[Califdude]

I find some of the more difficult bidding situations arise when you have a good hand and support for partner's preemptive 2 and 3 bids. Let's take the weak 2's first, and have the weak 3's later.

My SAYC card says RONF...the only non-forcing bid is a raise of partner's suit. Do you agree with this treatment?

RPBridge.net says 2NT is the all-purpose force to find out more about partner's hand. Do you agree with this treatment? Does partner rebid the weak 2 suit with a minimum and anything else shows strength?

With a singleton in partner's suit and a good suit of your own, do you ever overbid partner in an attempt to find a better contract? Would this mean you play new suit is non-forcing?

Do you agree in principle that a weak 2 in a major should be more sound because partner is more likely to be interested in bidding on to game?

Last night I held AJ10x-Kxx-Axx-Axx and pard opened the bidding with 2H. Playing SAYC, do you agree that 2NT is the correct response in this case? (Except to say that I got a very bad board and wasted a $, I won't say what I actualy did.)

As always, thanks for your replies.

[whereagles]

Califdude, on Nov 19 2008, 10:33 PM, said:

Last night I held AJ10x-Kxx-Axx-Axx and pard opened the bidding with 2H. Playing SAYC, do you agree that 2NT is the correct response in this case?

I would try 3NT. It makes opposite as little as ♥AQxxxx. Sometimes even ♥Axxxxx is enough

[effervesce]

Playing Ogust, then 2NT is an inquiry as to whether the preempter has a good vs bad hand, and also suit quality.

Eg, after 2H-2NT

3C = min poor suit (no top 2 of 3 honors)
3D = min good suit (2 of top 3 honors)
3H = max poor suit
3S = max good suit

If partner shows a good suit (2 of top 3 honors), 3NT is practically cold.

[awm]

RONF is standard and fine. It depends a little on exactly how bad your preempts are -- if you open weak two bids with five bad cards then new suits non-forcing might be better.

In general it is better not to "run" from partner's preempts. If partner opens a weak two bid and your hand is not very good, just pass. Singleton or even void in partner's suit is fine. Look at it this way -- while bidding might improve the contract, it also might not... and it has a very real chance of getting you doubled. Going down three is okay sometimes. Going down three doubled... usually not so good.

Bidding 2NT is the general asking bid. Usually this contains support (at least doubleton) for partner's suit although occasionally you have a 4441 hand or something that's too good to pass. There are different ways to play the responses to 2NT.

The standard way is to show a "feature." This means opener bids:

Three of his major with any minimum, normally a decent suit but nothing outside.
Three of a new suit with values there (typically ace or king).
Three notrump with a very strong suit (like AKQxxx) but not much outside.

Feature is nice for finding outside cards, but doesn't usually distinguish opener's suit quality very well. If you would open 2♥ with ♥K87653 and nothing else, and also with ♥KQT987 and nothing else, well, there is a big difference between these hands and they are both bidding 3♥ over 2NT feature. So basically, if your preempts always have a pretty decent suit then feature is great. If not, you might want to play Ogust which is a conventional set of responses to 2NT as described by Effervesce.

As for strategy in replying to weak two bids, I'd say:

(1) If you have a bad fit for partner, usually pass. The only exception is if your hand is really strong (i.e. you might have 26 hcp between you, or you've got something like 8.5 tricks in hand). In this case you should either bid your own five-plus card suit or bid 2NT (if 4441 or the like).

(2) If you have something of a fit for partner, (like doubleton or better), think about what you will need to make game. Usually it's a decent assumption that a weak two bid contains a good suit and not much else (sometimes partner's suit is a trick worse than this, sometimes he has one outside card, but it's a good first guess). If you think you can have game opposite this, bid 2NT.

(3) If you have a really nice fit for partner (like 3-plus-card support and not 4333) then consider raising to a level equal to your number of total trumps. This is mostly an obstructive maneuver but occasionally you make a contract this way too.

[kenrexford]

What to do next after 2NT is a matter of style, and sometimes position.

For example, one partner of mine and I decided on the following scheme for 2NT "replies":

If the WK2 is in 1st seat (aggressive style used here), then Opener rebids according to Jogust or so (3♣=5-card, 3♦ asks if MIN (3♥), MID (3♠) or MAX (3NT); 3♦/3♥/3♠ = 6MIN/MID/MAX)

If WK2 in 2nd seat (sound), then Opener bids a feature

If WK2 in 3rd seat, then 2NT is a minors-escape bid (maybe 3055 with the wrong void)

If "WK2" in 4th seat, 2NT is natural

As for RONF -- I really dislike this after sound WK2's, but ambivalent otherwise. I like a combo treatment, where 2-Level corrections are RONF, jumps are Roman (two-suiters), 3♣+ without jumps are transfers (WEAK with the next-up suit OR strong with the actual bid suit; possibly a lead-director only). Something like that.

I also like, personally, for a newer (?) approach to 2NT after a WK2 in diamonds, where Opener bids 3-card majors up-the-line with a maximum, or 3♦ with a bust, or 3NT with a "prospects" hand, or 3♣ as a "punt" type of tweener/inconvenient hand.

[peachy]

RONF is good. It is also default standard and is in NO WAY invitational.

New suits are forcing, default standard. Agreement needed to play them non-forcing [but why, I don't see the benefit]. It is foolish to bid a new suit in an effort to "improve" the contract when having a misfit and not having game-forcing values.

2NT is an inquiry and it is standard to use 2NT that way. Opener shows a side feature (ace, king or QJx) if he has one and his hand isn't total garbage, otherwise bid own suit at the cheapest level.

Whether a weak-two should be sound, more sound, or undisciplined is a matter of partnership agreement. If nothing is discussed, assume middle of the road goodish six-carder and no more than one side value. Except in fourth seat, stronger. And except in third seat, wider range up and down.

[P_Marlowe]

Q1 Yes, this implies that your weak two openings are not complete garbage.
Q2 Yes, depening on your weak two style, either use feature ask, if you will
alway have a reasonable suit for your weak or OGUST.
Q3 If you would do this, than bidding a new suits would be nonforcing.
The style is playable (at least after a weak two), suggested by Bergen,
Bergens weak twos were light / very light.
Q4 No.
Q5 Depends on your weak two style, you have 4 tricks for partner, maybe
4 1/2, being red, playing IMPs, bid game, may make, being green either
pass or bid 2NT (planning to invite).

With kind regards
Marlowe