Jump Bids

(Courtesy of Bob Crosby)

The original inventors of Bridge thought that it was a good idea that jumping in a suit should be "quantitative", in other words, show more then average HCP's and definitely better than making a simple rebid. This concept applies with rebids, overcalls, responses to take out doubles, balances, jump rebids after 2/1 and jump rebid responses. Modern bidding is an "approach forcing" system. What does this mean? This means that whenever responder bids a new suit, it is forcing. Before "approach forcing" became in vogue, you had to jump to force. Strong jump shifts by responder, strong jump preferences and jumps after 2/1 bidding were needed to force and show a good hand.

The modern style means jumps or fast arrival to game should mean something altogether different from strength. In a 2/1 auction, since it is forcing to game, a jump in a suit does not show strength but suit quality. I like to generalize and play all jumps in a suit to show good suit quality rather than strength. Jumps to a new suit in a 2/1 auction are splinters. Jumps to 3NT show specifically hands that evaluate to a strong NT. Fast arrival to game in a cue-bidding auction or otherwise says I have nothing extra but more importantly, I lack a control to cuebid.

We disagree with the strict adherence that jumping should be quantitative and show a good hand with HCP's in all Bridge auctions. As Garozzo says "Bridge is a game of suits ". Suit quality and length are far more important attributes to show than HCP's for partner to make an informed decision. Taking each situation in turn.

A jump rebid according to standard methods is invitational 16-18 HCP. I think a better way of handling those one suited major suit hands at the top level of HCP's is a 3C rebid which always forces partner to bid 3D. You now bid 3H/S which says I have lots of points but my suit is not so good. This leaves 3NT or other game contracts possible.

The suit could be good but not necessarily as you might have leapt to 4 of a major after the 3D relay. I think the direct 3S jump should just show a good or long suit with a good opener.

SAKQxxx HAxx Dxx Cxx is a 3S rebid not a 2S rebid as is SAJ109xxx HAQ10 DQx Cx. Suit quality and length are more important hand evaluation concepts than HCP's for a jump rebid. If you do have a good suit with 16-18 HCP. I feel it is too strong for an invitational bid anyway. There are other rebids other than a jump to show invitational hands with HCP's. Bid a 3 card minor for instance with invitational values in HCP's but lacking good suit quality.

With opening bids and the opponents in the auction, jumps especially should not be strong in the HCP sense. You have the double to show HCP's with defense and the cuebid to show a fit. Allow jump bids to show distribution and good suits. Goren and standard bidders do not have it quite right in my opinion. They over emphasize HCP's at the expense of suit quality and distribution. Standard bidding is for HCP "bean counters".

1S Pass 1NT Pass
4S*

* 4S is a silly way to show a 20 HCP spade hand.

1D Pass 1S Pass
4S*

* 4S here is also a silly way to show 20 HCP's with a fit. Jumps are "fast arrival" so it should show distribution or a long suit. Since you are pre-empting partner, you are not interested in slam.

With overcalls you have many other choices (belated doubles or cuebids) to show good hands. Jumps should always be suit and length orientated.

1D 1S Dbl Pass
2D 3S

The 3S jump bid hand should not show HCP strength but playing strength SAKJ1098 Hxx DAxxx Cx. If you have more HCP, you should overcall and double to show the strength.

Jumps in the balancing seat show intermediate hands with good suits not a HCP showing bid.

1D Pass Pass 2H*

* 2H with Sxxx HAKQxxx DQ109 Cx is a 2H balance. If you are stronger in HCP's with that suit, double and bid hearts. A 3H balance is length and distribution so describes a hand that you would like to bid 4H but you need some help from partner.

If partner has bid 2/1 or 4th suit forcing a jump rebid to show HCP's is a waste of time and bidding space. Your jump should show a good suit but not necessarily extra HCP's.

SAKQJxx HKxx Dxx Cxx is a 3S rebid after a 2/1, Ditto for 4th suit forcing auctions.

With the minors, we like the fact that a jump rebid is quantitative 16-18 but you have an extra inference with which to work. A rebid of 3NT shows the solid suit with a good opener so a jump rebid in the minors cannot show a good solid suit! 2NT openers and 2NT rebids quite often can have a hand with a long minor too good to rebid 3 of a minor or 3NT.

Jump rebids by responder should be suit orientated, In fact, recovering the strong jump shift in this manner makes the jump a very useful bid.

1C Pass 1D Pass
1S Pass 3D*

* 3D shows a solid suit with a game force. Ditto for jumps by responder in her suit after a 1NT rebid. Erase the notion that jumps in a suit shows HCP but rather they show a good long suit with values. This will clarify many many auctions. HCP's are very over rated when compared to suit quality and length.

My partner used this understanding recently with a good defensive hand. He held SAQx Hx DKxxx CAKxxx against the Cabays. He opened 1C, Stan bid 1H which I doubled. Lisa bid 2S which shows hearts and a singleton club in their system. Partner doubles showing a strong defensive hand rather that an offensive suit oriented hand. They bid 3H, pass around to partner who now bids 4D which I pass as I have some idea of the nature of his hand. We gain 12 IMPS as everybody is in 5D doubled for -800 or -500. We play jump shift reverses as 6-5 so if he had a distributional hand at the top range he would have jumped to 4D. Reserve jumps for suits and distribution and leave doubles for HCP's.

