The weak jump overcall system.

Consider the following hands. In each case, assume RHO has opened 1©.

	Hand A		Hand B
	ªKQ10843 ©83 ¨K74 §J9		ªAK10854 ©7 ¨AQ8 §Kxx

Using traditional methods, hand A is an automatic 1ª overcall (weak). However, unless partner can support your spades, this achieves absolutely nothing. You have not deprived your opponents of any bidding space. All you have done is tell them you’ve got good spades - information which might help them judge, say, whether to play in 4© or 3NT.

Hand B is a cast iron intermediate jump overcall to 2ª. The auction may end there, but if anyone has a game on it’s more likely to be you than your opponents. Unfortunately, your partner will have to come in at the three level if he wants to investigate the possibility of game.

Think how much better it would be if we switch things around and bid 2ª with hand A and only 1ª with hand B. With the weak hand you've put a decent spanner in the opponents' works, depriving them of all their two level suit responses. With the strong hand you've left you and your partner room to investigate its potential.

This is the weak jump overcall system and it’s becoming increasingly popular.

Unfortunately, it’s not quite as simple as just swapping over the jump and the non-jump bids. Consider the following hand where, again, the opposition have opened 1©:

ª8 7 ©Q J ¨K Q 10 8 7 4 §J 10 9

Not an opening hand so you do a jump overcall to 3¨? Well, no, probably not. Not unless you want the score for 2 off doubled indelibly etched into your brain. Pass then? Only if you’re a whimp. The answer is to do a simple overcall, just like you would if you had a good opener...

In the weak jump overcall system, a simple overcall shows either a good opening hand or one which is too weak for a weak jump overcall.

Yes, 1©-2¨ could either be strong or very weak. Yuk! A recipe for confusion and total disaster? Well it actually works surprisingly well in practice provided partner sticks to the rules. However, let's start at the beginning. This is how it works...

The weak jump overcall:

So the baseline requirements for a weak jump overcall at the two level are similar to those for a weak two opener - although I prefer to measure the strength by the loser count rather than points. Non vulnerable you can even stretch it by a loser, or risk a five card suit (but not both).

Non vulnerable you could probably even risk a three level overcall with a weak two style hand. Vulnerable, though, it’s too dangerous. Vulnerable, you need a seven card suit to overcall at the three level - indeed, the sort of hand which would qualify for a pre-emptive three opener.

Here are the minimum requirements in a table:

Weak jump overcall	Vulnerable	Non Vulnerable
at the 2 level	6 card suit, 8 losers	5 card suit, 8 losers or 6 card suit, 9 losers
at the 3 level	7 card suit, 7 losers	6 card suit, 8 losers

In response, I play a simple suit switch from partner as forcing for one round, but that’s a matter for partnership understanding. Apart from that everything is natural.

The wide ranging simple overcall.

There’s no chance of missing game because if game is a possibility, partner must keep the auction open. Partner won’t go too far because if he does bid on, you can tell him you’ve got a weak hand by passing or simply rebidding your suit and that should be the end of the matter. OK, you may end up a level higher but at least you know dummy is going to be reasonable.

Responding to partner's simple overcall.

Remember, if partner’s hand is the strong type then it is a good, distributional, opener. In which case he won’t have more than 7 losers - probably 6 or less. His point count should be at least 14. With this in mind, responder must keep the auction open if he holds:

• 11+ points with a stop in the enemy suit.
• If the overcall is a major, any 8 loser hand (perhaps even a good 9). You don’t need much trump support, a doubleton will probably suffice, as partner is marked with a long suit.

• A single raise of the overcall suit says you want to be in (at least) game if partner has the good opening hand.
• Jump raises (including jump to game) are rare but should be treated primarily as competitive. A jump raises implies no slam ambitions even if the overcall proves to be the strong type.

• A bid of the enemy suit (including jump bids) I like to treat as an "unassuming cue bid". It shows good support for the overcall suit to the next level, assuming the overcall to be weak. For example, 1§-1©-Pass-3§ shows a good raise to 3© whilst 1§-1©-Pass-3© would be competitive.

• A minimum bid in NT shows a stop in the enemy suit and about 11+ points - maybe a good 10.
• Any new suit bid is ostensibly natural but absolutely forcing for one round.

Overcaller's second bid.

The weak hand is shown by passing or returning to your original suit at the minimum level.

Anything else says you have a strong opening hand and establishes a game forcing situation. Possible rebids with the strong opener are to raise partner's suit, bid NT, bid the enemy suit or jump in your own suit.

A re-raise oppposite partner's raise would also show the good opener. For example, the opponents open 1© you overcall 1ª and partner does an invitational raise to 2ª. With a weak hand you would pass so a bid of 3ª must guarantee the good opener and is therefore unconditionally forcing to game.

If the opponents bid.

If you are the one who did the overcall and the opponents bid again (either before or after partner has had a chance to respond) then you should pass. Anything else says you have a strong opening hand and partner is entitled to bid on on that basis. Back