[jillybean]

I would appreciate just a few words regarding these auctions. Don't hold back.

IMP
#1 (7)

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#2 (9)

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[mike777]

1) I don't understand South's bidding at all.

Not that I would have done all that great on this misfit. I Probably end up in Two spades
Edit, I open one club if they overcall one no trump, I pass as South.

Missing 4-4 diamond fits on part score hands is a weakness of my style.

2) Prefer pass to double, however I have committed worse crimes

[mikeh]

Opening in third with a minimum hand, a short weak suit, rebid problems looming, most of yiur values in a short suit,and short in spades is, imo, hopeless.

1. With Q10xx you do not want partner competing in diamonds

2. You probably don’t want to suggest a diamond lead

3. The odds are high that someone, LHO or partner, is going to bid spades. If it’s LHO, you might survive but if it’s partner, you have a terrible rebid problem regardless of what LHO did over 1D.

I open most (virtually all) 11 counts in first or second, but once partner has passed (and obviously I expect him to open virtually all 11 counts…and a few 10 counts) I pass with these hands.

You should have survived opening on the first hand. 2S is a stretch. I’d probably make a negative double and bid 2S over 2H, if partner bid hearts and otherwise I bid diamonds. 2N was god awful. Sub minimum values, no conceivable source of tricks….partner doesn’t rate to hold club help (which he does). I’d pass 2S. Sure, I’d hate it but the first lesson when one finds oneself in a hole is to stop digging. Your decision to open that piece of crap has created the problem….don’t make it worse



On the second hand, my main partner would probably double. Me? I’d probably pass.

[jillybean]

thanks

[DavidKok]

I would have opened 2♠ as South on the first board, which I think would push East to 2NT (or perhaps 3♣) in passout. Thanks to the clubs split that rates to end up well for us.
I prefer 1♣ to 1♦ on this shape, though pass is potentially even better. I guess this is a style question. Normally I have the inference that partner likely doesn't hold a weak hand with long spades, making it a bit more attractive to open.
The 2NT bid was just bad. It looks like North panicked, not liking spades, and thought there was an opportunity to flee to NT. Even if this was possible it's a bad idea. When fixed, stay fixed.
The raise to 3NT after is normal.
In general I am not a fan of light third seat openings. This hand straddles the line between 'minimum' and 'light'. Again, this is a style question, and opening when in doubt is solid advice even if it sometimes backfires.

On the second board I would not have doubled. I regularly see club players being taught that takeout doubles and opening values are one and the same. This hand is much more of a grey area - we have a pancake shape, minimum values and no 4coM, but we have no wastage in hearts and if we don't act now we likely won't get another chance. Personally I would not double, but I know plenty of strong players who would.

[awm]

I disagree with a lot of the comments on the first board.

Opening this hand is borderline (and certainly I would open 1♣ and not 1♦ in my style) but I don't agree that it's somehow terrible. A lot of people would open in 1st seat ("rule of 20") and opening has a number of ways to win; if you pass it seems very unlikely you can compete for the partial (without much more significant risks anyway) so you're basically accepting -110 or whatever in the likely event that it's a partscore deal. It's not like partner will insist on spades (couldn't open or preempt) or is likely to hang you in a bad game (couldn't open).

Perhaps people are resulting a little when they suggest to pass 2♠? This obviously plays well given that South has KQJT6 of spades and no side cards to speak of, but surely it's normal to bid 2♠ on a hand with a broken spade suit like ♠KTxxx ♥Qx ♦AJxx ♣Jx (where 3♦ and 2NT have some chances while 2♠ is pretty ugly). Since the 2♠ bidder will virtually never have a six-card suit given the initial pass, it seems like passing 2♠ is committing to playing in a 5-1 fit where you know nothing about the quality of the five card suit, a dubious prospect at best.

I also don't understand the raise of 2NT to 3NT; South has a very minimum 2♠ bid and the knowledge that North doesn't have 3+♠ leaves doubt as to whether declarer can even get to dummy. Unless you think 2NT is somehow forcing (would be bizarre if South was an unpassed hand, but maybe some people have radically different agreements opposite a passed hand? I certainly don't) I can't see any reason for the 3NT raise rather than a preference back to diamonds.

[bluenikki]

jillybean, on 2026-August-05, 17:33, said:

I would appreciate just a few words regarding these auctions. Don't hold back.

IMP
#1 (7)

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My personal rule is "After a competitive auction, do not declare 2NT. Either bid game or chicken out into three of a suit."

In this case, the choice of opening bid is lucky, and I would have chickened out into 3♦.

[jillybean]

ok, I'm south.

