[S2000magic]

In a club game, red all around, you're third in hand after two passes, looking at:

♠ 5
♥ A K 3
♦ K
♣ A Q J 10 8 6 4 2

What's your call?

[hrothgar]

S2000magic, on 2012-January-10, 07:24, said:

In a club game, red all around, you're third in hand after two passes, looking at:

♠ 5
♥ A K 3
♦ K
♣ A Q J 10 8 6 4 2

What's your call?

I'd open 1♣

I admit to having a perverse desire to open 2N and see what happens

[S2000magic]

hrothgar, on 2012-January-10, 07:42, said:

I admit to having a perverse desire to open 2N and see what happens

Anarchist!

[hrothgar]

S2000magic, on 2012-January-10, 07:47, said:

Anarchist!

I readily admit to having gone through a phase in which I very much admired Bakunin and other old school left wing anarchists. (My mother's father was a Wobblie)
I think that Bakunin's critiques of Marxism were prescient...

Quote

The passion for destruction is also a creative passion.

Mikhail Bakunin

[blackshoe]

My thoughts: 5♣ is too unilateral, 2♣ is an overbid. So I choose 1♣, and if the opponents compete and partner just passes, I'll probably bid 5♣ at some point, or double for penalties.

[jmcw]

1♣ or 2♣ close second.

2NT is sick

[RunemPard]

Would open 2♣ with my regualar partner only because we use a point reply. If he says 2♠(7-9) I can reply 2N for aces, 3N for kings, or a bid at the 4 level for cue in clubs. If it was a major I would reply with 3 in that major for a cue as we are already going to game.

Assuming he has a 7-9 point hand it may go like this...(0314K)

2♣-P-2♠-P
2N-P-3♦-P
4♣-P-4♥-P ¤4♥=1-4 keycards
6♣-P-P--P

But life is not always perfect, as goes bridge...lol

[ArtK78]

I would open 1♣, and I have no thought of opening anything else.

Call me wild.

[the hog]

1C for me. I don't see the attraction of anything else.

[S2000magic]

I'd sure like to know what the "other" vote is.

[aguahombre]

the hog, on 2012-January-11, 18:04, said:

1C for me. I don't see the attraction of anything else.

Me neither, but make the club queen the king and I might decide it is a ten trick hand and put our 2C treatments into motion.

[RunemPard]

Other vote was me, but is same as 2C...assuming I am parding my regular pard I would open 2D (same as normal 2C)...but after thinking it over more I feel 1C is possibly best. It all depends on how many points your pard has, and which points they are. If your partner is in the 7-9 point range with 1 ace and 1 king this means you need the Q of hearts to be with your partner or a J and a kind H lead by opp holding the Q. I would be looking for a signal from partner that they have 10 or more points, else the odds of this slam working are too low to try IMO.

[bluecalm]

Without serious system of course 2C.
You should strive to open 2C if you don't have well honed middle bidding sequences with your partner because standard becomes messy fast without convenient focring bids available.
For example if it goes:
1C - pass - 1D - pass or
1C - pass - 1H - pass or
1C - pass - 1S - pass or
1C - pass - 1NT- pass

You are basically screwed without good system.

[JLOGIC]

Seems like a really easy 2C opener, I have enough tricks, I have honor tricks (aka defense), I have no rebid problems (I will bid clubs next!). I do not understand why people hate opening 2C on a hand like this. I do not even consider this a stretch to avoid rebid problems, I simply view my hand as worth a 2C opener (though avoiding rebid troubles is nice, and so is preempting them more).

[Antrax]

bluecalm, what is your plan after 2♣ without a serious system? Presumably it'll continue 2♣-2♦; 3♣ and now what are you looking for? A spade stopper for NT?

Quote

Assuming he has a 7-9 point hand it may go like this...(0314K)

2♣-P-2♠-P
2N-P-3♦-P
4♣-P-4♥-P ¤4♥=1-4 keycards
6♣-P-P--P

Can't partner now table ♠KQxxx ♥Jxx ♦Jxx ♣xx ?

[JLOGIC]

Antrax, on 2012-January-12, 01:25, said:

bluecalm, what is your plan after 2♣ without a serious system? Presumably it'll continue 2♣-2♦; 3♣ and now what are you looking for? A spade stopper for NT?

Can't partner now table ♠KQxxx ♥Jxx ♦Jxx ♣xx ?

I am not bluecalm, but my idea is to show about 9 tricks with a club suit and some honor tricks/defense. Hopefully by beginning to describe what I hold, we will end in a good contract.

[Antrax]

I personally have pretty bad followups after 2♣ and as a result really hate opening it. So, what should partner's second bid show, after I bid 3♣ to show a strong one-suiter but not a self-sufficient suit? (right?)

[bluecalm]

Quote

Can't partner now table ♠KQxxx ♥Jxx ♦Jxx ♣xx ?

So you are saying that sometimes you end up in something not optimal after opening 2C ?
I won't challenge that position. However it also won't be too difficult to give some hands where:

1C - 1S
your preferred rebid here

gives results just as silly

Quote

I personally have pretty bad followups after 2♣ and as a result really hate opening it.

Change the follow-ups then ? I mean, you don't need anything fancy to bid more or less reasonably. 2D waiting and kokish relay is about as far as you need to go.

Quote

So, what should partner's second bid show, after I bid 3♣ to show a strong one-suiter but not a self-sufficient suit? (right?)

I am no expert on 2C bidding as I never play the opening but here is decent simple system:
2C - ?
2D - waiting
2H - hearts, 5+cards, decent suit (like KQJ or AQT or maybe KQTxx with som Q on the side)
2S - spades, 5+cards, decent suit
2NT - it depends
3m = good suit, some values
3M - good 6+suit

After waiting you play Kokish relay and that's about it.
Meaning of 2NT depends on if you implement 2nd negative or not in some sequences (if 3C is double neg in subsq bidding then 2NT now needs to be clubs semi-positive.

Anyway, what do you bid with OP's hand if it goes:
1C - 1S
?

I mean, you need forcing bid. If you don't play Gazilli or w/e then you will suffer w/e you come up with now. If you are worried that hand is difficult to describe after 2C, look at mess you are getting into here.
In not very serious partnership you need to open all GF hand with 2C and even some almost GF hands. In standard you are completely screwed with hand which want to GF opposiet 1/1 response if you are not 5-5.

[Antrax]

Don't take this as advice, just to answer the question: my auction would be 1♣-1♠, 4♣
My 2♣ system sucks because there are many unclear continuations after opener's rebid. That's why I asked about that. 2♦ is obviously waiting and 2M positive, but after "waiting" and opener showing strong clubs, what am I trying to do? Is NT in the picture? Are hearts? What would responder's next bid show? Presumably 4♣ is fit and SI and 5♣ is fit and no SI, but what is 3♠ here, for instance?

[bluecalm]

So you prefer to be at 4 level showing god know what in:
1C - 1S
4C

Than at level 3 already showed GF hand ?

I don't know how I would understand 4C without agreements. Probably the only thing I would thought is that partner is bored with my company and is striving for some disaster to argue about later.
If I were to made some agreements jumping to 4 level with "GF, long clubs" would not be in the book.

Quote

but after "waiting" and opener showing strong clubs, what am I trying to do?

Find natural bid which describes your hand the best. Don't panic, other will be in the same spot (or worse, if they just faced jump to 4C while your partner bid 3C).