Dubious Logic

Fourth Suit Forcing (1)

Bridge players and conventions – now there's an odd state of affairs. When the game is first learnt the universal teaching approach is to decry any conventional treatment at all. Perhaps more accurately, any artificial device is avoided: if you name the suit, you have it. Simple as that. Except it soon becomes less simple; sometime a bid demands a reply, sometimes they tell you to pass. The beginner soon learns that he must bid when partner responds two diamonds to his one heart but not after two diamonds to one no-trump.

As a player develops it becomes almost a badge of honour to accumulate conventions. First Stayman, then Blackwood, transfers, Gerber, Michaels – the list rapidly lengthens. What makes these treatments popular is the simplicity of recognising them; Stayman is always two clubs after one no-trump, Blackwood every four no-trump bid and so on. Except there are always wrinkles; if someone doubles your one no-trump is partner's two clubs Stayman? If you overcall one no-trump and next hand passes, is Stayman still available? (For reference, without prior agreement, respectively; no – you need to play in clubs sometimes – and yes, finding a major fit is still important.) But Stayman is easy compared to the veritable minefield of Blackwood.

Over the summer months while the competition scene is quieter, I'm taking a look at a few common bidding treatments that don't have straightforward rules. Conventions that mean, or require, different things in different circumstances. I would like to get started on fourth suit forcing (FSF).

Like almost all conventions, you have to give something up and you can live without it. Let's have an example:

If you hold (A) you will be glad 'everything is natural'; you can bid two hearts, perhaps even three if you think partner may pass. However, with (B) you have something of a problem. There are many more hands of the B-type. I'm sure you noticed that the honours have been taken from hearts and re-distributed and there are many ways of doing that. However, as West is very unlikely to have four hearts here, it is only when East has five that a heart fit is a real possibility.

Accordingly, bidding theory rapidly evolved FSF. You can bid two hearts on (B) – we'll see what happens to (A) later. There is an element of 'it does what it says on the tin'; it's fourth suit, and it's forcing – both players will continue to show their hands as they are guaranteed another chance - but what does it show?

The easiest way to think about a bid like two hearts above is that it shows the values for two no-trump but without a heart stopper.

We'll see how the auction develops in the next article on this theme.

Published Saturday 19.Jul.2008