Balanced Hands 1

If you have no voids, no singletons, and no more than one doubleton, then your hand is a balanced hand.  There are three possible suit distributions that fit this description: 4-3-3-3, 4-3-3-2, and 5-3-3-2.  All of these hands are bid in a similar manner (some people bid 5-3-3-2 differently if the 5 card suit is a major).  Your goal is to tell your partner what your point range is within 3 points and tell partner that you have a balanced hand all within your first two bids.

To do this:

If you have a balanced hand with 15-17 points, open 1NT.

If you have a balanced hand and 13-14 points, open one of some suit (usually your longest minor) and then rebid the cheapest NT if you haven't found a fit.

If you have a balanced hand and 18-19 points, open one of some suit (again, usually your longest minor) and then rebid NT one level above the cheapest possible (without passing 3NT)

For example, look at my hand (East) in the following diagram.



I was dealer and held 15 points and had a balanced hand.  Accordingly I opened 1NT.  This tells my partner  a lot about my hand.  West knows that I have 15-17 points, and at least 2 cards in each suit.  So we are guaranteed at least a 7 card fit in hearts, with a fairly decent chance at an 8 card fit.  West decided that 2H would be a better contract than 1NT, so West used a convention called Jacoby transfers.  He bid 2D, asking me to bid 2H.  I did, and then everybody passed.

At the table, I was the beneficiary of a defensive error, so I made 2H (it should go down 1 at least) and as a result we got a top.  While we can't count on opponent errors regularly, 2H down 1 would tie for a top as well.

What would have changed if my hand were slightly different?  Suppose my KH were actually a QH.  Then I would have 14 hcp, so I would bid 1D planning to bid 1NT over my partners response of a major.  I would rebid 2NT if my partner responds 2C.  I would pass if my partner bid 1NT.

On the other hand, if my 10S were the AS, I would have 19 hcp, so I would bid 1D planning to jump in NT.  I would bid 2NT if my partner bid 1H or 1S.  I would bid 3NT if my partner bid 2C (or 2D actually).  I would bid 2NT if my partner bid 1NT (one level higher than in the 14 hcp case).

Both of these leave partner well placed to decide where we should play.  Of course, with the actual hand, West will pass so I won't get another bid (assuming, probably incorrectly, that the opponents don't bid).

The moral:  If you have a balanced hand, tell your partner.  Narrow down your point range so partner can make a good decision as to where to place the contract.  There are various systems that you can use over these balanced hand openers, but the actual system is less important than simply describing your hand.

Some notes:  When your partner opens 1NT, you should announce the agreed range of your partnerships 1NT bid.  For example, when I opened 1NT above, my partner said, "15 to 17."  Some partnerships use different ranges (12-14 and 16-18 are probably the most common alternative ranges).  While I won't say much about Jacoby transfers here, they also come with an announcement.  When West bid 2D, I said, "transfer," to let the opponents know that the 2D bid does not mean West has diamonds.

Some pairs choose to open 1 of a major with a balanced hand and a 5 card major.  Some choose to open 1NT anyway.  There are arguments on both sides of this issue, and conventions that you can add to help improve either choice.  What is important is that you agree on a partnership style.