[Poky]

All love.

pa - pa - 2♠ - pa
pa - ???

♠x
♥109x
♦KJ109x
♣KQJx

[the hog]

As much as I think you should protect, this hand is stretching it. Give me a 4th H and one less D and X is obvious. With the given hand I would probably pass, but certainly have a good deal of sympathy for anyone who doubles.

Ron

[inquiry]

Ok, I am going to balance, because I ahve a very good hand in support for any suit my partner MIGHT bid. Say he bids hearts, I have the heart ten (1 Zar pt), 10 hcp, 2 control pts, 13 distibutional points.

The advantage to double is you might get to play 2SX. The biggest disadvantage to doubling is... you might get to play 2Sx'ed. Bidding 3D or 2NT loses out on the 2Sx option, and when 2Sx is really right, 3D will not be so good. All you need to do is train your parnter who lacks a good hand from bidding 3H on four hearts if also has support for a minor. Since you are a passed hand, all you want to do is land on your feet if he is not strong. So I anticipate he might bid 2NT, to give us the best chance to land on our feet at the three level. For insstance, if he holds...

S-Jxxx H-KQxx D-Qxxx C-x, I expect him to bid 2NT, and when I bid 3C, to bid 3D... and we land in a nice 5-4 fit.

Ben

[whereagles]

I would double in most situations. Pass if I'm in Zia's heat 3 (the losing streak!).

[Fluffy]

This is a problem of partner´s agreement, not on judgement IMO, if your partner will normally bid with 13+ you are goign to pass here, but if you partner needs about 15 its time to double.

[luke warm]

first of all, i don't trust the 3rd seat 2S bid... it could be any strength from 5 to 14... even so, i can't stand passing this... knowing ahead of time that pard is bidding 3H with 4 of them, i still have to double.. maybe we won't get ripped too badly

[han]

I would double, but I think that 2NT is very close. I'd feel better if I had the same agreement as Ben has, which I don't.

[pclayton]

Double is easy playing some sort of scrambling 2N (in response to the double). Maybe 2N by a passed hand should be for the minors (or a ♥/minor 2 suiter); certainly you're not balancing over 2♠ with AJx, xxx, AQxx, xxx.

[inquiry]

luke warm, on Sep 26 2004, 10:14 AM, said:

first of all, i don't trust the 3rd seat 2S bid... it could be any strength from 5 to 14... even so, i can't stand passing this... knowing ahead of time that pard is bidding 3H with 4 of them, i still have to double.. maybe we won't get ripped too badly

Teach your parnters (and yourself) scambling 2NT... that is what i described, that is what phil says he needs to be playing to make double comfortable. Without it, you can't bid hands like this one.

[luke warm]

i do play it, but we call it leb lol... the 'old' description of scrambling and gb 2nt said they were on every time ops bid and raised a suit... so many applications of the theme tho, i love the bids

[inquiry]

Good/bad and lebehnshol is or can be considered the same.. but it differs from scrambling...

Think lebehnshol like if we open 1NT and they overcall.. if we bid at three level, we have a suit and want to force... if we have a suit and just want to sign off, we bid 2NT and partnter bids 3C.. NO MATTER what he holds and we pass if our suit is clubs or we bid our suit (simplified)....

But scramble is different. Here we have two places to paly... we bid 2NT and if partner bids 3C.. he is suggesting he has clubs.. if he bids 3D.. he is suggesting diamonds and the next higher unbid suit.

Ben

[the hog]

As Ben points out, scrambling is quite different - here is what we play

Bid scramble 2NT when:
You have a weak hand without 4 Major
You have a weak hand with 5H, (over a 2♠ opening)
You have a GF hand with 4 Major and no stopper
You have a GF hand with 4 Major and a stopper


(2♠) X (P) 2NT

2NT= asks partner to pick a minor. Then

Pass / 3D / 3♥ = weak, no game interest
3♠ =FG, 4♥, no STOP.
3NT = FG, 4♥, STOP.





Over (2♠ = nat) X = TO. Then:

3♣ = to play (wide range, since can’t bid 2NT with just C suit)
3D / 3♥ = some game interest, invitational
3♠ =FG, not 4♥, no STOP. 3NT = FG, not 4♥, STOP.

Likewise over (2♥ = nat) X.

[Free]

Pass, end of story, next board plz