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Partner opened three of a major


One of those mantras which you will frequently hear bandied around the clubroom in a variety of contexts is


‘put up or shut up’.


Never does this principle apply more than in the present context.


First of all, let us be clear about the nature of partner’s holding.


As a general rule:-


he will have a maximum of about ten points;

he will have a seven-card suit;

his hand will probably be worth about six tricks in its own right.  When he bid he was quite prepared to go down;

he is quite likely to have two immediate losers in any one of the other three suits;

it is quite possible that there will be no entry to his hand outside the long suit.


Each of the above is subject to any specific partnership agreement regarding vulnerability - see ‘intermediate and above’ below.


Your options are:-


raise partner’s suit preemptively;

pass;

raise partner’s major to the four-level with the intention of making;

bid something else.


Raise partner’s suit preemptively


With three-card support it will usually be correct to raise partner’s suit to the four-level even on a very weak hand, except when vulnerable.

This is no more than ‘bidding to the level of the fit’ in the same way that you would when responding to partner’s overcall.

Note that neither your partner nor your opponents will know whether this is preemptive or a realistic try for a making game.


Pass


This is likely to be your most common action.


And when do you pass?

Answer - when there is no good reason for doing anything else.


Note that having a void in partner’s suit is not a good reason for bidding something else - having his suit as trumps will frequently be the only way in which he can make any tricks.


Raise partner’s suit constructively to the four-level


This is the bit about which not enough is written.


First of all, it’s got more to do with counting ten tricks than with adding up points.


The basic guidelines are:-


you need to be able to see about four potential tricks in your hand before you even think about it - just possibly three if partner has made a three-level preempt when vulnerable;

with the real possibility that partner has two immediate losers in any given side suit you should not attach much weight (if any) to Queens and Jacks in the side suits (Quacks as Andrew Robson calls them) - it’s all about Aces and Kings (and shortages if you have ruffing potential);

minimum trump support for a realistic raise is 0 (ZERO) - do not look elsewhere because of that shortage.


A basic guideline for a realistic raise to game is ‘if you have an opening bid not counting the Quacks then raise to game’.  This is almost the same as saying ‘if you can count at least three tricks…’.


Two alternative approaches to assessing the potential of the hand are given below, but the guidelines just given will serve you well.

T 8

T 8 7 4

Q 8 5 4

J 7 5

Partner opened 3.

Bid 4.

If you play 5 as preemptive (I don’t) then make this bid non-vulnerable on the eleven-card fit.  The opposition have at least a game their way, and your job is to make them guess.

T 8

K 8 7 4

A K 5 3

A 8 5

Partner opened 3.

Bid 4.  This time you have every intention of making.  Partner is likely to be about three tricks short for his preemptive opening and you are offering four.  6 + 4 = 10.  End of discussion.


W

3 2

A K Q J T 4 2

3 2

3 2


This totally made up and ludicrously exaggerated example serves to illustrate a point.

West opened 3.

East must raise in hearts - not no trumps.

7 is almost laydown - no trumps will do well to score more than 6 tricks.


E

A K 5 4


A K 6 5 4

A K 5 4

Q J 7 4

A 8

Q J 5 3

Q J 5

Partner opened 3.

Pass.  Very pretty, but there is no good reason for doing anything else.

You can count just one trick, and there is every possibility that you have six immediate losers outside hearts.


Bid something else


Bidding no trumps


Very rarely the right bid facing partners major suit preempt.


First of all you must have good support for partner (I’ll suggest Qxx as an absolute minimum) to ensure communication, and secondly you must have more than a flimsy stop in each of the other suits.


It will usually be a flat hand (4-3-3-3) either with hopes of a good pairs score or with hopes of a making contract missing four aces.


New suit


Whatever I may write below:-


this should be a very rare bid, and

it will not just be in search of a safe escape.


Traditionally this bid was always played as forcing.

Modern expert opinion appears to be split on the matter.  I tend towards the ‘forcing’ interpretation, but I must admit that in so doing I am setting myself at odds with some members of bridge royalty.


