Using Jump Shifts as Four Trump RaisesRemember our two basic questions of bidding — which denomination, and how high. When you open 1♣, partner has three suits in which she can respond at the 1-level. When you open 1♠, partner has none. Over the minor, we usually show our shape first, and point count later, since we have the suits available to bid. Since we don’t have room to bid suits over the major suit opener, we’ll concentrate on our values first unless we already know about a fit and can raise, when we’ll probably show both our fit and values with one bid.
So, whenever partner opens a major, and you can’t raise or force to game, you bid 1NT. It is not a very descriptive bid. The range in HCP is from 4 (with an Ace) to 12. It can be almost any distribution. However, it keeps the auction open cheaply, and leaves room for partner to continue describing her hand.
On the other hand, when you start taking up more bidding room by responding at the two level, you show (usually) a five card suit of your own and (always) the values to bid to at least game.
The main disadvantage of the forcing 1NT response is that you cannot play 1NT after a major suit opener. This is quite a bit to give up, since it is the highest scoring part score contract available. One reason we can afford to is that in today’s competitive game, the opponents are hardly ever going to let you have it for 1NT anyway! If you are interested in a more complete discusion of this, I would recommend Mike Lawrence’s Two Over One Workbook.
This version of two over one assumes that you will get your best results with good hands if you can identify your combined fits between the two hands, and the quality of those fits. This brings choice of game decisions and slam decisions much further than point count alone, especially when you can find a secondary 4-4 or 5-3 fit. Hands that don’t have these extra fits will usually require substantial extra high card points to make a slam. Hands that have these extra fits will make slam only when the required key cards and controls are present regardless of high card points.
The first few rounds of the auction are used to identify the key distributional information about the hand, with messages about controls and values secondary, with a few exceptions. Opener’s new suits at the three level show extra values, primarily because they are so preemptive. Therefore we need to have a “catch-all” rebid after the 2/1 so opener can make time for responder to describe his hand. We use the rebid of the major for this since it is usually the least preemptive call.
Early versions of two over one relied on the concept of “fast arrival” as a way of limiting your hand. With minimum hands in a forcing auction, one was expected to jump to game, lower forcing bids showed extra values. This made it difficult to reach slams on hands where a key card in partner’s minimum would make the difference, since the five level is not always safe with these hands opposite a poorly fitting hand.
We use Serious 3NT instead of fast arrival. We assume that once a major suit fit is known, one should show controls and key cards just in case partner has the right hand. When it comes time for the mutual exchange of information to go to the four level, the person next to speak bids 3NT if the hand warrants serious slam investigations, and a simple cue bid is used for a courtesy “Non-Serious” cue bid.
A “Non-Serious” cue bid transfers the game/slam decision to the other hand. You should not cue bid in response without the values or tricks necessary for slam. The first member of the partnership who knows it is safe to do so (no suit with 2 fast losers) must bid RCKB, and bid slam if only one key card is missing, or 5NT if all key cards are present.
After Serious 3NT cue bids are forced if they are below the level of game. Even if you have a weak hand, if you are in a position where partner has made a serious cue bid and you know your side has control of all the suits, you must bid Key Card Blackwood.
Jacoby 2NT as a forcing raise of the major has been “standard” practice for most of us for many years. When the limit raise of the major became popular it was necessary to use an artificial forcing raise.
However, there is a decided advantage to being able to transmit the information of a balanced opening bid as responder. Opener’s decisions are easier in the context of this information as they always are opposite a descriptive natural notrump bid. Very little information is given to the defense when you have a 4-4-3-2 opposite the 5-3-3-2.
On the other hand, if you use a natural 2NT response, almost all your two over one auctions will have a five-card suit. This is useful information since it will enable the partnership to count the tricks necessary for slam.
| 3.8 Fourth Suit Forcing to Game |
Using Jump Shifts as Four Trump Raises |