Joan asked |
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Hi Derek,
Playing at the Carlton, I held the south hand and when east opened a weak two in hearts chose to overcall 2NT, i appreciate the hand is not that great but wanted to get across the values, 15-18 pts with a heart stop. West raised to 3♥ and my partner Eilidh then doubled. Feeling i had expressed the hand passed with the expectation of defeating the contract. As you can see this was a disaster when 3♥ made comfortably
Thank you Joan for sending this interesting hand. The general rule of thumb is that if the opponents have bid and raised a suit, double is for take out. So although Eilidh had perfect shape for her action the values were minimal ( i would have taken the same action ) and combined with your marginal hand 3♥ doubled, was never going to have a happy ending. Looking at your cards on the screen, with the double heart stop i would have clicked the 3NT button rather than pass. Sadly missing all four aces 3NT can be defeated and held to seven or eight tricks but even so a great save against 3♥ at match points! Still not the minus 730 you ran into . Never mind a good hand to learn from and thank you for your hard work and being a great President of the SBU
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3NT: Partners has made a competetive double with a likely four spades so with the double heart stop 3NT looks OK. |
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Clare asked |
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Hi Derek, A few days ago i picked up the North hand in an online teams match and after partner opened 1H, made a slam try with a jump shift to 2S and then rebid 3S. Sadly my partner passed and i made 4 overtricks. How would you sugest the auction proceed?
Thanks Clare for the question. Your bidding was correct and after the initial jump shift the 3S rebid sets spades as trumps and indicates a self supporting suit. All subsequent bids are now cue bids and south ought to click the 4♣ button as in the illustrated auction to show ♣ A. North may show ♦A with a 4D cue bid too but at some stage needs to ask for Aces.When south shows two aces is now able to count twelve tricks. From here its only a matter of finding partner with a king for the 13th trick and grandslam. When south admits to one king North does best to bid 7NT!! This being slightly safer than 7S, because on a bad day the initial lead might get ruffed .
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Tom asked |
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Hi Derek, I picked up the east hand in the Carlton Tuesday Bronze event and my partner opened 1S. We play a weak NT with four card majors and i decided to make a simple raise to 2S. My partner with the balanced 16 points passed and then made 3 overticks. Despite only 8 points and a balanced hand was i worth more?
Thanks Tom for this interesting hand.
Firstly lets evaluate your cards.
1) Two aces, always worth more than 8 points.
2) 5 card Spade support, worth an extra 2 distributional points.
Thats about 10 plus points!
Since you play a weak NT your partner will be unbalanced or strong balanced so will not be embarrased by a raise to 3S. They can pass with a poor semi balanced hand and play the ten card fit. With the better hands partner can raise to 4S. Either way you will not come to any harm. There are a couple of plusses to this action in that the 3S bid may well push the opponents off the hand when partner has rubbish and you now win the board by pre-empting them. However if the opps do bid and partner doubles, you have the pair of aces to help defeat any contract.
Great question ....Cheers Derek
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Rona asked ' Can you give a ruling in our Scottish cup match'?. |
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East opened a weak two in spades and after long consideration South passed. North reopened with a double and 5D reached. E/W felt North had insueffecient values for their action and asked me to give a ruling. I consulted with one of my regular partners Alex and we agreed
1) North is playable in 3 suits and shape suitable.
2) North has reasonable defence with two aces and does not mind a pass of the double.
I ruled that north was not influenced by the slow pass and double was a normal action. Therefor the final contract of 5D stood.
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Andy asked what was the 'Duke of Cumberland hand'? |
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In The Ian Flemming book "Moonraker," James Bond made use of a famous trick deal to get the better of the villainous Hugo Drax. Suspecting Drax was up to no good at the Blades Bridge club, he maneuvered to play against him for very high stakes.
Bond switched decks in order to achieve the diagramed layout. He then opened seven clubs as north, and redoubled when Drax confidently doubled with the 31 points monster, a hand most bridge players wont see in a lifetime.
It did not matter what West led, in fact chosing a diamond. Bond ruffed in dummy, finessed the club ten, ruffed another diamond to establish the suit, and took another trump finesse. The last trump was drawn and the remaining tricks claimed.
