A couple of months ago, I was in Fourth Seat, with unfavorable vulnerability, and I held 19 HCP. My RHO opened 1H. I was 4:1:4:4 with one Heart. I double. LHO bids 4H. My pard competes to 4S. After two passes, LHO bids 5H. My pard then bids 5S. All pass. We're down one. However, my RHO had six points and five hearts for her opening, and her partner had 11 points and four hearts. Had RHO not stuck in that 1H bid, we would've ended up at Four Spades, making four. Do I deserve an adjustment (five hearts by them does make)?
An excellent question, Burke. Law 40.C.1. states that "A player may deviate from his side's announced understandings always, provided that his partner has no more reason to be aware of the deviation than have the opponents." This makes psyching a legal part of the game, but only if the partner of the psycher does not know what's going on, either. The psycher must fool the entire table. You stated that your LHO had 11 points and 4 hearts. LHO certainly had no idea partner had psyched, so there has been no infraction of law.
A director has to satisfy himself on 3 points before he can make an adjustment.
1 - There must be an infraction of law or procedure. 2 - This infraction must lead directly to damage (in other words, the result would most likely have been different had the infraction not occurred). 3 - The non-offending side must continue to play bridge at, or near, their normal level of competence, based on the situation caused by the infraction. A wild or gambling action will not be protected.
The situation you've outlined fails to meet criteria #1. There has been no infraction of law or regulation. Once the situation fails on any 1 of the 3 tests, there can be no adjustment, no matter where the director's sympathies lie.
In the situation where the infraction meets tests 1 & 2, but not #3, the director should probably let the bad result stand for the non-offending side, but adjust the board in accordance with Law 12 for the offending side.
There are some psyches which are illegal based on regulations, not in the laws. I will outline these in a later posting.
It is also important to note the rest of Law 40.C.1. "Repeated deviations lead to implicit understandings, which then form part of the partnership's methods and must be disclosed in accordance with the regulations governing disclosure of system. If the Director judges there is undisclosed knowledge that has damaged the opponents, he shall adjust the score and may award a procedural penalty."
This part of Law 40.C. would not apply in your situation, since the 4H bid said, in great, big, flaming letters 300 feet tall, that there was no undisclosed knowledge.
Most psyches are legal, and are considered to be part of the game. With luck, in the long run the psychic actions by your opponents will gain you more than you lose. That having been said, it is important that you report ALL psyches, as this records the pattern for the director to determine whether the implicit agreement discussed in Law 40.C.1 has developed.
