M J Bridge

♦

♠

♥

♣

 Responder root page

Bidding

Home

Conventions

Hands

Theory

M J Bridge

♦

♠

♥

♣

 Responder root page

Bidding

Home

Conventions

Hands

Theory

Beginner and above

Self-sufficient suit


There is just one exception to the general principle of showing features and leaving partner to define his hand-type, and that is when you are yourself in a position to set the suit.


The usual requirement is that your suit is self-sufficient - i.e. it will normally run for no losers, even if facing a void in partner’s hand.

In practice this means either a six-card suit headed by the AKQJ or a seven-card suit headed by the AKQ.


With such a hand you will make an immediate jump response in your suit, but don’t expect this situation to occur on each and every visit to the club.

♠

♥

♦

♣

A K Q 9 6 5 2

8

Q 2

J T 4

Partner opens 2♣ (strong and artificial).

You only have one opportunity to show a suit of such quality and trick-taking potential.

Bid 3♠.

Opener’s first bid

Opener’s rebid


This bid can be set alongside any other system of responses which you may choose to adopt.


There is absolutely no reason why you should not include it alongside a simple ‘always relay’ approach, and equally it will work perfectly well alongside any one of the possible sets of positive responses.


The only reason for not including these bids in your system is that they constitute one more little memory requirement for a hand-type which will not turn up even as much as once a year for most of us.


Self-sufficient suit lacking the ace


In early Acol, and in the specific context of a game-forcing opening bid, a sequence such as 2♣, 2♦, 2♥, 3♠ was used to show a self-sufficient suit lacking the ace - something like KQJT84.


These days such a sequence is far more likely to be used as splinter support for partner’s suit.


If so then you will have the option of broadening the immediate jump response to include such a holding.

Certainly it will make the bid more likely to appear during your lifetime.


Include it or not as you wish.

A relevant thought is that if you don’t have the ace in this sequence then it is quite likely that partner will as part of his big hand.

This page last revised 18th Nov 2017

Context  -  Responder’s first bid - partner opened an artificial strong two - RHO passed - positive responses.