Bridge; I love this game!

Smarter bidding

2010-01-12T22:00:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! I see I haven't blogged for a while.
(I was forced to edit the title of this post, it was attracting some odd and unwelcome comments)

I have been playing a number of club games with Peter and placing in A, so that's great. I am also on an IMP League team, we got off to a bad start with 2 losses but had a much needed win and morale boost in our last game. The losses were, in part, due to my lack of discipline. This is a reoccurring theme and one that Peter has been working on with me. My ACBL Bulletin was delivered today and wouldn't you know it, Frank Stewart is in on this too.

Discipline in the bidding is taking the action you know is best when a tiny voice in your head is urging you to take a flyer. Discipline is having a reason to bid and being willing to pass when no bid is just right. Discipline is acknowledging that you have a partner and letting him use his judgement.

I am going to print this out and stick it to my PC.

I would like to add, discipline is having the hand for your bid. Here is a good example, playing on BBO with a semi regular partner.

I am dealt K5, JT6, T843, KT92 rho passed, yes I passed, LHO opened 1C, partner doubled
(P) P (1C) X
(1S)P (P) X
(P) 1N

I like my 1N bid but now partner jumps to 3N and I start to feel sick.

My dear partner tables; JT,AQ4,AK65,AQ83 making 10, thanks p!

That's all I wanted to say, I am working hard on becoming a disciplined bidder.
And finaly, I have given up caffeine! Day 5 and the headaches are barely noticeable now but for the first 4 days they were excruciating.

2/1 Epiphany

2009-12-09T13:53:00.000-08:00

Richard and I came 2nd in our section, 5th overall with 58% at the club the other day, nice game, more lessons for me;

1H (P) to you... Qxx,Jxxx,xx,Qxxx - your bid?

I passed , I should have bid 2H via 1nt, both Peter and Richard said they would have bid 2H, we have some work to do on these. I am used to playing “constructive raises” so;

1M:2M 7(8)-10 3 or 4 card support
1M:1N* 2x:2M weak 6-10 3(2) card support or 2-5 4 card support
1M:1N* 2x:3M 10-11 exactly 3 card support
1M:3M 10-11 4 card support

Once again, ‘everyone’ plays this differently, Im surprised it hasn’t come up before.

Update: apparently I need to add 'Bergen' raises! Another one to get wrong or forget, Im still working on lebensohl.

Anyway, I wrote back during my blogging at the regional about an epiphany I had regarding 2/1 auctions. I’m not sure it was an epiphany in the true sense of the word as Wayne pointed it out to me, but it has had a large impact on my bidding!

1S:1N 2H:3m
1M:1N 2D:3C

3m here is to play, its not an invitation, its not game forcing, its not even mildly tempting – 1N has limited partners hand and 3m says I have zero tolerance for your suits, lets play in my long suit. I think this is an old habit remaining from sayc where a new suit by responder at the 3level is 100% gf, that and, again, not thinking it through before I bid.

2nd team game tonight, the first wasnt great maybe we will do better tonight.

6403 distributional 9 count

2009-11-26T07:32:00.000-08:00

I have joined an imp league team at the VBC and matched up with a new partner, Richard. We had a “warm up” game last night – and won 67.86%, how nice is that!!

One of our top boards was where I opened 1st seat, vulnerable with a 6403 9 count and Richard made 4 hearts, while the other tables did not reach game. I tend to open these distributional hands, regardless of point count as they have so much trick taking ability but I’m not sure where to draw the line.
The other side to this is the opps generally are not happy with my opening, should we announce that we open distributional hands on <10

edit: I wonder how my openings will change now that I have discovered I need some discipline :) Jan 19 2010

Tomorrow Bill, Jennifer and I head off to Sun Peaks for our first ski race/holiday of the year. It has been a great start to the season with a lot of snow dumped on all the mountains, it has turned to rain here on the local mountains but Im hoping at Sun Peaks it is still snowing. 2 days skiing, 1 day visiting Cody and Vikki in Kamloops and our 10th Wedding Anniversary! Bill, my bridge widow did not see the funny side of it when I suggested we head to San Diego for our anniversary. :)

Next game will be the first team match on Tuesday.

Unusual vs. Unusual Unusual vs. Michaels

2009-11-22T08:15:00.000-08:00

Here is another post on Unusual vs. Unusual. I have found this to be an excellent gadget, logical and easy to remember, you can even safely spring it on partners undiscussed :-) I first played 1M (2N*) with Richard, I don't remember the responses we used, they may have been reversed. This is the only "catch" , you must discuss this part with your partner. Is 1M (2N*) 3♣ gf in hearts or spades? It does not matter which you chose as long as you chose one! Peter & I have chosen to bid ‘up the line’ so clubs is for hearts and diamonds for spades. Keep it simple and easy to remember. We have also extended this to include unusual over Michael’s and, as I discovered the other day, it applies over 1N (2N)

UNUSUAL vs. UNUSUAL
1M (2N*) 3m *clubs and diamonds

3♣ = limit+ with ♥'s
3♦ = limit+ with ♠'s

Contrast these with 1♠ (2N) 3♠ or 1♠ (2N) 3♥ which are competitive only (i.e. to play, showing no extra values)

UNUSUAL vs. MICHAELS

1m (2m*) 2M *hearts and spades

2♥ = limit+ in ♣
2♠ = limit+ in ♦

Contrast these with 1♣ (2♣) 3♣ or 1♣(2♣) 2♦ which are competitive only (i.e.to play)

1♠(2♠*) 3x *hearts and a minor

3♥ limit+ in ♠
3♣/♦ natural gf

1♥(2♥*) 2S/3x *spades and a minor

2♠ limit+ in Hearts
3♣/♦ natural gf

If you do not have the values to force to game, or if you have both minors, it is necessary to negative double.

