[Winstonm]

 gwnn, on 2012-January-27, 03:54, said:

It's just water cooler slang avocados, bacon, zambonis, kittens and Republicans are common topics of conversation here, be it about food or otherwise.

You forgot the Finnish tomatoes.

[kenberg]

An error that for some reason I remember fondly: Many years back I was driving up a farm road to pick up my daughter who was taking horseback riding lessons. A narrow road and here comes some fool barreling down the center of the road. I head off to the edge. I rarely get into altercations in these situations but this was too much and I gave the idiot a piece of my mind. He apologized and drove off. Later I learned the stable had set up one way roads and the way on this one wasn't the way I was going.

I really don't know why it pleases me but I got so thoroughly angry and was so thoroughly wrong I still smile thinking of it. Perhaps the other driver also enjoys telling about the nut case he encountered one day.

[Antrax]

That totally happened to me. I visited my sister in her new home, and going back some idiot is driving in the middle, and honking at me like crazy. I usually honk back in the same pattern, figuring they want to start a band or something, but this guy just keeps honking and flashing his lights. Figuring his wife is giving birth or he's fleeing from the police or something, I move aside, and passing through he yells at me "what are you honking about, this is a one way street you idiot"

[blackshoe]

Heh. Some years ago, I went for the first time to visit my brother in Utica. He told me "get off the Thruway, drive North on this road to the third light, take a left, go down four blocks, and when you come to the one way street going south, turn right." I said "you want me to go north on a southbound one way street?" He said "Yeah. The house is right there on the corner."

[Winstonm]

Fortunately for me, I have never made a mistake or been wrong about anything.

[barmar]

 Winstonm, on 2012-January-28, 16:08, said:

Fortunately for me, I have never made a mistake or been wrong about anything.

me iether

[Antrax]

Feb. 6, our first real (= outside the club) tournament. The format is the ever-popular matchpoints, and all the good players are playing the IMP teams next door, so the pressure is on to prove ourselves as better-than-average intermediates.

I pick up
♠7
♥AJ543
♦T52
♣A863

LHO deals and partner opens 1♠. With silent opposition, our auction continues:
1♠-1NT (forcing)
2♦-2♥ (I have no idea what this bid means, I think it should mean roughly my hand, i.e. 5+ hearts not strong enough for 2/1 but still has game prospects opposite a non-minimum opener. We haven't discussed it though, strangely enough)
4♥ (he also has no clue what it means, but this way I have to play)

LHO leads a club, and I see:
♠AK943
♥Q62
♦AK4
♣JT

What a marvelous hand, played probably from the opposite side than most people. Being in a serious tournament, I ask about their lead style, get the cryptic "this club carries no meaning for me", and play from dummy. LHO plays the Q and I win the ace. Clearly I have my contract - I just need to pitch a diamond on a spade and ruff them clubs. If the 9 falls, I won't even have to ruff twice. If the finesse works, that even one less loser. Hurrah for undiscussed bidding!
However, it seems that if RHO is a good player, I might not get my finesse even if it's on, since I need dummy's hearts for ruffing. Hmm, I wonder how I can get an extra trick without losing out on the finesse opportunity? Hang on, if the opposing spades are 3-3, I may get two pitches for clubs and the finesse is my 13th trick!
Armed with this plan, I continue the play: spade to the ace, test the heart finesse with a heart to the J (since the opponents will never continue trumps, of course, and there's no risk of three club losers). The finesse loses, and a diamond comes back. Hah! I cash the ♠K pitching a diamond, ruff a spade, noting both follow, finish drawing trumps ending in dummy and run my spades. Unfortunately, the 13th spade holds the trick, two club tricks follow, and I get a deserved -1 despite the poor defense opposite.
My only excuse was "sorry partner, I can't count". Strangely, that wasn't a bottom - some other declarers tried either this or more brilliant plans, with one result showing 150 the other way.

There's plenty more from that day, but I have to leave soon to generate more stories. BTW, despite the terrible blunders from that day (and I made plenty), we somehow finished the first round with a 54% score and the second with a 60, placing eight and about 1% away from my first international master point (assuming that means anything outside Israel). I can only imagine what stories other pairs can tell.

