[whereagles]

Matchpoints, NV

♠ K
♥ AQ9xx
♦ KQ9x
♣ J9x

You pard
1♥ 1♠
2♦ 3♣ (4th suit forcing)
..??

1. What do you bid now?
2. If you bid 3NT, pard follows up with 4♠. Then what?

Note: if pard had bid 3♠ instead of 3♣ 4SF, it would have been NON-forcing.

[FrancesHinden]

I would have bid 3S over 3C.

[pbleighton]

1. 3NT
2. Pass

Peter

[Free]

1. Well it's MP, so 3NT. The only alternative is 3♦ showing nothing extra and no ♣ stopper...

2. Pass, it's still MP.

[pbleighton]

"The only alternative is 3♦ showing nothing extra and no ♣ stopper...'

I play that as 5-5, minimum. And yes, I will bid 3NT without a 4th suit stopper.

I play a LOT of matchpoints

Peter

[Apollo81]

1. 3NT
2. 5♠

[P_Marlowe]

#1 3H, the default rebid.
#2 Pass, over 3S I bid 4D
as a cue

With kind regards
Marlowe

[FrancesHinden]

pbleighton, on Mar 16 2007, 02:51 PM, said:

"The only alternative is 3♦ showing nothing extra and no ♣ stopper...'

I play that as 5-5, minimum. And yes, I will bid 3NT without a 4th suit stopper.

I play a LOT of matchpoints

Peter

Why does going off in 3NT with no stop in the 4th suit gain you matchpoints?

[pbleighton]

"Why does going off in 3NT with no stop in the 4th suit gain you matchpoints?"

It doesn't, but
1. We frequently make 3NT anyway
2. 5m may go down
3. 3NT and 5m may both make, and 3NT usually beats 5m (the matchpoints issue)
4. I've shown my shape, if we have a biddable slam partner should know about it.
5. I don't like rebidding hearts or diamonds with a 5-4 shape, promising what I don't have. Marlowe plays 3D as noise, Free plays 3H as noise, fine for them, but I prefer to be able to show both 5-5 and 6-4 hands.

Peter

[SoTired]

1. Over 3C, I bid 3H rather than 3N. I want responder to bid 3N with ♣Ax which might be a double stopper played by responder, but will not be a double stopper by opener.

2. Over a non-forcing 3S, I bid 4S. I have a max and must bid game. Our ♠K should prove adequate and 3N may have trouble reaching dummy.

[HeartA]

Over 3C, I bid 3D (3H is the alternative, and 3NT is also acceptable).

And if pd bids 4S over my 3N, I would pass (what else can I do)?

[whereagles]

If you bid 3♦ or 3♥, pard will bid 3♠

And now?

[HeartA]

whereagles, on Mar 17 2007, 02:45 AM, said:

If you bid 3♦ or 3♥, pard will bid 3♠

And now?

4S, wtp? I have SK which would be a surprise for my pd.

[whereagles]

Thx all. Hands were

Scoring: MP

How to bid EW hands?

---

Actually, the auction I gave didn't happen. Pard felt like butchering the hand and bid a straight 4♠ after my 1♥ opening. Oh well..

Slam makes, and about half the field reached it, but I think the hands are not that easy to bid. After

1♥ 1♠
2♦ 3♣

the first decision is what to bid. 3NT is the practical bid (I probably would have bid that), but 3♥ might be better, in case pard has a good hand with spades, as he had..

If you do bid 3NT, pard will probably follow-up with 4♠ and you're left with another decision as to carry on or not.

Quite hard to bid this one confidently, though

1♥ 1♠
2♦ 3♣
3NT 4♠
5♠ 6♠

is perhaps a sensible possibility.

[pbleighton]

"If you do bid 3NT, pard will probably follow-up with 4♠ and you're left with another decision as to carry on or not."

I have to admit I wouldn't, with one ace, a stiff trump (though the king), no shortness in an outside suit, and wide open in clubs.

I'm a relatively conservative slam bidder compared to many Forum posters, though, so I expect some to push on.

Peter

[Fluffy]

3NT and I would reopen 4♠ probably with blackwood.