[blml] By the pricking of my thumbs [SEC=UNOFFICIAL]

[Tim West-Meads]

Ed wrote:

> Was the question resolved? I'm with Richard - if the inadvertent call 
>  is cancelled, then in effect it never happened. How can something  
> that never happened be an irregularity?

Dealer (North) opens 1D.  East overcalls 1H.  North then says "That's 
insufficient - I opened 1S..oh my!.. I meant 1S".  The TD is called and 
establishes that the 1D was inadvertent and allows a correction to 1S.

If we say an inadvertent bid is NOT an irregularity then 1H is now an IB 
and East is OS.  The info from the 1H bid is AI to NS and UI to W, EW 
will face penalties if 1H is not corrected to 2H.

If we say that an inadvertent bid IS an irregularity the 1H may be 
withdrawn but the information is now AI to EW and UI to NS.

The situation is similar if East reaches into the bidding box to make an 
overcall and, at that point, North notices and corrects - East now 
passes 1S.  

At no point has East done anything wrong - he is acting in tempo over 
the apparent call.  To me it seems insane that anybody suggests that 
East be treated as OS (or that NS should have as AI the fact that East 
was prepared to overcall 1D but not 1S).  We *need* an inadvertent bid to 
be an irregularity in order to be fair to the opponents.

Obviously if the irregularity is noticed and corrected before East 
reaches/bids/otherwise gives away info there will be no UI, no penalty, 
no problem.

Tim