1A. Jacoby Two No Trump

Shows a game forcing raise and denies having a singleton unless it’s an honor or responder’s hand is just too big to splinter and he wants to take charge–if responder has shortness and only three trumps he’ll have a five card suit to bid; if he has shortness with four trumps he’ll splinter.

You may bid Jacoby with only three card support, if have extra high cards

Opener may not immediately jump to 4M to sign off; that shows 5-4 in the majors, below.

If opener says that he’s not slammish, responder’s new suit bid is a help suit slam try (there would be no reason for him to make a courtesy cuebid). If opener makes a slammish response 3N won’t be available as Serious, so responder’s new suit bid is just a cuebid.

Over 2N opener bids:

1. 3Ê with some singleton or void. However, he shouldn’t do this with a stiff Ace or a stiff King–doing so may cause partner to give you points elsewhere when constructing your hand or to wrongly devalue cards in the splinter suit. (The same rule applies to splinters generally (page VI-6, below).) Opener must show his shortness, no matter how bad his hand. Responder bids:

   1. 3Ë: Asks which suit is short. If responder weren’t at least a little interested in slam he wouldn’t ask, he’d just bid 3/4M. Opener bids:

      1. 3Ì: Shortness in an unspecified minor, not slammish. In all of these auctions when opener is non-slammish his shortness showing response could be a void. Responder bids:

         1. 3Í: Asking for the shortness. Opener bids:

            1. 3N: Unspecified void. Responder bids 4Ê to ask for the suit.

            2. 4Ê/Ë: Singleton Club/Diamond.

         2. After opener’s response to responder’s ask (over any of the below responses as well) responder bids:

            1. New suit: Cuebid, not a help suit slam try, since Serious won’t be available.

            2. 4N: RKC (as is bidding four of the other major after opener shows shortness in the other major).

      2. 3Í: Unspecified void and slammish. Responder bids:

         1. 3N: Asks where the void is. Opener bids:

            1. 4Ê/Ë/Ì: Void in the suit bid, or Spades when our suit is Hearts

            2. 4Í when our suit is Hearts: Spade void and a hand too good to risk being passed in 4Ì.

      3. 3N: Shortness in the unbid major, not slammish. Responder bids 4Ê to ask if opener has a void. Opener bids:

         1. 4Ë: Singleton.

         2. 4Ì: Void.

      4. 4m: Singleton in the minor bid, slammish.

      5. 4Ì when our suit is Hearts: Singleton Spade; slammish but not forcing.

      6. 4Ì when our suit is Spades: Singleton Heart, slammish.

      7. 4Í when our suit is Spades: Singleton Heart, less slammish than bidding 4Ì would have been.

      8. 4Í when our suit is Hearts: Spade singleton and a hand too good to risk being passed in 4Ì.

   2. 3M: Neutral. Responder is willing to cooperate in, but not to initiate slam bidding. Opener bids:

      1. 3Í/N (next step): He has a void. Responder must now bid the next step to ask.

      2. 3N/4X (not the next step): This is his singleton.

   3. Three of the other major: Asks for a side four card suit. Opener bids:

      1. 3N: No side four card suit.

      2. 3Í/4Ì (i.e., the cheapest bid of our major): Four cards in the other major.

   4. 3N: Any singleton hurts his hand–he likely has Kings in all three side suits. This is the weakest bid–hearing that opener has shortness has made responder wish that he had made a limit raise. Given the foregoing, 3N is never an offer.

2. 3Ë by an unlimited hand: RKC . Responder bids:

   1. 3Ì-4Ê: Standard 1430 RKC responses.

   2. If responder shows 14 or 30 and opener bids 4M responder goes on with the higher number by answering the Queen ask (as always), even if he doesn’t have it:

      1. 4Í (when Hearts is our suit)/5m: Higher number, Queen of Hearts, and the King of Spades/minor,

      2. 4N: Higher number, Queen of trump, but no Kings.

      3. 5M: Denies the Queen of trump and shows the higher number.

   3. If the enemy doubles 3Ë we play in accordance with our general rules on enemy interference (page VIII-12, below): Responder passes unless he has a Diamond stopper and answers as always if he does; if responder passes and opener redoubles he’s telling responder to answer anyway.

   4. After hearing partner’s response to 3Ë opener bids:

      1. The cheaper of 3N or 4Ë: Specific King ask.

      2. 4N when 4Ë is available: Suit ask in Diamonds,

      3. 4N when 4Ë is not available: Specific King ask.

      4. 5Ë when 4Ë is not available: Suit ask in Diamonds.

