[JonnyQuest]

Matchpoints.
Can you propose a believable auction to 6♣?
2♥ is natural.
2NT is a transfer to 3♣.

You do NOT play Minorwood or Kickback.

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[Winstonm]

I think north has to be the aggressor and splinter with 4H, which takes 3N out of the mixture and tells partner you are committing to an 11-trick game. That by itself should suffice to prompt 4S from opener.

1N-2H-2N-P
3C-P-4H-P
4S-P-5C-P
5D-P-5S-P
5N-P-6C-P
P-P

The key issue is once north has bid 4H the only question for south is 6 or 7 clubs.

[mw64ahw]

Distributions and strength are right for the slam. I can get there playing Kickbo (4♦ 2KCs) instead of 3♥, but I guess that's not allowed either?

[LBengtsson]

at matchpoints - NO; at imps - maybe YES. seeing both hands make bidding a slam easy. playing at table is another matter, especially bidding minor suit slam. you only have 27 points max and could be missing a number of keycards and end beyond 5♣ off two aces depending on what version of rkcb you use, and partners ♣ support as south could be worse than ♣QJ.

[mikeh]

I basically agree with Winston except for thinking that this is a good hand for a pet treatment of mine (though others play it as well, it’s a minority view). After extracting the 4S cue, I don’t like 5C since it is non-forcing.

I agree that North can’t drive to slam….opener could easily have, say, the same hand except KQ in hearts, not the ace.

Hence my liking for 4N in this auction to be forward-going. It says : I’m still interested in slam but I can’t drive to slam. What do you think?

South has almost a perfect hand on this auction. QJ in clubs is golden….partner isn’t worried about club length on this sequence. The heart holding is about the best it could be.

South therefore bids 6C. I don’t think there’s any point in bidding 5D. I can’t construct a hand with good play for grand where North bids only 4N

If opener held, say, Kxxx Axx AKxx QJ, then I’d bid 5D to cater to AQx x xx AKxxxxx

My rule for this 4N gadget is that we have to be in a gf auction, in a minor, and have no room left to cuebid below 5m.

Absent this extremely useful, if rarely used, gadget I’d go with Winston’s sequence except I’d not bother, as south, cuebidding over 5C.5C was non-forcing so opener shouldn’t waste time since grand is impossible and bidding 6N with one heart stopper and a partner who offered to play in 5C is silly. Opener should jump to 6C because he knows that, probably, every single honour he has is working.

[pescetom]

mikeh, on 2021-November-11, 14:07, said:

I’d not bother, as south, cuebidding over 5C.5C was non-forcing so opener shouldn’t waste time since grand is impossible and bidding 6N with one heart stopper and a partner who offered to play in 5C is silly. Opener should jump to 6C because he knows that, probably, every single honour he has is working.

Agree with this.
Although like the OP (it seems), I would play 3♥ as splinter after a transfer to minor.
And if NT gadgets are allowed then I would bid Turbo showing even keycards as N, which makes things even clearer to S (the spades control-bid must show the Ace, so we are missing only the Ace of trumps).

[Winstonm]

mikeh, on 2021-November-11, 14:07, said:

I basically agree with Winston except for thinking that this is a good hand for a pet treatment of mine (though others play it as well, it’s a minority view). After extracting the 4S cue, I don’t like 5C since it is non-forcing.

I agree that North can’t drive to slam….opener could easily have, say, the same hand except KQ in hearts, not the ace.

Hence my liking for 4N in this auction to be forward-going. It says : I’m still interested in slam but I can’t drive to slam. What do you think?

South has almost a perfect hand on this auction. QJ in clubs is golden….partner isn’t worried about club length on this sequence. The heart holding is about the best it could be.

South therefore bids 6C. I don’t think there’s any point in bidding 5D. I can’t construct a hand with good play for grand where North bids only 4N

If opener held, say, Kxxx Axx AKxx QJ, then I’d bid 5D to cater to AQx x xx AKxxxxx

My rule for this 4N gadget is that we have to be in a gf auction, in a minor, and have no room left to cuebid below 5m.

Absent this extremely useful, if rarely used, gadget I’d go with Winston’s sequence except I’d not bother, as south, cuebidding over 5C.5C was non-forcing so opener shouldn’t waste time since grand is impossible and bidding 6N with one heart stopper and a partner who offered to play in 5C is silly. Opener should jump to 6C because he knows that, probably, every single honour he has is working.

I like your treatment. Reminds me of methods used by the old Italian teams.

[DavidKok]

1NT-(2♥)-2NT* (transfer to clubs)-(P);
3♣* (forced)-(P)-4♥ (splinter in hearts)-(P);
4♠ (spade control, not a horrible minimum - upgraded for no wasted values in hearts)-(P)-6♣ a.p.

I would have loved to have the 4NT 'forward-going'/last train gadget available here. I could try 5♣ but I don't much like it.

A long time ago my partner suggested we play RKC 1430 normally, but RKC 3014 when in clubs, so that we may ask more freely when holding three keycards (and less freely when holding two). Unfortunately there is no point here - if partner has one we will be too high (partner cannot have zero with the positive 4♠ bid), and if partner has two we are always stopping in six. And if partner has three we could go fishing for the perfect hand (♠Kx, ♥Axxx, ♦Axx, ♣AQxx) or stop in six.
Those who play RKC 1430 can ask for keycards over 4♠.

In my system 2NT followed by 3♥ shows exactly four spades and a heart stopper, not club length.

[Cyberyeti]

Winstonm, on 2021-November-11, 12:13, said:

I think north has to be the aggressor and splinter with 4H, which takes 3N out of the mixture and tells partner you are committing to an 11-trick game. That by itself should suffice to prompt 4S from opener.

1N-2H-2N-P
3C-P-4H-P
4S-P-5C-P
5D-P-5S-P
5N-P-6C-P
P-P

The key issue is once north has bid 4H the only question for south is 6 or 7 clubs.

My question is whether with Axx, x, Kxx, K10xxxx partner would even bother making a slam try ? (and go past 3N to do so)

[Winstonm]

Cyberyeti, on 2021-November-12, 07:35, said:

My question is whether with Axx, x, Kxx, K10xxxx partner would even bother making a slam try ? (and go past 3N to do so)

Yes, that is the 64 dollar question. The 2H interference actually helps on this particular hand.