[jonottawa]

You pick up in 3rd seat.

Scoring: IMP

P - 2♥ - P - P
X - P - 2 ♠ - P
P - 3 ♦ - 3 ♠ - 4 ♦
X - P - ?

---

Pard broke tempo before he doubled 4 Diamonds.

Edit: reformatted auction

[dicklont]

Pass, p already passed 2♠, didn't he?

Btw: it is not easy to read that auction.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

reformatting the auction

P - 2H - P.. - P
X - P.. - 2S - P
P - 3D - 3S - 4D
X - P.. - ?

Pass and 4S are both ok, for that
matter, it is clear, why partner
passed, he is weak, ... remember he
passed as dealer.
But pass is certainly the alternative with
the lower expectation to win the board.

For what's it worth, I doubt that we
can go plus in 4S, and we will catch
a X.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[helene_t]

Maybe this is trivial, but I think normal tempo for the 4♦ bid is a few secs of tanking. A very fast dbl might bare you from sitting, a very slow double might bare you from pulling, but some 5-8 secs I would consider normal.

[Blofeld]

Right, and we're not told whether the break in tempo was a super-fast bid or a slower than normal one.

[jonottawa]

The break in tempo/tank was about 12 seconds. I had very little confidence in partner.

"Pard already passed 2 ♠ didn't he?"

I'm not considering pulling this to make. I'm considering pulling this because I have purity, a 9+ card fit, and less than half a trick on defense opposite a passed hand when the opps are known to have at least 23 high and a 2 suit fit.

"Why'd you bid 2 ♠ and not 3 ♠?"

I have an affinity for plus scores. How often does the 2 ♥ bidder reopen? With the boss suit, going slow usually works. A direct 3 ♠ would have saved me an IMP, though, it's true.

"I bet you get doubled."

I bet I didn't.

[Codo]

jonottawa, on Oct 31 2007, 12:20 AM, said:

"I bet you get doubled."

I bet I didn't.

He thought that you play reasonable opps. not just beginners.

[whereagles]

Pard is a passed hand. Pulling out is obvious.

As it was obvious to pass if he weren't a passed hand

[ArtK78]

Pard is a passed hand.

So what?

Did I not bid 2♠ and then 3♠? Did I not hear the rest of the auction? Why am I pulling 4♦x?

Besides, if I pull the double to 4♠ after a 12 second tank by partner, there is a ZERO percent chance that I will get a good result on this board. If the pull is right, the opponents will object and I will lose in committee. If the pull is wrong, then no one will complain.

I may not be barred by the tank, but, for all intents and purposes, I am barred from getting a good result by pulling after the tank. Since it is possible that partner has the opps beat EVEN AS A PASSED HAND I cannot pull the slow double.

What would happen if partner made a lightning double of 4♦? How would the argument go if I didn't pull that double? Would the opps argue that my hand MUST pull it because he is a passed hand and no passed hand can beat 4♦x on my cards?

[pclayton]

I think I'm barred by the tank. Pard sounds like a 3=2=4=4 11 count with so-so diamonds (because of the hitch).

Side note:

Jon - you seem like a very cynical person. Nothing in anyone's comments should have caused to react like you did. Lets keep it constructive.

We're really a nice bunch around here, although some of us can get passionate about things in the Water Cooler.

If you want to start flame wars, I would suggest rec.games.bridge. There's a whole lot of pissed-off posters there that would welcome your attitude.

[whereagles]

ArtK78, on Oct 30 2007, 06:28 PM, said:

Pard is a passed hand. So what?

Did I not bid 2♠ and then 3♠? Did I not hear the rest of the auction? Why am I pulling 4♦?

Maybe because there's a.. what.. 1% chance that a passed hand can scrap up 4 tricks?

[awm]

I think I would've bid 4♠ a long time ago. Many mediocre hands for partner offer good play for game, and in any case we have a big spade fit so if partner's hand is minimum opponents are probably missing a plus score somewhere.

Having bid 2♠ and then 3♠, I've obviously made the (quite possibly incorrect) decision that we won't be making 4♠. Since partner's actions in the subsequent bidding haven't improved our chances at making 4♠, it seems like I should pass. Especially with the break in tempo, which can only make bidding more appealing.

I think this falls into the general category of hands where we have to keep an early decision in mind when making a later decision.

[ArtK78]

whereagles, on Oct 30 2007, 01:58 PM, said:

ArtK78, on Oct 30 2007, 06:28 PM, said:

Pard is a passed hand. So what?

Did I not bid 2♠ and then 3♠?  Did I not hear the rest of the auction?  Why am I pulling 4♦?

Maybe because there's a.. what.. 1% chance that a passed hand can scrap up 4 tricks?

Sure, it is unlikely, but partner says that is what he has.

On this auction, the double of 4♦ is not a suggestion, nor is it cooperative. You already said that you were not interested in game.

[jonottawa]

pclayton, on Oct 30 2007, 06:49 PM, said:

Side note:

Jon - you seem like a very cynical person. Nothing in anyone's comments should have caused to react like you did. Lets keep it constructive.

We're really a nice bunch around here, although some of us can get passionate about things in the Water Cooler.

If you want to start flame wars, I would suggest rec.games.bridge. There's a whole lot of pissed-off posters there that would welcome your attitude.

Phil, take your own advice.

[Fluffy]

I have nothing else to add to my bidding, even without the tank.

[pclayton]

jonottawa, on Oct 30 2007, 12:21 PM, said:

pclayton, on Oct 30 2007, 06:49 PM, said:

Side note:

Jon - you seem like a very cynical person. Nothing in anyone's comments should have caused to react like you did. Lets keep it constructive.

We're really a nice bunch around here, although some of us can get passionate about things in the Water Cooler.

If you want to start flame wars, I would suggest rec.games.bridge. There's a whole lot of pissed-off posters there that would welcome your attitude.

Phil, take your own advice.

Predictable response.

[helene_t]

I voted "Sit because ....". I have no defense and my voluntary 3♠ bid might have given p the impression that I have some general values. It's hard to deny that pass is a LA, though.

Not sure why Phil thinks Jon is cynical. I might have missed something.

[jdonn]

Why can't the opponents just have done something foolish like be in a bad 4-4 fit and partner has KQJ9 and an ace? Or maybe responder did something even more foolish and assumed the 2 bidder would be 6-5, and poor partner is sitting there with QJT9x of diamonds and an ace and a king and xxx of spades, or something. They could be down 3 in that case.

The only reason pass would normally be right in this situation is that the a priori odds of partner having a double here are so low that the odds he is doing something foolish or can't be trusted are much higher. But just because the odds partner could have a double here are low doesn't mean those hands don't exist. Partner shouldn't be playing us for any defense, so to pull is to say we don't trust him.

Pulling after a tank is criminal as long as we are experienced enough to understand the issues.

TY for reformatting the auction. This way is a lot less headache-inducing.

[jonottawa]

Y'all have convinced me. I thought it would be a much closer vote. At the time I thought it was borderline 'automatic' to pull here, but as others have said, if you trust partner, you sit. Period. (And if you don't trust partner, find another one.)

Luckily I got what I deserved. We'd have beaten 4 Diamonds a trick, maybe 2 if he tried to make it. 4 Spades was down 2.

The whole story is on my blog. If you want to look at the hand it's here:

http://online.bridgebase.com/myhands/hands...rname=jonottawa

Pard held:

♠962 ♥A76 ♦AJT6 ♣K73