The weak two bid is a common treatment used in the game of contract bridge, where an opening bid of two diamonds, hearts or spades signifies a weak hand with a long suit. It is used in combination with the strong two clubs bid and is a form of preemptive bid. The term refers to an opening bid, and is not to be confused with the "weak jump overcall", which denotes a similar type of hand, but is bid over an opponent's opening bid.
The requirements for a weak two bid may vary by partnership agreement. The most common treatment is that it requires:
- any good suit of exactly six cards in diamonds, hearts or spades; a longer suit should make a higher preemptive opening bid
- no side 5-card suit or 4-card major
- a total of about 5-11 high card points; some prefer a range of 6-10 points for a "weak two" bid, as a hand with six in a suit plus 11 points may be strong enough for a bid at the one level; see Rule of 20
What constitutes a "good" suit is a matter of partnership agreement. The American Contract Bridge League recommends that the opener hold at least two of the top three or three of the top five cards in the suit (that is, either K-Q or Q-J-10 or better). Others recommend at least three honors (J-Q-K).
Famous quotes containing the words weak and/or bid:
“Power corrupts ... when the weak band together in order to ruin the strong, but not before. The will to power ... far from being a characteristic of the strong, is, like envy and greed, among the vices of the weak, and possibly even their most dangerous one.”
—Hannah Arendt (1906–1975)
“Or bid the soul of Orpheus sing
Such notes as, warbled to the string,
Drew iron tears down Pluto’s cheek,
And made Hell grant what love did seek;”
—John Milton (1608–1674)