[ArtK78]

Playing in a one-session swiss teams at a small sectional last night, we were ahead by 1 VP with one match to go. The first board (of six) I picked up, at all vul in third seat:

2S alerted as wide ranging - could be as little as a weak 2 bid or as much as a full opener with 6 spades.

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(1) Do you agree with my actions so far?
(2) What do you do over 5♦?

[madongjun]

1\Mabye I bid 4♦ instead of 4♥.
2\After 5♦,I will pass.

[rhm]

I do not see what else you could have done, though your 4♥ bid was conservative
Since partner does not have solid diamonds (looking for a spade stopper) he must have a very strong hand
Given the absurd requirements people nowadays put onto a 2♣ opening Pass is out.
I doubt that opponents have more than 11 spades between them and you have at least 2 tricks for partner.
You have a close choice between 5♠ and 6♦. In theory 5♠ is better and would be my choice with a very good partner.
The advantage of 5♠ is that you will have less problems when opponents compete over 6♦. (you double yourself or respect partner's double)
The disadvantage is that partner might bid 7♦ and not make it, though he can hardly expect more and any finesse is likely to work.
I will content myself with 6♦.
However, without exalted requirements for a 2♣ opening, where a 1♦ opening is more limited, I would consider passing 5♦, but probably still reject it.
If 6♦ does not make, I wonder why partner pussyfooted around with 3♠ instead of jumping to 5♦ straight away.

Rainer Herrmann

[Fluffy]

Grand is off the question if I know the opponents can be trusted, look at their bidding: they must have a minimum of 6+10 HCP between them, probably more, for grand to be good they would need to hold specifically ♠AKQJ ♣KQJ, this is not going to happen. I don't have much experience with wide ranging jumps, but I think makng wide ranging responses is not a good idea, I think the 3♦ cueid will be sound in general.

The problem for 6♦ is that if partner though a spade stopper was enough for 3NT, he has a single spade stopper himself, he could have something horrible such as ♠Ax ♥Q ♦AQJ10xxxx ♣Ax (or add ♣K and remove a diamond), but if he has 3 spades it is very hard to imagine hands that don't make 6. So I would raise to 6♦, with 11 spades opponnts might do a phantom save

EDIT: that is exactly what happened

[ArtK78]

My hand was the perfect match for my partner's hand.

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7♦ is a pretty good contract, which makes any time trump break 2-1 and either the ♥Q comes down in the first 2 rounds, hearts are 3-2, or Qxxx of hearts is onside and you don't suffer an opposing ruff. It can also make if you can ruff all three spades in dummy and get back and forth without suffering an opposing ruff.

At the table, I passed 5♦. In retrospect, this seems like a wimpy move, but I thought that partner might have a couple of inescapable losers in the rounded suits.

I never found out how the hearts broke, but I was told by the opps that the 2♠ bidder was void in diamonds. On the spade lead, my partner ruffed all of his spades in dummy and successfully crossed in clubs, then hearts, then clubs to pull trump and claim.

In any event, this bad result wound up winning 10 IMPs, as our opps only reached 4♦ at the other table. The bidding:

1♦ - (2♠) - (P) - (3♠)
4♦ - All Pass

We wound up winning this 6 board match by 40 and winning the event comfortably.

[jophorst]

ArtK78, on 2012-December-28, 08:57, said:

My hand was the perfect match for my partner's hand.

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7♦ is a pretty good contract, which makes any time trump break 2-1 and either the ♥Q comes down in the first 2 rounds, hearts are 3-2, or Qxxx of hearts is onside and you don't suffer an opposing ruff. It can also make if you can ruff all three spades in dummy and get back and forth without suffering an opposing ruff.

At the table, I passed 5♦. In retrospect, this seems like a wimpy move, but I thought that partner might have a couple of inescapable losers in the rounded suits.

I never found out how the hearts broke, but I was told by the opps that the 2♠ bidder was void in diamonds. On the spade lead, my partner ruffed all of his spades in dummy and successfully crossed in clubs, then hearts, then clubs to pull trump and claim.

In any event, this bad result wound up winning 10 IMPs, as our opps only reached 4♦ at the other table. The bidding:

1♦ - (2♠) - (P) - (3♠)
4♦ - All Pass

We wound up winning this 6 board match by 40 and winning the event comfortably.

Then I think I disaggree with wests 5♦ bid. With opponents bidding to 4♠, he can count you are void in spades, or in a rare case you have one. So he should bid 4NT, with at most one spades loser and maybe another loser. Especially when you agreed to play Roman Keycards.
If he didn't like 4NT, another option was 5♠ (if this is agreed to "make a choice between 6♦ and 6♥") or even 5♥, inviting you to slam if you are short enough in the spades. In this case you are, and bid 6♦ (of even 7♦ if you trust him to have no losers outside ♦K and spades) to give partner the option to end in diamonds rather than in hearts.

[Lord Molyb]

over 4♠, I would do pick-a-slam 5NT with the west hand, removing 6 clubs to 6 diamonds.
Of course, I miss 7 that way...

[cherdano]

In my mind, 3♠ shows a one-suited hand. With a two-suited hand I would bid my second suit, and with a three-suited hand I would wait to make a takeout double.
Hence I disagree with 4♥ - you should show your great support and values with a 4♠ cuebid.

[gnasher]

I think the West hand is an obvious 2♣ opening. Look what happened when he opened 1♦: his hand was too strong for him to limit it on the next round, so he ended up having to make an ill-defined cue-bid, and the partnership was still negotiating about the trump suit at the five-level.

We even have one poster who, as opener without any encouragement from responder, is driving a small slam and making a grand-slam try.

[RSClyde]

I think west can bid a little more than 5♦ when he's looking at 3 spades and the opponents have bid to 4♠. On the other hand he's expecting you to come to life with a void and a few trumps which you certainly should. I mean maybe you have only a couple diamonds and no K, then 5 may be high enough.

[RSClyde]

Lord Molyb, on 2012-December-28, 10:27, said:

over 4♠, I would do pick-a-slam 5NT with the west hand, removing 6 clubs to 6 diamonds.
Of course, I miss 7 that way...

That auction would be a choice of slams between diamonds and hearts. That doesn't seem like what you want.