Test your knowledge
Transfers after 1NT
- Question 1
(of 15 on this page)
What is a the main point of a "Transfer" bid?
1. To help your relationship blossom
2. To help to choose between either NT or a Major suit
3. To help to get to game successfully after a 1NT opening
4. To keep the complex or powerful hand hidden from the enemy
5. To keep the bidding low when it needs to be low
6. Most of these reasons
7. All of these reasons
8. None of these reasons
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- Answer 1
(of 15 on this page)
What is a the main point of a "Transfer" bid?
( 7 ). All of these reasons
It's a very powerful system! It also fits very well with Stayman. (By the way, a quick side questions for you to think about over dinner: if you have TWO long Majors (Hearts and Spades), one being a 5-card suit and the other a 4-card suit, should you respond with "Stayman" or "Transfer" bids after a 1NT opening?).
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- Question 2
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and your partner responded 2H.You have this 13-HCP 8.5-loser hand
A K 7
J 4 2
Q J 6 3
Q 10 7
How can you tell if your partner was using Transfers, in effect commanding you to bid spades? (Or did she actually mean she was long in Hearts?)1. She is sophisticated
2. You discussed it in the pub beforehand
3. It's something you always do
4. The look in her eye
5. The enemy asked what the bid meant
6. No idea
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- Answer 2
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and your partner responded 2H.You have this 13-HCP 8.5-loser hand
( 2 ). You discussed it in the pub beforehand A K 7 J 4 2 Q J 6 3 Q 10 7
How can you tell if your partner was using Transfers, in effect commanding you to bid spades? (Or did she actually mean she was long in Hearts?)
This is one of those things that you have to have pre-agreed whenever you play with someone for the first time. And if the opposition ask, you must tell them that your partner's bid was a "transfer", requesting that you then bid one rank higher.
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- Question 3
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 5-HCP 9-loser hand
7 A 10 9 8 2 J 4 2 8 6 5 4
What should you now bid?1. pass
2. 2 clubs
3. 2 diamonds
4. 2 hearts
5. 2 spades
6. 2 NT
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- Answer 3
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 5-HCP 9-loser hand
( 3 ). 2 diamonds 7 A 10 9 8 2 J 4 2 8 6 5 4
What should you now bid?
Your team only has a total of 17-19 HCP between you. So the enemy, having 21-23, is notably stronger than you.
So you'll probably go down.
But it's worse! You've only got one Spade in your hand, and it's very weak, AND your partner has only guaranteed 2 of them from his bid, with maybe 5 of them at the VERY best. So the enemy have 7 to 10 spades between them, and on a bad day could easily make 6 quick tricks in Spades before they exploit your other various weaknesses.
If you stay in No Trumps, it will usually be unpleasant. So tell your partner to bid 2 Hearts, not by winking at him, but by bidding 2 diamonds yourself. When partner dutifully obeys your request, your next bid will OF COURSE be to pass.
This is a "weakness takeout", with added "transfer" security. Not only will your team be in a better contract with some trumps to got you out of "Spade" trouble, but the super-useless weak hand (yours) will be the only cards that go down on the table for the enemy to inspect...
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- Question 4
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
10 6 K Q 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10 4
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 clubs
3. 2 diamonds
4. 2 hearts
5. 2 spades
6. 2 NT
7. 3 hearts
8. 3 NT
9. 4 hearts
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- Answer 4
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
( 3 ). 2 diamonds 10 6 K Q 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10 4
What should you bid?
You have a 5-card heart suit, and you have 13 points, so game seems likely given that partner has at least 12 HCP, making 25 altogether.
So tell you partner you have a 5-card Heart suit by bidding one suit below, diamonds.
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- Question 5
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and partner responded 2 diamonds. The enemy had nothing to say! You are not vulnerable.You have this 13-HCP 8-loser hand
A J J 10 3 K 8 5 2 A 9 5 3
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 hearts
3. 2 spades
4. 2 NT
5. 3 clubs
6. 3 diamonds
7. 3 hearts
8. 3 spades
9. 3 NT
10. 4 hearts
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- Answer 5
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and partner responded 2 diamonds. The enemy had nothing to say! You are not vulnerable.You have this 13-HCP 8-loser hand
( 2 ). 2 hearts A J J 10 3 K 8 5 2 A 9 5 3
What should you bid?
