Another convention that we have met briefly before - this one lets you set up a game force, and at the same time gives partner the scope to show useful information, in situations where opener rebids a second suit.
Penelope has opened 1♣ and rebid 1♠ after Walter’s response. What should Walter bid now?
Walter has a game forcing hand. By bidding the fourth suit, he is able to communicate that to his partner, and at the same time leave lots of room for her to tell him more about her hand.
Carrying on that same auction, what should Penelope bid now?
Penelope has consulted her mental checklist and remembered that her first priority is to show three cards in partner's first bid suit. She has three hearts, so she shows that by bidding hearts at the lowest available level. There is no need to take up space by going to 3♥, as they are in a game forced auction.
In that same auction, if Penelope had this hand instead, what should she bid?
Having run through her checklist, Penelope can see that she does not have the number one thing - three cards in partner’s suit, so she moves on to number two: Do I have a stop in the fourth suit? Her KJ of diamonds is certainly a stop, especially as the lead will come into her hand in a NT contract now, so she can confidently bid 2NT
This time, Penelope has opened 1♦ and rebid 1♠. Walter’s 2♣ bid is fourth suit forcing. What should Penelope bid now?
Here, Penelope has neither three cards in partner's first suit, nor a stop in the fourth suit (Qx is not a stop because both cards would fall under the opponents' A and K , leaving her with no clubs). She bids her first suit again to let Walter know the position. Note that it won't be clear to Walter whether or not she has extra length in diamonds (6,4,2,1 shape for example) or not, because sometimes opener just has to repeat their first suit if they have nothing else to show.
Carrying on that same auction, you can now see Walter’s hand. What should he bid?
Walter would obviously have liked to hear a 2♥ bid from Penelope after his fourth suit forcing bid, which would have made 4♥ a very good contract. As it is, however, he can see that they have no major suit fit but they do have stops in every suit. Penelope has denied a club stop but Walter has one, so they should play in NT. He bids NT now to tell Penelope that he is not worried about clubs. With the hand she has, she will raise to 3NT. There is no need for Walter to jump straight to 3NT, as they are forced to game anyhow and if Penelope had a very strong and shapely hand she might want to show that by bidding more diamonds.
Same auction again, but Walter has a slightly different hand. What should he bid this time?
Walter knows now that neither side of the partnership has a club stop, so playing in NT is not an option - the opponents could take a bunch of club tricks and defeat the contract. They also have no major suit fit but they do have a fit in diamonds (Penelope is known to have five when she rebids a second suit, showing an unbalanced hand). In the absence of other options, playing in diamonds is now their best bet, so he confirms this by bidding 3♦. Penelope can raise to 5♦ with a minimum hand (as she would here) or bid 4♦ if she had a stronger hand and interest in slam.
The links will take you to the Bridge Training website, where you can have a go at bidding and responding to Fourth Suit Focing. You will then be able to play the hands and see if you can make your contract. Have as many goes as you like if you don’t succeed the first time.
We met this convention briefly when we were looking at responder’s second bid. It’s worth looking at in more detail, though, as it’s really helpful any time opener has shown a balanced hand with their rebid, and that’s a pretty common occurrence.
Walter has a pretty nice hand here, with his partner having opened the bidding. He knows they belong in game, but what is his best bid at this point?
Walter has a game forcing hand and would probably be fine in 3NT. However, if Penelope has three spades, then 4♠ will be a much better contract. She would not have been able to show three card spade support with her rebid, because from her perspective, Walter might only have four spades. Walter can bid 2♣ as Checkback fo find out whether Penelope has either four hearts (which he is not interested in on this occasion) or three spades, which he is keen to hear. He can't go straight to four spades because Penelope might only have two spades in her balanced hand.
In this auction, we are looking at things from opener’s perspective. What should Penelope bid now?
Walter's 2♣ bid is checkback, asking about Penelope's major suit holdings. She should show the lower-ranking of three cards in partner's suit or four cards in the other major. So if she had four hearts she would bid 2♥. She doesn't, but she does have three cards in Walter's suit, so she shows that by bidding 2♠.
Back to Walter, as responder now. In this auction, he has bid checkback after Penelope’s 1NT rebid. What should he bid now that he has seen her response to that enquiry?
Penelope's 2♦ bid says that she has neither three cards in Walter's major nor four cards in hearts (the other major). Walter now knows that they do not have a major suit fit but they definitely have enough points for game, so he should bid 3NT. 2NT would show only an invitational hand.
How should Penelope respond to Walter’s checkback enquiry here?
Penelope has three very nice cards in Walter's first bid suit but she also has four hearts. She should show the lower-ranking of the two things first, so she must bid 2♥.
Carrying on the same auction, Walter has now bid 2NT. What should Penelope bid next?
When Walter bid checkback, he might have had five spades and four hearts in his hand, and been looking for a fit in either major. When he does not raise hearts after Penelope shows four of them, this is no longer possible. He did bid checkback though, so he must have been looking for three spades. She should therefore show her three spades by bidding 3♠. Walter’s 2NT shows an invitational hand, rather than a game forcing one, so she should not jump to game.
Walter has responded to Penelope’s opening bid by showing his longer major - spades. He does also have four hearts in his hand. What should he bid now?
Walter's hand is weak. In order to bid 2♣ checkback, he should have at least an invitational hand. Here, he can just bid 2♥ and Penelope will know that a) he has five spades and 4+ hearts (with 4-4 in the majors he would have responded 1♥ 'four on the floor') and b) that he has fewer than 10 points because with a better hand and this shape he would have bid checkback.
The links will take you to the Bridge Training website, where you can have a go at bidding and responding to Checkback Stayman. You will then be able to play the hands and see if you can make your contract. Have as many goes as you like if you don’t succeed the first time.
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