If played as non-forcing it will in general be on a poor hand with a suit at least as long as partner’s, and of poor top quality, with no outside entries - this might be your only chance to make any tricks.  Ideally you will also hold a couple of cards in partner’s hand so you will be covering the possibility that you can get into his hand but he can’t get into yours.


If played as forcing you might be suggesting an alternative game contract with poor support for partner, or you might be making some sort of cue-bid/trial bid with thoughts of a possible slam.


Thoughts of a slam


As often as not your best option will be just to bid it.

4NT will be RKCB, particularly if your main concern relates to partner’s trump honours holding.


Opponents overcalled in a suit


A raise of partner’s suit shows trumps (level of fit) - that’s all.  Strength is quite wide-ranging;

double - cannot be for take-out as the suit must be assumed to have ben set.  Play it for penalties.

Intermediate and above

Opener’s first bid

Opener’s rebid

Context  -  Acol bidding - responder’s first bid - partner opened three of a suit.

This page last revised 17th Sep 2020

Identifying the good raise


I promised you above two alternative ways of assessing the potential of your hand.


I have only found anything of this nature from Andrew Robson, and he offers two.

Whether they are his own or represent a wider standard I cannot be certain.


In the first he uses the concept of UP’s (useful points).

This is the point-count of the hand disregarding any Queens and Jacks in the side suits.


You will find the relevant article at andrewrobson.co.uk/article/articles/648


The second also comes from a newspaper article which may well exist in the same folder as above on Andrew’s site.

However, I have failed to find it and have only the cutting to fall back on, so I shall attempt to do it justice.


This one features Preempt Points -PEPs - not to be confused with either Personal Equity Plans or Manchester City managers.


Count 2 points for each of the 5 Aces (including the King of trumps) in your hand, and 1 point for each secondary honour (King of a side-suit or Queen of trumps).


Raise to the four-level if you have six or more PEPs.


I must admit that I like this one, but the outcome will only occasionally differ from that determined by following the basic guidelines at the top of the page.


Thoughts of a slam


In addition to the direct bid of the slam, or RKCB, you might prefer to identify specific controls through some sort of cue-bidding sequence.


If you play a lowest-level change of suit as forcing then this offers an easy alternative.


If you do not play the simple change of suit as forcing then you will have to come to an agreement concerning a jump to five of a minor. I will suggest that it is probably more useful as some sort of control-showing bid agreeing partner’s suit and showing a slam interest than as natural.


Considerations of vulnerability


You will only rarely be doubled for penalties at the two-level, it will be considerably more frequent at the three-level, and at the four-level it will be almost inevitable if you have overstepped the mark.  Clearly you will need to have some good reason if raising on a weak hand when vulnerable.


Your action at this point will depend on your partnership agreement regarding partner’s opening bid.


If your agreement is that partner will open at the three-level whenever he holds a suitable seven-card suit then it will be up to you to make any adjustment for vulnerability now.


If vulnerable you will need an excellent reason to bid again - particularly if the opponents are not vulnerable.

If not vulnerable you will certainly bid to the level of the fit.  You might even raise to the four-level on just two cards if not vulnerable against vulnerable.


In either case you must of course be aware of the danger of pushing them into a making game.


However, if your agreement is that partner has already made an adjustment according the vulnerabilities - e.g. he might have opened at the three-level on a six-card suit when not vulnerable against vulnerable or on an eight-card suit when vulnerable against not - then he has already made the adjustment and your raises will be more akin to normal practice, while still taking account of other factors (can you afford the penalty -might you drive them into a game?).

K Q 7 4

4

A K 6 5

A K 5 3

Partner opened 3 and the opponents overcalled 3.

Double.  Double is for penalties.  You hope to take at least three minor suit tricks along with two trumps behind the overcall on your right.

3NT is tempting, but doomed if partner’s hearts don’t run.  4 is also possible.


The opponents doubled


a raise to game can either show additional preemptive value, or can be a realistic shot at the contract -

(redouble might be tempting in the second case but it risks the opponents finding a lucrative save).

A bid of a new suit is most easily played as either forcing or non-forcing to be consistent with your method in the non-contested auction.

Post-beginner and above