Saturday, April 08, 2006 2:25 PM

Hand Evaluation – HCP ( Breaking Rules )

PITBULLS:

Rules are made to be broken . This a strange statement coming from me who feels that discipline is of paramount importance in the game of Bridge. What I mean is do not be a slave to the HCP system . Hand evaluation is far more important than HCP’s . This is true from the opening bid on. The quality of your HCP’s ( quick tricks ) are far more important than the total. Promote or demote Bridge hands so as not to be a slave to the HCP system. “Walter the Walrus counted up his points & bid” as this Victor Mollo’s character feels that HCP’s are the be all & end all. Sometimes hand evaluation skills & HCP’s are not a good mix. In the history of the game of Bridge , hand evaluation & judgment preceded HCP’s by decades. Do not get overly “hung up” with HCP’s.

2/1’s are the same way of thinking. A Tormentee held ♠Qx ♥KQJ109x ♦Q109xx ♣void & heard me open 1♠. This hand has “only 10 HCP” so she responded 1NT . We got into trouble after that as her two suiter was impossible to describe after the initial forcing 1NT. Hand evaluation shows that you have heart spots that are unbiddable . You have a 6-5 distribution which is a huge hand evaluation asset , you have a void & a partial fit in partner’s suit. This is a 2/1 bid no matter what system you play.

You hold ♠xx ♥Q1098xx ♦Axx ♣Ax & hear partner open 1♠ . Bidding theorists know that a forcing NT buries 6 card heart suits after a spade opener so it is virtually impossible to recover after that. This is a time to “break the rules” & bid a 2/1 in hearts. How badly are you “distorting “ your hand by bidding a 2/1 ? You have a hand that most people would open the bidding 1♥ so the real distortion comes from bidding 1NT with this hand. With my partners , we not allowed to bid a forcing 1NT with 6 card heart suits. We bid 2♥/3♥ non forcing to game or a weak jump shift to 3♥ immediately. The forcing NT structure & 6 card heart suits are a very bad mix.

You hold ♠xx ♥x ♦xxx ♣AKJ109xx , partner opens 1♠ . Contrary to the forcing 1NT zealots this a 2♣ bid in any system . A forcing 1NT buries good suits so you rarely recover. Promote this hand to a 2/1 so you have a chance to give partner some idea of your hand. I do not have enough to force to game (HCP’s ) they lament. Yes , you do not , but it is the lesser of the two evils. Bidding 1NT with this hand is a gross distortion. Use hand evaluation to break the rules. My partners play 2♣/3♣ non forcing to game so we can avoid the forcing 1NT with these hands.

2/1 in competition are either forcing to game or 10 + HCP. Nonsense ! Use hand evaluation instead. Partner opens 1♠ , they overcall 2♣ . You have ♠xx ♥AKJxxx ♦xxx ♣xx so bid 2♥. You have a non forcing 3♥ bid at your disposal so do not hide your nice suit. You have 10 HCP ♠Ax ♥J10xxx ♦KQx ♣xxx , same auction. I prefer a negative double rather than a 2♥ bid as you are stuck for a rebid if you bid 2♥. Who cares if you have 10 HCP in competition. Hand evaluation stipulates that a good suit is more important to show & you can always show HCP’s later by other means.

Describing quality of suits is a hand evaluation skill. With 2/1 auctions we play jumps to show solid or semi-solid suits. Do not be a slave to solid suits with these bids. Being too strict will mean this excellent bid will almost never come up ! You do not need a solid suit per se. KCB has come a long way over the years so you can find out if you are missing a queen , king or Ace in your trump suit. A semi-solid suit is defined via KCB. If you can make your suit solid via KCB , it is a semi-solid suit. KQJ1098x , AKJ109xx AQJ1098x are semi-solid suits as you are looking at the spot cards. Let KCB do the rest.

Susan Culham gave me a hand that follows the same theme. Do not be a slave to conventional treatments ! ♠QJxx ♥xxx ♦AKx ♣Q9x , partner opens 1♥ with you responding 1♠. Partner bids 2♣ so now what ? Susan says use hand evaluation & leap to 3NT ( I play 2NT as a new suit ) rather than use 4^th suit forcing. You are describing a minimum hand with a 4-3-3-3 with soft values for NT . Perfect ! I agree with Susan that 4^th suit forcing is a real distortion with this hand as partner has a right to expect a better hand by going that route . She might later push the auction to an uncomfortable level. Hand evaluation skills vrs HCP’s is no contest. Do not go to tournaments without it !!