Inverted Minors

Inverted minors flip the traditional meaning of single and double minor-suit raises. Playing inverted minors, a single raise of a 1/1 opening bid is strong and a jump raise is weak. To paraphrase the late Grant Baze, how often do you hear a traditional auction go 1 : 2 - All Pass? Basically, never. Hence the popularity of inverted raises. You can preempt your opponents with bad hands while bidding more slowly and constructively with good hands.

The single raise (i.e. 1:2 and 1:2) is forcing for one round. The requirements are:

• 10+ points
• At least 4-card support
• No 4-card major

Responder will often be unbalanced, since he can make notrump responses with balanced hands.

JT3 9 AQ75 AT643

Partner 1 You 2 Your 2 bid shows 4+ card support and 10+ points.

976 AT9 KQ875 AK

Partner 1 You 2 There is no upper point count limit for a strong raise.

J98 Q76 A65 K853

Partner 1 You 1NT 1NT with 4-3-3-3 shape is more descriptive than an inverted raise.

Conversely, the requirements for a weak jump raise (i.e. 1:3 or 1:3) are:

• 0-6 points
• At least 5-card support
• No 4-card major

J93 874 52 KQ732

Partner 1 You 3 3 shows 5+ card support and 0-6 points.

975 2 QT987 T754

Partner 1 You 3 Ditto.

Rebid	Meaning
2	Natural, 4+ cards. Implies imbalanced shape since opener could rebid no-trumps with 2-3-4-4 or 3-2-4-4. Forcing.
2/	Natural, 3+ cards. Some experts play this as stopper-showing only. Forcing.
2NT	Balanced 12-14 HCP. Not forcing. (Note: If playing weak no-trumps, this would show 15-17 HCP instead.)
3	Natural with a 5+ card suit. Not forcing.
3	Natural, minimum with a 4+ card suit. Forcing.
3NT	Balanced 18-19 HCP.

Rebid	Meaning
2/	Natural, 3+ cards. Some partnerships treat this as stopper-showing only. Forcing.
2NT	Balanced 12-14 HCP. Not forcing. (Note: If playing weak no-trumps, this would show 15-17 HCP instead.)
3	Natural with a 4+ card suit. Probably imbalanced shape. Forcing.
3	Natural, minimum with a 5+ card suit. Not forcing.
3NT	Balanced 18-19 HCP.

In competition, inverted minors are off for most partnerships. A single raise is weak with 4-card support, and a jump raise is weak with 5+ card support.

If the opponents have doubled for takeout over 1/, then responder can use the Jordan 2NT convention to show a limit raise or better.

If the opponents have made a natural suit overcall over 1/, then responder can cuebid to show a limit raise or better.

Because inverted minors use 0-6 points for weak raises and 10+ points for strong ones, responder will sometimes be stuck for a bid with 7-9 points. These hands, which would traditionally make a single raise, can no longer do so. The typical approach is to respond 1NT even with unbalanced shape.

92 87 AQ75 JT732

Partner 1 You 1NT Ugh. You must temporize with 1NT because your hand doesn't qualify for anything else.

Inverted minors were originally part of the Kaplan-Sheinwold bidding system that employed 5-card majors and a 12-14 1NT. Although intended to be used with a weak no-trump, inverted minors are compatible with any 1NT range.