Friday, April 08, 2005 12:39 AM

Natural Bidding

PITBULLS:

Bidding naturally helps judge how hands fit for slam purposes. Bad fitting hands need 33+ HCP to make as there are no tricks . Tom Gandolfo had a hand tonight that shows natural bidding being used to stay out of a bad slam. He held KJxx x Axx AJ10xx and heard his partner open 1♥ . Of course you do not distort your hand by responding one spade as you have 13 HCP and enough to force to game. You bid 2♣ and partner bids 2NT. This 2NT bid shows either a minimum or a balanced hand in the 18-19 HCP range. Partner can hardly have 4 spades but you bid 3♠ anyway . Why ? because it describes your hand and gives the partnership an indication of how the hands fit.

Partners hand is A10x AKJxx Kxx Kx 18 HCP evaluating to 19 HCP. He can not just bid 3NT as that shows the lower range of NT hands. He bids 4NT natural and quantitative to show the range and the doubleton club. Knowing the two hands do not fit well even though we have up to 32 HCP between the two hands , we stop in 4NT which makes +630 A disaster is prevented by avoiding an ill fitting slam. Whenever partner bids 4NT or jumps to 4NT without establishing a fit earlier , it is not Blackwood but quantitative.

What if Tom held the same hand but throw in some extra HCP’s ? KQJx x AJx AQJ10x he would bid the same way but now he would make the quantitative bid. Over his 3♠ bid , if I bid 3NT he would bid 4NT to show his strength. If I had a good 14 with some HCP’s in the black suits I would bid 6NT. Tom has described both his shape and HCP’s and I can now make an intelligent decision. HCP’s are not just the only element for slam bidding . Where these HCP’s are located and how the hands fit is what makes the slams.

Here is another auction that natural bidding assists us in getting to a nice slam . Tom held K109xx A AQ10xx xx and opened 1♠ . I had AJx xxx Kxx AKxx and since I was too strong for a forcing NT , I “showed where I lived” by bidding 2♣. Tom bid 2♦ and I bid 2♠ . Tom bid his hand naturally by showing his 5 card diamond suit and bidding 3♦. Here is where the location of your HCP’s are paramount. I have AJx & Kxx in Tom’s two suits so I liked my hand. I bid 4♣ and Tom bid 4♥. I have heard enough to I bid 4NT and Tom made +1470 when the spade queen came down doubleton. Neither one of us bid the “serious 3NT” so we were just groping for slam throughout the auction. The reason why slam made on 28 HCP’s is that the hands fit and the HCP’s were in the correct location.

How hands fit for slam purposes is why Tom and I use relays to assist us in slam bidding. If we bid naturally it is strong and partner knows how the two hands fit . If we do artificial things like relays , we are not interested in slams. Bid naturally to show your distribution and strength.