns with that. It may carry us too high if the East hand isn't suitable, and it also makes it very likely that East will be declarer with the lead though my K10.

Small variations in undertricks or overtricks are unimportant at IMPs but may be critical at Pairs. Note also that if I bid 3, 4 (pass/correct) gives a nasty guess as to whether to bid on, without much to go on. East is marked with 5+ spades, so a big fit for either of my suits is improbable. Essentially I am going low and am willing to give up on the club suit because it is Pairs, where protecting the plus score is so important; I could be persuaded to advance 3 at IMPs.

What is my plan? To take a lot of tricks in a heart contract!”

Protecting against an initial spade lead makes bidding hearts now more attractive. Andy is more ambitious and is quietly in the Michael Ware camp:

 

Andy Braithwaite “4: to protect my Kx. I would have bid 4 non-leaping Michael's otherwise.

 

Bruce Anderson “Double: I can see no other option in that 3NT should be a strong balanced hand and 3 would suggest to partner I have single suited hand with hearts.

 

If North now bids 3 (most likely) and partner bids 3, I raise to game. If partner passes 3 I bid 3. This is not perfect as partner is now likely to read me for a hand which was too strong to bid 3 directly and we miss a club fit, but I do not want to double again as partner might pass if he/she does not have 4 hearts or 4 clubs, which could be wrong. If partner has 3 hearts and values that look useful they should raise to game.”

Well, it’s a plan and like Michael Cornell, Bruce could see no other options...except their choices were very different. 

You may find the last option chosen rather strange. It is the option I chose and therefore have a lot of sympathy for it!

 

Peter Newell “Pass: and await developments. In the unlikely event that North passes with spades and clubs, partner must have 4+ spades and a lot of diamonds,6? So, we will have a misfit and while we will make 3NT, I am happy to defend and take the hundreds. If North bids 3 and it gets passed back to me, I'll double for take-out and over a 3 response will bid 4.”

 Well, that was something like my plan. I really did expect North to bid 3. Like all great plans, it did not quite happen that way:

West              North             East                South
                        2                   Pass                3
Pass                3                   3                   4
?

Well, what now? Still concerned about my Kx, I made perhaps the wimpiest bid of this century, 4, which may or may not have been correct as these were the four hands:

 

An interesting bid by East who obviously thought the K was on their right! Being in dummy was OK too.

Maybe I should have tried 4NT and bid the slam opposite one ace/ key card, though if it was the A, then the slam might be defeated with that spade lead.

As it happens, with the diamond in dummy disappearing on the 3^rd round of spades, the slam is cold on any lead but a diamond.
Should South lead a diamond, the slam is interesting, especially after South showed at least 4 clubs.
The winning play is to cash one of dummy’s high clubs first and then finesse but it is 60-40 that North’s singleton club is not an honour. Therefore, percentage-wise, the first-round finesse is the better line, better too when North has 0 clubs!

+ 680 was an above average score (partner lost only a club after a spade lead). That’s what you get for being “wimp of the century”. Oh, had N/S competed to 5, I would have forced myself to bid 5!

P.S. The Panel made several comments about East having 4 or 5 spades when they only held 3. This is correct analysis both North and South had one more spade than their first bids indicated!

Richard Solomon

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