"Taking Things for Granted" No-trump Responses by Marti Ronemus

What a week it is for inventions we take for granted. I'll bet you've got these three close at hand.

In 1902 American A. F. Calahan patented the envelope with a clear window. They're all over your desk, right?

Then, in 1943, Hungarian Laslo Biro patented the ballpoint pen. You've got dozens, and some of them probably even write.

(This reminds me of Back in the Day when we still used fountain pens. Does anyone share the memory of trying to fill one without making a mess?)

And finally, the Post-it Note. In 1968 Spencer Silver, while working for 3M accidentally found the adhesive that gave us what is one of the most useful ever "taken for granted" items.

With all this in mind, let's work on responding to a "take for granted" bid, No-trump.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ A 10 4 3 2
♥ K J 10 8
♦ Q 2
♣ 3 2

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1 No-trump	p
?

A: 2♣: When we've got a four-card and a five-card major, we begin with Stayman. If Pard responds with a major, our next bid will complete the story of our hand. Let's take this sequence a little further in our next questions.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ A 10 4 3 2
♥ K J 10 8
♦ Q 2
♣ 3 2

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1 No-trump	p
2♣	p	2♦	p
?

A: 3♠: There are a lot of fancy ways to handle this dilemma, but we're going to keep it clean and simple. When we bid 3♠, we're telling Pard we've got five Spades and a game-going hand. If Pard only has two Spades, he'll take it to 3 No-trump. He will also know that we have four Hearts. Otherwise, we'd have begun with a transfer.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ A 10 4 3 2
♥ J 10 8 7
♦ Q 2
♣ 3 2

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1 No-trump	p
2♣	p	2♦	p
?

A: 2♠: This time, we're going to show Pard we've got four Hearts and five Spades, and we only have invitational values. Now Pard knows the story and will use his ball point pen to mark the right answer.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ A K 4 3 2
♥ J 10 8 7
♦ A K
♣ K 2

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1 No-trump	p
2♣	p	2♥	p
?

A: 4♣: Well, we know we have slam. We could just jump to 6♥, or we can ask for aces. Since the first bid was No-trump, most would use Gerber 4♣ to ask. Give yourself credit also if you jumped to slam. Note: 4 No-trump would NOT be ace-asking... it would be quantitative.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ A 10 3 2
♥ J 10 8 3 2
♦ 3 2
♣ 3 2

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1 No-trump	p
2♣	p	2♥	p
?

A: Pass: We've got a lovely fit, but it's a real drop-dead hand. We aren't going anywhere, and don't have enough points to show our complete shape. Just be glad we've got a fit.

And now our hand...

Your result so far:

Open Question

Play this Hand

Now that you've bid five hands, let's see how your play goes.

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Overall Results

Your results: out of Average:

What next? You may enjoy playing our prepared hands series.
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