[jillybean]

Scoring: IMP

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West North East South

 Pass  1♦    Pass  1♠
 Pass  3♦    Pass  3♥
 Pass  4♦    Pass  5♦
 Pass  Pass  Pass  

Should we have bid it?

[mike777]

Minor suit slams are always tough to bid.

Minor suit jump rebids have quite a large range. I find if you can try and have jump rebids in a minor show a stiff or side void it helps. That means without one you try and bid the hands otherwise.


Prefer 4d slam try rather than 3h. 3nt or 5d over 3d would be sign off.

It helps that I play 4h now as rkc and not 4nt but even if stuck with 4nt over 4d as rkc we should be ok.

[paulg]

I don't necessarily agree with all Mike says, but he's certainly right that minor suit slams are often tough to bid.

North clearly bid 3♥ as a cue bid/waiting this time, but of course it could have been a 5-5 major hand looking for 3-card support. This often complicates matters too, but in this case I think South can make a 4♣ cue bid and await developments.

When North then bids 4♦, setting the suit, then you can cue bid 4♥. This will probably be enough for you to bid the slam.

But I stress that I don't think it is simple.

[han]

South didn't try.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

I like the bidding up to 4D.

Being South, I would have a problem after 4D,
I am not sure what to bid.
4D certainly did set the tump suit, ... maybe we
can construct a North hand with a 6331 shape,
that would bid the same, so 4S by South should
be a cue, but it is not clear.
So I would say, it is one of those deals, when a
player (in this case South) has to make a decision
"go / no go", ... and he made the "wrong" one.

Maybe South should have bid 3S instead of 3H, but
than North may by pass 3NT with club values and no
stopper in hearts.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[skjaeran]

3♥ by south is ambigous, it could be just stopper showing, aiming for 3NT. Over 4♦ south should cuebid 4♠ IMO (yes, it HAS to be a cuebid, since 3♠ over 3♦ is a natural GF).

That also clarifies that 3♥ was intended as a cuebid agreeing ♦'s (5♦ is what you bid with a hand that was looking for 3NT and has no slam interest), and north has enough information to bid 6♦.

[mcphee]

I think the N hand is too good for 3D which generally shows 7 ish playing tricks sound suit, so I feel N should have reversed to 2H even though it is a 3 card suit.

I do not agree that 3H is a cue for D. Who plays 4D at imps? So basically we are looking for the best game.

4D wasted effort and maybe 4C would have helped after N has indicated a sisngle suited hand.

This is a slam I would like to be in even though it may fail.

[brianshark]

skaeran, on Sep 1 2008, 12:15 PM, said:

3♥ by south is ambigous, it could be just stopper showing, aiming for 3NT. Over 4♦ south should cuebid 4♠ IMO (yes, it HAS to be a cuebid, since 3♠ over 3♦ is a natural GF).

If south knows partner will interpret it this way, then that seems like a good bid. But if south wasn't certain, I have a lot of sympathy for 5♦ and indeed the auction as a whole.