TIPS FOR IMPROVERS

Points of interest from the January 2014 duplicates

1       Raising responder or bidding a new suit

Board 20 Thursday 23 January – Vulnerability Amber – Dealer West

In the Swiss Pairs not a single pair managed to reach the best contract of 5 Clubs.  Several ended in 4 Hearts which is a very precarious contract and although makeable on the above layout would frequently go down if the Ace of Hearts was in the four card trump holding and not the doubleton.

West opens 1 Diamond and East responds 1 Heart.  As West has a minimum hand he must raise Hearts immediately to 2 Hearts.  This is because if he instead bids 2 Clubs and partner now bids either 2NT or 3 Clubs then he would like to then bid 3 Hearts at his third bid.  However you cannot follow such a course of action because TO BID TWO SUITS AND THEN SHOW DELAYED SUPPORT FOR RESPONDER’S FIRST SUIT SHOWS A GOOD HAND.

After a 2 Heart rebid by opener responder should then try for game by bidding 2NT showing a balanced hand with only four cards in Hearts.  Now West is able to bid 3 Clubs at his third bid.  This logically shows a weak 1=3=5=4 hand whereas if he were stronger he would have bid 2 Clubs immediately.  East can now go straight to game in Clubs as he knows that with nothing wasted in Spades (three small opposite a singleton is good) then game must be a near certainty. 

This may be put down in the form of a rule:-

When holding a 1=3=5=4 distribution if partner responds 1 Heart or 3=1=5=4 if partner responds 1 Spade then as opener you must raise the major suit immediately if you are in the range 11 to 14 points.  If you are 16+ you can bid 2 Clubs and then subsequently support the Major.  You will note that if you have 15 points you will have to use your judgement as to whether to follow the conservative or more aggressive action.

The above Tip is similar to Tip 2 from August 2012 although that was concerned with how to re-bid when holding 4=3=5=1 or 4=3=1=5 distribution after partner responded 1 Heart to a 1 Minor opening.

The odds of 5 Clubs making are exceptionally good.  The contract will make if either:-

1          The Clubs break 3-2 = 68 per cent

or

2          If the Clubs are 4-1 then Declarer will need Diamonds 3-3.  The play would be for the second round of Spades to be trumped followed by a low Diamond to the Queen.  The third round of Spades is then trumped and trumps drawn.  If a 4-1 break comes to light then there is no chance of enjoying any Heart tricks and that is why the Diamond break is then essential.  The probability of (2) is 4-1 trump break x 3-3 break in Diamonds ie 28 per cent x 36 per cent = 10 per cent.

Total probability of 5 Clubs making = (1) plus (2) = 78 per cent.

2       Trial Bid for Slam

Board 17 Tuesday 28 January – Vulnerability White – Dealer East

¹           Although East has game in his own hand better than 2 Clubs

²           Trial bid

Although East is close to game in his own hand and could open 2 Clubs experience tells that with such a powerful three suiter that it is better to open at the one level and hope that the bidding does not end there.  West has a choice between 1NT and 2 Spades but the latter is clearly preferable with three good trumps and a doubleton Club.

East could now make a wild jump to slam but if we swop West’s red suits round giving him KJxx in Hearts and J9xx in Diamonds (since East has the Queen) then this would not be a sensible choice.  Instead he should make a trial bid.  A trial bid is a bid in a new suit showing a minimum of three cards and the message behind the trial bid is that responder needs to have help in the trial bid suit either high honours or a shortage to accept.  In most situations a trial bid is simply for game but here East’s trial bid is for slam.

West is happy to accept the trial bid but rather than make a lazy jump to 4 Spades the most descriptive choice is to bid 4 Diamonds which says to partner “I have a maximum with a top Diamond honour”.  This is all the encouragement which East needs to jump to Slam.  Note that East does not need to ask for the Queen of trumps since it is likely that responder will either have four trumps in which case there is a 10 card fit or otherwise the Queen in a three card holding to accept the trial bid in such an encouraging way.

The play is fairly straightforward.  A Heart lead is ruffed and a low Spade to the Queen follows disclosing the four nil break.  A losing Club finesse is then taken at trick three.  A Club is returned and the third round of Clubs is then ruffed in the Dummy (South may ruff in front of the Dummy but this will make no difference).  Assuming that South does not do so then at trick six the Jack of Spades is cashed and at trick seven a second Heart is ruffed and the remaining trumps drawn.  Result +980.

3       Embarrassing Loss

Board 1 Wednesday 29 January – Vulnerability White – Dealer North

It was very amusing to look at the score sheet for this board.  Only one pair out of nine reached the correct contract of 6 Diamonds which was a trivial make losing only to the Ace of trumps.  Four pairs reached 6NT three of them played by North!  Those Norths must have opened 2NT despite this being a wholly inappropriate choice with the hand being so lopsided with eighteen of the twenty points in the two long suits.  A Spade lead defeated this inelegant contract by several tricks.

The correct auction is:-

After a more sensible opening of 1 Heart South bids 2 Diamonds.  North makes a high level reverse of 3 Clubs which is forcing to game and usually showing at least 16 points.  South should rebid 3 Diamonds which denies three card Heart support and implies a very strong six or seven card suit.

North now has to decide what to say over 3 Diamonds.  As he has already shown his 5-4 shape in the rounded suits and as he does not have a Spade stop the best bid is to raise to 4 Diamonds setting Diamonds as trumps.  Now South cue bids a control in Spades allowing North to use RKCB.  South owns up to two keycards and the Queen of trumps and North signs off in 6 Diamonds.