[mikeh]

Finally, for now, hers one where I fell asleep and got undeservedly lucky


You hold, in first seat, Ax AQxx AKJ Kxxx

You open a 20-21 2N.

Partner transfers to spades then raises to 4S.

We play texas transfers so going through a 3 level transfer then bidding game is a mild slam try.

I have a good hand. Very rich in controls. I’d like another spade but the hand is, imo, still worth a try.

Since cuebidding won’t help, I hauled out keycard. Our usual rules say that the big balanced hand doesn’t use keycard, but this auction is an exception…4N can’t be an offer to play.

I was already focusing on what to do opposite one or 2 keycards. I’d persuaded myself that I’d not bid grand opposite KQxxxx and the club Ace since he can’t have anything much more and not have made a stronger slam move. But he bid 5D, showing zero keycards, so I had an automatic 5S. However, I was not focused and, expecting at least the spade king or the club ace for a slam try, I bid 5H, asking for the trump queen….realizing my error just as I let go of the 5H bidding card….and at that point no TD should allow a change. Partner bid 6S and I awaited dummy while castigating myself or putting us into a contract thst, on a good day, would be low percentage

The opening lead was the club Ace and partner delighted me by tabling Q109xxxx KJx xxx void!

Spades were 2-2 so there was no defence. Sometimes being lucky is better than being good.

[mike777]

 mikeh, on 2026-June-17, 11:27, said:

Here another one. You’re at favourable, same semi final match. In 3rd seat, after two passes, you have to decide what to do with:

9 K8754 Q A98654


What do you do (and pass is obviously permissible) and why?

I will open it 3C

Lots of options here

4C, 1C, 1h, 2h, pass...
Why?
Pass eliminated pressure and I may not be able to describe this hand later.

Not right texture for 1C or 1H, potential rebid issues

2H opening gets hearts involved but partner as passed hand probably needs perfect cards

4C is reasonable but perhaps forces them to game.

Hopefully 3C is a reasonable consideration

[mike777]

 mikeh, on 2026-June-17, 11:25, said:

I’ve made my share of mistakes in the first four sessions in Penticton but have had a few good moments. Hers one, from the semi finals of the top bracket KO

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North would have opened 1N with 10-13 balanced and almost all distributional 11 counts and many 10 counts so south has some inferences from the pass.

1S was normal and 2C shows 4 spades and at least a decent constructive raise.

At imps we don’t play many game tries. We’d rather just bid game with most hands, to avoid information leakage. Defence and, especially, the opening lead are made much easier by the declaring side describing their hands not just to each other but also to the opps. So 3C was a natural mild slam try.

Partner correctly loved his club holding despite being dead minimum in hcp, so he cue bid 3D. We cue first and second round controls as economically as possible below game.

I was encouraged by 3D but really wanted to know about the club king so I cuebid 3H. This got me the desired 4C cue. We do not cue shortness in partners main or secondary suit without extra trump so I knew he was almost certainly showing me the King


Since even xxxx xxx Kxxx Kx gives a decent play for slam, I could hardly bid less than 6. 7 was possible..Kxxx xxxx Kxx Kx as an example, and I could have used keycard since he can’t hold the heart ace and both minor kings…he’d have opened. But even that 9 count perfecto wouldn’t make grand cold…I might need to ruff clubs good and then pitch a diamond and ruff the diamond, which would require 2-2 trump. Grands on minimal values should be really high percentage since often just bidding small wins big.

As it happened, clubs broke and the trump king was stiff onside so 13 tricks rolled home.south

We’ll never know whether the other team could have duplicated the auction since our teammate in east opened very weak weak 2H….via multi 2D. He and my partner and I play 2D as 5-8 with occasional upgrades. Despite the acbl still mandating written defences, their south player got it wrong and they were in fact lucky to even get to spades. North had to work out that south has made a misbid. So they played in 4S.

I expect most readers will see this as a wtp? hand, confident that they’d breeze into slam. I’ve shown it to maybe half a dozen players I’d consider advanced (just my hand) and none got beyond game.

Congratulations and very well done.

MikeH I would expect most of your peers to reach this slam with silent opponents. However as you pointed out even top KO bracket players can make an error after a pressure preemptive bid



Partner has a 4 card mixed raise with no heart wastage. South hand becomes super.
" Nine card fits make for magic"