Unusual vs. Unusual also applies over 1N (2N*) *minors, I have included the comments from our bidding notes on this:

Do you play anything over 1N (2N) ? If 2N is showing the minors, 3♣ could show hearts, 3♦ could show spades each with invitational values, while 3♥ or 3♠ would be to play. This is Unusual v Unusual, same responses that would apply if the auction had gone 1♥ -(2N) - .
However, unlike 1M (2N) 3m, 1N (2N) 3m must be M5+ since partner could have as few as 2M

Bouncing back

2009-11-16T17:51:00.000-08:00

Life is back to normal :) I played with Peter in the North Shore game today, had a good solid game and finished with 53% and another fraction of a Monster Point to add to my gradually growing number. lol When will I have enough to fly to San Diego?
I'd love to go to the nationals, it won't be this time but I will get there one day.

Wayne headed off this morning on his way to San Diego. I wish I had managed to spend more time with him and tap into his expertise. However, 8am - 11pm days at the regional didn't leave much time for anything else.

I think the most valuable yet simple lesson I took away after playing with Wayne and Peter last week was to slow down and think during the auction and the play. Think, plan, review, replan - easy to say, harder to do. Playing online tends to be done at breakneck speed, if you stop to think you are either bombarded with ????????'s or simply booted from the table.

I did some of this today - it is ok to slow down and think when you have something to think about!

Caffeine; I stopped drinking caffeine drinks (tea, coffee) on Saturday and by Sunday morning I had the worst splitting headache you can imagine. Jennifer was singing with the choir, so on our way to Church I had to stop at a coffee shop for a large Latte, 20mins later I was feeling a lot better. I need to stop drinking the damn stuff but I obviously need to plan a little better, a few quiet days at home with some ibuprofen handy might do the trick. I best check the bottle to make sure the pain killers don't contain caffeine. This is what withdrawing from drugs is like!

tap declarer

2009-11-14T20:32:00.000-08:00

Here is another fun hand from the Regional, board23 Friday evening pairs. I should say, fun board if you weren't trying to play this in 2♣.

If learning this game isn't difficult enough there is also the specific bridge language you need to learn - 'tap' for me, coming from New Zealand, was where we got the water. I suppose I am saying faucet now. Tap dance, tap shoes, now how about 'tap declarer'. Peter has been showing me hands as they come up, where it is right to tap declarer, hopefully this is one of them.

'Tapping' means leading a suit where you know declarer is void, forcing him to ruff, thus shortening his trump and losing control of the hand. This is an extreme case hand in regards to 'tapping' since there is no other play available but I think it still demonstrates the point.

When this hand came up, I passed 2♣ smoothly and, unable to lead partners suit, I led the second obvious choice ♥3 hitting the jackpot. Partner played heart AK and I ruffed 3rd round of ♥, I'm not sure how the play continued but each time I won the lead, I continued with ♦ to make declarer ruff.

Result 2♣-2 for 300

crazy 12 card deal

2009-11-14T18:40:00.000-08:00

Here's a crazy hand from the Regional, board18 Friday afternoon pairs.
I'm south here and couldn't believe the bidding until I saw dummy - thanks partner!

West led Heart Ace, East playing the 10 (encouraging), West continued Hearts at trick 2 and I was expecting a ruff and ready to claim -1.
East turned up with a stiff heart and the spade void!
Claim 6 +1660 thank you!

Crash and Burn

2009-11-14T11:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my last day at the Regional and today I have crashed to an unbelievable low. My game was not good in the morning and I made some careless mistakes,then later in the afternoon games, my (afternoon) partner started being critical of my play. I think I held it together well and finished the day without going on a tilt or fighting back but today I am feeling extremely bad.

So what happened? I started the week with a win and an amazing high, for the rest of the week I was playing 3 games a day with alternating highs and lows.
I was not sleeping, eating or exercising properly. I started to let little things get to me, such as when a player I admired from the club made a crack about my win on Monday, I let that eat away at me. I take things very personally and I hate letting my partners down by making careless mistakes. Nevertheless, Peter doesn’t react to my mistakes and I’m sure he isn’t expecting me to play like a pro so its mostly all the crap I’m piling on myself. I’m going to make mistakes, I guess at times even the best do. Keep calm and focused!

Today I am giving up caffeine :)

I have a lot of good and interesting things I want to blog about so when I've picked myself up, I'll do that. Its funny, despite this drama I would still rather be out there today, playing, than anything else.

Day5

2009-11-13T05:02:00.000-08:00

Well it's Friday, my last day at the Regional. I'm sleeping less, thinking more and having an amazing time. I think my game has improved a lot this week, as you'd hope it would after playing morning, noon and night. I am so tired, I'm getting less sleep, 5 hours on average, less last night, my brain wont shut down. Despite being sleep deprived I'm making much smarter calls and plays, my game with Peter is really coming together and I'm SO much more relaxed and confident at the table.

I have a lot I want to blog about, an epiphany on 2/1 auctions, my first attempt at exclusion keycard, lebensohl nightmares, some humorous hands, some spectacular hands, table manners and lots more. What a week, I wish it wouldn't end, I have played so much good bridge and of course, I have been lucky enough to have the best partners.

5:30am; I'll see if I can snatch another hours sleep. One parting comment, it should be noted that so far in this tournament, Waynes best result has been with me. ;-)

Vancouver Regional Monday Charity Pairs winners:

2009-11-09T23:54:00.000-08:00

We won!!! 65%
Thanks Wayne!

Now I need to sleep, I have another 4 days of this.

counting down...

2009-11-07T07:43:00.000-08:00

to my first Regional! I'm so excited, unfortunately my family don't share my enthusiasm as I have been out playing a lot of bridge lately. Fortunately, after the regional it will all come to a sudden stop, we'll be into the Ski season, Peter will be at the San Diego NABC and the closest I'll get to the game is having my nose in "Watsons, Play of the Hand." Well, perhaps the occasional day time game :)

Wayne is here from NZ and will stay with us for the duration of the regional before heading off to San Diego for the nationals. This is exciting too! I will be playing 4sessions with him in the regional :) Lucky me, the only trouble is my nerves when I'm playing with "A" players, I play much better with "C" players, my mistakes don't bother me so much. The same happens when I'm playing with Peter - I hold onto my mistakes and let them distract me. I will just have to forget who it is I'm playing with and try to have fun.
This is a big deal for me, its like playing with Zia. Whoooop!

