[Siegmund]

Your mission, should you choose to accept it: stop in a makeable contract. South deals, uncontested auction.

♠x
♥Jx
♦x
♣AKQJxxxxx

♠AKTxxxxx
♥Qxx
♦AQ
♣---

Our own auction left something to be desired; I will post it later, and we can discuss which was the first wheel to detach.

[Fluffy]

Let me see

1♠-2♣ (GF)
3♠-4♣ (set spades as trumps)
4♦-4♠
[ass

some cuebidding leads to 4♠, is it makeable?

If south decides that AK 8th is not enough for setting it as trumps, north will set clubs as trumps with a jump to 4♣, and some cuebidding ends up in 5♣.

[CamHenry]

If I held the South hand, I'd open it Namyats. Sure, there's the opportunity cost of a natural 4m preempt, but every now and again you get to stop in 4♠ and have play for an overtrick if everything breaks :-)

[Siegmund]

My partner tried 1S-2C, 3S-4NT, 5C(0314)-6C, and with a void in clubs, I went back to 6S. Partner was hopping mad I took him out of his clubs that "make six if they don't lead a heart". Heh.

[gszes]

1s
2c (gf)
3s a suit quality bid showing at least 6 and suit good enough to play for 1 loser opposite a singleton
4d cue (4c would have shown spade void and superb clubs) (3N spade void other suits stopped).
4s denies heart control
p singleton spade no heart control

[PhilKing]

I think ...

1♠ 2♣
3♠ 4♣
4♦ 5♣

... is totally standard. If your methods forbid this auction, you are basically a member of a religious cult.

[Cyberyeti]

 CamHenry, on 2013-August-19, 06:14, said:

If I held the South hand, I'd open it Namyats. Sure, there's the opportunity cost of a natural 4m preempt, but every now and again you get to stop in 4♠ and have play for an overtrick if everything breaks :-)

Not on a trump lead you won't, -1 unless you get very lucky, 5♣ is the spot.

[Lord Molyb]

1♣ - 3♠
4♣ - 4♦
5♣

1♣ = Precision
3♠ = Any solid 7-card + suit
4♣ = Asks for controls
4♦ = No outside controls
5♣ = Signoff

[aguahombre]

Wrong orientation for NAMYATS, which should be a known number of tricks with that suit as trumps. Also, no need to jump to 3S if 2C is game forcing. A jump on the second round by responder in clubs would pretty much show his hand.

5C can be bid, or maybe stopping at 4S, with that discipline.

[the hog]

 PhilKing, on 2013-August-19, 09:10, said:

I think ...

1♠ 2♣
3♠ 4♣
4♦ 5♣

... is totally standard. If your methods forbid this auction, you are basically a member of a religious cult.

I agree with this. I do not see why the 3S bid should unilaterally set S and why 4C should now be a cue as some suggest. For heaven's sake, let me rebid my solid C suit naturally.

[the hog]

 Siegmund, on 2013-August-19, 08:49, said:

My partner tried 1S-2C, 3S-4NT, 5C(0314)-6C, and with a void in clubs, I went back to 6S. Partner was hopping mad I took him out of his clubs that "make six if they don't lead a heart". Heh.

Your partner bid badly, but you bid even worse. 4NT by partner is poor and will do nothing to diagnose 2 losers in a red suit. Pulling to 6S is....well, what can I say?

[Siegmund]

Quote

Pulling to 6S is....well, what can I say?

It had something to do that, for most of my life, 6C was GSF (after steam Blackwood); without discussion I assumed it was some type of further cuebid/probe toward a possible grand. The chance of his clubs really being better than my 8 spades, at matchpoints, seemed pretty remote if he didn't care to bid 4C over 3S. It did at least cross my mind he might have been trying to play clubs.

[the hog]

 Siegmund, on 2013-August-19, 20:23, said:

It had something to do that, for most of my life, 6C was GSF (after steam Blackwood); without discussion I assumed it was some type of further cuebid/probe toward a possible grand. The chance of his clubs really being better than my 8 spades, at matchpoints, seemed pretty remote if he didn't care to bid 4C over 3S. It did at least cross my mind he might have been trying to play clubs.

Fair comment!