Drax realized that he had been caught in a trap, and acused Bond of subterfuge. As that would have been a case of the pot calling the kettle black, the Club Secretary ruled that the debt be settled and the sum $15,000 paid (about $250,000 in today's money).
Drax was a player of some skill and should have recognized the Duke of Cumberland's hand, which is supposed to have cost one of England's royal dukes a fortune when playing whist two centuries earlier!
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Marion asked |
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The latest installment of 'ask Derek' is slightly different from normal because on this ocasion it was me who was asked why I took an action. Sitting east in the displayed hand from the home international series, I received this queery via Facebook from a correspondent of The French bridge magazine 'Le Bridgeur'.
Hello Derek, I write a monthly article for the French magazine "Le Bridgeur", which is titled "Blog-trotter". We interview bridge players from all over the world without predujice to their thoughts and reasons. We would like to talk to you about the Camrose Trophy first weekend and have identified board 22 from the match against Northern Ireland as of special interest. Please could you explain why you chose to pass your partners take out double of 2H? Was their opening style and vulnerability a factor? Have a nice week... Best regards, Marion Cannone.
Hi Marion, Thankyou for contacting me with regard to the above hand. The 2H opener was Lucas and showed hearts and a minor. Once partner has doubled, my first concern given that we were vulnerable was if we had a game contract. Because of the weak nature of the hand and poor spade suit this did not seem likely, infact the whole hand felt like a misfit. It looked like there was little chance of 2H making and along with a significant penalty being available if the opponenents had stepped out of line (a strong possibility ) pass looked a profitable action. Cheers Derek :)
Post mortem: Although we defeated 2H by one trick board 22 was a 'disaster for Scotland' when at the other table the Scottish N/S doubled 4S but allowed the contract to make when north pulled a wrong card. So instead of gaining 12 imps Scotland lost 12...painful:(
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Katie asked..do I need 10 points to respond at the two level? |
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Hi Derek, My partner opened 1C and after the 1S overcall really wanted to respond 2D but my teacher told us you need ten points to respond at the 2 level so felt i had to pass. We missed 5C Do you think i should have bid?
Hi Katie, You have raised an excellent point and thankyou for bringing it up . Playing a weak NT you should always respond at the two level with nine or even an excellent 8 points. I do it it myself and teach my pupils to do the same. It is one of flaws of the SBU simple system. Never mind it was not your fault and you will know what to do next time. Cheers Derek
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Norma Asked |
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Hi Derek, I held the East hand and when north opened 1D I got a little overwhelmed with the strength of my hand and only overcalled 1NT. This was a bit of a disaster when Barbara passed and we missed our game in the majors. What should I have done?
Hi Norma, Yes your hand was a little strong for a 1NT overcall which shows 15-18 points. The best way to tell partner you have a strong hand is to double first and then bid something later. On this hand it would have worked a treat because Barbara would have responded 1H and now you can raise to 4H ( I must say Barbara should have bid 2C Stayman after your 1NT overcall anyway) Never mind you had an excellent result recently winning a pair of the highly sought after No Fears mugs...well done you both. Cheers Derek
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My Mum asked!!! |
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It was the 25th Aniversary of my Brother and his partner being together so they organised a massive party in Brighton. We all arrived a day early which meant my Mum was able to visit the Brighton and Hove bridge club for a bit of cash Bridge! The stakes were £1 per 100 aggregate points 'Chicago scoring' (dont play this at home!). At this type of Bridge you are allowed no conventions apart from Stayman and Blackwood and can win or lose a lot of money! But things went well especially when she picked up the North hand (a monster!). Later i was asked how i would have bid the hand.
Hi Mum, What an an amazing hand. In my view you have two options here, either open 6S or 7S. 6S is almost certain to make and will pay £14.30 or you could gamble 7S for £22.10. There are no odds here at cash bridge..just take your £14.30 and if you make an overtrick thats fine. To go for the extra £8:00 and risk £14:00 would be silly. Derek
Pleasingly she opened 6S which was a spread and at the end of the afternoon walked out £36:00 better off. Wisely the money was used to pay the bar bill that evening!
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Stephen asked. |
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Hi Derek, Holli and I came across this hand in the Friday evening tourney at The Carlton.We missed the good slam after I rebid the west hand 1NT.How should we have bid the cards?