[gwnn]

Your partner should rebid 2NT with that hand (not that it matters that much), not 2♦. Anyway, too bad spades didn't split 3-3 (or maybe 3.5-3.5)!

[mgoetze]

 barmar, on 2012-January-28, 18:51, said:

me iether

It would have been a lot more subtle had you written "me either". For those that don't get it, you could have simultaneously posted in the "pet peeves" thread about people confusing "either" and "neither".

[Antrax]

Right, last night wasn't too bad except I'm terrible at judging outcomes. The session I felt good about was a 48%, the one I thought was so-so was 58%. I think I just remember the "interesting" hands when something Bridgemaster-y finally works instead of being overly complicated and you end up finding out the finesse was on to begin with.

Still in Feb. 6:
I can't for the life of me remember the auction, but the opponents wound up in a 4♥X and a spade lead was somehow requested by partner. Holding:
♠T5
♥AJ
♦AJ964
♣T964

I dutifully lead the ♠T, and dummy comes down:
♠A3
♥T762
♦K52
♣QJ85

Declarer calls for the ace, partner showing encouragement, and then plays a heart from dummy. Partner plays low, and declarer plays the 9 from hand. I win the J, and the blunder is on. The thing is this: my lead was from a doubleton, but I don't want partner to give me a ruff. Instead, I'd like him to switch to a diamond. How can I tell partner "hey guy, don't give me a ruff"? For sure, I can just cash my ace of hearts. I read somewhere that such plays really help partner. So I lay down the ♥A, partner signals encouragement with his ♥K, and declarer wins his +730.
For the life of me, I couldn't figure out what I was thinking, later on. What does it matter if I ruff with my ace, is dummy going to pitch all three diamonds on that one spade trick? And why did I think declarer played low to the 9 if he holds KQ of hearts?
Bleh.

[Antrax]

And one a BBF-er might recognize except I don't think she reads the water cooler:

Partner deals and it's passed to me. I'm holding an ugly "three blank aces" hand, with 4-4 minors. For some reason I choose to open this 1♣ to ensure I'll be later stuck for a rebid (I really don't want to play 1NT holding three aces against this pair, which I know to be good). LHO chimes in with 2♥, and partner bids 2♠, passed to me. Now I'm at a loss - I have to bid SOMETHING, but what? I can't reverse into 3♦, I won't rebid my Axxx of clubs, and I can't be 2NT because we have no agreements on what it is and also what is it anyway?
Finally I decide that Ax of spades is support because partner is favourite to have six spades and not have opened a weak two despite now showing a maximum pass for some reason, and raise to 3♠, which sends partner to tank. Finally be bids 4♠ and we drift two off, mercifully undoubled, when partner's spades are JT842.
At least now I learned that in this situation, 2♠ isn't forcing. Makes a lot of sense, if you think about it.

[BunnyGo]

 Antrax, on 2012-February-09, 01:15, said:

Right, last night wasn't too bad except I'm terrible at judging outcomes. The session I felt good about was a 48%, the one I thought was so-so was 58%. I think I just remember the "interesting" hands when something Bridgemaster-y finally works instead of being overly complicated and you end up finding out the finesse was on to begin with.

Great posts. Good luck with the rest of the tournament. I'm sorry I won't make it down to meet you, but at the last minute I wasn't able to travel this week. Hopefully another time.

As far as judging outcomes, one thing that helped me get much better at it was after every hand I wrote one of -2,-1,0,1,2 next to the hand (depending on whether I thought it was a 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%). You then add all the numbers up, and add it to 50 to get your expected percentage. This helped me in several ways:

1) Trying to judge the hand immediately helped me analyze objectively the score (thinking about whether we'd have done better competing, different line, etc.)

2) Writing down every board helped me not focus on clear tops or bottoms and aim for steady non negative numbers (especially trying to avoid -2).

3) Doing it like this helped me appreciate how every hand counts the same (I knew it of course, but had trouble keeping it in mind while playing) and how much it counts (up to 2% either way).

