Sometimes you have a hand so strong that if you opened at the 1‑level you would be scared that partner would pass and you might miss a game (or a slam!). These types of hands need a forcing opening bid. In the early days of bridge, all 2‑level openings showed strong hands. (These were known as “Strong Twos.”) Because these hands come up so rarely, our bridge ancestors decided to condense them all into one strong, artificial and forcing bid (2♣), leaving the other 2‑level suit openings for more common hands (like Weak-2s.)

 

The 2♣ opening bid is a necessity for handling incredibly strong hands, but it should be avoided whenever possible. Having a strong hand is exciting, but 2♣ auctions are often burdensome, and you should not go out of your way to employ this bid if you have another viable choice. Experts open 2♣ as infrequently as possible. It starts the auction at the 2‑level, leaving less room to find a fit and investigate slam. This violates our guiding principle of constructive bidding: Keep the auction low with good hands. Also, because the bid is artificial it makes us more susceptible to preemption and gives the opponents the opportunity for a lead-directing double.

 

What Does a 2♣ Opening Look Like?

 

2♣ openings are not just about HCP – the goal is to avoid missing a game when partner has a weak hand that would pass an opening 1‑level bid. So the general definition of a 2♣ opening hand is one where there are plenty of hands partner could have that would pass a 1-bid (i.e., a queen or two) but game is a good shot. Usually you will have 22+ HCP, but you can have less with shapely hands. Generally, you will have a hand that is within a trick or so of game. Some examples:

 

♠ AKQT873 ♥ —  ♦ AQ2 ♣ KQJ. A monster 21 HCP. Game is very likely opposite 0 points from partner. (If you don’t lose any spades, you’ll lose at most 1 club and 2 diamonds.) Give partner the ♦ K and a couple spades and you’ll usually make a slam.

 

♠ AKQJ3 ♥ AKQJ6 ♦ 54 ♣ A. If partner has a fit in either suit, game is basically cold, even opposite 0 HCP.

 

 

The 2♣ opening is used with strong balanced hands as well – hands that are too strong for a 2NT opening bid (i.e., 22+). Opening 2♣ and rebidding 2NT shows 22-24 HCP. Jumping to 3NT is 25+.

 

Example: ♠ KQ65 ♥ AK8 ♦ AQJ7 ♣ A4.

 

Notrump Systems (i.e., Stayman and Transfers) are on after a 2♣ opener rebids in NT, just as if opener had opened 2NT. (eg., 2♣‑2♦; 2NT‑3♣ is Stayman.)

 

I would estimate that of my 2♣ openers, 90% are balanced, 8% are one-suited, and 2% are two- or three-suited.

 

 

Hands That Should Not Open 2♣

 

• Hands with very little defensive value generally should not be opened 2♣. For example:

♠ AKQJ87652 ♥ 3 ♦ 65 ♣ 3

 

Yes, you have 9 tricks in spades, so you are technically within a trick and a half of game. But a 2♣ opening bid is a distortion, and partner will often get you too high. Best just to open this 4♠ (or open 1♠ and rebid 4♠).

 

• Two-suited hands often are harder to bid if you start with 2♣.

A 2♣ opening bid starts the auction a level higher, which can make getting both of your suits in difficult. For example, if you hold ♠ AKJ65 ♥ 3 ♦ AK ♣ KQJ65 and open 2♣, guess what’s going to happen: you’ll show your spades, and then partner will probably bid 3♥ or 3♦. Now what? You can’t bid your second suit without going past 3NT. A better option is to open 1♠ and jump-shift to 3♣.

 

When you have a distributional hand, usually other people at the table will also have a distributional hand, including the opponents. The likelihood that the opponents are distributional decreases the chances that a 1‑level opening will get passed out, which makes a 1‑level opening with a very strong hand safer.

 

 

Before you decide to open 2♣, you should always make a plan for the remainder of the auction. Obviously things don’t always go as you expect, but 90% of the time partner is going to respond 2♦, so you should at the very least have your next bid planned out, and preferably the bid after that as well. If planning either of these bids causes you problems, you need to consider another opening bid.

 

 

Very strong 4441 hands are notoriously difficult to bid. Consider a hand like ♠ AKQ2 ♥ KQ65 ♦ AKJ3 ♣ 7. Most people will count 22 HCP and reflexively open 2♣. Partner responds 2♦ and now they start to think. Nothing fits. A 2M or 3♦ bid promises a 5+ card suit. 2NT shows a balanced hand. One way or another, you have to lie.

 

The better option is to anticipate this problem and open 1♦. It’s unlikely this will get passed out, and if it does, it might not be terrible. When partner responds 1M, you’re in fine position to make a 4♣ splinter.

 

If the hand were even stronger – say ♠ AKQ6 ♥ AKQJ ♦ AKJ4 ♣ 7 – you are too likely to miss a game if you open 1♦, so you have to open 2♣ and rebid either 2♥ or 2NT (I would opt for 2NT) and hope.

 

 

 

Responding to a 2♣ Opening Bid

 

First, it’s important to remember that the 2♣ bid is FORCING. Opener usually does not have clubs! No matter how bad your hand, you need to bid.

 

Most of the time, you will respond 2♦, which is an artificial waiting bid, designed to give your partner with the strong hand as much room as possible. Remember, opener has a plan for the auction after his 2♣ opening, so you want to stay out of his way.

