[inquiry]

Mishovnbg has described his equality method of competitive bidding. It is most definetly not for the faint of heart. It is scattered about in various post and subpost, I will not link them here, but you may want to go to this one post that has links to most of the other post on Equality is you are interested.

http://bridgebase.lunarpages.com/~bridge2/...indpost&p=25326

Here I will pose some questions concerning where I am still fuzzy on equality for input from Misho and others interested in this treatment...

1C (1H) - ?

Here I know that 2C is not a raise but shows 4S, and 2D shows 5S, so what does Dbl and 1S show. 1S I think is diamonds or balanced, and I would think that dbl should be spades by the other rule of equality, but in this case there is no raise to 2C. So should 1S be club raise and dble balanced or diamonds? Why haver three bids to show spades (dbl, 2C, 2D), not to mention the various fit jumps?

1S (2D) - ?

Ok, here I know what DBL, 2H, 2S, 2NT mean, as well as leap to 3H, and I am farily sure that 3D is a mixed raise. The fuzzy area for me is 3C's. I see two possible meanst ot 3C. It could be a fit non-jump promising clubs and spades (a very nice use for this), or it could be a "cue-bid" of diamonds via transfer lookig for a stopper for notrump, suggesting maybe a runnable club suit. I think this second use is best, because you can always show clubs and then try to cue-bid diamonds next if given a chance.

With the answers to these questions, I think we can post the complete Equality method when the opponents make a simple interference (dbl plus cheapest suit overcall), and move on to when the openers rebid when the second opponent also bids.

Ben

[luke warm]

ben, i didn't go to misho's links, so this may be answered there... if so, sorry

in your post i don't see any reference to responder's strength... for the sake of discussion, let's divide that into:
1) weak
2) invitational
3) forcing

are the same responses on in each of those cases (i know the preemptive raise would be different), or do you have others to show the different ranges?

[inquiry]

Hi...

Misho and I have a variety of ways to show good/bad/intermediate/verybad/ and game force with fit. Let's take a simple auction...

1C - (1S) - ?

What do you do with club support? Options are,

DBL = balanced hand (which may include club fit) or 5+D
2S = good raise
2NT = extremely preemptive club raise, or game forcing club raise
3C = preemptive club raise but with some values

So
xx xxx xx xxxxxx you can jump to 2NT
xx Jxx Kx QTxxxx you can jump to 3C
xx Axx KJ QTxxxx you can bid 2S
Ax Axx KJ QTxxxx you can bid 2NT
xx Qxx Axxx Kxxx you double
Ax Qxx xxxx Kxxx you bid 1NT

For the simplier auctions we use transfer advances, so the advancer maybe weak, invintational or strong. We also use fit jumps.

[luke warm]

whew!! talk about memory work

[inquiry]

Looking at misho's equality method, i have investigated how it would apply to the following auction

(1C)- X - (XX) - ?

I think this is what the rules are (should be).
Pass - probably best as transfer to 1D
1D - transfer to 1H
1H - transfer to 1S
1S - balanced hand or diamond one suit, no major, doubler can try 1NT so lead to him
1NT - natural makes no sense, so two suiter, diamonds and spades
2C - natural makes no sense, so diamonds and hearts
2D - you can bid 1S with diamonds or pass (see above), so both majors

How would this apply if the suit wasn't clubs? Let's look at worse case.

(1S) - X - (XX) - ?

Pass - not much to say, presumably transfer to clubs
1NT - Two suiter including diamonds. If dbler bids clubs, 2D shows hearts
2C - diamonds
2D - hearts

(1H) - X - (XX) - ?

Pass - not much, willing to hear 1S bid
1S = balanced or clubs
1NT = two suiter, including diamonds. Probably both minors
2C = diamonds
2D = spades and clubs, no fear
2H = spades

(1D) - X - (XX) - ?

Pass = think hearts
1H = spades
1S = clubs or balanced
1NT = clubs and hearts
2C = hearts
2D = both major
2H = spades

Put into rules.

Over Rdbl
   Pass - suggest transfer to next higher suit
   1S always balanced or cheapest unbid minor
   two cheapest suit bids, next higher unbid suit
   1NT shows two suiter including middle suit
   cue-bid either two suiter or one suiter (higher suit) depending upon space issues.
   Minor suit cue-bid shows two suiter

Will it work? Don't know. Haven't had a redouble since Misho and I have been playing this equality stuff. However, this has the best chance to right side the hand, in a dangerous situation. Second, it gives the opponents maximum room to reconsider. They can double your tranfer to suggest that suit, which might encourage them to bid on. They can cue-bid in your transfer suit as takeout, again taking you off the potential penatly double. So with disaster hands, you have given them a few extra changes to save you.

[mishovnbg]

Hi Ben!
First need to say without your work "Equality" method didn't exist, will remain only an idea. So please wrote about it as Misho&Ben's method please

Two way bids remain same in method and are up to partnership to decide how to use them. IMO main rule must be: "the higher is bid, the more offensive hand it show". By the way same style was used for answers to 2 suiters with shown 2 suits...

Examples:

1♣ - (1♥) - ?
DBL: 4+♠, defensive hand, partner can pass dbl, deny ♥ shortness
2♣: 4+♠, offensive hand
2♦: 5+♠, offensive hand, inv+

1♠: is bal hand unsuitable for nat 1/3NT bid or 5+♦ and is normal part of equality method. Note if opps overcall is in minor, then such bid include only bal hand.

--------------------------

Free bids which remain between overcall and cue bid of overcall suit are free for any use of partnership. In our with Ben its meaning is fnjs of course .

1♠ - (2♦) - 3♣: inv, values(suit) ♣ and ♠ fit.

