Centre Island Teams Match 2 Board 20

Centre Island Teams Match 2

This hand featured a related theme to the last hand. After partner shows shortage in the majors I could have been optimistic about the likelihood of a minor suit fit. As it was this was our auction...

Board 20 West Deals Both Vul	♠ 7 6 4 ♥ 10 7 4 3 ♦ K 6 5 4 ♣ K 6
♠ A Q ♥ K Q 2 ♦ A 8 3 2 ♣ A 9 4 3	N  W E S	♠ K 9 8 5 ♥ A 5 ♦ Q J 10 9 7 ♣ Q 5
	♠ J 10 3 2 ♥ J 9 8 6 ♦ — ♣ J 10 8 7 2

West	North	East	South
Livingston		Burrows
2 ♦1	Pass	3 NT	Pass
Pass	Pass

18-Bad 20 Balanced or nearly balanced

3 NT by East

At the table I took the pessimistic view and bashed 3NT with extra values but thinking two 'balanced' hands would make slam unlikely.

Especially at IMPs I should have been more optimistic. If a fit could be found in either spades or diamonds a slam might be possible with marginal values. The slight risk of giving the opponents extra information or of getting to 5-minor when 3NT would have been better should have been taken for the big gain of bidding slam if an appropriate fit could be found. In fact our methods were ideal for the hand.

Had I taken the more optimistic view then our auction would have developed as follows:

---

West	North	East	South
	2 ♦1	Pass	2 ♠2
Pass	2 NT	Pass	3 ♣3
Pass	3 NT4	Pass	4 ♦
Pass	4 ♠5	Pass	4 NT6
Pass	5 ♣5	Pass	6 ♦
Pass	Pass	Pass

18-Bad 20 Balanced or nearly balanced Puppet to 2NT Puppet Stayman Exactly 2=3 in the majors (or worse) cue - 1st or 2nd heart cue - 1st or 2nd

After the 3NT response showing only five-cards (at most) in the majors I would have been optimistic about a good diamond fit. Partner would have cue-bid and we would have found slam. Note for us the spade cue-bid does not deny a heart control as 4♥ would have be kick-back RKCB.

Centre Island Teams Match 2 Board 13

Centre Island Teams Match Two

Board 13 North Deals Both Vul	♠ Q 8 4 ♥ J 10 4 3 ♦ J 9 2 ♣ 9 8 2
♠ K 10 2 ♥ A K 8 6 ♦ A 8 4 3 ♣ A 7	N  W E S	♠ 5 3 ♥ 7 5 2 ♦ K 10 ♣ K Q J 10 5 3
	♠ A J 9 7 6 ♥ Q 9 ♦ Q 7 6 5 ♣ 6 4

West	North	East	South
Livingston		Burrows
	Pass	Pass	Pass
2 ♦1	Pass	2 ♠2	Pass
2 NT	Pass	3 ♣3	Pass
3 ♦4	Pass	3 ♥5	Pass
3 NT6	Pass	5 ♣	Pass
Pass	Pass

18-19(20) Balanced or nearly balanced Puppet to 2NT Puppet Stayman no five-card major and not precisely 2=3 or worse in majors asks for four spades denies four spades

5 ♣ by East

This hand featured one of our pet conventions and a IMP theory of my own.

We use the Mexican 2♦ popularized by George Rosenkranz and currently played by some of the top Italian pairs. Our responses are home grown.

At a different vulnerability I might have opened 3♣ but second seat vulnerable we have higher standards.

In our style we frequently bash 3NT with balanced (no singleton or void) hands however here I chose to investigate a possible 5=3 heart fit. This decision was made because of the weak doubleton spade. Having not found a heart fit the vagaries of our system meant that I was forced to ask for four spades on route to 3NT - an immediate 3NT would have shown two four-card majors. When partner denied four spades I knew that we had at most five spades between our two hands. This led me to choose 5♣ rather than 3NT as the final contract. At IMPs we should play 5-minor more often than in Matchpoint duplicate pairs. Perhaps 3NT is reasonable on this hand but over the past couple of years I have done many simulations in which on similar hands 5-minor was at least as good as 3NT.

In addition sometimes going beyond 3NT will allow you to find a good minor suit slam.