(ETM) Victory a Weak Notrump System © 2002 ETM Information Services Inc
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ETM Victory Everything That Matters (ETM) Victory A Weak Notrump System © 2002 ETM Information Services Inc. (Canada) Release 2.3i ETMU Victory Introduction and Notes Introduction Everything That Matters Victory is a bridge bidding system developed primarily for playing in general team competitions, such as the popular Swiss team events. These events often use Victory Point scoring (where the result of a match between two teams is assigned a victory point award). The system implements the weak notrump opening in a highly precise method that provides maximum knowledge of the partnership potential on each deal. It is a system with many common sense arrangements, though arrangements that one might not find used elsewhere. Key to the system is the two point ranges used for balanced hands from 15 to 26 (with one partial exception), and a slightly tighter range for opening one trump. The two point ranges allow for accurate decisions by responder on how high to play the hand, and employ many game forcing sequences to find the right contract. The tighter range for opening one notrump means that purely quantitative game invites can be replaced by sequences that find the best game spot. In addition the active upgrade feature of the system upgrades balanced hands with playing value so that good games or slams might be reached even though there is slightly less points than one might normally have to have. Bidding is made easier in the system by bidding balanced hands in one way, unbalanced hands another way. Thus responder knows the nature of opener’s hand and can evaluate properly towards the best contract. ETM Victory is high definition system so it does take time to learn and play. For example, there are many times that a transfer bid is employed to show a suit, instead of just bidding it, to the point that sometimes ETM is nicknamed Every Transfer Method. However the system is designed to for maximum effectiveness, and it will provide substantial advantages to a partnership during a day’s competition. These advantages will mean better results for the partnership and the teams they play on. ETM Victory is the system for winners. Table of Contents ETM VICTORY INTRODUCTION AND NOTES .................................................................................. 1 INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................... 1 RELEASE NOTES..................................................................................................................................... 3 CONTACT INFORMATION .................................................................................................................... 3 DEFINITIONS & FORMAT...................................................................................................................... 3 LEGALITY AND ALERTS....................................................................................................................... 3 ABBREVIATIONS.................................................................................................................................... 4 BIDDING SEQUENCES ........................................................................................................................... 4 HAND SHAPE DESCRIPTIONS.............................................................................................................. 4 ETM VICTORY STYLE AND NOTES .................................................................................................... 5 GENERAL RULES.................................................................................................................................... 7 SYSTEM OVERVIEW................................................................................................................................ 8 ETM VICTORY - ONE AND TWO LEVEL OPENINGS........................................................................ 8 ETM MULTI VICTORY AND ETM TOTAL VICTORY - INTRODUCTION ...................................... 9 ETM TOTAL VICTORY - ONE AND TWO LEVEL OPENINGS........................................................ 10 OPENING BIDS AND RESPONSES ....................................................................................................... 15 OPENING BID OVERVIEW AND NOTRUMP LADDER ................................................................... 15 ONE CLUB OPENING, HYBRID: CLUBS OR BALANCED 14/15-18 (14/15-16 WITH CLUBS). ... 17 ETM MULTI VICTORY/TOTAL VICTORY CHANGES – MINOR SUIT OPENINGS ..................... 20 ETM – MULTI VICTORY- USEFUL TRANSFERS (UT)..................................................................... 28 ETM GADGET – A RELAY FOR ETM TOTAL VICTORY ................................................................ 30 ONE DIAMOND OPENING, NATURAL, BALANCED ONLY IF 14/15-16....................................... 32 COMMON BIDDING AFTER MINOR SUIT OPENING...................................................................... 36 1XYZ........................................................................................................................................................ 38 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS - ONE HEART OR ONE SPADE NATURAL ........................................... 40 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS - ONE HEART OR ONE SPADE NATURAL ........................................... 40 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS – 2NT RESPONSE STRUCTURE.............................................................. 41 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS - 2/1 APPROACH ....................................................................................... 43 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS - 1NT FORCING APPROACH................................................................... 44 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS – TOTAL VICTORY - CHEAPEST BID ASKING ................................... 45 MAJOR SUIT OPENINGS – TOTAL VICTORY – IMPROVING 1♥-1♠ ............................................. 47 ETM TOTAL VICTORY – TOTAL 2/1.................................................................................................. 50 ONE NOTRUMP OPENING – WEAK NOTRUMP – 11/12-14 BALANCED...................................... 63 ONE NOTRUMP IN COMPETITION .................................................................................................... 75 TWO CLUB OPENING: STRONG – 18/19-20 OR 22/23+ BALANCED OR GF NO 5+ CARD MAJOR .................................................................................................................................................... 82 TWO DIAMOND OPENING, GAME FORCING CONTROL ASK WHEN NO MULTI .................... 85 TWO HEARTS/TWO SPADES OPENINGS, WEAK TWO BIDS WHEN NO MULTI....................... 86 TWO DIAMOND MULTI OPENING – WHEN MULTI ALLOWED................................................... 88 TWO DIAMOND MULTI IN COMPETITION – WHEN MULTI ALLOWED.................................... 90 TWO DIAMONDS MULTI – FOURTH SEAT ...................................................................................... 91 GOLDILOCKS TWO BIDS – TWO HEARTS/TWO SPADES 10-13 WHEN MULTI USED............. 92 TWO NOTRUMP OPENING – 20/21-22 BALANCED. ........................................................................ 94 THREE LEVEL AND HIGHER OPENING BIDS ................................................................................. 97 COMPETITIVE BIDDING...................................................................................................................... 98 COMPETITIVE BIDDING AFTER OUR SUIT OPENING, PARTICULAR CASES ........................ 102 CHOICE OF STRAIN CUEBIDS.......................................................................................................... 113 ETM TOTAL VICTORY SWAPS AND TRANSFERS........................................................................ 115 DEFENSES ............................................................................................................................................ 121 JUNKYARD DEFENSE VS. FLANNERY, ROMAN ETC.................................................................. 126 RUMBLE VS BIG ONE CLUB............................................................................................................. 127 SLAM CONVENTIONS........................................................................................................................ 129 LEADS & DEFENSIVE CARDING ..................................................................................................... 133 Release Notes Release 2.3i - First Internet release. - Minor bug fixes. Contact Information For further information on these notes please contact: Glen Ashton ETM Information Services Inc. 128 Summerwalk Place Nepean, Ontario, Canada K2G 5Y5 (613)-277-1721 [email protected] UH Definitions & Format High card points are given in ranges, such as 10-12. The ranges are not absolutes that must be followed - the bidder is expected to make any adjustments due to hand characteristics – see Over-Active Evaluation below. Some ranges are given in the format nn/yy-zz or nn/xx/yy-zz. In this case it means that yy-zz is the normal range, but some hands of nn or xx points are included as well. For example 8/9/10-13 means the normal range is 10-13, but some 8 or 9 point hands are included depending on hand type. Useful: ETM defines the “useful” range as decent constructive to game invitational (limit) values. It is a range just a bit wider and stronger than “constructive”. It is usually made with a bid that gives room for partner to make a game try opposite it to find out whether it is good “useful”