Losing Trick Count in Slam Bidding

This is a tale of two slam hands.  One successful, one not.  They were played on the same day--one at matchpoints and one at IMPs.

This first one was at matchpoints.  After partner opened and we located our heart fit, I barreled into slam.  It was only after I went down, earning a score of 46%, that I took a closer look at the hand. 

As you can see, I have a 7-loser hand.  Unusual to have 19 points and 7 losers, but there you have it.  True, the honors held by the opponents could have been better positioned, but in actuality, we had no business being in slam.  I violated my own rules and pushed on without paying enough attention to Losing Trick Count. As partner had not shown more than a minimum 7-loser hand, I should have settled for game.

Next we have another instant tournament, this one at IMPs.

Here I have only 16 points, but hold a nice 5-loser hand.  When partner showed a limit raise or better in hearts with the cuebid, I bid RKC, checking on keycards. Even though partner denied an ace, I judged that slam was a good bet and bid it. As you can see, partner has quite a good hand and slam made easily.

The score of plus 1430 was worth 9.6 IMPs.  Approximately 1/3 of the field bid it.

Don't forget to pause in the bidding and count your losers.  It will usually guide you to the right contract!

Happy Thanksgiving! See you at the table.