Remarks:
- By "Equality" method there is no such thing like "transfer que bid". Cue bid at 3 level always ask for stopper with solid suit.
- 3 level jump raise include pure preempt and mixed, like on opening.

Misho

[inquiry]

I am reviewing 15,748 BBO hands that began 1any suit-DBL-RDBL to see how I think the equality method proposed above would work. I have to say I am likely the results so far.

Here is an evil one that earned the pair making the double a horrible score when EW were joking around...

Scoring: IMP

PS - PS - 1♣ - X
XX - 1♦ - all pass

---

As you can see, 3NT rolls home NS, but EAST's psychic redouble made south cautious and north has no chance to but be worried... true south was a passed hand, but you can see the concern.

Playing the equality method, the bidding would be something like...

PS - PS - 1♣ - X
XX - PS - PS - 1♦
PS - 2♣ - PS - 2NT
PS - 3NT - All pass

West is more than good enough to make a game try after showing diamonds, so it is impossible to play only 1♦.

Likewise it is possible to stumble into the best fit with minimum hassle.. Consider this example...

Scoring: IMP

PS - PS - 1♣ - X
XX - 1♦ - all pass

---

Here the 2♣ cue-bid shows (as shown above), a red two suiter, so double knows ♦ is the best spot. Check the BBO results, after the dble, you can see that 2♥'sdown one is a bottom, while 2♦ is a top.

Quote

=======================================
  # Contr   Ld  Decl     Tr  Score   Pts
=======================================
  1 2D    E C3  suzy111   7   100   1.93         
  2 2H    W H4  LULU_WI   7   100   1.93         
  3 1N    W H9  etikem    6   100   1.93         
  4 2S    E ST  Ste4o     7   100   1.93         
  5 2H    W H4  Oklade    7   100   1.93         
  6 1N    W CK  JamesL    6   100   1.93         
  7 2D    E C7  mila85    7   100   1.93         
  8 1N    N D5  SzAndrea  7    90   1.87         
  9 1N    S SJ  docdo     7    90   1.87         
10 1S    S CQ  belde34   7    80   1.33         
11 Pa      C2  hey212    0     0  -0.93         
12 2D    E C7  elios55   8   -90  -3.53         
13 1N    W C6  aparna    7   -90  -3.53         
14 2D    E C3  lucade    8   -90  -3.53         
15 1D    W CA  ouzo      8   -90  -3.53         
16 4C    N SK  rzn27     8  -100  -3.53         
=======================================

Maybe I am overly enthralled with this concept, but seems playable to me. Misho, are we going to try this? Should we simplify with just 1NT being any two suiter?

[mishovnbg]

Hi Ben!
Passing rdbl as transfer is great idea and fit perfectly to our method! Normally passing rdbl when your p ask you to pick up suit with t/o dbl is not good idea, so pass can be used as transfer! I really like it!
About 2 suiters - really good idea again! Because opps have hcp, our chance to fight for deal is distribution and 2 suiters are most complicate. Direct bids: 1NT, cue bid and 2NT must be used for 2 suiters. About other bids I am really not sure.

My suggestion is:
1NT: 4high-5+low or 4high4low41 or 5+high-5+low
cue bid: 5+high-5+mid
2NT: 5+low-5+mid

It is similar to our direct overcalss with similar reasons and you can use same schemes. What do you think?

Misho

[inquiry]

mishovnbg, on Aug 23 2004, 01:23 PM, said:

Hi Ben!
Passing rdbl as transfer is great idea and fit perfectly to our method! Normally passing rdbl when your p ask you to pick up suit with t/o dbl is not good idea, so pass can be used as transfer! I really like it!
About 2 suiters - really good idea again! Because opps have hcp, our chance to fight for deal is distribution and 2 suiters are most complicate. Direct bids: 1NT, cue bid and 2NT must be used for 2 suiters. About other bids I am really not sure.

My suggestion is:
1NT: 4high-5+low or 4high4low41 or 5+high-5+low
cue bid: 5+high-5+mid
2NT: 5+low-5+mid

It is similar to our direct overcalss with similar reasons and you can use same schemes. What do you think?

Misho

As always, your solution is much simplier than mine, and easier to remember. I guess the problem I have is that when they redouble, they want to kill us, so two of the bids risk getting too high. Cue-bids that force us to the three level and of course 2NT. I tried to comeup with a scheme that would keep the bidding at the two level with two suiters.

But let's start with baby steps... the pass as a transfer is on, as is the other transfer bids, and 1♠ as balanced or the cheapest minor. We will use your two suited scheme because it is easiest to remember. Now we include this as equality. And probably as often as you want to stay at the two level, we will like the preempitve value of the high cue-bid and 2NT rebids.... so they will probably cancel out anyway. So this is now added to equality.

Ben

[mishovnbg]

Hi Ben!
With bal hands after opp's redouble you will be happy to stay as low as possible, so will bid probably cheapest transfer for 4+ card suit without showing nature of your hand. The great advantage of transfers here will reveal itself when rdbl was given with not strong hand but as psyche or any other reason. This alow responder of dbl to continue later. By std way jumps after rdbl are preemtive, so you dont have right bids with inv hands.
Bidding high with 5-5 2 suiter at 3 level after p t/o dbl is safe with any strength - it is protected by your beloved LOTT.

2 way transfer, when direct natural bid in same suit is available imo must be done only with some strength. Example:
(1♦) - dbl - rdbl -?
pass: 4(3)+♥
1♥: 4(3)+♠
1♠: bal or ♣, both with some hcp
2♣: 5(4)+♣, weak

After some thought I realize that we have no bid with 2 suiter, wich include opps suit. It can be important in case of unbid 5+ major. We can use free bid also for that exceptional case, but I am in doubt that we both can remeber it . In above example 2♣ can be 5+♥/♠-5(4)+♦. What do you think?

Misho