Monday, March 07, 2005 10:20 PM
Hand Evaluation – Fast Arrival ( 3♣ SJS )
PITBULLS:
“ Fast arrival” is a hand
evaluation concept. It basically
means that when you hog useful bidding space from an unlimited partner , you are weak & distributional.
The Goren jumping to game in your
own suit or NT after a simple response to show strong hands ,
contradicts fast arrival. The Goren leaping to game in responder’s suit after a
simple response also contradicts fast arrival to game. Forcing club systems were invented to
prevent this poor bidding practice.
Useful bidding space is just too valuable for Bridge bidding to waste showing additional HCP’s the Goren way.
A bidding structure designed on just
totaling HCP’s is very inaccurate
especially in suit contracts. An educated guess but nothing
more. In the Culbertson days before totaling HCP’s were invented , there were much more accurate ways to describe
your trick taking potential. How
the hands fit & the location of controls must be investigated at lower levels.
1♠-P-1NT-P & 1♦-P-1♠-P
4♠
4♠
are just horrible Goren auctions
to show strong hands. When you do not play a forcing
club system, there is another way.
A multi purpose 3♣ bid preserves the fast arrival concept in a natural system.
There is one natural bid in Bridge
that should be sacrificed
for convenience . The strong jump
shift in clubs should always demand
partner to relay to 3♦ on any auction. If partner breaks the relay to 3♦ , she is doing it
to describe a strong response .
Breaking the relay to opener’s
suit shows a limit raise or
better. One of the advantages of playing a relay is the inference you have when you do not follow orders. The 3♣
bid preserves bidding room with a
strong hand. You are in effect
using forcing 1♣ concepts
within a natural bidding system.
After a major opener
& a forcing 1NT , a 3♣ bid allows a 3 in 1 bid with a
spade opener & a 2 in 1 bid after a heart opener. This understanding solves
the age old problem in standard bidding on how to handle major suit hands too strong to make a jump rebid. A jump
rebid in a major is an invitational hand showing 16-18 counting distribution & usually
with a decent suit. So how do you
handle hands above that range , but still not strong
enough for a 2♣ opener ? A jump to game should not show these strong hands. Opening one of a major & rebidding 4 of the
major should show a long
suit with some outside cards. The only reason you
did not open 4 of your major is that you have some outside cards that prevented you from pre-empting. Good
players have always improvised
with a 3♣ jump shift with these hand
types so now we are just formalizing
the concept.
♠AKQJxx ♥Ax ♦Axx
♣xx is neither a 3♠ or a 4♠ rebid after a forcing 1NT response. This is a 3♣ strong jump
shift which partner must relay to
3♦. You now bid 3♠ or 4♠ which describes these hand types . What if
you had a real strong jump shift in clubs ? This depends on the length of the club suit .
You simply bid 4♣ after the 3♦ relay with a
natural 3♣ SJS bid initially. If
you have a 4 card club jump shift , you also bid 3♣ but when partner bids the 3♦ relay , you
follow up with 3NT.
The sequence one of a major , a response ( forcing 1NT ) & a leap to 3NT is now a “picture bid” . This bid
specifically shows a 5-3-3-2 18-19 HCP with a doubleton in partner’s major or the other major .
No other hand type is allowed so responder can determine where the hand will be
played. With the other 5-3-3-2 hands (18-19 HCP ) rebid 2NT.
Partner now knows that there is 3 card major support or 3 in the other major as
opener did not leap to 3NT.
1♥-P-1♠-P
3NT is also
a 2-5-3-3 18-19 HCP picture bid with a doubleton spade & a 2NT rebid is a strong jump shift
with 4♦ or other 5-3-3-2
18-19’s.
Tom Gandolfo held ♠Ax ♥AKJ98x ♦Kx ♣QJx tonight & felt uncomfortable
with rebidding 3♥ as he felt it was too strong. Enter the 3♣ “multi
purpose” strong jump shift. Tom bids 3♣ & I dutifuly take the 3♦ relay so Tom
bids 3♥ & I carry on to 4♥. The 3♣ bid was invented
for bids that hand evaluation
dictates too strong for an invitational bid.
