[MarkDean]

Scoring: IMP

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(P) P (2♠) ?

You play a somewhat aggressive opening style, and RHO is a known joker. Pick your poison.

[CSGibson]

3 hearts, with a confident steely look for my opponents. I'm short in spades, so I feel compelled to act, and my hand has decent playing strength. This could, of course, backfire magnificently, but at least I won't be forced in spades right away...

[ewj]

Agreed

[Fluffy]

partner rates to have enough values to raise 3♥ whenever he has fit, so 3♥ focuses on our most likelly game and seems right to me, if he raises on doubleton honnor it might be a tough game, but it doesn't make any option better yet.

[P_Marlowe]

3H.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[shyams]

Does no one like pass? I'd prefer pass.

In my defense:
a. OP says we open aggresively. And partner passed.
b. It is IMPs. Even opp a 3 card support, I'd need a bit of luck for game.
c. As it is IMPs, partner is more likely to go to game (with suitable hands) than pass. At MPs, the premium for bidding close games is lower and pard can pass.

[dake50]

Can partner have H-AJx + C-Kx or H-Jxxx + C-K?
Both look like 4H makes.
Missing CK makes 3H ugly.

Would 3C then 3H over 3D save misfit into 4C often enough?

[Codo]

I would pass too.
My values are not prime. My heart suit stinks. My aggressive partner passed- so he has 10 HCP balanced or 9 not balanced.
What about xxx, AKx,xxxx,Jxx. This is mor or less the best you can get- and he may have much less- and game needs just a little less then hearts 3-2.

What about xxx,x,Axxx,KJxxx
Yes 5 club is a lock, but how to reach it?

[Apollo81]

3♥. Since they're at favorable and LHO is a PH, this is unlikely to be doubled, and we have lots of playing strength. Going for a number isn't the only way to lose imps on a board.

If partner was a PH and LHO was not, then this is a pass.

[mcphee]

pass, reluctant and sad they got me. I am not going to venture 3H with this suit as much as I want to bid it strikes me it's 1100 waiting to rear its ugly head.

[Jlall]

3H wtp

[Codo]

Apollo81, on Jan 25 2010, 10:38 PM, said:

3♥. Since they're at favorable and LHO is a PH, this is unlikely to be doubled, and we have lots of playing strength. Going for a number isn't the only way to lose imps on a board.

If partner was a PH and LHO was not, then this is a pass.

One of us misread the vulnerablity....
West dealt, we are 4. to speak and N/S are vul...

[quiddity]

This time it looks like the possibility of missing a heart game by passing is greater than the risk of going for a large number. It's unlikely that a passed hand opposite a w/r 3rd seat weak-2 bid will be able to penalize us.

Follow-up question: if LHO did somehow double us and it was passed around, would you sit for it or try to run to 4C?

[CSGibson]

I'd run. As a passed hand, lefty is either out of his mind or has a heart stack, I'm trying clubs.

[pooltuna]

MarkDean, on Jan 25 2010, 01:45 AM, said:

Scoring: IMP

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(P) P (2♠) ?

You play a somewhat aggressive opening style, and RHO is a known joker. Pick your poison.

One of the advantages of opening light (i.e. an aggressive opening style) is that you can pass hands like this confident that game rates to be very unlikely.

[peachy]

I would overcall 3H and it is not a close decision. Even if partner has some values to reopen, he would not bid over 3S if they raise, looking at xx spades and partner who passed over 2S. And if it goes PP over 2S, he could have xxx spades and certainly would not reopen with that spade holding opposite partner who couldn't act over 2S directly. If 3H ends up badly, it will be a push, unless the 2S opening was unusual (something others might not have done) in which case nobody knows what the score will look like but I think the overcall is normal.

[gwnn]

3H, bid happily if you can.

[Apollo81]

Codo, on Jan 25 2010, 10:08 AM, said:

Apollo81, on Jan 25 2010, 10:38 PM, said:

3♥.  Since they're at favorable and LHO is a PH, this is unlikely to be doubled, and we have lots of playing strength.  Going for a number isn't the only way to lose imps on a board.

If partner was a PH and LHO was not, then this is a pass.

One of us misread the vulnerablity....
West dealt, we are 4. to speak and N/S are vul...

So....you did? I didn't.

[hanp]

Rather unlikely that they double us.

[lamford]

This hand shows why a fairly wide-range leaping Michaels is a good idea. I would bid 4♣, leaping Michaels, which will at least get us to the right strain, and may get us to the right level. The latter is hard enough anyway after they open at the two level. If they open at the three-level, then I think non-leaping Michaels is still the right defence as well.