weak 2's

[jillybean]

Dealer: East Vul: None Scoring: IMP ♠ AT4 ♥ T93 ♦ A87652 ♣ 3

 

West North East South

 

 -     -     Pass  2♦

 

 

What is wrong with this bid? I keep on making bad weak 2 bids

 

tyia

jb

[Walddk]

You have too much defence. In my opinion, a weak 2 can't have 2 aces in 1st and 2nd seats. In 3rd I can live with 2♦.

 

Let me add that it's not ideal to have 3-3 in the majors when you open 2♦. Pre-empts should be made with hands that are suitable for that particular suit only, and not on hands that make an excellent dummy in two other strains.

 

Roland

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

 

a matter of partnership agreement.

The bid is ok.

You sacrifice precison for frequency.

You risk, that partner will get certain

high level decison wrong, but you make

it harder for them to get into the auction.

 

With kind regards

Marlowe

[awm]

There are a number of things that can make opening a weak two bid a bad idea. Some of the danger signs:

 

(1) Good spots are a plus (the ten and nine of the suit are key) whereas bad spots are a minus. How many tricks will you lose in your suit if it breaks badly?

 

(2) Length in an unbid major is a minus. Two or fewer cards in unbid major(s) is ideal, three is okay but not great, four is a definite negative.

 

(3) Offense versus defense. Offensive cards include honors other than the ace in your long suit (king, queen, jack all offensive cards). Defensive cards are honors in short suits. More offense makes the weak two bid better, more defense makes it worse.

 

(4) Shape. Side singletons are good. Flat shape tends to be bad.

 

(5) Position. In 2nd seat it's very important to have a close-to-classic weak two, because partner will often have the values and needs to be able to make good decisions. In 1st seat it's better to be a bit more wide-ranging and in 3rd seat pretty much anything goes.

 

Of course, no one of these things is the deciding factor in whether to open a weak two. But by weighing pluses against minuses you can determine how good of a weak two bid the hand is likely to be. On the example hand you have a lot of minuses, including:

 

Bad spots (likely to lose 4 tricks in diamonds if they break 5-1). Three-card length in both unbid majors (not a total disaster, but a bad sign). No offensive cards, aces only. Second seat.

 

On balance this is not a good weak two bid. Of course how bad the weak two has to be before you don't open one is a matter of opinion...

[mikeh]

This is not a textbook weak two bid for at least two reasons:

 

1. You have good support for either major, so you run the risk of preempting partner or misleading partner into taking a save against a major suit contract that may fail

 

2. Your suit is very weak: yes, it has the A but it is completely devoid of interior texture

 

I don't agree, at all, with Roland's post... but that is not to say that he is 'wrong'. It all boils down to a question of style and expectation. For me, the drawback has nothing to do with the majors or the defence: it is to do with the putrid suit texture. Put another way.. a second seat weak two should be the soundest of any outside of 4th seat. After all, you have got by one of the opps, so the odds are even that you are preempting partner by bidding... thus you should be more disciplined.

 

Especially if you are still building your declarer skills, I'd recommend sticking with disciplined weak twos... focus on internal texture. KQ109xx is a heck of a lot better weak two suit than AJ5432, even tho they have the same length and hcp.

 

Also, bear in mind that a weak 2 will occasionally get doubled and left in: they don't usually leave in doubles with A543, but often will with KQ109.

 

BTW, I have played with some excellent partners who would be surprised to find me passing with that hand... they are very aggressive bidders, who are prepared to lose precision in exchange for maximal pressure... but it is a question of style. It helps to be able to 'play the spots off the cards' if you have that approach, and so I would advise against it for a B/I player.

[pclayton]

Always be leery about making a bid that two flaws. This hand actually has three:

 

1. The suit is ratty. If you run into a stack, you will get slaughtered;

 

2. You have two aces, which are great for defense. Preempts want to have Q's and J's;

 

3. You have good support and even a ruffing value for either major. In practice, this may not be that big of a deal, since with an opening hand and a 5 card major, pard will just bid the suit and you can raise (or splinter). Of course if the opponents make a call in front of him, it may present a problem;

 

4. You are in 2nd chair, and you are preempting partner. As I've mentioned before, I discount this factor now.

[kenberg]

I held that hand and was seriously thinking of 2D. We will never know because rho opened 2H. A somewhat exciting bid showing four to six hearts and maybe some spades or perhaps clubs, or so I recall. lho bid 2S, pass or correct, partner doubled, rho corrected with 3C (they can make 3C) and now I trotted out 3D. I figured if everyone else was bidding I didn't want to be left out. I played in a 6-3 fit and, mising the Q and J, thanked my opponent (silently) for all the distributional information amd picked up Qxx on my left to make.

 

I'm not really fond of opening 2D, but I think I was going to do it. Both of my most frequent partners surely would. I consider the decision close, they don't.