[zheddh]

Since every other partner of mine insists on playing this convention, I am trying to wonder what all this hype about Drury is.

I have never liked the idea of giving up the option of showing a minor suit at the 2 level. But since, so many insist, I would like to know if Drury should be a mandatory weapon in your bidding arsenal when playing 2/1? Kindly give reasons.

As an aside, I heard some famous player said "Drury was the most useless convention invented". Is that true?

[blackshoe]

If your question is "did some player say that?" then I'd say "maybe, I don't know." If you're asking if Drury is useless, the answer is no.

1M making one or two gets you 80 or 110. 2m making two gets you 90. On balance, I think 1M is usually the better spot. Drury lets you bail out at the 2 level (instead of the 3 level) when you have a limit raise but partner opened light. If you're happy to play at the 3 level with a seven card fit and 20 or 21 HCP, then you don't need Drury.

[zasanya]

Drury allows you to open light in 3rd and 4th position and avoid getting higher than 2 level even when Partner has limit raise values.I do not which famous player said that Drury is useless but I do know that many good players use it.
My suggestion is use it and judge for yourself.

[mtvesuvius]

If your partner is a junior, then Drury is a must.

[andy_h]

I'm all in for it, though I wouldn't put it as far as a "mandatory weapon". It's useful to be able to show a constructive raise after partner has opened in 3rd/4th seat and stop at a low level. One (not major) argument you can use is that being able to show natural clubs with 2♣ doesn't come up that often, frequency wise, when sometimes a) you'd respond 1NT or you'd have opened it 1 or 3♣.

[helene_t]

Playing 2/1, a natural 2m response by a passed hand is impossible, so you can use 2m for something else. Drury is one of my favorite conventions.

[mikeh]

helene_t, on Jul 18 2009, 12:04 PM, said:

Playing 2/1, a natural 2m response by a passed hand is impossible, so you can use 2m for something else. Drury is one of my favorite conventions.

2/1 is off by a passed hand, so 2m over 1M is certainly useful when one has the right hand.

If you play a weak 2♦, then the need for a 2♦ response is lessened. In addition, if you play a semi-forcing 1N by a passed hand, you are quite safe in responding 1N with say 10 hcp and a long minor since opener will only pass 1N with a hand that won't make game... and that will have at least a partial fit so you will probably be fine.

But there is no doubt that drury carries a cost. The question is whether the gains offset the cost, and, for me, the answer is a resounding 'yes'... as it is for virtually every expert. Many like it so much that we play both 2♣ and 2♦ as drury.... differentiating between 3 and 4 card support. Some very good players don't like 2-way...Fred wrote some posts on a thread earlier this year in which he explained his views.

The issue is the extent to which you will lower the strength requirements of an opening bid in 3rd and 4th seat. I don't know anyone who doesn't... which means that there is far too much danger of getting to the 3-level on 10 opposite 10, as an example..... and thus too many minus scores... which defeats the purpose of opening light.

There are some sophisticated methods that fit with drury.... including fit-jumps, assigning meanings to 2N by a passed hand, and so on.

[Jlall]

I would call drury mandatory.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

the main question is, how often you open light in 3rd and 4th seat,
and if you do reduce the req. for a 1 level opening, how much.

If your openings in 3rd and 4th seat dont differ a lot from your
openings in 1st and 2nd seat, than you dont need Drury, if they
do quite often, you need it.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[Jlall]

I would say if you don't open light in third seat drury is still a winner.

[Cascade]

zheddh, on Jul 19 2009, 03:26 AM, said:

As an aside, I heard some famous player said "Drury was the most useless convention invented". Is that true?

No but its close.

[Mbodell]

P_Marlowe, on Jul 18 2009, 01:31 PM, said:

the main question is, how often you open light in 3rd and 4th seat,
and if you do reduce the req. for a 1 level opening, how much.
If your openings in 3rd and 4th seat dont differ a lot from your
openings in 1st and 2nd seat, than you dont need Drury, if they
do quite often, you need it.

Well, I think it is more how light your openings are. Some of us need drury over our 1st and 2nd seat openings too.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

Just an add. remark:

If you play constructive raises, the need to play Drury is also
a bit lessened, since the direct raises will basically take care
of the bad 10 count with spade support.

In the end, as always it comes down, how the rest of your
system looks like, and what your personal style is.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[helene_t]

Hey Uwe, nobody plays constructive raises by a passed hand!

[aguahombre]

helene_t, on Jul 19 2009, 05:05 PM, said:

Hey Uwe, nobody plays constructive raises by a passed hand!

You make two posts which seem to be contradictory, pls explain if you would.

First you say that 2D/1S by a passed hand is impossible if natural.

then you say nobody plays constructive raises by a passed hand.

This all centers around whether a 1NT response by a passed hand is forcing, or just semi forcing. If it is forcing, then both 2/1 natural and constructive raises are possible. If it is not forcing, then constructive raises are out, but a natural 2/1 seems necessary.

[helene_t]

1NT by a passed hand is not forcing of course. Nobody plays that.

I suppose you could play 1NT as 6-9 w/o fit or 5-7 with fit, so 2M became 8-11. But that would be a most unusual agreement. At least when vulnerable, it is scary to bid 1NT nonforcing with a fit. You can easily go for 200 against nothing. So constructive raises go with a forcing 1NT response.

[aguahombre]

helene_t, on Jul 19 2009, 06:42 PM, said:

1NT by a passed hand is not forcing of course. Nobody plays that.

Sorry I asked. Ill-advised as you might consider it, and as much of a nobody I might well be, I play NT forcing by a passed hand for one round, 2/1 by a passed hand as natural and promising one more bid. I know a whole bunch of nobodies who also play it that way, and have had as much success with it as us nobodies could have. Drury is nice for those who like drury. Other methods are played. I honestly wanted to know how people who play drury and nfnt handle hands with long minors which could not be opened appropriately the first time. I thought that knowledge would be helpful to know, when playing against "everybody".

[TylerE]

Bid 1NT and hope for the best? I'd almost always rather be in 1NT anyway.

[the hog]

helene_t, on Jul 20 2009, 06:42 AM, said:

1NT by a passed hand is not forcing of course. Nobody plays that. Apart from the many people I know, (including their country's internationals),  Balicki and Zmudsinski do for starters. I am sure that I can come up with otherworld ranked players if I try.

snipped

Are you sure about that Helene? You are not correct in this.

[peachy]

I almost don't want to play if I don't have Drury. Well, that was an exaggeration but you get my point. It is a very useful tool to have.