I also have 5 sessions with Peter so I will, hopefully, be playing some great bridge next week. Peter has been working tirelessly with me on my signaling, counting, planning, card play - everything that I have neglected. Its such an eye opener having a regular partner - signaling is something I never did other than `high`I like it, `low`I don't, now I dont know how I played without it.
I still can`t believe I have such great partner and mentor.

In the recent sectional I played with a lovely lady, Jacquie from Osoyoos, and people think New Zealand place names are difficult! We will play 4 sessions together and I'm looking forward to playing again, we had some good games and a lot of fun at the sectional.

That's all for now, if I survive the regional I will of course, post the highs and lows! I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew by scheduling 3 games a day for 4 days, I hope I have the stamina for it.

61%

2009-11-01T11:10:00.000-08:00

A new top score! 61%
I remember, not too long ago, saying I would be happy to get 50%. If this is any measurement of improvement I guess I'm doing okay. The improvement is thanks to Peter,and I`ve been working hard and fooling around on BBO less.

Lebensohl and other disasters

2009-10-17T08:54:00.000-07:00

You've never seen a convention abused so much until you've seen my lebensohl bids. I'm so happy to remember that we play leb, I bid 2N at any opportunity.
Yesterday playing at the club I had a dreadful, weak balanced hand , just 4 clubs and bid 2N, passing 3C. Peter didn't flinch at all, he must have nerves of steel to play with me.

I already know I dont think enough before I bid or play and with new conventions I expect a few disasters before I remember how I should be using it. I seem to learn best from bitter experiences, I hope I dont make that mistake next time.

Lebensohl is the most advanced convention I have played. At first glance it seems straightforward but when I mapped out all of the auctions it is a exact and complex system full of nuances. No doubt I will have many more disasters along the way.

Another disturbing habit I need to break is my tendency to ruff with the wrong suit!
When I am in game/slam and have a equally good or better second suit I am ruffing with second suit. Wake up!! Subconsciously thinking the second suit would have been better, getting one step ahead or just careless, I dont know. One thing I might try is sorting my hand to place trump to the left or right. Currently I just sort black/red as the cards appear. Same story, I need to focus on the current trick and take more time & care.

Peter said nothing until after the set, and even then just laughed. Partners take note; I know I've messed up and I'm sick about it. The best thing you can do is let it go and not contribute to my discomfort. We can talk later about how I can avoid the same mistake & about the other mistakes I didn't even know I had made.

I'm having more fun playing the hands - with no better play available I underled Kx to dummy AJxxx hoping declarer would go up with the ace, he did. :-)

Despite a few hiccups it was another nice game. Playing is becoming less agonising and much more enjoyable as I get more confident.

October update

2009-10-12T21:54:00.000-07:00

I have been playing more club bridge with Peter and playing much less online. I am beginning to prefer studying or working on my play than playing online which must be better for my game. I have a few great partners on BBO and I’m rarely playing pickup games now.

October has been busy kicking off with a day of play/lesson at the club hosted by Mike Lawrence. I enjoyed it, came away with a few tips and 2 more of his CD’s – Counting#1 and Private Bridge Lessons#1. I heard of a 2-day workshop Mike held over the weekend that sounded intense but excellent. I wish I had been able to attend but it was by invitation only, "nobodies" didn’t get an invite. Oh well.

One interesting point Mike Lawrence made was to play (4S) X as takeout, (4S) 4N as 2 suited. I have been playing takeout through 4H, 4S X as penalty. When was the last time anyone made a penalty double of a preemptive 4S?

My brother Ian, Fuxia and Angus flew in from New Zeand for a great 3 week visit. Ian and Fuxia played one Friday night at the VBC and came in a respectable 2nd, another night I managed a teams game with them . Ian and Fuxia played together while I had a nice game with a pickup partner. My game is improving. At IMPS I need to be more competitive, I’ve been learning to be less aggressive in MP’s and haven’t yet sorted it all out so I can adjust my game to the scoring method. Yet another part of the game I need to work on.

Two weeks until the sectional, I have one game arranged with Peter and hoping for more, if not I will find a partner from the partnership desk. Better to play in C (0-50) than not at all - I think! Honestly, I'd much rather play in A or open and come last having played some good bridge than play in 0-xxx any day.

I have been doing a lot of work on our CC. I am gradually filling it up and working through all the sequences, signaling, leads etc and Peter is doing a fabulous job of explaining the reasoning behind it all and keeping me on track. It is developing into a very useful document for me, one day I hope to share it.

I'm enjoying a lot of good bridge lately but Im also looking forward to the first snow fall, we could be making a trip to Sun Peaks next month for the first skiing of the season.

Back to counting..

September

2009-09-15T01:25:00.000-07:00

Not much blogging happening, a lot of live play instead :)
I played in a sectional here last weekend. 4 sessions, 1 with Peter and 3 with a pickup partner.
I had a good game with Peter, below average in the other 3 games. I love tournament play.

I will play in another sectional here next month then the regional in November. The next NABC is in San Diego but it doesnt look like I will be able to go. My travel documents expire in November and my family quite rightly, wont stand for it! But...perhaps I could persuade Bill to take a trip to SanDiego for our 10th wedding anniversary which just happens to fall during the NABC. LOL I think that would be pushing my luck too far.

More to come...

59% wow!

2009-08-27T07:45:00.000-07:00

brief post; I’ve been playing a lot with my mentor and I’m still amazed and very grateful to be playing with such a nice person and good player, my game has completely changed.

We were 2nd overall last night with 59% - my best result yet.

I have a few main area’s to work on – COUNTING, relaxing, concentrating, signaling and remembering the conventions we’ve added. It is a lot easier adding conventions when you have the basics sorted out and your partner is keen to discuss the various auctions.

I can't recommend the mentor program highly enough. if you are a beginner/intermediate and your club offers a mentoring program – jump at it!
Many thanks to the Vancouver Bridge Centre and of course the mentors. :-)

I'll be playing a couple of sessions in a sectional with Peter next month and looking for a partner for the other days.
How lucky am I?? More on that later!

