How weak do you respond?

[cherdano]

I think many of us like the style of very light responses to 1m whenever we have a 5-card major suit. What about when partner opens 1♥?

[hv=d=n&v=b&s=st7xxxhxdjtxxcjtx]133|100|1♥-(P)-?[/hv]

[Guest Jlall]

Yes I respond. 2 jacks extra too :D I know this is not the popular view, but in my experience it has worked out well. Many good things can happen. Partner can raise to 4S or splinter, in which case you will probably have play for 4S (5 trumps and a stiff). The other really good thing that happens is you will often steal from them, especially if their high cards are evenly distributed or if they play sandwich NT. If partner jump shifts to a minor, I will pass and it will hopefully be a playable spot (yes I know, JS is game forcing...). If he rebids 3H or 2N I will cry :o

[han]

Also 1S for me. It is nice if partner knows that I do this.

[mikeh]

I pass, hating every minute of it.

 

However, my possession of the ♠ suit, such as it is, means that the opps will not always be doing the right thing, while the rest of the hand suggests that there are very few bids that I would like to hear from partner should I respond.

 

I am a light responder, but if you respond on this, you may as well announce that you play all one-level suit openings as a one round force :D

[pigpenz]

with my real world partners i would bid 1♠...usually for me the good outweighs the bad. Like Justin says sometimes the hand belongs to the opps and this makes it harder for them.

[han]

Kokish wrote in this month's ACBL bulletin that he recommends always responding to minor suit openings when you have a 5-card major, and always responding to 1M when you have an ace of an honor in partners suit (I have this from hear-say, and I don't know if he counts the jack in partner

s suit, I would imagine not).

 

I guess this hand doesn't qualify.

[Guest Jlall]

I am a light responder, but if you respond on this, you may as well announce that you play all one-level suit openings as a one round force :D

lol, there was a junior tournament in the netherlands... Joe Grue and Kent Mignocchi were on my team.

 

Kent said "Joe how light do we respond?"

Joe said "We always respond to 1 bids."

Kent "Always?"

Joe "Yeah you can't pass we'll alert them."

 

lol... And then Kent responded 1N to a 1D opener with like a 3 count, and Joe bid 3N...and he wrapped it up haha. I always thought this was funny.

 

Anyways, I am not like joe, I would pass with 3244 yarbs etc, but I am close :)

[awm]

I'd pass. I'm not convinced that we will have play for 3♠ or 4♠ if partner bids it; often those raises are based upon a strong heart suit which may not play well opposite the singleton. For example:

 

♠AQxx

♥AKQxx

♦x

♣xxx

 

♠AQxx

♥AKQxxx

♦xx

♣x

 

I think most of us bid at least 3♠ on the first hand and force to game on the second. In both cases I'd expect to go down more often than not in the resulting contract. 1♥ is fairly likely to scramble home if trumps break reasonably in either case, and if the opponents balance we will stand a reasonable chance of reaching 2♠.

 

In addition, I'd be pretty unhappy to hear partner rebid 3♣, 2NT, 3♥, or 4♥. In any of those cases I have probably turned a plus into a minus. Note that passing 3♣ could leave us in a 3-3 fit, since this is quite frequently bid on 6223 or the like.

 

You can occasionally steal from opponents by bidding on hands like this, but keep in mind:

 

(1) It's not that unlikely that partner has extras, and you're stealing from your own side by bidding.

 

(2) This hand has all the makings of a misfit, and it could be that the opponents will balance themselves out of your minus position into one of their own.

 

(3) Even if the opponents can make a game, they are unlikely to have a major suit fit. Your two jacks mean that if partner has even a smidge extra (say 14 or 15 points) opponents will not have the 25 high they need to bid 3NT confidently, and they may not bid it. On the other hand, if they bid 3NT on 24 or 25 high it may go down because suits aren't breaking.

[pigpenz]

I am a light responder, but if you respond on this, you may as well announce that you play all one-level suit openings as a one round force :)

there are just sometimes you feel its right to take action. regardless if you have points....so its not necessarily alertable unless you do it all the time

 

Last night in a game opp bid forcing NT after his parnter opened 1♠. The forcing NT bidder had 4 spades and one King.

 

my hand was

[hv=s=shakxxxdqj9xxxckx]133|100|[/hv]

 

so i bid a tactical 3♦'s alittle strong but stirred the pot alittle :D

Next thing I knew the opps were in 4♠'s i doubled down 4 +1100.

Trouble was they got on a roller coaster they couldnt get off...so thats the chance you take when you respond that light.

[pclayton]

I pass.

 

Some of this comes out of the fact I have a limited 2♣ bid.

 

Ask yourself this: if you will feel angst over partner's jump shift on the next round, then just pass the first time.

[Walddk]

I pass.

 

Some of this comes out of the fact I have a limited 2♣ bid.

 

Ask yourself this: if you will feel angst over partner's jump shift on the next round, then just pass the first time.

I don't disagree, and then you've got to live with missing the occasional game by passing. Like this hand at my centre yesterday:

 

7

KJxxx

10xxxx

xx

 

Partner opens 1♠. I think pass is the winner in the long run. It wasn't on this occasion when opener held:

 

Qxxxx

Axx

AK9

AQ

 

The layout was very friendly, and you were cold for 11 tricks in hearts.

 

Roland

[mikeh]

I pass.

 

Some of this comes out of the fact I have a limited 2♣ bid.

 

Ask yourself this: if you will feel angst over partner's jump shift on the next round, then just pass the first time.

