[fred]

One of those crazy human-shuffled hands from the Palm Springs Regional:

Scoring: IMPs

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Regular forums readers will know that I have been experimenting with a Precision-like system in some of my semi-regular partnerships (but not with my regular partner Brad Moss). This has been my first real experience playing a non-natural system. It has been fun and refreshing, but I still have a lot to learn!

What you see above is that best hand I have ever held while playing Precision. I was in 4th position and opened 1C, artificial, forcing, and promising 16+ HCP. Partner (Geoff Hampson) responded 1H which we play as artificial, game-forcing, and showing 8-11 HCP without a strong 5-card major or 6-card minor. This 1H bid is not part of "Standard Precision".

I rebid 2D (natural) and, over partner's 3C (natural), I bid 3S (natural). He bid 3NT (natural) and I bid 4D (natural). Geoff raised me to 5D. I made what I thought at the time was the obvious bid of 7D (do you agree?).

I did not necessarily expect this to be laydown, but, perhaps naively, I have to admit I was suprised to find that the contract had no play at all after LHO's expected trump lead!

Geoff was 3226 with the AJ of hearts, the QJ of clubs, and very small cards in both diamonds and spades.

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com

[Echognome]

Would be interesting to hear how you would have bid it with Brad.

Here's my guess

1♦ - 1NT
2♠ - 3♣
3♠ - 4♠
?

Then maybe
5♣ - 5♥
5NT - 6♣
Pass

Why do you think the Precision auction failed? My guess from the above auction is that when you hear partner has enough for game opposite a reverse, but wastage in hearts, you may reevaluate that partner's hand may not be too suitable. Then again, if partner's ♣QJ where the ♣K, things would have been a lot rosier. Who knows?

[inquiry]

Echognome, on Dec 18 2006, 09:26 PM, said:

Would be interesting to hear how you would have bid it with Brad.

Here's my guess

1♦ - 1NT
2♠ - 3♣
3♠ - 4♠
?

Then maybe
5♣ - 5♥
5NT - 6♣
Pass

Why do you think the Precision auction failed? My guess from the above auction is that when you hear partner has enough for game opposite a reverse, but wastage in hearts, you may reevaluate that partner's hand may not be too suitable. Then again, if partner's ♣QJ where the ♣K, things would have been a lot rosier. Who knows?

I pretty sure fred would NOT play in a 2-2 fit at the 6 level....

Hands like this are obviously very difficult and can lead to huge swings. People bid the percentages, as fred did here. Unfortunately, he didn't hit the right hand. Of course, I will take another opportunity to plug MisIry, as it this is the type hand where it usually shines....

3D - 3H
5S - 6S
Pass

3D is two suiter or heart preempt,
5S is S-D two suiter, with only "one loser" and that loser is in clubs (so heart Ace has to be useless)

If responder held Jxx AJx xx xxxxx or the like he could bid 6C over 5S asking if second round club control is good enough. His partner would have to have AKQ of spades AKQ of diamonds and a heart void for 5S (heart void isn't required, but when looking at the ACE, for responder to have only one loser and it is in clubs, well, then must be a void). Without and entry (spade jack) of course, you could not try for the grand.

[mike777]

After 4d, partner cannot cue hearts agreeing D allowing further cuebidding or rkc auction?

Alternative is can you, the strong hand, do asking bids after suit agreement of 5d?

[neilkaz]

I also cannot imagine staying out of the Grand with your cards, but what if 7♠ was better ? How can you show that you are 5-6 ?

.. neilkaz ..

[EricK]

Is QJxxxx not a strong 6 card minor? It is certainly not a weak one. The auction might have gone more smoothly if he could have shown his suit straight away at the two level rather than at the three level.

[Gerben42]

I guess even I would open this hand with a strong 2♣ opening... And that's from someone who produced the auction 1♠ (noise from other players - check that not 3x pass) 6♣ holding a 1.5 loser hand.

This is a huge hand indeed and I sympathize with the jump to the grand, although I might have bid differently one round earlier. How about:

1♣* 1♥*
2♦ 3♣
3♠ 3NT
5♠ 6♠
7♠ (no I'm not going to pass 6♠ either!)

At least this has some chance (although still less than expected).

Thanks for sharing this hand!

[jikl]

Biggest 2 hands I have been involved with are:

My partner opened a balanced 35 count, we found out we had no 8 card fits, so despite me having 2 4 card suits headed by the J, there was no entry to my hand, so it ended in 6NT makingfor a flat board. (Interestingly I knew partner was 35+ )

2nd hand was help by the opposition, opening bidder had:

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We ended up in 7♦ as a sacrifice which ended up making vs 6♥ by our teammates

Sean

[Free]

Well, if you were going to bid 7 anyway (which I agree with), why not bid 6♠ showing your 6-5 and suggesting to partner that you want to play one of the grands?

[pclayton]

fred, on Dec 18 2006, 05:55 PM, said:

One of those crazy human-shuffled hands from the Palm Springs Regional:

Dealer: ????? Vul: Both Scoring: IMPs

♠ AKQ92 ♥   ♦ AKQ1092 ♣ A2

Regular forums readers will know that I have been experimenting with a Precision-like system in some of my semi-regular partnerships (but not with my regular partner Brad Moss). This has been my first real experience playing a non-natural system. It has been fun and refreshing, but I still have a lot to learn!

What you see above is that best hand I have ever held while playing Precision. I was in 4th position and opened 1C, artificial, forcing, and promising 16+ HCP. Partner (Geoff Hampson) responded 1H which we play as artificial, game-forcing, and showing 8-11 HCP without a strong 5-card major or 6-card minor. This 1H bid is not part of "Standard Precision".

I rebid 2D (natural) and, over partner's 3C (natural), I bid 3S (natural). He bid 3NT (natural) and I bid 4D (natural). Geoff raised me to 5D. I made what I thought at the time was the obvious bid of 7D (do you agree?).

I did not necessarily expect this to be laydown, but, perhaps naively, I have to admit I was suprised to find that the contract had no play at all after LHO's expected trump lead!

Geoff was 3226 with the AJ of hearts, the QJ of clubs, and very small cards in both diamonds and spades.

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com

In a natural precision system, I think your sequence is fine, but I'd try 5♠ over 5♦ to see if that fetches a 6♣ call. I also think Geoff denied the ♥A with the 5♦ call.

Its an awkward hand. Even if the grand is on the club hook, you have no certainty of reaching dummy to take it.

[glen]

fred, on Dec 19 2006, 01:55 AM, said:

... in 4th position and opened 1C, artificial, forcing, and promising 16+ HCP. Partner .. responded 1H artificial, game-forcing, and showing 8-11 HCP without a strong 5-card major or 6-card minor.

I suspect that 1♥ denied a " strong 5-card major or 6-card minor", since the unpassed hand 12+ point responses can now be used by a passed hand with good suits - not sure if the bid denied a "strong 6 card minor" or denied a "6 card minor", but likely the former since responder actually had 6♣s. Since responder bid 3NT and the opponents have never bid ♥s (at both vul) one has to worry about wasted ♥ values in responder's hand and a poor mesh of the two hands. As Barry Crane would have disagreed with bidding a grand that was "not necessarily ... laydown", I think one should have considered his spirit in Palm Springs.

[dake50]

Support ask D, then S, then control ask C; have exact answer.

[Fluffy]

They don't put this kind of examples on strong club books, (reaching hopeless 7 with no oposition) do they?