Now back to counting, less time messing around on BBO and forums :)

Kathryn

Off topic

2009-07-24T10:46:00.000-07:00

This is too good to leave out. Here is my darling daughter, Jennifer. This is where we put her when she needs a cooling off period.

A mentor and live bridge

2009-07-23T06:59:00.000-07:00

Since becoming hooked on this game and deciding to take it more seriously I have been very lucky and had some great help from BBO’ers. Many people have been influential but especially Wayne who first taught me the basics of the game and rid me of the ghastly ideas I had picked up while playing "yahoo" bridge online. He still helps me, often daily, answering my endless questions.

Now I am playing more club bridge and I am finding playing online is nothing like playing live.

The club advertised a mentor program so I responded and was hooked up with whom I would like to think, is the best mentor they had! I think this is an opportunity to both rekindle my passion and take my game to another level. I was tired of bad online bridge and feeling stuck.

Now, I have to fulfill my part and work at the game. My play has been neglected in the past while I've collected conventions and debated on bbo forums. (I've been told this over and over and not done anything about it) So, I need to dust off the BridgeMaster deals and get to work, beating up on online bunnies sounds like fun but its either get serious now or get out.

I am making copious notes with my mentor using GoogleDocs. (great tool) With his permission, I may blog these in the future.

Now, back to work :-)

Western Cue and a major raise in 2/1

2009-07-07T22:15:00.000-07:00

Everyone plays this dont they? One of the more simple conventions, or is it.

1D (1H) 1S (P)
2C (P) 2H asking partner to bid 3nt with a heart stopper.

Now look at this auction:

1D (1H) 1S (2C)
2D (3C) 3H showing a heart stopper and asking partner to bid 3nt with clubs stopped. When opps have bid 2 suits bidding their suit shows a stopper.

Playing 2/1 1M:2M is a constructive raise 7(8) - 10 3 or 4 card support.

That is one treatment and could be the most popular but like everything else in this game, it is not set in stone and these things must be discussed with your partner! Others play 1M:2M semi constructive 5-9 3 or 4 card support.

Another little nuance of this wonderful game.

Im learning some new conventions, 2C:2H rather than solely 2C:2D, adding to my 1nt responses and some other more sexy conventions, more on that later.
I know I should be focusing on my play rather than my CC, see my last few posts about bidding.
Seems like some bridge players just cant resist adding to their CC.

more 1M:2m

2009-05-30T07:31:00.000-07:00

Im not bidding hands where the auction starts off 1M:2D correctly. I am sure I am bidding 2M when I should bid 2nt, worried 2nt should be showing extras or my that hand is not balanced.

Paul responded to my previous post on this auction saying that Mike Lawrence recommends 2nt showing 12-14 or 18-19 balanced. That should be simple enough to remember.

So what is ‘balanced’ - any hand without a 6 card suit or a singleton?
5422 with poor clubs I have an easy 2H, is 2nt better with club honors?
4522 I must bid 2nt

Looking at this is makes me realize why I needed to take a lot more care when I’m opening 11counts and I have improved these openings – less influence of a few forum posters!

1m:2N when you have game, unbalanced do you bid 3m or 3nt?
3nt with 2353 and 3m with 2263 perhaps

Ive not been playing having been busy with so much going on this last while including a trip back to New Zealand but I’m often thinking of these auctions, its good to get it down on paper.

I played a tournament with my brother while I was in NZ and the one thing that stood out is that I need to work on my card play, still! I have to shift my focus but there always seems to be one more nuance that keeps me focused on bidding.

I do not know if I have what it takes to play the hands like an expert, it is a demanding game.

No Fit Jumps!

2009-02-17T23:19:00.000-08:00

I've been working a little on endplays using the BridgeMaster deals, Ive been reading a little of Bob Hammans book, At the Table and am enjoying it a lot. Iwas reminded today of what Mike said about not making bids that are likelt to confuse your partner! I did it again, getting too smart.

The latest expert buzz word Fit Jump! So far I am resisting them, its likely the last thing I need to be doing. Its very easy to get caught up in all these sexy gadgets! Perhaps a public statement of my reluctance to delve into them with prevent me from doing so.

I've only recently managed to get splinters sorted out though I am sure I am still over using them. What I had wrong was 1C:1M 4D is not needed for a splinter, 1C:1M 3D
is a splinter here since 1C:1M 2D is a gf reverse. Im still a little worried trying it, I dont think Im the only one thinking a splinter is a jump to 4m. The next thing I need to get straight and make notes on are doubles, redoubles.

My play is improving but my concentration comes and goes. Sometimes I find myself so focused on a particular plan for the next play that I completely forget what has been played beforehand. Tired and stressed I think, I sometimes play when I know darn well I shouldnt be.

Time Out

2009-02-07T07:27:00.000-08:00

Bidding is driving me nuts. I'm putting my bridge bidding on hold until I have a regular partner who wants to work on a set of agreements.
With plenty of work to do on my play I wont be bored! My counting is improving but still needs work. Something new to work on, after Ive gone down in yet another contract my partners will often say, 'you could have made that if you had end played West" I know what an end play is but have not been able to execute one on purpose. I need to get some books and study, play less.

Snow is sparse this year, after a great start and early dump it has fizzled out. Mt Washington race was postponed and Whistler has little snow. Grouse has a lot of snow but it is quite icey, not the best sort of conditions for this ski bunny. Thinking of snow starts me wondering what we will do next year for the 2010 games - rent our house out at exorbitant prices and take off to Hawaii ? We should start making plans.

