Ingberman - Bidding After Opener’s Reverse
by Audrey Grant
S K 10 7 4
H J 4 3
D Q 5
C 9 6 5 4
Suppose you are in the East position with this hand and the auction begins:
West North East South
1D Pass 1S Pass
2H Pass ?
West's first two bids constitute a reverse. Opener has bid a suit at the two level that is higher‑ranking than the opener's original suit. To put the partnership back in the first suit, diamonds, you would have to go to the three level.
Since you could have as few as 6 points for the one‑level response and may have to go to the three level to put the partnership in its best trump fit, opener's reverse promises more than a minimum strength opening bid. Otherwise, the partnership could be at the three level with as few as 19 combined points.
Opener should have at least a medium‑strength hand, about 17 or 18 points, to reverse. The partnership will then have at least 23 or 24 combined points if it winds up at the three level.
Is a Reverse Forcing?
Can you pass opener's 2H bid with the above hand? It depends on the partnership style. The modern approach is that opener can reverse with either a medium or a maximum strength hand. To cover the possibility that opener has a hand worth about 19�?1 points, opener's reverse is forcing for one round. Responder is expected to bid again.
Not all partnerships subscribe to this style. If your partnership does not have the above agreement, you can pass opener's reverse when you feel there is no chance for game despite opener's extra strength.
Ingberman
If the partnership does treat opener's reverse as forcing, it needs to agree on how responder shows a weak hand. The partnership needs a way to stop in partscore when opener has only a medium‑strength hand. Monroe Ingberman of New York suggested the following agreement:
Here are some examples of this conventional agreement in action:
1. West East
S 5 S K 10 7 4
H A K 7 5 H J 4 3
D A K J 9 7 4 D Q 4
C 10 8 C 9 6 5 4
West North East South
1D Pass 1S Pass
2H Pass 2NT Pass
3D Pass Pass Pass
West's hand is worth 17 points ...15 high‑card points plus 2 length points ... enough to reverse. After West's 2H bid, East bids 2NT to show a minimum response with only four spades. West now rebids the diamond suit and East passes. West's reverse was only forcing for one round of the bidding. After the ‘negative�?2NT bid by responder, opener usually returns to the first bid suit, leaving the final choice of contract to responder.
2. West East
S 6 S 10 7 2
H A Q 8 H K 9 7 6 2
D A J 7 3 D 8 6 4
C A K 9 8 4 C Q 3
West North East South
1C Pass 1H Pass
2D Pass 2H Pass
4H Pass Pass Pass
Without the reverse available as a forcing bid, West would have a difficult choice of rebid after East scrapes up a 1H response. West doesn't want to raise hearts right away with three‑card support and a jump to 3D would use up a lot of bidding room and make the auction very awkward on most hands.
Over West's reverse, East is expected to make another bid. East can rebid hearts to show a five‑card suit without promising anything extra. Holding a maximum and assured now that the partnership has and eight‑card fit, West puts the partnership in game.
3. West East
S 7 4 S A K 8 3
H A Q 7 3 H K 9
D A 5 D 8 6 4
C A Q J 8 4 C K 9 7 2
West North East South
1C Pass 1S Pass
2H Pass 3C Pass
3D Pass 4NT Pass
5S Pass 6C Pass
Pass Pass
After West's reverse, East's immediate preference to 3C commits the partnership to at least game. With a weak hand, East would start with 2NT. The partnership now has lots of room left to explore the possibility of a slam, using cuebids and Blackwood as appropriate.
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