LOpening
Deciding on an Opening Bid (La Majeure Cinquième)
20
   La Majeure Cinquième is played by more than three million French
bridge players today.  It is a five-card major system.
   There are three types of opening bid. The most common type is the
one-level bid. This shows a hand which may be just slightly above average
strength, but may be almost strong enough to make game on its own. Your
later bids should make it clear to your partner how strong your hand is
after you open a one-level bid.
    If you have a hand strong enough to stand a reasonable chance of making
game on its own, you open with a two-level bid. This tells your partner not
to take fright and pass with a worthless hand.
    If you have a poor hand with a very long suit (at least seven cards),
you can open at the three-level -- or even higher. This not only tells your
partner exactly what kind of hand you have, but more importantly, it gets in
the way of the opponents' bidding, making it difficult for them to find their
best contract.

    The first thing to do is to count up your High Card Points, Distribution
Points, Quick Tricks, and Playing Tricks. Then add your High Card Points to
your Distribution Points to find out your Total Points.

35
2
Can you
open 1NT ?
6
Always open 1NT if you can, because it tells your partner so much
about your hand.  You need #0 to #U High-Card Points and a balanced
hand (no singletons, less than two doubletons, no six-card suits, and
no five-card major).  When considering an opening NT bid, count an
extra 1/2 point for Queen-Ten or Jack-Ten in any suit.  Count an
extra point for KQJxx or better in a minor suit.

2
Can you
open 2NT ?
6
You need #e to #f High-Card Points (20 to 21 High-Card Points if
playing 2$H and 2$S as weak) and a balanced hand (no singletons, less
than two doubletons, no six-card suits, and no five-card major).  When
considering an opening NT bid, count an extra 1/2 point for Queen-Ten
or Jack-Ten in any suit.  Count an extra point for KQJxx or better in
a minor suit.

2
Can you
open 3NT ?
3
A preemptive opening bid of 3NT shows a seven or more card solid minor suit
(AKQxxxxx, AKQJxxx, or better), no quick tricks outside, and at least one
outside stopper.

1
Namyats ?
4
Are you playing Namyats?
If you are are, do you have a Namyats 4C or 4D opening bid?
Or a weaker 4H or 4S opening bid?
Or a 3NT opening bid, a preempt to 4 of a minor?

1
4$C, 4$D, 4$H, or 4$S
4
With 8+ playing tricks in hearts, bid 4$C.
With 8+ playing tricks in spades, bid 4$D.
With less than 8 playing tricks in hearts, bid 4$H.
With less than 8 playing tricks in spades, bid 4$S.

3
Benjamin
weak
twos ?
2
Are you playing Benjamin weak two-bids, in which 2$H and 2$S are weak
and 2$C and 2$D are strong?

1
Weak Twos ?
2
Are you playing American Style Two-Level Opening bids in which
2$C is a strong bid and and 2D, 2H, and 2S are weak?

1
Strong 2C ?
5
When playing Weak Twos all strong bids go through 2C.
Do you have a strong 2C opening bid?
If you have 23 Total Points (or 21 Total Points with a 6-card minor 
suit or a 5-card major suit, with an Ace or King-Jack or better in
your longest suit), see if you can open with a strong two-bid in a suit

2
Fourth Seat
Weak Two ?
3
If you are in the fourth seat, a normal weak-two bid does not make
sense as you would rather pass the hand out.
A weak two in fourth position shows 10-14 HCP and a good six card suit.

2
Bid 2 of
longest suit
1
Bid 2 of your 6 card suit.

1
Flannery ?
3
If the partnership is playing Flannery 2$D, always open a Flannery 2$D if
you can, because it tells your partner so much about your hand.  You need
11 to 15 High-Card Points, exactly four spades, and exactly five hearts.

1
Mini-Roman 2D?
5
Are you playing Mini-Roman?
If you are, do you have a Mini-Roman 2D opening bid?
A Mini-Roman 2D opener is a hand with 11-15 HCP and
either 5-4-4-0 or 4-4-4-1 distribution.  The singleton
may be in any suit.

2
Weak
two ?
10
2$H and 2$S are weak-two opening bids.
Use the aggressiveness control settings to determine whether or not your
hand is suitable for a weak-two bid.  Take into account seat position,
vulnerability, suit quality, points outside your long suit, and outside
voids or long suits.  Generally speaking if you are in third seat or if
you are not vulnerable and the opponents are vulnerable, you may preempt
on many more hands.  If you are vulnerable and the opponents are not
vulnerable your preempts should be very conservative and have strong suit
quality. A weak-two bid always shows a 6 card suit and usually shows
between 5 and 10 high card points.

2
Weak
two
1
Bid your six-card major

1
2$D ?
1
Open 2$D with 24+ High-Card Points or 24+ Total Points.

1
2$C ?
8
Open 2$C with either of 3 possibilities:
(1) 20-23 Total Points and a robust 6-card suit.
(2) 22-23 Total Points, 20+ High-Card Points, and AKxxx or better.
(3) 22-23 High-Card Points and a balanced hand (no singletons, less
than two doubletons, no six-card suits, and no five-card major) --
sometimes called a "super 2NT".
With 5-4, 5-5, 6-5, 6-6, or 7-6, do not open 2$C.
(You may open 2$C with 6-4, 7-4, 7-5, 8-4, 8-5, or 9-4.)