I don't disagree, and then you've got to live with missing the occasional game by passing. Like this hand at my centre yesterday:

 

7

KJxxx

10xxxx

xx

 

Partner opens 1♠. I think pass is the winner in the long run. It wasn't on this occasion when opener held:

 

Qxxxx

Axx

AK9

AQ

 

The layout was very friendly, and you were cold for 11 tricks in hearts.

 

Roland

This is a great thread. I usually agree with one or both of Roland and Justin. Here is one where I disagree with both :D

 

I already voted for pass on the posted question but I would always respond on Roland's example :)

 

My willingness to do so may be influenced by two gadgets I like:

 

If over my 1N response, partner bids 2♣, I can bid 2♦ asking partner to bid 2♥ with 2+♥: maximizing my chances of reaching a playable spot (or, at least, as spot better than 1♠)

 

If he bids 2N, I can transfer to 3♥ and elect to pass (matchpoints or imps nv) or to offer a choice of games (imps, vul... we may sneak home with 9 tricks even if he doesn't fit ♥)

 

So with Roland's hand, my downsides are less than on the posted hand.

[Walddk]

So with Roland's hand, my downsides are less than on the posted hand.

Good luck Mike. Next time you partner's rebid over 1NT is.

 

1. 3♠

2. 4♠

3. 3♣

 

How do you like it now? You won't win anything on this auction, and you will certainly not win the post-mortem.

 

Roland

[mikeh]

Roland, I did not claim that there were no downsides to bidding :D

 

I will not like 3♣ or 3♠, but (in my partnerships) I will not need to worry about 4♠: an impossible bid. Why is it impossible? Because of another gadget I like: 3♣ over 1N is either precisely a 4 card ♥ suit or natural or a powerhouse 4♠ bid. Responder bids 3♦ with most hands, and opener rebids 3♠ with the powerhouse and I pass: expecting to make...

 

Bridge is a game of percentages tempered by method and experience. Method can minimize or increase the risk and possible benefit attached to any decision and experience is how we assess whether that risk is acceptable in the circumstances. My methods appear (to me, anyway) to slightly reduce risk here and my experience (to which I add your story of 11 tricks in ♥ and fewer in ♠ :) ) tells me that bidding is better than passing.

 

Your methods and experience operate to tell you to pass. Oh well.

[Al_U_Card]

Nice to have gadgets to better mitigate your upside and downside potentials....wish I were that lucky. I gather that Justin was passing any rebid by pard....so as long as you would bid with that noxious concoction, how about a 2S WJS? At least pard will know you have no H for him and will bid 3m with his J/S hands....to play. ;)

[jdeegan]

:D I pass. The perfect limit bid. Yes, we may (or may not) have a better strain than hearts, but the 5-1 fit at the one level has never caused me a disaster.

[Gerben42]

Pass! 2nd choice Pass. Third choice Pass.

 

Anyway you get the idea. 1♥ is not forcing, use it. Partner will play for more in your hand if you bid. If you pass you may land in a bad contract. But if you bid, you have overbid by so much you are also going to get to a bad contract. Getting to 2♠ when it is right is nice, but when it is right you'll be in 4...

 

That's where I like the Fantoni-Nunes style. Forcing 1-bids, partner is prepared for this :D

[joker_gib]

Pass! 2nd choice Pass. Third choice Pass.

I like that ! :lol: :)

 

Alain

[Fluffy]

Pass and I don't even find it close, I would probably also pas if I had another Q.

[bridge2k]

Pass. I don't see anything could driving me to respond 1S. Most time you will see disadantage for 1S response, if you play 2/1 with your partner.

[mikestar]

Pass, not even a close decison, even in 2/1 with fairly heavy openers, never mind opposite some of today's openings. Only some of the losses come when the bid goes wrong. Others come in missed games and wrong competetive bidding decisons when you respond 1♠ with a decent 6-count and partner fears you have this hand.

 

By the way, I seldom have gotten a horible result passing poor 7 counts and an occasional really ugly 8 count playing Precison, and those I have gotten have been compensated by some juicy penalties when they balance and get nailed.

[mike777]

Kokish, ACBL Bulletin Sept 2005, p. 55

 

...."but would never pass 1H or 1S with support or shortness, I might respond 1S to 1H with a terrible hand, normally with at least four spades. I would never pass with an Ace or an honor in partner's suit."

 

BTW playing Mexican 2D removes balanced 18-19 and many semi-balanced 18-19 hands out of opening one bids.

 

I think one level bids can apply a lot of pressure on opps. 1h=p=1s

[Guest Jlall]

Kokish, ACBL Bulletin Sept 2005, p. 55

 

...."but would never pass 1H or 1S with support or shortness, I might respond 1S to 1H with a terrible hand, normally with at least four spades. I would never pass with an Ace or an honor in partner's suit."

This is Kokish's style but it's certainly not for everyone. I also like to respond this way (obviously). It is more important you and your partner are both on the same wavelength about these kind of style issues than what your style actually is.

[han]

I have thought about this question some more and have changed my mind. I would respond 1S over 1m with the given hand but pass over 1H.

 

I also came to the conclusion that bidding 1S is safer when playing Riton 2C or similar (like Gazilli).

[iggygork]

A clear cut pass for me, too. I hate it when my partners pass forcing bids (such as jump shifts, reverses etc. because "I responded too light") and I am not going to be able to bite the bullet and pass pard's very possible J/S after my response.

 

There do seem to be two minds on this problem, and I am sure they all win on their day. For me, it is a partnership issue and unless I had the explicit agreement that J/Ss by opener were not forcing (and I am not sure I want to play that system) I will not respond with a subminimum hand. My minimum for a one-over-one response is an Ace and a semi-fit for pard's suit.