Golady 2♣ Response
Playing 2/1 as a Game Force, consider this hand:
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After a natural 1♥ and a 2-over-1 game-forcing 2♦ response, Opener,
lacking sufficient strength for a high level reverse, is likely to rebid
2♥.
Responder is now at a crossroads: Notrump, Hearts and Clubs are all
attractive options.
But only the latter will give the partnership any chance of
finding the 6♣ slam.
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Here, Opener does have the values for a high-level reverse.
After 1♥:2♦:3♣, Responder is very likely to run to 3NT to protect the Spade tenace.
Opener will not know about the Club fit.
The dilemma stems from the partnership's inability to settle on a minor-suit fit, and express slam interest (if any exists) before 3NT is passed.
Now let us consider:
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Should Responder go on ?
4♥ is surely minimal, but how
minimal ?
Minor-suit Queens instead of Jacks in Opener's hand would make slam a reasonable venture, but bad breaks might make even 5♥ risky.
Responder,
again, is at a crossroads; this time, due to the bidding level.
Now, it is the Golady 2♣ (game-forcing) Staymanic response to 1-of-a-suit that alleviates these problems and many others.
After a major-suit opening and a 2♣ reply,
Opener transfers into any suit at the two level
(with 2♠ showing Clubs, while 2NT showing
4 Diamonds, and 3♣ showing 5+ Diamonds),
jumps in a short suit if 3-suited (3NT, if short in Clubs).
After 1♥:2♣:,
Opener bids as follows:
2
| 5+ Hearts, 1-suited.
Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
2
| 4 Spades, 2-suited.
Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
2
| 4+ Clubs, 2-suited.
Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2NT | Exactly 4 Diamonds, 2-suited.
Allows 3  to ask for shortness.
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| 3
| 5+ Diamonds, 2-suited.
Allows 3 to ask for shortness.
|
| 3
| 4-5-0-4 distribution, 3-suited. |
| 3
| Warns of sub-minimal 1 Opener.
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| 3
| 0-5-4-4 distribution, 3-suited. |
| 3NT | 4-5-4-0 distribution, 3-suited. |
Meanwhile, after 1♠:2♣:
| 2
| 4+ Hearts, 2-suited.
Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2
| 5+ Spades, 1-suited.
Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2
| 4+ Clubs, 2-suited.
Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2NT | Exactly 4 Diamonds, 2-suited.
Allows 3 to ask for shortness.
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| 3
| 5+ Diamonds, 2-suited.
Allows 3 to ask for shortness.
|
| 3
| 5-4-0-4 distribution, 3-suited. |
| 3
| 5-0-4-4 distribution, 3-suited. |
| 3
| Warns of sub-minimal 1 Opener.
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| 3NT | 5-4-4-0 distribution, 3-suited. |
The 2-level rebids by Opener allow the partnership to settle on a trump fit at a suitably low level, leaving plenty of room for slam investigation.
Now let us return to our example hands:
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Opener should bid at the 4-level with a stronger hand. Responder's sequence, ending in 3NT here, implied signicant slam interest.
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The beauty of Golady is most evident,
when the partnership is able to settle on a major-suit trump fit at the 2-level.
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Using Golady, reverses (high-level or 2-level) do not promise any extra strength. Opener is already forced to game, and will have ample opportunity to show strength later on.
Golady needs very few adjustments to handle minor-suit openings.
For example, over 1♦:2♣:
| 2
| 4 Hearts. Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2
| 4 Spades. Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2
| 4+ Clubs. Allows 2NT to ask for shortness. |
| 2NT | 4+ Diamonds, 1-suited, no singleton/void.
3 now asks for lower
doubleton.
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| 3
| 6+ Diamonds, 1-suited, with a short suit.
Allows
3 to ask for the shortness.
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| 3
| 5-5 or better in the minors.
Allows 3 to ask for the shortness.
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| 3
| 3-suited, short in Hearts. |
| 3
| 3-suited, short in Spades. |
| 3NT | 3-suited, short in Clubs. |
| 1
| 3+ Diamonds. Opening strength. | |
| 2
| Artificial Game-Force. "Second suit ?". | |
| 2NT | 4+ Diamonds, 1-suited, no singleton or void. | |
| 3
| What is your lowest ranked doubleton ?" Now we may see: | |
| 3
| Doubleton Club. Could even be 2-2-7-2 ! | |
| 3
| Doubleton Heart. 2-2-6-3 or 3-2-5-3. | |
| 3
| Doubleton Spade. 2-3-5-3. | |
| 3NT | No doubleton. Hence, 3-3-4-3. |
So, what if Responder has only five-card suits, and is not interested in hearing about 4-carders from Opener ?
Simple: Holding 12+ HCPs, Responder forces game by bidding a suit at the two level — regardless of whether or not this constitutes a jump shift.
1♠:2♥ reveals 12+ HCPs, not 10+ HCPs, and 1♦:2♥, promises 12+ HCPs (not 16+). Both guarantee 5+ Hearts. Opener will only introduce a new suit (e.g., 1♦:2♥:3♣), in case it, too, is 5+ cards long. Responder describes Club 1-suiters by responding 2♣ and rebidding 3♣.
Opposite a jump shift in a major (e.g., 1♦:2♠), Opener will tend to bid 2NT with TWO card support for Responder's long major, raising it with 3+card support.
Lacking such support, Opener will rebid the 1st suit or, with 3+ card support for any of the unbids, bid the unbid major.
| 1
| 3+ Diamonds. Opening strength. | |
| 2
| Natural Game-Force. 5+ Hearts, 12+ HCPs. Now we may see: | |
| 2
| Support for any suit but Hearts. 0-1 Heart. | |
| 2NT | Implies 2-card Heart support. | |
| 3
| 5+ Clubs. | |
| 3
| 5+ Diamonds, denies 5+ Clubs, implies 0-1 Heart. | |
| 3
| 3+ card Heart support. |
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Opener's 2NT call, implying 2-card Spade support,
allows Responder to accept the slam-invitational
Cuebid 4.
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Here, Opener's 3♦ call, implying 0 or 1 Spade, warns Responder (lacking the critical ♠J) to decline the slam-invitational Cuebid 4♣. At the same time, though, it did allow Opener to make such a forward-going 4♣ Cuebid despite the lack of Spade support (in case Responder has a truly solid suit).
Thus, without a lot of relaying or complication, Golady allows the partnership to uncover Opener's distribution and strength, long before the game level is passed.
As is often the case, this information is most useful within a structure such as Precision, where the opening bid defines Opener's strength.
The transfer sequences allow Responder, the "hidden" (and always unlimited) hand, to play most of the 4-4 fits.
There is one final advantage:
if you use 2-level suit responses for all
game-forcing hands, you may decide to
play 1-over-1 non-forcing !
Even elegant slam bidding does not compare to the satisfaction
of chalking up +80 for making 1♠
after 1♦:1♠:PASS,
while the rest of the field registers their –50s and –100s
in 2♠, down one.
On to
McGuinty Over 1NT article.
On to
Defensive Doubles article.
On to
Colin's Bridge Page
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