Bridge Lesson – Hand # 1
(“Jacoby” Transfer Bids and the Use
of “Check-Back”)
NORTH
Dealer: N ♠ 765
Vulnerable: E-W ♥ 962
Lead: 3♠ ♦ Q10982
WEST ♣ 64 EAST
♠ AQ942 ♠ KJ10
♥ 74
♥
KQJ
♦ 7543 ♦ A6
♣ K5
SOUTH ♣
QJ1097
♠ 83
♥
A10853
♦ KJ
♣ A832
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bidding: North East South West
P 1NT P “2♥” 1
P 2♠ P 2NT 2
P 4♠ 3 P P
P
1
Jacoby Transfer Bid – Showing
at least 5-Spades and asking Opener to bid Spades.
2
“Check-Back” – Signifying holding no more than
5-Spades accompanied with 9-10 HCP’s – Asking
Opener to chose both the Level (2 or 3) and the Denomination (S, in this
case, or NT) for the final Contract.
3
Signifying a holding of only 3 or 4 Spades, and with
an Acceptance of Responder’s Game Try as a result
of
Opener’s holding of the maximum of 16 or 17 HCP’s.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bidding
Principles:
1. The use of
Jacoby Transfer bids by a Responder to an opening bid of 1NT. (Responder becomes the
Captain over any NT opening) Responder desires to have Opener be the
Declarer if Spades be the final
contract.
2.
The use of “Check-Back”, by Responder, as a means of exploration for a
Potential fit when holding only
5 pieces himself/herself. Responder knows that
Opener could have only 2 pieces of Spades and would
not want to be in a 7-card fit if that,
hypothetically were the case.
3.
Opener’s ultimate decision as to the Level and the Denomination (Major suit or NT) of the final
contract, driven by Responder’s request for same.
Playing Principles:
1. The lead of either a Club, Diamond, or
Heart, in this instance, could be harmful.
To lead away from
either an Ace or a King when Partner has not
bid the suit is usually detrimental.
The only safe lead,
in this instance, therefore, would be a Trump
Lead – the 3 of Spades.
2. After drawing Trumps, Declarer must set up
the Club suit first, before
the Opponents attack Diamonds.
By doing this, 11 tricks can be made by discarding three Diamonds from
Dummy, once the Club suit is
established.
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Bridge Lesson – Hand # 2
(“Jacoby” Transfer Bids)
NORTH
Dealer: W ♠ Q8
Vulnerable: Both ♥ AQJ8
Lead: 2♠ ♦ KQ54
♣ J106
WEST EAST
♠ 105
♠ 972
♥ K42 ♥ 975
♦ J73
♦
A1082
♣ A9754 ♣ K82
SOUTH
♠ AKJ643
♥ 1063
♦
96
♣ Q3
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bidding: North East South West
P
1NT P “2♥” 1 P
2♠ 2
P 4♠ 3 P
P P
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bidding Principles:
1. Jacoby Transfer Bid – Showing at least 5-Spades and asking Opener
to bid 2-Spades.
2. Opener would have responded 3♠,
a “Super-Acceptance,” if Opener had held the maximum of each; i.e., 4 Pieces of
Spades and 17 HCP’s.) Here with
Opener having only 2 Spades and 15HCP’s, North
responds simply 2♠.
3. Responder, South, the Captain, takes the
contract to Game in Spades, for South knows that Opener holds no fewer than 15
HCP’s, and no fewer than 2 Spades. South
holds 6 Spades and 12 Points, with distribution, enough to take the team to
Game Level in Spades.
Playing Principles:
1.
Absent any
bidding by E-W, and not wanting to lead away from the A♦ or the K♣,
East decides to lead a Trump.
2.
Declarer
counts his/her losing tricks (Since the final contract is a suit
contract). North finds one Loser in
Diamonds, 2 Losers in Clubs, No Losers in Spades, and possibly one loser in
Hearts unless the K♥ is on sides.
3.
When North gets around to playing Hearts, the
correct way is to take a “Continuing finesse” by
leading out the 10♥ from
the South hand.