Since you and partner have agreed that you are are using transfer bidding, you MUST now openly transfer the bid to the suit intended by partner. Which was Hearts.
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- Question 6
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You responded with a 2 diamonds transfer bid, and your nice partner dutifully transferred, by bidding 2 Hearts for his re-bid.You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
10 6 K Q 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10 4
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 spades
3. 2 NT
4. 3 clubs
5. 3 diamonds
6. 3 hearts
7. 3 spades
8. 3 NT
9. 4 hearts
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- Answer 6
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You responded with a 2 diamonds transfer bid, and your nice partner dutifully transferred, by bidding 2 Hearts for his re-bid.You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
( 8 ). 3 NT 10 6 K Q 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10 4
What should you bid?
You've already told your partner about your 5-card Heart suit. He has a guaranteed 2-card Heart suit, having opened 1NT. So you have a 7-card suit guaranteed, but not an 8-card suit, so a Major contract is not yet safe. So bid NT. And given that you have at least 25 HCP between you, don't bid 2NT, but jump straight to game with 3NT, otherwise your partner might pass, thinking you only have 11 points for example.
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- Question 7
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and partner responded 2 diamonds, so you dutifully transferred to 2 Hearts. Partner then returned to No Trumps, bidding 2NT. The enemy had nothing to say! You are not vulnerable.You have this 13-HCP 8-loser hand
A J J 10 3 K 8 5 2 A 9 5 3
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 3 clubs
3. 3 diamonds
4. 3 hearts
5. 3 spades
6. 3NT
7. 4 clubs
8. 4 diamonds
9. 4 hearts
10. 4 spades
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- Answer 7
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and partner responded 2 diamonds, so you dutifully transferred to 2 Hearts. Partner then returned to No Trumps, bidding 2NT. The enemy had nothing to say! You are not vulnerable.You have this 13-HCP 8-loser hand
( 4 ). 3 hearts A J J 10 3 K 8 5 2 A 9 5 3
What should you bid?
You actually have one more Heart than you partner is aware of. Your THREE heart cards, combined with her 5 of them, makes 8 Hearts altogether. Ideal for a Major game. So tell her by re-bidding hearts.
The one remaining doubt in your quest for a game bid is that you can only be sure that your partner has 11 HCP points, which with your 13 points might be a bit tight for game. (Your hand is weak in other ways too - note that it's only an 8 losing trick hand). So bid 3H, not 4H.
It's true that some people might bid 4 Hearts at this point, given that even if your partner only has 11 points, at least your doubleton in Spades might be some use. Other people, like us, noting the other weaknesses, would leave it to partner to make a decision - partner might have more than the 11 HCP she promised.
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- Question 8
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You responded with a 2 diamonds transfer bid, and your nice partner dutifully transferred, by bidding 2 Hearts for his re-bid.You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
10 6 K Q 10 8 4 2 A 7 K J 4
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 spades
3. 2 NT
4. 3 clubs
5. 3 diamonds
6. 3 hearts
7. 3 spades
8. 3 NT
9. 4 hearts
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- Answer 8
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You responded with a 2 diamonds transfer bid, and your nice partner dutifully transferred, by bidding 2 Hearts for his re-bid.You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
( 9 ). 4 hearts 10 6 K Q 10 8 4 2 A 7 K J 4
What should you bid?
You've already told your partner about a 5-card Heart suit. He has a guaranteed 2-card Heart suit, having opened 1NT. But you actually have 6 of them, so an 8-card suit is guaranteed: ideal for a Major contract. What's more you only have 6 losers, which is very strong, and enough for game given the presumed 7 losers your partner will usually have, and sufficient even if partner has one extra loser. From a "high card point" perspective, you can rely on 25 points between you, and that's without adding a couple of points for the nice shape of your hand.
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- Question 9
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and partner responded 2 diamonds. The enemy had nothing to say! You are not vulnerable.You have this 15-HCP 6-loser hand
3 2 K 8 7 A K 5 3 2 A 9 5
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 hearts
3. 2 spades
4. 2 NT
5. 3 clubs
6. 3 diamonds
7. 3 hearts
8. 3 spades
9. 3 NT
10. 4 hearts
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- Answer 9
(of 15 on this page)
You opened 1NT, and partner responded 2 diamonds. The enemy had nothing to say! You are not vulnerable.You have this 15-HCP 6-loser hand
( 7 ). 3 hearts 3 2 K 8 7 A K 5 3 2 A 9 5
What should you bid?
