When the opponents have already opened the bidding, your bidding strategy is different to that in an uncontested auction. You are not necessarily expecting to win the contract, but by entering a competitive auction you may disrupt the opponents’ bidding space and force them up to a higher level than they would wish.
It can also provide your partner with useful information about which suits to lead in defence.
5.1 Suit Overcalls
Simple overcall at the 1 level
Example: 1H – 1S
Requires a good 5 card suit with 8 to about 15 pts.
Partner’s responses are:
- With a weak hand & support for partner's suit: Single raise with 3 to an honour. Double raise with 4 card support. Triple raise with 5 card support.
- Bid a new suit at the same level with a good 5/6 carder
- Bid 1NT (10 - 12 pts), 2NT (13 - 15) or 3NT (16 - 18), i.e. 3 or 4 pts stronger than normal
Simple overcall at the 2 level
Example: 1H – 2C
Requires a good 5 card suit with 12 to about 16 pts (or 10/11 pts with a 6 card suit)
Partner’s responses are:
- With a weak hand & support for partner's suit: Pass with 3 to an honour. Single raise with 4 card support. Double raise with 5 card support.
- Bid a new suit at the same level with a good 5/6 carder
- Bid 2NT (10 - 12 pts) or 3NT (13 - 15)
Jump overcall of a suit at 1 level higher than necessary
- At the 2 level (e.g. 1D – 2S). Requires a good 6 card suit with 11 - 15 pts
- At the 3 level (e.g. 1S – 3H). Requires a good 6 card suit with 12 - 16 pts
Partner can raise with 2 card support, otherwise a pass is the most likely bid.
Pre-emptive overcall of a suit at 2 levels higher than necessary
Examples: 1H – 3S or 1S – 4H
Requires a 7 card suit or longer with less than 10 pts.
Responses are similar to those after a pre-emptive opening bid (see 3.8).
1NT overcall
- 16 – 18 pts, balanced with 2 stoppers in opponent’s suit
Responses are similar to a 1NT opening, but require 4 points fewer.
5.2 Take-Out Double
A take-out double (as opposed to a penalty double) after the opponents have bid one or more suits typically has:
- 12+ pts (or 9 - 11 with ‘distribution’ if previously passed) and a shortage in one of opponents’ suits.
- If opponents have bid 1 suit: at least 3 cards in all unbid suits.
- If opponents have bid 2 suits: at least 4 cards in all unbid suits.
A take-out double asks partner to ‘take you out’ into their best suit. Partner must respond unless:
- They have a strong hand with length & strength in opponent’s suit and want to convert it to a penalty double, or
- The opponents make an intervening bid
Base responses on the assumption that partner has 13 pts with 4-4-4-1 distribution (10 pts if previously passed). Bid as many of your best suit as you think you can jointly make. Alternatively, with 2 stops in opponents’ suit bid 1NT (6 - 9 pts), 2NT (10 - 12) or 3NT (13 - 15).
Responses after opponents’ Take-Out Double
- Pass with 0 – 5 pts.
- Re-double with 10+ points and a shortage in partner's suit. Suggests anything opponents bid should be doubled.
- With 4 card support for partner's suit, raise pre-emptively (1 level higher than normal), i.e.
0 – 5 pts, raise 1 level
6 – 9 pts, raise 2 levels
10 + pts, bid 2NT. If left hand opponent passes, partner will raise the suit to the 3 or 4 level. - Bid 1NT with 6 - 9 pts and 2 or 3 card support for partner's suit.
- Change suit with 6 - 10 pts (a 1 round force). It is important to show a 4 card Major at the 1 level.
- Jump in a new suit with 12+ pts and a good 6 card suit. Game forcing.
Double of opponents’ 1 No Trumps opening bid
A double after the opponents have opened 1 No Trumps is for penalties, not take-out. With Balanced Hands you should hold at least a good 16 points (plenty of intermediates or a 5 card suit) over a ‘Weak No Trump’ (12 – 14pts) and at least 18 points over a ‘Strong No Trump’ (15 – 17pts).
5.3 Balancing (Protective Bidding)
Balancing is a technique that should only be used by more experienced players and with prior agreement with partner.
You are in the ‘Balancing Position’ when your left hand opponent opens the bidding and that is followed by 2 passes. In these circumstances the opener should have no more than 19 pts (or he would have made a 2 level bid) and his partner no more than 5 pts (otherwise he would have responded with a 1 level bid), making a combined 24 pts maximum.
Statistically it is more likely that both pairs have around 20 pts each, i.e. the points for both sides are more or less balanced. If you have less than a normal opening bid it is likely that your partner has enough points for an opening bid but was not able to find a suitable bid over the opponent’s opening bid.
Passing in the Balancing Position is giving the opponents an easy time. By bidding you hope to steal a contract that would otherwise have been missed, or push the opponents end up at a level where they are likely to go down, or just stop them from reaching Game with a part score in Rubber Bridge.
When decided whether to bid in the Balancing Position, you should use the ‘Theory of the Deferred King’. Imagine that your hand contains an extra 3 points (a King borrowed from partner) and bid accordingly. Partner will deduct the 3 points from their own hand before bidding.
If a partnership uses Balancing, the bidding guidelines are modified as follows:
- A simple suit overcall at the 1 level with 6+ pts and a reasonable quality 5 card suit
- A simple suit overcall at the 2 level with 8+ pts and a good quality 5 card suit
- A jump suit overcall with a 6 card suit and 7+ playing tricks (probably ~ 15 pts)
- Double with the usual shape (see 5.2) and 9+ pts
- 1 No Trumps with 11 – 14 pts and at least 1 stopper in opponents’ suit
- 2 No Trumps with 19 – 22 pts and 2 stoppers in opponents’ suit
- With a balanced 15 – 18 pts, Double and bid No Trumps at the lowest level next time round
Note: in rubber bridge beware of what appears to be a balancing situation which is actually opponents stopping at the 1 level because that is all they need for Game.