You will learn more by losing to good players
than you will by winning against poor players
!s !h !d !c
Some Comments by Lulu Minter
Let's talk about 3rd seat...
The bidding has gone pass pass to you. There is no clear guideline as what to do and when to open in 3rd seat, but
one thing to consider is that the two passed hands have a combined point count of 15 hcp (on average).
If you have around 8-9 hcp and pass, the 4th seat will have an easy 1NT opener. So you can open light if you have an
interesting hand, such as
!s A 10 8 6 !h K Q 6 4 !d 10 5 3 !c 9 6
ith this hand open 1!d and pass any response by partner the first time
the bidding comes back to you. If he bids one of the majors suits and you raise him right away, you indicate a full
opening hand. If the bidding becomes competitive and the opponents bid something, you can raise him now, as partner
knows that you have a sub minimum hand. The bidding will go like this:
1!d P 1!h P
P 2!c P P
2!h
However, don't expect that everytime partner opens in 3rd seat he has a sub minimum hand, most of the time he will have a
full opener. You will find out if he passes your bid or not. Since you are a passed hand, game is unlikely
anyways. Of course you will open 1!s in 3rd seat with the following hand
!s A K J 9 5 !h 10 4 !d J 10 8 !c 9 4 2
But will pass with
!s K 7 !h A 9 6 4 !d K 9 5 !c 1 0 8 5 3
I tried with some partners to open in 3rd seat at the 2 level with a regular opening and at the 1 level with a sub minimum
opening hand. This, of course, requires an alert. After studying this for number of years, this proved not to
be a useful gadget.
So the thing to remember is that is okay to open light in 3rd seat with an interest hand as long as you are prepared to
pass the first time the bidding comes back to you.
Lulu
Comment by Roy
Players often ask about the minimum size of these light bids, and most players will tell you 8 -9, but aggressive players
will sometimes go as low as 7, but only if the seven points are all in one suit. Maybe a hand like this:
!s A Q J T x !h x x !d x x x !c x x x
Roy Wilson - Emerald Life Master
and I have played bridge more than half my life...
The lesser half I wasted.
TEXT HERE
Unit Games -- Our unit games are held twice a month, on the first and
third Sundays, at the Pasadena Bridge Club. - Game time is 12:30.
Note: Open the link to the Pasadena Club Results for Unit game results.
Our Next Unit Game is Sunday, July 19
Schedule Change
Marie just announced a schedule change for the Wednesday game played in the Library in Arcadia.
The schedule change will possibly last until the end of summerr, and starts next Wednesday;
July 15, and the game will start at 1:00 every week until a possbile later notice. The game is open to eveyone and
the fee to play is onl y50 cents.
Lulu Discusses Opening light in 3rd seat
This is a common agreement, so even if you don't use it, you should be aware of what your opponents are playing.
Charo Holdo Memorial Game on July 20.
Charo's son, Erik, has made an extraordinary offer
honor of his mother. He will be paying the card fees for those
who play in her memorial bridge game. Also, the Pasadena Club will upgrade to a Championship for extra masterpoints.
Lulu's Lectures
Lulu will once again be giving his bridge lectures - This time it will be prior to the
Charo Holdo memorial game on July 20.
Lulu has more than 10,000 master points and is willing to share his ideas! THANKS, LULU!
District 22 Newsletter
The July issue for District 22 is out, and as always there's some interesting stuff...
HIDDEN TEXT
Pasadena-San Gabriel Unit 559
Our unit is one of nine in District 23 and we are sanctioned by the American
Contract Bridge League. We have an elected board of 12 members that meets
monthly and is responsible for unit games, our Holiday party and the annual
John Waken sectional.
BBO has many bridge forums where you can discuss almost any aspect or topic related to bridge.
BBO has a site on YouTube where you will see many interesting bridge discussions and explanations.
WEB PAGES AND WEB SITES
1
2
3
4
a
b
c
d
e
f
A
B
C
D
1
2
3
4
5
Unit 559 Membership Report
Ranks are updated quarterly after the 7th of the month.
Unit 559 Active Members
Click the rank below for a list
Master Points
0-5
No color points needed
5-20
No color points needed
20-50+
No color points needed
50+ 5+ silver points
100+ 15+ silver points
and 5+ gold points
200+ 25+ silver
and 20+ red/gold/platinum
(5 must be gold or platinum)
300+ 50+ silver
and 50+ red/gold/platinum
(25 must be gold or platinum)
500+ 75+ silver
and 100+ red/gold/platinum
(50 must be gold or platinum)
750+ Life Master with
at least 750 points
1000+ Life Master with
at least 1000 points
(200+ must be silver/red/gold/platinum)
1500+ Life Master with
at least 1500 points
(300+ must be silver/red/gold/platinum)
2500+ Life Master with
at least 2500 points
(500+ must be silver/red/gold/platinum)
3500+ Life Master with
at least 3500 points
700+ silver/red/gold/platinum (350+ must be gold or platinum)
5000+ Life Master with
at least 5000 points
1000+ silver/red/gold/platinum (500+ must be gold or platinum)
7500+ Life Master with
at least 7500 points
1500+ silver/red/gold/platinum (750+ must be gold or platinum)
10,000+ Life Master with
at least 10,000 points
2000+ silver/red/gold/platinum (1000+ must be gold or platinum)
10,000+ Life Master with
at least 10,000 points
2000+ silver/red/gold/platinum (1000+ must be gold or platinum)
Must have a victory in an eligble event
January Total Membership 339
The Number of visitors since estabshment prior
to the reset on January 16, 2026 was 1,009,500 Since January 16, 2016 --
You are Visitor Number 222086
This website was established in 1999 by Roy Wilson
Linux version 1.0.0 was introduced March 14, 1994
The First Web Site was established at CERN in 1992 by Tim Berners-Lee.
This website was built in 1999
by Roy Wilson
Click on the
photo for a description of Extended Precision - Roy
Mike Marcucci
