[Free]

You hold:

Scoring: IMP

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Partner starts the auction, opponents quiet (playing a standard system, 5 card Majors):
1♥ - 1♠
2♣ - ?

What's your plan? Signoff, or do you think slam is possible if partner has a 3-5-1-4 distribution?

[hrothgar]

Slam may be possible, but I'm not sure that its probable. In particular, I think that the odds that partner has a "miracle" 4=5=1=3 hand pretty slim. (Many of the hands that would make slam would raise 1♠ to 2♠)

I suspect that if we do have a slam, it requires that partner table a 2=5=1=5. Perhaps

♠ Ax
♥ AQxxx
♦ x
♣ Kxxxx

or some variant there of...

I would (probably) bid 4♥ and be prepared to apologize if I was wrong.

[kenrexford]

It really does not seem all that magical to me, frankly. Something like a rather mundane ♠Axx ♥KQxxx ♦x ♣KJxx provides us with twelve easily.

I'm not all that keen on the start (1♠), but this seems like an easy follow-up. I bid 2♦ (GF, I assume) and hope to hear 2♠. If I hear that, I hopefully can set hearts as trumps (3♥). Partner, if he has the spade Ace, can cue that. I then can make come sort of noise that convinced partner, or have partner make some noise, whatever methods we use.

[david_c]

2♦. How can this be wrong?

[jdonn]

Seems obvious to bid 2♦. If the auction continued 2NT 3♥ 3NT then I might also reach a better game.

[pbleighton]

I would bid 2D, to cater to 5-5 hands. If pd doesn't rebid 3C, or otherwise grab my attention, I will then bid 4H.

I don't think a direct 4H is bad, though.

Peter

[Fluffy]

Ken, you are missing ♦A+♥A on that magic 'mundane' hands , ok the duplication of ♥K saves the day when director cancels the hand

I'd just bid 4♥.

After 2♦ partner will raise us with 2524, what will we do next?, 4♥?, doesn't that mean that we didn't like the 2♠ response?

[mcphee]

2D strikes me as 100%, you meet the requirements, a reasonable opening bid, control cards, and good cards in partners suit. Failing to use 4th suit here I think starts partners making suspect j/s when 5/5, a condition I do not care to promote. Lets just TELL what we have and do not make decisions which are not ours to make.

[Free]

Ok, so I bid 2♦, partner responds 2♠ (he's an overall great player, but tends not to support on 3 card M). Now what?

Extra hidden info about the rest of the auction (so I don't have to make 7 posts asking you guys new questions every time):

Spoiler

If you bid 3♥ now, partner will cuebid 3♠

[P_Marlowe]

Free, on Jun 10 2007, 10:03 AM, said:

Ok, so I bid 2♦, partner responds 2♠ (he's an overall great player, but tends not to support on 3 card M). Now what?

Extra hidden info about the rest of the auction (so I don't have to make 7 posts asking you guys new questions every time):

Spoiler

If you bid 3♥ now, partner will cuebid 3♠

Hi,

3H, no problem yet.

After 3S, bid 3NT (serious), hoping
to catch a 4C cue bid.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[pbleighton]

Quote

Ok, so I bid 2D, partner responds 2♠ (he's an overall great player, but tends not to support on 3 card M). Now what?

4H.

Peter

[jdonn]

Free, on Jun 10 2007, 10:03 AM, said:

Ok, so I bid 2♦, partner responds 2♠ (he's an overall great player, but tends not to support on 3 card M).  Now what?

Extra hidden info about the rest of the auction (so I don't have to make 7 posts asking you guys new questions every time):

Spoiler

If you bid 3♥ now, partner will cuebid 3♠

Easy 3♥, just set trumps and see what he does. Further answer hidden.

Spoiler

Over his 3♠ I bid 4♣. I am now done cooperating and any further move is up to partner.
Edit I change my mind, over 4♦ I would bid blackwood, I think that is enough for my hand where every card is working.

[Codo]

2 ♦/3♥ was easy.

After a possible 3 Spade bid from pd I would bid 4 ♣. I have Si, but they are not too serious.
If pd is going on fine, if he stops in 4, this is nice too.