 

Example: ♠ Q9843 ♥ J3 ♦ 8743 ♣ K5

 

 

When you have a horrible hand – less than two queens – you need to let partner know: if they need a little help from you for a game, you don’t have it! The standard method is to start with 2♦ and then make an artificial negative bid at your next call. If partner bids 2M, this artificial negative bid is 3♣. This bid is alertable.

 

My preference is to use an immediate 2♥ response as the artificial negative bid. This bid is alertable.

 

Example: ♠ 32 ♥ J65 ♦ 87653♣ 982

 

If playing the 2♥ Bust, responder’s 2♦ response becomes game forcing. This can significantly ease the auction. Now opener doesn’t have to jump to 3NT with a balanced hand with 25 HCP, so you can use all your 2NT systems.

 

If you’re going to play the ♥ Bust, I strongly recommend also using the Parrish Convention.

 

 

Occasionally, you will have a good hand (relatively) and a good suit, in which case you will make a natural positive response by bidding your suit. To make this bid, you need at least 8 HCP and a 5‑card or longer suit headed by two of the top three honors. (i.e. AK, AQ or KQ) Example: ♠ KQT54 ♥ 62 ♦ A875 ♣ 43 – respond 2♠. Remember that 2♥ already has a meaning (bust hand); with a positive response with hearts, bid 2NT (alertable.).

 

 

Opener’s Rebid

 

You made a plan before you opened 2♣, so you should have your next bid prepared, at least when partner bids the expected 2♦. Any time the 2♣ opener bids a new suit it is forcing, and if playing the 2♥ bust, responder’s 2♦ bid creates an immediate game force. Bidding a suit is natural (at least 5). Without any 5‑card suits, rebid in NT – remember that NT Systems are on. If opener jumps (eg., 2♣‑2♦; 3♠), this sets trumps and asks responder to control bid. You must have a very good hand and excellent suit (at most 1 loser opposite a void) to make this bid. Example: ♠ AKQJ953 ♥ 65 ♦ AK ♣ AK

 

Responder’s Rebid

 

Remember that if you responded 2♦, you are in a GF. If you responded 2♥, any new suit opener bids is forcing for one round.

 

• Raising Partner

If you responded 2♦, Fast Arrival applies because you are in a GF. So jumping straight to game (eg. 2♣‑2♦; 2♠‑4♠) is weaker than a simple raise (2♣‑2♦; 2♠‑3♠). A jump in a new suit is a splinter.

 

If you responded 2♥, jumping to game is stronger than the simple raise, which partner can pass. (eg. 2♣‑2♥; 2♠‑3♠ shows a very bad hand with a spade fit; 2♣‑2♥;2♠‑4♠ shows a decent hand (given that you have shown a bust already – so probably a queen and some shape) with a fit.) Again, a jump in a new suit is a splinter.

 

• Without a Fit

When you don’t have a fit for partner, bid naturally. Usually a new suit shows at least 5, though sometimes you have to bid a 4‑card suit because you don’t want to have the weak hand declaring NT. Remember that a jump in a new suit is a splinter.

 

 

In Competition

 

Usually you won’t get too much interference after a 2♣ opening – opener does have a very strong hand after all, making it dangerous for the opponents to intervene. But sometimes those pesky opponents do have the right sort of hand and open their mouths.

 

The system to play here can be summed up with a simple mnemonic: Pass is Positive. When the opponents intervene, passing shows some values – a hand that would force to game with 2♦. Doubling or redoubling shows a bust – a hand that would bid 2♥. Bids of new suits are natural and show some values; they do not necessarily promise as good a suit as they would without interference.

 

The Parrish Convention

 

There are flaws to the 2♥ bust bid, as there are flaws to everything. It can wrong-side heart contracts, it gives the opponents an artificial bid to double for a lead, it can preempt the auction. But most importantly, it can confuse the rest of the auction unless you have good agreements. Is opener’s next bid forcing? Sometimes they want it to be – they might have game in their own hand – but sometimes they have a minimum 2♣ opening and want to sign off.

 

Enter the Parrish Convention! Since sometimes opener wants to make a forcing bid and sometimes a weak bid, we need to give them two ways to make their bids. The solution is to use 2♠ as a relay. A relay is an artificial bid that forces partner to simply bid the next suit. In this case, responder will bid 2NT. It is different from a transfer is two ways. 1. After a transfer, partner is not forced to bid the next suit – you can super-accept. This is because 2. A transfer shows a suit; a relay does not.

 

What is the point of this relay? It maximizes space in the auction and gives opener two ways to make all bids at the 3-level: either bidding them directly or first going through the 2♠ relay. For example, say opener wants to bid 3♣. They now have two ways to do it:

 

2♣       2♥                    2♣       2♥

3♣                               2♠        2NT

                                    3♣

 

The direct way is forcing to game, the slower way (going through the relay) is weaker and can be passed. So if your hand is:

 

♠ A8 ♥ AQ ♦ KQ7 ♣ AQJ983

 

You would want to sign off in 3♣ opposite a bust partner, so you would bid 2♠ and then 3♣. If instead your hand were:

 

♠ AQ ♥ AK ♦ AK7 ♣ AKQ873

 

You would want to force to game and even contemplate a slam, so you would bid 3♣ directly, which is GF.

 

The Parrish Convention is a little complicated, but if you want to use the 2♥ bust, it’s really a must-have. And once you get the hang of it, you’ll have an easy transition to other conventions that utilize a relay, like Lebensohl.