May 2019 - 27

4. You
Opp.
Partner Opp.
1♣
2♣ (1)
3♣
Pass
?
(1) Michaels cuebid, 5-5 in the majors
Answers
1. Clubs: The suit they have bid.
2. Diamonds: The one unbid suit.
3. Hearts and spades: The suits the
opponents know partner doesn't
have length in. We expect them to
lead a major.
4. Hearts and spades: Your left-hand
opponent has shown the majors, so
we expect them to lead one.
Exploring for stoppers: asking and
telling
Situation No. 1: The opponents have
bid a suit.
The opponents' suit is the danger
suit for notrump. If you don't have a
stopper in this danger suit, you can ask
partner if she has a stopper by bidding
the opponents' suit. This is called a
"cuebid." If you already have a stopper in the opponents' suit and want to
play notrump, then bid notrump! For
example, you hold:
♠8 7 3 ♥9 ♦A K Q 6 4 3 ♣A 8 2.
Partner Opponent
1♥
1♠
2♥
Pass

You
2♦
2♠

Opponent
Pass

Your 2♠ cuebid says you are interested in at least game and requests
more info from partner. Partner's first
obligation is to bid notrump with a
spade stopper. If you were interested in
notrump and you had a spade stopper,
you would just bid notrump, not 2♠.
Don't worry, be happy
Despite all this talk about danger
suits, don't be paranoid. If the opponents have bid a suit, of course be concerned about having a stopper in their
suit. But do not be concerned about a
stopper in a suit not bid by the opponents. The suit they bid is the suit you
expect them to lead, and that is the only
suit you need to worry about. As long as
you have at least two or three low cards
in the fourth suit (don't have a singleton there), go ahead and bid notrump.

Say you hold:
♠K J 5 ♥9 7 2 ♣A 8 7 3 ♣K Q 6.
Suppose partner opens 1♣, and RHO
overcalls 2♠ (weak). Bid 3NT! You've
got the points, and you've got a double
spade stopper in RHO's suit. What of
the weakness in hearts? Don't worry,
be happy!
"But, Mel, what if they do lead that
suit they haven't bid and you don't have
a stopper?" Fair question. The answer
is that three things can happen:
❶ Partner bails you out with a stopper.
❷ Partner doesn't have a stopper
either, but the opponents can only
take four tricks in that suit and you
scamper home with the last nine.
❸ You go down!
Situation No. 2: The opponents have
not bid.
Say you and your partner have bid
two of the four suits, as in this auction:
Opener
1♠
3♣

You respond 1♥ to partner's 1♦
opener, and after partner's 2♣ rebid,
you see this hand is a candidate for a
notrump contract. There are enough
points for game, but if you bid notrump,
the opponents are sure to lead a spade
and you have no stopper. So bid 2♠
next, asking partner to bid notrump
with a stopper in spades. If partner
bids 2NT, it is promising a stopper
in that suit. We will be charmed to
bid 3NT after that. If partner doesn't

Responder
2♣

If responder now bids 3♦, that
would be showing a stopper in diamonds and asking for a stopper in the
fourth suit, hearts. Likewise, if responder bids 3♥ at his second turn, it
shows a heart stopper but is searching
for a diamond stopper.
When three of the four suits have
been bid and you declare a notrump
contract, the opponents are sure to
lead the fourth suit (the danger suit).
Make sure either you or partner have
a stopper in this suit before you bid
notrump.
If you don't have a stopper in the
fourth suit, but want to ask if partner
does, then bid the fourth suit as an inquiry. This is one application of what is
called "fourth-suit forcing." But if you
already have a stopper in the fourth
suit, then bid notrump yourself.
You hold:
♠10 2 ♥A Q 5 4 ♦K 8 3 ♣A 9 6 4.
Partner Opponent You
1♦
Pass
1♥
2♣
Pass
2♠

Opponent
Pass
May 2019 Bridge Bulletin

http://www.tullyluxurytravel.com

May 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2019