Friday, December 24, 2004 4:01 AM

Relays after 2NT Rebid

PITBULLS:

Tom and I have modified Wolff relay after 2NT so much now that it is indistinguishable from the original. We now use the relay to always puppet to 3♦ . The relay is just a switch so that distributional and slam going hands can be bid naturally. Like Lebensohl , if we only had game on our mind we introduce the relay. The relay first and a 3NT bid is a slam try in partners minor in the original Wolff relay and with us.

Partner opens 1♦ and you have Axxxx Jx AKxx xx and respond one spade. You hear partner bid 2NT so natural bidding is a slam try. You bid 3♦ as a slam try in diamonds . If partner opened a club and jumped to 2NT after you responded 1 spade , you must relay and pull 3♦ to 4♣ for a distributional slam try in clubs. This is forcing to 4NT and is the only exception to the relay showing non slam going hands. Obviously if 3♣ is a relay you need special understandings for the club suit. If partner opened 1♣ and you respond a major with a limit raise hand in clubs with 5 you use the relay and bid 3NT to describe those hands. A10xx xx xx AQxxx . With this hand 1♣-P-1♠-P 2NT-P-3♣-P 3♦-P-3NT-P . Remember if you were stronger with 5 of partners minor, you would make an inverted minor in lieu of bidding your major.

You hold x xxx AKxxxx xxx and respond 1♦ to partners club opening. Partner rebids 2NT so you bid 3♣ which is a relay to 3♦. You now bid 3NT so you show diamond length with no slam interest. If partner does not have a major stopped he can bid the other one and 5♦ might be a better game. Say you had x Axx AKxxxx xxx and same auction. You would bid 3♦ natural as a slam try. Of course if you cheated on your response and just wanted to bail out in diamonds you would just pass the relay.

We use the relay in all jump to 2NT auctions. You have Axxx x J109xxx xx and hear partner open 1♥ . You respond a spade and partner rebids 2NT. You relay by bidding 3♣ and pass partners 3♦ response. It is nice to have the negative inference of not using the relay in these sequences to quickly identify slam auctions. If you do not relay and bid naturally , partner can Q bid and show slam interest. You have K10xxx QJ10xx Kx x and partner ones 1♣. You bid a spade and partner bids 2NT . You relay to 3♣ and partner bids 3♦ which brings 3♥ from you. Partner expects you to be 5-4 in the majors so he bids 3NT and you correct to 4♥. Same auction but you have Axxxx AKxxx xx x . This time you do not relay and bid hearts naturally. Partner knows that you have slam interest and can bid accordingly.

Our version of Wolff relay is essentially just Lebensohl to identify hands that are only destined for game. The relay is also check back Stayman to find a major suit fit as 4 card majors can be suppressed with a 2NT rebid. Identify distribution and HCP’s first as you can always find the fit later when partner has a big hand.

Lets try an auction. You have Axxx AKxxx xx xx and partner opens 1♦ . You respond a heart and he bids 2NT with KQxx Qx AKxx Axx . You bid 3♠ natural and a slam try. It is childs play now to get to your 6♠ and you will probably investigate a grand. There is a great tactical advantage to identifying slam tries early after a 2NT rebid. It prevents “blasting” where one hand just takes control and forces the contract to slam.

You can use the relay after 2NT for another purpose. You can use it to differentiate very good major suits from bad ones. If you relay after your major response and still insist on playing the contract in your major it’s a broken suit slam try. If you do not relay and insist on your suit as the contract , it’s a good suit and a slam try. If you were just interested in game in your major suit , you would jump to game after a 2NT rebid.