2
Can you
open 2$C ?
1
Open an Albarran 2$C with 23+ High-Card Points or 24+ Total Points.

2
2 of a
suit ?
5
You can open 2$D, 2$H, or 2$S when either of 2 possibilities:
(1) 20-23 Total Points and a robust 6-card suit.
(2) 22-23 Total Points, 20+ High-Card Points, and AKxxx or better.
With 5-4, 5-5, 6-5, 6-6, or 7-6, do not open 2$D, 2$H, or 2$S.  (You
may open 2$D, 2$H, or 2$S with 6-4, 7-4, 7-5, 8-4, 8-5, or 9-4.)

2
Open 2$D,
2$H, or 2$S
0

2
4 of a
major ?
3
To open the bidding with 4H or 4S, you need a seven-card suit headed by AKQJ,
or an eight-card suit headed by at least KQT.  Don't open the bidding with 4H
or 4S, however, with nine or more Total Points outside your long suit.

2
Bid 4H
or 4S
1
Bid 4 of your long major.

2
Seven-card
suit ?
3
If you have a suit of seven or more cards, you should consider making a
shutout bid. This is a bid designed to make it difficult for the opponents
to find their best contract, by jamming their bidding space.

1
Preempt ?
7
Use the aggressiveness control settings to determine whether or not your
hand is suitable for a preemptive bid. Take into account seat position,
vulnerability, suit quality, and points outside your long suit. Generally
speaking if you are in third seat or if you are not vulnerable and the 
opponents are vulnerable, you may preempt on many more hands. If you are
vulnerable and the opponents are not vulnerable your preempts should be
very conservative and have strong suit quality.

3
Bid 3
of your
suit
0

2
Strong enough for
a 1 of a suit bid ?
10
Is your hand suitable for opening a bid?  This depends in part on the
settings for your opening aggressiveness.  If your settings are Average,
the requirements for opening are:
(1) 14 Total Points, or
(2) 13 High-Card Points, or
(3) 12 High-Card Points, and Queen-Ten-Nine or Jack-Ten in at least
two suits, or
(4) 12 High-Card Points and 4-4-3-2 distribution with at least seven cards
in the majors, or
(5) 12 High-Card Points and a five-card suit headed by an Ace or a King.

2
Open 1 of
a suit
8
(1) With no five-card major, open your longer minor.  If your minors are of
equal length, open 1$C with 3-3 but 1$D with 4-4 or longer.
(2) With exactly one five-card major, open your major, unless (a) you
have 18 or more Total Points and a longer minor, in which case open
your minor; or (b) you have 20 or more Total Points, you are 5-5 or 6-6 in
spades and clubs, and your clubs are AKxxx or better, in which case open 1$C.
(3) With two five-card majors, open the longer suit, or spades if your majors
are of equal length.

1
Weak Twos ?
1
Again check to see if you are playing American Style Weak Two bids.

2
Weak
2-bids ?
3
Are you playing weak 2-bids, with a 6-card Diamond, Heart or Spade
suit ?  (If you are playing Flannery or Benjamin, you may not make a
weak 2-bid in Diamonds.)

1
Have weak-two ?
9
Use the aggressiveness control settings to determine whether or not your
hand is suitable for a weak-two bid.  Take into account seat position,
vulnerability, suit quality, points outside your long suit, and outside
voids or long suits.  Generally speaking if you are in third seat or if
you are not vulnerable and the opponents are vulnerable, you may preempt
on many more hands.  If you are vulnerable and the opponents are not
vulnerable your preempts should be very conservative and have strong suit
quality. A weak-two bid always shows a 6 card suit and usually shows
between 5 and 10 high card points.

1
1NT
0

1
2NT
0

1
3NT
0

1
2$C
0

1
2$D
0

1
Pass
0

42
0 0 0 1 2 1 2
29 1 0 -1 -1 -1 -1
1 0 -1 3 4 1 2
30 1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1
2 0 -2 5 6 1 2
31 1 -2 -1 -1 -1 -1
3 0 -3 7 8 3 2
4 -1 -3 -1 -1 -1 -1
5 0 -4 9 27 1 2
12 1 -4 10 11 0 1
13 1 -3 -1 -1 -1 -1
14 2 -4 12 13 1 2
33 3 -4 -1 -1 -1 -1
15 2 -5 14 15 1 2
32 3 -5 -1 -1 -1 -1
19 2 -6 16 17 1 2
20 3 -6 -1 -1 -1 -1
21 2 -7 18 20 1 2
22 3 -7 19 20 1 2
23 4 -7 -1 -1 -1 -1
24 3 -8 21 22 1 2
25 4 -8 -1 -1 -1 -1
26 3 -9 23 26 1 2
27 4 -9 24 25 1 2
28 5 -9 -1 -1 -1 -1
34 4 -10 -1 -1 -1 -1
34 3 -10 -1 -1 -1 -1
6 0 -5 28 38 3 2
7 -1 -5 29 30 0 3
32 -1 -4 -1 -1 -1 -1
8 -2 -5 31 32 3 2
9 -3 -5 -1 -1 -1 -1
10 -2 -6 33 34 3 2
33 -3 -6 -1 -1 -1 -1
11 -2 -7 35 36 3 1
33 -3 -7 -1 -1 -1 -1
19 0 -7 37 17 2 1
20 0 -8 -1 -1 -1 -1
16 0 -6 39 40 3 1
32 -1 -6 -1 -1 -1 -1
17 1 -6 41 15 0 1
18 1 -5 -1 -1 -1 -1
3
0 17 20 2 1 2 -8
0 34 36 1 1 -1 -7
0 36 17 1 1 1 -7
