Which suit to respond to a 1 ♠ opener (with six or more points but fewer than four spades)

You cannot bid a suit at the One-level (it’s illegal!). The first decision is, can you bid your longest suit at the Two-level?

Use the Rule of 14 check. Add up the number of cards in the suit you wish to bid at the Two-level to your total high-card points. Do you reach 14?

If you fail the Rule of 14, you have to bid either the “dustbin 1NT” or raise to 2 ♠. I recommend raising to 2 ♠ whenever you have three cards, unless you have a very flat hand and three small spades. With either a small doubleton or a singleton in another suit and/or a picture in spades, support partner.


If you satisfy the Rule of 14, go ahead and bid at the Two-level, following the normal responding guidelines ie (a) longest suit, (b) cheaper of fours, (c) higher of fives.

Repsond to 1 ♠ with these

• With (a), respond 2 ♠. Failing the Rule of 14, responding 2♦ would be an overbid. Prefer 2 ♠ to 1NT – more helpful to partner (partner may have only four spades, but, if so, she’ll have 15 or more points – she didn’t open 1NT).
• With (b), respond 2 ♦ cheaper of fours. Don’t worry – you won’t miss a heart fit as you have given partner an easy opportunity to rebid 2 ♥ if she has four of them. [Indeed a corollary of always responding the cheaper of fours is that a response of 2 ♥ to 1 ♠ shows five+ cards. Responses of 2 ♣ and 2 ♦ show four+ cards.]
• With (c), respond 1NT. Don’t worry about being unbalanced. The 1NT response doesn’t say anything about wanting to play in notrumps; the bid is made because it’s the only legal One-level bid over 1 ♠. It says nothing about being balanced.