May 2015 - 49

Newer Players

Play	&	Learn
BY PAT HARRINGTON

mrsbridge@embarqmail.com

Simple overcalls, part 1
Have	you	ever	wondered	what	
the	word	"simple"	in	the	title	of	the	
overcalls	section	of	your	convention	
card	means?	Before	we	get	to	that,	
humor	me	by	reviewing	some	basic	
terminology.
As	a	bridge	teacher,	I	often	hear	a	
statement	like:	"I	opened	1♣,	the	next	
player opened 1♥	and	then	my	partner	
opened 1♠."	The	title	opener is given
to	only	one	player	-	the	first	person	to	
make	a	call	other	than	pass.	The	dealer	
has	the	first	chance	to	star	in	that	
role,	but	dealer's	pass	leaves	the	role	
of	opener	for	another	player.	Opener's	
partner	is	referred	to	as	the	responder.
An	opponent's	opening	bid	means	you	
can	no	longer	open.	Your	bid	in	a	suit	
or	notrump	is	now	an	overcall,	and	you	
are	cast	in	the	role	of	the	overcaller.
The	partner	of	the	overcaller	is	called	
the advancer.	So	the	above	sentence	
should	be	phrased,	"I	opened 1♣,	the	
next player overcalled 1♥	and	then	my	
partner responded 1♠."	
You	might	think	I'm	nitpicking,	but	
knowing	each	player's	title	will	make	
you	more	aware	of	the	requirements	
for	their	bids.	The	guidelines	are	different	for	opener	and	overcaller,	and	
a	bid	made	by	responder	can	have	a	
different	meaning	than	the	same	bid	
made	by	advancer.	
An overcall is your side's first bid in
an auction where one or both opponents
have already bid. A simple overcall is a
non-jump	overcall.	After	a	1♥ opening
bid,	1♠	is	a	simple	overcall,	as	is	2♣
or 2♦. A 2♠	bid	over	a	1♥ opening is
a jump overcall,	which	most	of	today's	

players	treat	as	a	preempt	similar	to	
an	opening	bid	at	the	same	level.	This	
is	the	first	article	in	a	series	discussing	simple	overcalls	over	a	one-level	
suit	opening.	For	the	time	being,	we'll	
focus	on	auctions	where	the	player	to	
opener's	left	makes	a	simple	overcall.
When	we	overcall,	an	opponent	has	
already	announced	approximately	12	
or	more	points,	so	slam	is	seldom	a	
possibility.	Even	making	game	might	
rely	on	partner	having	most	of	the	
remaining	strength.	Is	overcalling	really	worthwhile	if	you	aren't	that	likely	
to	reach	game	or	slam?	Absolutely.	
There's	no	reason	to	give	your	opponents	free	sailing	simply	because	they	
got	to	make	the	first	bid.
There	are	several	ways	that	you	can	
improve	your	score	by	overcalling.	
Many	overcalls	lead	to	competitive	
auctions	where	both	sides	fight	to	see	
who	gets	to	play	the	partscore	of	their	
choice.	It's	possible	that	both	sides	
can	make	a	partscore.	Occasionally,	
both	sides	can	make	a	game.	You	would	
like	to	win	the	auction	and	make	your	
contract	to	go	plus,	but	going	down	
isn't	bad	if	your	opponents	would	have	
scored	better	making	their	contract.	
Even	when	you	don't	win	the	auction,	
you	might	be	able	to	push	your	opponents high enough that you can set
them	to	collect	a	plus	score.	And	when	
your	side	isn't	that	likely	to	win	the	
auction,	your	overcall	can	direct	the	
best	opening	lead.	
One	difference	between	opening	bids	
and	overcalls	is	that	opener	sometimes	
bids	a	convenient	minor,	opening	1♣

or 1♦ on three cards to get things
started.	A	minor-suit	overcall	shows	a	
five-card	or	longer	suit,	just	as	a	majorsuit overcall does.
Another	difference	is	the	strength	
shown.	A	one-level	suit	opening	can	be	
as	strong	as	21	points.	After	a	one-level	
opening,	a	simple	overcall	at	the	one	or	
two	level	has	a	maximum	of	about	17	
or	18	points.	With	stronger	values,	we	
generally	double	and	bid	our	suit,	as	
we'll	discuss	in	a	future	issue.
The	level	at	which	you	must	bid	affects	the	lower	limit	of	your	overcalls.	
Modern	players	make	fairly	light	onelevel	overcalls,	as	low	as	about	8	points.	
Doubling	a	one-level	contract	generally	
isn't	that	lucrative,	so	we	can	take	more	
risks	at	the	one	level.	The	approach	to	
two-level	overcalls	is	different.	Opponents	are	more	likely	to	double	a	
two-level	contract,	especially	when	
the	deal	seems	to	be	a	misfit.	For	that	
reason,	it	is	generally	suggested	that	a	
two-level	simple	overcall	shows	a	hand	
worth	opening.
A	common	mistake	is	to	confuse	the	
role	of	a	two-level	overcaller	with	the	
role	of	responder	making	a	two-level	
response.	In	standard	bidding,	a	2♥
response to a 1♠	opening	bid	is	sometimes	described	as	showing	the	"five	
and	dime"	-	a	five-card	suit	and	at	least	
10	HCP.	It	is	not,	however,	the	recommended	requirement	for	a	2♥ overcall
over a 1♠ opening. Most players treat
two-level	overcalls	more	like	opening	
bids.	We'll	look	at	examples	of	overcalls	next	month.	
◾
May 2015 Bridge Bulletin

49
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2015
