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Overcalling 1NT
(This, and articles like it can be found at my
new website.)
That expression causes endless
confusion – and I’ve finally worked out why (I think). In Bridge
players’ jargon, “overcalling 1NT” means “bidding 1NT as an
overcall”. The confusion arises because it is
perfectly natural to interpret the expression “overcall 1NT” to mean:
bid at the two-level as an overcall over the opposing 1NT. This is not
what “overcall 1NT” is intended to mean in “BPJ” (Bridge Players’
Jargon).
Bidding as an overcall over the
opposing 1NT is not really much different to bidding as an overcall
over an opening such as 1 ♠. You’d have a good five/six card suit and
at least about eight/nine points at the (very) low end.To bid 1NT as an overcall, you should
have 15-18 (or 19) points, balanced with a stopper in the suit opened.
After your right-hand opponent opens 1
♠, you would bid 1NT as an overcall (“overcall 1NT”) with these hands:
|
Hand (a) |
Hand (b) |
Hand (c) |
♠ K 10 3 2
♥
A Q
♦
J 8 2
♣ A K 8 6 |
♠A Q 2
♥
9 2
♦
A Q 8 3 2
♣K 9 7 |
♠ 7 3
♥
A J 2
♦
K J 8 3
♣ A Q J 6 |
Hand A: Bid 1NT
Hand B: Bid 1NT, a better description than 2♦.
Hand C: Double - for take-out. Do not bid 1NT as an overcall because
you have no spade "stopper".
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Those tricky 4441s
(This, and articles like it can be found at my
new website.)
Hand
distributions fall into four categories. Here are three of them:
(1). Balanced. 4432, 4333, 5332.
(2). Single-suited. e.g. 6322, 7321.
(3). Two-suited. e.g. 5431, 5521.
Note that some shapes - 6-4s - belong to both (2) and (3).
The
fourth category is a lone distribution, the only unbalanced shape
without a
five(+) card suit...
(4). Three-suited. 4441.
There
is no right or wrong way to treat this awkward shape (mercifully only
the
tenth most frequent). One approach is to open using the normal rules
(i.e.
higher ranking, but choosing hearts before spades when 4-4). Another is
to open
the “suit below the singleton” (preparing yourself for partner’s most
likely
response); or even opening your lowest-ranked suit (to keep things
cheap). I’ll
make a more formal suggestion next deal.
One
thing is for sure. A 4441 shape is more suited to defence than play -
you
know that no suit will split well for an opposing declarer. So why not
pass a
marginal opener?
South Deals
Both
Vul |
| ♠ |
K
J 9 6 3 |
| ♥ |
J
7 4 |
| ♦ |
10
9 7 |
| ♣ |
Q
8 |
|
| ♠ |
8
2 |
| ♥ |
9
6 5 3 |
| ♦ |
A
Q |
| ♣ |
A
K J 10 6 |
|
|
|
|
|
| ♠ |
A
10 7 5 4 |
| ♥ |
K
8 |
| ♦ |
8
6 4 3 |
| ♣ |
7
3 |
|
|
|
| ♠ |
Q |
| ♥ |
A
Q 10 2 |
| ♦ |
K
J 5 2 |
| ♣ |
9
5 4 2 |
|
| West |
North |
East |
South |
| |
|
|
1 ♥1 |
| 2 ♣ |
2 ♥ |
All
pass |
|
- Mistake. Devalue ♠ Q
and is it really
right to open this defensive collection?
|
What
happened
West cashed ♣ A
against 2 ♥.
East signalled encouragement with ♣ 7,
so West
continued with ♣ K and
♣ 10.
East overtrumped
dummy’s ♥ 7
with ♥ 8
and switched
to ♦ 8.
West won ♦ AQ
and followed with ♣ J.
Declarer trumped with dummy’s ♥ J
(not best on the layout) and East overtrumped with ♥ K.