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Bridge Lesson – Hand # 3
“Preferred Minor” and “Up-The-Ladder”
Principles
NORTH
Dealer: W ♠ A1094
Vulnerable: None ♥ K8
Lead: 6♥ ♦ AJ98
♣ Q73
WEST EAST
♠ K8632 ♠ QJ7
♥ J102 ♥ Q96
♦ 106
♦
Q73
♣ K102 ♣ AJ96
SOUTH
♠ 5
♥
A7543
♦ K542
♣ 854
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bidding: North East South West
P
1♦ 1 P 1♥ 2
P
1♠ 3
P 2♦ 4 P
P P
_________________________________________________
Bidding
Principles:
1.
“Preferred
Minor” suit Opening – Showing at
least 3 Diamonds (Shows 4 or more if Partnership is playing “Short Club”)
and The Rule of “20” is satisfied so as to allow an opening bid in 1st
or 2nd position.
2.
Shows 6-18
HCP’s and at least 4-Hearts (New suit by Responder cannot be passed.
3.
Shows 11-18
HCP’s and at least 4 Spades (“Up-The-Ladder” Principle).
4.
South,
deciding that there is no game to be had, takes a preference in the Diamond
suit stopping the auction, as opposed to re-bidding the Hearts, accepting the
Spades, Bidding No-Trump, or any forcing action which would compel Opener to
bid once again.
Playing Principles:
1. Declarer, realizing that if he/she were to
draw Trumps, it would produce only 6 Tricks (Four in the Diamond suit and the
Aces of Hearts and Spades) (5 Tricks if the Queen of Diamonds is not finesse
able) and, therefore, chooses to cross-ruff the hand rather than to draw
trumps.
2. When
playing in a suit contract, and when few tricks outside the Trump suit are
available, it is sometimes prudent NOT to draw trumps and, rather, cross-ruff
the hand instead, if that be feasible to do so.
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Bridge Lesson – Hand # 4
(“Reverse” Bids and The “Suit Quality Test”)
NORTH
Dealer: S ♠
10
Vulnerable: BOTH ♥ KQJ9654
Lead: J♦ or 10♣ ♦ K97
♣ A7
WEST EAST
♠ 98752 ♠ KJ43
♥ A10873 ♥ ------
♦ 54 ♦
J1062
♣ J
♣ Q10963
SOUTH
♠ AQ6
♥
2
♦
AQ83
♣ K8542
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bidding: North East South West
1♦ 1
P
1♥ 2 P 2♣ 3
P
4♥ 4 P P P
_______________________________________________________________
Bidding
Principles:
1. Opening
Bidder must consider his/her 2nd
bid before making his/her
first opening bid. To potentially open
1♣ (the longer
suit here) and then to consider bidding 2♦ as Opener’s
second bid is to make a “REVERSE”.
Reverses by Opener evidence 17 or more HCP’s. Absent 17 HCP’s, one must construct one’s
opening bid so as to avoid this pitfall; i.e., one must open 1D, disregarding
bidding “length before strength”,
prepared to rebid 2♣ on Opener’s second call.
2. Responder
bids “Up the Ladder” evidencing 4 or more Hearts, with 6-18 HCP’s. Opener can never
“Pass” a new suit bid by Responder.
3. Showing
fewer than 4 Hearts, and a second choice of suits, with at least 9 or more
cards in the Minor
suits.
4. North,
holding opening count opposite Partner’s opening count knows there is
Game. When considering Game in one’s
own suit, absent support by Partner, one can apply the “Suit Quality Test” (The number of cards in one’s own suit,
“7” in this instance, added to the number of cards “10” or higher”, “3” in this
case). The summation equals the number
of tricks to which can commit absent support by Partner, “10” in this
case. This,
then justifies Responders jump to 4♥.
Playing Principles:
1. Declarer,
seeing no losers in Spades, Diamonds or Clubs, goes about drawing Trumps. Finding a 5-0 Trump split, and being unable
to do anything about it. Declarer
simply draws Trumps, giving up two Trump tricks, and then claims, 11 tricks;
one trick in Spades (the A), three tricks in Diamonds (the A, K, and Q), two
tricks in Clubs (the A and K), and five tricks in Hearts.
2. Notice there
is no need to even take the Spade finesse!
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Bridge Lesson – Hand # 5
(Jump to 2NT by the Opener and
“Game-Forcing” Scenarios)
NORTH
Dealer: E ♠ 964
Vulnerable: E-W ♥ 1032
Lead: 6♠ or 2♥ ♦ Q93
♣ K1083
WEST EAST
♠ 832 ♠
AKJ7
♥ QJ976 ♥ A85