PLAY AND DEFEND BETTER: FOR IMPROVING PLAYERS 3
Right Opening
The following 11 HCP 3 loser hand was reported in the post in the Latest News as having been incorrectly opened 2
and the pair were penalized for doing so as it was stated they must have at least 13 HCP to bid 2 legally:
AKQT982
2
QT932
-
The post doesn’t clarify if the 2 opening bid was alerted but it is assumed that it was not and they were playing a Green system.
There are a number of issues raised that would benefit from further discussion.
First, I wish to clarify that I am not a qualified Director and anything written from this point is my opinion only. I am also not in any way criticizing the directing decision made as I don't know all of the circumstances. If any qualified director wants to clarify I would be happy they do so.
Secondly, what does the 2 opening bid mean and when can it not be alerted for a Green system?
The Wikipedia definition for a strong 2 opening is:
The strength requirements for the 2♣ bid differ slightly in different systems. In all cases they show a hand which is close to game forcing. For balanced hands, a 2♣ bid shows 22 or more points in Standard American (Yellow Card), and 23 or more points in standard Acol. For unbalanced hands, the typical strength is about 9 or more playing tricks, or 3 losers or less if using Losing-Trick Count.
This definition is notable in that it doesn’t limit the minimum number of HCP for a distributional hand as the NZ bridge manual currently does for Green Systems. If a partnership adopted this definition for their game forcing 2 opening this would be a brown sticker convention using the NZ bridge manual definition and require the 2 bid to be alerted and limit its use to A point team style events.
Therefore if a partnership wishing to play in other events modified the Wikipedia definition so as to not use the 2 opening for unbalanced near game value hands with less than 13 HCP to meet NZ bridge manual definition so they could play a Green system then they would have to open the rest of the possible near game value hands as either 1 level opening bids or as pre-empts.
Does their 2 opening bid then require to be alerted? Let’s say that it doesn’t. Then from the definition for psyches from NZ bridge manual and for prohibiting their use it would appear a 2 unalerted opening that only contained 11 HCP can sometimes be opened legally and deliberately and should not be penalized under these circumstances as this would not be a gross misrepresentation of the playing strength of the hand.
A "psyche" is a deliberate gross misrepresentation of your high card strength and/or the length of one of your suits (Laws of Duplicate Bridge 2007, page 3). Note: The key words are "deliberate and "gross". To make a wrong bid accidentally is not a "psyche" – it is not deliberate. To shade an opening bid by a couple of points is not a "psyche" – it is not gross.
It is prohibited to "psyche" any conventional opening call that has as one of its options a hand that (a) may contain 13 or more HCP, and (b) is unlimited, and (c) does not show either a specific suit or a balanced hand.
While the example for what is not gross is for shading an opening bid (reducing points) by a couple of points it would follow upgrading a hand by a couple of points with compensating distributional values to bid 2 would also not be gross. To be gross, I would, therefore, consider a call must be deficient by at least a King (i.e. 3 or more points) without compensating distributional values. It would be interesting to get a director's ruling whether this view was correct.
So it would appear, if it is accepted a 2 opening can be opened without alerting if it may have an unbalanced 3 loser hand with 13 or more HCP for Green systems, that it may then be legal to deliberately open 2 without alerting with only 11 HCP with a 3 loser hand from time to time if it were the partnership agreement that their 2 opening may contain a distributional near game strength game hand with 13 or more HCP as this would not be a psyche bid by definition; but it would always be prohibited to open 2 playing a green system if they only had 10 HCP even if they had a 3 loser hand as this would be considered a psyche bid. Their partner must always act as though they had a minimum of 13 HCP.
So must a 2 opening bid using a Green system always have to have at least 13 HCP?
Thirdly for clarity,
I don’t believe the post is entirely correct in the assertion that a 2 opening could only be made with greater than 13 HCP if not using a blue (precision style) system. There are three other exceptions allowed by the NZ bridge manual that probably should have been mentioned for completeness:
Green systems
There is another allowable option for a 2 opening in the NZ bridge manual but which would have to be alerted:
Any 2♣ or 2♦ opening that may show a weak hand (<10 HCP) in either major (6 cards) only or as an option among any number of strong hand types.
