ACES ON BRIDGE

DEAR MR. WOLFF: I picked up ♠ K-J-3, ♥ A-K-96-3, ♦ K-J-5-2,

♣ 5 in a recent match, and heard partner raise my thirdin-hand oneheart opening to two hearts. We play Drury, so this is limited to an uninspiring 9-count. Would you bid on?

— Magic Shape, Grand Forks, N.D. DEAR READER: With not enough power for game and a likely eight-card fit, passing seems right. Still, 5-43-1 hands do become more powerful after uncovering a fit. If our high cards mesh well together, we could have a game. Certainly, with the diamond queen instead of the jack, I would be tempted to try three diamonds.

DEAR MR. WOLFF: How should we be playing doubles in game-forcing auctions? Are they always for penalty? — Forcing Auction,

Nashville, Tenn.

DEAR READER: I think penalty is the default, since you can make a forcing pass if it is your right-hand opponent who has bid. However, if your left-hand opponent has bid and you are in the “balancing” seat, you may have no good call, so many pairs use doubles as more like optional than penalty. In other words, the general principle is “penalty over the bidder, card-showing under the bidder.”

DEAR MR. WOLFF: My partner held this hand:

♠ J-10-7-5-3, ♥ 10-6-5-2, ♦ 8, ♣ A-Q-9, at favorable vulnerability, and after hearing me open one heart and the next hand bid two clubs, he bid four hearts! What do you make of this? — Over-egged,

Muncie, Ind. DEAR READER: I can understand why your partner raised to game, with some shape and a good club holding over the bidder, but I think a cue-bid raise of three clubs should suffice here. If opener has a minimum, why should we make a game? Bidding four hearts might also convince partner to sacrifice at this vulnerability, thinking I have a bigger fit and less defense.

DEAR MR. WOLFF: I am easily distracted at the bridge table, particularly by noise, and this causes me to make mistakes I usually would not. How might I remedy this?

— As a Mouse, Palm Springs, Calif. DEAR READER: Everyone at the table should be quiet during the hand, so if it is an opponent (or partner) who is being noisy, you can politely ask them to quiet down. If there is an issue in the room at large, you can call the director and draw their attention to this.

DEAR MR. WOLFF:

What sort of holdings make for good passive leads?

— Safety First, Saint John, New Brunswick

DEAR READER: When your goal is to give nothing away on opening lead, you should be loath to underlead vulnerable honors. Holdings that consist solely of small cards are the most passive. In general, the longer the holding, the safer the lead as well. So, when you decide to lead passively, a suit of five small is more passive than one of three small. If, however, you had three small and jack-fifth, you might reasonably choose the three small. Sequences (the longer, the better) tend to make for safe leads as well; their plus is that they also have more potential to set up tricks.

If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, email him at bobbywolff@mindspring.com