November 2002

BIDDING

When you don't have a five-card major to open the bidding, you are compelled to open a minor (lacking enough points for 1 NT), but which minor?

I follow these simple rules:

  A)  Open the longer suit.

  B)  If they are of equal length:
        Open diamonds when they are 4-4 or longer.
        Open clubs when they are 3-3.
        With 5-5 or longer minors, you should plan to bid clubs at the next turn.

When you have a very strong hand, you may open clubs first and bid diamonds next (a reverse bid). Whatever your rules, stick to them. Being consistent is a mark of good partnership.

      Your hand is:
            S)  K x x
            H)  K x x x
            D)  A x x x
            C)  x x

Partner opens 1 club. What is your bid?

When you hold more than one four-card suit, the general rule is to respond by bidding "up the line". If you call 1 diamond and partner then calls 1 heart, you have found a 4-4 heart fit. But every time I have four diamonds and four hearts, the bidding goes . . .

NORTH      EAST      SOUTH (me)      WEST
1 club         pass        1 diamond         1 spade

. . . and we never find the heart fit!

A tip from an expert

He never preempts against weak opponents because it takes away all those bidding levels that they could be using to confuse themselves.

BridgeSnaps newsletter is produced by John S. Thomas, author of Standard American 21.