Mike's Bridge Lesson - April, 2013, Bridge Bulletin
A few years ago, I played with an excellent player for the first time. We were playing 2/1. We had this deal come up. I was the dealer, with both sides vulnerable.
K Q 6 
A J 8 7 6
3 
A 7 3 2
| North | South | ||
| 1 |
|||
| 2 |
2 |
||
| 4 |
? |
This is a pretty good hand and we might have a slam. I tried Blackwood and partner showed two key cards. We were missing a key card so I stopped in 6
.
Partner held:
A 3 2 K 2
K Q J 6 5 2 9 6.
It was a fine slam until West showed up with
Q 10 5 4.
When the deal was over, I asked why my partner had bid 4
. His answer was, "Everyone around here
plays that when you rebid a major after a 2/1, you promise six cards." He was as surprised to find I had only five hearts
as I was surprised to find that he had only two. After a jump raise by partner, I think I should be allowed to hope for
three-card support.
Recently, in the Bridge Bulletin, I saw more than one author saying that you promise six cards when you rebid a major. I also see authors waffling, saying it promises six unless you have an awkward hand. How is partner supposed to know the difference?
Being able to rebid a five-card suit is important. On hands where you bid a new suit or bid notrump or raise your partner, you will always have a classic hand for that choice. On hands where you are not happy with other bids, rebidding your five-card suit denies those other holdings. As long as partner does not start raising you with a doubleton, you will have relatively easy sequences.
What should opener rebid with these hands if he can't bid 2
?
| North | South | ||
| 1 |
|||
| 2 |
? |
A J 3 Q J 7 6 4
K J J 5 3
There is no rational reason for bidding 2NT. How will you feel if you get to 3NT and the opening lead is the
Q? For that matter, is there any club lead that makes you happy before you see the dummy?
7 2 K Q J 6 3
7 5 3 A Q J
Same problem, except in spades. Is it really wise to bid 2NT? If you bid 2
you have a better chance of
playing 3NT from the right side of the table.
A Q 6 A J 6 5 3
3 J 7 5 3
Bidding 2NT is terrible. You have a singleton in partner's suit. If he raises to 3NT, he will be sad that his
K J 8 7 5 4 isn't helping. Worse, if you bid
3, you will be promising more values,
plus your partner will think you have better clubs. For the record, some players play that bidding a new suit at
the three level shows five cards and a good hand.
A Q 4 K Q 9 7 6
T 7 5 4 2
It is easy to reject 2NT. I would reject 3
too on the theory that it shows a better hand.
J 7 5 3 K J 7 6 3
2 A K 8
Some players bid 2
on the theory that partner made a 2/1 bid so you are allowed to bid
2 without extra values. I suggest you bid 2 here. If your partner
has four spades, he is committed to bidding them.
A K J K 7 5 4 2
A K 7 5 4
A good hand for a change. One author suggested bidding 3
. That is noble, but if your
partner decides to look for a slam, he will find that your A K does not bring as much to the
contract as A K 2. You can't bid any number of notrump with a completely unstopped suit,
either. 2 leads to disaster if your partner has four of them and gets serious about
spades. Your choice should be 2.