[Walddk]

Scoring: IMP

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A hand from the Danish Premier League last weekend. RHO opens a weak 2♥, and in your methods you require more high cards for a 2♠ overcall, so you pass. So does LHO and partner reopens with 2NT, systemically 15-18 balanced with heart stopper(s).

What is your plan now?

Roland

[Echognome]

I bid 3♥ hoping he will bid 3♠ (to which I will raise to 4♠). If he bids 3NT I pass. I do not want to declare 4♠ from my side of the table. Besides, 3NT might play better because of the potential for ♥ ruffs.

[whereagles]

Transfer and put pard into 4♠. Cannot afford not to be in game. If LHO doubles the cue I might stop in 3, though.

[Echognome]

Jlall, on Feb 7 2006, 03:43 PM, said:

Very tempting to just raise to 3N. I think in real life I wouldn't have the guts, and would try transferring followed by 3N.

I should note that it's not clear to me from the problem that 3♥ is a transfer. I hope it is and that we are playing systems on here. In that case it's an easy 3♥ bid followed by 3NT.

[Walddk]

Echognome, on Feb 7 2006, 04:45 PM, said:

Jlall, on Feb 7 2006, 03:43 PM, said:

Very tempting to just raise to 3N. I think in real life I wouldn't have the guts, and would try transferring followed by 3N.

I should note that it's not clear to me from the problem that 3♥ is a transfer. I hope it is and that we are playing systems on here. In that case it's an easy 3♥ bid followed by 3NT.

3♥ would indeed be a transfer, and 3♣ is Stayman (Puppet).

Roland

[Walddk]

Echognome, on Feb 7 2006, 04:45 PM, said:

In that case it's an easy 3♥ bid followed by 3NT.

Is it really that easy? When do you want partner to play 3NT? When he has a spade fit, right? What do you think he often does if he has that fit after 3♥ - 3NT? Correct to 4♠. Will 4♠ be a sound contract?

And if he doesn't have a spade fit, he will pass 3NT, agree? Are you happy now?

I had to ask myself all those questions at the table. I didn't find this an easy problem at all.

Roland

[Echognome]

OK. I take your point. But, if partner has Hx in spades, xxx, or Hxx, we might as well play in 3NT. I don't think I can make the decision for partner where we should play. I am only telling partner where my values are and offering him a choice of games.

I'm not overly keen on spades because of my 3 hearts. However, I cannot tell which type of stopper partner has KQx, AQx, AKx, AJx, Axx etc.

By transferring and then bidding 3NT, I'm telling partner that my hand shape is semi-balanced. I ought to leave it up to partner to decide from there. At least in my opinion.

[pclayton]

This hand is kind of an enigma. With ♠xx I want to play in 4♠, but with a semblance of a fit and a decent heart stop, I want to be in 3N.

[pbleighton]

This is tough.

3NT, because I want a heart lead coming around to pd. In 4S we could have 3 heart losers, even if pd declares.

If I had one less heart, I would transfer, then bid 4S.

Peter

[han]

Interesting hand Roland! Perhaps 3NT is the best call, but I would never find it at the table.

A side question: isn't Texas still on? I'd think that those who drop partner in 4S after transferring are making a slam try..

(I just discovered that Echo chose 3H followed by 4S before it was clear that 3H is played as a transfer, so never mind)

[luis]

Transfer and 3NT, close call.

[luke warm]

i admit i'd transfer to spades and bid 4s next time.. i guess it might be a good treatment to have partner always bid 3nt if he has a hand he'd rather declare 3nt than 4s (if partner was going to bid 4s after the acceptance).. responder can always retransfer if he's just unsuited for anything other than spades

[kenrexford]

This is a good hand for an impossible transfer checkback. With most regular partners, we have agreed that a "transfer" into the opponents' suit asks for the quality of the stop. Hence, here, 3D would "transfer" to 3H. Partner will "superaccept" by bidding 3NT with a double stop. Otherwise, he bids a proposed runout (minimum stopper contextually) or "accepts" the transfer with a middlish stopper (AJx?).

In any event, if partner does not bid 3NT and does not bid 3S, 4H by me should be a delayed transfer to spades.

[HeartA]

luke warm, on Feb 7 2006, 07:17 PM, said:

i admit i'd transfer to spades and bid 4s next time.. i guess it might be a good treatment to have partner always bid 3nt if he has a hand he'd rather declare 3nt than 4s (if partner was going to bid 4s after the acceptance).. responder can always retransfer if he's just unsuited for anything other than spades

same here.

[Walddk]

Scoring: IMP

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There was no winning option as you now see, but all is well that ends well. South decided to leave partner out of it and raised to 3NT. 9 tricks on a heart lead. East was 1-6-4-2.

4♠ has obviously no play, not even on a heart lead. What do you think North would have done if South had transferred before bidding 3NT? Doesn't that hand look like a pull to 4♠?

Roland

[mcphee]

My feelings are 3N is a spot we can stand to land in, perhpas a better contract than 4S will prove to be. Who knows, maybe this Q D will prove a big help. I xfer and then let the final decisions rest with partner with 3N. I feel good when he has Ax in S although the suit may not run. Mostly I fear the opps ability to trump a H when he does no have the big kahuna in S. I don't like the use of texas here considering it to remove us from what may be the only making game of 3N.

[Gerben42]

Strange hand. Normal transfers work "if we have a fit we bid the suit, otherwise 3NT" and here responder wants it the other way around. Anyone's guess really so I like bringing out Hamman's rule on this.

[luke warm]

it looked like a xfer then bid 4s before and it looks like that now... true, 3nt made on a heart lead but there could have just as easily have been a diamond lead