JACOBY AND TEXAS TRANSFERS

Overview

When used in conjunction with the Stayman convention, Jacoby Transfers allow us to simply and accurately locate major suit fits after our side has opened in NT.  In response to a 1NT opening:

• 2 is Stayman asking opener for a four card major (click here for Stayman notes)
• 2! is a Jacoby Transfer.  It shows 5+ s and forces opener to bid 2.
• 2! is a Jacoby Transfer.  It shows 5+ s and forces opener to bid 2.
• 2! is commonly used as a minor suit transfer (forcing opener to bid 3) since the bid is no longer needed to show spades. 

Texas Transfers are also a popular addition.  They work in much the same way, except that they take place at the four level:

• 4! is a Texas Transfer.  It shows 6+ s, game values or better, and forces opener to bid 4.
• 4! is a Texas Transfer.  It shows 6+ s, game values or better, and forces opener to bid 4.

Note:  Even though they are very common, transfer bids should still be alerted!!

When do we use transfers?

Responder transfers almost any time he holds a 5+ card major suit, regardless of how many points he has.  The only exception is when responder is 5-4 in the majors with at least invitational points: these hands start by bidding Stayman.  Once we have transfered to show that we have length in a major, our next bid tells partner more about our hand.

We also make a transfer bid when we have a weak hand with a 6+ card minor suit.

How to Jacoby Transfers work?

With the exception of the 5-4 major suit hands mentioned above, responder always starts with a transfer when he holds a 5+ card major suit.  After partner opens 1NT:

2! --> shows 5+ hearts and forces opener to bid 2
2! --> shows 5+ spades and forces opener to bid 2

After opener completes the transfer (a transfer to hearts is used in the following examples), responder has several possible options.

Weak (0-7)
1NT : 2! : 2 : Pass                 … wants to play 2

Invitational (8-9)
1NT : 2! : 2 : 2NT                … inviting game with a 5 card suit
1NT : 2! : 2 : 3                  … inviting game with a 6+ card suit

Game forcing (10-14)

1NT : 2! : 2 : 3NT                … choice of games with a 5 card suit
1NT : 2! : 2 : 3/              … choice of games (3NT, 4, 5m) with 5 hearts and a strong 4+ card minor*

1NT : 2! : 2 : 4                  … to play with a 6+ card suit**

Important Note:  As we can see from the above examples, responder never rebids a 5 card suit.  Without extra length in the major, we rebid NT to offer partner a choice of where to play.  The reason for this is that when we only have a five card suit we are not guaranteed to have an 8 card fit, since opener could only have a doubleton.  Rebidding NT gives partner the choice of playing in our major suit if he has 3+ card support, while leaving NT open in case he only has two.  When we hold a six+ card suit we know that we must have at least an 8 card fit and therefore we can insist on playing in our major by rebidding it.

* This can also be played as natural but showing slam interest, so be sure to check with your partner.
** If you also play Texas Transfers then this sequence shows a mild, balanced slam try: without slam interest, you would transfer to game directly.

Since an immediate 2 bid is no longer needed to show spades, a popular addition is to use 2 to show a weak hand (0-7 points) with a long (6+ card) minor suit:

2! --> forces opener to bid 3.  Responder passes with clubs or corrects to 3 if he has diamonds (opener must pass the 3 bid).

Texas Transfers are a simple addition to the NT response structure and give even more precision to our NT auctions:

4! --> shows 6+ hearts and forces opener to bid 4
4! --> shows 6+ spades and forces opener to bid 4

There are two times that we'll use a Texas Transfer:

• We have a 6+ card major suit and want to be in game, but have no slam interest
• We have a 6+ card major suit and want to set it as trump so that we can bid RKC Blackwood

With the first type of hand, we Texas Transfer and then pass.
With the second type of hand, we Texas Transfer and then bid 4NT (which is RKC Blackwood).

The real advantage lies in the corresponding changes in auctions where we start with a Jacoby Transfer.  Note the following:

• Jacoby Transfer followed by 4NT:  Quantitative 4NT
  1NT : 2! : 2 : 4NT                 … Quantitative slam invitation with 5 hearts (~15-16 hcp)
   
• Texas Transfer followed by 4NT:  RKC Blackwood
  1NT : 4! : 4 : 4NT                 … RKC Blackwood for hearts (6+ card suit)
   
• Jacoby Transfer followed by a raise to game:  mild balanced slam try.
  1NT : 2! : 2 : 4                   … 6+ hearts with mild slam interest and no singleton or void
  Without any slam interest, we would have made a Texas Transfer and passed.