Hi Stephen, Your hand is not quite right for a 1NT rebid. It has the wrong shape and far too much playing strength. The normal rebid would be a jump to 3C showing 16+ with a good six card suit, but even this feels like a bit of an underbid. There are a range of hands that are not strong enough for 2C (9 playing tricks) but too strong for a 1 opener and then a jump to 3 rebid and this hand falls into that category. So a good method to have in your partnership is the jump rebid to 3NT by opener shows hands with 8 playing tricks and good points. This would get you to at least a small slam and possibly the grand slam (See answer for an explanation of the above auction). Cheers Derek
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Bidding explained
3NT = 8 playing tricks in clubs and good points.
4D = cue bid clubs agreed
4S= Cue bid.
4NT= Roman Key card Blackwood
5C= three key cards.
5D = asking for Q.
6H = Confirming Q and K.
7NT = you can just about count 13 tricks so well worth a shot. |
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Jacob asked |
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Hi Derek, I held the south cards and after my partner overcalled and some strong bidding by East I felt holding only six points I was not strong enough to support Kath's spades. With 4S only one down and 4H making should I have taken some kind of action?
Hi Jacob, Firstly well done getting 5 A Grades. Yes your hand is weak in points but you do have four card support, a reasonable five card side suit and significantly a singleton. Partner has overcalled vulnerable so should be OK. Put all these together and you are well worth a bid, in fact I think a raise to 4S is your best option because this puts the opponents under the most pressure. As it turns out 4S will make about %30 of the time and is only going down when 4H is making, factor in that you may push them up to 5H which can be defeated on a club lead and it is definitely the winning action. Cheers Derek
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Maureen asked |
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Hi Derek, I played this hand with Sally and we reached 4S after I opened a weak two in spades. The contract was defeated by one trick could we have done better?
Hi Maureen, Thanks For the question. I like your partners 4S bid, despite not being that strong.However the trumps are very good and any time your hand contains a singleton you would expect 4S to make. But what makes 4S a real winner is that your opponents are good for 4H so even being set by one trick is a lot better than conceding 620! Cheers Derek
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Irene asked |
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Hi Derek, I played this hand against Kath and Jacob. I overcalled 1NT and then competed with 2NT after which Jacob doubled. This was a disaster because the contract was defeated by 4 tricks for minus 1100. Where did I go wrong?
Hi Irene, Firstly well done to you and Jim for winning your heat of the Hugh Kelsey Cup. With regards to the bidding I don't mind your 1NT overcall (15-18) despite only having 14 points. But Jims 2D bid is a weak take out and when Kath rebids her seven card suit you really only have two options either pass or 3D. Holding good trumps and points its unlikely 2S will make, so I prefer a pass. But even so Jim should have removed 2NT to 3C with the very distributional two suited hand.
To be fair you have to admire Jacobs excellent defence on this hand. He lead a spade and then ducked two rounds of diamonds, cutting you off from dummy before switching to a heart.
Cheers Derek
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Clare asked. |
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Hi Derek,I was playing with Hazel on BBO when this hand came up and we ended up getting to 4S and then making two over tricks. Could we have bid the good slam?
