Interesting hand 12
Last Sunday the following hand turned up
KQJ9864
void 
KQ1087
7
Non vulnerable as dealer what do open (opponents are vulnerable)?
A case can be made for opening either 1,
2 strong and natural , or 4,
so let us consider these possibilities.
Opening 1 seems the
natural bid but would you be disappointed if partner passed holding 4 points
, with two small cards in s and the
J . There are so many chances to make
game in s.
Opening 2 strong presents
no problem. However with so many players playing weak twos, you need another
bid for the strong two in a suit. Also there are restrictions on openings
of that sort.. The hand does not have 8 clear tricks assuming a 4-1 trump
break though its close, it does not have 16 pts and does not meet the extended
rule of 25 (length of two longest suits =12, pts =11, total 23). A natural
strong bid of 2 , no problem , show
the suit on the next round
Opening 4 . With a void
in s and taking into account the favourable
vulnerability , there's a lot to be said for this, since opponents may well
have game or a slam in s. I know its
not an 8 card suit but the second suit more than compensates
What actually happened
Playing with an unfamiliar partner I opened 4
and this was passed out, most pairs were in a slam. Partner held
A7532
K97 A 963 A
With so many trumps and two outside controls partner surely
can raise to 6, via Blackwood in case
you have a Grand Slam!!!! Finding the void in opener's
suit is not going to be easy
