Wednesday, December 04, 2002
10:17 AM
Hand Evaluation - HCPS ( Show Where You Live )
PITBULLS:
There
is a Bridge cliché which also forms the basis of bidding in partnership Bridge . “Show where you live” is bidding designed to show where your points
are concentrated .
This gives partner ammunition on
which to base her decision . Lead directors , duplication
of value , penalty doubles , trump
fits , type of HCP's , NT stoppers & forcing pass theory all ride on this decision to “show where
you live” with respect to HCP’s. This all
starts in your choice of opening bids . Say you held ♠AKQJ ♥Axxx ♦xx ♣xxx in 1st or 2nd seat .
Would you open 1♣ since you play 5 card majors ?
In 3rd or 4th seat opening 1♣ is criminal
. 1♠ shows where you live so gets partner off to the right lead . People who open 1♣ deserve the auction to go
1NT overcall , 3NT so partner dutiful leading a club
for –630 !! I would break the 5 card major rule & open 1♠ at any seat .
What about overcalls ? You
hold ♠x ♥AKQx ♦Jxxxx ♣Axx , RHO opens 1♣ . Do you overcall a diamond ? I don’t , because it
violates the “show me where you live “ principle . I bid a heart & since I
am lucky , I hit partner with 5 small hearts . What
about 2/1 bidding ? The same principles still apply
especially if you 2/1 was predicated on a fit for partner .
You hold ♠J ♥A10x ♦AKxx
♣Jxxxx , partner opens 1♥ . You go to the 2 level but in which suit ?
The “principle” says you should bid 2♦ rather than 2♣ . Partner has a void in clubs so her next bid after
you support hearts is exclusion Blackwood so you get to 7♥ . You bid 2♣ instead with the opponents interfering to 4♠ . Partner doubles with a non club fit
. Wrong ! you should
be playing the hand because the opponents have all the club
points !! Partner “mislead” me by bidding 2♣ !!
I thought her HCP’s were concentrated
there.
Showing “where you live”
involves rebids also . Say you hold ♠void
♥AJxx ♦xxx ♣AKJ109x , partner opens 1♦ so you bid 2♣ .
Partner bids 2NT which you play as a weak NT hand . Do
you gamble it out on the strength of the club suit & bid 3NT or “show where
you live” by bidding 3♥ ? I bid 3♥ on a similar hand so
partner held Jxx of spades for her 2NT rebid . 5♣ could make 6 , 3NT
would go 2 down .
This theory is also extended to 6-4’s . When I open a major , partner bids a forcing NT , I always rebid my 4 card suit next . Why
? Partner is usually denying a
fit with the 1NT bid so the 4 card suit can get “lost” if you rebid your 6
card suit . You are showing where you live by bidding your
two suits.
♠AJ109xx ♥KQxx ♦Kx ♣x or ♠AJ109xx ♥Kx ♦QJ10x ♣x On both these hands I would bid my 4 card suit .
Say on these hands you
rebid your 6 card suit . Is partner going to move with
♠x ♥Axxxx ♦Qxx
♣xxxx you go down in 2♠ but make 620 in hearts .
OR ♠x ♥Qxx ♦Axxxxx ♣xxx a vul 600 in diamonds is on a hook, you
play 2♠ going down !
Having said all this , I do not
bid my 4 card suits if “where I live” is all in my 6 card suit . With
♠AKQxxx ♥xx ♦QJ10x ♣x I bid 2♠ . The spade duplication
of value will hinder diamond games as well as make a spade contract better . Show where you live !!
Another way of showing where you live is “patterning
out” .
Quite often patterning out ( shaping ) is used as a game try as you are
showing extra values by doing this. Sometimes it’s just finding the best
spot. Kiz & I got to an excellent game by
“patterning out. I held ♠AKxx ♥x ♦Kxx ♣K10xxx & opened 1♣ . Kiz responded a diamond so I bid a spade. Kiz rebid 2NT invitational so I showed where I lived by
bidding 3♦. Kiz now leaped to
5♣ with ♠xx ♥Qxx ♦AQJx ♣Q98x
& since clubs behaved we were +600.
