Sunday, October 29, 2006 2:58 AM

5-5 Blacks Part II

 

PITBULLS:

 

          Opening weaker 5-5 in the blacks has a good tactical bidding advantage in that quite often you avoid forcing 1NT auctions in favour of the excellent XYZ structure. Opening 1♣ with these hands keeps the auction at the one level for 3 bids. You know what that means , partner can show all game force hands via 2♦ or jumping & all invitational hands via 2♣.Say you have this “bow-wow” that you decide to open 1♣. ♠Axxxx ♥xx ♦x ♣KQJ10x . Partner responds a red suit and you bid a spade. This unleashes XYZ and you have a chance to describe your distribution and weak HCP’s by the two level !!

 

          ♠AKxxx ♦xx ♥x AKxxx  so you open 1♠. Partner bids 1NT and you rebid 2♣. Partner bids 2NT so you bid 3♣ forcing to game. Why is it forcing to game because you show 5-5 in the blacks and you did not open 1♣ !

 

          Opening 1♣ with weak 5-5’s allow you to compete better. Since you have the bully suit as your 2nd suit you out bid the reds by coming into the auction. Clubs to spades is not a reverse. Spades to clubs is a reverse. 1♣-P-1♦/♥-P

                             2♠                  is a strong jump shift.

 

          There is a school of thought that says that weak & strong 5-5’s should be opened 1♣. Intermediate 5-5’s in the blacks should be opened 1♠. What this does is allow the auction to remain at the two level with strong hands. ♠AKxxx ♥Ax ♦x ♣AKxxx you open 1♣ and partner bids a red suit so you jump shift to 2♠ and you are at the two level.

 

          Playing the multi 3♣ jump shift you are at the 4 level before you have described this hand.

1♠-P-1NT-P

3♣-P-3♦-P

4♣                    3NT after the relay shows a real strong jump shift in clubs but normally with flatter hands. Opening 1♣ , you have finished showing your distribution and HCP strength by the 3 level at most.

 

          Strong & weak spade / diamond hands could be handled the same way but it has not caught on. ♠Axxxx ♥x ♦AKxxx ♣xx . Opening 1♦ first gets you past the forcing 1NT and allows XYZ if partner responds 1♥. Causes complications when partner responds 1NT or your spade suit could get pre-mpted out of the auction. Bidding theorists have made an exception with spades & clubs but not diamonds.