[sheepman]

Scoring: IMP

P-P-P-?

---

National KO, 1st round.
Simple 2/1 with gadgets, 3 weak 2's, your bid?

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

1S ... assumin p will raise with 4HCP
and spade fit via 1NT else 2C it has to
be.

I dont want to force to game with this
hand, ... and it seems you dont play
Benjamin, i.e. you cnt show Acol 2s.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[hrothgar]

I'm inclined to treat this as a balanced hand. The choice between 2NT and 2♣ will depend on your specific agreements.

Opposite a random partner, I'd very likely open 2♣.

[inquiry]

Playing standard 2/1 at imps, i would open 1S. Normally i play 2C can include an acol 2 in either major (not part of 2/1 obviously) so i could open 2C and get to play exactly 2S (if opponents will allow) when partner is truely broke. I got this treatment from your fellow countryman, Chris Ryall's webpage.

[goodwintr]

A significant consideration is that opening 1S will correctly place the declaration in notrump in the (very likely) event of a 1NT response.

[foo]

sheepman, on Nov 10 2007, 08:14 AM, said:

West,????,IMP,
♠AKQJT7 ♥AT9 ♦QJ ♣A6

P-P-P-?

National KO, 1st round.
Simple 2/1 with gadgets, 3 weak 2's, your bid?

This board is a great advertisement for Drury and Acol 3N.

With 5 losers, it is not strong enough to open 2C. Having only 8 expected tricks, we need usually need 2 good cards from Responder to make a game (playing GOP to have the ♦A or ♦K is too optimistic).

In most partnerships, 1S. In tempo.

If you really are afraid of being passed in 1S because your "inner voice" says the odds are too high that CHO will have a ♦ control, then you want to be playing Acol 3N and open the hand 3N.

[karlson]

Speaking of hands that might play better in 3N with a 5-4 major suit fit....

It seems like I need 1 useful card for 3N to be a good bet, so 2c-2n looks right.

[awm]

I'll go with 2♣ to be followed with 2♠ most of the time. A few points people have missed:

(1) It doesn't take all that much to make slam with this hand. Give partner xxx x Kxxx Kxxxx and you're pretty cold. How do you like your chances of reaching one of these slams after opening 2NT or 2♣...2NT?

(2) It's true that sometimes when partner is really broke, opening 2♣ will get you too high. However, it helps to play an immediate negative; if the auction goes 2♣-2♥ (playing 2♥ shows a really awful hand) you can always rebid 2NT and play there.

(3) Opening 2♣ and rebidding 2♠ doesn't bar you from reaching 3NT. In fact if partner raises to 3♠ I can bid 3NT and partner will often pass on a flat hand. On the other hand, opening 2♣ and rebidding 2NT does make it almost impossible to reach 4♠ or 6♠ when that's best.

(4) If partner has a king we will often have play for some game (although it could well be 3NT). I don't expect partner to bid over 1♠ with just a king. Note that a spade fit is not necessary either.

[han]

I'd open 2C followed by 2S.

[hrothgar]

One other point worth mentioned: There have been three passes to date...

There's no guarantee that points will be split evenly or that everyone has flat hands, however, a lot of the more extreme distributions have been ruled out

[mike777]

sheepman, on Nov 10 2007, 08:14 AM, said:

Scoring: IMP

P-P-P-?

---

National KO, 1st round.
Simple 2/1 with gadgets, 3 weak 2's, your bid?

A simple one spade.

Will rebid 3nt over 1nt.

If partner can bid 2s now I can make a bunch of cuebids.

[jdonn]

Not to sound like a cop out, but I really don't think it matters much. 1♠, 2♣, and even 2NT (although this hand is clearly too good) will all usually work out fine and lead to a making game, and we will rarely have a slam that is bid over one of those but not other ones. A certain person will mock me, but I do whatever I think partner wants me to

[whereagles]

I'll try a 3NT opener. Opposite a passed pard, this should be ok.

[skjaeran]

3NT.

[FrancesHinden]

I would open 1S, second choice 2C followed by 2S. (First choice Acol 2S, but not available.)

While 3NT might make the same tricks as 4S and be right at matchpoints, there aren't so many hands that make exactly 9 tricks in both NT and spades, I'm prepared to sacrifice some of them to catch spade support and a suitable singleton opposite (xxx x Kxxx Kxxxx anyone?). And opening 1S (or 2C) doesn't stop us playing in 3NT.

AKQJ107
A109
Kx
Ax

I would open 2C and rebid 2S definitely.

p.s. I really don't get the 3NT opening. Unless you've agreed a specific treatment with partner this shows a long MINOR, not a long major. I think partner would be entitled to pull this with, say, x Kxx Axxxx xxxx hoping that we are making 6C and anyway thinking it likely that 5C is safer than 3NT.

[Gerben42]

1♠ unless I have Acol 2♠ in my 2♣ (with Ryall negative responses to 2♣). In that case 2♣.

[ArtK78]

I open 1♠. This hand is good (8 running tricks) and not so good (nothing much else to speak of) at the same time. 2NT is not right for two reasons - it doesn't emphasize the main aspect of the hand - spades - and you have too much trick taking potential for the bid - 8 tricks in hand. 2NT will work great if partner has exactly one trick - K(xxx) of diamonds or a different king with at least 10xx of diamonds, but it will work poorly if partner has a source of tricks and the ♦K.

Suppose partner has KQJx(x) of either rounded suit and the ♦K. You will not get to slam after a 2NT opening - partner will just bid 3NT (or Stayman or transfer then 3NT). After a 1♠ opening you have a chance to get to slam.

[brianshark]

I open 1♠ and (over most expected responses) rebid 3NT.