Board 45

Board 45 (Click to download pbn file)
Both sides vulnerable

♠ 9 7 5 ♥ -- ♦ A 10 9 8 5 ♣ A J 9 6 4

Two passes to me. Seven losers and two quick tricks looks like a fine third-seat opener to me. I bid one diamond. LHO doubles, and partner redoubles. RHO bids one heart. I bid two clubs.  I could pass, since partner's redouble created a force, but I think when you have no intention of sitting for a double and you have an important distributional feature to show, you should show it right away.  Passing and then bidding clubs should show more flexibility. Partner corrects two clubs to two diamonds, and RHO bids two hearts.

I'm not sure that auction even exists. If RHO has a bad hand and is willing to compete to two hearts, he should bid two hearts (pre-emptive) immediately over the redouble. If he has a good hand, he should pass over the redouble and bid hearts later.

Let me expand on that idea a little. Passing over the redouble initially suggests that you have no suit to bid or that you have a high-ranking suit to bid and don't wish to burn your bridges. For example, after

LHO	Partner	RHO	You
1 ♦	Double	Redouble

you should pass with

♠ x x x x ♥ x x ♦ x x x x ♣ x x x.

There is no reason to bid spades until the opponents have doubled you in one heart. Perhaps they can't double one heart (but can double one spade), and this is your only way to get out of trouble. Reverse the majors, however, and you would certainly bid one heart over the redouble. You must introduce the cheapest suit if you can.

The corollary to this principle is that, if you pass one diamond redoubled and later bid hearts, you must have a good hand. The same isn't true of the black suits. (You must pass, then jump to show a good hand with a black suit.)

I pass over two hearts, hoping partner doubles. I intend to pull, but perhaps partner's double will dissuade the opponents from competing to three hearts. LHO passes. Instead of doubling, partner bids three diamonds. RHO bids three hearts, casting further doubt on the wisdom of his initial bid.  I pass, and LHO gets into the act, raising to four hearts. Now partner doubles. With two aces, I have better defense than I need to on this auction, but I'm still nervous.

I can't afford to lead either ace, since it might deprive partner of an entry for a crucial trump lead. I consider underleading one of them , but I don't think things are that desperate just yet, so I lead the five of spades.

	NORTH ♠ K J 8 3 ♥ A K 8 7 ♦ 2 ♣ Q 8 3 2
WEST ♠ 9 7 5 ♥ -- ♦ A 10 9 8 5 ♣ A J 9 6 4

West	North	East	South
		Pass	Pass
1 ♦	Double	Redouble	1 ♥
2 ♣	Pass	2 ♦	2 ♥
Pass	Pass	3 ♦	3 ♥
Pass	4 ♥	Double	(All pass)

Declarer plays the three from dummy. Partner wins with the ace as declarer drops the four. I'm rooting for a trump back, but partner returns the six of spades--ten--seven--eight. Perhaps partner has a doubleton spade and is playing for a ruff. Declarer plays the jack of hearts, on which I pitch the four of clubs. Partner plays the heart deuce. Partner has at best ten fourth of hearts. To come to ten high-card points for his redouble, he must have the club king and either the king or queen-jack of diamonds. His pattern must be either 3-4-3-3 or 2-4-4-3. The latter makes more sense given partner's spade return at trick two, although it would mean declarer concealed the spade deuce at trick one.

Declarer unexpectedly plays the queen of spades, to which partner follows. So partner is 3-4-3-3. I'm not sure what the spade continuation was all about. Declarer plays the five of clubs--six--queen--king. Partner is finally on board with the idea of playing trumps. He plays the heart five, which declarer rides around to dummy's eight as I pitch the five of diamonds. Declarer plays a diamond from dummy, and partner hops with the king to play a third heart. I can afford a club. Declarer has enough entries to ruff out my clubs and establish a winner in dummy, but he can't get back to cash it.

Declarer plays the spade king. Partner ruffs with his last trump and declarer overruffs. Declarer takes a ruffing finesse against my diamond ace, but he still falls a trick short. I score my ten of diamonds at trick thirteen. Down one:

	NORTH ♠ K J 8 3 ♥ A K 8 7 ♦ 2 ♣ Q 8 3 2
WEST ♠ 9 7 5 ♥ -- ♦ A 10 9 8 5 ♣ A J 9 6 4		EAST ♠ A 6 2 ♥ 10 6 5 2 ♦ K 7 3 ♣ K 10 7
	SOUTH ♠ Q 10 4 ♥ Q J 9 4 3 ♦ Q J 6 4 ♣ 5

A trump return by partner at trick two would have accomplished nothing.  His spade return, attacking declarer's entries, was perhaps the right idea. But it shouldn't have succeeded either. Whichever suit partner returns, declarer should win in dummy and play a diamond. He can develop a diamond trick by taking a ruffing finesse against my ace if partner hops with the king or by ruffing out partner's king if he doesn't. With five hearts, two spades, and a diamond, he needs only two ruffs in dummy to come to ten tricks.  Since he has plenty of entries to his hand, he doesn't need to give up a tempo by playing a club.

Partner's double of four hearts was misguided. Every high card in his hand is working on offense, and he has a fit in both of my suits. If I think it's right to bid on to five clubs or five diamonds, doesn't he want me to? Why stop me by doubling?

I wouldn't have bid on, of course. With two aces, I would have chosen to defend (undoubled). Double-dummy, that appears to be the wrong decision. Par is five clubs doubled by us, down two. But defending four hearts looks like the right practical choice.  Holding five clubs to down two is tricky, and I might not find the winning line.  Also, it might prove to be a phantom save, since declarer might find a way to go down in four hearts, as he did. 

Is partner's pass of four hearts forcing?  I know some people (even a former partner) who would say so, but that doesn't make sense to me.  Pass means exactly what it would mean if it were forcing, namely, "I have better offense than defense."  But I don't see how a limited hand can create a high-level force.  Responder's hand is sufficiently defined that opener should have a fairly good idea what to do, and I can't imagine why defending undoubled shouldn't be one of his options.

Finally, we come to the redouble.  The redouble actually makes it harder to penalize the opponents, since the only suit responder can double is hearts. And partner is unlikely to have four cards in the suit the opponents land in, so he won't be doubling either.  With "4333" distribution, responder should generally pass, intending to make a cooperative double on the next round.  Partner will assume your double is based on only three trumps and will act accordingly.  Of course, whether that works or not depends on what Jack thinks a pass followed by a double means.

At the other table, my hand passes in third seat. North opens one club, then raises his partner's one heart response to three. South goes on to four.

The defense again starts with two rounds of spades. But this time declarer wins and plays a club. East takes the king and plays a second club, which declarer ruffs. Declarer plays a trump to dummy, discovering the bad break, then cashes the king of spades and plays a diamond. East hops with the king and plays a trump. Declarer wins in his hand, passes the jack of diamonds, then cross-ruffs to take the rest. Making four. I'm not sure why Jack found it easier to play this hand when the opponents were silent. At our table we practically showed him our cards, but he still went down.

Me: +100
Jack: -420

Score on Board 45: +11 IMPs
Total: +116 IMPs