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Bridsing
the Gap
By Kathy Falandys Tilyard
Due to a font error at the printer, last
months “Bridging the Gap" column was
printed with missing card suit designa
tions. The issue has been addressed and we are reprinting this article with the correct
card suits in place. We apologize for any inconvenience.—The Editors
The 1-Club Opener
Q: If I am your partner and open !♦ or l^and you have less than 6 points, what will
your bid be? Is a 14 bid forcing?
A: I cannot tell you how many times I have heard, after a partner passes a 14, in
a loud and forceful tone, “You can’t pass my 14 bid. Bid your four-card major.”
I know this article will cause some controversy, especially for those who are
still using old bridge rules. When I returned to bridge at the Country Club of the
Crystal Coast about six years ago, everyone was playing the opening 14, which they
referred to as “the short club,” when they did not have a five-card major. In fact,
some were opening four-card majors at that time, but we definitely don’t do that,
do we? However, I learned a lot of bridge from those players. This is what I still
hear: 1) You must respond to your partner’s 14 opener, and 2) You must answer in
a major suit because, they argue, that is what your partner is looking for. Many use
this same reasoning with the !♦ opener. The reasoning is that your partner needs to
be “rescued” from the bid.
First, let’s discuss why one would open a minor suit and how to choose which
minor to open. Then we will discuss responding to that opening bid. Modern
bridge suggests that if one has opening count, but does not have a five-card major
or 15-17 points, has no voids and no singletons and only one doubleton required
for a INT opening, one can open either 14 or !♦, which is now referred to as “the
convenient minor.” How do we choose which to open? To review: Open the longer
minor. If they are of equal length and 4+, open 14.1 must tell you, not even the
experts agree on this, but to make it simple, if you have two four-card minors, open
the diamond suit; otherwise, open 14.1 make clear to my partners that if they hear
an opening !♦, they will know I have at least four in that suit. I do not open 1^ with
less than'four pieces—but that is partnership agreement. What would the opener
be looking for? Often, they look for the ever-hoped-for eight-card fit in a major.
They don’t always find it.
Some examples of an opening hand for the convenient minor:
• 4AQ43 ¥KQ3 ♦765 4K97=14 points. No five-card major and not enough for
INT; open 14
• 4Q96 VA852 4X63 4AKQ=18 points. No five-card major and too many
points for INT; open 14
• 4AQ6 VQJ7 ♦Q1043 4K65==14 points. No five-card major and not enough
for INT; open !♦
• *KQ5 ¥AJ3 ♦KJS 49653=14 points. No five-card major and not enough for
INT; open 14
• Without 15-17 points, open 1+ with a “4-3-3-3” distribution unless the hand
has 44
I want to dismiss the idea that you must rescue a 14 opener. If you have heard that
you cannot leave your partner in 14, that advice is wrong; with 0-5 points, PASS.
Q: What is the great fear of leaving your partner in a 14 opener?
A: The fear is that he/she may get set. It goes without saying, but I will say it any
way: if there is an intervening bid, the responder is off the hook. Let’s say opener,
your partner, opens 14. Opponent passes. You have less than six points and pass.
That leaves the fourth chair with enough points to bid or your partner with so
many points, he/she can make the seve*?'r6qufflafrlis or mSke Kis/her 14 bid— ’
even if he/she has few clubs. If your partnership goes set, that means the opponents
have probably missed a bid. The more tricks they take in the club contract, the more
they missed a better score in their direction. I have said it before and will say it
again: you will not make every contract your partnership bids even if bid correctly.
It happens! Don’t use that as an excuse for every “down bid,” but do recognize that
it can happen and does.
Q: What is your responsibility to your partner’s bid of 14?
A: Your responsibility as the partner of a 14 or !♦ opener is to let him/her know
immediately if you hold 6+ points, or if you hold less than 6 HCP. Some believe in
bidding 14 or INT as a denial of points. If you rescue your partner with a 14 or a
INT to deny points, how will you communicate a true 1^ or a true INT balanced
hand with 6-9 HCP?
Read on to see what happens when the responder mistakenly tries to rescue a 14
opener by partner.
14 by the opener gets a response of 14or INT: This response supposedly says ,
(from those who “save” 14 openers), “I have no support, no suit of my own and I
have less than 6 points. So, go ahead and bid the suit you want.” How is that help
ful? With that bid, your partner will think you have at least 6 points. Yes, I know if
you have a regular partner, you can have an agreement. If partner had 19 points, he
adds them to your 6-9 and bids 3NT. Remember, he did not have a five-card major.
He did not have 15-17 points and a balanced hand, but he did have at least 13 or
more points. He could hold 19 points. If you answer 1^ just to keep the bid open
and he has 19 points, he will go straight to 3 NT and you will have overbid! This is
why I ask you to stop rescuing the 14 bid by your partner.
Q: How many points does a partnership need to be successful at a given level?
A: Haven’t you wondered, as the bidding progresses, “How high should my part
ner and I bid?” You add his/her points to what you are holding. Keep in mind, one
bid by either partner seldom tells the whole story and you need to make true bids.
Also, if you play with a regular partner, have you made partnership agreements on
communication, e.g. cue bids and whether you do respond to a convenient minor
with less than 6 and if you agree to do that, what is the preferred response? If you
are rotating partners, as many of us in Pine Knoll Shores do, clarify as much as you
can with your “new” partner before any hand is dealt. Is there enough time to cover
all of the nuances with this new partner? That is doubtful. The following are guide
lines, as always. Try to commit to memory how many points it takes for the differ
ent levels of bidding.
Contract requirements: What you and your partner need in your two hands to
make these contracts.
• Suitpartscore (bid of 1, 2 or 3 in any suit)—18-24 points and at least an eight-
card trump fit.
• No trump partscore (bid of INT or 2NT)—20-24 points and preferably no
eight-card major-suit fit.
• Major-suit game (4H, 4S)—25-26+ points and at least an eight-card fit. (Game
and slam contracts pay a scoring bonus.)
• Minor-suit game (5C, 5D)—28-29+ and at least an eight-card fit.
• No trump game (3NT)—25-26+ points and preferably no eight-card major-
suit fit.
• Small slam (any bid of 6)—33+ points. NT bidding counts only HCP.
• Grand slam (any bid of 7)—36+ points and all four aces.
Remember to count only HCP for NT bids.
These contract guidelines apply when you have relatively balanced hands. If you
have a strong trump fit, long side suits and/or unusual distribution, you’ll need
fewer points to make these contracts. Remember to reevaluate with every bid.
(Continued on page 25)
24 The Shoreline I March 2014