Snow

2009-01-12T10:33:00.000-08:00

wWe have a lot of snow here in Vancouver! Christmas was a disaster, we had so much snow people could not get to our house, driving was bad and if you did get here there was nowhere to park. Mountains of snow at the side of the road made parking impossible unless you shoveled first. Residents were shoveling a spot and then putting chairs, signs in the parking spot to claim ownership! We could still drive in and out of our car port and we left the Westphalia buried on the street. I love it but I did ache after so much snow shoveling

Skiing is well underway and Jennifer has had 2 races so far, so good. I was a timing official at the first race and attended a ‘level 1’ official course – it is a lot of fun learning about the racing and much more fun than working in the kitchen. Last weekend Jennifer had her first trip and race at Whistler. I think she had a lot of fun, she got a ride in the Peak to Peak (restaurant to restaurant gondola) and came 9th in the speed trap. With 4 or 5 ski clubs there it was a great result for her.

I had my first seasons outing on the bunny hill at Blackcomb and it was great! I am still snow plowing a little but getting much better when there aren’t so many people and crazy snow boarders around. All went very well until then end and one small disaster. On my last run, last slope I saw Bill waiting at the bottom so raised my arms above my head and did a huge whooop, I was feeling good, skiing ok and having a blast. Next minute Im going head over heels ski came off and I crashed into the hill. There is not a lot of soft fluffy snow to break a fall. Ive sprained my wrist, bruised my bum and ache all over now. Far too much exuberance.

My bridge sucks at the moment, enough said.

adding conventions and other ramblings

2008-12-06T18:14:00.000-08:00

This game is incredible and never ceases to amuse, amaze, frustrate me and get my adrenaline going. :)

For the last few months I have been focusing on my card play and judgement rather than trying to understand and add the latest convention to my card. The experts on BBO forums who have long told me to forget fancy conventions, concentrate on getting the basics sorted out and work on my card play are right!
No surprise, I\m enjoying my game a lot more and getting better partners.

Having said that, one convention I am thinking of adding, is Lebensohl – I think Wayne suggested it a while back and my reg BBO partner says that is the next one I should add.

Not related but here is a board I messed up and the subsequent words of advice from my partner:

NV, I held:
QJx
QT9xx
Axx
Kx
RHO opened 3S, I passed, pass, partner doubled – all pass.

quote
" remember this, an important principle: the template hand for a takeout double or reopening is 4441 or something close to it with shortness in opener's suit."

I hesitated on the first pass (TD, don’t shoot me) and was paralyzed on the 2nd, 4Hearts is blatantly obvious now. These hands always seem to trip me up, I double when I shouldnt, I bid when I should double or pass. At least here I think I got the first pass right, I need to study these hands more.

Still waiting for the snow and Christmas is around the corner, now where is that tree.
Back to the dentist on Monday to try another screw in my jaw!

1H:2D now what?

2008-11-14T15:46:00.000-08:00

A
Txxxx
AKx
QTxx

Holding this hand and with some trepidation you open 1H, what else!
Playing 2/1 partner responds 2D (gf) and you realise that you haven’t discussed continuations in any detail, chose your bid.

2H The hearts give me a headache but I like this bid. It does NOT promise 6 It says whoa partner, I’ve opened on one of my less than fabulous hands. Lets go easy to game, I want to stay out of slam. Of course if partner has a suitable hand they are still free to go slamming but my 2H bid is an early warning.

3D This is ok, support at the cheapest level. Partner has shown 5. Note this is a very different auction to 1H:2C which can be made on xx.

3C I have 54 so it describes shape perfectly but I think it should show a much better hand, one with slam interest and a hand more suitable for NT.

2N Wild horses wouldn’t get me bidding this but I put it in for completeness.

I sent this question to Mike Hargraves who,with his sound advice and kind approach has helped my bridge tremendously.
This is his response;

I agree with the 1H opening. There are two schools of thought on the rebid.

Some would raise to 3D... Doug Fraser, a Grand Life Master and multiple CNTC champion, with whom I play a lot, would raise to 3♦ and think it to be a non-problem. This is within a 2/1 method, btw, which is important.

If not playing 2/1, then the usual approach is that 3♦ is forcing for one round, and hence should promise more than a minimum hand.. altho the 'more' may and often will be in the form of shape rather than hcp.. thus to raise on a minimum requires 4 card support. If playing that method, I would rebid 2♥.

Of course, bridge players being what we are, you will undoubtedly find some who say that you cannot rebid such a suit... and some of them will also say (not on this hand, but if you independently asked them what 3♦ shows) that 3♦ shows extras.. in other words, they will have an incoherent, unplayable set of rules.

And still others will say.. well, bid 3♣ (if any of them approach you...run! Unless they are playing a strong club method, where the 1H bid is limited, they don't know what they are doing)

My own preference is to rebid 2♥ within either a SA or a 2/1 method.. this is the 2nd of the 2 mainstream schools of thought.

Sectional

2008-11-10T13:20:00.000-08:00

Well, Bill and I did play in the sectional here last weekend.

Friday night IMP Pairs game was a complete disaster, we came last.
Saturday 9am game was canceled, only 1 other pair showed up. I know bridge players arent morning people but I do think they could make the effort once or twice a year.

Saturday afternoon game we came 4th in our section, the evening game we dropped to 6th. Not great but not bad considering we hadnt played since the last post.

We were playing stock standard SAYC, nothing fancy at all which made for an easy game. I messed up a few hands when I lost track of what was going on, Im not counting consistently. It was ok bridge.

Please DON’T bid 4card suits at the 2 level. Bill responded 2S over opps overcall with 4 and I happily forced to game thinking we had a 9 card fit – bottom board.

On one board we were defending against 3nt when declarer called for a “club” from dummy. Dummy asked “which one”
I should have called the TD right there. Dummy is not permitted to communicate with declarer and should have picked up the lowest one and waited for declarer to correct immediately.
3nt was set if declarer had played low.

My bridge is in limbo and I keep on making some stupid mistakes. I wish I could give this game up but no matter how poorly I play Im still back the next day to try again. The snow will be here soon so I am looking forward to skiing and hopefully getting away from these cards. (dont believe that for one minute - Im hooked)

slipped again

2008-09-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

One thing I have noticed is that it is very hard to keep posting to this blog!
Whats been happening here? Plenty, busy with the new school year. Would you believe I have been getting ski equipment arranged for this coming season. It seems very early but Ive learned that you have to get to the ski shop this early to get the best (leased) equipment. I want to get the accomodation booked for SunPeaks early this year too, what a fantastic ski resort it is! I can ride to the very top of the mountain and take the 5mile run all the way down - and yes, its a green run, bring on the snow.

