Our New System

Meg and I have recently switched over to a version of Transfer Precision, with some success. I thought I'd give you folks quick rundown on the system.

"Standard" Precision is a strong-club system with natural positive responses to 1C. With our version of Transfer Precision, we bid a strain other than what we have in order to have the stronger (and less defined) hand as declarer more often. Here's a quick rundown on our responses to the forcing 1C opening:

1C (16+HCP if unbalanced, 17+ if balanced; any shape)

• 1D = 0-7 HCP or 8+ with a 4441 shape (any singleton)
• 1H = 8+ HCP, 5+ spades
• 1S = 8+ HCP, 5+ hearts
• 1NT = 8+ HCP, 5+ clubs
• 2C = 8+ HCP, 5+ diamonds
• 2D = 8-13 HCP, balanced
• 2H, 2S, 3C, 3D = 4-6 HCP, six-card suit

All of these positive responses can be made on less than 8 HCP with a good enough reason. I'd certainly show a positive hand with

♠	AKTxxx
♥	xxx
♦	xx
♣	xx

or

♠	QJxxxx
♥	KTxxx
♦	x
♣	x.

Over partner's transfer positive, opener can bid the suit shown to show a fit and start a (short - for now) series of asking bids. Here's an example of our asks at work:

♠ A972 ♥ AKJ2 ♦ KT95 ♣ K

♠ K6 ♥ 8 ♦ A98643 ♣ AT94

1C - 2C;
2D - 3H;
3S - 4C;
4N - 5H;
7D - P.

1C = 16+, artificial
2C = 5+ diamonds, 8+ HCP (game force)
2D = Tell me more!
3H (sixth step)= Six-card suit with one of the top three honors
3S = Tell me more!
4D (third step)= Three controls outside diamonds (A=2, K=1; this must be the ace of clubs and king of spades)
4NT = Keycard ask in diamonds (eventually we'll use 4H for this, but we haven't gotten around to discussing all the ramifications of this yet); opener doesn't yet know if responder's suit is Axxxxx or Qxxxxx
5H = Two keycards without the queen of diamonds
7D = Six diamonds plus AK of the other three suits is twelve tricks... if partner has club length I can get a club ruff for the 13th. With my club shortness it makes it more likely that he has length there. Well, here goes -- I hope he has 3+ clubs or a major-suit queen!

How would you and your partner get to this 29 HCP grand slam?

A few defenses to Big Clubs

Last week I promised to talk a little bit about various defensive structures when the opponents open 1C strong, artificial, and forcing (as in Precision). I won't give an opinion on which I think you should play -- you need to find the right balance of preemption, fun, and memory work for your partnership. But whatever you choose to play, get in the auction!

The granddaddy (and simplest) of them all is Mathe. Invented by Lew Mathe several decades ago, it just goes like this:

When the opponents open a big club on your right or they open a big club on your left, partner passes, and they bid a "little diamond" on your right, double shows both majors, and one notrump shows both minors. That's all there is to it.

The first big club defense I learned was CRASH. This is a quick mnemonic for Color, RAnk, SHape. CRASH uses one more bid than Mathe: 1D. So it doesn't quite work over (1C!) P (1D!).

Playing CRASH, when the opponents open a strong club on your right,

• Double shows two suits of the same Color.
• One Diamond shows two suits of the same RAnk (minors or majors).
• One Notrump shows two suits of the same SHape (look at the tops: pointed [spades and diamonds] and rounded [clubs and hearts].)
• Anything else is natural.
  

I've also seen some pairs playing SHARC (SHApe, Rank, Color). This has no theoretical advantage to CRASH, but if you think it's a cooler acronym, definitely play it rather than CRASH!

When your partner makes a CRASH (or SHARC) bid, it's your job to preempt as high as you can. Much of the time you don't know that you have a fit, but sometimes you're assured of one. For example:

LHO opens a strong club, partner bids 1D (RAnk), and RHO passes. You hold:

AJ652 74 T9742 4

Since partner either has the minors or the majors, you know there's a big pointed-suit fit somewhere. So you bid... 3D! Partner has at least four cards in one pointy suit, so you have at least nine trumps somewhere. The three level shouldn't be too high. Partner will pass (or maybe raise!) holding both minors, and will correct to 3H holding both majors. You'll correct 3H to 3S, and you've found your fit and your level!

This is very important. Playing CRASH, SHARC, Suction [which I'll get to soon], or many other big club defenses, responder's actions are all pass or correct. So if you hold:

T4 J2 73 QT98532

and pard overcalls with 1NT (SHape), don't bid 3C! He'll correct to his cheapest suit (because he almost certainly has spades and diamonds). Start with 2C, and when partner corrects to 2D, he'll get the message that all you have is clubs when you rebid 3C.

Two Over One vs. Precision

I'm often asked, "what's better-- Precision or Two Over One?"

Well, there are good and bad parts of both, but in my opinion, Precision (or some other Big Club system) works better when the opponents stay out of the auction (or only come in at low levels), and Two Over One works better when the opponents bid a lot.

I have a suspicion that Standard American is stronger than 2/1 in very, very established partnerships, but 2/1 is certainly better for a partnership that plays 100 or fewer sessions per year together.

So I guess in a perfect world I'd play a Big Club when the opponents are vulnerable and 2/1 (or Standard) when they're not.

Stay tuned -- I'll be posting some of my favorite defenses to a Big Club, including:

• Mathe
• CRASH
• Wonder
• IDAK
• Suction
• Inverted Suction
• Inverted Psycho-Suction

...and any more that I can think of.