[Edmunte1]

All boards are from Romanian National Division, you're sitting South:

1.

Scoring: IMP

2NT(20-bad 22)-(pass) - ?

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2.

Scoring: IMP

2NT(20-bad 22)-(pass) - ?

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3.

Scoring: IMP

2NT(20-bad 22)-(pass) - ?

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[Cascade]

1. Pass

2. 4♦ The standard is for partner to play me for a few values so maybe he can raise. 5♦ could easily work out better or much worse.

3. 4♣ Splinter

[655321]

(1) 3♣ Simple Stayman.

(2) This is tough. 5♦ is too many, so for me the choice is between the nothing bid of 4♦, and the possibly-losing-the-first-seven-tricks bid of 3NT. I choose 4♦, but my guess is that 3NT will often work.

(3) 4♥. I don't want to splinter with the Ace, and the hand has too many Aces and Kings to bid 3♥ only.

[rogerclee]

1. Stayman, then either 3N or 4♠. If partner has the 'wrong' hand, we may not be making 2N anyway.

2. 4♦. 5♦ is too many, especially since partner may be offshape. Partner will raise to 5♦ on many hands where this is right. I admit 3N could work, but I am not willing to risk 3 or 4 vulnerable undertricks if I'm wrong.

3. 4♥. I don't like to splinter with stiff A. 3♥ is really conservative and I would never seriously consider it.

[gnasher]

1. Pass. Even opposite four spades, game is unlikely to make - having all my strength in a short suit is a big minus.

2. 4D. As others have said, partner will play me for some values anyway.

3. 3H. I may have a lot of controls, but I also have a singleton ace, and no pips in any of my suits. Partner will play me for the equivalent of a balanced 18-count, and that's roughly what I have.

[whereagles]

1. Pass
2. 4♦. 3NT could be a big winner but pard, short in spades and with 4 hearts, might be a tad LIGHT.
3. 4♥. I dont like splinter with sing AKQ.

[helene_t]

1. Pass, altough 3♣ could be the longterm winner. I don't know.
2. 4♦, my first thought was 3N but thinking more about it p needs xx or A of spades or maybe K if LHO underleads ♠A for some reason, and even then it may still go down for other reasons.
3. 3♥ is enough for me. Maybe 4♥ if playing with someone who rarely responds with less than 6 HCP. No splinter with an ace please. I like 2N with this shape but we can't sign off in 3♥ then, 2N is either NF or GF AFAIU.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

#1 Pass, we may start talking if
you had Kxx instead of QJx in hearts,
and even than it is close

#2 4D, ... I am not tough enough to pass
or to bid 3NT, and 5D is a long way to go

#3 3H, but there do exist days I would bid
4H, but 4H overstates the power and
misdiscribes my shape

With kind regards
Marlowe

[Sambolino]

pass
3nt
3h

[Fluffy]

1. Pass
2. 3NT, but don't think I'll stand a double
3. 4♣ splinter.

[whereagles]

Fluffy, on Feb 27 2008, 01:12 PM, said:

2. 3NT, but don't think I'll stand a double

You got 9 hcp. No one's gonna dbl your 3NT. They'll just let you go down in peace

[Codo]

1. pass at MPs, bid 3 Club at imps.

2. I am still not convinced that the minority view of pass is bad, so I´ll do that at mps. At Imps, I am a chicken and bid 4 Diamond, believing that pass had earned me more points at ther table.

3. 4 Heart.
Pd knows that I have 18+ points but no splinter and no 4 Diamond bid. So he plays me for a hand like 3442 with around 19 HCPS. sounds like a good describtion of myhand.

[Gerben42]

1. If you confidently bid Stayman and 3NT, no one is going to Dbl you I guess. Only bad if 120 was our top score.

2. Pass is bad - where are our tricks coming from? The choice is between 3NT and 4♦ as 5♦ is too much. Given that we're vulnerable I'm going for 3NT. Maybe the ♠ are

AQTxxxx opposite K

or we don't have a stopper but opener is trying to get partner in with a different lead and we pick up 9 tricks.

3. 4♣ splinter. I guess I'll pass if partner goes 4♥ after that.

[mikegill]

1) This looks like a normal pass to me. We're not even red.

2) If behind, and I could do it in tempo, I would bid 3n. 4d looks normal to me. It's not even clear we have game values, so even if we avoid the down-3-off-the-top, I still need partner to have diamonds with me, plus another 3 or 4 top tricks to make 3n.
Think passing is asking for -730.

3) If it were not red IMPs I wouldn't force game with this hand. Yes aces and kings are great but 4x1 is overrated, I have no spots at all, and stiff A really detracts from the value of this hand. I would either splinter or not based on which I thought was more likely to buy a club lead against these particular opponents (since I really want to avoid a lead through my pointed suit Ks). I think not splintering is normal, though.

[Apollo81]

1. 3♣
2. 4♦
3. 4♥

#1 is the toughest call. Looks like a pass but 3♣ has more ways to win. I'm OK with playing this in 3NT if we don't catch a spade fit, it might make.

[gwnn]

1) pass. I would want to be in game only if pard has 5 spades and that sounds like too narrow a target to aim for.

2) 3NT Lord help us. I hate this bid but I like it more than 4♦. This one is very ugly.

3) definitely 4♥ with the added safety that partner doesnt look like someone who has stretched to respond on an OK suit and nothing outside.

[pclayton]

1. Pass. GLP

2. 3N. Pard has a 1/2 stop, they block, bla bla.

3. 4♣ I suppose.

[han]

2. 3NT.

[mikeh]

1. 3♣. Right on the cusp, but I have too many spots to pass and just enough shape as well: make this 4=3=3=3 and I pass.

2. 3N. Someone has to bid it if it's there. Of course, it may not be.

3. This is really close. My intellect tells me that 3♥ is the 'correct' bid, but I doubt that I could hold back from bidding 4♥ at imps with all those controls. I hate the 4441 shape. I would never splinter this hand.... that is just too encouraging a call, and splinters on stiff Aces should be resorted to only if there is no other way of conveying the power of the hand.. and this hand isn't that powerful.

[Cascade]

gnasher, on Feb 27 2008, 11:45 PM, said:

3. 3H. I may have a lot of controls, but I also have a singleton ace, and no pips in any of my suits. Partner will play me for the equivalent of a balanced 18-count, and that's roughly what I have.

Controls and especially aces are great for suit contracts. Admittedly the ♣ A is not pulling full weight but this hand has seven controls plus the ruffing control in clubs. An average 18 count has just over 6 controls. From this perspective this is a very good 18.

The lack of of a five-card suit is the only negative on the hand.