[a_user]

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This was board 5 of a real (humans vs humans) tournament.
We play together regularly using 2/1 with very few gadgets.
I was East.
What is the appropriate bid for West to indicate a high level of excitement?
It's just a regular club tournament, nobody reached the best (or even second best) DD contract.

[DavidKok]

2♠, natural and forcing.

[bluenikki]

DavidKok, on 2026-June-25, 03:20, said:

2♠, natural and forcing.

In which round of bidding do you plan to show your high level of excitement?

If, say, North's next bid is 5♥?

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

you have a game force, but no known fit at the moment, as far as you know, they can
take the first 2 tricks, making 12+ tricks after this start gets tough.

If you can bid 2S as natural and forcing, I would assume standard agreement in North America,
go for it, see, how the auction develops, I cannot make this bid, I start with X.

A 5H by North does not scare me, we are green vs red.
At red. vs green, 5H would scare me more, but I cannot change my agreements, so I have to
see, if it comes to pass.

With kind regards
Marlowe

[P_Marlowe]

a_user, on 2026-June-25, 02:54, said:

<snip>
It's just a regular club tournament, nobody reached the best (or even second best) DD contract.

Not reaching the best / second best DD happens, you only see your hand, and partners reactions.
Change the unknown hand, and the best / second best DD contract may change as well

[strong 1c]

Partner and I play transfer Lebensohl in this situation where 2S would be to play, 3d would be a fast cue bid showing 4 spades and values to go 3nt or 4S without a heart stop and 3h would be game forcing transfer to spades showing 5 plus. Not sure if lying to partner with a 3d bid is better or if 3h is better for us because I don’t know that we have a spade fit

[mike777]

Perhaps t-Leb only played if
1. Partner opens 1NT



Where do you see it used after you open 1C?
I play transfers over one club(2+), however not after 2H overcall.

[strong 1c]

 mike777, on 2026-June-25, 05:32, said:

Perhaps t-Leb only played if
1. Partner opens 1NT



Where do you see it used after you open 1C?
I play transfers over one club(2+), however not after 2H overcall.

Putting our strong 1C aside, we play transfer lebensohl whenever the opponents make an immediate 2 level bid over my partner. For example 1H -(2C) - Transfer lebensohl is on. We also use it if we are already at the 2 level. 1H -(1S)-2H- (double) - TL is on.

With our strong club bid, there are some adjustments...for example, if after 1C we've given a positive response, we wouldn't use it. but if bidding went 1C-1D -(2H) it would be on for the 1C bidder. or 1C -(1H) -double -(2H) - it would be on for opener. I guess in last example we could end up wrong side.

Good question if it went 1C -(2H). For us, pass and double are weak bids, so any other bid is positive. I don't think we would use lebensohl but I need to discuss this with Peter. (We wouldn't need it to invite but I could see it as useful to show or deny a stop. )

[mikeh]

Easy 2S for now. I had to laugh at the idea that we should prepare for north to bid 5H.

As for a high degree of excitement, colour me feeling unexcited. I have a 16 count and partner’s most common hand types are a weak notrump or a minimum opener with club length…last time I looked, that was my short suit while I have that powerful and exciting heart holding, lol.

Now, I may become excited as the auction developed but for now I just bid a normal 2S and await developments.

[jillybean]

I'm excited to see the full hand. North has passed, East has shown his hand to be weak.
2♠ is ok.

[WasWinM]

I'm not sure why this question is raised unless the poster usually plays non-forcing free bids, in which case the answer is easy: stop playing non-forcing free bids. 2S is all that is required to show your long suit and force partner to continue bidding. What else is needed?

[bluenikki]

mikeh, on 2026-June-25, 08:27, said:

Easy 2S for now. I had to laugh at the idea that we should prepare for north to bid 5H.

As for a high degree of excitement, colour me feeling unexcited. I have a 16 count and partner’s most common hand types are a weak notrump or a minimum opener with club length…last time I looked, that was my short suit while I have that powerful and exciting heart holding, lol.

Now, I may become excited as the auction developed but for now I just bid a normal 2S and await developments.

My point was not that you shouldn't bid 2♠. Of course you should. But you should plan the rest of the auction: _when_ and how will you clue partner in?

[pescetom]

Some of our old-timers play that only X shows the balance of points and 2♠ would be non-forcing.
Dismissing that, 2♠ looks automatic.

[mikeh]

bluenikki, on 2026-June-25, 14:43, said:

My point was not that you shouldn't bid 2♠. Of course you should. But you should plan the rest of the auction: _when_ and how will you clue partner in?

If 2S is clearly correct and, in the absence of non-standard agreements, it is…then I don’t understand what you are saying. There is NO foreseeable auction that makes bidding 2S incorrect, therefore one bids 2S and awaits developments. Only an ***** would pretend to know precisely what happens next.

This is far from the occasional situation in which one has a choice of calls and can reasonably choose the one that will likely make later actions easier. 2S it is. Get back to me when the auction comes around and I am confident that I won’t regret having bid 2S. End of discussion on what to bid over 2H.