Fabulous Rebid?

Playing matchpoints. You are vulnerable and the Opponents are not vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠T2
♥Q8
♦AKQJ75
♣AT9

You are Dealer. We decided last post to open 1♦. You are unbalanced with no stoppers in either major so that is why you didn't open 1NT. The Opponents stay silent during the bidding. Partner responds 1♠.

You have a fabulous bid to describe your hand perfectly! What is your call?

Show Answer

3♦.

This should show a GOOD six card suit with about 16 to 18 HCP (High Card Points).

Partner has a ♥ stopper and about 9 HCP. They will bid 3NT and you will make a game.

If you rebid 2♦ you don't get across just how strong your hand is and Partner just says "Pass".

Rebids

Playing matchpoints. You are vulnerable and the Opponents are not vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠T2
♥Q8
♦AKQJ75
♣AT9

You are Dealer. What is your call?

Show Answer

I think 1♦ is the best call.

You do have 16 HCP (High Card Points) but you are not totally balanced. You have two doubletons.

Plus both those doubletons are weak with no stoppers in them.

Now sometimes we are stuck and have to open the bidding 1NT with two doubletons. But only if we are stuck for a rebid. You are not.

Open 1♦ and you have a good rebid to show your hand.

Just what is this rebid? Stay tuned and find out! (I love these cliffhangers!)

Last Chance

Playing matchpoints. Neither you not the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠
♥AKJ53
♦A54
♣AQJ84

You are Dealer. You decided to open the bidding 1♥. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Partner responded 1♠. Last post we decided to now bid 3♣. Over 3♣ Partner bid 3NT. What is your call?

Show Answer

Just "Pass". You warned Partner you were distributional and didn't want to play in NT.

They listened. They just don't want to play in your suits and think 3NT is the best spot.

Now What?

Playing matchpoints. Neither you not the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠
♥AKJ53
♦A54
♣AQJ84

You are Dealer. You decided to open the bidding 1♥. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Partner responds 1♠. (See? I told you last post someone would!) What is your call?

Show Answer

3♣.

This is a JUMP SHIFT telling Partner you want to get to a game now that you know they have six points (so you must have at least nineteen or the equivalent in distribution) and you have ♥ and ♣.

What to Open

Playing matchpoints. Neither you not the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠
♥AKJ53
♦A54
♣AQJ84

You are Dealer. What is your call?

Show Answer

1♥.

These hands are just so much easier to bid if you open them naturally. Someone is going to bid ♠.

You could open a strong 2♣ bid but then you commit yourself to game if Partner doesn't have any points and you are not strong enough to do that.

What to Rebid?

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠KQJ96
♥Q93
♦9872
♣A

Your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) is Dealer and says "Pass". You decide to open the bidding 1♠. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Your Partner responds 2♥. Just a Standard American 2♥ bid. Not game forcing.

What is your call?

Show Answer

I'm happy with pretty much any bid you are willing to make that has a ♥ beside it. (I'm confident you won't bid too high!)

So 3♥ is a fine bid (perhaps is an underbid but just how good is your singleton A♣? You'd much rather that Ace be in the ♦ suit. But it's not.

If you are not worried about these pesky little details and wish to count three points for your singleton then bid 4♥. This is perhaps an overbid.

However you DO need to support Partner's ♥ suit! They should have a FIVE CARD SUIT. This is the one auction where Responder promises a five card suit right away...

and you do have three card support.

Continuation

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠K8
♥AQ942
♦QT54
♣A9

You are Dealer. We decided last post to open the bidding 1♥. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Partner responds 1NT.

What is your call?

Show Answer

2♦

You have a lower ranking four card suit. You are supposed to take Partner out of their 1NT bid and bid your lower ranking suit. You are not even close to jumping to show a nice hand. That would force the bidding to game even if Partner has 6 points!

If you bid 2♦ Partner can (and will!) "PASS".

You can take 10 tricks if ♦ are trump. That's 130 points.

If you "Pass" Partner's 1NT response they can take 7 tricks. (The Opponent's have quite a few ♠ and Partner cannot trump them in 1NT!) That's 90 points.

If you opened the bidding 1NT (last post) then Partner will respond 2NT -- they have 9 HCP -- and even though you will "Pass" the bidding has gotten too high. You will go down in 2NT and lose 100 points.

Rebidding!

Playing matchpoints. Neither you nor the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠AQJ962
♥Q93
♦A3
♣A9

You are Dealer. You open the bidding 1♠. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Partner responds 1NT.

What is your call?

Show Answer

3♠

This shows a GOOD six card suit with 16 to 18 HCP. Perfect!

