Saturday,
April 26, 2003 1:58 AM
Hand
Evaluation – Systemic ( Suit Asking Bids )
PITBULLS:
Suit
asking bids should be in the established
partnerships repertoire .
There are six
situations where these bids can be very useful .
1)
When the opponents have bid a suit
& you want to know what partners holding is in that suit
. You leap to 5 of your own suit
so partner must pass with a
doubleton or worse , bid 6 with a singleton , bid 5NT with the king &
bid 6 of their suit with 1st
round control . This does not show extra values ,
you are just following orders.
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4♦ pass |
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3♦ |
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pass |
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1♥ 5♥ |
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♠KQx ♥QJ10xx ♦xx ♣KQJ10 This suit asking bid
keeps you out of 6♥ .
♠AJx ♥AKxxxx ♦xx ♣Ax If the opponents are not in the auction , the suit
ask is in Trump following the Grand Slam rules . Pass with queen or
less trump honours , bid 6 with Ace or King and bid 7 with 2 out of 3. You use
this bid if you are afraid Blackwood will get you too high with two trump
losers or more .
2) When partner pre-empts
4♥/4♠ any bid by partner is a suit asking bid .
Partner opens 4♠ , you have Axx xxxx AKQ AKQ . You bid 5♥ as a suit ask in that
suit . Partner signs off in 5♠ with a doubleton , bids 6 with a singleton , bids 6NT with the king
and bids 6♥ with a void or Ace .
3) Strong 2♣ auctions with a self
sufficient suit . My partners & I play relays to show the strong two suiters or normal one suiters hands , so a jump
by the 2♣ opener sets the suit . Responder must bid their control(s) . After that a suit bid is a “suit ask” in that suit . The responses are real
easy on the memory as they are just logical up the line steps . Return to your
trump suit with the worst holding xxx , 1st
step shows Q or doubleton , next step x or King and the next step Ace or void .
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A |
A |
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A |
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K |
K |
o |
K |
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Q |
x |
i |
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J |
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d |
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x |
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x |
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You
open 2♣ and partner bids 2♥ showing her nothing . You bid 3♠ which sets the suit
and forces controls . Partner bids 4♠
showing no
controls( as expected ) , you
bid 5♥ which is a suit ask
. Partner bids 5NT showing the queen of hearts ! Victory !
4) The opponents double an artificial bid or transfer .
Tom Gandolfo opened 1NT , I held ♠Ax ♥AQJ10xx ♦Qx ♣Axx , I bid 4♦ which got doubled & Tom bid 4♥ . You have 17 HCP’s
& partner averages 16 HCP’s with his bid , so 6♥ should make. Wait a minute ! There is a
way to check back & ask if you are off two diamond tricks. Bid 5♥ so Tom will read
that as asking in the diamond suit as it has been essentially “bid” in this auction. Tom passes
, the opponents cash the diamond AK . Everyone
in the room was in 6 down one !
5) When you have Q bid or naturally bid two of the other suits . A
jump to 5 of the trump suit asks do you have a control in the unbid suit
? Same rules apply as in other suit asking bids. If no
other suit bids or Q bids have been made the jump to 5 of the trump suit asks
for the quality of your trump suit. This is a rare bid as KCB has improved so
much over the years.
6) Eddie Kantar
recommends suit asking bids as part of the KCB structure for getting to grands. Since
you are looking for a grand in these auctions , the
steps are a little different then above. You are generally looking for a queen
or a king holding in a suit . Kantar as invented his
responses around that goal.
The Specific Suit Ask (SSA) (Majors)
After an RKB response, 5NT asks for specific kings. However
the RKB bidder may not be interested in specific kings, he may be interested in
what the responder has in a specific suit. The asker may have
losers in only one suit. That suit may be headed by the AKx(x)(x). If
so, the ask is looking for third round control, a
doubleton or the queen, to play in a grand slam.
The asker may have Axxx(x) looking to play in a grand
facing a singleton, Kx
or KQ(x). The asker may have Kxxx
(x) looking to play in a grand facing Ax, or AQ(x).
In order to ask partner about a specific suit, called the specific suit ask
(SSA), you must first go through 4NT.
After the response, a new suit by you that is NOT the queen-ask is
the SSA. In other words, you have decided to forego the 5NT
specific king ask to make a SSA. A SSA promises at
least the ace or king of the ask
suit, frequently both. It
also confirms joint possession of the four aces
as well as the KQ of the agreed
suit. The SSA
cannot substitute for the queen-ask, the
queen-ask takes precedence.
Consider this sequence:
Opener
Responder
1H
1S
3C
4H
4NT
(1)
5C (2)
5D (3)
5S (4)
6D (5)
(1) RKB
(2) 1
(3) Queen-ask
(4) Yes, with SK
(5) SSA (5NT would ask for another king)
Responses to the SSA are listed below. To
facilitate memory problems, the return
to the trump suit is the death response.
It denies 2nd or 3rd round control in the ask suit and shows (xxx, xxxx, xxxxx).
RESPONSES TO THE SSA IN WHICH THE KING OF THE ASK SUIT HAS
NOT BEEN DENIED.
A return to trump suit, as ever,
denies 2nd or 3rd round control. it is the weakest
response and does not count as a
step.
1st step= 3rd round control ( xx or the queen)
2nd step= 2nd round control (specifically Kxx or
longer)
3rd step= Kx
Raise of the ask suit =KQ (x)(x).
Jump in the trump suit =
singleton
Say the SSA is 6D, hearts agreed, and responder has D Qxx,
3rd round control. The proper response is 6S, a 1st step response
(excluding the trump suit, the denial response). Yes, the
response bypasses the six level of the agreed suit, but the SSA bidder is
supposedly prepared for that. He should have the Ace and King of
diamonds to make the ask.