Oh by the way:

1 ♥ 1 ♠ 2 ♣ 2 ♦ 2 ♠ 3 ♥ 3 ♠ 4 ♣:

Is 4 ♦ now last train?

If it is not, what should it be?

[mike777]

Codo, on Jun 11 2007, 01:29 AM, said:

2 ♦/3♥ was easy.

After a possible 3 Spade bid from pd I would bid 4 ♣. I have Si, but they are not too serious.
If pd is going on fine, if he stops in 4, this is nice too.

Oh by the way:

1 ♥ 1 ♠ 2 ♣ 2 ♦ 2 ♠ 3 ♥ 3 ♠ 4 ♣:

Is 4 ♦ now last train?

If it is not, what should it be?

why is 2d and then 3h easy? compared to 2d and then 4H? you may very well be correct but you cite nothing.

Easy is means easy....what do you mean?

again you may be correct but easy, I think not! Correct bidding and easy bidding are not the same, ok?

[Free]

Well, we didn't agree on last train, so I thought partner would bid 4♥ after 4♣ anyway, a waste of time. I just used blacky, partner showed 1 keycard, RHO doubled and I bid 5♥. Partner had the magical ♦K stiff, a real waste of values, and he needed to find ♥J for contract without any clues at all... The other table just played 4♥=, we went down 1.

[Fluffy]

Free, on Jun 11 2007, 07:20 AM, said:

Well, we didn't agree on last train, so I thought partner would bid 4♥ after 4♣ anyway, a waste of time. I just used blacky, partner showed 1 keycard, RHO doubled and I bid 5♥. Partner had the magical ♦K stiff, a real waste of values, and he needed to find ♥J for contract without any clues at all... The other table just played 4♥=, we went down 1.

After you bid 2♦, 3♥ then 4♣ wich are your strongest unlimmited bids I'd say he will feel forced to bid 4♦ over 4♣.

[Codo]

mike777, on Jun 11 2007, 04:02 PM, said:

again you may be correct but easy, I think not! Correct bidding and easy bidding are not the same, ok?

You are right and with a pick up pd or without discussion it is far far away from easy to bid 3 ♥.
So it had been easy in my well established partnership where it is a clear game force with at least mildly slam interesst, but it would be quite different opposite a stranger.
In this case and wihtout having ser/ non ser. 3NT avaiable, I would prefer 4 ♥ to 3 ♥ because I believe that this shows a hand with just marginal slam interesst.

[whereagles]

Free: problem was pard wasn't able to say whether he had a max or a min. If you're not playing stuff like serious/frivolous 3NT, you better just sign off in 4♥.

[foo]

whereagles, on Jun 11 2007, 04:13 AM, said:

Free: problem was pard wasn't able to say whether he had a max or a min. If you're not playing stuff like serious/frivolous 3NT, you better just sign off in 4♥.

Josh, Justin, and Ken are dead on right for this one.

♠KQTx♥Kxx♦Txx♣AQx

1H-1S;2C-??

It's not just how much Opener has, it's how well the hands fit.
Even if you are playing with a pickup, a good pick up is instinctively going to know Barry Crane's old adage: "The more you bid, the more you got."

2D 4SF;
2S "No I don't have a D stop (else NT); nor a long empty D suit. (else 3D)"
(Something like Ken's example of Axx.AQxxx.x.KJxx starts looking more likely.)

3H "I waited until now to tell you I have H support";
3S "Oh _really_? Righty then. Here's the ♠A."
4C "I've the ♣A.";

Frankly, at this point if Opener has a ♦ stiff or void, the auction should be making them quite excited. After all, your bidding thus far has implied good ♠'s and extra values.
With something like Axx.AQxxx.x.KJxx, or even Axx.Axxxx.x.KJxx, 1430 should probably be their next call.

Unlike another poster, given Opener's earlier answer to 4SF, I'd take Opener next bidding 4D as a =negative= bid, implying 2+ losers in ♦'s.
Given the context of the previous auction, if Opener bids 4D next, you should probably sign off in 4H.