Q:  Do we have to have a certain number of points to make a transfer bid?
A:  No, we can transfer with any number of points.  In fact it's even more important to transfer when we have a weak hand -- our long suit might take zero tricks in 1NT if partner can't establish it!

Q:  What are superaccepts, and when are they used?
A:  A superaccept is when, instead of completing the transfer as expected, opener makes some other bid instead. The most common way for opener to superaccept is by jumping to three of the major suit that responder has shown.  There's room for partnership agreement here, but I recommend that opener only superaccept when he has both a) four card support for responder's major, and b) a maximum 1NT opening.  Remember, responder could have a very weak hand!

Q:  What do we do if we have both major suits?
A:  When we're 5-5 in the majors, our auction depends on our hand strength:

• With a weak hand, transfer to your stronger major and pass.
• With an invitational hand, transfer to hearts and then rebid 2.
• With a game forcing hand, transfer to spades and then rebid 3.

Q:  The notes say that with an invitational hand with a five card major, I am supposed to transfer and then rebid NT.  What if I have a singleton, or a strong minor suit?  Can't I bid another suit or at least rebid my major?
A:  With invitational strength and only a five card major suit we have to rebid 2NT.  Rebidding our suit promises at least six cards, and showing a new suit is forcing to game.  Remember that opener will take us back to our major suit if he has 3+ card support for us, so just because we bid 2NT doesn't necessarily mean that we'll play there.  If partner does leave the contract in NT it means that he only has a doubleton in our major and probably has our short suits under control.

With enough insist on game, you can show a strong 4+ card minor suit at the 3 level.  This tends to imply some doubt about 3NT, and offers opener the option of playing game in either of your suits or in 3NT if he has strong holdings in your short suits.  However, there is nothing wrong with a simple 3NT rebid -- even if you have an unbalanced hand -- if you don't want to suggest playing game in a minor.  Note: bidding / after a major suit transfer can also be played as natural but showing slam interest, so be sure to have an agreement with your partner.

Q:  Why do we need a six card suit to transfer to a minor, when we only need five cards to transfer to a major?
A:  Because we are forcing the auction to the three level (9 tricks instead of only 8), we need extra trump length to compensate.  And no one wants to play a 3-level contract in a 5-2 fit!

Q:  What do we bid if we have an invitational (or stronger) hand with a long minor?  Can we use a transfer?
A:  Without specific agreement otherwise, the 2 minor suit transfer is only used when responder has a weak hand and wants to sign-off.  Holding a long minor suit and invitational values, we have two choices.  Usually we will simply bid 2NT as a natural invitation, but we can also jump to 3 of our minor.  This immediate 3/ bid shows a broken six card suit without sure side entries and invites opener to bid 3NT depending on his holding in our minor.  If opener has a good fit he accepts (usually by bidding 3NT) because he expects to win five or six tricks in that suit.  With a poor holding in the minor opener passes and lets responder play in 3m, since he does not think he will be able to set up the suit in 3NT.

Q:  What are four suit transfers?
A:  Some people use 2 as a transfer to 3 and 2NT as a transfer to 3.  This can be a very effective treatment, but the downside is that you no longer have 2NT available to show a natural balanced invite.  An alternative is to use 3 as a transfer to 3, but then you lose the natural 3 invitation.  While both of these methods are playable, I recommend sticking to the basic 2 transfer to 3 (pass or correct) unless you are an intermediate+ player playing in an established partnership.  There are more important things to work at remembering!

Q:  Do transfers apply over a 2NT opening?
A:  Major suit transfers certainly do!  The principles are the same, only the bids are a level higher: 3 is a transfer to 3, and 3 is a transfer to 3.  (Texas Transfers also apply.) However, 3 typically isn't used as a transfer to 4... a more common treatment is to use 3 as Minor Suit Stayman.

Q:  Can Splinter Bids be used with transfers?
A:  Yes, Splinter Bids dovetail nicely with Jacoby Transfers.

1NT : 2! : 2 : 3/4/!            … 6+ hearts, slam interest, singleton or void in second suit
1NT : 2! : 2 : 4//!              … 6+ spades, slam interest, singleton or void in second suit

An alternative meaning for the jump shift into the other major is natural, showing strong 5-5 or 6-5 responding hands.  For the sake of consistency, I recommend leaving them as splinter bids.