At long last, we have finally reached the final segment of our lesson on balancing seat bids in the passout seat.   Recall that with a good 7 or 6 Losing Trick Count hand including a Semi Self-Sustaining Suit (Suit Quality of 9 or a good 8), with a partnership agreement we can jump to the 2 level in our major suit – a highly invitational bid.  So what is up with a jump to the 3 level in a lower ranking suit with respect to your Left Hand Opponent?

Here is another highly invitational game-going bid, this time looking for a 3 Notrump contract when partner has a few cover cards (primary honors, Aces and Kings) including 1-2 stoppers in the opponents bid suit.  Remember in an earlier lesson that cuebidding the Left Hand Opponent suit at the 3 level shows “one-half” of a stopper, perhaps Q-x, Q-x-x or maybe J-10-x.  So lacking a half-stopper here is the rare opportunity to jump to the 3 level in your long minor.  Obviously, your minor suit should be 7 in length, at least a Semi Self-Sustaining Suit (Suit Quality = 9+) and a 5-6 Losing Trick Count hand.     Finally, we will explore the meaning of a 3 level jump in a higher ranking suit, particularly a major suit.  This time with our 5-6 LTC hand and SQ=9+, we are looking for a major suit game when partner has at least one trump and 2-3 cover cards.

Aside from discussing this peculiar bids (which require partnership agreements) and the associated hand evaluation, when it comes to card play be sure to hang onto your seat.  We have some tough hand to play, not only from the declarer’s perspective but also for the craft defenders eager to set wayward contracts.  And as always, we have a plethora of  Bridge hands here at BridgeHands.

Of course, our online archive with hundreds of hours of Bridge videos are always available here:
“Index to Videos” on the navigation above or simply click this link.

All audiences – Part 1 with theory, click here to evaluate several hands and play 3 hands – 30 minutes

Premium and ULTRA Members – Part 2, click here to play 5 hands – 21 minute video

Premium and ULTRA Members – Part 3, click here to play 4 hand segments – 17 minute video

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Happy Trails,

BridgeHands

In our prior Advanced lesson, we looked at the mysteries of jump bids in the passout/balancing seat, with this episode devoted solely to the scenario when we make a 2 level call in a lower ranking suit.  Really, you may wonder – an entire lesson focusing solely on such a seemingly innocent call?

Well, as it turns out when we overcall at the 2 level in a lower ranking suit than our Left Hand Opponent, it turns out this is not your “garden variety” bid and deserves extra attention to the intricacies of what happens next.  After all, just like in life when we make an action (or inaction), the wise person always has a “Plan B” fallback position up their sleeve just in case things in life don’t always follow our plans!

After covering a few ground rules, we will evaluate a handful of Bridge hands here at BridgeHands before heading to the table.  And once we take our seat (or kibitz if you prefer), it’s time to sharpen your pencil, your sharp eyes and prepare for the test conquering the bidding and play of 11 hands.  And as always, there’s lots of twists and turns during the play of the hand for both the declarer and the defenders.

Of course, our online archive with hundreds of hours of Bridge videos are always available here:
“Index to Videos” on the navigation above or simply click this link.

All audiences – Part 1 with theory, click here to evaluate 4 hands and play 1 hand – 20 minutes

Premium and ULTRA Members – Part 2, click here to play 6 hands – 23 minute video

Premium and ULTRA Members – Part 3, click here to play 6 hand segments – 17 minute video

We hope you enjoy the show!

Please login or register to view this content. Please login or register to view this content.

Happy Trails,

BridgeHands