| Category |
Options - choose zero, one, or more (non-conflicting) options from each each category |
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Carding methods - discards |
- Natural style, high = encouraging, low = discouraging
- McKenney style - high asks for higher ranking suit
- Count, high /low shows even number of cards
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| Carding methods - signals (Partner's lead) |
- Natural attitude - high = encouraging, low = discouraging
- Inverse attitude - low = encouraging, high = discouraging
- Count - high /low shows even number of cards
- Reverse Count - high /low shows odd number of cards
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| Carding methods - signals (Declarer's lead) |
- Play random signals unless you can see that partner needs to know your suit length, e.g., to guide him as to how long to 'hold off'.
- Count - high /low shows even number of cards
- Reverse Count - high /low shows odd number of cards
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| Carding methods - opening leads |
- Fourth highest, second from bad suit, top of sequence / internal sequence
- Third & Fifth
- King asks for count signal, others ask for attitude or inverse attitude
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Two-level openers
IMPORTANT COMMENT: If your style of 2-level openers includes a traditional ACOL '8 Playing Tricks' type hand, then you are strongly advised
to take heed of the EBU guidelines on the subject as included in The Orange Book. For quickness, see the reference included here. |
- Traditional ACOL, in which the 2♣ opener shows either a 23+ balanced hand, or
any game-forcing opening hand, whereas 2♦/
♥/♠
show 'eight playing tricks' in the suit specified. This style is rarely used by tournament players because suitable
hands for the 2♦/
♥/♠ openers crop up so rarely, so the potential bids are largely 'wasted'.
The style does have the advantage of being simple, easily understood, and low risk in terms of misunderstandings.
- Multi Style: an opening of 2♣ is usually as in 'traditional ACOL', but an
opening of 2♦ can be a two, or more usually 3-way, bid,
such as contained within the MSM Convention card. The three options for the Multi usually, but not necessarily,
revolve around a major-suited hand (likely to be weak, might be a single suit OR see option 6), a specified variation
of a 2NT opener (eg, includes a 5-card major, or a more specific point range), and something about minor suits
(typically, but not necessarily ACOL-style 'eight playing tricks'). You and your partner need to agree which two / three
options are covered by the Multicoloured 2♦ opening,
and also you need to agree follow-on bidding principles.
- Benji ACOL: the 2♦ opening is used as for the traditional
ACOL 2♣ opener, and the 2♣ opener shows
8 playing tricks in any suit. That style frees up availability of the 2
♥/♠ openers to use for other more frequently occurring
situations, such as 'weak 2s' - usually a six-card suit and 5-9 HCPs. If you adopt this style you need to agree follow-on bidding
principles with partner, such as those included in the "MSB" system card.
- Reverse Benji ACOL: as option 3, but the 2♦
/ 2♣ bids are interchanged.
- 'Three Weak 2s': the 2♣ opener is the only strong opener, and
2♦/♥/♠
are all natural, weak, and show a six-card suit.
- Lucas 2s: sometimes combined with a 'Multi' style. A direct opening
of 2♥/♠ is weak
and pinpoints a 5-card suit and promises an unspecified supplementary 4-card suit
- Intermediate 2s: the 2♣ opener is the only strong opener, and 2♦/♥/♠
are all natural, and show at least a six-card suit with 12 - 16 HCPs. The advantage compared with option 1 is that
such hands are more common, but the downside is that there are alternative ways of bidding such hands without tying
up the 2-level opening bids.
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| ROMAN KEY CARD BLACKWOOD |
The original use of 4NT to ask about Aces was called simply 'BLACKWOOD', and now, after two major revisions over the time that has elapsed since its first use, the original scheme is often referred to as 'STRAIGHT BLACKWOOD'. The most modern variant is called
'ROMAN KEY CARD BLACKWOOD' - or RKCB - and it adds hugely to the original ideas by including the King of trumps as a fifth 'Ace', and also permitting enquiries about the Queen of Trumps. Optional add-ons include the hugely useful potential to enquire about the King and Queen in a specified
side-suit. The notes [author - Chris Megahey] also set out the circumstances in which it is appropriate to use alternative Ace-asking schemes - including 'GERBER' and 'MODIFIED ROMAN BLACKWOOD'.
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| LEBENSOHL |
Do you have problems coping with the bidding when, after your partner opens 1NT, your opponents come into the bidding
and you want to bid but face either an ambiguous situation or you just do not know how to bid? The answer could be to
deploy the LEBENSOHL convention. There are various 'dialects' of LEBENSOHL but they all include a common theme, which is
that in this situation a response of 2NT from you is conventional.
USING LEBENSHOL WHEN OPPONENTS INTERFERE OVER OUR 1NT OPENING (Updated November 2012)
DEFENCE TO WEAK 2 OPENINGS AND MULTI 2D - INCORPORATING LEBENSHOL (Updated November 2012) |
