THE GOSPORT EAR (Number 16) by LEPUS

You are playing pairs and have agreed to play Benjamin, and pick up ♠ K9642 ♥ Q853 ♦ Q ♣ 652. As your surname is not Dakin, nor your first name John, then you will hardly flirt with the notion of opening a weak-two in spades, besides which it is partner’s turn to open the bidding, and he surprises you with a bid of [2♣]. The surprise being that he has hardly opened any hand for the last two months!

The enemy decides to enter the fray with a double, using this device to show the Club suit.

So you now have your first decision. Are you the type of bidder who considers this hand “half decent”, or the type of bidder who considers this hand “half awful”? What do you bid?

It is best to consider what you would have said if RHO had passed: then you would probably have selected [2♦] as some sort of ‘negative’ bid, or ‘relay’ (belonging to the latter school of bidders), or otherwise [2♠]. However the hand lacks playing strength and it would be unwise to get in partner’s way without sufficient values to visualize, at least, a game in your suit with some sort of minor fit in opener’s hand.

Now that RHO has intervened (with [X]) and wanting to show a negative then [Pass] would be appropriate: note that [2♦] would still retain its ‘negative’ meaning but would additionally show, at least, a five-card Diamond suit.

At one table the bidding took a curious turn when the decision was made to bid [XX] presumably with the intention of showing “half decent” values. LHO tried [3♣] and opener jumped to [4♥]. Now having shown “half decent” values the thought is that partner may be bidding the combined values of the two hands, and, with no first-round control, it is easy to pass this game bid: at least you will (probably) get a positive score.

The “half awful” camp also hears [3♣] from LHO, and partner showing his hand-type with a simple bid of [3♥]. When this is passed back to you then you certainly have sufficient values to bid [4♥] (there would even be some residual thoughts about attempting to show more!) However your raise emboldens partner to make a further try of [4♠] which is probably some sort of cue bid. As this bid actually fits with your hand it is your turn to make a further effort. What will it be?

If you simply bid [5♥] then partner will surely pass, however if you make the full-blooded bid of [5♦] then partner relieves you of any more strain and jumps quickly to [6♥].

For the record, partner held: - ♠ AQT3 ♥ AKJT9762 ♦ 6 ♣ void.

So, which might be the better approach: “half decent”, or “half awful”? You decide.

THE GOSPORT EAR (Number 17) by LEPUS

You are playing teams, with the enemy vulnerable and playing Blue Club, and you hear the following sequence: -

E         S        W        N

Pass    Pass    2♣ (a)   Pass
2♦ (b) Pass    2N (c)   Pass
3N      End

(a) 11-16 HCP with, at least, five clubs.

(b). Asking for more information.

(c). No second suit and two No-trump stoppers outside Clubs.

Partner leads the ♥3 (playing fourth-best leads) and you see: -

♠ JT6
♥ T85
♦ AQJ92
♣ 83
                   ♠ K5432
                   ♥ AK2
                   ♦ 873
                   ♣ J5

You know that partner has a four-card Heart suit only, because you are looking at the ♥2, so it would seem normal to cash your four tricks in that suit and wait for the setting trick (probably in Clubs, for it seems that partner may well hold as many as four cards there – but you can hope for a minimum of three cards to an honour). Do you go along with that analysis?

If you agreed then you cash the ♥K, then A♥, and continue with the ♥2, and declarer (winning with the ♥Q) rapidly cashes six Club tricks and four Diamond tricks, and you score 660 in the minus column (-10 i.m.p).

So clearly what really matters is the quality of partner’s suit: if he can be relied upon to hold a top honour in his suit, then persisting with the Heart attack would be the correct line of defence.

Now suppose instead that you have agreed to play ‘attitude leads’ where to lead the smallest card would show, at least, a top honour in the suit (the Jack not counting as a top honour) and partner’s opening shot is the ♥6. This time there are two other ‘small’ cards missing (the four, and the three) and this makes it much more likely that partner does not posses the ♥Q, so you can see the advisability of winning with the ♥K (to show the Ace!) and switching to the ♠ 2 - ‘attitude’ - and hope that partner has some useful support. He is not hard pressed to play the ♠Q, ♠A then ♠7, allowing you to complete the rout by cashing two further spades and the ♥A, for the first seven tricks, and this time you score 300 in the plus column (+11 i.m.p).

So, on this typical hand, there could be a +21 i.m.p turnover depending upon what defensive action you take based upon the information imparted by partner’s opening lead.

THE GOSPORT EAR (Number 18) by LEPUS

You are in the North seat, playing Teams with both sides Vulnerable, and pick up ♠ K ♥ AK96 ♦ AKQJ9 ♣ AK3, and are contemplating opening with your big system bid on this pretty robust 27 HCP, when (doesn't it always happen?)  LHO starts the proceedings with an opening bid of [2♦] which is alerted.

It probably strikes you that the player sitting in the East seat does not have an Acol strong-two opener, and after [Pass] from partner and [2♥] which is also alerted, you politely enquire about what is going on! .

It transpires that the opening bid is a two-way Multi-Coloured bid showing either a balanced 21/22 HCP (and you try to suppress a smile) or a hand with a six-card major suit in the range of 6-10 HCP. The response (in Hearts) is, in principle, a relay to allow opener to define his hand-type. .

Now it is your turn to join in: what do you bid? .

As neither of the enemy bids actually refers to a specific suit, and therefore there is no immediate cue-bid to show the all-round power of the hand, it would seem that you should simply start with [X] (for take-out, which also probably indicates some values in the Heart suit). The opener comes clean with a bid of [2♠] (which seemed quite likely from your Spade shortage) and now you have a second bite.

