MSB

School of Bridge

Quiz 13 Sacrificing - Question 1

The bidding starts 1♥ on your left, 1♠ from partner, 4♥ on your right….
what do you bid now?
(for purposes of vulnerability we will assume neither side is vulnerable)

W

1♥

N

1♠


E

4♥

S

?

 
  • ♠ A6543
  • ♥ 8742
  • ♦ 76
  • ♣ 109
4♠
Although you only have 4 points you have (at least) a ten card fit with partner . Also you know partner is short in hearts(one at most) and therefore you will not go down by more than 1 or 2 tricks even if partner is minimum and this will be a profitable save against the heart game that the opponents will almost certainly make.
 
  • ♠ KJ2
  • ♥ QJ9
  • ♦ A432
  • ♣ 987
pass
The opponents may well go down but this is by no means certain. A double may work out OK but is a bit risky. Also with only 11 points your side will struggle to make game if partner has less that a near maximum. So discretion is the better part of valour and a pass is probably best.
 
  • ♠ K432
  • ♥ 875
  • ♦KJ87
  • ♣ 76
4♠
The heart holding is bad if we are in hearts and good if we are in spades (partner probably only has a singleton heart). With a doubleton club and values in diamonds and 4 spades, this should play quite well in spades. We don't expect to make the contract but it should score well against the game that the opponents can make.
 
  • ♠ A32
  • ♥ QJ95
  • ♦ A32
  • ♣K86
double
With 14 points, four good hearts and only three card support for partner this is clearly a hand better suited to defence. 4♥ is destined to go down, even if partner is minimum. We should make a healthy profit - provided we double.