Bridge -- I played at a local sectional a few weeks ago, played very well and came in 4th in "D" - very good considering we were a pickup partnership with very different bidding ideas! I love playing in these tournaments.

I have been playing 2/1 for a couple of months now and like it very much. When I say Im playing 2/1 I am playing forcing 1nt over partners 1Major opening, inverted minors
and 2/1 gf. Nothing else. I have also been playing with better partners and it is fantastic knowing that my forcing bids wont be passed and I can stop jumping around when I have a gf hand..lol. My play seems to have improved a LOT - nothing to do with 2/1 of course, Im not sure why it has suddenly improved.

What next? Im looking at adding the next gadget to my CC. I think others have suggested LEBENSOL - I'll have to look back in my notes. I can always work on my counting and hand evaluation anyway. :)

Bill and I are playing at the club tonight, a rare treat.

1M responses - revised

2008-07-29T13:31:00.000-07:00

1M:2M “constructive” 7(8)-10 3 or 4card support
1M:1N* 2x:2M Weak 6-10 3(2) card support
1M:1N* 2x:3M Exactly 3 card support, 10-11
1M:3M 10-11 4 card support

I had 1M:3M wrong

I played at the VBC on Sunday with a BBO'er and we came 3rd in A! Im chuffed.
I had a great time and I think my partner did too,
couldnt have asked for a better partner or a more relaxed, fun game.
(Once I got over my first round nerves that is) I want to play more live games.

responding to partners 1M 2/1

2008-07-27T07:42:00.000-07:00

So I have started to play 2/1, its funny the experts forget to tell new players the most basic things such as 2/1 is only game forcing after a major opening.
So 1D:2C is not gf.

Starting off with the basics Ive been learning the responses when supporting partners 1M opening.

1M:2M this is what they call “constructive” 8(7)-10 3 card support
1M:1N* 2x:2M Weak 6-10 3(2) card support
1M:1N* 2x:3M Exactly 3 card support, 10-11
1M:3M 6-9 4 card support

What do you do with 10-11 4 card support 2x then support?

Baby steps.

Im off to play at the club today, yipee.

Too much time has elapsed

2008-07-17T08:16:00.000-07:00

..since my last post.
I’m not sure where all the time has gone! I’ve been busy with my daughter skii racing and I learned to ski last winter! My poor knees but what a lot of fun, love it. We are hosting 4 international students at the moment and often an extra dog, I have been working a lot with my trainer, focusing on strengthening my knees and dealing with the other aches likely resulting from old motorcycle crashes. Bill has started working day/evening shifts, mainly evenings so that throws everything out.
I am working a little extra at the Homeless Shelter to cover summer but after some changes there Im finding feeding 60 is not the daunting task it was to start with. The crew is fantastic and its much more like fun than work.
Oh and I am providing before and after school care for a friends 2 children. All this keeps me out of a real job but also doesn’t leave much time for bridge and even less to write about it.

I have started to play 2/1 so in my next post I will start some notes.

Slammish with minors

2008-04-13T21:07:00.001-07:00

Partner opens 1nt and you have slam interest and 55minors, what are you going to do?

SAYC deals only with slam hands containing 1 minor

1nt:2C
2x :3m

Discussion points

2008-01-31T22:54:00.000-08:00

Here's a list of sequences I need to discuss with my p's

1S:2D
2S

1S:2D
2NT

1S:2D
3C

1D 1S
1N 3C

1M (X) 3M
1M (X) 2N

1x (X) XX

Feb24th

Unusual vs. Unusual
Forcing minor raise, criss cross?

Things to think about

2007-11-24T11:24:00.000-08:00

"it can be dangerous opening lightish distributional hands when vulnerable"

Dont rebid 5 card minors

Dont cue shortage in suit partner has shown length ! (1st round)

A 2 over a 1 by a passed hand does not promise a rebid
or should it?I think I would like to play that it does promise a rebid. More rules to break, alter and discuss with a partner!

Simple sequences and my off shape 1nt

2007-11-16T07:26:00.000-08:00

Before I go off too far delving into these fancy sequences, I best check my understanding of the basics.

This sequence is wide ranging 11-17 1M:1N 2m
1S:1N 2H is this minimum or the same 11-17?

So, my off shape 1nts that I have taken on without too much thought can be reined back in a little.

What SHOULD my off shape 1nt's look like?

Teams

2007-11-14T08:01:00.000-08:00

I played my first teams match at the club last night and it was a lot of fun! After the first set we trailed by 1 imp, ater the second set the opponents had taken off and won by 20+ imps.

One memorable hand, I held 1453 16 count and Barbara opened 1C.

1C:1D
1H: ?

What is my bid, what is 3H here?
I thought 3H would be inviational but some were
saying that was the correct bid. Had we agreed to play strong Walsh then 1D would deny a 4 card major unless my hand is strong enough to force game, so here 3H would show 4hearts and have slam interest. But we dont have that agreement, so I didnt. :-)

I bid 1S then jumped to 4H after Barbara bid 1nt. Bad bid but right contract.

I'd like 1S in this sequence to be 4sf, saying nothing about Spades, I can bid spades again with a real suit gf but most people seem to play 2S as 4sf, that takes up a lot of room.

We are also having trouble the 1M:2m, I will bid 1M:2m 2M here with a 5card suit, poor hand but my partner is expecting 6 of the major and will put me to 3M holding xx when we would be better in 2M or 2nt. At the moment I dont know what to change here.

more bidding sequences

2007-11-09T22:37:00.000-08:00

One of the sequences that I stumble over is finding a rebid after opening 1m and partner responds 2m. There has been much discussion on BBO forums about this, here is the link if you want to read more.

http://forums.bridgebase.com/index.php?showtopic=18928&st=15

This is the method I am wanting to use, it probably needs refining.

