Simple Mathematics
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 A 9 5 |
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 5 3 2 |
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 A 4 3 |
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 K Q 6 5 |
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| J 10 7 6 3 2 |
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K 8 4 |
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| ------ | |
10 4 |
| K Q J 9 2 |
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10 7 5 |
| 10 7 | |
J 9 8 4 3 |
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| Q |
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A K Q J 9 8 7 6 |
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8 6 |
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A 2 | Vul: E-W |
| East | South | West | North |
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1 |
| Pass |
1 |
Dbl |
1 NT |
| Pass |
6 |
All | pass |
A few days ago (in my daily hand) I asked rhetorically, "Blackwood is for Sissies?" Here I guess that should be restated only substituting Gerber for Blackwood. Gerber (or Blackwood on another sequence) would have elicited the information that outside of an 8-card heart suit, this pair has 3 aces and a king -- which adds up to twelve, you know. And it was a matchpoint event.
I have no quarrel with whether one goes on to grand or not here. It's a toss-up whether you'll find a useful queen or not (or A K low in spades). But when you've got 12 top tricks in a matchpoint event, as this was, you're simply going to have to shake loose from the notion that that long major suit has to be named trump.
It might surprise you, as it did me, that there was a greater gulf between 6 hearts and 6 no (both making 7, of course) than there was between 6 no and 7 hearts! Or even between 6 no and the no trump grand! Here are the figures: those who bid the iron-clad heart suit to little slam got 32%. Six no brought 66.67%, 7 hearts 80% and 7 no 94%. How do you like them apples?
So when all suits are stopped by high cards, that does not necessarily mean no trump will work better in slam. But you're going to want to give it some serious thought, no? This one should certainly have been bid in no trump.