SPLINTERS BY RESPONDER
July 2006 article

Splinter bids are an important slam bidding tool. Splinters are not officially a part of basic SAYC, but they are a widespread addition and are considered a part of full SAYC as well as 2/1. Splinters can be used in a variety of different auctions, but the most common situation where they arise is when responder makes a splinter bid after partner opens the bidding 1-of-a-major.

The three main requirements to make a splinter raise of a 1 or 1 opening bid are:

• 4+ card trump support
• about 10-12 hcp (13-15 total points)
• a small singleton or void

Also, avoid splintering with a strong 5+ card side suit: a good side suit can provide a valuable source of tricks, so it’s usually better to tell partner about that than to splinter. There’s always the chance that you’ll get to show your shortness later in the auction.

If responder’s hand meets those criteria, he can splinter by making a double jump in the suit where he has the singleton/void.

• After a 1 opening bid, the possible splinters are: 3, 4, and 4.
• After a 1 opening bid, the possible splinters are: 4, 4, and 4.

Examples:
K 9 6 2		A 10 7 5 2		J 10 6 2		8
Q J 5 4		K 9 5		void		K 10 5 3
K Q 8 3		4		A 9 6 5 4		A K 6
7		Q J 8 6		K J 3 2		J 10 8 7 2
1 : 4*		1 : 4*		1 : 4*		1 : 3*

* A splinter is a conventional bid and must be alerted *

Later Bidding

Responder’s splinter sets opener’s major suit as trump. Opener can bid 4 of his major if he wants to stop in game; otherwise, after the splinter any new suit bids are control showing cuebids, and 4NT is (RKC) Blackwood.

Splinters and Slams

It’s usually not too difficult to reach slam when your side has 32+ hcp – with so many points, everyone wants to keep bidding. But we’ve all seen or played hands where 12 tricks were available with many fewer hcp – sometimes only 23 or 24. What’s the key to those contracts? A good trump suit and complementary distributions/honor cards. Compare the following pairs of hands:

a)	Opener		Responder		b)	Opener		Responder
	K J 3		5			9 7 6		5<
	A Q 10 5 3		K 9 7 6			A Q 10 5 3		K 9 7 6
	9 7 6		A Q 4 2			K J 3		A Q 4 2
	A 6		K 8 5 3			A 6		K 8 5 3

The hands are nearly identical: the only difference is that opener’s and suits have been switched. In a) declarer can’t avoid losing at least one spade and one diamond, while in b) 12 tricks are easy. The crucial difference? The location of opener’s honors.

In a), opener’s KJ are largely wasted. Responder’s shortness means that the partnership has at most one spade loser, regardless of opener’s strength in the suit. It’s best not to have any honor cards opposite partner’s singleton/void, or to have only the ace. Other honors in the suit (especially queens and jacks) should be devalued.

In b), the KJ are fantastic cards because they work with responder’s length and strength in diamonds. We can see that, because the two hands complement each other so well, a slam can easily be made with those 26 hcp.

Let us look at how the bidding would go after responder begins with a 3 splinter:

a)	Opener		Responder
	K J 3		5
	A Q 10 5 3		K 9 7 6
	9 7 6		A Q 4 2
	A 6		K 8 5 3
	1 : 3* 4 : pass		3 = splinter raise of hearts 4 = sign-off, no slam interest

In this layout (a), opener’s hand decreases in value when responder bids 3: opener knows that his KJ aren’t worth a full 4 hcp opposite partner’s singleton/void. Devaluing his spade honors, he rebids 4, saying that he isn’t interested in anything more than game.

b)	Opener		Responder
	9 7 6		5
	A Q 10 5 3		K 9 7 6
	K J 3		A Q 4 2
	A 6		K 8 5 3
	1 : 3* 4 : 4 4 : 6		3 = splinter raise of hearts 4 = slam interest, club control 4 = cuebid, willing to cooperate for slam 4 = non-forcing, partner can pass if minimum 6 = maximum hand for 3

This time, responder’s spade splinter increases the value of opener’s hand because all of the partnership’s resources are concentrated hearts, diamonds and clubs. In light of the auction, opener can tell that his hand is good enough for there to be slam potential. He sends this message by cuebidding 4 to show a control in the club suit and get more input from responder.

With a good trump fit, identifying shortness is an essential step in reaching light slams: knowing about a singleton/void helps us determine whether there is slam potential from the hands’ distribution and fit. Splinter bids are a valuable convention in large part because they tell us about that shortness. (This concept is also at work in Jacoby 2NT auctions, where opener’s 3-level rebids show a singleton or void.)

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens after responder’s splinter?
Usually opener won’t be interested in slam: in that case, all he has to do is sign-off by bidding game in his major. If opener does want to try for slam, he can bid a new suit as a control showing cuebid. Note: For some pairs, such a cuebid promises the ace of the suit. For other pairs, the cuebid can show the ace or king, or a singleton/void. What your cuebid promises depends on your partnership’s agreements about cuebidding, and is not directly related to the splinter convention.

Is it okay to splinter with a singleton honor?
There are sometimes exceptions, but in general responder should not make a splinter raise with a singleton honor. There are two primary reasons for this.

• A splinter by responder shows a specific number of hcp – about 10-12. Any honor you have tied up in your singleton is going to be missing from where opener expects it, and that can cause trouble (especially if it’s a king or ace!).

• Splintering with a singleton honor can cause partner to misjudge the value of his holding in that suit, since he will downgrade any honors he has there. For example, he will view QJxx as a very poor holding since it will yield zero tricks opposite a small singleton. However, if you in fact have the singleton K, driving out the ace will establish two sure winners in the suit.

Why shouldn’t I make a splinter bid with more than 12 hcp?
When responder splinters with 10-12 hcp and a small singleton, his hand is worth about 13-15 total points in support of partner: strong enough to insist on game, but not so strong that he has any slam ambitions of his own. His splinter tells his whole story, and he can feel comfortable leaving the decision whether to stop in game or investigate for slam up to opener.

Once responder has 13+ hcp it becomes a different story: a responding hand worth 16+ total points should investigate for slam. The best way for responder to accomplish that is by NOT starting with a splinter bid, which would use up virtually all of the bidding room below game. Instead, he should begin either with Jacoby 2NT or by bidding a new suit. This will enable him to learn more about opener’s hand at a lower level, and he can use that information to decide whether or not to push on past game.

Can I use both Splinters and Jacoby 2NT? Which takes priority?
Absolutely: the two conventions dovetail nicely. Splinters take priority as long as you have the right strength and shape for it. If you bid Jacoby 2NT, it tells partner that you do not have a hand that could make a splinter bid, either because you don’t have a small singleton or void or because you have 13+ hcp.