Author: John Stell Page 3 of 7

On 4 July 2020

In Videos

I’ve actually added a bit more analysis of this one that you might want to look at later…

2nd June Tuesday Tutorial

In Videos

Random hands tutorial from the 2nd of June…

9th June Tuesday Tutorial

In Videos

Random hands from our Tuesday tutorial on the the 9th June 2020….

Tuesday 23th June 2020

In Videos

Tuesday 23th June 2020…our Tuesday group continues with more random hands….always something to learn from these hands…

Tuesday 30th June 2020

In Videos

This is a live replay taken from 30th June 2020. There is a lot packed into these 8 hands including exit transfers, and 2c benji-acol opener.

Lavings

On 27 June 2020

The Lavings convention is a simple way of asking for 5 card majors after partner has opened a strong or weak NT.

After an opening 1NT Bid and 2♣ Response

So it’s important to known you can only bid 2♣ with invitational hands.

Bid	Meaning
2♦	Minimum no 5 card Major
2♥	Minimum 5 card hearts
2♠	Minimum 5 card spades
2NT	Maximum no 5 card suit
3♣	Maximum 5 card club suit
3♦	Maximum 5 card diamond suit
3♥	Maximum 5 card heart suit
3♠	Maximum 5 card spade suit

Continuations after 2♦

So after 1NT – 2♣ – 2♦ uninterrupted

Bid	Meaning
2♥	5 card suit non-forcing
2♠	5 card suit non-forcing
2NT	To Play
3♣	Promissory 4 card Stayman
3♦	3 Card Stayman
3♥	Shows 5 spades and 4 Hearts
3♠	Shows 5 hearts and 4 Spades

Continuations after 2NT

So after 1NT – 2♣ – 2NT uninterrupted. 3♣ would be promissory Stayman and a bid of 3♦ would ask for a 3 card major.

Some Examples

Let’s look at some examples of strong and Weak NT openers.

a)	b)	c)	d)
♠ AQ1083 ♥ K8 ♦ KJ7 ♣ A97	♠ AJ53 ♥ J54 ♦ QJ72 ♣ K7	♠ KJ4 ♥ K108 ♦ AQ762 ♣ A7	♠ KJ862 ♥ 42 ♦ KQ7 ♣ AJ10
♠ 954 ♥ A74 ♦ Q8543 ♣ K3	♠ Q73 ♥ KQ973 ♦ A65 ♣ 43	♠ Q72 ♥ AQ962 ♦ 93 ♣ 953	♠ Q73 ♥ KQ973 ♦ A65 ♣ 43
e)	f)	g)	h)
♠ AQ862 ♥ 42 ♦ KQ7 ♣ KJ10	♠ KJ82 ♥ 42 ♦ KQ7 ♣ AJ107	♠ KJ8 ♥ 42 ♦ KQJ7 ♣ A1092	♠ KJ62 ♥ 42 ♦ KQ7 ♣ AJ107
♠ J73 ♥ K10973 ♦ 43 ♣ A65	♠ Q763 ♥ KQ93 ♦ A65 ♣ 43	♠ Q763 ♥ KQJ3 ♦ 1073 ♣ K5	♠ Q1073 ♥ KQ73 ♦ A65 ♣ 43
i)
♠ K82 ♥ AQJ6 ♦ A982 ♣ K8
♠ AJ943 ♥ 1094 ♦ QJ3 ♣ A7

The Bidding

a) 1NT (15-17) – 2♣ – 3♠ – 4♠

So the 3♠ shows a maximum and you simply raise it to 4♠

b) 1NT (12-14) – 2♣ – 2♦ – 2♥

Partner has invitational 5 card heart suit but after just bidding 2♥ you can pass this even with 3 card support.

c) 1NT (15 – 17) – 2♣ – 3♦ – 3♥ – 4♥

The original NT bidder is maximum with a 5 card diamond suit. You now bid your 5 card heart suit (game forcing) which gets supported to 4♥.

d) 1NT (12 – 14) – 2♣ – 3♠ – 4♠

The original NT bidder is maximum with a 5 card spade suit. You now bid 4♠.

e) 1NT (15-17) – 2♣ – 2♠

So the 2♠ shows a minimum with 5 spades which you can just pass.

