Gavin's Master Series

When the opponents leave us to our own devices our NT response structure has all sorts of tools to sign off, invite game and force to game.  When they overcall, they make a big dent in what is possible.  Lebensohl was invented as a way to recreate some of the space that our opponents have taken away from us.  Transfer lebensohl is almost universally played among expert players as it is better than lebensohl in every way possible and is not much more complicated.  

This lesson starts with a quick review of Lebensohl but is designed for students who already know Lebensohl.

This lesson covers important advanced concepts when the opponents enter our 1NT auctions.  This is a follow up to Transfer Lebensohl.  If you have not taken the Transfer Lebensohl class, you are better off avoiding this lesson.  I am teaching this class in an effort to do a thorough job of going through the system I play.  

Topics Include:  More about negative doubles, how to bid when the opponents show both majors, what to do when the opponent's bid is 2NT or higher and we can no longer use Lebensohl.

There are quite a few different ways to play over an 18-19 point 2NT rebid, such as Wolff Sign Off, New Minor Forcing and Checkback Stayman.  There is no real standard among intermediate players.  There is however a standard among expert players.  Expert players play transfers after an 18-19 2NT rebid by opener.

By playing transfers you let the responder tell about their hand, rather than ask about opener.  By playing this way, you give responder the flexibility to sign off, find the right game or explore slam while also keeping the declarer's hand better hidden.  This lesson will teach you the entire system of transfers after 2N rebid.

This is Gavin's favorite convention for coming in against the opponent's 1NT opening bid.  This lesson will go over the entire system, when to use it and how to respond to it as the advancer.  We will discuss the fundamental difference between overcalling in the direct seat vs the balancing seat.  Can you come in showing the majors with 4-4?  5-4?, should I enter the bidding aggressively?   Can we bid game after they open 1NT?

Note: The 2D bid doesn't have a known suit and that makes it disallowed under the Basic chart (events with a masterpoint limit of 750 or lower, like a Gold Rush or a 299er or NAP/GNT flight C). It's legal in the Basic+ chart and obviously in the Open charts.

When the opponents enter the bidding with a takeout double and we have the balance of the points, we have big potential for penalizing them.  In this class we dig deeply into auctions that start with 1 of a suit-double-redouble.  Everything taught in this class is completely standard and is must know for advanced players.  

You don't know how many numbers you are missing! Watch this lesson and start making your opponent's lives way more difficult.  

Gavin outlines the response structure to 2NT opening bids with most of his regular partners.  We will dig into auctions that start with Stayman and transfers and talk about how awkward these auctions are at the 3 and 4 level.  We will also do a full overview of the expert standard system for 2N-3S (showing 1 or both minors).  

Note: This lesson does not teach Michaels and unusual 2NT from scratch.  You should already be familiar with these conventions before taking this lesson.  

There are many benefits to entering the auction in with these two suited conventional bids. We preempt the opponents, discover good sacrifices and help get to good aggressive games.  These bids do not come without risk as it is straightforward for the opponents to double us for penalty when we lack a fit.  While experts do not use the "mini-maxi" range for these bids, we do have somewhat strict rules for when to come in and the vulnerability is a very important part of the puzzle.  This class will talk about the range required and also talk about modern expert follow-ups to these commonly played conventions, including Meckwell advances over (1M) 2M.

This class also goes over a long list of uncommon but important Michaels and U2NT auctions along with a valuable list of common expert agreements for the Master Series.  

This is one of the most commonly played conventions.  We are taught that it shows a limit raise in support for partner, but there is no reason to wait for 11 points to use the convention.  This class will talk through the range required to bid drury and talk through expert follow ups to help us get to game, slam or stop low in a part score.  

We will also do a complete overview of the rest of our response structure to 1 of a major as a passed hand. 

This class will go through the entire expert standard system over our 2C opening bid including the Kokish relay.  We will talk through a number of different difficult 2C auctions and clarify some very uncomfortable situations.   

Warning to master series students: Most of the stuff in this class is more fundamental and may already be stuff you know.  There haven't been many innovations by experts in the area of the 2C response structure.  

There is a related lesson 2C Opening Response Structure Practice Set 1 in which we go over many examples to reinforce what has been taught in this lesson.

This lesson goes over standard expert methods when the opponents open weak opening bids.  We will discuss leaping Michaels, direct cue-bids, Lebensohl, Better Minor Lebensohl and also spend time discussing when to enter the auction and how aggressively to balance.  

We will discuss the expert standard system after our side overcalls.   Topics in this class will include: New suits non-forcing after 1 level overcalls and what to do with forcing hands, how to show a fit in competition (mixed raises, 2NT Jordan in some new spots),  dealing with negative doubles (what is redouble? Transfers after negative doubles),  and being a tough opponent on split deck hands.  

We discuss the following topics:

1. The opponents double us for penalty (DONT runouts)
2. The opponents double our Stayman 
3. The opponents double our Jacoby Transfer
4. The opponents overcall after we transfer or use Stayman

This lesson also includes 16 practice deals.  

Take a look at Board 5 and Board 6 in the 09/15/2023 Wolpert BBO Game Post-mortem to see examples of auctions that will be covered in this lesson.

Exclusion Blackwood is an expert convention used to ask for keycards, excluding one particular ace.  

In this class, we will discuss why bidding Blackwood with a void does not lead to good outcomes.  

We will go through everything you need to know to play this incredibly useful slam (and grand slam) tool that is universally played by experts.  After we go through the topic, we will then look at a number of example deals designed to expose some common pitfalls which you can practice on your own whenever you want.  

This lesson will cover how experts deal with the opponents making conventional two suited overcalls.  We will discuss the well known tool "Unusual vs Unusual" as well as some more complex methods such as fit jumps and transfers.  More important than all of those tools, we will discuss how and when to penalize your opponents for making these bids too aggressively much like we did in "going for blood".  

Gavin continues the Master Series with his style and system over weak two bids.  

This class will discuss:

• Gavin's style for weak twos  based on seat and vulnerability 
• When and how far we should further the preempt 
• More Going for Blood (expert standard)
• Vinny 2NT (a system Gavin believes is far better than "Feature" or "Ogust")
• Poor Man's Keycard (expert standard)

The biggest change Gavin has made to his major suit slam bidding in the last five years: non-serious 3NT. When it applies, the three directions (fast arrival, non-serious and serious), the flip to non-serious 3♠ when hearts are trumps, when you are forced to cooperate, who drives past game when every suit is controlled, and how to handle the close decisions.

Plus the new major suit raise structure: the limit raise that now includes three-card support with a singleton, and the shortness ask/tell after limit raises, mixed raises and 1m–1M–3M.