Parrish the Thought Newsletter
November 2024
What a fall we’re having in New York City! The weather has been phenomenal; so have the theater and concerts! I’ve been to a bunch of great concerts at the Philharmonic and Carnegie Hall (Beethoven’s 7th and Mahler’s 3rd were highlights), two great operas (Rigoletto and Grounded, Jeanine Tesori’s new opera), and a bunch of plays—the highlights were Stereophonic (last year’s Tony winner for best play), and Maybe Happy Ending starring Darren Criss.
My view at Carnegie Hall
I’m heading to Las Vegas for the Fall NABC the day after Thanksgiving. I’ll be playing in the Soloway KO with Greg and then in the Blue Ribbon Pairs and Reisinger with my friend Anant Rathi. I hope to see many of you there. I’ll be giving a lecture one morning—TBD—so I hope you’ll all stop by and say hello.
After the Nationals I’m headed to Punta Cana for a vacation with my sister. Can’t wait!
The WBF has two cool online events coming up. For those of you who don’t live in the USA or another bridge powerhouse, a Small Federations team event is taking place in December. Registration closes November 25.
In early January 2025, there is a transnational (meaning everyone on the team doesn’t have to be from the same country) Online Women’s Teams event. Registration closes December 7.
My Monday "Expert Thought Process" and Thursday "Thinking Through Declarer Play" classes are on their regular schedule for October: 10am ET on Mondays and 1pm ET on Thursdays. You can get information about both classes here: https://learnbridgeonline.com/adam-parrish/
Upcoming topics in my Monday class are (schedule always subject to change if things take extra time):
November 4 Squeezes
November 11 Showing a Singleton Honor as Shortness
November 18 Defense
November 25 Misc. “Standard” Bidding Agreements
December 2 Robot Tournament (Recorded)
December 9 Defense
December 16 Declarer Play
December 23 Advanced Slam Practice
December 30 Fun with Greg!
If you have topics you'd like to see me cover in the Monday class or hands that you think would be interesting, please send them along. You can send me an email (adam@adamparrishbridge.com).
I hope you're all well and playing lots of bridge! As always, feel free to email me with questions. Speaking of questions...
I like “What should I have bid?” questions that underline a deeper point.
Hi, Adam,
I was stuck with this problem and didn’t know whether I should pass 1NT or bid 2♠.
N E S W
P 1♣ X P
1♠ P 1NT P
?
♠ xxxxx ♥ Jxx ♦ Tx ♣ xxx
I would bid 2♠. Think about it this way: What would you do if partner opened 1NT, showing 19-21 HCP (which is what they've shown by doubling and bidding NT)? You would transfer to spades and pass. Same logic applies here: 2♠ is likely to be a better contract than 1NT. The weaker the hand, the more we want to play with a trump suit.
Adam
I love the ACBL Bridge Bulletin. It can generate a lot of great questions.
Dear Adam,
In an "It's Your Call" in the Bridge Bulletin a number of the expert panelists play a different method than I’m used to after partner’s Michael's cuebid.
The auction was 1♥ - 2♥ - P and it is now my bid.
Here I would bid 2 (or more spades) if I like spades and bid 2NT if I do not like spades and want to find out the minor. I know some players like to use 2NT to show a 3-card limit raise for the major, maybe I should be doing that.
A number of the expert panelists play a different method, where both 2NT and 3♣ asked for partner’s minor.
What responses do you recommend?
I like the method recommended by the experts in that article.
3♣ is a weak pass/correct for partner’s minor.
2NT asks for the minor, but shows some interest in game.
After this, the Michaels bidder bids their minor with a minimum. With extras, they bid 3♥ to show clubs and 3♠ to show diamonds. (Like Unusual vs. Unusual: higher-ranking suit corresponds to higher-ranking suit)
Remember that maximum/minimum is based on what is expected from your Michaels Cuebid based on vulnerability. So a hand that you would treat as a maximum at favorable vulnerability you might describe as a minimum at unfavorable.
3♦ is INV+ in partner's major.
Jumps in partner's major are preemptive.
Adam
Sometimes even simple things can be confusing.
Dear Adam,
I’m confused about responder’s jump rebids. Can you suggest where I may find an answer to my question?
As a general rule, responder's jumps on the second round are invitational. Here are some examples:
1♣ - 1♠, 2♣ - 3♠ With a GF hand, responder would bid a new suit, probably 2♦, before rebidding their spades.
1♦ - 1♠, 2♣ - 3♦ This is an invitational diamond raise. Responder would take a preference to 2♦ with a weaker hand and use Fourth Suit Forcing with a stronger hand.
1♦ - 1♠, 2♣ - 3♥ Responder would use Fourth Suit Forcing with a GF hand, so this is invitational with 5-5 in the majors. (With 5-4 invitational, responder probably has to rebid 2NT.)
1♦ - 1♠, 2♦ - 3♥ This one is not standard. I like to play it as 5-5 invitational. With 5-5 GF responder bids 2♥ over 2♦ and then bids 3♥ next. You could invert those two meanings, and some do, but having the jump be invitational is consistent.
1♣ - 1♥, 1♠ - 2NT Jumps to 2NT are almost always natural and invitational.
Adam
That's all for now. I encourage you to send me questions about my column or anything else at adam@adamparrishbridge.com. Maybe they'll end up in the next newsletter!
Stay safe!