   5. If the 3Ë bidder makes a specific suit ask and responder bids the first step (no control), the third step (King to length), or the fifth step (KQ(x)), the 3Ë bidder may reask to find out of responder has the Ace. If responder doesn’t have it he bids the next step, if he does he bids the second (as always); while this violates fast arrival it may be that the response denying the Ace–the lower response–is our suit and we can play there).

      1. If responder bids the second (Queen or xx) or fourth (Kx or stiff) step rebidding the ask suit asks which he has (as always).

3. 3Ë by a limited hand (i.e., one that did not bid 2Ë over 2Ê). 5-3-3-2 maximum (in context)–like a 3Ì bid but non-minimum; this prevents you from screwing up responder’s auction by having to bid 3N to show a non-minimum (in context) and thus prevent him from bidding Serious (and if you forget and bid 3N it’s still Serious).

4. 3Ì (regardless of which suit our major is): Bad 5-4-2-2, 5-3-3-2, or 5-4-3-1 with a stiff Ace or King. Responder bids:

   1. 3Í to ask which it is:

      1. 3N shows the 5-3-3-2.

      2. Suit bids show the 5-4-2-2 or 5-4-3-1.

   2. 3N: Serious. Since responder is known not to have any shortness opener will cuebid his cheapest control, even if it’s a King and he has a higher-ranking Ace.

   3. 4M: To play.

5. 3Í (regardless of which suit our major is): Extra length in the major and no shortness (other than, perhaps, a stiff Ace or King).

   1. Responder’s 3N over 3Í is Serious (and opener will bid a King before a higher ranking Ace, as above); anything else is a cuebid (since we’re both unlimited).

6. 3N: Good 5-3-3-2 (15+). This bid should not be passed unless you’re sure slam won’t make. Responder’s 4N is RKC.

7. At the four level: Good 5-4-2-2 or 5-4-3-1 with a stiff Ace or King (usually 15+).

   1. If our suit is Hearts 4Ì shows a good 4=5=2=2; however, if opener’s hand is so good that he doesn’t want to be passed there he bids 4Í.

   2. If our suit is Spades 4Í shows a good 5=4=2=2 but is weaker than bidding 4Ì, which shows the same pattern.

   3. If responder can cuebid below game he should do so if his hand is suitable (i.e., if he doesn’t have three small in opener’s second suit). With a minimum 4X bid opener will bid 4M.

   4. If responder raises opener’s second suit it’s Double RKC–it’s double since responder could have bid RKC in the major by bidding 4N; he must have gotten excited by the 4X bid. If he bids 4N it’s single in the major–learning what opener’s four card suit is must have excited him about slam prospects.

8. 4N: Quantitative; you will never want to bid this, but we are striving to be consistent.

9. 5m: Exclusion.

1. Enemy Interference over Jacoby

If the enemy doubles 2N Pass and Redouble show the desire/hot desire to penalize the enemy by doubling their runout, probably 5-3-3-2 with cards outside of our major. If you don’t want to penalize them you bid as always.

If the enemy doubles a response to Jacoby we play in accordance with our general rules on enemy interference (page VIII-12, below), except that when opener bids 3Ê the enemy doubles, and responder redoubles (denying a control) opener uses the extra step the enemy gave us to break out the non-slammish with minor shortness responses:

10. 3Ë: Club control and Diamond shortness.

11. 3Ì: Club shortness.

12. 4M: No Club control.

If the enemy interferes over Jacoby by bidding a suit we show controls in their suit. However, given that all Jacoby auctions now start with 2Ê this is unlikely to come up except after 1M-2Ê-(Pass)-2Ë-(Double)-2N-(3Ë). MNEMONIC: We can’t make slam without a control in the enemy suit. Thus:

13. Double: Penalty.

14. Pass: No control in the enemy suit. Responder bids:

    1. Double: Penalty.

    2. 3M: Control in the enemy suit but nothing lower to cuebid. When responder could have bid 3M he bids:

       1. 3X (X<M): Courtesy cuebid with a control. With real slam interest he bids 3N, Serious.

       2. 4X, whether or not responder could have bid 3X: Help suit slam try.

    3. 3N: Serious with a control in the enemy suit.

    4. 4M: To play. Responder also doesn’t have a control in the enemy suit.

15. 3M: Control in the enemy suit; nothing else to say. Stronger than bidding 4M. When opener could have bid 3M he bids as responder does, above.

16. 3N: Serious with a control in the enemy suit.

17. 4M: Weak hand with a control in the enemy suit.