Author Topic: Minors and the robots  (Read 2237 times)

kenberg

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Minors and the robots
« on: November 05, 2020, 03:12:23 PM »
It has been said that there are three suits in bridge: Hearts, Spades and No Trump.
But lately I have been ending in minor suit contracts playing with the robots. Some but not all have been successful, here are three that ended well. I'll add in some commentary.

Case 1:
https://tinyurl.com/y3x9le72

5 !D +2 for a good score!, Of course  in 6 !D Lho might well start with the !H A and another !H, setting 6. Moreover, if N plays it, the lead of the stiff !H  sets 5 !D.  Minor Suit Stayman earned its keep here. Suppose we were not playing MSS. Then, over the Capp 2 !C, we could be playing that 2NT shows !D. N only has five, S would expect 6, so the transfer would be a bit risky. Anyway, the bots play MSS and there we were in 5 !D played from the right side.


Case 2:
https://tinyurl.com/y5eb5dss
I congratulated my bot partner for her restraint in passing my 4 !C.  I got an almost inexplicable overtrick, but 4 !C is the right contract. 


Case 3:
https://tinyurl.com/y4fg3j5q
 5 !D making, but I would call it lucky. Obviously I will be losing a !C right off, and losing at least one !S. Since the !S don't split, I have to ruff a !S, and this requires that I not draw all the trump. The !D J is well-placed so all is well. Note that partner's 3 !D after my reverse did not show extras. The bots play Leb after a reverse but when the auction begins 1 !D - 1NT -2M I guess they don't. This makes sense since the 1NT already set a limit on the hand. Moreover, after 1 !D - 1NT - 2 !S it is not hard to imagine a hand where N would like to bid 2NT to play.  All in all, I think that after 1m-1NT -2M, it's best to leave 2NT as a natural call.


So the second hand belongs in 4 !C, it made 5 on a fluke of bot defense, while the third hand makes 5 !D regardless of defense but requires a bit of luck.


In bridge discussions I think we often skip past minor suit auctions, these seemed interesting, I thought I would put them up.
« Last Edit: November 05, 2020, 03:15:52 PM by kenberg »
Ken

wackojack

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Re: Minors and the robots
« Reply #1 on: November 05, 2020, 10:07:33 PM »
Case 1
I am not sold on MSS here unless you are looking for 6 !D since 3N is a perfectly good contract.  Not playing MSS the bidding could go: 
1N - (2 !C) capp - Dbl (bal of points) - (p)
pass- (2 !H)  - pass - Pass
2NT  - (pass) -3NT all pass

Case 2
I cannot argue with success here, however, in the North position I would certainly have raised to 5 !C for 1 down.  Suppose you hold  !S 5,  !H A542, !D K10,  !C AKQ652.  Would you not still double and then bid 4 !C?  Then if North passes you have missed playing in an easy 5 !C.

Case 3
This looks normal to me

jcreech

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Re: Minors and the robots
« Reply #2 on: November 06, 2020, 12:58:45 PM »
I largely concur with Jack in his assessments.  My one variance is on Case 1.  For that hand, I consider the form of scoring important.  If we are playing match points, then I would just bid 3NT and take my chances.  430 is going to beat all of those 420's running around, and since it actually scores more, all the better.  At IMPs, I would prefer to explore the minor-suit contract, certainly at the game level, but since slam is also a possibility, I would be licking my chops a bit.  Without MSS, I probably would plan to transfer to diamonds and then bid clubs,  Everything becomes better when partner can pre-accept in diamonds,
A stairway to nowhere is better than no stairway at all.  -Kehlog Albran

kenberg

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Re: Minors and the robots
« Reply #3 on: November 06, 2020, 02:30:12 PM »
On hand 1, if I were N, I would be very glad that we were playing MSS and I would go for it.  N has a spade void and three small hearts, W is advertising a single suited hand, surely in a major, we can expect further competition, I want to show my minor two suiter and I want to do it now.  On the spade lead that I got I make 13 tricks, if you trade the !S 3 in the E hand for the !H 3 in the N hand we make 12 tricks on any lead. Another way of looking at it: If N's majors are !S xxx and !H void, we want to be in 6 !D (with me as declarer to avoid a possible !S ruff if the 2 !C was on a six card !S suit).

In general, four suit transfers can be useful for getting out in 3m when responder has a weak had and a six card suit. But that is not really needed after the 2 !C intervention over 1NT. Responder, if he holds a six card minor and sign-ff values, can pass and then, on the next round, come in or not as he thinks right.  So it seems that one of the pluses of four suit transfers disappears after the intervention, and the pluses of MSS come in more strongly.

Staying out of 6 was a bit lucky. Cowardice can be useful.


On 2, I agree that raising to 5 is highly tempting. But passing was an option, that's worth noting, and pass she did.
I was puzzled by how I could possibly have been given the sluff-ruff. The explanation is very bot-like. The automatic self-alert shows that my 4 !C shoed 16+ highs. At the time of the sluff-ruff, I had only clubs and hearts left, the W bot was on lead and held both the K and J of hearts. He has seen all of my high cards outside of hearts, and giving me the Q only totals 15 highs, so in the simulations he always gives me the A. There is no way to beat this if I hold the A so he just plays a card.
This explanation was given by shyams, and I think he is right. https://www.bridgebase.com/forums/topic/84371-huh/
Ken