May 2023 - 61

Better Bridge with Bergen
Intermediate Players
BY MARTY BERGEN
martybergen.com
Super-accept or not?
When partner makes a Jacoby
transfer, he could have a very weak
hand, so you usually bid his major
at the same level. However, if you
have four-card support, you have the
chance to tell him that you love his
major by jumping one level. This is
referred to as super-accepting.
I have heard a million times, " In
order for opener to super-accept a
Jacoby transfer, in addition to fourcard
support, he must also have 17
HCP. " What is my reaction to that
statement? A term I learned from
Archie Bunker on " All in the Family "
comes to mind. I'd describe the above
as " crapola " ! Of course, for readers
too young to remember that great
show, how about, " Points schmoints! "
For me, as always, the key is to
exercise good judgment.
On these examples, you open 1NT
and partner bids 2H. Before reading
on, for each example, would you super-accept?
1
sK Q J 7 HQ J 4 DQ J 6 cK Q 2
2 sA 10 7 5 HA 10 9 DA K 9 3 c6 5
3 sK 7 5 3 HA Q 9 DK 10 6 3 cA 2
4 sK 7 5 3 HA K Q DQ 6 4 3 cQ 10
Improve your bidding judgment - part 24
Here is a very relevant chart:
Quick
1 17
2 15
HCP Tricks Aces (Q +J)
2
4
3
3 16 3 1/2 2
4 16 2 1/2 1
7
1
3
Quacks Intermediates
(10 + 9 + 8)
4
2
1
Analysis and conclusions
1 This hand has the most points of
the four examples, but it is not a good
hand for a spade contract. Why is
that? As the chart points out,
* It has the fewest number of quick
tricks.
* It is aceless. With a " nice-looking "
hand that is not bad, but it is never
good.
* Zero intermediate cards. I never
like that.
In addition to the above flaws,
* 4-3-3-3 distribution is awful, especially
in a suit contract.
* Jacks are the most overrated honors,
especially in a suit contract.
* When you opened 1NT, you loved
your quality spade suit. But once
partner promised five-plus spades,
there is an excellent chance that
your sJ is an irrelevant honor.
Bid 2s only.

clubs, preserving the s as an entry to
dummy after you dislodge the opponents'
club stopper. If West turns up
with DA, declarer needs 3-3 diamonds,
but this line, combining long
suit prospects, provides an excellent
chance, while blindly pursuing clubs
offers no chance at all. E
2 This hand has the fewest points
of the four, but did you note that it
ranked first in all of the other categories
in the chart (except quacks)? In
fact, for taking tricks in a spade contract,
it is definitely the most attractive
of the four examples! With this
very upgradable hand, after partner's
2H transfer, you should definitely
super-accept by jumping to 3s.
3 As the chart illustrates, this hand
is not as potent as example 2. However,
opposite a hand with five-plus
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May 2023 | Bridge Bulletin |
61
spades, this hand does rate to play
well in a spade contract. As an expert
friend once remarked, " It's uncanny
how well hands work out when none
of their honor cards are jacks! " You
should super-accept.
4 This hand is not as downgradable
as the very ugly, quacky example 1.
However, the value of the two minor-suit
queens is questionable. Bid
2s only.
Here is another way of stating the
correct mindset:
To super-accept a Jacoby transfer,
you need four trumps and a
" nice-looking " hand for a contract in
responder's major. Your number of
high-card points is not the key. E
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May 2023

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