Last week we covered whether or not to compete over opponents at the five level.
Last week we covered whether or not to compete over opponents at the five level. This week we’ll investigate two especially interesting cases. North is dealing, with North-South vulnerable:
NORTH
♠ 10
♥️ K J 7
♦️ Q J 9 6
♣️ A K Q 10 9
WEST EAST
♠ A Q 7 5 3 2 ♠ K J 9 8 6
♥️ 5 ♥️ 10 6 4
♦️ A ♦️10 8 7
♣️ 8 5 4 3 2 ♣️ 7 6
SOUTH
♠ 4
♥️ A Q 9 8 3 2
♦️ K 5 4 3 2
♣️ J
The bidding proceeded as follows:
North East South West
1♣️ Pass 1♥️ 1♠
DBL• 4♠ 5♥️ 5♠
DBL All Pass
• Support double showing three hearts
Opening lead: ♣️A
East-West were relying on the concept of “total tricks,” meaning that in competition players can bid to the same level as their combined trumps. With 11 spades, East-West bid to the 11 level with 5♠.
North-South were hamstrung. They weren’t strong enough to bid a slam, so they had to settle for a penalty double. East-West went down one for all of -100. Had they conceded the auction to North-South’s 5♥️, the contract would have made and cost them -650.
It was the best of all possible worlds for East-West: bidding the boss suit at favorable vulnerability. The only way North-South could prosper was setting East-West four for -800. And that wasn’t going to happen.
So let’s give East-West credit for competing with 5♠ over opponents’ 5♥️. Usually competing at the five level is a questionable tactic. This time it succeeded admirably.
Here’s another bidding case. As dealer, you are dealt:
♠ A K J 3
♥️ Q 7
♦️ Q 2
♣️ K 10 9 5 4
What do you bid?
A.—First off, it’s fine to bid 1NT with two doubletons. In fact, you can open 1NT with a singleton, as long as it’s an ace, a king, or a queen.
What happens with this hand if you open 1♣️ and partner bids 1NT? You can’t very well rebid 2♠, because that’s a reverse showing at least 16 high-card points. Fifteen-HCP hands like this one are made for 1NT bids.
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