By Val Rhead
NOTICE – A NEW SOCIAL BRIDGE GAME IN HUNTSVILLE HAS STARTED. Read about the game at the end of my column.
Your partner opens the bidding with either One Club or One Diamond. What are your options for your first response bid?
Before you respond, you must envision the possibilities that exist in partner’s hand. He could have a hand with a good Club or Diamond suit. Most often though he has a hand with no five-card major suit and at least four cards in one of Clubs or Diamonds. He has bid the better of his two minor suits which is usually a four-card suit, but on occasion, it contains only three cards. He has opening points somewhere between twelve and twenty-one. If he had 15 to 17 points, and the right shape, he would have opened a One No Trump bid. If he had 20 or 21 points, he would have opened Two No Trump. If he had 22 points or over, he would have opened a strong Two Club bid.
Well, what do you do? If you have fewer than six points, just pass. With 6 to 9 points and four-card support, you could raise his One Club or One Diamond bid to the Two level. A disadvantage of bidding the better minor is that occasionally partner has opened a suit that is only three cards long. Because your partner may have just three cards in his minor suit, you should have at least four cards in that suit for your raise. If your hand was stronger and with support, you could bid a jump to the three level showing a limit raise of ten or more points.
You also could respond One No Trump with 6 to 9 points and fairly even distribution. With 10 to 12 points, you could jump to Two No Trump. These two kinds of raises, raising partner’s minor suit or bidding no-trump, are useful because they limit the value of your hand immediately. The opener now knows, within a few points, how many points you have and he has somewhat of an idea of the shape of your hand
Another bid that you can make after his minor-suit opening is a bid in any new suit at the one level. This bid does not limit your hand. You could have anywhere from 6 to 30 points. You or your partner will limit their hand with one of their subsequent bids. A new suit by you, an unpassed responder, is always forcing for one round. The opener must bid again. Only if you, the responder, initially passed, is the opener at liberty to pass your bid of a new suit.
Once either partner has limited their hand, the first priority is discovering at what level the contract should be played. The partner of the player who has limited their hand becomes the CAPTAIN. The captain knows best what is in the combined hands approximately. The captain is in a position to know the best level at which the contract should be played. The captain knows whether the partnership’s joint holdings have enough to have a good chance of making a game, or even a slam, or only enough points to make a part-score.
The second priority is to discover the best suit for the hand to be played. The opening bid was a minor suit. If you have good support in your partner’s minor suit, a game in that suit is a possibility. However, partner needs to make eleven tricks for a minor-suit game. This means he can afford to lose only two tricks. It often is easier, and it is worth more points, to make a game in a major suit or in Three No Trump.
So you look at your hand. Do you have a four card major? Partner may have four Spades or four Hearts for his One Club bid, so you bid your major if you have one. Start with One Heart if you have both majors so that opener can bid One Spade if he has four Spades.
If you don’t find a major-suit fit between your two hands, you may find that you have stoppers in all four suits, and a No Trump contract is the best place to be. Now remember that the captain will be the one who decides whether a slam is a possibility, whether a game will be bid, or whether the partnership should stop at a lower level.
The bidding will continue. You may invite game by bidding a limit raise (jump to three level) in partner’s suit, or by bidding Two No Trump. Opener will either accept the invitation and bid game or decline the invitation and pass.
On occasion, if you and the opener are both strong in his minor suit, the captain will bid Five Clubs or Five Diamonds, or even a minor-suit slam. Sometimes, this is the best contract. Often minor-suit slams are missed because of the emphasis on bidding major-suit or no-trump contracts. However, strongly consider a Major Suit or No Trump contract if one is available.
If you wish to promote an activity in your bridge group or ask a bridge question, send the information to [email protected] and I will try to include it in this column.
NOTICE – NEW SOCIAL BRIDGE GAME IN HUNTSVILLE HAS STARTED
ACTIVE LIVING CENTRE, THURSDAYS, 7PM
MULTI-PURPOSE ROOM 2ND FLOOR (ELEVATOR) (back entrance of the Canada Summit Centre)
JUST COME – WITH OR WITHOUT A PARTNER. FOR INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT DONNA OR PETER TIKUISIS AT 647-471-1774 OR [email protected].
They have just started this social game. For now, this game will be played following Chicago Rules (allowing both fast and slow games). You will keep your same partner for the entire evening. Cost is $1.50 per person. Parking is outside the North Entrance opposite Heritage Village Railway Station.
HUNTSVILLE DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB
Games for the Huntsville Club are Tuesday evening 7:00, Trinity United Church 33 Main Street. Please arrive at least 15 minutes early. Contact Jan Roberts 705-635-2522 or [email protected] for information and partnerships.
The following winners are for Tuesday, Sep 18 with 15 pairs playing a Howell movement. 1. Betty Fagin and Fay MacDonald; 2. Pat Pelletier and Joan Rotenberg; 3. Art Insley and Don Evans; 4. Mary Whitehead and Helen Pearson; 5. Liz Barnes and Bev Howard; 6. Liz Graham and Dorothy Russell; 7. Susan Marshall and Jan Roberts; 8. Val Rhead and Gail Lederer
MUSKOKA DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB (Bracebridge)
Games for the Bracebridge Club are Mondays 7pm, Knox Presbyterian Church, 120 Taylor Road. Please arrive 15 minutes before game time. For information or partnerships, call Brian at 705-645-5340 [email protected]
The following winners are from Monday, Sep 17 with 24 pairs playing a Mitchell movement. North-South 1. Mary Luke and Donna McIntosh; 2. Val Rhead and Joanne Garvey; 3. Kel Andresen and Jim Smith; 4. Gerry Flaherty and Ralph Hair; 5. Mary Hogarth and Albert Eatock; 6. Lyn Walisser and Bev Howard; East-West 1. Andrea Killackey and Terry Killackey; 2. Liz Barnes and David Bryce; 3. Art Insley and Don Evans; 4. Carol Anne Robinson and Nancy Barber; 5. Pat Davidson and Myrna Rosemeyer; 6. Ann Cassie and Bruce Cassie
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