August 2013 - 59

Special Contributors

Dear Billy
BY BILLY MILLER

Dear Billy,
I picked up this beauty today at my
local club game:
ࡕ2 ࡖA Q 10 9 5 4 3 ࡗK J 9 6 ࡔA.
My partner's hand was:
ࡕJ 9 6 3 ࡖK J 8 7 ࡗA Q ࡔ5 4 3.
We weren't vul, the opponents
were. I opened 1ࡖ, partner responded 1ࡕ, I jumped to 3ࡖ and partner
went to 4ࡖ, ending the auction. The
opponents were silent throughout.
As you can see, we missed an easy
slam. In the postmortem, partner
said it was more important to mention spades than support hearts
initially. She also claimed my heart
jump only shows 16-18 HCP with
six or more hearts. This very well
may be, but my counterpoint was
she should have supported me on the
first round by upgrading the hand,
turned a blind eye to the spades,
and made a Jacoby 2NT bid to show
the heart support. This would have
made my decision a whole lot easier.
However, partner also noted that
perhaps it would have been better in
the auction for me to have jumped to
3ࡗ instead of 3ࡖ. I agree. We don't
use splinters. (What the heck would
I bid if we did?) I hope this paints an
accurate picture. I would dearly love
your esteemed input on this matter.
Slamless in 'Cisco
Dear Slumpin' Slammy,
Your partner's 1ࡕ bid was horrifying.
This is what my dear friend Hamish

Bennett would call, "hiding the ball."
When you know a nine-card fit or
better exists in hearts, the spade suit
needs to take a back seat. The spade fit
cannot exceed the heart fit, so use the
tried-and-true expert method: Support
your partner!
Your partner's hand qualifies for an
old-fashioned limit raise. She has four
trumps and 11 HCP. A classic. Nothing
special about that hand. Not worthy of
an upgrade to a Jacoby 2NT bid. A limit
raise will get you to slam. You will cuebid 4ࡔ, and she will follow with 4ࡗ.
Key Card Blackwood will do the rest.
Case closed.
I will say that I agree that your
original 3ࡖ rebid was a gross underbid.
With that said, the person that makes
the first error gets the most blame! (In
the future, please learn to use splinter
bids. They are a big winner.)
Dear Billy,
South is dealer. East-West are
vulnerable.
Sitting West, I was about to open
1NT with:
ࡕQ J 2 ࡖA J ࡗK 8 3 2 ࡔA 10 9 8,
when South opened 1ࡖ. Deciding
that my ࡖJ was now worth zero,
I doubled for takeout. My partner
leaped to 4ࡕ going down five! The
opps scoffed when I tabled my hand,
saying that I must have four of the
other major for my double. (I know
from your articles that would be

nice, but not imperative.) My partner
joined in. What should I have done?
Partner's hand was:
ࡕK 8 5 4 ࡖ - ࡗ10 9 7 ࡔK Q 7 5 3 2.
P.S. Even the next day the opps
sneered at my call. Help!
Bruised from All Sides in Sudbury
Dear Battered and Sudsy,
Before discussing the merits of your
bid, allow me to say that your opponents have no business chiming in on
your business. That is rude. Same goes
for your partner. Discuss your disagreements away from the table if you want
to develop a first-class partnership.
Now on to your bidding.
Allow me to clear up a misconception: A takeout double does not promise
four in the other major, only three or
more cards in all unbid suits. I have
heard this theory before, but only from
less-experienced players. The idea of
waiting for four of the other major to
make a takeout double is too restrictive and would undoubtedly force you
into making some frighteningly weak
two-level overcalls, something I detest.
I am not nearly as down on the ࡖJ as
you are. It is well-positioned behind the
heart bidder and could come in handy.
Your takeout double is acceptable, and
a 1NT overcall is also fine. This is a bit
of a tossup. Personally, I'd cuebid 2ࡖ
with partner's hand over a double, and
when you rebid 2NT, he should back off
of spades and introduce clubs. Getting
to 5ࡔ might be the top score.
■
August 2013 Bridge Bulletin

59
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2013
