Better Bridge in Barry County February 28 2013

Better Bridge in Barry County

By Gerald Stein

 

 

	North ♠ 7 ♥  10 9 2 ♦  9 8 7 6 ♣  K 10 9 4 2
West ♠  Q 9 5 3 2 ♥  J 8 4 ♦  J 10 ♣  A 5 3		East ♠  K 6 ♥  Q 6 3 ♦  Q 5 4 3 2 ♣  J 7 6
	South ♠  A J 10 8 4 ♥  A K 7 5   ♦  A K ♣  Q 8

 

 

Dealer: Vulnerable: Lead:

West None 3♣

 

North   Pass 2♦ 3♣ Pass	East   Pass Pass Pass Pass	South   2♣ 2♠ 3NT	West Pass Pass Pass Pass

 

Today’s column continues with Number Six in the Eight Common Conventions You Should Know. The past five columns have explored the Stayman Convention, the Jacoby Transfer, the Take Out Double, the Negative Double, and Weak Two Bids. Number Six is the Strong 2♣ Artificial Opening Bid, popular as far back as 1929 with David Burnstine (1900-1965). Let’s look at how the Strong 2♣ bid works in today’s column.

Bridge gurus knew that the strong hands came up seldom in a round of bridge. Using 2♦ as a strong bid with diamonds, 2♥ as a strong bid with hearts, and 2♠ as a strong bid with spades did not make much sense. A better use, as we saw last week, was putting 2♦, 2♥, and 2♠ as a new convention, the Weak Two Bid. That left the 2♣ Bid as a Strong Artificial Opening Bid to cover all of the suits. The 2♣ bid said nothing about clubs, diamonds, hearts or spades.  It said simply, “Partner, I have a big hand. I have at least 22+ points, and I am expecting us to get to game. Bid, Partner, bid.”

With a partnership agreement of playing a strong 2♣ bid, the responder is not allowed to pass. Instead, most modern players have adopted the artificial bid of 2♦ called a “waiting bid.” Responder essentially says, “Tell me more, Partner. I am waiting to hear more about your hand.” A 2♦ bid says nothing about diamonds or any other suit. It just gives the partnership time to explore the best place for a game or slam contract.

In today’s hand, that is exactly what happened to the North/South team. After three passes, South opened the bidding with 2♣, the Strong Artificial Opening bid, promising 22 or more points and a force to partner North to reach a game contract. Opening 2NT here is not wise, as a 2NT opening bid is not forcing, and North would probably have passed. The two doubletons in the South hand also suggest that a 2NT opening bid is not a good idea. One doubleton, yes. Two doubletons, no.

After the waiting bid by North, South did show the five-card spade suit. North must continue to bid and may not pass. North selected the 3♣ bid to deter South as much as possible that North’s hand is very weak and that there is not much help there. Undeterred, South bid 3NT and the contract was set there.

With the 3♣ as the opening lead, probably not the best lead, low from North, J♣ from East, and the Q♣ from South, South paused to consider his options. Needing nine tricks to make the contract, South could count six including the first winner in clubs. Where would the other three tricks come from?

South wisely led the 8♣ from his hand, and West ducked the trick. South had just picked up one of the three missing tricks when he won the trick in the dummy with the 9♣. Abandoning clubs was a smart idea, as South knew he could never get back to the club winners once the A♣ was knocked out. Instead, South played the 7♠, planning to use the J♠ for a finesse. West won the trick with the Q♠ and led the 4♥. East put up the Q♥ and South won with the A♥. South continued the hearts with the 5♥, with West winning with the J♥. Back came a heart, and while the trick was won on the board, the A♣ was still out. South had won another needed trick but still needed one more trick to make 3NT.

A small diamond from the dummy to South’s K♦ won that trick as planned. South next played the A♦, and then he had to make a huge decision. While South guessed that the K♠ was in the East hand, would it be a singleton at this time? Resolutely, South plunked down the A♠ and to his happy delight, the K♠ fell on the trick. The 10♠ won next, as well as the K♥, and South was home free with nine tricks. West captured the last two tricks with the 9♠ and the A♣.

With 22 points and an unbalanced hand, a Strong 2♣ Artificial Opening Bid gives out a lot of information to your partner. Game is always uppermost in the opener’s mind, and the Responder must do her part to keep the bidding going. Using just the 2♣ bid as the strong artificial bid helps the declarer and the responder to work together to arrive at a game contract. The responder does not need a lot of points to help declarer arrive at a no trump or major suit game. By the way, this hand, if played in hearts, makes a game of 4♥.  A part score in 4♣ would be a very disappointing score for the North/South team as 4♣ also makes on this hand.

