All News

Good Shape: Bad Shape.

Two deals from the recent National Swiss Pairs illustrate well the importance of shape in hand evaluation. Both deals are in the slam zone. Firstly, therefore, two questions.

 

What is your bid here?    And here:

 

Two questions here.

Would you have opened this hand in 1^st seat?

What would you bid now? 2NT opening promises 20-21 hcp.

Good but how good?

The above statement would rather describe the first hand above..4 card trump support, some decent honours, a singleton but still only 13 hcp. One approach is to up-value the hand because of the spade shortage and bid 3. Some are able to show that spade shortage by bidding 2, a bid only forcing to 3. Despite the 1444 shape, a bit of a downer, that North hand is potentially a good raise. If you only bid 2, then you have to hope to get a second chance to say so.

 

 

Even after 2, South is worth a mild slam try. Although 2 and 3 might initially be regarded as game tries, 3 shows that 2 was indeed a slam try, these bids showing first or second round controls. Any version of Blackwood should do the rest.

Had North shown the spade shortage or initially jumped to 3, then slam would be bid with even more certainty.

Only 3 out of 22 North-South pairs failed to bid to 6. The slam is so good that the it could still be made if Q and even K were small cards. The only danger is in the trump suit if West East held all three. Assuming the opening lead did not threaten a ruff, play a low trump from the North hand and if East discarded, you will only lose 1 trump. a 100% safety play. That was not the case on this day.

Less Good News

What though our second hand? An 11 count with a bit of shape and a potentially useful T as well? If you opened 1 of a minor, or 1NT, if system allowed, try stopping out of slam now:

• North Deals E-W Vul	J 10 5 K 9 A Q 8 6 J 6 5 2
  Q 9 8 Q 10 7 3 J 4 2 9 8 7	N W   E S	6 3 2 J 6 2 7 5 3 Q 10 4 3
  	A K 7 4 A 8 5 4 K 10 9 A K

 

North-South have a combined 32 hcp but there is no long suit (5+ cards) or even a 4-4 fit. Barring a very unlikely ill-advised spade lead from West, 6NT is doomed. Every table played some level of no-trumps but no-one made more than 11 tricks. The slam needs two of the following good things to happen:

•       A successful spade finesse or Q dropping doubleton if you choose to play for that.
•   Q dropping singleton or doubleton (you are unlikely to play for Qxx in one hand)
•             4 diamond tricks.

While both moysian 6 and 6 slams can be made, they are unlikely contracts.

Our bridge textbooks recommend 33 hcp minimum where there is no 5-card suit for 6NT to be a good contract. Here, we can see why.

If North did open 1NT, or 1 of a suit, it will be hard for South to resist just going for 6NT. Several did.

3 Minor Suit Stayman, as in our auction above, is about as ambitious as North should be after South's 2NT opening. 3NT denied a minor and therefore a 4-4 fit. Wish partner “bad luck” as you put down your dummy in 3NT! Those who did were duly rewarded.

North was declarer 10 times suggesting they had opened the bidding. Only 2 managed to stay out of slam. South was declarer 12 times, 5 times in slam.

We love bidding to a making slam but at times need to be able to diagnose when we are best to stay out of slam. While high card points are very relevant, so is the shape of the hands, as our second example showed.

Richard Solomon

Go Back View All News Items