[xx1943]

Scoring: IMP

East South West North
  1♣     p     1♥    p
  1♠     p     1NT   p
  2♣     p      p     ?

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I guess you agree with North's (edited after hanp's note) pass in the first round.
If not you must have an exact agreement with your partner about the meaning of:
1NT, X
What is the difference in the meaning of X and 1NT?
1♠, 2♣, 2♦, 2♥

But in the balancing situation it must be 100% clear, that 2♥ shows a good 6-carder and some sort of trap-pass after 1♥.

This was the full deal:

Scoring: IMP

---

With the ♦K onside 4♥ is an easy contract to make. Even if the K is offside there is a chance for 10 tricks.
But at least a part-score in ♥ should be reached.

Do you and your favourite partner have the tools to find the correct contract, if opponents bid your best suit first (by bluff or by chance as here)?

Al

[hanp]

Quote

I guess you agree with South's pass in the first round.

Assuming you meant North you didn't guess right, I consider this a completely obvious 2H bid. If you don't play that 2H shows hearts, change your methods.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

It is quite common to play 2H direct after 1H as natural.

Some play 1NT as a strong NT after 1H, some play it as
unusal, ... take your pick.
If you play 1NT as unusal, than 1NT usually showes a more
distributional and weaker hand than X.

We would be able to bid 2H natural over 1H, partner will raise,
and the overcaller will accept.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[brianshark]

Why didn't south overcall 1♠?

[TylerE]

Agree with 1♠ by South.

[jdonn]

Both north and south had clear bids IMO. Certainly they missed game, but something else about them not bidding strikes me even more sharply. Look at how easy of a run E/W had with no interference, east got to show his entire shape at a very low level and they ended in a perfect minor suit fit. You just can't afford to give your opponents free rides like this when you have easy overcalls. And not even vul!

[TimG]

xx1943, on Mar 23 2009, 10:11 AM, said:

I guess you agree with North's pass in the first round.

For a discussion of common agreements after a (1x)-P-(1y) auction, see this thread. Not surprisingly, there is near unanimous agreement that 2y in this auction should be natural. How good a hand it shows is another matter.

I wonder of this hand is good enough for one of dburn's delayed 2♥.

[Lobowolf]

Strongly disagree with North's first pass, if 2♥ would be natural. If an immediate 2♥ would not have been natural, then I strongly disagree with the methods.

I play 1NT as a weaker, shaplier (than double) takeout for the other 2 suits; however, some posts from another thread have me rethinking this, and I may try switching to 1NT natural.

[kenrexford]

I have no problem with South not overcalling 1♠. This is too weak for me, and wrong for 2♠. So, that pass seems stylistic.

As for North, I also use the methods most here advocate. 2♥ immediately shows hearts. That is "standard," even if only a small percentage of people know this.

North's problem, however, may be that South is one of those people who do not know this (or North does not know this). The solution is to learn and discuss.

[Cascade]

kenrexford, on Mar 24 2009, 08:28 AM, said:

I have no problem with South not overcalling 1♠. This is too weak for me, and wrong for 2♠. So, that pass seems stylistic.

Fair enough but it fits the standard 8+ HCP with a five-card suit. The suit is reasonable and you have the boss suit so I don't mind the overcall even if my style is getting more and more like Ken is suggesting here.

If South passes then North has an easy 2♥.

[hanp]

I also can't stomach an overcall at IMPs with only two honors in my suit and only 9 HCP.

Spoiler

Just Kidding!

[skjaeran]

I'd definitely overcall 2♥ with the north hand here. That's a wtp IMO. I'd also have overcalled 1♠ with the south hand, but passing here was lucky, since that makes it extremely easy to reach 4♥.

[xx1943]

kenrexford, on Mar 23 2009, 09:28 PM, said:

......
As for North, I also use the methods most here advocate. 2♥ immediately shows hearts. That is "standard," even if only a small percentage of people know this.

North's problem, however, may be that South is one of those people who do not know this (or North does not know this). The solution is to learn and discuss.

Exactly that was my intention, why I posted this in the Beginners and Intermediate board.
If you never discussed thsi with your partner, noboboy knows what the partner thinks.....
In the reality of our match North doubled and the final contract was 2♦ in a 2-4-fit.
And this was a regular pdship of self-called experts.

[kenrexford]

skaeran, on Mar 23 2009, 04:35 PM, said:

I'd definitely overcall 2♥ with the north hand here. That's a wtp IMO. I'd also have overcalled 1♠ with the south hand, but passing here was lucky, since that makes it extremely easy to reach 4♥.

I don't know if passing was all that "lucky."

If you have a borderline hand, where a 1♠ overcall is plausible or a 2♠ weak jump overcall is also a plausible alternative, possession of a good fragment in the other major is a good reason to opt for a reasonable pass. In other words, "luck" may be simply fruits of a good decision. I say this because the possession of the heart frag was why I would not overcall 2♠ with this hand.

[skjaeran]

kenrexford, on Mar 24 2009, 04:40 PM, said:

skaeran, on Mar 23 2009, 04:35 PM, said:

I'd definitely overcall 2♥ with the north hand here. That's a wtp IMO. I'd also have overcalled 1♠ with the south hand, but passing here was lucky, since that makes it extremely easy to reach 4♥.

I don't know if passing was all that "lucky."

If you have a borderline hand, where a 1♠ overcall is plausible or a 2♠ weak jump overcall is also a plausible alternative, possession of a good fragment in the other major is a good reason to opt for a reasonable pass. In other words, "luck" may be simply fruits of a good decision. I say this because the possession of the heart frag was why I would not overcall 2♠ with this hand.

2♠ wouldn't enter my mind, Ken. To me it's a normal 1♠ overcall. Thus, passing is lucky.

[kenrexford]

skaeran, on Mar 24 2009, 02:26 PM, said:

To me it's a normal 1♠ overcall. Thus, passing is lucky.

But, if passing is normal for others, and normal because bidding 1♠ on a borderline hand is disapproved because of the heart fragment, then it would not be lucky for those people. It would be their assessment of pros and cons working out as predicted. Unless, of course, you find that idea silly and simply lucky on this hand that it worked. LOL