He led ♦ 6,
trumped by
West, received ♠ 8
return to his ♠ A,
then led ♦ 4.
West trumped with ♥ 5
- too
high for dummy - and the vulnerable part-score was down four.
What
should have happened
E-W would have had tough decisions if South passes as dealer. West will likely open 1 ♣ and East will respond 1 ♠, all of West's rebids are compromised (1NT / 2 ♣ / 2 ♥ ) - You can see E-W getting in a mess..... They
might escape
if they stop low(1 NT, 2 ♣).
More likely, they would get overboard.
If
you remember just one thing...
Do not open a 12 point 4441.
<
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| Column
of the Month - for the more Experienced |
| |
|
(This, and articles like it can be found at my
new website.)
A little bit of Zia's magic
He didn’t start playing until he was in his early twenties –
appreciably later
than most other international superstars. Yet Zia Mahmood remains the
inspirational player he has always been since he broke onto the scene
over 30
years ago.
Zia
and I always try to seek each other out at the big tournaments. Some
players like to rest between sessions. We love to talk through the
boards and
extract every last ounce out of the game we both love.
On
this deal from the European Open Pairs in Ostend, where Zia and partner
Jan
Jansma finished second, Zia looks certain to fail in 4 ♥
doubled. As so often,
he managed to throw a smokescreen over proceedings, totally hoodwinking
his
hapless opponents.
West Deals
None Vul |
| ♠ |
J
9 2 |
| ♥ |
J
6 5 4 |
| ♦ |
K
9 |
| ♣ |
A
K 10 6 |
|
| ♠ |
A
Q 10 6 4 3 |
| ♥ |
Q |
| ♦ |
J
7 5 |
| ♣ |
Q
J 4 |
|
|
|
|
|
| ♠ |
5 |
| ♥ |
A
10 |
| ♦ |
A
4 3 2 |
| ♣ |
9
8 7 5 3 2 |
|
|
|
| ♠ |
K
8 7 |
| ♥ |
K
9 8 7 3 2 |
| ♦ |
Q
10 8 6 |
| ♣ |
— |
|
| West |
North |
East |
South |
|
|
|
Zia |
| 1 ♠ |
Pass |
1 NT1 |
2 ♥ |
| 2 ♠ |
4 ♥ |
Dbl2 |
All
pass |
- Not really quite strong enough for 2 ♣.
- Two aces and a singleton in partner’s opened suit renders this a
good double. Indeed such a double should suggest the singleton,
requesting partner to lead ace (and another) of their suit for a ruff.
|
West
led the ace of spades and declarer knew East held a singleton. Not only
because West had bid and rebid spades; also because of East’s double of
the
final contract. Zia smoothly dropped his king under the ace (key play).
Now
perhaps West should smell a rat, because it was unlikely his partner
would
have three spades and never support. But at the table West not
unnaturally
presumed Zia’s king was singleton. He switched to a diamond at trick
two.
Declarer
tried dummy’s king of diamonds, East winning the ace and returning a
diamond. Declarer won the queen, ruffed a diamond (bringing down West’s
jack)
and cashed the ace-king of clubs, discarding his two spades (as East-
West
winced).
Needing
to pick up hearts for one loser, declarer was confident West held no
more than one card – East would not have singletons in both majors. The
question was this: was West’s singleton heart the queen or the ace?
Can
you see how declarer helped to resolve the issue? Instead of leading
the
normal low heart from dummy, he led the jack. Now any human East would
cover
with the queen holding ♥ Q10. So when East played
the ten, declarer knew to
rise with the king, playing East for ♥ A10. West’s queen was
felled and the
doubled game made.
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We are very excited about our
summer 2014 holiday to the fantastic 5* Grand Villa Argentina hotel
just outside the golden walled city of Dubrovnik. On our previous
visit, many of you said this was the best Andrew Robson Bridge summer
holiday ever!
And, in June we,
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Europe’s most beautiful city. We
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See full details here.
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