#1001 SUBJECT=Bidding of 2C opener

Answer:
 
     An opening bid of "2C" is forcing upon the partnership until at least one of the following three (3) levels of bidding have been reached:   (a) 2NT, (b) 3 of either Major Suit, or (c) 4 of either Minor Suit.    Until then the bidding must remain open and cannot  be passed by either partner.
 
     As a result, Openers bid of 3D (natural) cannot be passed.  
 
     Lastly, the partnership would have to have had an pre-understanding as to what Responder's "2D" bid meant.   It could have been: (a) "Waiting", (b) a negative 0-7 HCP first response, (c) a Jacoby Step bid which shows 0-3 HCP's, or (d) a "Control" response which show none or one control = no Aces or, at most, one King.   Without such understandings, the Partnership could not operate effectively under the scenario, as listed above.
 
                                    Harold Schachter - Bridge Master

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#1002 SUBJECT=OPENER RESPONSE

1. OPENER HAS 12-14 HCP
                5S 2H 4C 2D ( 5 4 2 2 DISTRIBUTION)

2. BIDDING IS AS FOLLOWS:
                                                       1 S     1 NT
                                                         ??

SHOULD OPENER PASS AND LEAVE IN 1 NT OR REBID 4 CARD MINOR?
        Answer:  No!   Opener, with 9 or more cards in two suits, should NOT
Pass Responder's 1NT call.
IF OPENER does not Pass and chooses to RE-BIDS 2C, HOW SHOULD PARTNER
RESPOND having  8-10 HCP?
         Answer:  Absent a jump bid by opener on his/her second call (which
would signal 16-18 HCP's by Opener), Responder must (1) choose between the
two suits offered by Opener or (2) bid his/her own 6-card suit at the
cheapest level which would be a "drop-dead" bid.   Opener must trhen accept
Responder's choice.  If Opener shows 16-18 HCP's then Responder may bid 3NT
holding 8-10 HCP's.
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#1003 SUBJECT=bid of one diamond

Dodi:

With only 5 Diamonds, your secision not to rebid them was, most likely

correct. With an evenly balanced hand 5-3-3-2, your rebid should have been

1NT if you held 11-14 HCP's, or 2NT if you held 18-19 HCP's. With 15-17

your initial bid should have been 1NT, not 1 Diamond. Absent any of these

possibilities, the fact that you did not reach 3NT would then be the fault

of partner, but I would have to know partners strength and holding to give a

definitive answer. If you relate both hands as to distribution and strength

I could give you an exact reply. Harold

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#1004 SUBJECT=NT play of hand

In general, second hand does not cover the first honor when there are multiple connecting honors in Dummy. This is in case Partner has a singleton high honor such that you do not wish to have both honors fall on the same trick. Now the tricky part! With regards to covering the second honor or not - that depends upon the presence or absence of additional entries into Dummy, and whether your side can run or effectively switch to another suit. Absent your desiring to do the latter two conditions; i.e., your side's inability to run anything, your covering the second honor or not depends upon whether you are desirous of the need to keep Declarer from running this long Heart suit, in this instance, and your ability to perceive the answer to that question depends upon both you and your Partner "giving count" as to the number of cards you each have in the suit, (Hearts, in this instance), that Declarer has led. When you or your Partner first lead a suit you give "attitude"; i.e. a high card says to continue, a low one, discourages continuance. When Declarer leads a suit, however, you and your Partner are to give "count"; i.e., a "high-low" is an even number of cards and a "low-high" signals an odd number of cards in that suit. Knowing the count, both you and your partner can then deduce how many times to reject taking the trick so as to keep Declarer from setting up the suit and re-entering the Dummy so as run the established long suit. Hope this was helpful! Harold
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#1005

SUBJECT=Stayman and Jacoby

 The Stayman Convention is utilized ONLY when the Responder has 4 pieces of one or both Majors, and is seeking 4 pieces from the Opener.   Jacoby Transfer bids are ONLY utilized when the Responder has 5 pieces

 
     The Conventions are never interchangeable, and only one is used at a time on any one hand depending upon what information Responder is seeking, as noted above.   When Responder has both a 4-card AND
 
     Under conditions of interfering bids by Responder's RHO (Right hand Opponent), Jacoby Transfer bids are ALWAYS off, but the Stayman Convention bid can still be used (depending upon Par
 
