[bridgefest]

this is a Texas transfer to Hearts. p will have 6 hearts and game values but not slam interest.

[Douglas43]

 pilowsky, on 2020-June-19, 05:01, said:

I take it 'we' is Acol? Is that all forms of Acol?

I don't think there is a standard answer in Acol. Before two-level transfers were standard, I believe many Acol players used "Texas transfers" 4C to H, 4D to S. These days it's more common to see 4C = Gerber, and 4H and 4S natural. Opposite a weak NT there is more risk that opponents have game or a cheap save. Also, there is less to protect when you play the hand "upside down". With a six card suit and say 12-14 hcp, I would transfer at two level then bid game, but with a seven card suit and fewer hcp, just bid game in my suit.

[bluenikki]

 Vampyr, on 2020-June-20, 19:21, said:

We have remembered it for 20 years. It’s not hard when you have never assigned any other meaning to the bid. Some people play Gerber. How do they remember that?



People who have trouble remembering their methods should go over their convention cards with their regular partners from time to time.

DavidKok, I have very sophisticated methods for bidding minor suits over 2NT openings, so I don’t need to use 4♠ as a transfer to diamonds, but I am curious about how often it comes up.

The auction you posit is absurd of course, but if it came up, I would know what it was. Partner would not forget our methods. We have never used a bid of 4♠ meaning “to play”, so why would partner have a sudden hallucination?

Is from time to time monthly?

[iplaybridg]

 RufusVan, on 2020-June-19, 04:08, said:

I am obviously missing something. I will open 1NT and my partner will bid 2-4 diamonds. I assume they have a pre-empt, but when we play the game ... they have very few diamonds? Can someone explain? Also, if it does mean something else ... how do you tell the difference between it and a pre-empt bid?

Thanks in advance,


Vanya

I believe this is just a straight forward transfer. 2d is a transfer to hearts at the two level. 4d is a transfer to hearts at the 4 level. The 4d bid is known as a "Texas" transfer. It ensures you get to game and it interferes with the opponents bidding any information. I'm not sure, it's been awhile since I've played ACBL, but normally transfers used to be alertable by the partner who bid the NT. Hope this helps

[mad6_9max]

The first most important thing to consider is partnership agreement. There are quite a few different ways this bid can be handled. This is what I would teach my novices.

1NT - 4D (Transfer) I would expect the 4D bidder to have 9 to 11 HCP and 6 hearts

with more or less he would do a regular transfer of 2D

with less and 6 heasrts , inviting with 3H (Opener should have at least 2) Opener with a maximum value hand may decide to go to game

with more, respond with either a control card at the 4 level, or bid 4 Hearts at the four level. If opener has 16+ opener can entertain a query.

[Vampyr]

 iplaybridg, on 2020-June-21, 14:34, said:

I believe this is just a straight forward transfer. 2d is a transfer to hearts at the two level. 4d is a transfer to hearts at the 4 level. The 4d bid is known as a "Texas" transfer. It ensures you get to game and it interferes with the opponents bidding any information. I'm not sure, it's been awhile since I've played ACBL, but normally transfers used to be alertable by the partner who bid the NT. Hope this helps

Yes, this is still the normal procedure. Online, of course, you alert your own bids.

[Vampyr]

 bluenikki, on 2020-June-21, 13:36, said:

Is from time to time monthly?

Sure.

[sfi]

 bluenikki, on 2020-June-21, 13:36, said:

Is from time to time monthly?

To provide one data point, I review my notes with a partner before every tournament, and I presume partner does the same. There are many things you can't control at the table, but knowing your system is something you can work on beforehand.

[Trinidad]

 bluenikki, on 2020-June-21, 13:36, said:

Is from time to time monthly?

This is the novice and beginner forum. I am a promotor of simple systems for novices and beginners. One of the reasons is that novices and beginners will not go over their system with their partner. So, keep it simple.

Having said that, I will try to unveil a little bit of what people who are truly addicted to the game will do:

It may surprise you, since you seem to find it hard to believe that people would go over their system monthly, but there are players who rehearse a part of their system every day. Some pairs describe their entire system on a convention card and they have problems remembering that. Other pairs describe it in system books of over hundred pages and never have a forget at the table (because they rehearse frequently). And then there are players who play with different partners. This means that they need to know several systems!

In practice, for a more experienced bridge player, it is very easy to remember that 1NT-4♠ is asking for aces for several reasons:

• It is the first round of the auction
  
• The bid will fit logically with the rest of the system, since it is the lowest unused bid
  
• There is no interference from the opponents.

Even if the 1NT-4♠ auction rarely comes up, it is not difficult to remember, because it is a piece that fits into a cleverly and logically constructed puzzle. In general, for a seasoned bridge player, these constructs are either easy to remember or they are easy to reconstruct at the table.

The problematic agreements arise later in the auction or when the opponents are bidding, e.g. 1♣-(2♣)-2♥. Now, there will be an agreement that depends on the meaning of 2♣ e.g. natural, Michaels, or top and bottom. In this case, the 2♥ bid fits in any of three (or even more) puzzles! The problem is not so much to know what the bid means, but to properly interpret what puzzle we are making.
In this example, it is not uncommon among experts to play:

• After a natural 2♣, all new suits are natural and forcing for 1 round (puzzle), so 2♥ (piece) would show something like 5+ hearts and 10+ points.
  
• After a Michaels 2♣ (promising ♥+♠), new suits are non-forcing and a bid in one of the opponent's suits show our suits in a forcing way (puzzle). So now 2♥ (piece) would be a bid in the opponent's lower suit and show a strong hand with diamonds.
  
• After a top and bottom 2♣ (promising ♦+♠), new suits are non-forcing and a bid in one of the opponent's suits show our suits in a forcing way (puzzle). Now, 2♥ (piece) is natural, but this time, it is non-forcing, so something like 6 hearts and 5-10 points.

The hard part is to be on the same wavelength with your partner about what puzzle you are working on in each case. A large part of these over hundred pages of system notes is used to define exactly that.

Rik