Hi Clare, Thanks for the question, its really good. The problem with a direct 4S bid is that it suggests a balanced 18/19 pts hand or a weaker one with some distribution. How ever once distribution becomes a factor slams with less than 33 points come into the frame.The best way to get across the strength is to make a splinter raise of 4D. A jump bid in the opponents suit suggests a small singleton or sometimes a singleton ace along with 18-20 pts. At this point Hazel can re-evaluate her hand. 1) Small cards opposite shortage mean no wasted values. 2) Slam suitable cards (Aces and Kings). 3) Secondary fit in clubs, always a good thing. Now when you take these three factors together you can be certain that slam is a great prospect! All you have to do next is confirm all the controls via RKC and it can be confidently bid despite having only 29 points between the two hands! Cheers and good luck Derek
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Jacob asked |
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Hi Derek, Thanks for teaching Kath and me about Roman key card Blackwood. We tried it out on this hand but had a disaster. Where did we go wrong? Bidding explanation: 2C= very strong 2H= should show a good five card suit 4NT = Roman Key card Blackwood for hearts 5S= two key cards plus Q Hi Jacob, I thought your bidding on this hand was excellent. Kath was very naughty bidding 2H with a four card suit and ought to make a waiting bid of 2D.But when the School teacher doubled your correct bid of 7H the alarm bells should have rang. Normally a X of a slam says....i have a void, please lead it so i can ruff! It was not the case here but you could just about count 13 tricks anyway and might have saved the day with a bid of 7NT. Now if they double, you have a great redouble and would have gained 2980 instead of losing 2200. Never mind these big swings happen but even so, I am very pleased with the way Kath and you play and the progress you are making. Cheers Derek
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Clare asked |
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Hi Derek, I was playing with Brydon on BBO and after the above auction we got to 5C and went two down. Could we have done any better? Hi Clare, Thanks for the question. I am not a fan of your 2C opener because the hand is not really strong enough. Better just open a slightly off center 2NT and now Brydon can raise to 3NT. Sometimes you just have to open semi balanced hands with 20-22pts 2NT. This has the advantage of simplifying the auction and not giving anything away. Anyway now the spotlight is on east, the standard 6 lead gives you nine tricks. Infact east has to lead a top spade and when west encourages continue the suit to take the first six tricks! The alternate passive club lead requires very careful defence. Actually this will not happen most of the time and i would suggest at least 1/2 the time you will get the benign lead and make 3NT. 5C is a superficially better contract but requires a few things to go right and will make only 1/6 of the time what ever they lead. Cheers Derek
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Lizzy asked |
Hi Derek.I held 5 KJ108 7653 J952Malkie opened 1S and because the hand felt like a misfit I passed, but we missed our good heart fit. Do you think I should have taken some action?Dear Lizzy,I am always some one who has sympathy with a diciplined pass but on this ocasion even with only 5 points the response of 1NT is best. The reason being because any time partner is two suited they will rebid their 2nd suit and we will land in a better contract.I appreciate the problem because for some reason partners always tend to get super excited when you bid with a sub minimum hand! However sometimes you just have to play at a higher level to get to the best spot. Nice question...Cheers Derek
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Margaret asked |
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Dear Derek, I opened 1NT with 14 points and a five card major and when Isobel bid 2C Stayman I wanted to show her my good hand with five hearts, so jumped to 3H. Isobel raised to 4H with K10 and we made ten tricks when everybody else went down in 3NT. Was this a good thing to do?Regards MargaretDear Margaret , Your biding was a little unconventional but does show the hand you have! Breaking Stayman is unusual.The down tick is unless your partner has a reasonable hand or three hearts you might get into trouble....and actually most of the time Isobel will have this. However your 3H bid is not something i would recommend in the long run but playing for fun at the No fears Bridge club anything goes!! The best chance of describing the hand without risk is to respond 2H after Stayman and if partner rebids 2NT just bid 3H, unfortunately you wont have this option after 3NT! Anyway well done for getting a top board! Cheers Derek
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Fiona asked |
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Hi Derek,
The other day i was playing with a keen player and we bid to a fair slam on the above board. My partner was declarer and got a spade lead. After winning the trick she played K and when the Q dropped she crossed over to dummy with a trump but did not ruff a club to establish the suit just in case it broke 4-2. Sadly for us the club suit did not break 3-3 and subsequently the contract was defeated. Do you have any sugestions on how to improve declarer play?
Hi Fiona, I thought you showed excellent judgement to bid this reasonable slam. With regards to the bidding, your partner really should have made a cue bid of 4S after 4D since you have showed a very strong hand. This hand is actually quite a hard declarer play problem and i can see many club players making the same mistake. To answer your question..Declarer play practice is something you can do by yourself. In most situations there are no rights and wrongs...there are only rights! It is just a matter of hard work and being prepared to read lots of books and practicing on your computer. Its tough but very rewarding...so sadly there is no easy way. Cheers Derek
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Hazel asked. |
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Hi Derek, I played this board on BBO sitting south. West opened 1H, my partner made a weak jump overcall in clubs which showed a 6 or 7 card suit and 5-10 points. I had a balanced hand with eleven points so passed. But my partner was a bit cross when he discovered I hadn't raised with a doubleton club and two Aces. Should I have raised to 4C ?