f) 1NT (12-14) – 2♣ – 2NT – 3♣ – 3♠ – 4♠

2NT shows a maximum without any 5 card suit. 3♣ is promissory Stayman (it guarantees a 4 card major) and partner bids 3♠ which then gets raised to 4♠.

g) 1NT (12 – 14) – 2♣ – 2NT – 3♣ – 3♦ – 3NT

The 2NT shows a maximum without any 5 card suit. 3♣ is promissory Stayman (it guarantees a 4 card major) and partner bids 3♦ which denies a 4 card major. 3NT is then bid.

h) 1NT (12 – 14) – 2♣ – 2NT – 3♣ – 3♥ – 3NT – 4♠

The 2NT shows a maximum without any 5 card suit. 3♣ is promissory Stayman (it guarantees a 4 card major) and partner bids 3♥. 3NT is bid as you don’t like hearts and partner converts to the known 4-4 spade fit and bids 4♠.

g) 1NT (15 – 17) – 2♣ – 2NT – 3♦ – 3♥ – 3NT – 4♠

The 2NT shows a maximum without any 5 card suit. 3♦ asks for a 3 card major (should guarantee a 5 card major) and partner bids 3♥. 3NT is bid which partner can either pass or bid 4♠ if they have 3 card spade support.

So that’s how to play the Lavings bidding convention….a five card major ask after an opening 1NT.

Michael’s Cue Bid

On 23 June 2020

The Michael’s cue bid is a very popular bidding convention to show distributional hands…hands usually with at least 55 shapes (5521).

This Michael’s cue bid is usually used in the direct position, i.e., immediately after an opponent has made their bid.

All these direct overcall bids are known as Michael’s cue-bids:-

Opening Bid	Direct Overcall	Shows
1♣	2♣	5+ hearts and 5+ Spades
1♦	2♦	5+ hearts and 5+ Spades
1♥	2♥	5+ spades and 5+ unspecified minor
1♠	2♠	5+ hearts and 5+ unspecified minor

For example if your right-hand opponent opened 1♥ and you bid 2♥, your 2♥ call would be a Michael’s cue-bid. This would show at least 5 spades and at least 5 card in either clubs or diamonds.

If your right-hand opponent opened 1♠ and you bid 2♠, your 2♠ call would be a Michael’s cue-bid. This would show at least 5 hearts and at least 5 card in either clubs or diamonds.

Better still if your right-hand opponent opened 1♣ or 1♦ and you bid the Michael’s cue-bid.

This would specifically show 5-5 (or longer) in the majors. This is better for you as you know exactly what two suits partner has.

What about points?

So that’s the shapes and the suits…but what values should you have for the bid?

Typically I imagine a hand like:

♠ KQ1072
♥ KQ1073
♦ 4
♣ 75

You can play several methods but usually either a weak hand (say, 6 to 11 points) or a strong hand (a good 15 or more high-card points). Hands with intermediate strength should simply overcall at the one level, with the hope that the second suit can be shown later in the auction. Why do this? It’s to give partner some indication of our strength and involve him in the decision process as to how high we compete (sacrifice).

Responding to the Michael’s cue bid

So after 1♣ – 2♣ showing at least 5 / 5 in the majors….

Response	Meaning
2♦	Natural, good diamond suit (usually 6+) Non-forcing.
2♥	Sign-off…may be equal length as spades.
2♠	Sign-off…must be longer in spades than hearts though.
2NT	Natural and invites partner to bid 3NT
3♣	Artificial, game / slam interest in hearts or spades. Forcing.
3♦	A very strong diamond suit (6+ cards). Forcing
3♥	Preemptive, usually with 4 hearts
3♠	Preemptive, usually with 4 spades
3NT	To Play

So after 1♦ – 2♦ showing at least 5 / 5 in the majors….

Response	Meaning
2♥	Sign-off…may be equal length as spades.
2♠	Sign-off…must be longer in spades than hearts though.
2NT	Natural and invites partner to bid 3NT
3♣	Natural usually shows 6+ cards. Non-Forcing
3♦	Artificial, game / slam interest in hearts or spades. Forcing.
3♥	Preemptive, usually with 4 hearts
3♠	Preemptive, usually with 4 spades
3NT	To Play

So after 1♥ – 2♥ showing at least 5 spades and a minor suit as of yet unspecified.

