M J Bridge
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Bidding
Beginner and above
Balanced hands -
This page applies to those hands which are outside the ranges appropriate to opening bids of 1NT, 2NT, or a strong 2NT sequence. If you have chosen to play a 1NT opening on twelve to fourteen points, and a 2NT opening on a range of twenty to twenty two points then these observations will apply to balanced hands of fifteen to nineteen points. You will open such hands with one of a suit intending to rebid in no trumps. If you have chosen a different range for your 1NT and/or your 2NT opening bids then the range for opening a balanced hand with one of a suit will have to be adjusted accordingly.
The same considerations apply as for a 1NT opening bid as to what constitutes a balanced hand.
Which suit?
There is one specific point which tends to be insufficiently addressed, and that is which suit to open if you have a choice.
There are as many rules about which suit to open as there are writers. All such rules have arguments in their favour. The important thing as that you and your partner are agreed.
A simple and sensible approach (which I think of as ‘the standard method’) is:-
if you have a five-
this applies, at least in principle, even when the suit quality is poor -
if you have one four-
If you have two four-
Which suit should I open with a 4-
With both majors bid hearts;
with a minor and a major bid the major;
with both minors bid the better suit.
Question
My guideline
Extending the discussion
Just one poor quality four-
Once in a while you will find yourself with a 4-
My recommendation is that you start by subtracting one, or even two, points from your raw count.
This will lead to your not opening most twelve (and possibly even thirteen) point hands of this type, and opening most fifteen or sixteen pointy hands of this type with 1NT.
With seventeen (possibly sixteen) or more you will still open one of a suit, but which suit you choose is a matter for partnership agreement.
When your four-
An old maxim
You will, not infrequently, hear the maxim ‘bid four-
in itself this is wrong
You may agree to open with the lower-
With a balanced hand you have no intention of bidding both of your four-
Two four-
Everyone is agreed that with two four-
With both minor suits styles vary, but the effects of the different choices are not significant.
I have suggested ‘the stronger suit’ above, but any one of ‘always clubs’, ‘always diamonds’, ‘the weaker suit’ or ‘random’ provides a perfectly playable alternative.
It is when you hold both a minor suit and a major suit that the experts are split down the middle. You should feel free to follow your own choice of expert, but do be certain that you and your partner are agreed on the choice.
Many players have been taught to open the lower suit when holding a minor and a major in a balanced hand.
Early Acol theorists would happily open 1♣ and rebid 1♠ with four cards in each suit (or even three clubs and four in the major). For me this is a hand-
Such a sequence now promises five clubs and four spades in an unbalanced hand.
Much better is the modern style in which you open one of a suit and then rebid in no trumps, thereby showing the balanced nature of the hand and a closely defined point count.
Once you have chosen this style then you will have committed yourself to showing just one of your four-
In general, when you open with one of a suit and follow with a suitable rebid you will be able to give partner two pieces of information.
As my two primary target contracts are four-
So, my simple suggestion is:-
if you have a major and a minor bid the major suit first
and this is in line with modern teaching on the matter (Andrew Robson and EBED)
If for example I hold sixteen points with four cards in each of diamonds and spades, the last thing I want to do is open 1♦ and hear my partner respond with 1♥. If I rebid 1♠ he will not know that I am balanced and that I have fifteen or sixteen points and in addition he will think that I have five diamonds, and if I rebid 1NT he will not know that I have a four-
So I open 1♠ with such a hand.
A possible exception to the above rule is to open 1♦ when holding both red suits, on the grounds that partner will not bypass any four-
My choice remains 1♥.
A further question arises when your natural four-
You might like to promise something along the lines of ‘when I open a four-
If you have an agreement along these lines then in this specific circumstance you will open one of your minor.
Your decision here should be consistent with your choice when opening a three-
But note that it is perfectly acceptable, and easiest, to agree that you will bid the shape, whatever the quality.
Post-
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♥
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K J 8 6
A K 4
Q T 5 3
K 8
Sixteen points in a 4-
Open 1♠ planning to rebid in no trumps.
Some partnerships would open 1♦. Make sure that you and your partner are agreed on your methods.
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♥
♦
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A K 4
K 8
K J 8 6
Q T 5 3
Sixteen points in a 4-
Open 1♦ planning to rebid in no trumps.
1♣ would certainly not be a sin, but diamonds are marginally more robust.
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♥
♦
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K J 8 6
Q T 5 3
K 8
A K 4
Sixteen points in a 5-
Open 1♥ planning to rebid in no trumps unless partner raises hearts or bids spades.
Partner must respond 1♠ rather than 1NT if holding four spades, and so any four-
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♥
♦
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J T 8 6 4
A K 7
K Q 3
K 4
Sixteen points in a 5-
Open 1♠ planning to rebid in no trumps.
Note that you will not have to repeat your rather feeble spade suit.
Context -
This page last revised 1st Jun 2022
Post intermediate and above
However, the ‘bid the major’ approach is by no means the choice of all expert partnerships.
I prefer it as a teaching method, and also in the context of pairs play, but if you are considering something different for high-
For an excellent take on the ‘minor first’ approach you will find find an article by Chris Jagger in the September 2020 edition of English Bridge.
A summary of my understanding of Chris’s article will be found on the page
Opener |
Overcaller |
Responder |
Advancer |
Opener's rebid |
Overcaller's rebid and beyond |
Responder's rebid and beyond |
The continuing auction |