4) I was able to learn by comparing what I thought a board would be to what actually happened, this was also a good learning tool.

[BunnyGo]

 Antrax, on 2012-February-09, 01:24, said:

And one a BBF-er might recognize except I don't think she reads the water cooler:

Partner deals and it's passed to me. I'm holding an ugly "three blank aces" hand, with 4-4 minors. For some reason I choose to open this 1♣ to ensure I'll be later stuck for a rebid (I really don't want to play 1NT holding three aces against this pair, which I know to be good). LHO chimes in with 2♥, and partner bids 2♠, passed to me. Now I'm at a loss - I have to bid SOMETHING, but what? I can't reverse into 3♦, I won't rebid my Axxx of clubs, and I can't be 2NT because we have no agreements on what it is and also what is it anyway?
Finally I decide that Ax of spades is support because partner is favourite to have six spades and not have opened a weak two despite now showing a maximum pass for some reason, and raise to 3♠, which sends partner to tank. Finally be bids 4♠ and we drift two off, mercifully undoubled, when partner's spades are JT842.
At least now I learned that in this situation, 2♠ isn't forcing. Makes a lot of sense, if you think about it.

I imagine you're playing some form of Israeli Acol? Either way, I'd open 1♦ with this hand, and unless I have an explicit partnership agreement to do otherwise I don't think it's that close. Opening 1♣ puts you in a worse spot it competitive auctions (which are likely with a 12 count 3rd seat opener). What would you have done over:

1C-(1H)-X-(P)
??

I guess 2D, but I'd be very sad about it compared to:

1D-(1H)-X-(P)
2C

Also, yes. Opposite a passed hand holding a minimum opener with Ax in support and no shape, there's no reason to bid on.

[Antrax]

Israeli standard (which teaches to open the lower of two four-card minors, and the better of two three-card minors if your hand is 4-3-3-3) + 2/1 (+ some judgment when I don't forget my brain at home ).

[Antrax]

lol I found out what a vul. 4Hx+3 scores for the opponents. But at least I'm not alone: http://www.bridgebas...t-is-x-meaning/

[Antrax]

Feb. 21: partner and I moved to different dimensions. No need to include hands, this time mostly blundering auctions.

LHO deals and opens:
(1♠) - p - (p) - 2♣
(p) - 2NT - (3♠) - p
(4♠) - X - (p) - p
(p)
+590

or, try this one on:
(p)-p-(1♣)-1NT
(2♥)-X-(2♠)-p
-(p)-X-AP

+570, the opponents unsurprisingly could make their 8-card fit on the 2-level with a combined 20 HCP.

(1♥)-1♠-(p)-2♠
(3♦)-3♥-(4♦)-X
AP, +710

We seriously need to go back to basics. Also, note to self, hide partner's X and 2NT bidding cards.

[gwnn]

I claimed 5♣x= (instead of +1) because I didn't realise you could discard losers on winners.

But what's wrong with 2NT? It is not a bad bid in and of itself. You could have ~11-12 points with a spade stop or so.

[Antrax]

Please forgive the Bridge content then, but how strong should responder be to try and look for a game after I balance?

[Antrax]

Tried to use BunnyGo's assessment method. It predicted 56%, we ended with 58% despite me being a wuss and bidding only 5♦ when the bidding starts (1♠)-2NT-4NT to me, and I'm holding JT seventh of diamonds and four clubs. At least I kicked myself afterwards. Even 7 was a good save.

The correlation of MP to the -2/+2 scale isn't too bad, though I do have some -1s ranging from 50 to 70%. Silly me for thinking a 22 HCP 3NT+1 the opponents blundered onto would be a bad score.

[gwnn]

 Antrax, on 2012-February-22, 03:05, said:

Please forgive the Bridge content then, but how strong should responder be to try and look for a game after I balance?

11-12 with a spade stop or so. He could also flat out force to game with 14-ish (too short in hearts for a t/o x, or too flat if you don't like doubling on 4333 hands with HHx in spades, say - I do). This is my opinion though, buyer beware, but I don't recall any serious discussion on these auctions (1M-p-p-2m; p-??).