BRIDGE

Waikato Times, Volume 114, Issue 19010, 29 July 1933, Page 14 (Supplement)

BRIDGE

There has always been some doubt as to the best way of bidding twosuit hands. The great essential In the case of these, hands is to keep the bidding as low as possible. Each increase in the bidding adds to the difficulty of showing the length and strength of both suits. Let us assume that North and South held the following hands:—

North, on this semi-twb-suiter, which is hid in the same way as a two-suiter, should normally open with “One. Spade"; South should say “ Two Hearts and North cannot now show his second suit on a smaller bid than “ Three jGlubs.’ As a change of suit encourages, South can hardly pass this bid. He should in any case give'- a preference bid of “ Three Spades."' It will be j seen then that the bidding has mounted bp too quickly to a high level, because of an opening bid in the higher ranking suit. Had North opened with a bid in his lower ranking suit, then It would have been possible for, him to show his seoond suit on a smaller bid than “Three,” thus: North, “One Club"; South,- “One Heart"; and he-can now show hisysfecond suit with a bid of “ One Spade." This particular bidding situation is the one which constitutes a strong argument in favour of an opening bid in the lower-ranking suit. Those who employ the one-over-one convention often stretch a point to bid the lower ranking suit first, because this procedure simplifies the bidding of many hands. They give preference to a minor suit in the first bid, and after bidding the major suit later, rebid •it before the. minor to show that it is the longer.

Length of Suit Shown by Re-bld.

, If preference be given to the minor suit first, the bidding of the above hands would- proceed as follows: North, “One Club"; South, "One Heart”; North, " One Spade ”; South, “One No-trump” (Showing insufficient trump support for either of his partner's suits and no further values to disclose); North, “ Three Spades ” (this re-bid of his Spades first shows that it is the longer suit; and the jump In the bid is a “ force," showing probable i game-going strength after allowing for his partner’s encouraging bid of “One Heart"); South should then bid “ Three No-Humps,” as his guard in Diamonds is strong enough to Justify this bid.

By the other method the bidding would have proceeded: North, “One Spade”,*' South, “Two Hearts”; North, “Four Clubs," If he wishes to “force" on the probability of securing a game. Without forcing the biding may stop short of a game call, while after “ forcing" it Is no longer possible to bid “ Three No-trumps,” in whioh contract a game may be made which might not be possible in a contract of “ Four ' Spades.” With probable double guards in all suits a contract of "Three No-trumps" is the safer. •,

- (By “ Grand Slam."

TWO-SUIT HANDS.

In this, as in many other similar cases, jumping and bidding is essential to show- game probability. By bidding the lower-ranking suit first it is possible on some hands to "force” later before the bidding has risen too high, while if the higher ranking suit be bid first “ forcing " later may get the bidding beyond safe control.

Lord Tollemacho’s System

All the same, writers mostly acoept the principle of giving preference to the higher-ranking suit in the first bid where it is not shorter than the lower-ranking suit. One writer, however, Lord Tollemache, is not prepared to accept eithes method, and has recently brought out a very interesting small book ("The Key to Safe Calling at Contract"), describing another method of showing two biddable suits. Holding Clubs A.'SK, J, x and Hearts A, Q, J, x, x, and small cards in the other two suits, the author bids Clubs first because this suit has the greater strength in high cards. It is immaterial which suit is of higher rank or greater length. The paramount consideration is the strength in high cards. Where two suits are of equal high-card strength the lower-ranking is bid first to economise bids. The second suit is always bid Immediately after the flj*st. A re-bid of the first suit before 1 bidding another suit denies, holding a second biddable suit. If the bidder holds a second suit oi greater length than his first, this is shown by jumping the bidding. A bid In 'a third suit means A, or K, Q, not length., -The author 'claims that this method gives a truer picture of the strength and distribution of a hand at a lower bid than any other system.

Players Should Know All Systoms.

There is, It would seem, an advantage in ! using this system with many hands, particularly those strong hands which, with moderate assistance from the partner, have Slam possibilities. The usual aim of bids is: first, to show distribution and strength; secondly, to select the suit (or “No-trumps"-) for the final contract; thirdly, to make cue bids or other Slam-invitation signals. Lord Tollemache prefers to show: first, high-card strength; secondly, distribution; thirdly, Aces or King-Queens. It would be difficult to express an opinion in favour of the. latter sequence without analysing results. Whichever of the systems described above the bidder is prepared to adopt, his education will be incomplete without experimenting With the other systems, and if he has heretofore been accustomed only-to the more usual method of showing 'his higherranking'suit first, he will learn a good deal by giving Lord Tollemache’s system a trial. Alternatively he will also learn a good deal by giving a trial to the bidding of his lower-ranking suit first. When bidding his lower-ranking cult first, he will not fall to observe how helpful this Is when he is playing the one-over-one convention, and how. much better the slow approach method of bidding is for many hands.

North. South. 4k A Q J xx 4k 10 x x V 10 x V K J 9 x x ♦ Jx ♦ A 10 x ♦ ■AKJx 4k 10.x