Major Suit Raises

Reverse Bergen Raises

Marty Bergen developed this set of bidding rules based on the ideas found in The Law of Total Tricks.  The essence is that if you are in a competitive auction and have a nine card fit in a major, you should never sell out for less than the three level regardless of the strength of your hand.  Like a lot of conventional bids, usage has shown that the original idea, although a good one, needed to be modified.  Thus the Reverse Bergen Raise.

Here are the rules for Reverse Bergen Raises when your partner opens one of a major and you hold four card support:

• Jump bid to 3   10+ HCP         Limit raise or better
• Jump bid to 3    6-9 HCP         Simple raise
• Jump raise           0-5 HCP         Preemptive raise

The reverse is in the meaning of the 3 clubs and 3 diamonds. Originally three clubs was a simple raise showing 6-9 HCP, but most players today agree that bidding three diamonds instead has more preemptive power.   Also, using three clubs for the stronger raise provides extra bidding room if the opening bidder wants to use "Help Suit Game Try" and ask about diamonds.

These bids remove the old strong jump-shift by responder, but modern players prefer to have bids available for the more frequent hands such as those described above.  These bids also follow the Principle of Fast Arrival, the idea that if you know where you are going, get there as fast as possible to preclude any action by the opponents.  Of course, an immediate jump-shift in the other major is still available for whatever purpose the partnership wants to use, and some people are using it as a weak bid while others treat it as a strong jump.   See the excellent discussion by Mike Savage where he describes Paul Soloway's strong jump shifts.  Anyway, it's your choice.

Soloway Jump Shifts

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Three-Card Raises
So how does one handle a hand with only three card support and a limit raise?   Part of the answer depends on whether or not you play a response of 1NT as forcing or not.

1NT Not Forcing
If 1NT is not forcing in your partnership and partner opens the bidding with a major, then responder must bid a minor at the two level.   It really doesn't matter which one, nor the length nor quality of the suit.   (It's just to create a forcing auction.)   The next bid will be a jump to the three level showing a limit raise but without four card support.

1NT Forcing
The majority of bridge players today play 1NT as a forcing bid.  If you do, then you can respond with that bid followed by a jump in partner's major.  This shows a limit raise, but only three card support.

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What About a Hand With More Than a Limit Raise?

One of the great features of the Forcing Club system is knowing that when partner opens, her hand is limited to 15 points.  That means you can jump to game without worrying about missing slam when you also have an opening hand.  You don't have to wait for that "weak freak" hand which has five-card support for partner's major.

Baby Blackwood
But sometimes you have a wonderful hand in support of partner's opening bid and you want to look for a slam.  It's nice to be able to ask for aces at a low level, so you can use 3NT, Baby Blackwood, if the number of aces in your partner's hand is the informaton you need.

Jacoby Two Notrump
You can also use a convention where a 2NT response is an opening hand with four card support.   Opener uses agreed upon rebids as shown below.

Rebids by Opener After Partner's 2NT Response

1.	Jumping to game shows a minimum hand with no interest in slam.
2.	Rebidding the major at the three level is a maximum hand, but no singleton.
3.	Responding in a new suit shows a singleton or void in that suit.
4.	Bidding 3NT is also a maximum hand with no singleton, and should be Baby Blackwood.
5.	Jumping in a new suit should be discussed.  Perhaps a second four-card suit?

Unlimited 3 Response
And yet another way is to decide that the Bergen 3 bid is not limited to 12 points, but can be any hand with 10+ points.  When opener tries to sign off at the three level, showing a minimum hand, responder can bid again.   Your agreement might be that this second bid shows a five-card suit as well as the promised four-card support.  Opener should consider it as a very mild slam try.

The Inverted Major Raise
Usually a simple and immediate raise shows about 6-10 points, but it can also be used as a game forcing bid and as a Control Asking Bid.  It's an Inverted Major Suit Raise.  Partner uses step rebids to show the number of controls in her hand and responder decides the final contract.

A simple raise is Game Forcing and asks opener how many controls she has.

If you have the hand with 6-10 points and three card support, start with 1NT, a forcing bid, and at your next turn give your partner a simple raise in her major.

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