Balancing at the One Level

I. Definition of the Word BALANCING

The term balancing means taking a bid other than Pass after two preceding passes. In other words, balancing is an attempt to prevent the opponents from playing the hand. For example,

1 Pass Pass        and it is your bid

Saying Pass here would be the final decision of the auction, while bidding means there have to be at least 3 more bids. You’d better be right to pass!

II. BALANCING WHEN ONE OF A SUIT IS PASSED TO YOU

When the auction proceeds one of a suit , two passes to you, what do you know about the hand? Well, that opener has 13+ points and responder has 0-5, so your side could possibly have 26 points. Partner’s failure to bid suggests no five card suit and not a hand suitable for a take-out double or a bid of 1NT. Partner could hold 13 or 14 points when there was no descriptive bid for her hand. For example, when they opened in her best suit. Let?s look at an example hand you might hold in the pass-out seat.

1 Pass Pass and you hold:

AQ4 K6 K632 J765

This hand has 13 balanced points. We have no suit to bid and do not have support for all unbid suits, so can’t make a take-out double. So do we have to pass? No, that would silly, we could still have a game. Therefore in balancing chair, we use the bid of 1NT to show any balanced hand of less than 16 points (less than a medium hand) that is worth reopening on (roughly 10-15).

*Modern players who use Michaels, prefer to use that convention in balancing seat as well.

We can reopen with double whenever we have support for all the unbid suits and 10+ high card points. Finally we can bid one of a suit with a four card suit and a hand worth reopening.

Do we always reopen with 10+ points? Well, the main danger is giving opener a second bid which will put them in a better contract. Look at your major suit holding(s). Reopen actively when they’ve been left in one of a major. Think twice about it when they are in one of a minor (usually not their best spot), and you are not short in their suit.

Exercise 1: What do you do after 1 Pass Pass with the following hands? And what about after 1 Pass Pass?

A	B.	C.	D.	E.
AKJ2	KJ3	QJ4	J107	QJ5
65	84	QJ2	K865	Q842
873	Q753	K9742	KQ4	65
Q865	K824	98	J98	KJ84
Pts ______	Pts ______	Pts ______	Pts ______	Pts ______
1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______
1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______

III. Responding when Partner Reopens

Warning, when your partner reopens, 13-14 points are only worth a game invitation !! This means that as responder you would bid your hand naturally, but play partner for a King less than an opener when deciding how high to bid. In other words, subtract 3 points from your hand before deciding if you are minimum, medium, or maximum. Conversely, partner should rebid as if there were a King more in their hand.

Use the cue-bid of the opponent?s suit when you have a very good hand and need to know more about partner’s hand. Bid 2NT with a good 12 to a poor 14 point hand that thinks the most likely game is 3NT. Otherwise respond as if to an opening bid or a normal take out double, after subtracting the three points.

Exercise 2: What do you do after 1 Pass Pass 1 and a Pass back to you, when you hold the following hands? And what do you do after partner reopens with 1NT? Finally how about if partner doubles?

A	B.	C.	D.	E.
Q1092	Q97	62	K62	432
KJ5	652	AK872	3	843
AQ75	AKJ53	K974	KQ1074	65
42	K8	98	AJ98	AQJ84
Pts ______	Pts ______	Pts ______	Pts ______	Pts ______
1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______	1 ? ______
1NT? ______	1NT? ______	1NT? ______	1NT? ______	1NT? ______
Dbl? ______	Dbl? ______	Dbl? ______	Dbl? ______	Dbl? ______

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