[dickiegera]

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Do you bid 2♠ here or do you pass and wait to bid later if partner reopens the bidding?

[Hanoi5]

It's a terrible hand but at least the hearts are well placed.

[EricK]

I pass. I don't want partner to get too excited. If partner has the sort of hand which can use my ♥, then the opponent's will likely be able to get a few ♥ ruffs in before that happens. So I have a completely flat hand, with 10 losers, fewer than 6 effective points and no intermediates except in the opponent's suit. I certainly don't want to encourage partner to sacrifice in 4♠ if LHO jumps to 4♥

[quiddity]

I would raise. There's a danger that partner will over-compete but there are dangers in passing too. For one thing it puts a lot of pressure on partner to reopen with minimal or off-shape hands. Obviously it will be bad for us if 2H is passed out and we were making 2S. For another, it makes LHO's life easier. He has an easy cuebid with an invitational hand. He doesn't have to stretch to compete with a marginal hand.

[Foxx]

If RHO had not overcalled, my response wouldn't be 2♠, it would be 1NT, so I wouldn't raise here. But this hand is very close to the line. Move the ♠J into the spade suit, so the hand is ♠Jxx ♥K10x ♦Q763 ♣652, and I would raise, with or without RHO's 2♥ bid.

[CSGibson]

Pass. My hand just got much worse offensively, and it started out as a fricking 1 control 4-3-3-3 six count with 3 trumps headed by the 5.

[Quantumcat]

I raise - but pard knows I need no values to do this. Pard usually gets his defence right if I always raise with 3.

[the hog]

2S of course.

[neilkaz]

2♠ for me. Not happy with being flat nor having 3 small trumps but my ♥ are well placed and I consider it very important to show support with support and to bid♠ over ♥ quickly.

[rmnka447]

I'm bidding 2 ♠. After the opponents intervene, I raise pretty aggressively especially at the 2 level.

If partner sacrifices and goes for a number, that's partner's problem.

[ggwhiz]

2♠ at the speed of light. Why should they have an easy run when we own gods suit?

[Siegmund]

Why would I wait? Am I really considering passing partner's double of 2H!?

I would raise immediately. The hand is plenty bad enough to not quite be worth it -- but if I pass and then bid 2S I don't think partner is any closer to visualizing this hand.

[rwbarton]

I wouldn't be thrilled about it but I would raise. At least partner is unlikely to be on lead if we defend.

[SteveMoe]

I think this is a clear pass. ♥KJ are values partner expects me to have elsewhere. Since EW don't have ♥KJ they have something equivalent where we need strength in a 2♠ contract. I have no ruffing values and only 3 small ♠. Pass and hope they get too high.

[MrAce]

I don't understand why our KJx ♥ lost its value, RHO bid them not LHO. This was a dubious value which now became almost sure 2 tricks value.

I don't understand the concerns about shape or "not offensive hand" comments, 2♠ neither promises an offensive hand nor any shape.

I don't understand the complaints about our strength either, out hand perfectly fits in the range that 2♠ shows.


I think pass is awfully wrong, i think making such early decisions and hiding support from pd while we can, perfectly with in the range which 2♠ shows, is wrong.

I don't understand why even a simple limit bid with support becomes a hand of master analysis hand in forums. Especially in this forum.


There are many more things that makes me disagree with passers but i am too tired and going to bed

[dkham]

I think it's easiest to bid now, otherwise you'll have some tough decision later and will regret not having supported.

[CSGibson]

MrAce, on 2012-August-22, 05:30, said:

I don't understand why our KJx ♥ lost its value, RHO bid them not LHO. This was a dubious value which now became almost sure 2 tricks value.

I don't understand the concerns about shape or "not offensive hand" comments, 2♠ neither promises an offensive hand nor any shape.

I don't understand the complaints about our strength either, out hand perfectly fits in the range that 2♠ shows.


I think pass is awfully wrong, i think making such early decisions and hiding support from pd while we can, perfectly with in the range which 2♠ shows, is wrong.

I don't understand why even a simple limit bid with support becomes a hand of master analysis hand in forums. Especially in this forum.


There are many more things that makes me disagree with passers but i am too tired and going to bed

Awfully strong statement. What would it take for you to pass, removing the J of hearts? If it is that close, and a non-working value, then stop being axiomatic and think about the possible play of the hand.

If the KJT was in any other suit, it would be much more likely to build tricks. If we had any other values, it might be worth upgrading. But in a minimum like we have here, opener can hold up his ace once and dummy is dead for all practical purposes.

The other reason for passing is that when RHO bids 2H on a bad suit like this, he is more likely to have outside compensating values. This means that partner's values are likely sitting wrong.

I pass because I believe we are more likely to go plus defending 2H then we are playing 2S unless partner can reopen with a double. This is a corrollary to the law of total tricks - 4333 is a negative law adjustment, as is values in their suit.

Yes, 2S is in range if responder had not made a call. But responder's calls change my evaluation all of the time, and change what is appropriate with any given hand.

[Phil]

2♠. Some more axioms:

- Bidding spades when they have hearts and its close works out whenever either 2♥ or 2♠ makes.
- My range for 2♠ is much wider when my RHO takes a call.
- The auction is not over - LHO may take a call over 2♠, and thats a good thing.

Side note - I have a way to show a mixed raise over 2♥, which is important for partner's evaluation and his decision to bid 3 over 3, so I'm even more comfortable bidding 2♠.

Granted, partner would pass 2♥ with a weak NT hand and three hearts, but he'd also pass 2♥ with a weak NT hand holding two hearts.

[Phil]

SteveMoe, on 2012-August-22, 01:57, said:

I think this is a clear pass. ♥KJ are values partner expects me to have elsewhere. Since EW don't have ♥KJ they have something equivalent where we need strength in a 2♠ contract. I have no ruffing values and only 3 small ♠. Pass and hope they get too high.

I think this is backwards. I would much rather have ♥KJT + ♣xxx than the other way around.

[CSGibson]

I would also like to say that I think this is a close decision (ie, change very little about the hand and I would act), but I also believe that pass is clearly right.

I think pass is going to have us go plus more often then bidding - we have 2+ defensive tricks, while partner is for practical purposes playing the whole thing out of his hand in spades.

Passing also makes it harder for opponents to get to their right minor suit fit if their spot isn't hearts, because it removes double from the table.

Partner will not let 2H be the final contract with a stiff heart, and will not frequently pass it out with a small doubleton, either. Passing does not preclude playing 2S, it just keeps partner from over-competing to 3 as often.