Response	Meaning
2♠	Sign-off.
2NT	Asks for the minor
3♣	Natural usually shows 6+ cards. Non-Forcing
3♦	Natural usually shows 6+ cards. Non-Forcing
3♥	Forcing
3♠	Preemptive, usually with 4 spades
3NT	To Play

So after 1♠ – 2♠ showing at least 5 hearts and a minor suit as of yet unspecified.

Response	Meaning
2NT	Asks for the minor
3♣	Natural usually shows 6+ cards. Non-Forcing
3♦	Natural usually shows 6+ cards. Non-Forcing
3♥	Preemptive, usually with 4 hearts
3♠	Forcing…usually slam interest in hearts.
3NT	To Play

Bidding in 4th position

You can also use it to show 5 / 5 in the other two suits like:

North	East	South	West
1♣	Pass	1♠	2♣*

Now the 2C bid shows 5 /5 in diamonds and hearts.

OR…..

North	East	South	West
1♣	Pass	1♥	2♣*

Now the 2C bid shows 5 /5 in diamonds and spades.

You could also have a different meaning for the other cue-bid:-

OR…..

North	East	South	West
1♣	Pass	1♥	2♥*

Now the 2♥ bid shows 5 /5 in diamonds and spades….but a stronger hand 15+

Another alternative….

North	East	South	West
1♣	Pass	1♥	2♥*

Now the 2♥ bid could show longer spades than diamonds at least 6/5. This is because you have bid the higher cue-bid.

And now….

North	East	South	West
1♣	Pass	1♥	2♣*

Now the 2♣ bid could show longer diamonds than spades at least 6/5. This is because you have bid the lower cue-bid.

So the Michael’s cue bid is a great way of letting your partner know your shape using just one bid….of course it does tell the opponents as well which means they might stop out of a game if they know the splits are bad. Quite often these bids can be used to find a good sacrifice.

Make sure you have an agreement with your partner…like I said a common one is to show the hand as either weak OR strong.

Alternatively you can play a bidding convention called CRO (Colour/Rank/Other). Using the CRO bidding convention you can specify what the other minor is.

Kokish Relay

On 20 June 2020

After a strong 2♣ and 2♦ relay (waiting bid).

You can go two ways with this to demonstrate two different NnTrump strength holdings.

Bidding 2♥ forces 2♠. Now the 2NT bid shows 25+ points
Bid 2NT directly shows 23-24 points.

Some people play reverse Kokish as well – where the two bids above are reversed…so make sure you know which Kokish you are playing if you are playing it.

Partnerships can have different points holding for 2NT openers so make sure you have a partnership agreement as some people play 20-21 2NT openers.

Let’s look at some examples of 2♣ openers using kokish relays :-

a)	b)	c)	d)
♠ AK ♥ AJ10 ♦ AQ532 ♣ AK7	♠ AKJ5 ♥ AQ9 ♦ A87 ♣ AK5	♠ AQ10 ♥ AK ♦ QJ104 ♣ AQJ10	♠ Q103 ♥ AQJ ♦ AQJ ♣ AK96
♠ QJ732 ♥ 98765 ♦ 5 ♣ 42	♠ 107 ♥ K108632 ♦ K52 ♣ 43	♠ 7432 ♥ 543 ♦ 987 ♣ 973	♠ KJ954 ♥ 42 ♦ 1074 ♣ 743

a) 2♣ – 2♦ – 2NT – 3♣ – 3♥ – 4♦ – 4♥.

The 2NT bid shows 25+ points. partner bids muppet stayman and the 3♥ response denies a 4 card major. Partner bids 4♦ to show 5-5 in the majors and 4♥ is reached.

b) 2♣ – 2♦ – 2NT – 4♣ – 4♦ – 4NT – 5♣ – 5♦ – 6♦ – 6NT

The 2NT bid shows 25+ points. Partner bids a two under slam try 4♣ and partner accepts with a cue bid of 4♦. Partner does a quick check for keycards and decides 6NT is a better contract.

c) 2♣ – 2♦ – 2♥ – 2♠ – 2NT – All Pass

The 2NT bid shows 23-24points.

d) 2♣ – 2♦ – 2♥ – 2♠ – 2NT – 3♣ – 3♥ – 3NT – 4♠

The 2NT bid shows 23-24 points. 3♣ is muppet stayman, 3♥ denies a 4 card major, 3NT shows a 5 card major and partner bids 4♠.

