Weak Opening

SAYC

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Preface

  SAYC (Standard American Yellow Card)
  1. Introduction
  2. Bidding Hierarchy
  3. Determine Opening Bid
  4. Opening Bid Options
  5. Scoring Structure
  6. Bidding Strategy

  Statistics

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Open 1 Level

Open 1 Level
   Open 1 ♠
   Open 1 ♥
       Open 1 NT
           Open Better Minor
               Open 1 ♦
               Open 1 ♣

Opening Bid & Table Position

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Respond to 1 Suit Openings

   Guidelines for Responses
         Support Suit (Distribution Points)
         Propose Suit (1-over-1 Restriction)
  • Respond to 1 ♠
  • Respond to 1 ♥
  • Respond to 1 ♦
  • Respond to 1 ♣
Opener's Next Bid (Bid 3)
   Responder Supports the Bid Suit
   Responder Proposes a New Suit

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Respond to 1 NT

Respond to 1 NT
    Transfers (1NT)
       Stayman (1NT)
          No 4-card Major (1NT)
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Transfer Convention
Stayman Convention

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Weak Bids

Weak Opening Bids
• 6-card suit           2 ♦ 2 ♥ 2 ♠
• 7-card suit 3 ♣ 3 ♦ 3 ♥ 3 ♠
• 8-card suit                   4 ♥ 4 ♠
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Respond to Weak Openings
  • Respond to         2 ♦ 2 ♥ 2 ♠
  • Respond to 3 ♣ 3 ♦ 3 ♥ 3 ♠
  • Respond to                  4 ♥ 4 ♠

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Strong 2 ♣

Open 2 ♣
Respond to 2 ♣
  • 2-Diamond Waiting (SAYC)
  • 3-Point Step (Social Bridge)
  • 2-Diamond Bust (Social Bridge)

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Strong NT Bids

Open 2 NT or 3 NT

Responses

Respond to 2 NT
    Transfers (2NT)
       Stayman (2NT)
          4-card Major (2NT)
Respond to 3 NT
    Transfers (3NT)
       Stayman (3NT)
          No 4-card Major (3NT)

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Other Bids

• Jacoby 2 NT
• Slam (Blackwood & Gerber)
• Overcalls
• Doubles
• Balancing

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Taking Tricks

• Leads on Defense
• Leads on Offense
• Finessing a Tenace

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Practice

• Open 1 Level
• Responses to 1 Suit Openings
• Open 1 NT (14 Examples)
• Open 1 NT (16 Examples)
• Responses to 2 ♣ Opening
• Overcalls

Practice Websites

   • SAYC Bidding Practice
   • Trickster
   • Bridge Base On Line

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Duplicate

Duplicate Protocol
Duplicate Scoring
1. Contract Points Scoring
2. Match Points Scoring

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Downloads

• SAYC Summary
• Open 1-Level Bids
• Respond 1-Suit Opening
• 1 NT Openings & Responses
• Responses to Weak Openings
• Responses to 2 Club Openings
• Handout Duplicate Bridge Contract Points

Weak Opening Bids

Yellow Card Bidding System Mantra
    ● First, determine which suit to play - then determine the contract level to play.
    ● Try to play a contract in the following priority:
           1) Play a MAJOR suit contract.
           2) Play a NO TRUMP contract.
           3) Play a MINOR suit contract as a last resort.

Weak opening bids have less than 12 HCPs (9 to 11 HCPs) and a long suit (6, 7, or 8 cards). These are preemptive, defensive bids that make it difficult for the opposition to bid. The weak opener tells the partner which suit is preferred for a contract. Most weak opening bids are gambles. Factors to consider:
    • Suit Strength: 5+HCPs in the opened long suit - CRITICAL ! The majority of the points must be in the opened suit.
    • Suit Length: 6, 7, or 8 cards long.
    • Suit Texture: prefer a 4+card sequence at the top of the opened suit - want as few gaps between the top cards as possible (the number of holes between the highest cards).
    • Position at the Table:
          • Preferred position is seat 3 (after seats 1 and 2 PASS).
          • Next preferred position is seat 1 (the opener).
          • If sitting in seat 4 after 3 PASSs, do not make a higher level preemptive bid - who are you preempting?

Opening Weak 2's

Opening a suit at the 2-level reduces the bidding room which makes it more difficult for the opposition to communicate with each other.

Opening Preempt 3

Opening a suit at the 3-level significantly reduces the bidding room which makes it more difficult for the opposition to communicate with each other.

Opening Weak 4

Opening a suit at the 4-level eliminates the bidding room for the opposition. The opposition's next bid must be a game level bid.

3/26/2025

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