With 2/1 in competition it is much more important
to show where you live even when you have a fit for
partner’s major. Why , because there are opponents
lurking. When you show partner where you live first
, it will simplify her decision later on in the auction if the opponents go crazy. Partner will
appreciate your assistance for forcing pass decisions. Showing where you
live shows how hands fit. A double
fit is gold & usually means you bid more. Describing your hand to
partner & showing where you live are one & the same for identifying
fits.
Here is a hand where a Tormentee
violated “the showing where you live” hand evaluation concept.
Her partner opened 1♠ so she responded 1NT with ♠Qx ♥AKx ♦J10xxxx ♣Jx . Partner now rebids 2♥ so what now ? You ”live”
in partners two suits so bidding 3♦ is not a good bid.
Partner will pass 3♦ with ♠AKJxx ♥Q10xxx ♦xx
♣x & you cold for game
in hearts. The Tormentee bid 3♦ & luckily for her , partner had a
diamond void so be bailed to 3♥ & they landed on their feet in 4♥. “Show where you live” with your HCP’s is a good hand evaluation
concept to live by. When you play a 2/1 non forcing to game when suit rebid , there is a negative inference with this auction.
Since you did not bid 2♦ followed by 3♦ going in , you have a very weak diamond hand. ♦QJ1098xx or the like with minimum HCP’s. You have too many points to bid 3♦ anyway in this particular auction.
Karen Walker , in one of her
articles says good players make bids for
their partners. She says make bids that partner wants to hear.
Showing where you live can also be
interpreted as showing a fit for partner when you have a
chance. When you may only have one opportunity to make a bid , show where you live by supporting partner.
♠void ♥xxxxx ♦xxxx
♣Axxx & partner opens 1♣. RHO doubles so with your spade void
& only 4 HCP’s total & in partners suit no less ,
what would partner want to hear ? Your spade
void is valuable only when you have a fit
for partner. On the auction , a heart fit is
highly improbable but a club fit is odds on. Using Goren points &
counting your void , you have 8 HCP’s in support
of clubs. Show where you live by describing your
support & HCP range to partner. A 2♣ or
3♣ bid does the job nicely . When they bid 4♠
partner bids 5♣ & they bid 5♠. Forcing pass theory now kicks in
so you pass showing your spade shortness & partner bids 6♣.
When they are silly enough to bid 6♠ , a forcing
pass by you now shows a void & a grand slam might ensue.
What if you bid 1♥ which is showing where
you do not live & misrepresents your hand ?
They bid 4♠ & partner holds ♠xxx ♥A ♦AQ ♣Kxxxxxx
& since you bid
hearts opposite his stiff , he now prefers to defend. With
heart duplication of value in partner’s hand & no announced club
fit, passing would be the choice of most Bridge experts. Partner bid hearts for
a purpose so you are warned not to bid. They make
4♠ for –620 as the clubs are 2-0 . You are cold
for a vulnerable grand slam in clubs your way
!! . This is almost the largest swing possible in the game of Bridge. Solo artists always find bids to conceal their hand from partner.
Showing where you live determines how you bid a hand . Perry Khakar held ♠Kxx ♥xxxx ♦x ♣AKQJx
& his LHO opened 1♠. His RHO bid 1NT so Perry seizes the opportunity
to “show where he lives” . He bids 2♣
, opener passes & partner bids 3♣ so all pass making +130. Now
say what happens when Perry passes initially. Opener rebids 2♦ so all pass & if you balanced with a double , partner passes with ♠AQ10x ♥xx ♦KJ9x
♣109x . Since you “live” in one suit , your hand is useless defensively so they make +380
& -10 IMPS & the match. A double shows a defensive hand type with regard to location of HCP’s. When most of
your HCP’s are concentrated in one suit , it is an
offensive hand type meant for bidding. Do not complicate things for partner !! When partner holds one more club ,
it is your hand for +600 in clubs & they may make -580 in 2♦X !!