Probably the best bid, to create a forcing sequence, is the cue-bid [3♠]. The opening bidder throws in a [X] to show some strength in the suit, and your partner passes. About now you are getting really discouraged with this hand, but, nevertheless, you continue with [4♦] which in light of the previous bid as, at least, a one-round force.

Your partner does his bit by raising you to game in Diamonds. Do you settle for this?

You have certainly given partner plenty of chances to show anything so you should now probably go quietly (by Passing) and hope you have finally arrived at a contract you can actually make.

For the record, the opening lead is ♠A and your partner puts down ♠ J53 ♥ 843 ♦ 743 ♣ QJ42, and after the Diamond switch (and with Hearts 3.3) you eventually make eleven tricks (scoring +600, and gaining +12 i.m.p, as the enemy played the hand in [6♣] which, due to the lack of entries to the weak hand, fails by a trick). Note that as East holds both high Spade honours you can make eleven tricks in No-trump, but at teams that matters little, as long as you do play in another making game contract.

THE GOSPORT EAR (Number 19) by LEPUS

You are playing Teams, vulnerable, and the opposition will maintain a studied silence, reserving their energies to the task of defeating any contract that you wander into – so let us wander!

The hand that you select to play will be bid in two different ways: your decision is to select the contract that you would rather play, and for what reason.

                   WEST         EAST                   WEST         EAST

                   ♠ AQJ         ♠ K75                     1♦               1♥

                   ♥ A53          ♥ KT42                  1♠ (a)          2♣

                   ♦ KT8732     ♦ J65                     2♥ (b)          2N

                   ♣ T             ♣ A75                    3N (e)         End   

(a) West really wants to bid 2½ diamonds, so temporises. If East holds game-going values with four good spades (KT92) then the Moysian [4♠] will be a satisfactory contract.

(b) The alternative was [2♦] to show the suit length, but East has implied a five-card heart suit.

                   WEST         EAST                   WEST         EAST

                   ♠ AQJ          ♠ K75                      1♦               1♥

                   ♥ A53          ♥ KT42                    2♦ (c)          2N

                   ♦ KT8732     ♦ J65                       3♦ (d)          4♦

                   ♣ T              ♣ A75                     5♦ (e)         End

(c) The quality of the suit does not quite support a jump bid to [3♦].

(d) The alternative was [3♥] to establish an actual Moysian fit!

(e) Well, it is Teams. At pairs, both players might have stopped bidding some time ago!

The contract of 5♦ certainly looks to have much more going for it, though with an almost certain Heart loser you cannot afford more than one Trump loser. This means that North must either hold a singleton honour (and you must guess correctly: play low to the King to drop the singleton Queen, or pass any card to North’s putative Ace), or South must hold both high honours. The Diamond game is practically a 25% chance since nobody on the planet (apart from Clark Kent!) is going to pin the singleton honour off side.

On the anticipated Club lead, the No-trump contract will only succeed if that suit is 3:6 (three only in the opening leader’s hand) and both Diamond honours are onside (with South): this time the odds in favour of a successful outcome are about 6%.

So you should prefer to play the Diamond game, yet, on the actual layout, both contracts succeed as South did indeed hold only three Clubs and all the Diamonds. Who says that there is no luck in bridge!

THE GOSPORT EAR (Number 20) by LEPUS

What are the general requirements for a Slam? The combined assets must have no immediate loser for a Grand Slam (one may be tolerated for a Small Slam), there must be trump solidity, and there must be a source of tricks or winners outside the trump suit.

You are playing teams, first in hand, vulnerable, and pick up ♠ KQ6 ♥ AK ♦ KJ ♣ AJ7643 - a reasonable 21 HCP. This type of hand might form the basis of a possible Slam, since your hand already has half the pack in terms of high cards, yet with no primary control in two suits (Spades and Diamonds) you would want partner to have some useful cards before that high peak is reached.

However, might there be a more available contract of [3N] with slender values opposite? Clearly for a No-trump game to succeed partner will require some bolstering cards in your two weakest suits (Spades and Diamonds, again) else the enemy will lead (say a low Diamond) and you will be hard pressed to not lose an Ace and four, or more, Diamonds: a similar argument follows a Spade lead (although in that case, LHO would require and entry to fire back a Spade through your hand).

So now the decision is what to open, and the decision would seem to be (and in no particular order): -

o Open [2♣] (Benjamin) with the intention of re-bidding [3♣].

o Open [1♣] and over any response (if there is one!) re-bid [3N].

o Open [2♦] Multi-coloured and over, say, a relay, re-bid [2N] treating the hand as a No-trump pattern.

o Open [2N] treating the hand as ‘somewhat’ of a No-trump pattern.

o Open [2♦] Multi-coloured and over, say, a relay, re-bid [3♣] treating the hand as a suit-play pattern.

o Open [2♣] (Acol) with the intention or re-bidding [3♣].

The main problem with treating the hand as strong and re-bidding [3♣] is that the offered suit is so poor in quality: the KQT98 are already missing from the suit, and it would be pressing your luck to assume that partner will hold a respectable portion of those cards. On balance it is more often correct to open this type of hand at the one-level, after all should partner pass then you will (probably) be in a making contract, and forget the miracle shot of [3N] (making) that both requires partner to have explicit cards, and for the enemy to make a hopeless mess of the defence.

After any sort of Strong-two sequence (showing the Club suit) then you will be in trouble as partner holding: - ♠ J85 ♥ 74 ♦ AQ8654 ♣ Q8 will probably elect to put you to [6♣] which contract fails (after the ♠A lead) for lack of trump solidity.