November 2017 - 47

Newer Players

Startup Bridge
BY LYNN BERG

lberg@cfl.rr.com

Good, better, best - part 3: Best
The "best" hands aren't something
we need to worry about every time
we sit down at the bridge table. We're
happy with "good" hands to open
(12-15 high-card points), pleased with
"better" hands (16-18) and maybe
even surprised when we get even better ones. It's rare that opener needs
to force the bidding. Responder is
in charge in the majority of bidding
sequences, whether they begin with an
opening notrump bid or one of a suit.
Think about the various bids of
notrump by opener:
❶ Open one of a suit and rebid
notrump at the cheapest level
(12-14 HCP)
❷ Open 1NT (15-17 HCP)
❸ Open one of a suit and jump to
2NT (18-19 HCP)
Open
2NT (20-21 HCP)
❹
❺ Open 2♣ (22+ points)
It's only with the strongest hands
that opener requires a response from
partner. Even after 2♣, once opener
rebids 2NT (22-24 HCP) or 3NT
(25+), responder takes charge, as
opener has defined his hand.
When opener begins with one of a
suit, his partner should respond with
6 or more points - even if he doesn't
like his hand. You might pick up a sorry
collection like:
♠J 7 3 2 ♥K 9 4 ♦Q 8 5 3 ♣7 5
and be tempted to pass partner's
opening bid. Don't do it! Partner could
have as many as 19, 20, maybe even 21
HCP. You owe him a bid with 6 points,

whether it's bidding a new suit over
a minor opening or raising partner's
major suit to the two level. It can be
scary when you've bid a meek 1♠ to
hear partner jump to 4♠, but opener is
promising a minimum of 19 points in
support of spades - too good for just a
raise or even a jump to the three level.
The bidding message is, "Partner, if you
have even 6 points, my hand is strong
enough that we should be in game."
Opener might have a hand like:
♠A K 6 5 ♥A Q ♦A K 9 6 4 2 ♣6.
What if he had this hand and you had
responded 1♥? Then opener would
jump shift. After his initial 1♦, when
you answered, he'd jump to 2♠, telling
you that he has a big hand without four
hearts but with lots of points. Armed
with that information, you must keep
the bidding open all the way to game.
When does opener choose 2♣? If
your hand is balanced, it's because you
have 22+ HCP. If unbalanced, you have
a good suit and so many tricks that you
want partner to go to game on many
hands with only 3-5 points. You have
quick tricks and few losers, a hand like:
♠A K Q 9 4 2 ♥A Q 3 2 ♦A K ♣7.
If partner has two low spades and the
♥J 10 7 6, game is very likely. Give responder a few low spades and the ♥K
and slam is likely! Responder should
reserve judgment about the value of
his hand until he hears opener's rebid.
Imagine a seemingly terrible hand like:
♠J 9 5 3 ♥7 ♦Q 8 5 3 ♣6 5 4 3.
When partner rebids 2♠ after open-

ing 2♣, you should revalue your hand.
Not only do you have four trumps to an
honor but a likely useful singleton.
Opening bids of 2♣ require responder to keep the bidding open through
2NT or three of a suit. Often a 2♣ bid
will be followed by a 2NT rebid by
opener. For this reason, I think it's wise
for responder to make a 2♦ "waiting"
bid. It's as if the following dialogue
had occurred: "Partner! Pay attention! I have a great hand over here!"
And the "waiting" response says, "Oh?
How so?" The real business of deciding where and how high starts with
opener's second bid. If opener rebids
2NT, Stayman and transfers are still
available.
If the rebid is in a suit, there are
many possibilities for responder:
⦁ You hate what partner bid and have
a bad hand - this one is common! A
lot of partnerships have the agreement that 3♣ (if available) delivers
this message.
⦁ You have support but a bad hand.
Jump to game.
⦁ You have support and a trick or two.
Make a single raise, leaving room
for partner to describe her hand.
⦁ You have a good hand but no support. Bid your suit as cheaply as
possible.
It's exciting to get great hands, but if
you're like most bridge players, they'll
be infrequent. Most important, as
usual, is to discuss your methods with
partner - and then to remember them.
◾
November 2017 Bridge Bulletin

47
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November 2017