Use the Strong 2♣ Artificial Opening Bid for all strong hands, and use the 2♦, 2♥, and 2♠ for the Weak Two Bids. You will have a winning combination. Use both conventions and see how effective knowing both conventions can enhance your bridge game.

 

Gerald Stein

February 15 2013

Number of words: 1031

 

Local Bridge Class News: Another Learn Bridge in a Day Seminar will take place on Sunday, March 17, 2013 at the Kalamazoo Bridge Center in Kalamazoo from 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM. If you know of those who have always wanted to play bridge, send them to the www.kzoobridge.com site for more information.

Better Bridge in Barry County for February 21 2013

Better Bridge in Barry County

By Gerald Stein

 

 

	North ♠  K Q 8 3 ♥  K J 9 5 2 ♦  6 ♣  Q 9 2
West ♠  7 6 5 2 ♥  A 3   ♦  8 5 2 ♣  A J 8 4		East ♠  J 10 9 ♥  Q 10 6 4   ♦  K 9 3 ♣  K 5 3
	South ♠  A 4 ♥  8 7   ♦  A Q J 10 7 4 ♣  10 7 6

 

 

Dealer: Vulnerable: Lead:

West Both 4♣

 

North   Pass 2♥ Pass	East   Pass Pass Pass	South   2♦ 2NT	West Pass Pass Pass

While many modern bridge players use the weak two-bid, few of them opt to use it in the fourth position. By the time, the bid has been passed around to the first three players, there are not a lot of points left for the last bidder. Today’s South seemed to find courage somewhere to open the bidding in last chair with a weak two-diamond bid, promising a weak hand, six diamonds with most of the points in the diamond suit, and not much more. Usually the weak-two bid is an obstructive bid used in the first or second position to interfere with the opponents. Today’s deal is a bit unusual, so let’s see how it turned out.

By looking at the four hands, it is easy to see that the points were evenly distributed among the four players. A number of tables, when this hand was played, passed out this hand, and they moved on to the next hand. Perhaps that was not such a bad idea.

At this table, however, after South opened with a 2♦ bid, West passed, and North with 11 high card points bid the solid heart suit at 2♥. East passed, and brave South pushed the partnership to 2NT. Other tables pushed the contract to 3♦ where all passed. Let’s look at the 2NT contract for a discussion of today’s hand.

South with two doubletons, a long diamond suit, and weak clubs, might be chastised by some partners for that bid of 2NT. West chose the 4♣ as the lead, the fourth down from the longest and strongest suit, a standard lead in no trump in most bridge players’ book. South duly thanked her partner as she surveyed the dummy. Needing eight tricks, it was important to stop and count the winners first: three in spades, A♠, K♠, and Q♠; one in diamonds, A♦ for four tricks. Four more were needed to make the 2NT contract.

With only one diamond on the board, South had to hope that the diamonds would split 3-3 to give her a chance in promoting the diamonds. There would only be one opportunity for a finesse with the 6♦ on the board, so the 3-3 split was a top priority and a necessity. South also had to protect that Q♣ on the board as a possible trick as well. A heart trick would also be needed. In other words, there was a lot of work to make a 2NT contract.

South played low from the dummy, and East won the trick with the K♣, returning the 5♣. South played the 7♣ from her hand, and West won the second trick with the A♣. A third club led from West was won by Q♣ on the board. This was the time for the diamond finesse. South led the lone 6♦ from the board, and when East played low, South played the 10♦ winning the trick. Next South led the A♦, planning to discard a small heart from the dummy. Both opponents played a second diamond. So far so good.

South then led a third diamond, the Q♦, with West following with a diamond, another discard from the dummy, and East winning with the K♦. The diamonds had split 3-3, and South had an eventual entry with the A♠. Things were looking up for South.

East shifted to the 4♥, 7♥ from South, and West took the trick with the A♥. Now the K♥ was set up, the spades looked solid, and the only loser left was the J♣ which West cashed immediately. East/West had taken five tricks, but the rest were claimed by South, making a 2NT bid for a plus 120 point score.

While most bridge players who use weak two-bids will make their bid and then retire, figuring that they have gotten in the way somewhat. They will have offered as well a good lead from their partner if they do not get the bid. Bidding a weak two-bid in the fourth chair at the table, while unusual, certainly can and did pay good dividends for the North/South team. While most players would have passed the hand out, some bridge players that you will meet will indeed be the daring ones and will bid no matter what. Do the best that you can on defense, and hope to set them a trick or two, or at least hold them to the bid.

 By the way, for those of you who wanted to push on to 3♦. you would find that 3♦ does indeed make on this hand as well as the 2NT.