1D:2C 2D stall, minimum hand 100% forcing (weak nt 11-12)
1D:2C 2N balanced 12-14 both majors stopped (no need for this to show extras)
1D:2C 2M 4=5 or better and ‘a king more than minimum' 15(14)
1D:2C 3N 18+ balanced

1S(2D)2H (P) (a random bid thrown in, one that came up at the club)
3C 15+

1C:2D is a strong jump or criss cross

1M:2m 2M Min, waiting. No other bid avialble, will most often be 5
1S:2m 2H min 5S 4H
1H:2m 2S full reverse 16(15)
1M:2m 3x good 5/4 15+
1M:2m 2N blalanced, both majors stopped (12-14, 13-15?)

Note: the same problems do not occur over 1S:2H as there is never a reason to bid 2H on a 4 card suit.

1S:2H 4H min 11-12 54xx ideal 53xx
1S:2H 3H game forcing 54xx 53xx

Do we always want 4 card support here?

1H:1N 2D is wide ranging 11-18

1 m:1 any 3 m = 16-18 with good 6 card minor

How do you respond to partners 1m with balanced 11-12, 13-15 hands?

1m:2nt = 13-15 forcing

1C:1D 11-12 with a 3card suit if need be. 3334 2335?
1D:1nt with a 11 count and pray
1D:2nt with a 12 count and pray
or bid a 3 card major; always 1H with 3343 or 3334

I dont pretend to understand all this yet, maybe in time.

2/1 by passed hand is NF!

2007-11-07T07:44:00.000-08:00

I played with Barbara at the VBC Centre yesterday. I thought we had a poor game due to my incredibly bad playing, I play too fast and I am not watching discards. After the dust had settled and the results posted we had earned master points, coming 3rd in B and 1st in C. Strange things these MP’s!

A couple of things I need to take away from the games is; its ok to PASS
We play short club, Barbara opened 1C and I held 3352, 4 count. Not wanting to leave her in 1C, I bid 1D

Here is the auction
N W S E
1C (P) 1D (1H)
X (P) 2D (2H)
2S (AP)

Barbara: AQxx,xx,AKQ,Axxxx
Me: xxx,QJx,Jxxxx,xx

Not a disaster but a lesson none the less.

The second hand was where I decided to pass a 3334 11 count (my openings are becoming more disciplied ;-) ) and when Barbara opened 1S I bid 2C intending to show delayed support. Needless to say I didn’t get another bid.

N W S E
- - P (P)
1S (P) 2C (AP)
N A10xxx,xxx,Ax,KQx
S QJx,Jxx,Kxx,Axxx

So my bid is 3S, not ideal with 3 card support, what is.

2/1 by a passed hand is NOT FORCING

I sat my Club Directors exam and passed, yes I can read a rule book. I’d like to become a TD and be involved in the juicy UI, MI, LA’s but I imagine I would need a lot more experience both playing and running club games first.

Quantitative

2007-10-28T22:35:00.000-07:00

1N:2H
2S:4N is Quantitative

I dont understand why this is Quantitative?.

1N:3S (slam try)
4x:4N is RKCB

1N:4H (texas)
4S:4N is RKCB

55's 56's 65's 44's and so on

2007-10-25T22:50:00.000-07:00

I must be beginning to think like a bridge player – everything is number combinations 5521 6511 4423 Now I am trying to commit to memory the bidding sequences of 55, 65 and 44 hands.

44 up the line
55 higher suit first, lower twice.
65 higher suit first, take another bid if partner has given no preferance.
This is not an exact science :-)
56 lower suit first, higher twice watch out you cant reverse without proper values.

1nt:2H
2S:2H = 55 in the majors

1nt:2C
2D:2H 5hearts, 4 spades

1nt:2H
2S:2nt 5hearts, invitational

I need to collect some examples of these hands. You may be wondering why I have not committed these to memory by now? Here's a little know fact about me, remembering anything is not easy. Back in my youth I was in a motorcycle accident and spent 5 days in a coma. It takes me a long time to memorize anything, I do not ‘remember’ things, I have to learn things differently, it is hard to explain. By far the most difficult aspect is counting but I am getting better! Thank heavens my bridge teacher is an incredibly patient person :-)

VBC 299er

2007-10-15T11:48:00.000-07:00

I played with a new partner in the VBC 299er sectional this weekend. We played rather well in the first session and then bombed out in the next 2. We just weren’t on the same wave length it seems. (Wavelength is the name of my dads yacht in NZ)
We have only played twice before so need some more practice and some basic agreements. Despite the results, I had a very nice weekend, lots of fun with a relaxed and kind partner. I love playing with someone who is willing and able to discuss the hands afterwards.

This being a 299er I would imagine it was low key as opposed to open tournaments. TDs calls were frequent for leads out of turn (OLOOTs in TD language) what I noticed most was the amount of UI being passed. At one stage my partner who had been a very cautious bidder even said "Im being aggressive here" before making her bid. The opps did not blink and I tried to ignore the information. We had a good laugh about it after the hand.

The players and TD were nice, the food was great, the price was right - $5 a session, overall a great weekend. I was exhausted afterwards.

Next up in my TD exam on Wednesday, though I may have to postpone it to next week. I’m trying to learn all about movements, LOOT’s, insufficient bids etc – none of which occur online of course.

Overuse of RKC

2007-10-10T01:47:00.000-07:00

My partner opened 1nt and after a super accept I pushed onto slam holding:
Jx
AQxxxx
Jx
Axx

1N:2D
3H:4C
4D:4N
5C:6H

4nt is the culprit here. I've shown mild slam interest and Club control now leave the rest to partner. As for my hand the Jx's are of dubious value, I simply dont have a hand suitable to
push on to slam. I can pass!

