Today’s deal is from a recent team match in Great Britain. At one table, the West player threw in a remarkable two-heart pre-empt. Had the old timers who taught us the game seen that bid, they would have had West arrested for impersonating a bridge player! South made an intelligent four-no-trump bid, bringing his diamond suit into the picture, but North had a good fit for clubs. The problem was that North had no reason to even think about a slam and South couldn’t bring himself to bid slam either. He could imagine many hands for North that would not provide a good play for slam. There were 12 easy tricks and North-South were not happy with their result.
Believe it or not, the West player at the other table did not bid two hearts — he bid three hearts! The auction proceeded with a negative double by North and a raise to four hearts by East. South, emboldened by his partner’s negative double at the three level, bid 5NT, also bringing his diamond suit into the picture, and the slam was reached. We knew it was wrong to bid three hearts with the West hand, and we’ll have to rethink our opinion of the two-heart bid.
Published – February 20, 2025 09:01 am IST