The jump
raise of a major response all the way to game should never be strong in the HCP sense. Since it jams the auction so badly, the
jump to game should be based on distribution only ( fast
arrival ) . ♠AKxx ♥A1098xx ♦xx
♣x is a hand I like to leap to game with after a spade response. After a
diamond opener with a heart response , ♠x ♥AQ10x ♦KQJ10xx ♣xx this is a 4♥ bid . OK if we
are leaping to game with 11 & 12 HCP respectively , what do we do with the strong hands &
game going values ? What is your rebid when partner bids a spade with this hand
♠AKxx ♥Kx ♦KQxx ♣Axx ? This is a balanced hand so bid 2NT. 4♠ is fast arrival & you can always revert to spades later in the
auction to correct the initial impression.
Another main purpose of the multi 3♣ jump shift is showing 3 card support for partners major. Define the multi 3♣ strong jump shift followed
by supporting partner’s major as showing 3 card support with a non balanced hand in the
17-20 HCP range. You have
♠AQJ ♥AJxxxx
♦AKx ♣x , you open 1♥ with partner
responding 1♠. You bid 3♣ , partner bids 3♦ which you
follow up with 3♠. Partner is now aware of the 3 card support & the
strength of your hand. The relay prevents partner from getting into the way if you chose say a 3♦ bid as your
rebid. If partner now bids 3NT after a 3♦ jump shift, you still have the
same guess whether to support spades. Guessing
is repugnant to Bridge experts.
You open 1♥ on ♠AKxx ♥AKxxx ♦Ax ♣xx , partner bids 1♠ . Bidding 4♠ on this hand is sick as it pre-empts you to the 4 level & ambiguity is rampant to what hand type you have. We
recommend bidding 3♣ as a relay to 3♦ & bid 4♠
with the moose & 4 trump. My partner recommends
leaping to 4♠ after the relay as a “picture bid” showing all the controls leaving partner the option of bidding 4NT with worthless doubletons
for example. If you only have a 3 card fit for partner’s major , bid 3♣ & support partner at the 3 level after the relay . Excellent. When responder bids 3NT after the relay & opener giving major preference , it is not the “serious 3NT” . It is suggesting
a 3NT contract with responder only holding 4♠. Without
so many controls , we recommend bidding 2NT initially
rather than 3♣ & show the 4
card fit later.. The 4♠ jump shows 4 trump & controls after the relay.
OK what about the important concept of “breaking the relay” . You cannot do
this on a whim as partner is trying to describe his hand type. One time that it is
obvious that you can break the relay
is if you have serious slam intentions in partners
suit.
1♠-P-1NT-P
3♣-P-3♠-P .
Who cares
what kind of strong jump shift partner might have , as
I am interested in a spade
slam. Another time you can break
the relay at the 3 level is if you have a 6 or 7 card suit of your own. Again you do not care what strong jump shift
partner has as it is best to let partner know about your hand.
OK what about all the hands that you
open 1♣ & have huge support
for partner’s major ? Actually this style decides your
opening bids . With equal length in the minors always open 1♦ so you have the
3♣ rebid as one of your options.
If you open 1♣ say with ♠AKxx
♥Axx ♦xx ♣AKxx , partner bids 1♠ choose 2NT as a rebid. If you
vigorously support partners major , the 2NT was a bid
of convenience so you have shown your strength & 4 card fit. This treatment
insures a jump raise of partners major is invitational & a jump to game is based on distribution ( fast
arrival ) .
With spades and hearts , the 3♣ rebid as a relay to 3♦ has a huge advantage . This treatment allows a
direct 3♥ jump shift as invitational ! ♠AKxxx ♥AKxxx ♦xx ♣x and you open 1♠ , partner
responds 1NT . You rebid 3♥ but add an Ace to that hand ♠AKxxx ♥AKxxx ♦Ax ♣x so you rebid 3♣
instead . After the diamond relay, you bid 3♥ to show your
strong jump shift in hearts.
I have seen even good players have a
“brain cramp” with regard to splinters.
A
splinter by opener should show the HCP’s appropriate for the level of the auction. If you are splintering to the 4 or 3 level as opener , you should have the HCP’s also to warrant that action to that level. Sometimes responder has duplication of value so the hand
belongs at the two
level or worse
!
♠AKxx ♥Axx ♦AKxxx ♣x
1♦-P-1♠-P
4♣ is a splinter to the 4 level . What about ♠AQJx ♥xx ♦KJ10xxx
♣x , partner responds a spade ? This is a jump to game not a splinter. Get the auction up high
when slam is remote & you have a huge
fit with distribution. Quite often the opponents will have game
their way so enter the double game swing !
The 3♣ jump shift demanding a diamond
relay sorts these kind of hands out. All established partnerships need this understanding.
If not ,
switch to a strong club system !!