[dustinst22]

North:
J xxx qxxx akxxx


South (me):

xxx Axx AKJxx xx



bidding:

1D (1S) 2C (3C) P (3S) passed out

Where did we go wrong? Partners thoughts on the 2C bid was to see if we had a double minor fit to make 5m game with minimum values....

[JLOGIC]

in b4 FIT JUMP.

[JLOGIC]

My opinion is that your partner should bid 2S to begin with. The main feature of your hand is diamond support. If your hand is strong enough to bid 2C and then raise diamonds later, doing that is fine, but if you are going to bid 2C and then feel the need to pass later, you got across the less important feature of your hand (support for partners suit). Given your stiff spade, it's likely that you will have to bid 4D or 5D next. So, since your partner was uncomfortable doing that he should just raise diamonds to begin with, or else something like this can happen (partner has a really good diamond fit and you sell out to 3S).

[dustinst22]

Thanks Justin. Some further thoughts from my partner on this hand:


"You can figure I have max 1 spade and 3 hearts. So with 9 cards in minors, highly likely you will find 3+ card dia support. Hence you can compete with 3d with only 5. If shorter dia, then I would have 7+ clubs and would bid 4c. Most top players can figure that.

No shame in not able to figure the above, most would not."


Agree, disagree?

[Cyberyeti]

1♦-(1♠)-3♣(fit) is the obvious start and should get you there.

We'd have started with a weak no trump, and it would depend on how responder treated his hand as to where we'd end up.

[JLOGIC]

dustinst22, on 2013-January-24, 15:35, said:

Thanks Justin. Some further thoughts from my partner on this hand:


"You can figure I have max 1 spade and 3 hearts. So with 9 cards in minors, highly likely you will find 3+ card dia support. Hence you can compete with 3d with only 5. If shorter dia, then I would have 7+ clubs and would bid 4c. Most top players can figure that.

No shame in not able to figure the above, most would not."


Agree, disagree?

Umm no. Why does your partner have to have a stiff spade, did 3C show a 4 card fit? And if that is true, your partner can use the same reasoning to bid his own hand. I mean, he knows he has a stiff spade and he knows he has 4 diamonds, why can he not bid 4D? Why are you supposed to bid with 5 diamonds "knowing" your partner has 3 diamonds and 1 spade, but he cannot bid when he actually knows you have 4+ diamonds lol.

Emails like that would infuriate me.

[JLOGIC]

And of course why is it necessarily right to bid even if partner is 1336? You have 3 defensive tricks and only an 8 card fit, I'd rather take my chances on defense.

in b4 law of total tricks

[dustinst22]

JLOGIC, on 2013-January-24, 16:14, said:

And of course why is it necessarily right to bid even if partner is 1336? You have 3 defensive tricks and only an 8 card fit, I'd rather take my chances on defense.

in b4 law of total tricks

Yeah. I was pretty infuriated by the email. He expected me to figure it out on my own I guess. I'm definitely nowhere near that level.

[Cascade]

Not sure I would get there but raising diamonds at the first opportunity is an obvious wtp?

How you raise is a matter of style and partnership agreement.

[Phil]

dustinst22, on 2013-January-24, 16:19, said:

Yeah. I was pretty infuriated by the email. He expected me to figure it out on my own I guess. I'm definitely nowhere near that level.

Don't worry, neither is he.

[PhilKing]

dustinst22, on 2013-January-24, 15:35, said:

"You can figure I have max 1 spade and 3 hearts. So with 9 cards in minors, highly likely you will find 3+ card dia support. Hence you can compete with 3d with only 5. If shorter dia, then I would have 7+ clubs and would bid 4c. Most top players can figure that.

No shame in not able to figure the above, most would not."

This tilted me pretty hard, lol. His last sentence is comic genius.