     Normally, assuming the Partnership 1NT opening bid signifies 15-17 HCP's, both the Stayman and Jacoby Transfer Systems require at least invitational strength (9 or more HCP's) by Responder, unless the Responder
 
                 Harold Schachter, Bridge Activity Coordinator
 
 
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#1006 SUBJECT=overcall of 1NT open

 With 15 or more HCP's, and while using the "DONT" Convention - conventional wisdom is to simply "PASS".    It used to be that we "Doubled" with an equivalent or better hand when the Opponents opened 1NT, but today, and while using the "DONT" Convention, it usually benefits the Opponents to simply "PASS" and defend against their 1NT.     Most of the time, when you do so, you, the Opponents, will defeat the contract and will score better than to attempt to take the bid as Overcallers as you once did before the use of "DONT".   Today, the "Double" of a 1NT bid, when using the "DONT" Convention signifies a one-suited hand and asks Partner to puppet "2C" so that you, the doubler, can then bid your suit or Pass if it be Clubs..

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#1007 SUBJECT=Michael's Cue Bid

    Responder to a Michaels Cuebid must respond, eben with zero HCP's. Responder is always the Captain following a MIchaels bid and must wait to see if the invoking Partner bids once again.  Absent a re-bid by the invoking partner

  Harold

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#1008 SUBJECT=jump shift

Each of the jump-shift responses, both weak and strong have their individual benefits.  The weak acts pre-emptively, and the strong allows the Partnership to be aware that Slam is likely (19+ opposite 13+).   It is merely a matter of Partnership agreement - they are, of course, mutually exclusive.    The "check back" is in the lesson on Jacoby Transfers.   It is methof of checling back to see if opener has 2, or hopefully 3 or 4, of the Major suit that Responder hold 5.

Harold

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#1009 SUBJECT=Rebids

Question=What are the requirements for rebidding a suit?   The

requirements differ depending upon whether or not one is an opening

bidder, Responder, or an Overcaller who is contemplating re-bidding a

suit previously mentioned, and whether or not Partner has supported the

suit or not.   Suffice it to say that any rebid, from whomever at the

table it comes, must impart a different message than previously given as

to the length of one's suit, and the point count previously enumerated.

"Never say the same thing twice when bidding.  Each bid must impart

additional info as to card count and/or high-card point count, or both."

 

When can a five card suit be rebid?   Normally speaking, under most

circumstances one never re-bids an unsupported 5-card suit.   When one

opens 1C or 1D, which in Standard American shows as few as 3-pieces, A

rebid of that same unsupported Minor suit usually acknowledges 6-pieces

or more, or, at the very least, a very good 5-card suit.

 

If playing convenient minors must a five card suit always be rebid to

show more than a three card suit?  Not usually.   A re-bid of such a

Minor suit opening evidences a 6-card or longer suit.   The normal

re-bid by as opener, absent a 6th card in the suit previously, bid, and

absent support for Responder's new suit bid, or a second suit of 4-cards

or more held by Opener, the usual re-bid is from the following: a "Pass"

(holding minimum values, absence of any of the aforementioned

alternatives, and a positive bid made by Opener's RHO), a bid of 1-NT,

2-NT, a cue-bid of Opponent's bid suit, a jump-shift, or a "Splinter

Bid".

 

Harold

 

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#1010 SUBJECT=Tip # 146

Question: Is Partner to a Take-out Double expected to have a balanced hand, as in the examples of tip #146, for him to bid as indicated in the tip ? 

Answer: - No - an evenly balanced hand is not of necessity but mainly a lack of a 4-card other Major suit, at least one stopper in the suit bid by the opponents, and most likely no 5-card or longer Minor suit of any consequence. To hold the before-mentioned items, I would assume, for the most part, that the hand would be somewhat balanced, but not, as I said before, of necessity.

Tip 146: A 2-NT response to Partner’s Take-out Double shows 10-12 HCP’s , and is not forcing. A 1-NT response to a Take-out Double shows 6-9 HCP’s ), and is similar to a 1-NT response to any opening bid of one of a suit. No Trump responses to any Take-out Double guarantee at least one stopper (hopefully two), in the Opponent’s suit. You do not need stoppers in the other suits. Partner is supposed to have them for his/her Take-out Double. A 3-NT response evidences 13(+) HCP’s  with at least one stopper in the Opponent’s bid suit.

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