The Hidden Secret to Bidding
We have a whole bunch of bidding rules, systems and conventions to help us with the bidding. If we don’t know what we are trying to accomplish, however, it makes it exceedingly difficult to reach the best result. We are trying to converse so that one partner knows what both partners have and can set the contract. That’s it. Sometimes it’s the opener, sometimes it’s the responder, but every hand has the same process.
With many opening bids the opener describes his hand with one bid and responder has systems to guide the bidding to the best contract. This is why opening bids of No Trump, Strong Two Clubs, Weak Twos and Preempts make it easier for responders to guide openers through the bidding.
Unfortunately, the most common opening bid is one of a suit and that tells responder very little. Opener could have 13 points or a lot more. He could have a 3-card suit or a 10-card suit. From here we must perform a coded dance to trade information to reach our goal. We must know what bids are forcing and which are not. We continue until one partner has adequately described his hand and the other can set the contract. Learn the basic dance steps as described in Lesson 2 and you’re ready to have a ball. Just never forget what it is you’re trying to do.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 1 on 19 January
It floats to West who opens 1 Club with 14 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton and East responds 1 Diamond. West raises to 2 Diamonds and East makes it with overtricks for a good score.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 2 on 19 January
It floats to West who opens 1 Spade with 16 HCPs plus 1 for the Heart doubleton. East raises to 2 Spades and West reevaluates to 18 points for the supported 5-card suit and invites with 3 Spades. East reevaluates to 9 points for the 5-card support and raises to game. It goes down 1 for a low middle.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 3 on 19 January
It floats to East who counts 20 HCPs with a balanced hand and opens 2 No Trump. West has 6 HCPs and raises to 3 No Trump. It makes for a middle because two pairs make an overtrick. I'm not sure how.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 4 on 19 January
West counts 14 HCPs and opens 1 Diamond. East counts 8 HCPs and responds 1 Spade. South counts 17 and doubles (Big) for takeout. West rebids 1 No Trump and all pass. It makes one overtrick for a high/middle score.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 5 on 19 January
North counts 15 HCPs plus 1 each for the doubletons and opens 1 Club. South counts 15 HCPs plus 1 for the Heart doubleton and responds 1 Spade to force partner to describe his hand. North rebids 3 Clubs to show his 6-card suit and 17 or more points. South reevaluates to 18 points for his 4th and 5th Clubs and knows that partner has 3 more points for the his supported 6-card suit. South sees a total of 38 points and 11 Clubs and is interested in slam. He has only 1 Ace and with all the distribution points he could be missing 2 Aces. He considers Blackwood, but if partner responds 5 Diamonds, he will be forced to 6 Clubs missing 2 Aces. He ponders long and hard and finally decides to just bid 6 Clubs and hope for the best. He gets it and makes an overtrick for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 6 on 19 January
East passes and South counts 11 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton and 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Heart. West counts 13 HCPs plus 1 for each doubleton and overcalls 2 Clubs. North lacks the 10 points to respond at the 2-level and must pass. East counts 8 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and adds a point for his 4-card support for partner's 6-card suit and 13-16 points and raises with 3 Clubs. If South passes, West will make it for a decent score. If South competes to 3 Hearts. he will make it for a top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 7 on 19 January
South counts 13 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton and opens 1 Club. West counts 9 HCPs plus 1 for each doubleton and overcalls 1 Diamond. North counts 10 HCPs and responds 1 Heart. East must pass and South has no forcing bid and is reluctant to raise Hearts when partner may have a weak 4-card suit, so describes with 1 Spade and let's partner decide on the next step. West passes and North invites with 3 Spades. South raises to game and makes it with an overtrick to tie for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 8 on 19 January
It floats to East who counts 12 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton and 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Heart. South counts 9 HCPs plus1 for each doubleton and overcalls 1 Spade. West responds 2 Clubs to show his 10 or more points and force partner to describe. East reevaluates to 17 points and jumps to 4 Clubs. West corrects to 4 Hearts and East makes it with an overtrick for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 9 on 19 January
North counts 13 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. East counts 18 HCPs plus 1 for doubleton and doubles for takeout. West advances 1 Spade and East bids 2 Hearts to show the Big Double. West wants to bid with 7 points opposite 17 or more but he can't rebid his Spade and doesn't know if partner has 4 or 5 Hearts. He decides that 3 Hearts is the only reasonable action and bids it. East reevaluates to 20 points and since partner could have passed, he treats the raise as invitational and raises to game. It makes for a good score.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 10 on 19 January
It floats to West who counts 12 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. East counts 8 HCPs plus 1 for the Diamond doubleton and responds 1 Spade. West lacks the 17 points to reverse to 2 Hearts and doesn't see much else so he decides to pass since partner has already limited his hand. It makes for a decent score.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 11 on 19 January
West counts 18 HCPs and opens 1 Spade intending to jump in No Trump unless something better arises. East counts 13 HCPs and is interested in game. He responds up the line to 2 Diamonds to force partner to describe his hand. West jumps to 3 No Trump to show 18-19 HCPs with a balanced hand. East stops to ponder Spades or No Trump and the possibility of slam. He knows that he has a fit in Spades with at least 31 total points but only 1 Ace and no way to check for more. He decides to invite with 5 Spades. West now counts 18 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton plus 1 for the supported 5-card suit. With 2 more points than promised and 2 Aces it's a close call. If he passes, it doesn't change his score. If he bids the slam, he will get a top if he makes it. Either way he must make 12 tricks for a top. How does he do that?