"I have often posted in these fora against the overuse of keycard, and this is another example of why I ride this hobbyhorse. If players learned more subtle ways of probing for slam, ways that involve trusting partner to work out what is going on, we'd reach more good slams and stay out of more bad ones. Bid 4♣ and then 4♥ and let partner decide whether, in context, his hand warrants another call. You and partner may get these wrong initially, but once you both learn to trust each other, your slam bidding will move to a higher level." (MikeH)

http://forums.bridgebase.com/index.php?showtopic=21628&hl=

If Mike doesnt write a book soon I'll put a one together of quotable quotes :-)

count count count count

2007-10-07T15:44:00.000-07:00

I play IMP on BBO and when I go to the club I have to play MP.
Why does "everyone" play IMP online and MP offline?

Now that I have started playing at the club I'm finding undertricks are very expensive in MP so I can only assume the reverse is true for overtricks. ;-)

Its not good enough to count honors and trumps – I have to keep track of spots now as well.

Practice practice practice

I hate this game

2007-10-03T17:40:00.000-07:00

I want to give up. I’m just not smart enough to play this game, I cant think fast enough to work out all these combinations and nuances in the bidding, I can’t possibly remember it all let alone play the hands.

Im frustrated with my lack of progress, lack of a partner who wants to work with me and frustrated by the overall complexity of this damn game.

Of course I won’t give up but I’d sure like to right now.

Strong jump

2007-09-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

AKxx
(void)
AKxxx
KQJx

I open 1D, partner bids 1nt. I bypass the brain and bid 3nt.

Some say the better bid is 3C, strong jump game forcing showing 5D,4C
Partner does not have a 4 card major. We have a minor game, slam perhaps.

Im still reading sbout the case for bidding 2S (reverse), will post my thoughts later.

Regardles, this was with a new partner, we had not discussed reverses, strong jumps etc - my lesson is THINK and trust your partner. :-)

Trivia

2007-09-24T09:10:00.000-07:00

DONT rebid 5card minors.

Often, what is the best bid to describe your hand? PASS

I'm still not using support doubles. Not getting the hands or forgetting the bid?

Sandwich 1nt

2007-09-23T23:16:00.000-07:00

I had a partner introduce me to 'Sandwich 1nt' today.

(1D) P (1H) 1nt = 8-12 points and 44 in the unbid suits.

I perhaps incorrectly, double here to show the other 2 suits.
What is the advantage of this artificial 1nt?
It steals the bid from the opps, what else?
Is it standard? and then the bigger question;
Should I add it and use up brain cells memorizing it, whats important, whats not. :-)

Isn't everything unusual?

2007-09-23T23:03:00.000-07:00

Or so it seems!

Unusual vs. Unusual

1S (2nt) 3D = gf spade raise
1S (2nt) 3C = gf with 5+ hearts

This is what I have agreed to play with Richard. Best discuss the meanings with other partners, it can be reversed. Simple, quite easy to remember and solves the problems I have had creating a forcing bid.

Here are some other sequences I need to be clear on and discuss with partners, thanks R.

1S:2D
2S

1S:2D
2NT

1S:2D
3C

When U2nt is not U2nt...

2007-09-05T00:36:00.001-07:00

As you can see I have been very lax in writing to my blog. Well I have been on holiday which accounts for about 2months of missing entries, the rest I have to put down to laziness, being disillusioned with this game or just too busy!

A new thread on BBO forum and yet another sequence I need to think about.
(1M) P (2M) 2nt 2nt shows the minors right?
Not necessarily.... http://forums.bridgebase.com/index.php?showtopic=21041&hl=

This game is always challenging me.

(1S) P (2S) 2nt = '2 suits'
"Yes, 2N is 2 suits, and yes if partner has diamonds>clubs>hearts partner is supposed to bid CLUBS. " (Jlall)

So...
(1S) P (2S) 2nt*
(P) 3C (P) 3D = Diamonds and Hearts

How will I remember this!

Forcing minor raise

2007-06-21T08:14:00.000-07:00

Partner opens 1D and I hold xx,AJx,KQTxx,KJT - what do you bid?

I don't have any gadgets to handle these hands. I have posted the question on BBO forums
and as expected, have received many different suggestions. Everything from dont bother learning how to bid these hands, inverted minors, criss cross, and more.

So this is work in progress, to be updated.

Limit raise or GF?

2007-06-14T13:49:00.001-07:00

Another bad bid, made without first pausing for thought.
1S:2H
4H

Sounds easy? I have 10+ points and 5 hearts, my partner is happy to play 4H
Wrong

I held:

Qxxx
Axxx
xx
AJx

and decided I was too good for a limit raise and not good enough for a game force.
Apparently, there is no such hand . A limit raise is 9-(bad)12 3or4 card support and a gf is 12points 4card support. Makes sense!

So this is a clear limit raise 3S would have been perfect or if I think this is worth more, 2nt GF raise. I have been told many times not to make a 2level M raise without 5cards, I have the choice of a limit raise or a GF, no need to create my own bid!

Support Doubles

2007-06-02T16:25:00.000-07:00

Support Doubles, devised by Eric Rodwell allows the opener to show exactly 3card support for responders (partners) new suit.
Up until now, I did not use support doubles and so I have developed the habit of often supporting partner with 3. In the auction 1C(P)1S(2D) 2S I may only have 3 spades.

Now, by adding support doubles I can double to show 3 card support, a simple raise will show exactly 4 cards, 3S weak, 3D a cue raise and so on.

1C (P) 1S (2D) X = exactly 3 card support
1C (P) 1S (2D) 2S =exactly 4 card support
1C (P) 1S (2D) 3S = spade support, weak, competitive
1C (P) 1S (2D) 3D = limit raise or better

Where do I start?

2007-06-02T08:16:00.000-07:00

Why a blog? Good question, I don’t have a lot of spare time to sit and compose material to put in a blog so this could end before it gets off the ground. However, I do need a place where I can keep notes and questions on my bridge games. Alas, the good old note book does not work as efficiently as I would like. So here it is, my first BLOG. An attempt to track my learning and progression in this challenging, fun, frustrating game.
I love it, I hate it and I’m hooked.
I want to start with a new convention my wonderful 86year old, live!, partner suggested I add:
Support Doubles.
I will also add more information about me and how I have arrived where I am in this game.