Hi Hazel, I am not sure why your partner got cross with you. Pass looks like the normal bid with your hand. Your support is minimal and it has no shape not to mention that the weak jump overcall seems to have done the business! Careful analysis will reveal that your opponents can make at least ten tricks in hearts and 4C should be defeated by two tricks! So the effect of competing would be either to 1) Push them into a making game for -420 2) Allow them to double and then defeat you by two tricks for -300. Neither of which would improve your score of -170! Cheers Derek
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Tiana from Australia asked. |
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Dear Derek, I have this problem....i don't know how to play check back and Sasha (Kaluderic) always gets angry with me....BTW i like playing with you very much on BBO. Dear Tiana, I am sorry to hear you have this system problem with Sasha.So I have written up a document with a simplified version of checkback Stayman which should work OK playing either The weak NT or SAYC. Its easy enough to play and you can find it on the menu bar. I think this should keep Sasha happy and restore harmony to your partnership. BTW I also enjoy playing with you too on BBO in the early hours:) Cheers Derek
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Kath asked |
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Hi Derek, I was playing on wednesday night and was in a contract against a French Lady. My partner was out of the room and they turned over their cards before i could see them properly. When i asked if i could see them the Lady said it was too late:( Hi Kath, The rule here is straightforward, provided your card is face up you are allowed to see your opponents cards. Most people are fairly sporting in this situation and let you see the cards even if you have turned yours over, provided its within a few seconds. My advice is, that if something happens at the table you are not sure about go to the Tournament director and ask him/her to come over and help clear the matter up. Its not rude and keeps everything fair. Cheers Derek
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Joyce asked |
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Hi Derek:) I opened 1C and Sharman responded 1D so after 1NT to show 15-17 balanced is 2C Stayman? Hi Joyce, Firstly well done to you and Sharman for winning a classic No Fears pen last week! Anyway this is a very good question. Most tournament players use 2C here as 'the checkback Stayman convention' which asks partner to describe their hand further. I have an excellent handout on this subject which i can give you or even better why not attend my Wednesdays afternoon advanced class and you can learn all about it! Cheers Derek
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Eldrydd asked |
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This Thursday in the No fears i heldK105AKJ108648A8My RHO (right hand opponent) opened 1C and i tried to show my strength and overcalled 3H. Unfortunately my partner passed and i went on to make ten tricks. What is the correct bid on the hand?Hi Eldrydd,Your 3H bid was a double jump overcall and would typically show a hand that would open the bidding at the three level i.e. a preemptive bid. My advice on this hand would be not to 'beat about the bush' and simply overcall 4H. Not only does this get you to a game contract but it may well push the opponents off the hand and keep them from playing a contract.Cheers Derek
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Irene asked |
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Hi Derek,I held 747J876542Q84 and my partner opened 1NT. I bid 3C hoping she would take this as a transfer but Polly bid 3NT with9652K32AK9A106 A heart was lead to the K and fortunately we made nine tricks!! What should I have bid on the hand?Hi Irene,Yes, you were a bit lucky on this hand but we all are sometimes! As per my recommended methods with this type of hand you should use the Stayman convention and bid 3D if partner shows a major. You can find more on this on the handout 'Stayman with weak hands'. As for transfers in the minors, these are not that important and for the moment i would advise that you play 3C and 3D as natural and strong:)Cheers Derek
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Margaret asked |
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Margaret asked:
Hi Derek, I held
What should i open? My partner responded 1NT to my 1D opener and we got to 3NT and missed our 4-4 spade fit. Everybody went down in 4S because they broke 4-1 but but we made 3NT!
Hi Margaret, this is one of those dreaded 4-4-4-1 hands but at least you are strong. My advice is that you should open 1C because this gives you the best chance of finding a fit.I think Judy was naughty not bidding her 4 card spade suit but this is why bridge is so good...mistakes are sometimes rewarded. No doubt Judy will say she had a bad feeling about spades but i think you should have a word with her anyway:) Cheers Derek
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Paul asked |
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Paul askedHi Derek,I heldAQA10J108797642 I opened 1NT and we missed our diamond fit. My partner said i should have opened 1C because i was not balanced. Hi Paul ..I think your 1NT was well judged. To open 1C is horrible because of the poor suit but opening 1NT is descriptive and pre-emptive.You might stop them from finding a major suit fit and thereby win the auction. So i feel you were a bit unlucky and in the long run you have made the right bid. Cheers Derek
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