This Week in Bridge
(653) Passed Hand Bidding: P - 1M - 2NT
©AiB Robert S. Todd
Level: 7 of 10 robert@advinbridge.com
General
When we are a passed hand and partner opens the bidding, we must be careful in trying to describe our hand. Partner’s opening bid in the 3rd seat can be light in values, trying to be destructive or lead-directing, so we cannot respond to it in the same way we would a normal opening bid. Specifically, if partner opens 1M in the 3rd seat, we should not go jumping around without a very special hand. Let’s look at how we should respond when partner opens in the 3rd seat.
Raising Partner
We have discussed that we use Drury (instead of jumping to 3M) to show a limit raise when we are a passed hand. This now frees up 3M to be used differently than we would use it opposite a 1st or 2nd seat Opener. The new meaning of a jump to 3M, opposite a 3rd (or 4th) seat Opener, should be a weak hand with 5+card support. Remember, partner can open on possibly just a 4-card suit in the 3rd seat, so we need to have 5-card support in order to be following the Law of Total Tricks.
2NT Response
When partner opens in the 3rd seat, we no longer need 2NT as a conventional bid like Jacoby 2NT. With a hand that good (which would be rare by a passed hand), we can use Drury to describe it. Since we do not need 2NT for Jacoby 2NT when we are a passed hand, we should think about what kind of hand should bid 2NT and what we should define 2NT to mean.
Let’s consider a natural bid: 2NT showing a balanced hand with 10-11 points and no fit is one option. But 2NT should not be bid with this hand because partner could have opened light in the 3rd seat – we certainly do not want to be in 2NT with 10 points opposite 10 points and no fit! Additionally, 1NT in response to 1M (no matter what seat it is opened in) shows 5 to 11 points. So we do not need to bid 2NT in order to show a 10-11 point hand – 1NT will do just fine.
This leaves us with a less obvious but much better choice for the meaning of 2NT – for the minors!
1st Seat 2nd Seat 3rd Seat 4th Seat
P P 1♥/1♠ P
2NT
This auction should show about 8-10 HCP with at least 5-5 in the minors – a hand that will be very difficult to show otherwise.
Since we do not need 2NT as a natural call or as a raise of Opener’s suit then we use it like an “Unusual NT” showing the minors!
Note: Some players continue to use 2NT for the minors even if the opponents interfere in our auction with a takeout double – replacing Jordan. This is a good detail to discuss with partner before it comes up at the table.
Conclusion
As we open more and more aggressively in the 3rd seat, we will tend to open 1M more often (especially when we allow the bidding of 4-card suits). Thus, we will encounter the auction more frequently.
1st Seat 2nd Seat 3rd Seat 4th Seat
P P 1M P
__?
Having lots of agreements about this auction will help us balance trying to explore the game when partner has a good hand with being destructive to the opponents when that is our goal. Using 2NT for the minors in this auction is a tool for being destructive – we keep finding more and more ways to attack our opponents!