I didn't open 2♠, it's a new partnersip. With a regular partner I'd hope this would become a normal 2♠ opening.
I do think X then correct 2♥ to ♠ is a better option.
3NT is aggressive, and I seriously considered pass. It's IMPs, and if partner had the hand I believed they were showing, I'm not totally ashamed of my call.


#2
I'm having some problems with my aggressive overcall style, perhaps a result of playing weakish non sanctioned MP games

[mikeh]

jillybean, on 2026-August-06, 06:15, said:

ok, I'm south.

I didn't open 2♠, it's a new partnersip. With a regular partner I'd hope this would become a normal 2♠ opening.
I do think X then correct 2♥ to ♠ is a better option.
3NT is aggressive, and I seriously considered pass. It's IMPs, and if partner had the hand I believed they were showing, I'm not totally ashamed of my call.


#2
I'm having some problems with my aggressive overcall style, perhaps a result of playing weakish non sanctioned MP games

Do you think you held anything extra for your 2S bid? I hope the answer is ‘no’. Then ask yourself whether partner, knowing you almost surely held exactly five spades (no weak 2), would have bid 3N with the hand you decided to play him for.

If you accept that he can’t have, for example, a strong 1N opening nor a hand too strong for 1N, nor a hand with running diamonds (such that 3N will have play), why would you not retreat to 3D?

[mikeh]

awm, on 2026-August-06, 02:18, said:

I disagree with a lot of the comments on the first board.

Opening this hand is borderline (and certainly I would open 1♣ and not 1♦ in my style) but I don't agree that it's somehow terrible. A lot of people would open in 1st seat ("rule of 20") and opening has a number of ways to win; if you pass it seems very unlikely you can compete for the partial (without much more significant risks anyway) so you're basically accepting -110 or whatever in the likely event that it's a partscore deal. It's not like partner will insist on spades (couldn't open or preempt) or is likely to hang you in a bad game (couldn't open).

Perhaps people are resulting a little when they suggest to pass 2♠? This obviously plays well given that South has KQJT6 of spades and no side cards to speak of, but surely it's normal to bid 2♠ on a hand with a broken spade suit like ♠KTxxx ♥Qx ♦AJxx ♣Jx (where 3♦ and 2NT have some chances while 2♠ is pretty ugly). Since the 2♠ bidder will virtually never have a six-card suit given the initial pass, it seems like passing 2♠ is committing to playing in a 5-1 fit where you know nothing about the quality of the five card suit, a dubious prospect at best.

I also don't understand the raise of 2NT to 3NT; South has a very minimum 2♠ bid and the knowledge that North doesn't have 3+♠ leaves doubt as to whether declarer can even get to dummy. Unless you think 2NT is somehow forcing (would be bizarre if South was an unpassed hand, but maybe some people have radically different agreements opposite a passed hand? I certainly don't) I can't see any reason for the 3NT raise rather than a preference back to diamonds.

I don’t understand your arguments, unless you generally play a sound opening philosophy in first and second seat. If you accept that partner cannot hold a good 11, please explain why opening 1C with that hand and that suit is a good idea….do you not anticipate a rebid issue?

As for passing 2S, what do you suggest? Bidding 2N is just silly. Justifying it by giving him Jx in clubs, in this auction, seems bizarre to me. I do agree that passing 2S is extremely unattractive, dooming us to play our almost certain 5-1 (although I occasionally play with a true expert who strongly believes that a first or second seat vulnerable 2 bid has to deliver good suits, so he could easily hold something like KJxxxx). I am not passing because I’ve seen the hand. I’m passing because, bad though 2S will often be, I fear getting us to an even worse contract. Yes, as I have stated earlier, south should pull 2N to 3D and maybe I should expect a playable diamond fit…but why can’t partner be 5=3=3=2 or have 6 (or even 7j weak spades?

Finally I’d open this hand (1C) in first or second seat but that’s one of the reasons why I wouldn’t in third seat.

In the old days of sound openings, the common wisdom was to stretch in 3rd seat, in part to protect partner when he’d passed with 11 or 12. I’d open in third if the majors were swapped for the minors. I might even open if my majors were reversed

[jillybean]

mikeh, on 2026-August-06, 10:46, said:

Do you think you held anything extra for your 2S bid? I hope the answer is ‘no’. Then ask yourself whether partner, knowing you almost surely held exactly five spades (no weak 2), would have bid 3N with the hand you decided to play him for.

100% no extras

mikeh, on 2026-August-06, 10:46, said:

If you accept that he can’t have, for example, a strong 1N opening nor a hand too strong for 1N, nor a hand with running diamonds (such that 3N will have play), why would you not retreat to 3D?

Right he can bid 3N or make a 3♣ cue. My raise to 3N was atrocious.

