[jillybean]

Scoring: IMP

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West North East South

 -     4♥    Pass  Pass
 Pass  

[655321]

1. South is not close to moving.

2. North is a bit heavy, but if he decides to put the pressure on with a 4♥ bid at the vulnerability, I don't mind.

3. While you would rather be in slam than not, you are off an Ace and Qxxx of trumps, so I can't see that missing this slam is so terrible.

[aguahombre]

Six from the other side is slightly better.

If North calls that thing 8 to 8 1/2 tricks (I think about 8.367), then Namyats 4C and a gambling or scientific 6H by South would do it. Still not a great slam. Not terribly sorry about missing it.

[the hog]

Not a great slam and so no blame for anyone. You might get there opposite a Namyats opening.

[P_Marlowe]

Basically that is the price you pay for being able to make
wide ranging 4H openings.

South does not need to have the king of clubs, at the given
vulnerability he may not even have a 8th heart, so ..., thats it.

Of course you could also open this hand with 1H, the hand is
certainly strong enough, but than you may or may not face some
heavy competition.
At the given vulnerability, that may not be a real thread, but ...,

All in all, next board.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[Jlall]

I really dislike 4H, just my style not to do stuff like that. South has an easy pass.

[hotShot]

You lose 2 tricks to ♠AQ(J) after the ♠ lead if the A is with West and a 3rd trick to the trump Qxx (of East).

Maybe I am pessimistic, but this is no slam you have to be in.

[gwnn]

I'd never open 4H from N in first seat, but I don't think it's that bad. Moving from S would have been very bad. So I guess it's 100% North but I'd rather say it's 40% North 0% South.

[Cyberyeti]

hotShot, on May 10 2010, 03:15 AM, said:

You lose 2 tricks to ♠AQ(J) after the ♠ lead if the A is with West and a 3rd trick to the trump Qxx (of East).

Maybe I am pessimistic, but this is no slam you have to be in.

Not in 6N by S you don't

But it's still only just with the odds.

I would say no real blame to assign, opening 1H with the north hand is possible, but could very easily go wrong. I would probably treat the north hand as too good for 4H at this vulnerability, but then we treat first seat as an aggressive preempt position.

[pooltuna]

jillybean, on May 9 2010, 10:41 PM, said:

Scoring: IMP

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West North East South

 -     4♥    Pass  Pass
 Pass  

100% North assuming he opens w KQJxxxxx y z or similar, 4♥ in first seat. Not opening the N hand 1♥ creates too great a disparity in possible hand values to get to slam.

[mikeh]

Kathryn...why even post this as an atb?

I assume that slam made, but so what? Slam isn't great even if S's spades are KQJ, tho you'd want to be there margin.

I echo what most have said about 4♥. If you really, really think that missing slam is bad (and it isn't), then the responsibility (not the blame) is 100% N, since w/r she will almost always have a far weaker hand. Even thinking by S is an overbid.

Put another way: if you had reached slam and failed, wouldn't that auction be more of an atb than this one?

[pooltuna]

mikeh, on May 10 2010, 10:24 AM, said:

Kathryn...why even post this as an atb?


Put another way: if you had reached slam and failed, wouldn't that auction be more of an atb than this one?

IMO no. That would be just bad luck not bad bidding (well as least lucky bidding to get to a %age slam)

[helene_t]

The slam is slightly less than 50% unless you have an informed guess w.r.t. ♥Q.

Oh well I am assuming that you won't get a singleton heart lead but you might get a spade lead when W has ♠AQ. Maybe those are strong assumptions.

[pooltuna]

helene_t, on May 10 2010, 10:40 AM, said:

The slam is slightly less than 50% unless you have an informed guess w.r.t. ♥Q.

Oh well I am assuming that you won't get a singleton heart lead but you might get a spade lead when W has ♠AQ. Maybe those are strong assumptions.

assuming no ♠ lead I would imagine the probability of the opposition holding of ♥Q or ♥Qx would well outweigh the probability of the opposition holding of ♥Qxx or ♥ Qxxx. Of course you do have a ♠ loser but you are never going to have to guess this position except on opening lead. Of course my real problem is the 4♥ opening call but assuming S was even expecting something like this if you change the N hand to

---

Now what do you compute the slam odds to be?

[peachy]

North hand is a little too strong for 4H in first seat, favorable. It could have worked and it could have preempted our side out of a slam, North made his bed and will have to lie in it:) South has zero reason to move over 4H.

[jillybean]

I was south and wondering if I should make a move over 4♥, I see I am still guilty of over bidding.

Top board was 6N after 1♥:1♠ 4♥:4N 5♦:6N and one other table were in slam after 4♥:6♥
West held ♠Qxx , stiff ♥Q and East ♠ATxx

[Cascade]

Do you have the rest of the hand?

I am interested in how likely a low spade lead is?

[jillybean]

Scoring: IMP

---

West North East South

 -     4♥    Pass  Pass
 Pass 

East led 2♦ 

[Cascade]

I would give serious consideration to underleading the ♠A with that east hand.

[FrancesHinden]

Cascade, on May 11 2010, 09:00 PM, said:

I would give serious consideration to underleading the ♠A with that east hand.

On the auction given to 4H I would lead the ace of spades and not consider anything else.

Whether a low spade lead is a good idea against 6H depends on the auction. After 4H - 6H I would still lead the ace of spades.