Friday, March 31, 2006 2:46 AM

Weak 2's Competition

PITBULLS:

Treatments around your weak two’s and the opponents weak two’s should not change in competition ( T/O double or overcall ) . If the opponents double your weak 2’s , the 2NT bid still should be an artificial bid showing a fit and the same methods as if you were left alone. Maurice had a hand that shows this principle in action. KJx Qxx Kxx KQxx with everybody vulnerable Susan bids 2♠ and BJ makes a T/O double. A redouble in Bridge generally says you have HCP’s without a fit so weak two’s should not be any different. Some players say Maurice should have bid 3♠ . I disagree , as 3♠ is a terrible bid. Why ? because it is single handed and shuts partner out of the decision making process. Partner vul could have a nice 10 HCP and a vul game would be missed. Partner will never bid over 3♠ no matter what her hand .

A 2NT bid gets partners input into this decision. You do not want to redouble because you are always pulling partners penalty double to spades and if the auction takes off ( they bid 4♥) you want to broadcast the fact that you have spades immediately. Maurice did XX and it had an unexpected psychic effect in that BJ thought I had nothing when I bid subsequently we missed a vul game our way. We have repaired that by including this sequence in our default that we ignore the opponents when possible in competition and our Lebensohl understandings still apply.

OK partner bids 2NT and any number of weak twos make game easy since your Kings are well located behind the T/O double . Location , location and location as they say in real estate. A substandard weak two of AJ10xxx x Q10x xxx can make 620 easily because of the location of the Aces. Better weak twos can of course make a vul game without any finesse. Therefore 2NT is your best game try as this gives partner the green light to bid . The XX also gives partner the green light to bid but normally just a penalty double so the XX muddys the waters when a better bid is available.

A tormentee held an excellent 16 HCP hand with a diamond fit and I opened a weak 2♦. Peter Jones overcalled 2♥ and 2NT as a systemic force did not occur to her because it was in competition. Preserve your treatments in competition. The Tormentee bid 4♦ and we played it there making 6 because I thought it was pre-emptive . She had a 2NT bid and a 3♥ Q bid as forcing bids so a 3^rd forcing bid of 4♦ is redundant. This is why players disturb your auction so often. For some reason, we feel that common understandings are off in competition. No they are not . Only if you allow it to happen , makes it so. .