Red systems
A 2 opening with less then 13 HCP would be allowed for a Red system if this is alerted in limited circumstances. The Red system could be an otherwise Green system with a Brown sticker convention where the partnership were following the Wikipedia definition with no minimum HCP point limitation. Although this system could only be used in A point team style competitions.
Yellow systems (highly unusual methods)
Latest Posts on this Thread
- NICK WHITTEN01 Nov 2018 at 08:00AM
Hi Sean
I don't know the circumstances either but I AM prepared to criticise the ruling, which IMHO is an abomination to put it mildly
But I will stand corrected if someone can say:
[a] Where is that rule which says an Acol 2C opening must have at least 13 HCP?
and
[b] What should a player open with S: AKxxxxxxxxx H: A D: x C: void if a 2C opening is illegal?
- SEAN LYNCH01 Nov 2018 at 09:49AM
Hi Nick,
These clauses from the NZ bridge manual may be helpful for the discussion:
The definition for Green systems - all natural systems (page D45 New Zealand bridge Manual) is:
(d) Green Systems ? all natural systems The following conventions/treatments are specifically allowed. However, this is not an exhaustive list and, if a question regarding a convention not specifically covered is raised, then analogy may be made to the type of conventions/treatments allowed for.
Openings:
- Any 2♣ or 2♦ opening that shows a strong hand and is forcing for at least one round of bidding; and except
- Any 2♣ or 2♦ opening that may show a weak hand in either major (6 cards) only or as an option among any number of strong hand types.
And page D44 gives the definition for a strong hand:
24.6 Classification of systems
(a) Definitions
Average Hand A hand containing 10 HCP with no distributional values.
Weak High-card strength below that of an average hand.
Strong High-card strength a King or greater than that of an average hand (i.e. 13+ HCP).
- SEAN LYNCH01 Nov 2018 at 11:51AM
Nick,
I think the answer to your question b) is that technically with 11 HCP I would argue you are allowed to open this hand 2
using a Green system as it is only 2 HCP below 13 HCP nominally required for this opening bid and so can't be considered a psyche bid.However, if playing a Green system if not ever allowed to open an Acol 2
with less than 13 HCP then the answer is either 1 or 6. For the 1 opening because as at least one opponent will have a void in it is unlikely to be passed out if partner has less than 6 HCP and then opener may make some sort of game forcing bid (like repeated cue bidding of opponents suits) to convey their playing strength to partner. The problem for opener is that although 6 is almost 100% guaranteed to make you want to know if partner has the A to bid 7 so a straight opening bid to 6 might not allow the partnership to get to 7. It may only seem easier if bidding is allowed to start with a game forcing bid as an advantage of opening 1 is you have already shown your suit.The possibly bigger question for Acol players is what do you open for these hands that are guaranteed to make game that would all meet the definition for an Acol 2
of being unbalanced 3 loser or less hands:Hand A Hand B Hand C
AKxxxxxxxxx AKQJxxxxxxx AKQxxxxxxxx xx QJ Jx - - - - - -Again if partner has A
or KQ (or possibly K) you want to be in 6, or if they have AK (or possibly AQ) in 7.Although they are effectively the same 2 loser hand if playing a green system you would only be allowed to open hand B using 2
and the other two would have to be 1 or a pre-empt.Should all these hands be allowed to open a game forcing 2
bid?Hopefully we can get a qualified director to clarify but It may well be that to play an Acol 2
opener that allowed any 3 loser hand with less than 13 HCP that the Acol 2 convention must be declared a Brown sticker convention and any Acol system that uses this convention be declared a Red system that may only be used for open A pts teams style events? - SEAN LYNCH17 Nov 2018 at 01:58PM
Looking at the limited number of system cards that have been posted for the open pairs who will be representing their regions at the inter-provincials later this month none of the system cards for those pairs playing natural systems that I have seen so far are declaring their 2
game forcing opening bids are brown sticker conventions and that their systems are red, or alternatively listing the minimum HCP to be 13+ HCP for non balanced hands even though they have provided HCP ranges for their other opening bids.Interesting ........
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