The hand evaluation concept that doubles show HCP's with defensive strength and jumps show suits and distribution should define your bidding. Doubles are flexible and jumps to show suits or distribution paint a better picture of your hand. Ambiguity is horrible in the game of Bridge and jumps to show either a good hand with HCP's or a good suit with distribution cannot co-exist. Jumps showing HCP's are virtually eliminated from my system. The double has replaced jumps to show a defensive hand with HCP's.

Here is a hand that lost a knockout match in a 4 board overtime recently.

2H Pass Pass 3S

The jump in the balancing chair shows a good distributional hand. Partner's choice is to play a suit contract as she did not double first and then bid spades leaving the door open for NT or an alternative contract. So what do you bid with responder's hand Sxx HQ987 H10xxx CKQJ? You should not be fixated on your own hand as partner's intentions are to play a suit contract in spades. Why should you over rule her? You bid 4S and win the match (620) rather than 3NT (-200) and lose the match.

In a 2/1 or 4th suit forcing auctions, a jump is redundant as we are forced to game anyway. A jump in these situations means I have a semi-solid or solid suit not necessarily a huge hand. In overcall situations, you have so many other ways to describe a good hand, cue-bidding or doubling gets the job done nicely.

Jumps after overcalling should have a different meaning than HCP strength. If you jump in your suit it shows a good long suit but not the worlds fair in HCP's. If you jump in another suit, you have a distributional 6-5 but not necessarily great HCP strength.

Maurice had a hand in the CNTC zone finals where the vulnerability dictated a jump to describe his hand and made it easy for his partner to bid a non vulnerable sacrifice.

Maurice held SAKQ107 Hx DJ CQ109xxx when the opponents opened 1D vulnerable. Maurice overcalled 2C which was passed to the opener who bid 2H. This is a time for a jump bid so partner can get an idea of the playing strength of your hand. You bid 3S so when they get to 4H partner has an easy sacrifice to 4S which happens to make. Partner had Sxxx HAx Dxxxxx CJxx and with partner only bidding 2S thought there might be enough defense over there to have a chance at beating 4H. Partner could have held a strong 5-4 in the blacks and 4H would have no chance. Wrong! Double game swing for a loss of 17 IMPS!

There are many situations where you can jump because partner had a negative inference on what you did not do. If you did not redouble or double the opponents NT contract for penalty, a jump cannot be a strong hand.

You hold Sx HAJxxx DKQ10x CJ10x.

Partner opens a diamond and RHO doubles. You bid 1H, partner bids 2D who RHO doubles again. You have an easy redouble which describes your strength. What if you now jumped to 4D instead? This has to be weak and pre-emptive as you did not redouble. You are taking advantage of the situation.

　　　　

Two very common situations with jump bidding take place around the takeout double. The auction goes 1 of a suit, partner doubles and they bid 1NT. A jump bid is now pre-emptive as you would have doubled 1NT with your good hand.

1S Dbl 1NT 3D*

* 3D is weak and distributional.

Another common occurrence around takeout doubles is when the opponents redouble your partner's takeout double. There are not enough HCP's around for your jump to mean strength. If you have the distribution, you can make a nuisance of yourself.

　　　　

Rump raises to 4 of a minor is never done on strength as you have passed 3NT and you have much better bids to describe HCP strength. Even the old standby of opening a major and then jumping in a major, I am playing suit orientated rather than strength orientated.

1S Pass 1NT Pass
3S*

* I could hold SAKQ109x HAxx Dxx Clubxx for that bid.

If I were stronger, I would bid 3C and partner must relay to 3D and the 3S bid now shows a stronger hand in HCP's.

　　　　

Overcalls and competitive situations along with D.S.I.P. doubles, spell the end of the notion that jumps show HCP strength. You have other bids to show strength so define jump bids for something more useful. Tom Gandolfo uses jumps in competition to show two suiters and distribution rather than HCP's. Maurice uses jumps after an overcall to show good long suits rather than HCP's. Adjust your thinking away from the standard notion that jumps show HCP's. It is a waste of a good bid which can be put to good use.

Anyway, the moral of the story is jumps for suits and distribution when there are other means available to show strength.

　　　　

Jump Cuebids

There are not enough bids in Bridge to describe solid suits. The Gambling 3NT opening or overcall is a good descriptive bid. If opened, there is a solid suit with no outside controls. If overcalled there is a solid suit with a stopper in the opponents suit. What are some other bids that show solid suits? At unfavourable vulnerability (vulnerable vs non-vulnerable) a normal pre-empt shows a solid or semi-solid suit or else bidding to the 3 level would be suicidal against non-vulnerable opponents.

