ACES ON BRIDGE
DEAR MR. WOLFF: Would you take a bid here?
You hold ♠ Q-10-7, ♥ K-109-6-3-2, ♦ 3, ♣ J-6-5 at game all and hear your partner bid four spades over your lefthand opponent’s four-diamond opening, raised to five diamonds on your right. — High Level,
Lorain, Ohio DEAR READER: I would compete to five spades. I have a good hand for spades with little defense, so five diamonds or five spades could make. In fact, it is only when both five diamonds and five spades are going down that I will be wrong. Also, the auction may not be over; let the opponents make the last mistake.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: You hold ♠ A-5, ♥ K-Q-6-4, ♦ 10-6-5, ♣ A-K-Q-7. With both sides vulnerable, what would you do after one spade is opened to your right? — Matter of Style,
Monterey, Calif. DEAR READER: There is something to be said for a one-no-trump overcall, getting the hand off my chest all at once, but the spade holding is not ideal for that, potentially wrong-siding a no-trump contract. Moreover, if this is a part-score deal, I would prefer to bring the other suits into the picture. So double is fine by me.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: My partner and I disagree about how much strength we need to make an inverted raise of, say, one club to two clubs. I like to have the values for a proper game-invite, but partner seems content to make a simple raise on as few as 9 points. What do you say? — Upside Down,
Augusta, Ga. DEAR READER: When raising partner’s major suit (where length is guaranteed), shape substitutes for high cards. Here, though, the target is more often to play in three no-trump, where distribution counts for less. An inverted minor-suit raise should thus be invitational or better facing a weak notrump. The right 9-count with five trumps is more likely to qualify facing a one-diamond opener, though, since that so often delivers four or more cards.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: Who do you think is the best bridge writer of all time? — Broad Question,
Wausau, Wis. DEAR READER: Terence Reese, Hugh Kelsey and Victor Mollo would all be at the top of my list, but for different reasons. Mollo’s “Menagerie” books are most entertaining, while Kelsey’s quiz books are must-reads for any aspiring player. Reese made reading bridge pleasurable because of his eloquence, and he also contributed a lot to cardplay theory. Eddie Kantar and Mike Lawrence are among the best candidates from the U.S.
DEAR MR. WOLFF: What shape does a negative double of a three-level overcall promise? Say your partner opens one diamond, and your right-hand opponent overcalls three hearts. Does a double now show four spades?
— Negative Sir, Newport News, Va. DEAR READER: The higher the bidding gets, the more hand-types must be included in a double, which is, by its very nature, the most flexible call at your disposal. To double after a one-heart or twoheart overcall normally shows exactly four spades. At higher levels, you may be forced to double with a decent hand and no clear alternative call.