[helene_t]

Having failed to show my hearts before I really have to bid 5♥ now. OK, 4♠ is a retarded bid so it could very well be that we need to defend. These retarded bids come up all the time at the club and on BBO and it is really hard to assess what is going on. Yesterday in a similar auction LHO had an average weak two and RHO just doubleton support, and they went for a phone number. But last month I remember a similar situation where LHO turned out to have an 8-card suit and made her doubled contract with an overtrick.

[Fluffy]

ceeb, on Jun 9 2010, 06:12 AM, said:

Post prandial judgment maybe, but pass & 5♥ seems obvious to me. Pass over 3♠ because despite 10 card ♥ fit this is a 9-loser hand

how many spades do you expect partner to have? instead of counting your losers try imagining a couple of partner's possible hands and you will see the light

[andy_h]

This is a preemptive auction, partner should know that we are under some pressure. There are lots of average 13-14 counts where partner has a singleton spade and 4♥ would be a good game.

[mikeh]

RichMor, on Jun 8 2010, 03:25 PM, said:

a  ) Dunno. Bidding 4♥ is left-hand Jacoby. It will usually transfer them into 4♠. Does 4♥ suggest a 5-level save at equal vulnerability ? Is this the right hand ? Think I will Pass over 3♠

b  )  Pass. Like Kevin said.

RichM

Bidding 4♥ will very rarely, if ever, transfer competent opps into 4♠. Only very bad players tend to bid like these opps bid. So unless one wants to play bad bridge all the time, one should try to bid these problems as if playing competent opps. My memory is imperfect but I don't recalll ever playing good opps who bid 4♠ in these sequences. 3♠ assumed captaincy: for all the weak 2 bidder knows, 4♥ may be exactly what the 3♠ bidder was hoping for, especially if the weak 2 bidder is very short in hearts.

[whereagles]

4♥ before. Not having done so, now it's a matter of who LHO is. Opposite a loonie, pass. Opposite a serious player, bid 5♥.

[gnasher]

In my world, partner's second double says "I think we might have been able to make something, even though you couldn't bid over 3♠."

Since I have, in fact, an obvious 4♥ bid over 3♠, I have substantially more playing strength than partner expects. If he thinks we might have made 4♥ opposite the dross that I'm supposed to have, it doesn't seem unreasonable to hope that we can make 5♥ with the rather useful hand that I actually have.

What can we expect to get from 4♠? Perhaps not that much, if LHO has the unusual hand to go with his unusual action. I'd bid 5♥.

[Codo]

I had to pass one double and to bid hearts over the other double.
ISo now I would hope that two wrongs make a right and bid 5 ♥.

[hanp]

Agree with gnasaher, 5H now.