Showing where you live also applies
to the type of HCP's you hold rather than the mere total. Some
bids in Bridge deny quality HCP's in quick trick combinations
& are also meant to show duplication of value & soft HCP's . A NT
rebid tells partner my HCP's are soft & there is duplication of value
present & I have a minimum with respect to HCP totals so partner base
your judgment accordingly. ♠K ♥AKx ♦xxxx ♣KQ10xx you open 1♣ vul with a NV LHO overcalling 1♦
with partner responding 1♠. Your spade K has now been promoted
to its full value. You have 15 HCP & one extra for the 5 card suit so
your hand values to 16 HCP . Your 15 HCP's are all
quality HCP's in quick trick combinations which are better for suit
contracts rather than NT. You have 3 1/2 quick tricks which elevates the
trick taking potential of your hand. You have zero duplication of value
in the opponents suit so the 30 HCP in the deck rule
kicks in. A 1NT rebid is an impossible bid as it does not show where your live. You do not have a minimum
, you do not have duplication of value in their suit, your HCP's
are not soft . A 1NT rebid just cons partner. Respect
HCP's in quick trick combinations & your bidding will improve
immensely. For you non believers of the importance of quick trick
combinations this hand makes +600 in 5♣ opposite partner's 6 HCP's
& shapely hand. Most experts rely on quick trick combinations for
their primary hand evaluation technique.
Showing
where you live is standard operating procedure
to assist forcing pass theory . When
partner has shown limit raise or better values & your side has decided to
bid game , you own
the auction. Whenever you own the auction , arm partner with information to make
her life simpler . You have ♠KQxxxx ♥void ♦xxxx ♣AQx so you open 1♠ .
They overcall 2♥ with partner bidding 3♥ & RHO bids 4♣. Showing where you
live is accomplished by doubling with this hand so partner can make
an informed decision later. 6 of your 11 HCP's reside in the ♣ suit , so informing partner about this makes Bridge
sense. They pass & partner bids 4♠. RHO now bids 5♥ so what is partners decision with ♠J109xx
♥Axxx ♦Kx ♣xx when
passed around to her ? This is simple as you do
not want to be near 5♠ when partner lives in ♣
values. Change partners hand to ♠AKxxxx ♥void ♦Qxxx ♣Kxx ,
partner bids 4♠ instead of doubling. You now have a simple 5♠ bid
which makes , but 5♥X
goes for +100 . 5♥X
even makes when you do not get your ♦ trick. In forcing pass theory
, do not get fixated on your own
hand. Bid your partners’ intentions
also.
When partner
does not double 4♣ & passes 5♥ , she says she wants to bid
5♠. You have a simple decision to comply with her wishes. Doubling 5♥ only works when partner does not show
where she lives with a double of 4♣ ( two
wrongs making a right ) . Passing 4♣ means that partners HCP
values are located elsewhere so 5♠ should make with ease.
Forcing passes are a partnership concept , so help partner with her
decisions when given the opportunity. Partner is obligated to show where
she lives when partner's Q bid is unlimited & forcing passes
are turned on. A penalty double of a suit shows where
you live nicely. Otherwise Bridge bidding becomes just a series of silly
guesses & result merchanting when you guess
wrong or right ..
When you think
"showing where you live" as a bidding method your partnership
bidding will improve immensely. You are making bids partner likes to hear
so she has fact finding done on which to base her Bridge decision. It is
a bidding philosophy which all good players have bought into. Solo
artists hate this treatment as they can not fool
the opponents by bidding their hand properly. They must throw partner
& the opponents a curve . Bridge
stupidity at its worse.