Sunday, March 27, 2005 5:05 PM

Hand Evaluation – Forcing Pass ( Captaincy )

PITBULLS:

            Bidding a vul game against non vul opponents normally turn on forcing passes. I say normally but there are exceptions. When you leap to the game after you have had a chance to make a stronger bid , forcing passes are not turned on but neither is D.S.I.P. competitive double theory. Old fashioned captaincy is applicable instead . The game bidder runs the show so his double is penalty. We consider that there is no real element of competition in these auctions as we just leapt to game. We were going to bid game anyway , so the opponents were not relevant in this particular auction. The unlimited hand ( opener ) vrs the limited hand ( responder)  has automatic captaincy rights when game is reached. The captaincy concept must be understood to sort out forcing pass theory. Another example of captaincy is when responder or opener pre-empts & the opponents interfere. There is no forcing pass element other than captaincy. A democracy where the partnership has input ( forcing pass theory ) turns into a dictatorship.

1♠-2♥-2♠-P
4♠-5♥                  No forcing pass element as opener is captain or dictator of this auction. The leap to game made her boss. When she Q bids first before going to game , forcing pass theory takes effect.

1♥-1♠-4♥-P
P-4♠-P-P
X                        No forcing pass theory just captaincy as you pre-empted & partner heard you. The double is simply penalty.                      

         I had an auction recently which shows this concept rather dramatically . My partner vul against non vul opponents opened 1♦ with ♠QJ ♥QJ10x ♦AKxxxx ♣x so I responded 1♥. RHO doubles with partner leaping to 4♥ . They bid 4♠ so I pass. Is my pass forcing? No ,  because the way we got to the vul game does not show any defensive strength despite the vulnerability. 5♥ vul only goes one down so is this the famous vul sacrifice vrs a non vul game. Not a chance , as the non vul opponents are cold for 7♠ on this hand !! Partner exercised his captaincy rights & wisely passed.

        Bidding games pre-emptively no matter what the vulnerability status, do not  turn on forcing passes ( Kokish ). You must have made a strength showing bid earlier which makes the forcing pass situation obvious. Do not get lazy with your Q bidding or introducing a new suit when you have a very strong hand. Leaping to game with strong hands will give partner the wrong impression of your hand if the opponents bid again. When you want partner to become involved later if they interfere, think forcing pass theory early in the bidding . Remember you have the opponents lurking. Same idea with overcalls or weak twos by partner. Do not just jump to game with strong hands unless as captain you do not care what the opponents do. When otherwise , indicate some strength first to turn on forcing passes. When you do not , partner will always assume you are the captain of this auction so will not join the party.

1♠-2♥-P-? ♠xx ♥Axx ♦KQxx ♣KQxx  do not get lazy & just bid 4♥ . Laziness & forcing pass theory is not a good mix. Q bid 1st , to turn on forcing passes so partner can be involved if & when the opponents interfere. Do not forget that either opponent can bid again so put partner in the picture for forcing pass purposes. Leaping to game with big hands are for Kangaroos not Bridge players. When partner opens a weak 2 , they double or overcall at the two level , bid 2NT or redouble to turn on forcing passes rather than leaping to game when you may need partner’s help later. When they enter the auction , you can use forcing passes as a tool even after a pre-empt by partner. It’s not that you bid game ,  it’s how you bid game that turns on forcing passes. When forcing passes are turned on , even your partner who has opened a weak two or otherwise pre-empted is invited to the party. He has a responsibility in forcing pass auctions also. Do not forget , D.S.I.P. competitive double theory is not involved in these jump to game auctions as captaincy is the default. The game bidder is simply captain of the auction. This lack of D.S.I.P  competitive double theory allows for tactical bids by the game bidder. He could be using her captaincy rights to lay a trap for the opponents. The limited hand can make an action double though nv vrs vul.

Perry & Paul had a bidding accident recently over confusion between captaincy & forcing passes. Perry opened 1♦ nv vrs vul & Paul responded 1♥. The opponents bid 1♠ & Perry raised to 2♥ . They bid 2♠ & Paul nv vrs vul leapt to 4♥. They bid 4♠ so is this a forcing pass auction ?. An emphatic no ! Paul is the captain of the auction as Perry has already described his hand with an opening bid & a raise. Pauls 4♥ game bid could be tactical or even an advanced sacrifice. There is no element of strong bidding that would suggest ownership of this auction. Therefore , a double by Perry should be a trump stack penalty double & a pass should say “I am all in” for my previous bidding. Confusing “captaincy” vrs forcing pass theory is a very common Bridge mistake. The “captain” of the auction is the one in the know. Paul has a decent idea of Perry’s hand ( simple raise ) but Paul’s hand is the great unknown as these leap to games tend to be.

Bidding clues turn on forcing passes. Always remember that , so leaping to game with huge hands takes partner out of any auction. Even when the opponents are not in the auction , they may back in later . Anticipation is the name of the game. You may wish you had a forcing pass tool at your disposal now !! When you do leap to game with a good hand , you are in charge. D.S.I.P. competitive double theory does not apply either for you when your side just leaps to game. D.S.I.P. double theory applies for the other side though , when they are wise enough to play competitive doubles :)