[kgr]

Scoring: IMP

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Your partner opens 1D and RHO bids 2S weak.
What is you bidding plan?
 
Bidding did go:
1D-(2S)-3D-(3S)
4D-(p)-4H-..
My partner argued that DBL first would deny a 5-card H and 4H did let me the choice between playing 4H and 5D. He didn't mind to bid a non-forcing 3D first. Do you agree that his bidding should logically show a 5-card H because he denied a 4 card by not DBLing first?

[cherdano]

Over 2S, bidding 3H seems obvious. I will support diamonds next, unless partner raises to 4H and I get to play there.
3D is quite an underbid indeed, I would rather bid 5D than 3D. 4H in your auction is inconsistent as partner wasn't inviting you to bid on; however if I had to guess I would expect a shapely hand with 4 hearts that was afraid of a penalty pass of a double. Maybe 0454 or something like that.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

#1 The first question your partner needs to
answer is, does he want to force to game?
Depends to a large degree on your opening bid style.

#2 X certainly does not deny 5 hearst, why should it?
The X would just say, you are too weak to bid 3H, nothing
more nothing less.
Hence I agree with Cherdano, that the 4H bid is not consistent
with the 3D bd.

#3 Similar the 3D bid says, that you are too weak to introduce
hearts, more over 3D denies 4 or more hearts, 4H would
now say, partner I am 5-4 with good hearts, maybe a 4-3
fit is an option.

#4 You may consider to play 2NT as Lebenshohl,
which would make 3D forcing (and now the seq.
is consistent again, at least partially, since the
4H bid is certainly an offer to play).

With kind regards
Marlowe

[helene_t]

Lol, he denied four hearts so he must have five?

No, a negative double shows four or more hearts and if failure to double denies four hearts, then it certainly denies more than four hearts also!

Agree with Arend, although I can imagine your p was reluctant to bid a game-forcing 3♥ with so few points and a doubleton in the enemy suit. It's uncomfortable to bid 3♥ and then see opener bidding 3NT, which you must guess to leave in or take out. Still I would bid 3♥, I like the alternatives less.

[ArtK78]

This is beginning to sound like a method that I ran across once. The bidding started (1♣) - 1♥ - (Dbl) alerted. I asked what the double meant, and was told that it denied 4 spades. That is not an uncommon treatment, so I didn't ask further. Later, the Doubler bid spades. It turned out he had 5 spades (not 4)!

I guess the moral of the story was that since the explanation of the double was not "less than 4 spades" I should not have assumed that he did not mean "denies EXACTLY 4 spades."

[kgr]

helene_t, on Sep 18 2008, 02:11 PM, said:

Lol, he denied four hearts so he must have five?

It was an after-tournement game and I didn't play with my regular partner, but I have to confess that he almost convinced me of the idea

Here are both hands:

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1D-(2S)-3D-(3S)
4D-(p)-4H-(p)
...5D-All pass