Above Oswald Jacboy is pictured, probably very frustrated over a vague partnership agreement.
My husband likes to tell a story about the first time he played with a new bridge partner several years ago. They agreed to play a convention known as “Rotating Discards.” Turns out there are a couple of variations to that convention, and as luck would have it, they were not on the same page. This led to some frustrating, albeit comical, signalling while defending.
That’s why it’s not enough to agree to play a convention with your bridge partner. You must make sure you have the same understanding about that convention.
You might be thinking that this isn’t necessary. Well, here’s an example.
You’re probably familiar with the Jacboy 2NT convention. It comes into play when your partner, on an unpassed hand, opens 1♥ or 1♠. You’re delighted to hear that bid, because you also have an opening hand, and good trump support for your partner’s major. So, you bid 2NT.
But… unless you’re in complete agreement about what that 2NT and successive bids mean, you could be in for serious trouble.
Here’s a wonderful document by Marty Bergen to help your partnership determine exactly what YOUR partnership’s use of the Jacboy 2NT convention means:
The moral of the story:
Make sure you and your partner are in complete agreement of all aspects of any convention you use.