When your partner opens one of a suit, all you know about his hand is his minimum length in that suit (3+ cards for a 1C or 1D opening; 5+ cards for a 1H or 1S opening) and his minimum point count (at least 12-13). You don’t yet know if he has a balanced or an unbalanced hand, extra length in his suit, a second suit or extra points. Opener needs to hear from you before he can tell you more about his hand.
Partner needed at least 12-13 points to start the bidding, but you need only 6 points to bid back to him. Your response tells him the two of you have at least half the total strength (your 6+ and partner’s 13+ is about half of the 40 points in the deck).
A response, even with a bare 6 points, keeps the auction open and allows partner to bid again. This can help you:
(1) Find the best trump suit. It may not be the suit partner bid, especially if he opened a minor suit (1C or 1D).
(2) Find the right level. If partner has a very strong hand, you may be able to earn a scoring bonus by bidding and making a game contract (3NT, 4H, 4S, 5C or 5D).
(3) Make it more difficult for the opponents to enter the auction.
If partner opens one of a suit (1C, 1D, 1H or 1S) and the next player passes, always respond if you have 6 points or more.
Your response of a new suit (1C
by partner - 1D, 1H or 1S by you) promises 4+ cards.
Partner must bid again.
A bid of partner's suit (1H by partner -
2H by you) confirms that you've found a fit of 8 cards or more in your
two hands. This response is called a raise.
Partner can pass or bid higher.
Always look for a major-suit fit.
Your
goal is to find a combined fit of 8 cards or more in hearts or spades.
When you know you have that fit, raise immediately (1H
by partner - 2H by you). Showing support for partner's major is more important than
showing any other suit.
● After partner opens 1H, respond 2H
with ♠KJ865 ♥J96
♦Q43 ♣52 .
If you haven't yet found a major-suit fit, look for one by
responding your 4+-card major if you can bid the suit at the one-level (1C by partner -
1H by you).
● After partner opens 1H, respond 1S
with ♠QJ85 ♥96
♦J63 ♣K732 .
If you have two or more suits you could bid at
the 1-level:
With unequal length, respond your longer suit. Length
in your suit is more important than strength (honors).
●
After partner opens 1C, respond 1S with
♠J9765 ♥AQ83
♦43 ♣64 .
With two or more 4-card suits, respond your cheaper major.
If partner opens 1C and you have 4 hearts
and 4 spades, respond 1H.
●
After partner opens 1C, respond 1H with
♠A1085 ♥Q973
♦43 ♣QJ3 .
With a minimum
responding hand (6-10 points), keep the auction low until you have
determined whether or not you have a major-suit fit.
Don't bid a new suit at the 2-level. If you can't
support partner's suit and there isn't room to show your 4+-card suit at the
one-level, respond 1NT.
●
After partner opens 1H, respond 1NT with
♠875 ♥6
♦QJ873 ♣KJ52 .
You can bid at the 2-level when you're raising
partner's suit (1S - 2S) and when you have extra strength (at least 10-11
high-card points).
Pass = 0-5 points
New suit at the 1-level (1D by partner - 1H by you) = 6+ points and 4+ cards in your suit (♠752 ♥K943 ♦K3 ♣J853).
New suit at the 2-level (Not a jump: 1D by partner - 2C by you) = 10-11+ points and 4+ cards in your suit (♠82 ♥AJ4 ♦J863 ♣AQ103).
Bid of opener's suit (a raise) = Enough length in that suit to
guarantee a fit of 8 cards or more.
Raise of opener's major (1S by partner - 2S by you) =
6-10 points and 3+ cards. (With 11+ points, you'll make
your raise at a higher level.)
Raise of opener's minor (1C by partner - 2C by you) =
6-10 points and 5+ cards. (With 11+ points, you'll make your
raise at a higher level.)
Notrump (1D by
partner - 1NT by you) = 6-10 points, no support for opener's suit and no
4+-card major you can show at the one-level.
(With 11+ points, you'll bid notrump at a higher level.)
NOTE: Some of your responding bids will force opener to bid again. Others will allow opener to pass.
A new-suit response promises a minimum number of points (6), but not a maximum number. You could have a very strong hand. Opener must bid again to keep the auction open and allow you to show your full strength.
A raise or a notrump response does promise a specific range (a minimum and a maximum number of points). The stronger your hand, the higher the level you'll choose to make these bids. Opener is allowed to pass after you raise his suit or respond in notrump.
The meanings and guidelines above cover the most common options for your first response. They are all you need to understand what happens next in the the bidding conversation and then start playing.
There are other ways to describe your hand after partner opens the bidding. To learn more about them, come back to this page later and follow the link to Responding bids - Part 2 .
Copyright © Karen Walker