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Opening 3 Level Bids
For opening 3 level bids (sometimes referred to as a ‘weak freak’ hand) you should have: A good (with at least two honors), long (7 card) suit, no ace or king in any other suit, no 4 card major (especially true if partner has not yet passed for their turn), and a singleton or a void in a side suit
Options with a 7 card suit?
An opening Three-Bid, called a pre-empt, shows a weak hand that could take five or more tricks if your suit is trumps, but it is unlikely to win tricks if any of the other suits are trumps.
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Preemptive Bids at the Level of 3
1. If the preemptive bid is in a Major suit, then the preemptive bid shows that you have no interest in the other Major suit.
2. If in a Minor suit, then the preemptive bid generally shows no significant (4 cards) holdings in either of the Major suits.
3. If the preempt is an overcall after an opposition opening at the one level, it should be at least one level higher and in a higher-ranking suit than the openers bid.
4. If the overcall comes after an opening bid at the one level and is in a lower-ranking suit, then the preemptive bid should be at least two levels higher.
5. Pre-empts describe a hand which has with enough suit length to justify the level of the pre-emptive bid, but also must not have enough TP’s for a 1 Level opening bid.
6. Think carefully about your vulnerability, opposition vulnerability, and also the number of losing tricks before bidding.
7. The honor strength of your points should be in the pre-emptive suit bid.
Your Hand
- ♠T 7 6
- ♥-
- ♦K 4 2
- ♣QJT8754
Open 3♣ as you have 6 HCP but you have a good 7 card suit (remember good = 2 honor cards) and five winners in clubs
Practice Game for this lesson (members only)
