Having fun not playing all that well

I didn’t play very well tonight.  I kept getting ahead of myself.  I knew what I wanted to do but I just kept blowing it, if you know what I mean.  But that was okay because Colin wasn’t playing his very best either and our opponents who were all partnerships had their problems too.  So there we all were playing good bad bridge and somehow it was fun, well most of the time.

Here is an example of good bad bridge,  Everyone vulnerable Colin passed in first chair and East opened 1D. 

Colin passed in first chair with all vulnerable and East opened 1D.  I overcalled 1NT and west bid 2H.  Do you like that bid?  I suppose so.  Colin doubled and West bid 3C.  Now things were getting nasty.  I passed and West gave "preference" to diamonds which Colin doubled.  I started the HA and switched to a diamond which East won.  East played trumps and we basically forced East in spades or hearts at every opportunity.  East took four diamond tricks, the AK of clubs and the SK.  Looks like 2 down, unless you accept the false claim!  That was what happened amid many apologies.  It was that sort of night.  3NT doesn’t make on a diamond lead but that might not always be West’s choice.

Outside of the false claim it doesn’t seem like anyone did anything terrible.  Maybe -500 is a normal result.

What about this hand?  How would you handle it as West?  I opened 2C showing 6C and 11-15 with S A H J42 D 86 C AJ109843.  West held S Q73 H K98 D AK942 C Q2.  What would you do?  My West overcalled 2D.  I don’t like that bid at all.  Isabelle would be proud of my for saying that.  Your diamonds aren’t that good.  This went pass, pass back to me.  I knew Colin had diamonds but I also knew that the opponents just had to have a major fit so I was quite happy to pass.  As it turns out 2S is the limit of the hand for our opponents and 2D went 3 down. 

I wonder what Colin will do if West passes.  He might bid 2D asking about my hand and I will bid 3C showing no major, shortness somewhere and a minimum and we will probably play likely going minus.

And then there are those ugly moments.  Red on white East opens 1C and you hold S 1086 H 1097 D 1065 C QJ63.  You pass, West passes and partner reopens double.  When East passes you briefly consider playing 1C doubled but decide you better bid something since vulnerable uptricks add up.  What do you like?  I bid 1H which turned out the be an error.  At the time I thought partner was more likely to have a major suit but in retrospect that is exactly why I shouldn’t bid 1H.  West bid 2C and partner now bid 4H which had no play at all being off the AKQ of hearts and the SA.  Next time I will bid 1D.