Opener bids Notrumps - Competition
Opener can show strength and shape of a balanced hand in just one or two bids but what happens when responder passes and the opposition overcall?
If responder passes then we're no longer in a constructive auction and the no trump limit bids no longer apply.
Bidding when partner passes our opening bid
North passes our 1♦ opening bid. We know North doesn't have six points, otherwise he would've bid something. So we don't have enough points to go to game. I know it because I've got 18. North's got less than six.
North also knows it because the fact that I've opened at the one level, not the two level means I've got around 19 points at the most and North's got less than six. So North can add up his points, knows that I've got 19 at the most. So both of us know!
So what am I going to do here? Normally with 18 or 19 points on the second round I would bid 2NT, but we've got to remember the reason I'm doing that is that I'm trying to tell North how strong I am so that North will know whether to stay in a part score, go to game or go to Slam.
In this case we know we are not going to go to game so there's no point in showing north my 18 or 19 points. It's not going to make any difference because we're still not going to go to game. So here if I'm going to bid at all, I only need to bid 1NT.
The point count stuff, openers' rebids, 12 to 14, 15 to 17, 18, 19 and so on only apply if you've opened the bidding and partner has made a response. When partner has passed, we are no longer in a constructive auction, we are just competing here for the part score.
So 1NT is high enough.
North bids 2♥. So what does that mean? Well it doesn't mean all of a sudden North has sprouted points. He just doesn't want to play in 1NT. So I pass and 2♥ becomes the final contract.
tags: #notrumps #constructivebidding