This is known as a "super-accept", and is a way of telling your partner that you have a "top-of-the-range" 1NT hand: 14 points, naturally; and you are promising an 8-card fit with your three hearts; on top of that you have at least one doubleton, which will allow his losers in that suit to be ruffed with your three trumps.
If your partner has an 8 loser hand, or is in the 8-11 point range, it might well be worth putting up to game.
The only risk of a "super accept" is that your partner might be very weak, and doing a weakness takeout. In that case though, the enemy is quite likely to be bidding anyway, as they explore their chances, and your partner will certainly pass.
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- Question 10
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
10 8 K Q 10 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 clubs
3. 2 diamonds
4. 2 hearts
5. 2 spades
6. 2 NT
7. 3 hearts
8. 3 NT
9. 4 hearts
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- Answer 10
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
( 9 ). 4 hearts 10 8 K Q 10 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10
What should you bid?
You have a 6-card heart suit, and you have 13 points, so game seems likely given that partner has at least 12 HCP, making 25 altogether.
No point going though the transfer - you are guaranteed an 8-card fit and 25-27 HCP, not to mention the good shape. Go straight to game. (No point exploring slam since partner has limited his hand to a maximum of 14 points).
Some people however would still go for a transfer on this hand, and pursue it all the way to game in 4 Hearts. The reason they'd do that is to keep partner's more complex and unspecified "1-NT bidding" hand hidden from the enemy, preferring your hand to go down on the table - since everyone knows you have 6 hearts. Better perhaps to keep partner's unknown 11 non-Hearts cards hidden....
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- Question 11
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 8-HCP 8.5-loser hand
10 8 Q 7 3 K Q J 8 4 10 4 3
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 clubs
3. 2 diamonds
4. 2 hearts
5. 2 spades
6. 2 NT
7. 3 diamonds
8. 3 spades
9. 3 NT
10. 4 diamonds
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- Answer 11
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 8-HCP 8.5-loser hand
( 1 ). pass 10 8 Q 7 3 K Q J 8 4 10 4 3
What should you bid?
You have a 5-card diamond suit, a minor, and you have 8 points, so game in a minor seems unlikely given that partner has maximum 14 HCP, making 20-22 altogether, plus some shape.
With only 5 cards you cannot transfer to a minor, because a 2-club bid has a totally different meaning (look up Stayman), so in this case you will have to pass. With your combined 20-22 points you have a reasonable chance in 1NT.
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- Question 12
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 10-HCP 7-loser hand
10 8 A 7 K Q J 8 4 2 10 4 3
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 clubs
3. 2 diamonds
4. 2 hearts
5. 2 spades
6. 2 NT
7. 3 diamonds
8. 3 spades
9. 3 NT
10. 4 diamonds
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- Answer 12
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 10-HCP 7-loser hand
( 2 ). 2 clubs 10 8 A 7 K Q J 8 4 2 10 4 3
What should you bid?
You have a 6-card diamond suit, a minor, and you have 10 points, and you DO have an 8-card fit, albeit in a minor. But game in a minor seems unlikely given that partner has maximum 14 HCP, making 22-24 altogether, plus some shape points for your hand. Still some way from 27/28 for a minor game.
However, with 6 cards in your suit you can transfer to a minor. Many people prefer to bid 2 Clubs (Stayman) to do this, rather than the alternative method of a "transfer request to a minor" by bidding 2 Spades. That's because a 2 diamond reply comes back from Stayman, once in a while, which of course can be passed without having to go to the 3 level at all.
An alternative in this case is to risk going straight to 3NT, recognising the exceptional strength of the long club suit, and hoping that partner has a Spade stopper among his 12-14 points.
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- Question 13
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 2NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 4-HCP 10-loser hand
10 8 7 Q 10 7 3 2 Q 9 8 4 6 4
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 3 clubs
3. 3 diamonds
4. 3 hearts
5. 3 spades
6. 3 NT
7. 4 diamonds
8. 4 hearts
9. 4 spades
10. 4 NT
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- Answer 13
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 2NT. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 4-HCP 10-loser hand
( 3 ). 3 diamonds 10 8 7 Q 10 7 3 2 Q 9 8 4 6 4
What should you bid?
