Polish 1♣
This Polish Club has 3 variants:
- 12–14, 2–4♠, 2–4♥, 2–4♦, 2–4♣
- 12–17, 5+♣ or 4414
- 18+, not suitable for 1♦
Note that 2♣ is no longer natural since Polish Club 2020: Expert. 1♣ takes care of all ♣-suited hands.
I move invitational hands out of 1♣-1♦ relay to make it non-forcing. I believe this method is more resilient to interference.
| 1♣- | Quasi-NAT or 18+ |
|---|---|
| 1♦! | NF ART NEG, 0–9 |
| 1♥ | F, 7+, 4+♥ |
| 1♠ | F, 7+, 4+♠ |
| 1NT | BAL CONST, 8–10, 2–3♠, 2–3♥, 2–5♦, 2–5♣ |
| 2♣ | FG, 5+♣ |
| 2♦ | FG, 5+♦ |
| 2♥! | P/C, 7–9, 4+♥, 5+♠ |
| 2♠! | INV, 10–11, 0–3♠, 0–3♥, 2–5♦, 2–5♣ |
| 2NT! | FG, 2–3♠, 2–3♥, 3–4♦, 3–4♣ |
| 3♣ | INV, 9–11, 6+♣ |
| 3♦ | INV, 9–11, 6+♦ |
| 3M | PRE, 3–6, 7+# |
| 3NT | 12–15, 33(43) |
| 4♣! | PRE, S-SOL 8+M, 0–1 outside A/K |
| 4♦! | PRE, SOL 8+M, no outside A/K |
| 4M | PRE, 8+# |
1♣-3♣♦ and 1♣-3M look unrelated, yet they serve the same purpose: move the best single suiters out of 1♣-1♦.
P-1♣
Game-forcing responses simplify to corresponding invitations.
| P-1♣- | Quasi-NAT or 18+ |
|---|---|
| 2♣ | INV, 5+♣, 0–3♠, 0–3♥ |
| 2♦ | INV, 5+♦, 0–3♠, 0–3♥ |
| 2♠! | UNBAL INV, 0–3♠, 0–3♥, 4–5♦, 4–5♣ |
| 2NT | BAL INV, 2–3♠, 2–3♥, 2–5♦, 2–5♣ |
Competing at the 1-level
The design of the responses already bears competitive bidding in mind. We somehow ignore the meaning of overcalls to deal with artificial and psychic bids. We reorder major suit bids with Transfer Walsh to get a “support double” by accepting the transfer.
We treat 1♣ as a weak notrump more than a club opening. Club support is not very effective. We have a transfer scheme for all levels below 3NT.
- 1♦♥♠: Transfer to the next strain. The low-level cuebid of 1♠ lets opener declare notrump.
- From 2Q to 3♥: A weak or strong transfer of 6+ cards.
- 3♠: Transfer Gambling 3NT.
Natural 1NT is not very useful after a double. We rebrand it as transfer.
| 1♣-(X)- | - |
|---|---|
| XX | NF BAL G/T, 10+ |
| 1♦! | TRF, 7+, 4+♥ |
| 1♥! | TRF, 7+, 4+♠ |
| 1♠! | TRF, 7+, 5+♣ |
| 1NT! | TRF, 7+, 5+♦ |
| 2♣♦♥♠ | PRE, 3–9, 6+# |
| 2NT! | TRF, PRE 7+♣ or FG 6+♣ |
| 3♣! | TRF, PRE 7+♦ or FG 6+♦ |
| 3♦! | TRF, PRE 7+♥ or FG 6+♥ |
| 3♥! | TRF, PRE 7+♠ or FG 6+♠ |
| 3♠! | Gambling, SOL 7+ suit with no stopper outside |
| 3NT! | Gambling, SOL 7+ suit with one stopper outside |
When RHO bids a suit, natural notrump from Polish Club 2005 right-sides the contract.
| 1♣-(1Y)- | - |
|---|---|
| X! | TRF, 7+, 4+ next suit |
| 1♥! | TRF, 7+, 4+♠ |
| 1♠! | TRF to 1NT, 7+ |
| 1NT | BAL INV, 9–11, 2–3♠, 2–3♥, 2–5♦, 2–5♣ |
| 2X | INV+, 10+, 5+# |
| 2YZ! | TRF, PRE or INV+, 6+ next suit |
| 2♠! | TRF, PRE 7+♣ or FG 6+♣ |
| 2NT | FG with stopper |
| 3♣! | TRF, PRE 7+♦ or FG 6+♦ |
| 3♦! | TRF, PRE 7+♥ or FG 6+♥ |
| 3♥! | TRF, PRE 7+♠ or FG 6+♠ |
| 3♠! | Gambling, SOL 7+ suit without stopper |
| 3NT! | Gambling, SOL 7+ suit with stopper |
Of course 1♣-(1♠)-X is a negative double. Therefore, 2♥ becomes negative free bid. This modern adjunct finds more marginal 4♥ and puts pressure on the opponents by threatening to play 2♥.
| 1♣-(1♠)- | - |
|---|---|
| X! | TRF, 7+, 4+♥ |
| 2♥ | NF, 7–11, 5+♥ |
Transfer Walsh
Transfer to major suits has the same meaning as major suit responses to 1♣. Opener usually bids as if responder had bid the suit naturally. However, opener has a new option: accept the transfer at 1M. This option steals the support double when advancer passes.
Here I only list support rebids for brevity. The complete set of responses is at 1♣-1M.
| 1♣-(1♦)-X- | 7+, 4+♥ |
|---|---|
| 1♥ | SUPP, 12–17, 3=♥ |
| 2♦! | FG, 3+♥ |
| 2♥ | MIN, 12–14, 4=♥ |
| 3♥ | INV, 15–17, 4+♥ |
1♣-(1♦)-1♥- 1♣-(1♥)-X- | 7+, 4+♠ |
|---|---|
| 1♠ | SUPP, 12–17, 3=♠ |
| 2♦! | FG, 3+♠ |
| 2♠ | MIN, 12–14, 4=♠ |
| 3♠ | INV, 15–17, 4+♠ |