This one was all on me, so I feel comfortable using it as an illustration.
http://tinyurl.com/lwmmjduThe problem arises at me second turn to bid. I am a passed hand, Pam has opened a fourth position 1S, I have to choose.
The problem? We have no agreements as to what means what. This is not unusual playing on BBO. As I often do when playing online, I try for a bid that, while not ideal, at least might land us on our feet. My 2S is an underbid, I did it knowingly. Oops. If they take their hearts they hold us to 11 tricks, with the club lead Pam can and did make all 13. Not a good score, as you can imagine.
There was friendly discussion afterward. Pam mentioned that she might have made a game try over my 2S. Perhaps so, but since I cannot, on the bidding, be holding the actual hand that I held I would not push that at all. Once I bid 2S, we are not reaching 4S.
Many play Bergen, including after third and fourth position openings. Ok, if so my call is 3D. Unless we are playing reverse Bergen, then my call is 3C. I like Drury, in which case my call is either 2C or 2D depending on the Drury details. I considered raising 1S to 3S but of course if we are playing Bergen that would be taken as weak. West mentioned that he would have bid 3C, not as Bergen but as a fit showing jump. That's probably the best call, but only if we are playing fit showing jumps. Pam said that she would have taken a jump, 1S to 3S, as a LR, so that would have worked.
This was a friendly game so I doubt anyone would have objected if I had bid 3S and announced to the table that it was a limit raise. Often we play that way and it has its merits, but it can start to feel like kitchen bridge.
My usual approach is to just accept as inevitable that there will be some communication issues when I play online. I opt for the most direct, even if not really precise. Hence my (disastrous) 2S call.
I will close with another example, quite different:
http://tinyurl.com/lpuffe7After the hand, Curls said maybe she should have bid 4S. Not at all, in my opinion. I am holding the heart Q and I could see that would be valuable, so I gave consideration to raising 3S to 4S. I didn't do it. I don't think either of us made a mistake here. The opponents have the AK of clubs and the A of diamonds, after which the spade K is onside. If it is offside, 4S is down. For that matter, of spades are 4-1 there could still be a problem, although probably solvable. There are five tricks in hearts and four in spades, we need one more. We cannot play four rounds of spades and then lead a diamond toward the K since they will rise and cash clubs. But a couple of rounds of trump and then, if spades are 4-1, a diamond toward the K would probably bring us home. Anyway, 4S is hardly a safe contract since it needs the spade K onside and maybe a little luck elsewhere. . Failing to reach an iffy 4S is is not something to fret over.
I put in this last hand because I think players, on BBO and elsewhere, often do not make this critical distinction: On the first board listed, surely we belong in 4S. On this second hand, 4S makes but it does not follow that, on our cards alone, we should be there.
I hope I have not upset anyone by posting these hands. The first was, as mentioned, all on me. The second one makes 4S only because Lady Luck was smiling.
