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Answers to serendipities

question 1: What do you lead after the auction shown?

Answer: A small trump. (The three of hearts). The auction suggests that dummy will be shorter in diamonds than hearts and declarer is likely to try and exploit this by ruffing in dummy. A trump lead will go some way to prevent this.

question 2:What do you score at duplicate for making two hearts, doubled and redoubled, vulnerable, making two overtricks?

Answer : 1640

question 3 :  If you sit down with an unknown partner at the bridge table, what would you expect to agree before you start playing?

Answer : You must establish

• the range of your opening bid of one no-trump
• your defence against an opening preemptive bid by the opposition
• your ace-asking methods ie Blackwood or Gerber
• whether or not you are playing Stayman

Given time and the prospect of a long and happy partnership, you would also be interested in partner's overcalling methods, discard system and carding methods.

question 4 : What is a goulash?

Answer : A goulash is any deal designed to create unbalanced hands. The simplest way is to deal five cards to each player, then three, then a final five. Some players prefer 4;3;3;3 :then 3;4;3;3; then 3;3;4;3 : and finally 3;3;3;4 .

It is preferable to deal a pack which has not been shuffled, and a goulash is quite often introduced when a hand has been passed out.

question 5 : What does the rule of nineteen apply to?

Answer : Whether or not you are entitled to open with a shapely hand. You take your normal point count from your honour cards, and add to it the lengths of your two longest suits. If this comes to nineteen or more, you are entitled to open. For example, in hand one below, you are entitled to open (a 'rule' count of nineteen), but in hand two you are not (a 'rule'count of only eighteen).

This approach must carry a health warning, but certainly makes for a more exciting game.

question 6 : What do you score for the insult after making a doubled contract? Does it change if you redouble?

Answer : The 'insult' is 50 if you are doubled and make the contract. This becomes 100 if you redouble.

question 7 :  What is a sacrifice?

What about a phantom sacrifice?

 

Answer :  A sacrifice is when you embark on a contract that you do not expect to make, but your hope is that the amount you give away will be less than the opponents could make if they had been allowed to play in the contract of their choice.

Ex 1 : You contract for four diamonds, non-vulnerable, expecting to be doubled, and go two light, giving away 300. If the opponents have game and a part-score of 30 and would make three hearts for rubber, this is a good sacrifice.

          Ex 2 : The arithmetic is even more dramatic at duplicate. Suppose your vulnerable opponents have a certain game in hearts (worth 620). You are non-vulnerable and bid four spades, going three off, giving away 500. Well done!

A phantom sacrifice is when your opponents cannot, in fact make their contract and so the gratuitous points you have given them are just a generous gift!

question 8 :  In duplicate, when might one defender ask his partner "Any questions, partner" and what is the point of this?

Answer : In duplicate, the rules require a defender to make his opening lead face down. His partner may then ask any question he likes about the auction and the meaning of the bids without these being seen as influencing this lead. When this process is over (if it takes place at all), this opening lead is turned over.

question 9 :

Answer : Yes. You could bid any number of diamonds here, up to five. It looks very much as if opponents have a good result in hearts or spades, and you must get in their way.

question 10 :You open one spade and partner bids a minor suit. Would you rather it were clubs or diamonds ?

Answer : Clubs.  You don't need any help in diamonds as you can ruff the second round whether we are in spades or clubs. If partner bids clubs, your ropy suit suddenly takes on a new dimension.

question 11 :

Answer : Double. Rub your hands and anticipate a large penalty.

question 12 :

Answer : Bid spades. If partner has four with you, a spade game will score better than diamonds. If she doesn't, you can still fall back on your diamonds.

question 13 :

Answer : 4NT or 4C, depending on your ace-asking methods. There must be at least a small slam here.

question 14 :

In the three hands below, you open 1H, 1S and 1C respectively. Indicate your rebid if partner makes the bid shown.

Answer :1 a) 2D   b)  2D  c)  2D  d)  Pass  e)  3D

2  a)  3S or 3C  b)  2S is better than 3C  c) 2S  d)   2C   e)  3C or 4C. 

3  a)  3C  b)  2C  c)  Pass  d)  5C  e)  Pass 

question 15 :

Answer : 4NT or 4C, ace asking. There must be a slam here.

question 16 :

Answer : Yes. You are most unlikely to be doubled at the one level, so it's still worth doing even if you are vulnerable.

question 17 :

Answer : Stayman is better than a direct 3NT, as a heart contract could avoid a potential embarrassment in spades.

question 18 :

Answer : Unless you are an experienced player with a special understanding with your partner,  bid normally, responding three hearts.

question 19 :

Answer:  Two clubs. Massive hand with only three losers. You must get this message across immediately.

question 20:

Answer :  (a) 3NT   (b) Pass

question 21:

Answer : Two clubs. If you bid two hearts, partner might think you have five. You intend to play in no-trumps, which I reluctantly concede you could bid at once (2NT).

question 22:

Answer : 1NT or 2C.

question 23:

Answer :  Yes. A question that should need no thought at all.

question 24:

Answer : One heart. This best covers your options. If partner bids spades, you support. If she bids clubs, you show your diamonds.

question 25: