What should I Bid? - Best enquiry for September 2009

Maura Rhodes made the best submission for the month of September.

Hand: Dealer East, with NS vulnerable, playing teams I was North on the following deal:

	K942  K  AJ93  AQ97
AQ10  108  Q742  KJ32		65  J762  K865  1064
	J873  AQ9543  10  85

Bidding:	West	North	East	South
			Pass	Pass
	1NT	X	XX	Pass
	2	X	Pass	3
	Pass	3NT	Pass	Pass
	Pass

Comments:     The opponents were playing a weak NT and my double was for penalty, with all subsequent doubles penalty.  The redouble was asking opener to bid a minor for rescue.  My partner's 3 was game forcing and my 3NT response was to play. How should we bid those hands, please, Sartaj?

4 makes plus 1, 4 makes, but 3NT doesn't.  2 would have been off, but given that we were vulnerable, we wanted game.

Sartaj's Reply:

Maura,

There is no clear solution to hands like this. They have made a couple of nuisance bids and untangling our best fit can get tricky.

An area you guys could have done better in is if your partner judges that 3 is likely to lead to this horror scenario and chooses 3 instead (with the idea of raising spades to four but bidding 4 over anything else).

It is a bit resultish though as you might have had a 3154 shape then. And I would give you the advice "Your partner should bid his six card suit and pass 3NT".

Sartaj

What to Bid | Home