The kokish relay is a useful system for keeping the bidding at 2NT when you have these 25+ point holding allowing partner to investigate major holdings below the 3NT level. The disadvantage of this system is in order to agree hearts you can end up bidding 4H…

2♣ – 2♦ – 2♥ – 2♠ – 3♥ – ? harder to agree hearts without signing off in 4♥

Where the bidding previously may have preceded with…

2♣ – 2♦ – 2♥ – 3♥ – now can look for a slam in hearts more comfortably

So it’s up to you if you want to play the Kokish relay system…how often do you pick up 25 counts?

Kokish has some more complex bids – but as far as I know – most people don’t play these bids or have even discussed them…

After 2♣ – 2♦ – 2♥ then:

3♣: 5+ hearts and 4+ clubs
3♦: 5+ hearts and 4+ diamonds
3♥: 6+ hearts
3♠: 5+hearts and 4+ spades

Now if you were to bid 2nt and show a 5 card heart suit (after puppet/muppet) – partner should know you are 5332 shape

Multi Landy

On 16 June 2020

Multi-Landy is a convention used after the opponents open 1NT. It gets its name from the use of the Landy 2♣ overcall and the Multi 2♦ convention. One purpose is to more precisely identify major-suit fits.

The conventional calls over 1NT are as follows.

Bids	Meaning
Double	Penalty 15+points (particularly against a weak 1NT). Against a Strong NT it shows a 4-card major with a longer minor. Double after passing shows a 4-card major with a longer minor.
2♣	At least 5-4 or 4-5 in hearts and spades. This is the Landy part of the convention. 8-15 points
2♦	5+ hearts or 5+ spades (no side suit). This is the Multi part of the convention. 8-15 points
2♥	At least 5-4 in hearts and a minor. 8-15 points
2♠	At least 5-4 in spades and a minor. 8-15 points
2NT	At least 5-5 in clubs and diamonds. 8-15 points

Minimum points usually at favourable vulnerability or/and when 55 or 6 card suits…don’t bid vulnerable with garbage!

Some example hands that might use this convention are:

1)	2)	3)	4)
♠ AQ102 ♥ K10963 ♦ 4 ♣ K75	♠ KQ10942 ♥ A8 ♦ 842 ♣ 75	♠ 6 ♥ KQ1063 ♦ AJ1085 ♣ Q7	♠ KJ763 ♥ 8 ♦ AQ109 ♣ Q76
5)	6)
♠ 9 ♥ 84 ♦ AQ1085 ♣ KJ763	♠ AQ ♥ K98 ♦ QJ1095 ♣ KJ8

Hand 1 would bid 2♣ showing at least 5-4 in the majors
Hand 2 would bid 2♦ showing a 5+ major without a second suit.
Hand 3 would bid 2♥ showing 5 hearts and a minor suit.
Hand 4 would bid 2♠ showing 5 spades and a minor suit.
Hand 5 would bid 2NT showing 5-5the minors
Hand 6 would simply double against a weak NT for penalties

Responses to the Double showing a minor and a major

Response	Meaning
2♣	Shows club tolerance and willingness to play in clubs. Partner can pass with long clubs, or bid 2♦ without clubs.
2♦	Shows diamond tolerance and willingness to play in diamonds. Partner can pass with long diamonds, or bid 2M without diamonds.
2♥	Natural, 4+ hearts, non-forcing.
2♠	Natural, 6+ spades, non-forcing.
2NT	Artificial, forcing. Asks the over caller to clarify their major holding.
	3♣ – Shows 4 hearts, max strength.
	3♦ – Shows 4 spades, max strength.
	3♥ – Shows 4 hearts, min strength.
	3♠ – Shows 4 spades, min strength.
3♣	Natural, 6+ good clubs, non-forcing.
3♦	Natural, 6+ good diamonds, non-forcing.
3♥	Pre-emptive or Good suit maybe 7 card suit.
3♠	Pre-emptive or Good suit maybe 7 card suit.
3NT	To play

Responses to the 2♣ Overcall

The 2♣ overcall shows at least 5-4 in the majors.

