Jannersten Precision Asking Bids

contributed by Alice_B_Bare

Jannersten Asking Bids apply in Precision 1C auctions. Opener's rebids are not necessarily descriptive but instead ask responder for information about Controls, trump support , or side-suit holdings. In fact, any rebid opener makes is an Asking Bid, except when responder has made a negative response and opener then makes a nonjump suit rebid or a notrump rebid. A major advantage to Jannersten Asking Bids is the ability to seek needed information from partner while disclosing little to the opponents about the strong hand.

 

ALPHA 1C - 1H/1S/1NT -2C/2D

nonjump in new suit ... support and Controls

BETA 1C - 1H/1S -1NT ...Controls

GAMMA 1C - 1H/1S/2C/2D raise = support

DELTA 1C - 1H/1S/1NT/2C/2D -jump in new suit top suit honors and side-suit aces

EPSILON after any ask .. new suit..round controls (1st,2nd,3rd)

ZETA 1C - 1D -jump in major support and controls

After a response to Precision 1C, opener chooses which information to elicit from partner (controls, trump support, etc) by selecting the appropriate Asking Bid. The various Asking Bids are defined below and are followed by examples of usage.

Alpha question: After a 1c opening and a positive response, opener shows a suit and wants a reply on the alpha scale. He is asking about p's trump support, and how many Controls (Ace=2, King=1) he can provide.

Alpha scale :

Beta-question: (Controls) When partner responds 1h or 1s to the 1c opening, a rebid of 1nt from opener is the beta-question. The 1nt rebid asks east to show the number of controls held. With no more than 2 controls, east goes just one step, to 2c, 2d shows 3 controls and so on.

Gamma-question: This is the normal precison trump asking bid:( tell me about your suit!) WestEast 1c1s 2s The 2 spade raise asks about east's trump holding. East responds in steps:

Opener may delay the Gamma Ask until the third round of bidding. Delayed raise of responder's major is also a Gamma Ask. A repeated gamma question means that West wants the trump holding clarified.

Delta-question: After the positive response opener makes a jump bid in a new suit which, as the beta-question does, asks for the number pf top controls. WestEast 1c1s 3d After east's positive response, west sets diamonds as trump and asking for Controls.

Epsilon-question: Used after an alpha or a gamma-question. eg WestEast 1c1h 2h (gamma)2nt (1 top honour 3c (controls in clubs) West started with a gamma-question, 2h. After having learned that east has got one top honour in a 5 card heart suit west, by bidding a new suit, asks for controls in clubs, either ruffing or honour.

Another epsilon-question: WestEast 1c1h 1s(alpha) 2d (3 to the queen) 3c(controls in clubs) After the positive response to the 1c opening. west uses an alpha question, the answer to which shows at least 3 to the spade queen and at the most 3 controls, an ace and a king, or 3 kings. He continues with an epsilon question of 3c to ask for control in that suit.

Zeta-question: With a very strong hand, the player who has opened 1c may choose to force by jumping after a negative 1d response. If he makes the jump in a major it is an alpha-ask, and if he jumps in a minor suit, he is asking for the auction to continue with natural bidding. When opener is so strong that, despite the negative response, he can make a game force, it will be because he has one or 2-suited hand. If he jumps to 2h/2s, he is asking for clarification of the precise trump support he will get. A special table is used for this, so let's call this trump support zeta - westest 1c1d 2h Responder has denied a positive hand. Opener's 2h asks only about heart support (and not at the same time for control control strength, as alpha does). East gives information on the following scale :

Eta-question: This has much in common with the gamma, as it asks about the trump situation. It is only used after the impossible negative (dont need to go into this )

Theta-question: An alpha-question after a beta needs a special scale of answers and this kind is called theta. WestEast 1c1s 1nt2c 2h After east's positive response to the 1c opening, west asks with beta for top controls. He continues with theta to ask for heart support. You may, at the start, have difficulty in remembering which is which of these asking bids. As an aide memoire, alpha is the cheapest possible question (eg. 1s after a 1h response), beta is the next cheapest, 1nt., gamma the next, supporting partners suit, delta is a jump in a new suit and epsilon is not used earlier than as a 2nd asking bid. Zeta appears a response of 1d, and eta is used after the imposible-negative only

THE ALPHA QUESTION Having opened 1c and gotten a positive reply of 1h/1s/1nt/2c/2d, opener, by showing a suit at the lowest level, asks the alpha question. He is asking for support in his suit as well as for top controls. (2c on the 1nt reply is asking for majors and in this situation 3c is the alpha question) West wants to know what sort of heart support east can provide and east replies by way of the following table:

Here is an example of alpha at its best spades-a-k-j-10-4-2q-7-3 hearts-j-8-6-5-3 diama-q-j-3k-2 clubsq-8-3a-k-6 westeast 1c1h (positive) alpha1s2h (Qxx with 4 Controls) epsilon3c4c (5 steps - AK) 4d4nt (3 steps -2nd round control) 5d5s(2 steps -has Kx) 5nt6d 7spass After 1C-1S, West's 1s is the alpha-question. East, with queen to 3 spades, has trump support and also 4 controls, (1 ace and 2 kings) He shows his holding by going up four steps to 2h. West now knows that spades will make an excellent trump suit, and it it is not solid, only a trump void in the south hand will give the defence a trump trick.

THE BETA-QUESTION (Controls) Having opened 1c and got a positive reply of 1h/s or 1nt from opener asks the beta question, which is for top tricks, aces and kings. egWestEast 1c1h 1nt West is not showing a balanced hand but asks how many controls East has got, counting and ace as 2 and a king as 1. 1. After having got the answer, West can continue with either an alpha (theta) or a gamma asking bid. In case responder, with his first bid, made it impossible for opener to use 1nt as a betaquestion, 4c is now being used for this purpose. WestEast 1c2d 2s3s 4c (beta controls As east has responded at the two level, west cannot ask with 1nt to find out about top controls. He, therefore, starts with an alpha question. East gives th best possible answer by going 5 steps, showing at least a top honour to four and at least four controls. West now checks how many controls west actually has with 4c.

THE GAMMA-QUESTION Often the gamma-question is not used until the 3rd round. Before that opener wants to get a general view of high cards, so he starts with a beta-question: spadesAk74 heartsk-j-6-3-q-9-8-5-2 diamsa-k-j-5-2q-4 clubsk-q-3a-5-2 westeast 1c1h beta1nt2d (3 controls ) gamma2h2nt which ones 3h3s (2 only) epsilon4d4s (2 steps- 3rd round control) 5d5s 6ntpasss That east has a positive response including biddable hearts suits west very well. There is no hurry to find out with a gamma-question just what sort of heart suit it is so, whilst he has the opportunity, west checks east's number of top controls by using a beta question.

THE DELTA QUESTION: a jump in a new suit asks for top honours in the suit and,at the same time, for information about side-suit aces. westeast 1c2c 3d

THE EPSILON QUESTION: If opener later returns to a suit in which he has previously asked an epsilon question he is asking for extra lower controls. Responder shows his extra controls, if any, on the following scale/ 1 step- not more than already shown 2 steps- also a 3rd round control (the first answer having shown 1st or 2nd) 3 steps- also a second round control (the 1st answer having shown the first round control