What if you had a solid suit but no stopper in the opponents suit? This is where the jump cuebid comes into play. In the balancing, director sandwich position, a jump Q shows a solid suit and asks partner to bid 3NT if he holds a stopper in that suit. Partner can have outside cards for this bid and quite often does. If you do not have a stopper in that suit and a natural major to bid, you can introduce that suit. The reason is that you are forced to the 4 level anyway so you might as well describe your hand along the way.

The jump cuebid is extremely helpful in making your takeout doubles disciplined so Equal Level Conversion can work. You never make a takeout double with a very strong single suiter if you can help it. Not making a takeout double with a single suited hand at any level makes the Equal Level Conversion concept work better. With the Equal Level Conversion concept, when you double and convert partner’s bid at the same level, a 2nd suit is shown. At the one level make very strong overcalls with one suited hands to make Equal Level Conversion work. If the rank of the suits force you to the 2 level or higher and you have defensive strength with many HCP’s (no solid suit), rules are made to be broken. You make a takeout double and when partner makes a bid you convert or jump to a higher level. This shows a single suited hand too strong to overcall at the two level but without a solid suit. Same idea with the rare double with a single suited hand you could have bid at the one level. If game might be missed, double and convert at a higher level by jumping. You have the added inference your suit is not solid or you would have chosen a jump cuebid.

　　　　

SAx HAQ DAKx CQJ1098x, they open 1S.

Overcalling 2C with this hand is ludicrous bidding. You double and partner bids 2D. You bid 3C which is at a higher level so you show the strong single suited hand without a solid suit. If they had opened 1H and partner responds 1S after your double, you simply bid 2C as you never make an Equal Level Conversion double of one major without the other one. If your club suit were solid with this many HCP’s, choose a jump cuebid rather than a double Sxx HAQ DAxx CAKQJ10x. Bridge is a game of suits so use tools to show solid suits!

　　　　

Part of this jump cuebid treatment for strong one suiters is to play “coded minors” to show controls in responder's hand. Since you are not playing this hand in 3NT and are forced to the 4 level in a minor anyway (sometimes even a major) the lower ranking minor shows zero or one controls and the higher ranking minor 2 or more controls. This assists the jump Q bidder in making a game or slam decision. It is like a “pre Blackwood” so sets the stage for partner to use Blackwood.

1S 3S Pass ?

Sxxx HAxxxx Dxxx Cxx. You bid 4D to show your 2 controls so partner with Sx HKx DAKQJxxxx CKx bids 5D or even Blackwood. Over 4C showing zero controls he just retreats to 4D.

When the opponents open a weak 2 bid, a cuebid at the 3 level follows the same one suiter principles directly or in the balancing. Bid 3NT with a stopper but if you do not have a stopper show your controls via coded minors.

Showing a solid suit is the best way to get to 3NT. The auction goes:

1H Pass 1S ?

You are in the sandwich position with SQJx Hx DAKQJxxx CJx. You have a choice of jump cuebids. Make a jump cuebid in the suit that you require the stopper so partner will bid 3NT, The make quite often or end up being a cheap sacrifice. In the balancing spot, the jump cuebid can be a very good hand with 9 tricks available, if partner has a stopper in openers suit. Vulnerability dictates how close to 9 tricks the jump cue bidder has. If favourable vulnerability, the jump cue bidder can just be describing a solid suit for pre-emptive reasons. At unfavourable vulnerability, there is usually 9 tricks available if partner has a stopper in the opponents suit.

If partner has initially bid a suit, the opponents have bid a suit, a jump cuebid is of course a splinter.

1D 1H 3H*

* 3H is a singleton heart, If we had wanted to grope for 3NT, the Western cuebid would be used after making a natural bid of some sort.

The THRUMP double or the western cuebid double is another way of showing a solid suit.

1H 3S Dbl

With Sx Hxx DAKQJ10xx CJxx. The 3NT double (Thrump) invented by Bergen asks partner to bid 3NT with a spade stopper. A 4D bid with these hands is lame by driving you to an 11 trick contract going down when 3NT is cold.

Bridge is a game of suits, A solid long minor equates to excellent 3NT games making. The more bids you have that describe solid or semi-solid suits the better off the partnership will be. Sometimes the opponents open with you holding a long solid major too strong to pre-empt to 4 of a major. Having a jump cuebid as natural in a major is a waste of a good bid. You need a bid to describe a super jump to game in a major.

I held SAKQ1098xxx Hx DKQx Cvoid, they opened 1C. Leaping to 4S pre-emptive is a silly bid and a takeout double is worse. You bid 3C, partner bids 3NT. You bid 4S so that describes a NAMYATS type 4S bid. If partner shows controls instead of bidding 3NT, you may be off to a spade slam.

What are jump cuebids after a takeout double either at the one level or two level? The same thing as the bid describes a solid suit somewhere. Experts add a wrinkle that the jump cuebid denies a control in the bid suit. 1S by the opponents, you double with SAx HQJxx Dxxx CAKxx. Partner holds Sxx HAx DAKQJ10x CQJx so she bids 3S. Partner bids 3NT with a stopper so you try 6NT.