[suokko]

Scoring: MP

3♥ P P X;
P 3♠ X P;
P P

---

Who is guilty?

How would you play the hand?

[Gerben42]

Opponent for opening such a mean 3♥. Some hands get away, live with it.

[ArtK78]

Please clean up the bidding diagram. I cannot figure out who bid what, although it seems that North doubled and South bid 3♠.

[jdonn]

I don't get it, it looks like the 3♥ opening bidder doubled 3♠ on his own?

Anyway I don't blame north for doubling then passing 3♠, but if it gets doubled I feel strongly he should wise up and run. Obviously they aren't doubling on tricks, so they must be doubling on an awful spade break.

[Jlall]

North should balance with 3N and it's not even close. After getting cracked in 3S he should run.

[suokko]

I hope biding is now easier to read.

[jdonn]

suokko, on Nov 9 2009, 05:03 PM, said:

I hope biding is now easier to read.

Yes much better thank you.

[kenrexford]

Jlall, on Nov 9 2009, 05:01 PM, said:

North should balance with 3N and it's not even close. After getting cracked in 3S he should run.

Wow. I mean, I'd balance with 3NT, but "not even close?" Most people get a bit nervouse balancing with 3NT when holding three small hearts. I like it, but wow. Stronger endorsement than I'd expect.

Not converting to 3NT after the double, now that's a bigger position to take. But, converting to 3NT is not even so obvious that any bonehead should get it. again, I agree, but that again seems a strong position to take as far as "clarity" goes, IMO.

[Jlall]

kenrexford, on Nov 9 2009, 05:19 PM, said:

Jlall, on Nov 9 2009, 05:01 PM, said:

North should balance with 3N and it's not even close. After getting cracked in 3S he should run.

Wow. I mean, I'd balance with 3NT, but "not even close?" Most people get a bit nervouse balancing with 3NT when holding three small hearts. I like it, but wow. Stronger endorsement than I'd expect.

It's not even close was an overbid because passing is definitely reasonable esp at MP. I meant it's not even close in terms of 3N vs X to me.

[suokko]

Just to put some interest to declarer play. I did score 75 % in 3♠X.

Card play has to fix the biding mistakes

[ArtK78]

It is certainly not unreasonable to see 3♠x scoring, assuming that LHO has only one heart and all of the missing high cards (or, if the preemptor has any of the missing high cards, they come crashing down under dummy's aces and kings). You may have to guess exactly what is going on with the minor suit Q's. LHO is going to be endplayed early and often.

Trump 4-3 with the 9 in the preemptor's hand would be very useful, but even 5-2 trump may be workable as long as the 9 is in the preemptor's hand.

[lamford]

Jlall, on Nov 9 2009, 05:01 PM, said:

North should balance with 3N and it's not even close. After getting cracked in 3S he should run.

I agree with the second sentence but not the first. I would pass out 3H, and do not think it is close. Give opener the classical KQJxxxx and you have pretty close to the 50-50 shot that partner has the ace of hearts, before you start to try to make 9 tricks. True they can be blocked, with stiff ace opposite, but that does not add much. You will indeed make 3NT quite a bit of the time, but for it to be the winning match point action, it just has to score more, on average, than other bids. I did a simulation, and Pass scored +150 19% +100 25% +50 53% -140 3% (all the last had a stiff club with the pre-emptor). Bidding 3NT made (with or without overtricks) 39% of the time, and went off (one or more) 61%. Of course DF defends - and plays - perfectly. Quite a good method in these simulations, I think, is to pretend it is a two-table Howell, and match-point it as though it was played 100 times at each table. That suggests passing is a complete standout. And 3Sx opposite any hand with four spades, and 10 or fewer points, was not a success!

Teams, by the way, I would completely agree with 3NT. Nice bid, now!

[Quantumcat]

Has anyone ever read "Principle of Restriced Talent"? There are two hands in there where the bad guy gets to 3NT and goes off when he had a heart stopper (QTx) and the robot tells him his heart stopper was "too strong": it went low heart to ace, then a heart back. Then later the robot bids 3NT on a similar auction holding three small hearts, and it turns out the suit was blocked and he made: the stopper was "weak enough"! Although it was only a 2H opening, and the fact that it wasn't raised is probably relevant.

[EricK]

Quantumcat, on Nov 11 2009, 10:36 AM, said:

Has anyone ever read "Principle of Restriced Talent"? There are two hands in there where the bad guy gets to 3NT and goes off when he had a heart stopper (QTx) and the robot tells him his heart stopper was "too strong": it went low heart to ace, then a heart back. Then later the robot bids 3NT on a similar auction holding three small hearts, and it turns out the suit was blocked and he made: the stopper was "weak enough"! Although it was only a 2H opening, and the fact that it wasn't raised is probably relevant.

If I recall correctly, in Principle of Restricted talent, it was a WJS of 2♥. i.e. in the case where Chthonic held ♥QT9 it was quite likely that if partner had no help in ♥, the 2♥ bidder had AJxxxx or KJxxxx and opener had the remaining honour.