LOOKING FOR GOLD AND FINDING DUST
West
East
S. AQxxxx
S. KJxx
H. A
H. xx
D. AKxxx
D. xxx
C.
x
C. AK10x
West
North
East
South
1S
4H
4S
Pass
4NT (1)
Pass 5H
(2)
Pass
6D (3)
Pass
6S (4) Pass
(1) RKB
(2) 2 without
(3) SSA in diamonds
(4) Denies 2nd or 3rd round diamond control
NOT WHAT YOU WANTED, BUT NO SO BAD
EITHER
Opener
Responder (you)
S AJx
S. Kx
H. Kxx
H. AQJ10xx
D. AJx
D. x
C. QJxx C. Axxx
Opener
Responder
1NT
4D (1)
4H
4NT (2)
5C
(3) 6C (4)
6D
(5) 6H (6)
Pass
(1) Transfer
(2) RKB (0314 responses- weak asking strong)
(3) 3
(4) SSA in clubs
(5) 1st step response showing the queen or a doubleton
(6) No grand today
Change opener's hand a bit: Say opener has: AJx
Kxx AJx
Kxxx. The response to 6C is
6H, a 2nd step response showing Kxx(x) of
clubs. Opener, appraised of a club loser, settles for 6H.
Now give opener: Axxx Kxx AJxx
Kx. Now a 3rd
step response of 6NT shows the Kx leading to a grand
in hearts. Of course you may have to ruff two clubs in
dummy. In my book I gave the opener the K9x of hearts to make
things happier for the paying customers. Here, since you are
getting a freebie, realism has set in and opener doesn't have the H9.
IF THE RESPONDER TO THE SSA HAS
ALREADY DENIED THE KING OF THE ASK SUIT (AFTER A QUEEN ASK AND A KING SHOWING
RESPONSE) THESE ARE THE RESPONSES:
A return to trump suit denies 3rd round control.
1st step response shows the queen or a doubleton.
A raise shows the queen-jack.
A NEAT FIND!
Opener
Responder (you)
S. QJx
S. AKxxx
H.
QJ
H. AKxx
D. AKJx D. x
C. xxxx C. AKx
Opener
Responder
1D
1S
2S
(1) 3H
3S
4NT (2)
5C
(3) 5D (4)
6D
(5)
6H(6)
7H
(7)
7NT (8)
Pass (9)
(1) Some would rebid 1NT
(2) RKB 1430 responses-strong hand asking weak-opener
limited by the single raise
(3) 1
(4) Queen-ask
(5) Yes with DK, but no HK (would have bid 5H over 5D).
(6) 3rd round heart control? (I know you don't have the king).
(7) The QJ
(8) Wait till we tell them about this one
(9) You tell them, I'm too exhausted
NOT AS EASY
Returning to the previous hand, If we exchange the queen and king of spades, we
have this:
Opener
Responder (you)
S. KJx
S. AQxxx
H.
QJ
H. AKxx
D. AKxx
D. x
C. xxxx
C. AKx
Opener
Responder
1D
1S
2S
3H
4S(1)
4NT (2)
5H
(3)
?
(1) Too much hand to rebid 3S
(2) RKB
(3) 2 without
At this point you have to decide whether it is more important to look for
the DK via 5NT or 3rd round heart control via 6H. There
is not room to do both.
If you bid 5NT and get a 6D response, a follow up bid of 6H asks for the HK as
it has not been denied. YOU
CANNOT USE THE SSA ONCE YOU BID 5NT ASKING FOR
SPECIFIC KINGS.
If you bid 6H over 5H, the SSA, you will get a 7H response showing
the QJ. So partner has the DA, the SK and the H QJ, 10 HCP and 12
tricks. If you want to gamble that partner has the DK or the
CQ (HIGHLY likely) bid 7NT.
If you want to play it closer to the belt, bid 7S. Perhaps partner
has a doubleton club and a club ruff in dummy will be trick 13. At tournament bridge in a strong field, chance 7NT; otherwise
7S.
AN SSA CAN ALSO BE MADE IN A PREVIOUSLY BID SUIT
The responses are the same except responder cannot
have shortness.
Return to trump suit denies 2nd or 3rd round control.
1st step= The queen
2nd step= The king
A raise of the ask suit= the KQ(x)
LOOK WHAT I FOUND!
Opener
Responder (you)
S. Qxxx
S. Ax
H. Axxx
H. KQxxx
D.
A
D. xxx
C. AQxx
C. KJx
Opener
Responder
1C
1H
3D
(1)
4NT (2)
5C(3)
6C (4)
6D
(5)
7H
(1) Nobody likes to splinter with a singleton ace, but that's what they dealt
you. If you want to treat this as a balanced hand, jump to
4H.
(2) RKB (0314) weak asks strong
(3) 3
(4) You don't have room to ask for the SK and the
CQ. Since finding the SK won't ensure a grand, but finding the CQ
will, you trot out 6C. (If you had any
desire to play in clubs, you should have bid 4C over 3D.) More on asks in
previously bid suits in chapter XXI (Second Suit
Options).
(5) 1st step response showing the queen. (Opener must have at
least four clubs so a spade can go off on a club).
Another SSA to keep in practice:
I NEED A NEW PARTNER!
West
East
S.
x
S. Ax
H. AQxxx
H. Kxxx
D.
Ax
D. KQJ
C. AKxxx
C. xxxx
West
North
East South
1H
Pass
2NT(1)
Pass
4NT (2)
Pass
5H (3)
Pass
6C (4)
Pass
6H (5) Pass
Pass Pass
1) Jacoby
(2) RKB
(3) 2 without
(4) SSA
(5) Zilch
Hate to end
with a signoff response but look at how many slams you have already bid and
made!