Razorback DBC

Thought Processes – I Thanks to Sharyll Modschiedler for bringing this hand to my attention. (I was the partner and didn’t have the challenges she did.) This hand was played Tuesday December 20 in the duplicate game at Peace Lutheran Church on Rogers. Your partner opens 1S and you hold [from the left: spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs.]: A x x, A Q J 10 x x x. x, A Q After opens you intend to bid slam, but which slam? Six or seven spades, hearts, and NT seem reasonable aspirations. What does partner’s hand look like? Perhaps: K x x x x, heart void, A K x x x, K x x. With your hand and this holding 6H or 6NT is almost a lay-down. Six heart tricks, two spades, two diamonds, and three clubs. (I know that totals thirteen, but you have to give up a heart.) If partner holds good spades you probably want to play in seven spades. How do you find out how good his spades are? Bid 2H. (I know this qualifies for an immediate jump shift, but that uses up a lot of bidding space.) If partner bids 2S he is showing a minimum hand and likely six spades. It could be a minimum hand with five spades and a void in hearts. His heart holding is no better than J x. Your 2H bid showed five hearts and he should support hearts with Q x or x x x. Bid six hearts of six spades. If partner bids 2NT he is showing a minimum hand, and only five spades. And his heart holding is no better than J x. Bid 6H. If partner bids 3D he likely has five spades and four or five diamonds. He may have heart support to be shown later. Bid 4 C. If he bids 4D bid 6NT. If he bids 4H over 4C check on aces and kings. If you are missing an ace stop at 5H. If you have all the aces and are missing a king, you can’t stop at 6H so bid 6S or 6NT. If you have all the aces and all the kings bid 7NT and expect a flat board. If partner bids 3S or 4S, check on aces and kings. If you have all the aces and are missing a king bid 7S. 7S depends mostly on the quality of the spade suit and in this sequence it looks very good. If you have all the aces and all the kings bid 7NT and expect a flat board. I actually opened 1D with my hand. I held: K 10 x x x, void, A K 10 9 x x, K x If my spades were A K or K Q J with six poor diamonds I might open with 1 S. After the expected 1H response, I planned to bid and rebid spades. The bidding went: 1D, 2H, 2S, 4NT, 5D, 5NT, 6S, 7H, 7NT When I showed only three kings (6S) she couldn’t bid 6H so she bid 7H. 6NT would be a good bid as she can count six heart tricks and six other tricks in aces and kings. (Or seven heart tricks and five other tricks if I have the heart king.) I bid 7NT. I couldn’t imagine a hand that would make 7H with my void that would not also make 7NT. Down a lot. It is cold for 6NT, but if you are in 7NT and 6NT is cold you have to try to make seven. I think a better sequence would have been: 1D, 2H, 2S, 3H, 3S, 4NT, 5D, 5NT, 6S, pass (or 6NT) Commentary: 1D – opening bid 2H – strong forcing bid (After 1D we have room for the jump shift.) 2S – four card spade suit 3H – good heart suit and forcing 3S – five spades and six diamonds, with a singleton king of hearts I would likely support hearts here 4NT – ace asking 5D – one ace 5NT – king asking 6S – three kings pass – we are past 6H and we have a spade suit (6NT) – we have 12 running tricks.