Response	Meaning
Pass	Natural, 6+ good clubs
2♦	An artificial bid asks partner to bid their major suit.
2♥	Natural sign-off, showing a preference for hearts even if partner is 5-4.
2♠	Natural sign-off, showing a preference for spades even if partner is 5-4.
2NT	Artificial, forcing. Asks the over-caller to clarify their major holding.
	3♣ – Shows 4+ hearts, max strength.
	3♦ – Shows 4+ spades, max strength.
	3♥ – Shows 4+ hearts, min strength.
	3♠ – Shows 4+ spades, min strength.
3♣	Natural, 6+ good clubs, non-forcing.
3♦	Natural, 6+ good diamonds, non-forcing.
3♥	Pre-emptive
3♠	Pre-emptive
3NT	To play

Responses to the 2♦ Overcall

The 2♦ overcall shows a single-suited major.

Response	Meaning
2♦	Natural, 6+ good diamonds
2♥	Natural signoff if over caller has hearts. However, this bid may also be made with game-invitational values in spades. If the over caller corrects to 2♠, then partner is allowed to raise or bid something else to show a good raise in spades.
2♠	Natural signoff if over caller has spades. However, this also shows a good raise in hearts. If the over caller has hearts they bid 3♥ with a minimum and bid a feature with a maximum…or can bid 4♥ direct.
2NT	Artificial, forcing. Asks the over caller to clarify their major holding.
	3♣ – Shows 5 hearts, max strength.
	3♦ – Shows 5 spades, max strength.
	3♥ – Shows 5 hearts, min strength.
	3♠ – Shows 5 spades, min strength.
3♣	Natural, 6+ good clubs, non-forcing.
3♦	Natural, 6+ good diamonds, non-forcing.
3♥	Natural, 6+ good hearts, non-forcing.
3♠	Natural, 6+ good spades, non-forcing.
3NT	To play

Responses to the 2♥ Overcall

2♥ shows a 5 card major and at least a four-card minor.

Response	Meaning
Pass	This is where we play
2♠	Natural, 5+ good spades, no heart support, non-forcing.
2NT	Artificial, forcing. Asks the over caller to clarify their minor holding.
	3♣ – Shows 4+ clubs, min strength.
	3♦ – Shows 4+ diamonds, min strength.
	3♥ – Shows 4+ clubs, max strength.
	3♠ – Shows 4+ diamonds, max strength.
3♣	Asks partner to pass or correct to 3♦
3♦	Good raise in hearts
3♥	Pre-emptive raise
3♠	Natural, 6+ good spades, non-forcing.
3NT	To Play
4♥	To Play
4♠	To Play

Responses to the 2♠ Overcall

2♠ shows 5 spades and at least a 4-card minor.

Response	Meaning
Pass	This is where we play
2NT	Artificial, forcing. Asks the over caller to clarify their minor holding.
	3♣ – Shows 4+ clubs, min strength.
	3♦ – Shows 4+ diamonds, min strength.
	3♥ – Shows 4+ clubs, max strength.
	3♠ – Shows 4+ diamonds, max strength.
3♣	Asks partner to pass or correct to 3♦
3♦	Good raise in spades
3♥	Natural, 6+ good hearts, non-forcing.
3♠	Pre-emptive raise
3NT	To Play
4♥	To Play
4♠	To Play

Responses to the 2NT Overcall

Shows 5/5 in the minors.

Bids	Meaning
Pass	This is where we play
3♣	A weak hand with tolerance for clubs.
3♦	A weak hand with tolerance for diamonds
3♥	Natural, 6+ good hearts, non-forcing.
3♠	Natural, 6+ good spades, non-forcing.
3NT	To Play
4♣ / ♦	Invitational
4♥ / ♠	4♥ / ♠
5♣ / ♦	To Play

Please note that these notes are merely ideas on how to play this convention…but you can change them how you want. That is one of the main points about complex bridge conventions…you can change them to how you want to play them…as long as you agree to them with your partner…that is the crucial point.

In Competition

Obviously, when you overcall 2♣, the opposition might double this contract which might show clubs, they might bid diamonds…so it’s important you have an agreement on what double, re-double, or 2♦ means from partner?

I would suggest over 2♣ double, Redouble asks for the longer major and 2♦ is now natural.

Over a 2♦ bid double asks partner to bid their longer major.

Support Double

On 15 June 2020