WEAK PREEMPTS

Sometimes, even though no one else has opened (often when you are dealer or in second seat), you will look at a hand with fewer than 12 HCP but find that it has other strengths.

2-level preempts:

Hands with 6-card suits, other than clubs, and 5 to 11 HCP may be opened at the two level. This takes away some of that precious bidding space from your opponents and prevents them from finding a contract that is higher than what you and your partner will bid and one that will probably make. If you have 5 HCP, each of the other hands will average close to 12 HCP, so your opponents will average about 24 HCP between them while you and your partner will probably only have 16. They have chances for a game in a major or no trump, but how will they find it if they have lost all of the one level and part or all of the two level?

Think about the Rule of Twenty. You may come across hands with 10 or 11 HCP and suit length that, when added up, suggest you should open at the one level. Under those conditions, use your best judgement. Generally it is better to open a suit at the one level when possible, but if your suit doesn't have at least one of the top three honors, opening a 10- or 11-point hand at the one level under the Rule of Twenty is a risky proposition. Such hands are better left to weak 2 bids, provided you have a 6-card suit (with seven or more cards, you can have a little more flexibility in one-level openings). Also, when you make a weak opening bid, don't bid again unless your partner asks or forces you to.

You may open any suit except clubs as a weak 2. The reason that there is no weak 2C bid is that the 2C bid is reserved for an exceptional hand when weak 2 bids are part of your partnership agreement. We'll get to that later. For now, suffice it to say that the above guidelines are a useful way of getting into the bidding more often, and (usually) very safely while simultaneously disrupting your opponents' plans.

3-level preempts:

Hands with 7-card suits and 0 to 9 HCP may be opened at the three level. This is crippling to your opponents' bidding opportunities, and it almost guarantees a 9-card fit with your partner (you have seven, so six are divided among the other three hands, including your partner's).

4-level preempts:

Any hand with an 8-card or longer suit should be opened at the four level. There are exceptions for strong hands (use about 15 HCP as a guideline, assuming you have some a reasonable honor holding in your suit). You have your 8-card fit without needing anything from your partner. If you have 15 or more HCP, you almost certainly have the points for game, and that's when conserving space is more important than preempting your opponents. At that point, you are liklely to reach game, and you don't want to miss slam opportunities if they are available. With these stronger hands with long suits, open at the one level and jump-rebid when your turn comes around again. In some cases, you may note that this falls under the 9-trick quideline for exceptional hands, so consider that option as well.