Third hand opening bids
Opening the bidding in bridge is not always just about following rules, we still have to think! This hand has just 10 high card points but it might still be worth opening.
Is this hand worth an opening bid?
I'm in the third seat on this hand and I feel like opening the bidding but what's the best bid?
You might be looking at this hand and saying, pass, pass, I've got 10 high card points. You might say, well, it's not an opening hand. I've got to pass. But points aren't everything so you might look at that hand and say, heck, I'm third in chair. I've got decent sort of hand I'm going to open. If you do open, you might say, well, obviously I'm going to open 1♣ or 1♥ or 1♠. For me, none of these decisions are clear cut. I'm looking at this hand and can see pros and cons to lots of approaches.
Competitive bidding
If North does have a few points and we've got a heart fit or a spade fit, heck, maybe we're not going to game, but what's the best way we can actually get to compete on this hand? Maybe I should open a spade and then bid hearts on the second round. Show both those suits. I know that would show five spades and four hearts, but at least I'm in the bidding. Maybe I should open a heart show that four card major, if we've got a fit, great North supports. I know if you're playing five card majors, that could be a bit messy, but at least I'm showing them one of the main features of my hand, that four card major, and if North doesn't like hearts, he can bid 1♠.
Maybe I should just open a club and that gives us the most room to explore and find the fit somewhere. The good thing about opening a club is that if partner bids one diamond, I can easily bid one heart on the second round. If I open a heart and north now bids two diamonds, that's going to leave me in a slightly awkward spot. So what do you think? What's the right bid on this hand?
tags: #handevaluation