If you bid 2♠ you tell Partner you have a six card suit but you also tell Partner you have a minimum opening hand. You don't. You have 17 HCP!

If you bid 2♠ Partner will "Pass" (they only have 8 HCP) and you will take 10 tricks.

If you bid 3♠ Partner will bid 4♠ (game!) and you will take 10 tricks.

What to do NOW?

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠QT62
♥3
♦AQ83
♣AK76

You are Dealer. We decided last post to open the bidding 1♦. The Opponents are silent during the bidding. Your Partner responds 1♥.

What is your call?

Show Answer

1♠.

You should now show your four card major. Partner could have four ♠ also! Bidding 1NT right now DENIES having four ♠.

Rebid Problem

Playing matchpoints. You are vulnerable and the Opponents are not vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠QT7
♥54
♦AKQ
♣AK953

You are Dealer and open the bidding 1♣. The Opponents are silent during the bidding. Partner responds 1♥. What is your call?

Show Answer

2NT

This shows a balanced hand with 18 or 19 HCP (High Card Points). Perfect!

Don't rebid your ♣ suit. 3♣ shows a SIX card suit with 16 to 18 HCP.

What to rebid?

Playing matchpoints. You are vulnerable and the Opponents are not vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠6
♥K9
♦AQJ86
♣AKQJ7

Partner is Dealer and says "Pass". Your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) also says "Pass". Last post we decided to open the bidding 1♦. The Opponents do not bid at all. Partner responds 1♠. What is your call?

Show Answer

3♣.

Jump shift.

This shows an unbalanced hand with enough strength to go to game even if Responder has only 6 points. It also denies having a fit for Responder's major and denies having four ♥ (because with four ♥ you would have bid 2♥) -- all of which is true.

You don't want to rebid 2NT. That doesn't show the strength of your hand and also shows a balanced hand. Partner is allowed to "Pass" 2NT.

Partner is weak. If you don't make a jump shift they will "Pass". You can make game in either minor.

Opener Rebids

Playing matchpoints. You are not vulnerable and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠AJ32
♥3
♦AQ965
♣K87

You are Dealer and decide to open the bidding 1♦. Partner responds 1♠. The Opponents are not bidding. What is your call over 1♠?

Show Answer

Bid 3♠. This shows a 17 or 18 points (good 16) with four ♠.

You have 14 HCP (High Card Points) and 3 DUMMY points (you will be Dummy!) so that is a NICE hand! You need to bid more than just 2♠.

Rebids by Opener

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠J9
♥AKJ3
♦AK8
♣K542

You are Dealer. You decide to open the bidding 1♣. Both Opponents are silent throughout the auction. Partner says 1♥.

What is your call?

Show Answer

4♥.

This shows about 19-21 points with four ♥.

You could also bid 2NT to show a balanced 18 or 19 point hand. But that would DENY having ♥ support. Which you have.

If Partner had responded 1♠ your bid would be 2NT.

Rebids by Opener

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠3
♥AJ53
♦AK9
♣AQ983

You are Dealer. You decide to open the bidding 1♣. Your LHO (Left Hand Opponent) says "Pass", Partner says "Pass" and your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) bids 1♠.

What is your call?

Show Answer

How about "Double"?

In this auction it is still essentially the same as a "Take Out Double". It basically means "BID something Partner, because I have some stuff I haven't showed you but I don't know what to do!"

You could also make a reverse -- bid 2♥. This would show a strong, unbalanced hand -- which is what you have. But you ALSO have support for a long ♦ suit Partner might have.

Doubling gives Partner more choices. Everyone loves to be given a choice. It still shows a strong hand (with a weaker hand you would just "Pass") but now you are saying you can support anything BUT ♠. You want to play in PARTNER's longest suit.

Turns out Partner has a WEAK hand (obviously, they did "Pass" your opening bid!) with SIX ♦.

If you Double (and are aggressive enough in the bidding!) you can bid (and MAKE!) 5♦! That's game!

If you reverse, you will find your ♣ fit but you can only take 10 tricks if ♣ are trump. That's not enough for a game.

Rebids by Opener

Playing matchpoints. Neither you nor the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠AJ6
♥Q53
♦AK7
♣A952

You are Dealer. You decide to open the bidding 1♣ because you are too strong to open the bidding 1NT. (You play 15 to 17 NT's.)

Your LHO (Left Hand Opponent) says "Pass" and your Partner says "Pass"! Luckily your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) now bids "Double".

What is your call?

Show Answer

1NT.

