Bridge On One Page

16 to 19 Opening Points

If the value of your hand is 16 to 19 points, you should open with 1 No Trump with a fairly flat hand, otherwise 1 of your longest suit. For a fairly flat hand you must have at least 2 cards in each suit, preferably 3.

Example 1

Here you have 2 aces, 2 kings, and a queen, giving you 16 points. You have a flat hand, so you bid 1 No Trump.

Example 2

Here you have 2 aces, 2 kings, 2 queens and a doubleton. You have a fairly flat hand, so you bid 1 No Trump.

Note

A distribution point for the doubleton was not included, because you bid No Trump.

Example 3

Here you have 2 aces, a king, 2 queens, a jack and a singleton, giving you 18 points. You have an uneven distribution, and 3 suits of equal length, of which spades is the highest ranking, so you bid 1 Spade.