[Poky]

IMP. All love.

Pass pass pass ???

♠-
♥A10xx
♦xx
♣KQJ10xxx

Explain your decision.

[P_Marlowe]

3C, min. opener with 6-7 clubs,
there will be a fair chance, to
make the contract, and the high
will also stop them from entering
the auction.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[hrothgar]

I will probably pass the hand out. I see this as the best way to go positive. I have a Spade void. I'm not looking forward to a competitive auction.

If I were to open, it would be 5♣ (I don't bother with Science with 7-4 hands)
Given that i don't expect to make 5♣, I really like pass

[Blofeld]

I definitely open. Sure, I have a spade void, but I also have a 7-4 hand. Plus nobody else opened.

Given that I'm opening, I'm torn between 1♣, 3♣ and 4♣. I think I would open this hand 5♣ in most seats, but not in fourth.

I voted for 3♣, but currently I think I prefer 4♣. 1♣ is too much of a gamble.

[luke warm]

1h playing canape ... in standard, i'd open 1c

[Mr. Dodgy]

I voted 3♣. I'd like 2♣; I play that 4th seats 2-level openings are natural, showing a good expectation of making the bid opposite nothing. I expect I'll take 8 tricks with this hand all by itself.

It occurs to me, however, that leaves me no good way to show a balanced 22-23 in 4th seat. I'd have to fudge, and open 2NT on 20-22 and 3NT on 23-25.

[pclayton]

How many of us have held this hand and found that both passed opponents are actually cold for 4♠? Its happened to me, plenty.

Yet, this hand calls for some kind of action and I think I'll try 3♣. While I risk burying a 4-4 ♥ fit, I give our side a good chance to reach 3N. 3♣ makes it tough for our opponents with the spade suit to wade in.

By the way, finding 4-4 hearts isn't that great since my hand will get tapped once or twice along the way. However, a 5-4 heart fit would be nice.

[mike777]

pass.

Expect partner to be worse than:

ATxxx
xx
ATxxx
x

or

AKxx
xxx
Kxxx
xx

[hatchett]

Quote

I will probably pass the hand out. I see this as the best way to go positive.

Wish I could be guaranteed to go positive on a throw-in.

[hrothgar]

hatchett, on Jul 30 2006, 11:54 PM, said:

Quote

I will probably pass the hand out. I see this as the best way to go positive.

Wish I could be guaranteed to go positive on a throw-in.

Quite honestly, if partner were a passed hand playing MOSCITO, I'd consider PO 100%... Even playing standard, I suspect that this will work best

MOSCITO typically scores very well on pass out hands...

[mikeh]

mike777, on Jul 30 2006, 11:38 AM, said:

Expect partner to be worse than:

ATxxx
xx
ATxxx
x

or

AKxx
xxx
Kxxx
xx

why???

Surely the expectation is that rho has less than 10 hcp more often than not, since most, with 10 hcp and 5♠, will open in 3rd.... so my expectation is that partner has 10 or 11 hcp....while it is possible that this hand does not belong to us, it is also possible that partner holds xxxx x AQxx Axxx and we have passed out a cold slam.... making 7 on a finesse....maybe 6♣ is not biddable, but, at imps... do we really want to bring back a 'passed out' as our teammates announce '-1390'??

I have been on the winning side (thankfully) of a 'passed out/ +1430' comparison, and I want to remain on the credit side of that equation.

I go with 5♣.. the opps are not doubling us and the risk/reward ratio is very good here....

1♣ is wrong because of the lack of defence and the dangers of the opps preempting us... we are NOT playing this in a 4-4 ♥ fit anyway... and 4♣ (for me) is a gadget. The choices are 3♣ and 5♣, and 3♣ invites 3N, which is not what this hand is all about.

[mike777]

mikeh, on Jul 30 2006, 04:51 PM, said:

mike777, on Jul 30 2006, 11:38 AM, said:

Expect partner to be worse than:

ATxxx
xx
ATxxx
x

or

AKxx
xxx
Kxxx
xx

why???

Surely the expectation is that rho has less than 10 hcp more often than not, since most, with 10 hcp and 5♠, will open in 3rd.... so my expectation is that partner has 10 or 11 hcp....while it is possible that this hand does not belong to us, it is also possible that partner holds xxxx x AQxx Axxx and we have passed out a cold slam.... making 7 on a finesse....maybe 6♣ is not biddable, but, at imps... do we really want to bring back a 'passed out' as our teammates announce '-1390'??

I have been on the winning side (thankfully) of a 'passed out/ +1430' comparison, and I want to remain on the credit side of that equation.

I go with 5♣.. the opps are not doubling us and the risk/reward ratio is very good here....

1♣ is wrong because of the lack of defence and the dangers of the opps preempting us... we are NOT playing this in a 4-4 ♥ fit anyway... and 4♣ (for me) is a gadget. The choices are 3♣ and 5♣, and 3♣ invites 3N, which is not what this hand is all about.

All those example hands are opening bids in second seat nv for me including your 4=1=4=4 hand. but switch the h and s and I would pass. . Of course that gives the opp 12 spades then.

[awm]

I'll go with the "uncreative" 1♣.

How many tricks do I think opponents are making in spades? If either opponent had six spades he might've opened (one or two level). If RHO had five spades and the approximately ten points he seems to hold, he might've opened in third seat. It seems pretty likely that partner actually has four spades, or even five. Okay, the opponents might have a spade partial, but a direct 5♣ only really wins if they have eleven tricks in spades, since if it's less than that I can always compete in clubs. Eleven tricks in spades with half the points, a probably eight or nine card fit, and a bad break doesn't seem all that likely to me.

Bidding the hand slowly will allow us to often get to 5♣ when it makes and avoid it when it's down. I'm not convinced looking at my hand that 5♣ will make all that often, are you? Heck it might even get us to mikeh's "magic" 6♣. We can also get to hearts when it's right, 3NT when it's right, or double the opponents in spades when they decide to compete and get a 5-0 break.

I've never really been convinced of the merits of preempting with good hands.

[rbforster]

To those you voted for 3♣, don't 4th seat 2 and 3 level natural openings promise decent hands and playing strength (as well as length), especially for the 3 level? I would think a 4th seat 3 level opening is more likely ~13-18 pts or so and 7 decent clubs.

This hand feels a lot more a like 3rd seat 3♣ to me than a 4th seat one. If I were the passed partner, I expect more I think than this 6 loser hand. Remember partner can have a decent 12 count like

AKQx
xxx
QJxx
x

and you're going down in 3♣ if they don't lead a spade.

[matmat]

This may sound silly, but on this hand I might be worried about missing 3nt. p is likely to have a length stopper in spades and diamnds (or better). I'd love to open a precision 2c, but in standard I'd probably settle for a simple 1c.