[Lesh18]

Hey guys

I have been following SAYC system recently and come across a slight problem:

SAYC says that opening bid of 1♠ = 13-20pts., 5+♠
and opening bid of 2♠ = 6-9pts., exactly 6x♠

If I have 11 or 12 points and 6x♠, what do I bid? Should I pass because it does not fulfill above criteria?

Thanks

[wank]

Well, most people on the forums follow the principle that if you're too good for a weak 2, you have enough to open at the 1 level. That's because noone plays their 1 openers as being 13+ - that style went out of fashion sometime before I was born.

Today it's normal to open all 12 counts and a lot of fairly mundane unbalanced 11s. It's not hard to call a 10 count with a 6 card suit to be equivalent of a mundane 11 and so open it at the 1-level.

[Lesh18]

I see, so weak of 2 is below 10? 0-10? Or do I need to have at least 2 high cards from the long suit?

I have been following the ACBL learn to play bridge programme, and they say I should have 13 points to open the bidding at 1-level.

[neilkaz]

Perhaps the ACBL program you're reading is counting distributional points for the opening bid, which I, like many others here, don't count. We do, of course, consider distribution, but I don't count pts for it initially, but just know that good distribution enhances the playing strength of the hand. I feel that 11 HCP hands with a 6 card suit should be opened at the 1 level unless there's major flaws with the hand and 12 HCP hands with 6 cards should always be opened 1. (This of course, is playing a standard system (not forcing club) and in 1st or 2nd seat).

It is a good idea to have a couple of honors in your long suit for a weak 2. Qxxxxx,Axx,xx,Kx doesn't look like a good weak 2♠ to me since your suit is weak (penalty could be severe) and since you have lots of strength outside the suit and PD could sac when the opps can't make. It is also possible to be set in 2♠ or worse yet 2♠X when the opps can't make anything. AQJTxx,xx,Qxx,xx would be a classic weak 2♠ opening.

A hand like AQJxxx,Q,Jxx,Jxx is 11 HCP, but flawed in that the stiff Q may be worthless, and noting that it has lots of Quacks (Q and J) which for suit play are overvalued in the point count and that it is posisble that neither minor suit J is useful. I'd not take issue with anyone who opened 2♠ with that shabby 11 HCP and 6♠. I would however, be upset if PD passed it and then said that it was too good to open 2 but not good enough to open 1.

[mgoetze]

Yes LTPB counts 1 length point for every card beyond the 4th in a suit.

[ArtK78]

The SAYC system book states that a weak 2 bid is 5-11 HCP.

While there are a number of references to a minimum opening bid being 13-15 HCP, I am sure that everyone would open 1 of a major with a 6 card suit and a 12 count.