Suppose North leads the Diamond. Declarer stops to count and plan. He counts 10 sure tricks: 5 Spades, 4 Hearts and 1 Diamond and needs two more. The lead gives him at least 1 more Diamond and he can set up a Club. He mustn't lose a Diamond and a Club so has to be careful with his transportation.
It's easier if North leads a Club, but again he must be careful with his transportation.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 12 on 19 January
It floats to East who counts 18 HCPs plus 1 for each doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. South counts11 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton and 1 for the doubleton and overcalls 1 Heart. West counts 5 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and responds 1 Spade. North passes and East jumps to 4 Spades. All pass and it makes for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 13 on 19 January
North counts12 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton but has no Aces and 3 Quacks so is questionably a "Good 13". Most Norths bid 1 Diamond however so we'll take it from there. East counts 13 HCPs plus 1 for each doubleton and overcalls 1 Heart. South counts 10 HCPs and responds 1 Spade. North can't rebid the Diamonds and partner might have only 4 Spades but he is forced, so rebids 2 Spades. All pass and South makes it for a half.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 14 on 19 January
South counts 12 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. West counts 16 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton, 1 for the doubleton and doubles for takeout (Big). North passes and East advances 2 Clubs. South passes and West raises to 3 Clubs to show the big double. East sees the fit with at least 27 points between them and invites with 4 Clubs. West adds 1 for the supported 5-card suit and raises to 5 Clubs. It makes for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 15 on 19 January
South counts 16 HCPs and opens 1 Diamond. South counts 11 HCPs and responds 2 Clubs to show 10 or more points and a 5-card suit. North reverses to 2 Spades to show 13 or more points and to require them not to stop until the reach the level of 3 Diamonds or higher. South rebids 3 Spades and North raises to 4 Spades. Declarer makes an overtrick for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 16 on 19 January
West counts 12 HCPs plus 2 for the singleton and opens 1 Spade. East counts 13 HCPs and and responds 2 Diamonds. West rebids 2 Hearts and East rebids 3 Clubs showing Diamonds to be a 5-card suit (Not bid up the line). West can't see 11 tricks so passes. It makes for the top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 17 on 19 January
North counts 14 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Heart. East lacks the good 6-card suit for a 2-level overcall so passes as do South and west. It makes for a middle.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 18 on 19 January
South counts 14 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. North counts 9 HCPs plus 1 for the Heart doubleton and responds 1 Spade. South lacks the 17 points to reverse to 2 Hearts so must rebid 1 No Trump or 2 Spades. He doesn't know if partner has 4 Spades or more and he has no idea about Clubs. He decides to rebid 2 Spades. North reevaluates to 12 points and invites with 3 Spades. South raises to 4 Spades and it makes for a top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 19 on 19 January
West counts 14 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and 2 for the singleton and opens 1 Spade. North lacks the 13 points and good 6-card suit to overcall so must pass. East counts 13 HCPs and responds 2 Diamonds. West stops to ponder raising Spades or Diamonds. He decides to show his Diamond support and 17 points with 4 Diamonds. East sees a good fit and a total of 30 points and raises to 5 Diamonds. It makes for a good score.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 20 on 19 January
West counts 13 HCPs and opens 1 Heart. It floats to South who counts 15 HCPs but has a tough bid. He can't bid a Heart or a Diamond and doesn't want to pass so settles for 1 No Trump despite the singleton. West passes and North raises to 2 No Trump with his 8 HCPs and South passes. It makes with an overtrick for a top.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 21 on 19 January
It floats to West who counts 16 HCPs plus 1 for the Spade doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. East counts 7 HCPs and responds 1 Heart. West jumps to 3 Hearts to show 17 points or more. East sees his 7 points opposite 17 or more and is on the edge. If he bids 4 Spades it makes for the top. If he passes, 3 Hearts plus 1 is still the top except for one pair who bid 3 No Trump and were allowed to make it.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 22 on 19 January
It floats to North who counts 14 HCPs plus 1 for the Club doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. South counts 9 HCPs and responds 1 Spade. North rebids 1 No Trump and it makes for a half.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 23 on 19 January
It floats to North who counts 14 HCPs plus 1 for the doubleton and opens 1 Diamond. South counts 7 HCPs and responds 1 Spade. North has no bid except 1 No Trump and he's leery of that. Since partner had earlier limited his hand, North passes 1 Spade and it makes for the middle. Both sides made 1 No Trump but I don't see how.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Board 24 on 19 January
West counts 18 HCPs with a balanced hand and bids 1 Diamond intending to jump to No Trump later. East counts 7 HCPs plus 1 but he lacks the 10 points to respond 2 Clubs so must bid 1 No Trump. West jumps to 3 No Trump and it makes for the top except for one pair who stole an overtrick.
