By Peter Rhead
Your second bid after partner bids Jacoby Two No-Trump
We are back to your second bid. You are the opener. This time your first bid is One Heart or One Spade. Partner responds with the convention Jacoby Two No-Trump. What choices have you for your second bid to respond to partner’s Jacoby 2NT? The choice you make is dependent on the strength of your hand and its distribution.
The convention Jacoby 2NT response is used by responding partner to show the following about his hand. His hand is an opening hand with game assured and slam a possibility. His hand has at least three-card support for your opening major suit. Now neither partner may stop bidding before reaching game.
There are several different conventional agreements for your second bid after Jacoby 2NT. I will discuss only the agreement I prefer. It is to bid first round control (Ace or void) in a new suit. Consider that your initial bid was One Spade. In response to partner’s 2NT your next bid is first round control of the next suit up the line (Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts). If you now bid Three Diamonds, you show first round control of Diamonds but not Clubs over which you have skipped.
First round control is an Ace or a void in a new suit up the line and never in the agreed suit which is used differently (see below). Jacoby 2NT applies only to a major suit opening of One Spade or One Heart.
Choice One: If you have an Ace or void you bid it up the line skipping the agreed suit.
Choice Two: If you do not have an Ace or void in a new suit, you show the value of your hand by bidding the agreed suit. To show a minimum hand (13-14 points) you bid the agreed suit (Spades) at the game level (Four Spades).
Choice Three: If you do not have an Ace of void in a new suit, you show a medium value hand (15-18 points) by bidding the agreed suit (Spades) at the three level (Three Spades). This gives partner more bidding space to pursue the slam if so inclined.
Choice Four: If you have a 19-21 point opening hand, you now pursue slam yourself.
After your Choice One, Two or Three, partner now places the contract or continues to bid the next first round control up the line, keeping the bidding open.
For More Information, Check Out “Jacoby 2NT” in Barbara Seagram’s 25 Bridge Conventions You Should Know, page 83
Next Week: Examples of how you respond to partner’s Jacoby 2NT after you open One Spade or One Heart.
Remember, as we all fight COVID-19 with social isolation, if you want your Bridge fix, online competition is available for all skill levels. From the ACBL Bridge website, you can hook up either to play live people or to play robots. Either way you test or consolidate various Bridge skills. At ACBL.org just click on “Play Bridge” and follow the prompts for various choices.
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.
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