M J Bridge
♦
♠
♥
♣
Bidding
Beginner and above
Opening a strong 2NT
Note that this page assumes that you have made the usual choice of playing an opening bid of 2NT as strong and natural.
There is a weak alternative which will be found under ‘opening unbalanced hands’ but it is a minority choice.
Hand-
The traditional agreement is that the bid shows a balanced hand of twenty to twenty two points.
There are all sorts of modern variations around this theme but as far as the strength is concerned twenty to twenty two remains the most common choice in club play, and should be the default agreement at almost any level. Other possibilities are discussed below.
♠
♥
♦
♣
A K 9 6
A J 7 2
K Q 5
A T
Twenty one points in a balanced hand.
This is typical hand for an opening bid of 2NT.
Note that in both the examples above if partner were to pass on four (or even five) points facing your opening one of a suit then you would be hard-
Even 6-
♠
♥
♦
♣
A K
A 6
A J 9 6
A J 8 7 2
Twenty one points in a semi-
You could open 1♣ and then reverse into diamonds.
My choice is to open 2NT.
♠
♥
♦
♣
A J 9 6
A J 8 7 2
A 6
A K
Twenty one points in a semi-
Many would agree to open 2NT to show the strength, particularly with so much of the strength concentrated in the short suits.
My choice is to open 1♥ followed by a strong forcing reverse into spades as I search for a major suit fit.
Some further thoughts on shape
It is quite normal to stretch the shape requirement a little more than you might for an opening bid of 1NT in the interests of showing the strength of the hand.
Certainly we should include all balanced hands.
This includes hands with a decent five-
♠
♥
♦
♣
A 7
A K 8 5 2
A K 3
K 6 4
Some semi-
For a start you should have good holdings in the short suits.
Even then I will usually prefer the natural route when holding anything like a decent five-
♠
♥
♦
♣
7
A K 8 2
A K 5 3
A K 6 4
♠
♥
♦
♣
A
A K 8 2
A K 7 3
K 6 5 4
Personally, I open 2NT with the first of these, and 1♥ with the second (intending to rebid in no trumps over a spade response).
I have clearly accepted the possibility of a singleton ace in the first example above.
Some extend this agreement to a singleton king or even any singleton.
Many experts would argue against my suggestion on the second hand on the grounds that I am bidding it as a balanced hand when it is clearly not balanced. Instead they would bid it as three-
My counter-
I particularly distrust those sequences which imply a five-
So agree whichever of these approaches suits you -
Question
Answer
My guideline
Does an opening 2NT always show a balanced hand?
No. This is a matter for partnership agreement.
Balanced or semi-
Post-
Further options on strength
There is a theoretical problem with a twenty to twenty two point 2NT in that the three-
Certainly responder will usually have a stab at game with five or more points and a combined minimum of at least twenty five points (although twenty points opposite five does not play well -
A further problem is that with nineteen points, playing the older standard method of no trump rebids, opener will start with one of a suit and then jump directly to 3NT on his rebid, not infrequently missing a superior suit contract in the process. The modern approach of rebidding 2NT with eighteen or nineteen points is strongly recommended.
To counter these problems various alternative ranges have been proposed.
There are many styles to choose from when it comes to choosing an alternative range for your 2NT opener.
19 or 20, 20 or 21, and 21 or 22, are all possible, each of which will be encountered not infrequently.
Question
Answer
My guideline
Does an opening 2NT always show 20-
No. This is a matter for partnership agreement.
20-
Whichever option you choose, you will have to ensure that it is consistent with other aspects of your system.
This applies particularly to your methods on those hands on which you open one of a suit and rebid in no trumps, and equally to your whole system of opening bids at the two-
Many club partnerships adopt a range of
19 or 20
Usually this range will be used by those partnerships who have incorporated two artificial routes to 2NT into their system, as is the ‘Benji Acol’ system.
The two-
However, it is rare to find this range played by an expert pair. Broadly speaking they are reluctant to start with 2NT or an artificial 2NT sequence when holding less than half the points in the pack.
There are alternative ways of dealing with the nineteen point hand which will be found under ‘opener’s rebid’.
Context -
This page last revised 28th Apr 2019
With a six-
It really comes down to whether or not you can show the main features and strength of your hand with your rebid.
If necessary you will force to game with a made-
♠
♥
♦
♣
A K
A 6
A J 6
A J 9 8 7 2
Twenty one points in a 6-
You could open 1♣, but what next?
Some would open 2♣, but just 8 tricks is barely strong enough in most systems.
My choice is to open 2NT.
4-
Much more difficult is the hand containing a singleton.
♠
♥
♦
♣
A K
A J 9 8 7 2
A J 6
A 6
Twenty one points in a 6-
I open 1♥.
In most continuations I will follow with a game-
Only with the specific 3-
♠
♥
♦
♣
A K 6
A J 9 8 7 2
A J
A 6
Twenty one points in a 3-
I still open 1♥ and rebid 3♣, although the rebid in a two-
There are those who would open 2NT.
Intermediate and above
If at some point you wish to try something other than 20-
20 or 21
This range retains all the advantages of a two-
It is usually coupled with one of a suit followed by 1NT showing a range of fifteen to seventeen (three-
You will occasionally find yourself in game on eighteen facing six, but you can be all but certain that when there is a game contract available you will locate the best one.
21 or 22
Hands of nineteen or twenty points can then be taken by way of a forcing 2NT rebid. There will be more on these methods both in the section on opening two-
You will, though, have to adopt a method for distinguishing between the various strengths of hands in the fifteen to eighteen point range.
The usual solution is to play the 1NT rebid as wide-
This last (21 or 22) is my preferred method for partnerships wishing to proceed beyond an intermediate level, but if you feel happy enough with a good old traditional 20-
Opener |
Overcaller |
Responder |
Advancer |
Opener's rebid |
Overcaller's rebid and beyond |
Responder's rebid and beyond |
The continuing auction |