The Hidden Secret to Bidding - Responses and Rebids
There was a great renaissance in bridge in the sixties and seventies. The Jacoby Transfer was an instant improvement to No Trump. The Italian systems brought about the Forcing-Two Clubs Openings and the Weak-Two Openings. The basic changes to 1-of-a-suit bidding were as important as any of the above. Many jump bids were changed from wasted bids forcing to game to very useful invitational bids. It became apparent that if you want to force partner to game, you can just bid it yourself.
It also became apparent that the opening one-of-a-suit bid tells partner very little. It can be 13 points or 20 points and a 3-card suit or an 11-card suit. It is the opener's rebid that really is descriptive and responder needs to stay out of the way. The partners need to bid so that one player knows what both have and can set the contract. It can be by responder limiting his hand so that opener knows what both have. It also can be by responder bidding a new suit that forces partner to describe his hand. Opener's rebid is the most important bid of the auction.
A jump-shift by responder merely uses up bidding space and makes it difficult or impossible for opener to describe his hand. Therefore an initial jump-shift by responder has been transformed to a weak bid. Too weak in fact to respond otherwise. The weak jump-shift can be useful when responder doesn't like opener's suit and thinks he may go down. Responder has a long suit with less than 6 points and thinks they will do better in two of his suit than one of opener's suit. He then wants opener to pass unless he has a really good hand. The responder will never make an initial strong jump-shift.
Explanation of Bids
I have discussed this subject under "Alerts, Announcements and Stops are banned" on the back of the guides, but we need a more detailed discussion.
Since some pairs utilize nonstandard conventions, their opponents can ask for an explanation at their turn to bid or later at their turn to play if they see bidding they don't understand.
A request for an explanation of a bid should be directed to the partner of the player who made the bid in question. The proper form of the request is "Please explain" or “Please explain any special agreement”.
The opponent is entitled to a full understanding of the agreement and all questions concerning the agreement should be graciously resolved.
These rules apply only to an understanding of special agreements between partners. This does not include inferences drawn from general bridge knowledge and experience. It especially does not include information as to how a player thought or acted in regard to the agreement. This would be unauthorized information.
If the meaning has not been discussed, "no agreement" is the proper response. If you've forgotten it, say so. You must not say such things as "I am taking it to mean ..."
If an opponent asks you how you took partner's bid, you should not answer. Call the director immediately.
If you bid incorrectly in response to partner's conventional bid and an opponent asks for an explanation, you must explain the agreement. You must make no mention of your misplay.
In other words, you must fully explain the agreement but never explain your thoughts or actions.
Calling the Director
You should be aware of the Club Rules and Pointers on the back of the Guide/Score sheets. Number 4 discusses the calling of the director with any Questions or suspected errors before taking any actions. A recent incident involving a revoke causes me to think that I need to discuss this matter more thoroughly.
Suppose an opponent makes a play causing you to think that there might have been a revoke on this or a prior play. The partner of the suspected revoker can ask partner if he has any cards of the suit led to try to prevent a revoke. Other than that, you must call the director immediately. Do not ask questions, turn over cards or replace a card which has been played. Everyone freezes.
When the director arrives, the player who called will explain what happened on the present play or what he thinks happened on a subsequent play. The director will ask any questions needed to clarify the situation, turn over any relevant prior plays and when he understands the situation will make a ruling. He will determine whether there was an established revoke requiring score adjustment or a revoke which is not established and can be corrected. If he can’t clearly understand what has happened, he can not make a ruling and will have to kill the board, especially if there is a time issue.
Incidentally, revoke is the proper name for this situation. Renege is an obsolete name which is not used.