two suits with four or five cards in both unbid suits (Tip 56); and failing to jump in response to partner’s take-out double with nine(+) points (Tip 57).
Perhaps the commonest mistake in the penalty double area is doubling the opponents too readily. They may then either retreat to safer havens or stay put and make the contract because you have revealed that you have good trumps (Tip 58). Better to keep quiet.
After the opponents double, you can redouble. This is an expression of confidence; but be wary of redoubling a contract you think you will make if you have reason to think the opponents might then wise up and bid on (Tip 59). Redouble is better restricted to those occasions in which an opponent has doubled partner’s opening bid and you have 10+ points (Tip 60), but no good fit (Tip 61).
PRE-EMPTIVE BIDDING Bidding at a relatively high level with a weak hand and a long suit robs the opponents of bidding space on a deal where you do not need it (you have only one playable trump suit). The standard situation is a three-level opener, showing a seven-card suit and less than opening values (Tip 62). The suit must be good (Tip 63), but you should have as little outside the suit as possible and you certainly do not need an ace (Tip 64). With an eighth card in your suit (one more trick), open at the four-level (Tip 65).
To pre-empt after an opponent has opened, you need to make a double-jump (1
Meanwhile, the partner of the pre-emptor should simply ‘put up or shut up’ (Tip 69). Because the pre-emptor will be profoundly short outside his suit, partner should value aces (especially) and kings, but attach little value to outside queens and jacks (Tip 70). Sometimes, partner may consider raising pre-emptively (with a poor defensive hand), and the more cards he has in the pre-emptor’s suit, the more bold he should be, generally bidding to the ‘level of the fit’ (Tip 71).
Pre-empting is fun – although you will occasionally get caught for a big penalty. Defending against opposing pre-empts is less fun – you have to start at a high level and the splits are likely to be bad (Tip 72). However, do not be too frightened to enter the bidding – in spite of the high level; bear in mind that one opponent is very weak, so your partner rates to hold some values.
A reasonable rule of thumb is to double (for take-out) if you would have doubled a one-level opener in the suit (Tip 73); and overcall 3NT if you would have overcalled with 1NT over a one-level opener, bearing in mind that it is especially important to have a stopper in the pre-emptor’s suit. There is a good chance of being able to shut the pre-emptor out of the play (Tip 74). But without a stopper (you cannot bid 3NT), or a good suit (you cannot overcall), or insufficient length in the other major(s) (you cannot double), you have little option but to go quietly (Tip 75).
TWO-LEVEL OPENERS Whereas the three-level is reserved for weak openers, the two-level is used for strong ones. 2NT is the only bid that can be passed by partner, and should be opened with a balanced hand (including a 5332 shape with a good five-card suit) and 20-22 points (Tip 76).
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2
SLAMMING The ultimate goal in the bidding is to bid and make all 13 tricks on a deal – a grand slam. This is generally inadvisable – it’s tough enough to make all 13 tricks, let alone to bid for them and risk losing everything if even one trick gets away.
More reasonable is to bid for 12 tricks – a small slam – which will be possible about one deal in fifteen. 33 partnership points is the guideline for contracting for a small slam – though less if there is a big fit and interesting distributions. A small slam is doomed, however, if the opponents have two aces (unless you have a void in one of those two suits).
Because of the importance of aces, the bid of 4NT ‘Blackwood’ is used to ask partner how many aces he possesses. But beware when clubs (and to a lesser extent diamonds) are trumps – the reply to Blackwood (5