 

Gerald Stein

February 5, 2013

Number of words: 925

 

Bridge Etiquette Tip Number Three: “Director, Please” is a pleasant and courteous way to call for the one directing your bridge game. Directors are happy to hear that little word “Please” after their name. Try it next time you play,  and see if it doesn’t bring a smile to your director’s face.

Better Bridge in Barry County February 14 2013

Better Bridge in Barry County

By Gerald Stein

 

 

	North ♠  A K 8 3   ♥  A 9 5 3 ♦  10 4 ♣  A 7 2
West ♠  9 7 6 ♥  K Q J 10 ♦  A Q 8 7 ♣  Q J		East ♠  Q 10 4 2 ♥  7 4 ♦  K 6 5 2 ♣  10 8 4
	South ♠  J 5 ♥  8 6 2 ♦  J 9 3   ♣  K 9 6 5 3

 

 

Dealer: Vulnerable: Lead:

West Neither K♥

 

North   Dbl Pass	East   Pass Pass	South   2♣	West 1♦ Pass

 

Today’s column features another use for the double, namely, the Takeout Double. Last week we looked at the use of the double in the Negative Double. Today’s column will look at the fourth of our Eight Conventions You Should Know, the Takeout Double.

Early on in the beginning days of bridge, Byrant McCampbell found a better use for the double than for penalty, especially at the very low levels of bidding. He reasoned that doubling at the one or two level for penalty was a wasted bid, and that making use of it in another way was a far better choice. The takeout double was and is one of the most popular and most used of all of the conventions in the bridge world. Nearly all bridge players learn the takeout double as part of their early lessons.

Some players, however, are reluctant to use the takeout double. Perhaps they feel that it is an insult to double your opponent at such a low level. They should put that thinking behind them and begin to use the takeout double as a friendly way to compete in today’s bridge world. Any convention that has been around since 1912 deserves to be considered and, I might add, used in friendly and competitive bridge games.

Essentially, the takeout double works in this way: You as the North player hear your Right-Hand Opponent (RHO) open the bidding at 1♦. You know from past bridge lessons and experience that this bid promises an opening hand and at least three diamonds. You as North have an opening hand as well, with this exception: you are short in diamonds, the suit that was just bid. In this case, short means a void, a singleton, or at most, a doubleton in diamonds. You have support for the other three suits, and you want your partner to bid.

Enter the takeout double. You pronounce the word “Double,” or you pull out the red card from the bidding box if you use one, essentially saying to your partner: “Partner, I am short in diamonds, the suit just bid, and I want you to name your best suit. I have a hand that is an opener, and I want you to bid your best suit.” It is important to repeat that as many a time in the past partners have passed a takeout double bid, saying, “Sorry, partner, I had zero points and no good suit to bid.” What a travesty! That is not the way to keep a partner happy.

The words Takeout Double mean just that: “Partner, take me out of this double. Bid your best suit.” Even with zero points, your partner is expected to bid her best suit. The only way your partner is off the hook is if the opener’s partner has put in a bid or a call. To illustrate, a 1♦ bid followed by your takeout double, followed by either a 2♦ or other bid or a Redouble will release your partner from the required bid that you had ordered. All other times, your partner must make an attempt to name her best suit. By the way, no trump is not a suit. Throwing in a 1NT bid and then trying to explain to your partner that you had no good suit will not sit well in a partnership. Bidding 1NT promises more than you think. Instead, bid your best suit and be brave.

What happened in today’s hand can illustrate the mechanics of the takeout double. West opened the bidding with a solid hand of 15 high-card points, and she bid the convenient minor in diamonds. North also had an opening hand, one of the key ingredients of a takeout double. By the way, don’t try to fudge that opening count too much; you may put yourself into big trouble. North was short in diamonds and had support for the three unbid suits. Confident that partner would not pass, North used the takeout double convention to inform his partner that he wanted South to bid her best suit.

After a pass by East, South obliged and bid her best suit, in this case, clubs, and she had to go to the two-level to do so. But bid she did just as North had required. The bidding stopped at two clubs, and South was the declarer, hardly expecting to be in that position with this hand. Ah, the beauty of competitive bridge bidding.

With only five high-card points, South hardly felt brave about playing the contract at 2♣. It was a grateful South, however, after West led the K♥, the top of a sequence, that South saw the dummy for the first time. She drew a sigh of relief, duly thanked her partner for having the cards and points that he said he had, and South began to make her plan. Taking eight tricks would not be easy, but it was doable, especially when South could see that she had five sure tricks. The need to use a trump on the board for a losing diamond became apparent quickly. Having the trumps break 3-2 would also help her cause.

