August 2014 - 56

Intermediate Players

Better Bridge with Bergen
BY MARTY BERGEN

 www.martybergen.com

Slam bidding in review - part 11
Let's continue our splinter bid partnership checklist.
In Nos. 10-12, does your partnership treat the last bid as a splinter? For
experienced players, I think that the
last bid on all three hands should be
splinter bids.

10
1

West
1♠
4♣

East
2♥

♠A 9 8 6 5 ♥A 10 6 4 ♦A 8 4 ♣8
❏ Yes ❏ No
Whether or not partner's 2♥ response was game forcing, opposite
his five-plus hearts and a reasonable
hand, I am extremely interested in a
heart slam. The key ingredient for good
slams in a suit contract is not the number of high-card points. I'd much rather
have a hand with lots of trumps, good
distribution, and excellent controls.
That describes this hand to a T.

11

West
1♣
2♥

East
1♠
4♦

♠A K J 5 2 ♥Q 8 6 4 ♦7 ♣Q 8 5
❏ Yes ❏ No

56 Bridge Bulletin August 2014

12

West
2♣
2♥

East
2♦
3♠

♠7 ♥10 8 6 3 ♦K 8 6 5 4 ♣9 8 4
❏ Yes ❏ No
A student: "3 HCP! Don't you think
you're getting a little 'points schmoints'
carried away here?"
Because opener needs so much
strength to open 2♣, responder needs
very little strength to splinter. Remember, 26 points between the two hands
is enough to make a splinter bid. The
value of a 2♣ opener is almost always
upwards of 22 HCP. With a known
nine-plus card fit, both players get to
re-evaluate. The value of their hands is
even greater. If opener had rebid 2♠,
this would have been just another weak
hand. But once partner bid hearts, you
should evaluate it as 7 points: 3 HCP
+ 1 point for the five-card suit + 3 for
the singleton (holding four-card trump
support).

13 Does your partnership treat
responder's jump response in
competition as a splinter?
❏ Yes ❏ No
I recommend no. Many years ago, I
was playing in a U.S. Team Trials. My
partner was an expert with whom I
played infrequently. With neither side

vulnerable, I picked up:
♠K Q J 10 9 2 ♥8 4 ♦3 ♣10 9 5 2.
West North
Partner
1♥
2♦

East
Me
3♠

South
Pass

After the 2♦ overcall, I was delighted to make a 3♠ weak jump shift. This
not only described my hand rather
well, but might also make life difficult
for the opponents. My LHO passed,
and I was surprised when partner bid
4NT. I dutifully showed my one key
card. Partner's next bid, however, was a
big surprise and an even bigger disappointment.
Can you figure out what he was
thinking and what he bid?
My partner thought 3♠ was a splinter in support of hearts. This fit his
strong, distributional heart hand well:
♠7 5 ♥K 9 7 6 5 3 2 ♦A K 5 ♣A.
Once he "knew" that I had one ace,
he bid 6♥. This was doubled, and
needless to say, we did not fare well.
Although you might accuse me of
being stubborn, I still believe that this
competitive 3♠ jump shift should be
defined as a weak jump shift rather
than a splinter. While you are more
than welcome to disagree with me,
what is much more important is
that you discuss it with your favorite
partner(s) and make sure that you will
never have a similar disaster.
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2014
