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The Thirty-One Bid – A situational psychic bid
Every experienced player knows that the 4th bidding seat has many benefits. The last bidder is provided with the most information to determine his bid and can make adjustments accordingly. The third bidder can sometimes have the opportunity to misguide him.
We have all been in games where the opposition is getting the best cards and there isn’t much we can do. Even with perfect bid and play, we still seem to lose these types of games. However, we do have some desperate weapons to use for these situations. One in particular I call the Thirty-One Bid Convention.
Oftentimes an inexperienced 4th-seat bidder will increase his bid if the overall table bid is low – especially if his side has been eating a lot of bags over the course of the game. For instance, if the first three bidders have bid a total of 6, and the 4th seat has a hand value of 3, he may be enticed to increase his bid to 4. This poor judgment is what allows the 3rd seat bidder to bid deceptively.
This is where the “thirty-one” bid comes in. The third seat simply bids 1 regardless of the value of his hand. The simple objective here is we hope the 4th seat bidder will be inclined to increase his bid – thus falling into a trap and potentially get set. Note: Make sure your partner is aware that you may bid deceptively in such circumstances. The last thing you want is for your partner to play this hand as a “bagging” hand when your clear intention is to set.
This bid should only be used when you are in the 3rd-seat bidding position. It isn't applicable to the 2nd and 4th positions. Specify the situations that you want to utilize this convention with your partner so that he knows when to look for the flag. Use this convention only as a last resort, since underbidding your hand will cost you in most other situations.