There's no worse sensation than what I call the "Wile E. Coyote" feeling. That's when you are running somewhere, look around, and realize that the ground ended several yards behind you.
If you've never felt that sensation, I guess you had better instruction on how to ride a bicycle than I received from my sister. She helped me hop up on the two-wheeler, balance myself and instructed "Now Pedal!". It was great at first, until I realized I was headed for a bush and while I knew how to go, I didn't know how to stop.
That Wile E. Coyote feeling comes up a lot in bridge since it's very hard to cover all of the things that can come up, particularly in the auction. I've spent most of my bridge teaching career evangelizing for 2/1 Game Forcing. It's a very simple bidding construction that makes life easier for players as they learn the ins and outs of bidding. I love 2/1, but teaching 2/1 exclusively can leave a bit of a blind spot for students: competitive auctions.
2/1 is OFF once the opponents interfere after the opening bid. That can create havoc if we don't have a backup system.
Let's come up with some good rules/agreements for the situations that arise frequently. If you play Standard American already, you should have agreements for these situations in place, but it can help to review.
First: 1-level overcalls. If partner opens and there is a 1-level overcall e.g. 1
or 1
, We need to re-evaluate what our bids mean. Now, 2
or 2
(as a non-raise) would not be game forcing, but just forcing for 1-round (more on this later). These bids would be 5+ cards in the suit and 10+ points. 1NT would not be forcing (or semi-forcing), but an offer to play with 6-10 points and a stopper.
2NT would not be Jacoby if partner opened a major. It shows 11-12 points and a stopper. To make a limit raise or show a game forcing raise we start with a cuebid of the opponent's suit. A jump to 3-of-our major would be weak with 4-card support. A similar structure exists if the overcall is on the 2-level, i.e. 1-(2)-2.
Going back to this 1-round force. You need to discuss which bids by opener can be passed. Generally, if opener repeats a suit on the lowest level (either by raising partner's 2-level bid or by repeating their own suit) or if opener rebids 2NT, then it can be passed.
Let's test it out. Is opener's last bid forcing in the below auctions?
A)
| West |
North |
East |
South |
| |
1
|
2
|
2 |
| Pass |
2? |
|
|
B)
| WEST |
NORTH |
EAST |
SOUTH |
| |
1
|
2
|
2 |
| Pass |
2? |
|
|
C)
| WEST |
NORTH |
EAST |
SOUTH |
| |
1 |
2
|
2 |
| Pass |
3? |
|
|
Answers: A-Passable, B-Forcing, C-Passable
What if responder bids a new suit on the 3-level (not a jump, jumping would be weak). Let's use our logic. Generally, one of our ways to show a minimum as opener is to retreat to notrump on the lowest-level. If partner bids 3 or 3, that will put you in game. Since the responder is willing to force this to happen, then responder's hand should be game forcing.
Let's test it out. Is opener's last bid forcing in the below auctions?
D)
| WEST |
NORTH |
EAST |
SOUTH |
| |
1
|
2
|
3 |
| Pass |
3? |
|
|
E)
| WEST |
NORTH |
EAST |
SOUTH |
| |
1
|
2
|
3 |
| Pass |
4? |
|
|
F)
| WEST |
NORTH |
EAST |
SOUTH |
| |
1 |
2
|
3
|
| Pass |
3NT? |
|
|
Answers: D-Forcing, E-Forcing, F-Passable
For more on forcing or non-forcing bids, you can purchase Michael's Webinar here.
