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IAC & Master Solvers Club / Re: Master Solvers Club
« on: June 11, 2018, 02:44:28 PM »
Ken,
As to your examples. From the recent MSC:
Hand C: I was torn between the 2 bid and the X. My thought process--right or wrong--was this. Up until the last moment, it was truly a coin flip. The decision for me was that my "values" were in . If partner is overcalling 1 , sans the Ace and Jack, what does he have? A six-card suit? 1 certainly has no preemptive value. I think a six-card suit is likely. Also, the suit, headed by the ten is anemic (do I want a lead?). While the double conveys two pieces of information, it is somewhat misleading. It does not convey the strength (or length for that matter) of my holding. AJx, as you have noted, is more than "tolerance." I believe a common definition of tolerance to be Hx. The immediate raise makes it easier for partner to compete to the three-level if needed.
Hand D: (1 ) - X - (1 ) - ? I am aware that penalty is common, and I would consider it to be the "legacy" treatment of this sequence. Not that my bridge experience contains anything resembling a legacy. This is strictly based on my reading. You mention that many take it to show four . I, actually, if given the opportunity to discuss it, prefer to play this as a Responsive Double, showing both unbids. (Yes, I know it is not the standard treatment.) This is the LC Standard treatment, and I played it this way with a steady partner several years ago. It makes sense to me.
As far as questioning partner's judgment, it accomplishes little. Understanding partner's judgment, however, and most importantly partner's style, in a long-term partnership is key to partnership harmony. My tendency is to be rather conservative in my bidding. I am a down-the-middle vanilla bidder. That is not to say I can't pull out the occasional tutti-frutti bid. But I try to make bids that partner will understand. Bids that torture partner are not good for harmony. They're fun, though! A long-term partner of mine was a very aggressive bidder. Very! Matched with my conservative nature, it worked. But I must say playing a grand requiring two finesses and a favorable trump split raised my blood pressure a bit!
Anyway, it will be fun to read the thinking of the panel in a month or so.
As to your examples. From the recent MSC:
Hand C: I was torn between the 2 bid and the X. My thought process--right or wrong--was this. Up until the last moment, it was truly a coin flip. The decision for me was that my "values" were in . If partner is overcalling 1 , sans the Ace and Jack, what does he have? A six-card suit? 1 certainly has no preemptive value. I think a six-card suit is likely. Also, the suit, headed by the ten is anemic (do I want a lead?). While the double conveys two pieces of information, it is somewhat misleading. It does not convey the strength (or length for that matter) of my holding. AJx, as you have noted, is more than "tolerance." I believe a common definition of tolerance to be Hx. The immediate raise makes it easier for partner to compete to the three-level if needed.
Hand D: (1 ) - X - (1 ) - ? I am aware that penalty is common, and I would consider it to be the "legacy" treatment of this sequence. Not that my bridge experience contains anything resembling a legacy. This is strictly based on my reading. You mention that many take it to show four . I, actually, if given the opportunity to discuss it, prefer to play this as a Responsive Double, showing both unbids. (Yes, I know it is not the standard treatment.) This is the LC Standard treatment, and I played it this way with a steady partner several years ago. It makes sense to me.
As far as questioning partner's judgment, it accomplishes little. Understanding partner's judgment, however, and most importantly partner's style, in a long-term partnership is key to partnership harmony. My tendency is to be rather conservative in my bidding. I am a down-the-middle vanilla bidder. That is not to say I can't pull out the occasional tutti-frutti bid. But I try to make bids that partner will understand. Bids that torture partner are not good for harmony. They're fun, though! A long-term partner of mine was a very aggressive bidder. Very! Matched with my conservative nature, it worked. But I must say playing a grand requiring two finesses and a favorable trump split raised my blood pressure a bit!
Anyway, it will be fun to read the thinking of the panel in a month or so.