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Finish this sentence...Long reply from a new player

Posted By: Jake Jacobs
Date: Saturday, 21 March 2015, at 3:01 a.m.

In Response To: Finish this sentence...Long reply from a new player (Bob Koca)

Chuck's explanation is good, but here is a bit more than may shed light on areas you asked about.

Back in the 1970s Rubin-Granovetter (and others, but they were the best known) played a relay system, where the meanings of the bids in certain auctions were entirely artificial. In any auction a bid represents a contract for the pair to play at the given level and suit. For instance "three clubs," should the auction be passed out, means the pair whose member made that bid must try to take nine or more of the thirteen tricks with clubs as trump.

But the bid may have been made with the intention of conveying a message other than "let's try to make nine tricks in clubs." A relay system sees one member of the partnership taking charge of the auction. His bids say only "partner, tell me about your hand." Each continuation asks for more detail. In one famous auction Rubin-Granovetter reached a grand slam, and then the opponents requested an explanation of the bids. Rubin wrote down a hand on a napkin and said: "Here is partner's hand; I may be off by a jack." And when dummy came down, so it proved.

Sounds great? In practice such systems are prone to error, easily interfered with, etc. Plus, sitting through one of their auctions was (I have heard) every bit as exciting as watching Grandell-Balbi spend five minutes discussing an opening 31.

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