[awm]

mikeh, on 2026-August-06, 11:01, said:

I don’t understand your arguments, unless you generally play a sound opening philosophy in first and second seat. If you accept that partner cannot hold a good 11, please explain why opening 1C with that hand and that suit is a good idea….do you not anticipate a rebid issue?

As for passing 2S, what do you suggest? Bidding 2N is just silly. Justifying it by giving him Jx in clubs, in this auction, seems bizarre to me. I do agree that passing 2S is extremely unattractive, dooming us to play our almost certain 5-1 (although I occasionally play with a true expert who strongly believes that a first or second seat vulnerable 2 bid has to deliver good suits, so he could easily hold something like KJxxxx). I am not passing because I’ve seen the hand. I’m passing because, bad though 2S will often be, I fear getting us to an even worse contract. Yes, as I have stated earlier, south should pull 2N to 3D and maybe I should expect a playable diamond fit…but why can’t partner be 5=3=3=2 or have 6 (or even 7j weak spades?

As for why I'd open, I expect that the vast majority of times my LHO is taking some action here (often bidding 1♠). If I pass and hear 1♠-Pass-2♠, am I happy to pass it out? I'd think that it's quite possible we can make three of a minor (and they can make 2♠) but no way am I jumping in here. So I've just lost the partscore battle. What did I gain by passing? All the positions where passing gains seem pretty unusual -- opponents can penalize me in some low level partial, or opening helped opponents locate our values in a way that actually made a difference? Since I'm opening 1♣, it's pretty unlikely that partner is bidding 2♠ at first turn as happened here. I'm hoping for a start like Pass-Pass-1♣-1♠-2♣ or Pass-Pass-1♣-1♠-Dbl or Pass-Pass-1♣-Dbl-1♠-Pass-1NT.

This auction isn't consistent with a hand with 6 or 7 spades for me. We are pretty flexible with regard to suit quality for our spade openings (certainly KJxxxx of spades is never passing) and if I had a hand with 6 or 7 spades and less than the 10-11 points I need to open 1♠ with a long suit, I would tend to double here (not bid 2♠, which shows more values).

It seems to me that if you were in 1st seat, you would open. If the auction went 1♦-2♣-2♠-Pass to you, you'd bid 2NT (I assume). So to classify this sequence starting in 3rd seat as absolutely terrible seems like quite a position to take.

[mikeh]

awm, on 2026-August-06, 11:48, said:

As for why I'd open, I expect that the vast majority of times my LHO is taking some action here (often bidding 1♠). If I pass and hear 1♠-Pass-2♠, am I happy to pass it out? I'd think that it's quite possible we can make three of a minor (and they can make 2♠) but no way am I jumping in here. So I've just lost the partscore battle. What did I gain by passing? All the positions where passing gains seem pretty unusual -- opponents can penalize me in some low level partial, or opening helped opponents locate our values in a way that actually made a difference? Since I'm opening 1♣, it's pretty unlikely that partner is bidding 2♠ at first turn as happened here. I'm hoping for a start like Pass-Pass-1♣-1♠-2♣ or Pass-Pass-1♣-1♠-Dbl or Pass-Pass-1♣-Dbl-1♠-Pass-1NT.

This auction isn't consistent with a hand with 6 or 7 spades for me. We are pretty flexible with regard to suit quality for our spade openings (certainly KJxxxx of spades is never passing) and if I had a hand with 6 or 7 spades and less than the 10-11 points I need to open 1♠ with a long suit, I would tend to double here (not bid 2♠, which shows more values).

It seems to me that if you were in 1st seat, you would open. If the auction went 1♦-2♣-2♠-Pass to you, you'd bid 2NT (I assume). So to classify this sequence starting in 3rd seat as absolutely terrible seems like quite a position to take.

I think we are operating from an incomplete understanding of our respective positions. Firstly, I’d never open 1D so your sequence doesn’t make sense. Nor would you, according to your first post. Secondly, since by partnership agreement I could hold this kind of hand for a first seat 1C, in an analogous auction, he won’t read too much into my ‘under pressure’ 2N.

Thirdly, partner will usually have a higher minimum in hcp opposite a first seat opener, and he is unlimited as to suit length.

I’d don’t treat auctions involving an original pass as if they are identical to auctions that begin with a suit opening in first or second seat. Maybe you do…I doubt it but your posts suggest that you see no difference between the situations

Finally, if I pass and it goes 1S P 2S, I can’t imagine not doubling. Partner can bid 2N to scramble if need be.

[Cyberyeti]

We would (weak only) multi the south hand, and it would end in 2♠ (or 2♦ if partner gambled).

I could not have much more before this becomes a 1♠ opener so partner will rule out game.