Aces on Bridge
DEAR MR. WOLFF: Say that you open one club with SPADES A-8-3, HEARTS K-J7-3, DIAMONDS 4-3, CLUBS K-J-8-2. Your partner responds one spade. Should you raise spades, bid hearts or rebid at no-trump?
— Total Re-call
ANSWER: While it is acceptable to raise partner with three trumps, you should not do so with a completely balanced hand if there is a practical alternative. Here, though, your small doubleton makes your three-card raise eminently sensible. Rebidding one no-trump would be my preference if the diamond four were the queen. Bidding two hearts is out; that would show real extras and a 5-4 pattern.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: My lefthand opponent opened a weak three diamonds, and I heard a double from my partner. The next hand bid four diamonds, and I held SPADES A-Q8-5-3, HEARTS K-10-7-2, DIAMONDS 7-4-3, CLUBS A. My diamond length looked good for slam purposes, but with this hand, should I settle for game, drive to slam or invite — and in all cases, how should I find the best strain?
— Orange Julius
ANSWER: I can see why a call of four spades would not do this hand justice, but if the club ace were the king, I would grudgingly settle for that. You cannot really offer a choice of majors except by bidding five diamonds, and since this obviously implies willingness to play slam, maybe you have to do that and accept a sign-off.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: In defending against no-trump on an auction where you have not bid, what agreements would you recommend for top-honor leads, especially regarding the request for an unblock?
— New Kid on the
Unblock
ANSWER: At trick one against no-trump, there are two common agreements. You can play that the king asks for unblock (or count), while the ace and queen ask for attitude. Or the ace and queen ask partner to unblock an honor (or to give count if you have no honor), with the king asking for attitude. In the first case, you would lead the king from A-K-J-7-5, for example; in the second case, the ace.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: Recently, I was playing two hearts and determined after a long disagreement that my right-hand opponent had discarded a diamond when she still had a trump to follow with. Her side did not win any further tricks after that point. It doesn’t feel right that she should escape without penalty, does it? — Sex Cymbal
ANSWER: If the offending side does not win a subsequent trick (including the revoke trick), there is no penalty. The revoke law isn’t really an attempt to restore equity on its own. But if the penalty (be it zero, one or two tricks) does not restore equity, the Tournament Director is empowered to do so. The nonoffending side should never get fewer tricks than they did because of the revoke, and the benefit of the doubt will generally go their way.