Bridge
22 March, 2026
A strong hand in competition
Our next Bridge column is now available thanks to Rakesh Kumar.
Bidding to show a really strong hand in competition can be challenging. Vulnerable against not, your left-hand opponent opens 1♦️, after which there are two passes around to you. Hardly that surprising, because you hold the hand below. What should you do?
With only 4 losers, the hand is much, much too strong to just bid 1❤️ or 2❤️. A bid of 1❤️ in the “pass out” or balancing seat typically shows something like 9-13 high card points with a 5-card suit, while a jump bid of 2❤️ shows a stronger hand, say 11-13 points with a 6-card suit. Neither bid would do justice to this huge hand.
You could just gamble and bid 4❤️ directly, but the modern approach would be to double first. This was the full deal:
Because a bid of a new suit after a takeout double promises extra strength, a jump rebid shows even more extras, either by way of high card points or playing tricks. On this deal, West can rebid 3❤️ after East’s 1♠️ response to the double, to show a powerful hand and a good suit. With the doubleton ❤️K, East should then have no hesitation raising to game. However, on the day only half the field got to 4❤️, even though 11 tricks were readily available.
Is there any advantage in not just bidding 4❤️ directly every time? Well, without East’s crucial heart honour, declarer might well lose two heart tricks, a diamond and a club, so the outcome depends on whether partner has anything to contribute by way of a fit or top tricks.
It’s better to be able to double and bid to show strength, then give partner a chance to make the final decision.
Rakesh Kumar
The Southern Highlands Bridge Club runs three duplicate sessions every week (Mon 1:00 pm, Wed 6:30 pm, Sat 1:00 pm) at the East Bowral Community Centre. Highlands players and visitors welcome!
For more information: https://shbc.bridgeaustralia.org
Read More: Southern Highlands, Southern Tablelands, Wollondilly