Limit Raises

(Don't play them myself)

by: WillReich_77

However, I think weak jump shifts in a well thought out system are a perfectly acceptable approach. I have seen disasters from WJS but only because the player(s) in question misused the system. My partners and I play all of our three level JS as one kind of convention or other. We play two-level JS as showing a two-over-one strength hand, not necessarily any more, with a great suit of our own or support for opener's suit or both. A recent example was AJXXXX - AX - KQXX - X. I responded 2S to partner's 1D bid, seduced by the fit and controls. Partner rebid 2NT which indicated 15+ HCP and a balanced hand and inferred at least four Diamonds (he would only bid a three card Diamond suit with exactly 4 - 4 - 3 - 2 and he would have then raised Spades). So I went to 3D. Partner bid 4D which we play as RKC in this sequence and we

ended up int 7D. Partner had: KX - KXX - AJXXX - AXX and the contract was cold, despite a bad Spade break. He pulled trump in three rounds and ruffed out the Spades with two ruffs. Dummy still had a trump entry and he could claim. The most common contract was 6S down one on the bad break. I am sure the contract should be reached playing strong notrumps and even playing weak jump shifts but it usually wasn't.

Bill Reich