[Siegmund]

A hand from the Anchorage sectional this afternoon:

Matchpoints both vul. The bidding is (1D)-1NT-(2D) to you.

Strong partner. Your agreements, for better or worse, are that 1X-1NT-2Y or 1Y-1NT-2Y is treated the same as a 1NT opening and 2Y overcall, and your agreement after 1NT-(2D) is off-the-shelf Lebensohl (X penalty, 2M to play, 2N relay, 3D stayman without a stopper, etc.)

Try not to curse your agreements too much. Your hand is:

♠ATxx
♥xxx
♦x
♣K98xx

What, if anything, do you do?

[Free]

A near-perfect hand for a takeout double but I can't Dbl.

Can partner still have a 5 card Major or not? I wonder if bidding 2♥ has some merrit. Chances are that it's partner's longest suit, in which case we can play 2♥ in a 4-3 fit with ruffing value in the short hand. I'd love to see a simulation on what's the best suit to bid, anyone up for it?

[mtvesuvius]

I'd bid 2♠, interesting idea Free, but I think it will backfire too often to be worthwhile... And partner may raise if the opponents compete. RHO could still have a lot of hearts, and opener could still have 4, I don't see too much reason to believe partner has them. 2♠ seems fine, and even if we are ruffing in the long hand, it's not like our trumps were something to write home about.

[Phil]

You are trapped into 2♠ using these methods unfortunately. The book examples show a four card spade suit (and its usually over a 2♥ overcall) thats a little better than ATxx. But I can't stand passing with a singleton diamond when I know we have more than half the deck.

[Siegmund]

I like the 2S bid too - but didnt think of it until about two hours after the hand came up. My immediate reaction was "you're endplayed into passing."

At the table my partner Lebensohled me into 3C, the opps competed to 3D, partner doubled THAT (which he hoped was penalty, but I was looking at 3-3-4-3 with K843 diamonds, concluded partner "must" have something weird like 4-4-0-5 and gotten slow and fast Stayman backward, and.... played in a 3-3 heart fit. Whoops.) Comedy of errors. Fortunately I caught the opponents as off-balance as we were and got out for down one, and it wasn't 100% clear whether we were beating 3D by a trick.

[Siegmund]

I like the 2S bid too - but didnt think of it until about two hours after the hand came up. My immediate reaction was "you're endplayed into passing."

At the table my partner Lebensohled me into 3C, the opps competed to 3D, partner doubled THAT (which he hoped was penalty, but I was looking at 3-3-4-3 with K843 diamonds, concluded partner "must" have something weird like 4-4-0-5 and gotten slow and fast Stayman backward, and.... played in a 3-3 heart fit. Whoops.) Comedy of errors. Fortunately I caught the opponents as off-balance as we were and got out for down one, and it wasn't 100% clear whether we were beating 3D by a trick.

[mfa1010]

It is fine to play the same system as after a 1NT opening. But it is a must to make an exception for the sequence 1X-1N-2X so double is for takeout. It comes up all the time.

[han]

Suppose you hold xx KJxx Axxx xxx, red against white, MPS.

Partner opens 1C, righty bids 1S.

You play with a very strong partner and you have agreed that double of an overcall is penalty. What is your call?