South executed her plan, trumping a losing diamond on the board before drawing trumps, and she successfully made the 2♣ bid, taking eight tricks. Without the takeout double, South would have felt that she could not compete on this hand. Ordered to bid by her partner, South bid and made a fine contract, all due to the popular and useful Takeout Double Convention.

 

Gerald Stein

January 31 2013

Number of words: 1085

 

Bridge Etiquette Tip Number Two: Another important bridge table courtesy often violated although probably unintentionally is what I call the “Snapper Syndrome.” For whatever reasons, some bridge players snap their cards as they place them on the table. This annoying habit can be distracting to the other players, including your partner. Another easy resolution to fix: Don’t be a card snapper.

 

 

Better Bridge in Barry County February 7 2013

Better Bridge in Barry County

By Gerald Stein

	North ♠  5 4 ♥  K 9 6 3 ♦  A J 9 2 ♣  8 7 3
West ♠  K 10 9 3 2 ♥  Q 8 2   ♦  K 5 4 ♣  K Q		East ♠  7 6 ♥  J 10   ♦  10 8 6 ♣  A J 10 9 4 2
	South ♠  A Q J 8 ♥  A 7 5 4 ♦  Q 7 3 ♣  6 5

Dealer: Vulnerable: Lead:

North Neither K♣

North Pass Dbl (1) Pass	East Pass Pass Pass	South 1♦ 2♥	West 1♠ Pass
(1)   Negative Double

In today’s column we will continue to look at the Eight Bridge Conventions You Should Know. So far, the Stayman Convention and the Jacoby Transfer Convention have been the first two of the eight important bridge conventions for the modern bridge player. Today let’s look at the use of the double in bridge conversation.

While most bridge players are familiar with the Take Out Double, the Negative Double might be a new creature for some players. In fact, the Negative Double is a close cousin of the Take Out Double. How does the Negative Double work?

In today’s bridge hand, after two passes, South opened the bidding with 1♦, a convenient minor. West, with 13 high card points and a five-card spade suit, overcalled 1♠.  North then interjected a call. North’s bid was a double, but what was its meaning? With a four-card heart suit and eight high-card points, North was able to use a bridge convention called the Negative Double. North’s bid was in direct response to West’s overcall, and his Negative Double, a partnership agreement, has the following meaning: “Partner, I was about to bid, but this opponent overcalled. I am using a Negative Double to mean that I have the other major, and I have exactly four hearts to make this bid. I can bid this way because I have at least six points, the same number of points I would have used as a response to your opening bid.”

With this useful bid, North was able to convey important information to his partner South. This bid took up no bidding space, and yet it gave a clear picture of the North hand. South, with four of his own hearts, was able to use that information to bid the hearts to the two or three level, knowing that North/South had found a fit in the heart suit.

Even if East bid the clubs to the two or three level, South was assured that North had four hearts and at least six points. On this hand, the contract is set at 2♥ in the South hand when South bid 2♥ and all passed.

West led the top of his club sequence, the K♣, followed by the Q♣. East overtook the Q♣ with the A♣, and she knew that there was no future in continuing clubs. Instead East shifted to the 7♠, the top of a doubleton. South put up the J♠ losing to the K♠. So far, the East/West team had taken the first three tricks of this hand.  West led the 10♠, and it was won by South with the Q♠.

South led the A♥ with all following. South next led the 7♦ and went up with the J♦ winning the diamond finesse. Playing the K♥ next drew a trump from East and West, but the Q♥ did not fall. East/West would win the Q♥, two club tricks, and the K♠. North/South would take nine tricks, making an overtrick and a successful bid and contract.  Using the Negative Double Convention helped them arrive at the right contract.

Some final thoughts on Negative Doubles: for a one-level negative double bid, you need 6+ points. If you make a two-level negative double call, you need 8+ points. Negative Doubles are typically used through the 3♠ level.

To use a Negative Double when there are two unbid major suits, you must have four cards in both majors. In the case when you have five spades, do not use a Negative Double. Instead bid the spade suit at the one level. Save the Negative Double for four cards. With five spades in your hand, bid the suit, and this will let your partner know that you have at least a five-card suit.

Learn to use a Negative Double. This takes practice with a partner who knows and understands Negative Doubles. This year is the time to learn a most useful and important modern bridge convention: the Negative Double. Remember that a Negative Double always guarantees support for any unbid major.

Gerald Stein

January 28, 2013

 Number of words: 867

Bridge Etiquette Tip Number One: One of the finest courtesies you as a bridge player can extend to your partner is to thank her when she places the dummy on the table. Many times the declarer will say nothing when a pleasant “Thank you, Partner” would do wonders for the partnership. Even if the dummy is not at all what you expected, still the courteous “Thank you, partner” will build that bridge partnership into a lasting one. Try it this year as an easy resolution.