Source: Australian Youth Bridge Championships 2017 (1) In 2nd seat at vulnerable against not vulnerable, you pick up: Spade Suit 3 Spade Suit K10  Spade Suit AKQJ1096  Spade Suit A84 (a) RHO passes and you open 1Spade Suit. LHO passes, partner responds 1Spade Suit, and RHO overcalls 1Spade Suit. What do you do? (b) Say you bid 2Spade Suit. LHO now raises to 3Spade Suit passed back to you – what now? (2) In 2nd seat at not vulnerable against vulnerable, you pick up this collection: Spade Suit K9863 Spade Suit AQ105  Spade Suit 9  Spade Suit J53 RHO passes, you pass, LHO opens 1NT (15-17), partner passes, and RHO bids 2Spade Suit (transfer, showing 5+Spade Suit). Would you bid? If you pass, LHO completes the transfer with 2Spade Suit and again passed back to you. Would you bid now?

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Solutions

(1) In 2nd seat at vulnerable against not vulnerable, you pick up: Spade Suit3  Spade Suit K10  Spade Suit AKQJ1096  Spade Suit A84 (a) RHO passes and you open 1Spade Suit. LHO passes, partner responds 1Spade Suit, and RHO overcalls 1Spade Suit. What do you do? (b) Say you bid 2Spade Suit. LHO now raises to 3Spade Suit passed back to you – what now? (a) If you play 3Spade Suit as asking for a spade stopper (implying a running diamond suit), then that’s certainly one option. If 3Spade Suit will be understood as a splinter for hearts, then you will have to cuebid 2Spade Suit, a general game force. (b) Anything could be right, but my preference is to double. This can’t be for penalties (doesn’t make sense – plus, the opponents are likely to have a nine-card fit), and usually asks partner to bid 3NT with a spade stopper. This was Board 3 from the first round of the Youth Teams: As it so happens, it didn’t matter whether you doubled or bid 4Spade Suit as East will remove the double to 4Spade Suit. (2) In 2nd seat at not vulnerable against vulnerable, you pick up this collection: Spade Suit K9863  Spade Suit AQ105  Spade Suit 9  Spade Suit J53 RHO passes, you pass, LHO opens 1NT (15-17), partner passes, and RHO bids 2Spade Suit (transfer, showing 5+Spade Suit). Would you bid? If you pass, LHO completes the transfer with 2Spade Suit and again passed back to you. Would you bid now? With such good trumps, it is better to pass and defend. Whilst it’s true that your side is not vulnerable (making a 2Spade Suit balance a bit safer), but you would do just as good by defending 2Spade Suit (opponents are vulnerable) and taking them down by one or two tricks. Full deal from Board 15 of Match 2 Youth Teams: