Aces on Bridge
DEAR MR. WOLFF: Can the dummy revoke, with the consequence of the opponents subsequently receiving one or two tricks? I would have thought that since everyone can see the dummy, there can be no revoke penalty. If declarer attempts not to follow suit in dummy, what can dummy do about that?
— Right or Wrong
ANSWER: There is no formal penalty for a revoke by dummy, but the director can restore equity by reversing the effect of the revoke. This is one area where dummy may speak, as well as being allowed to prevent declarer from leading out of the wrong hand. Additionally, at the end of the hand, he may draw attention to other irregularities.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: You recently ran a deal in “Bid with the Aces” where you raised an opening bid of one heart to two, holding SPADES J-4, HEARTS Q-7-4, DIAMONDS A-9-4-3, CLUBS Q-10-6-4. After your raise to two hearts, what would it mean if you doubled East’s balancing two-spade bid instead of passing? Would it suggest to your partner that you have some values in the minors and perhaps not the right point count or shape to bid three hearts, but you don’t want to give up the fight? — King of the Hill
ANSWER: I think not. I’d expect, once we die in two hearts, that a double should be penalty-oriented. That doesn’t necessarily mean a vast trump stack — maybe Q-10-x-x and a trick-anda-half on the side would suffice. DEAR MR. WOLFF: I have a question about Standard American opening style. I say that we should not open a four-card major (unless absolutely no other bid makes sense). If you rebid a major, it should guarantee six cards or a strong five. My friends say you can open a four-card major, and a rebid shows five. Who is right?
— Seconds Out
ANSWER: This is a question of system, not right or wrong. Opening a four-card major is not standard in ACBL. Opening a major normally shows five, and rebidding it generally shows six. Even if playing four-card majors, try hard to avoid repeating a five-carder over a one-level response. In sharp distinction, after a two-level response, rebidding a strong five-card major is fine if your hand is unsuitable for a bid of two no-trump.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: Yesterday we had a sequence in which my partner opened one diamond and the next hand overcalled one no-trump. I had a flat hand with two hearts and 11 points, so I doubled, and now my LHO escaped by transferring to two hearts. If I pass that call, is my partner forced to bid again?
— Armed Forces
ANSWER: A simple agreement is to play that the double of one no-trump sets up a forcing pass through two of your suit, but not higher. So in the sequence shown here, a pass would not be forcing. If your partner had opened one spade, your pass would be forcing.