This shows a BALANCED hand with 18 or 19 High Card Points. Perfect!

Now NORMALLY you would have to jump to 2NT to show a balanced hand with 18 or 19 points. That is if Partner had responded to your opening bid. You could NOT rebid 1NT since that would show a balanced, MINIMUM hand with less than 15 HCP. So you would have to jump to 2NT to show a balanced hand with 18 or 19 HCP. (Not enough to open 2NT but too much to open 1NT.)

However in THIS auction Partner passed. They do not have enough points to respond to your opening bid. That means they do not have 6 HCP or even a good 5 HCP. They've got NOTHING! So with a MINIMUM hand you would just "PASS" and stay out of trouble!

Rebidding when the Oppoents get involved

Playing matchpoints. Neither you nor the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠AJ3
♥KJ5
♦JT73
♣QJ7

You are Dealer. You decide to open the bidding 1♦. Your LHO (Left Hand Opponent) says "Pass". Partner responds 1♥. Now your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) bid 2♠. What is your call?

Show Answer

Pass.

I can hear you shrieking: "But I HAVE to tell Partner I have the ♠ stopped!!! I must bid 2NT!"

Do you? Does Partner (who only has 6 points) REALLY care if you have the ♠ stopped?

No. They do not. They want you to "Pass" and try to defeat the Opponents.

Think about it. If you RHO had Passed would you have rebid 2NT?

No. That shows about 18 or 19 points.

Bidding 2NT in this auction shows much the same point count as if you had jumped to rebid 2NT. Which in a way you did. You just didn't have to jump because your RHO did it for you.

"But what if my Partner has a nice hand? Shouldn't I bid then?"

No. PARTNER with a nice hand can bid. Once they bid to show a nice hand THEN you can show your ♠ stoppers if you want.

Don't let your Opponents force you into making bid you don't want to bid.

Rebids!

Playing matchpoints. You are vulnerable and the Opponents are not.

Here is your hand:
♠AJ876
♥A7
♦AQJ2
♣K6

You are Dealer. You decide to open the bidding 1♠. The Opponents "Pass" throughout. Partner responds 1NT. What is your call?

Show Answer

3♦

This is a JUMP SHIFT. Shows five (or more) ♠ and four (or more) ♦ and is FORCING to GAME. So you need at least 19 points to make this bid.

Perfectly describes your hand!

Opener's Rebid

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠J62
♥A874
♦KQT5
♣KJ

Partner is Dealer and passes. Your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) also passes. You open the bidding 1♦. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Your Partner responds 1♥.

Is 1♥ a forcing bid?

What is your call?

Show Answer

1♥ is NORMALLY a forcing bid but in this auction it would NOT be. Partner started off by passing. Partner doesn't have an opening hand. You are allowed to pass 1♥ if you have a minimum opening hand.

BUT you don't. You have a decent 14 count. Bid 2♥ just in case Partner was close to opening the bidding. (Here they had 11 points and if you passed you would have missed a game.)

Rebid

Playing matchpoints. Both you and the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠AKT5
♥QJ5
♦T85
♣KT5

You are Dealer and open the bidding 1♣. The Opponents are silent during the auction. Your Partner responds 1♥. What is your call?

Show Answer

1♠

Bid your FOUR card major BEFORE bidding 1NT.

Opener must bid again!

Playing matchpoints. Neither you nor the Opponents are vulnerable.

Here is your hand:
♠AJ65
♥A2
♦K842
♣AQ7

You open the bidding 1♦. (You are too strong to open the bidding 1NT since you play a 15 to 17 range.) Your LHO (Left Hand Opponent) makes a 1♥ overcall. Partner passes and your RHO (Right Hand Opponent) passes. What is your call?

Show Answer

I'm good with one of two bids.

The best bid is Double.

Double is almost like a take out double here. It says "BID, PARTNER! BID!"

Which is what you want to happen. You want Partner to bid any suit other than ♥.

Doubles can be tricky though and I understand if you don't want to Double on the hand because Partner might not understand the bid or you just don't play it often enough that it comes to mind.

Another good bid is 1NT.

Not that that should be (ONE) 1NT. NOT (TWO) 2NT.

I can hear some asking -- "But don't I have to jump to 2NT to show my balanced 18 or 19 point hand?"

You do if PARTNER had responded 1♥. But Partner passed. Partner has a bad hand. They couldn't even bid over 1♥.

With a balanced minimum opening hand you would just pass 1♥.

Therefore you no longer need to jump to tell Partner you have 18 or 19. Just by bidding 1NT (IN THIS AUCTION!) you show a strong, balanced hand.