You've just got enough strength for a game, if your partner's well defined and strong hand is the right shape. If he has 3 hearts, game in Hearts should be on. If he has 21 HCP, and some black suit length and honours, then a No Trump game should be on. We'd better tell him that we have a 5-card Heart suit.
If you don't use transfer bidding, you'd have to bid the obvious 3 Hearts yourself. In that case, it's your partner's strong hand (with 20 points) that becomes dummy and that the enemy would get to see and evaluate (assuming you end up in Hearts).
By transferring however, it's the weak hand that goes down on the table (i.e. yours), so the enemy will have to guess whereabouts in your partner's hand the strength lies. Much better.
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- Question 14
(of 15 on this page)
You opened the bidding (with 1NT), and the enemy had nothing to say at any stage. Nobody is vulnerable. Your partner replied 2 Diamonds, so (of course!) you dutifully transfered to 2 Hearts. Your partner then rebids 3 Diamonds. You have this 14-HCP 7-loser hand
A K 7 3 Q J 7 Q J 6 3 J 4
What should you now bid?1. pass
2. 3 Hearts
3. 3 Spades
4. 3 NT
5. 4 Diamonds
6. 4 Hearts
7. 5 Diamonds
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- Answer 14
(of 15 on this page)
You opened the bidding (with 1NT), and the enemy had nothing to say at any stage. Nobody is vulnerable. Your partner replied 2 Diamonds, so (of course!) you dutifully transfered to 2 Hearts. Your partner then rebids 3 Diamonds. You have this 14-HCP 7-loser hand
( 2 ). 3 Hearts A K 7 3 Q J 7 Q J 6 3 J 4
What should you now bid?
You know your partner has promised 5 Hearts, from his first 2-diamond bid. So the second bid in diamonds can only mean a second long suit of at least 4 diamonds. Given all this, he seems to be interested in a further discussion, so therefore he must have game-going strength. You know (and only you) that you have an 8-card Heart fit, and so the bidding will end at no less than 4 Hearts.
By supporting his hearts now (for the first time where you had a choice to do so) you are allowing him to realise that you have 3 yourself. So accept Hearts by bidding at the game level (4), OR better at the 3 level, to explore Slam in case he is very strong. In the latter case, your lower bid of 3 Hearts has allowed more bidding space for the conversation to continue. For example, if he cue-bids 4 Clubs (promising control in Clubs), you could respond by cue-bidding 4 Spades. In that case maybe 6 Hearts will be possible.
(On a totally separate subject): Let's not discuss whether you should have "super-accepted" the transfer by making your first rebid 3 Hearts instead of 2 Hearts. In fact, you WERE strong enough, assuming that you and your partner use this system.
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- Question 15
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1S. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
10 6 K Q 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10 4
What should you bid?1. pass
2. 2 clubs
3. 2 diamonds
4. 2 hearts
5. 2 spades
6. 2 NT
7. 3 hearts
8. 3 NT
9. 4 hearts
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- Answer 15
(of 15 on this page)
Your partner opened 1S. The enemy said nothing, and you are not vulnerable. You have this 13-HCP 6-loser hand
( 4 ). 2 hearts 10 6 K Q 8 4 2 A 7 K J 10 4
What should you bid?
You have a 5-card heart suit, and you have 13 points, so game seems likely given that partner has at least 12 HCP, making 25 altogether.
So tell you partner you have a 5-card Heart suit NOT by bidding one suit below, (diamonds), but by bidding the actual suit (Hearts). You must ONLY use transfers when your partner has opened 1NT. Not when she's opened in a suit.
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| West | |
|---|---|
 | Q 4 3 2 |
 | A 7 6 5 |
 | J 9 6 3 |
 | 6 |
| North | |
|---|---|
| 10 6 |
| K Q 8 4 2 |
| A 7 |
| K J 10 4 |
| East | |
|---|---|
| K 9 8 7 5 |
| 9 |
| Q 10 4 |
| Q 8 7 2 |
| South | |
|---|---|
| A J |
| J 10 3 |
| K 8 5 2 |
| A 9 5 3 |
Other Deals that illustrate this technique