If the auctions begins 1♥-Pass-Pass (or similar), it is easy for your opponents to find the right contract. See Jim O'Neil's "A Balancing Act" article. When you make it easy for your opponents to play well, you are making it difficult for your partnership to score well. To avoid helping their opponents, many of the top partnerships have agreements to never pass a non-vulnerable 1 of a suit opening. Others say passing is very rare. They do so to make it difficult for the opponents to find their right strain and level.
You need to consider the form of scoring. Using IMP scoring in a team game, a light response may cause your opponents to miss a game which can swing a match. In matchpoints, each board is equally important. Since a -200 score can be a disaster at matchpoints if the opponents don't have a game, you must weigh the potential risk versus the reward. Caution is prudent at matchpoints especially when vulnerable. As Josh Donn points out in his "Responding Light" article, the main goals of a light response are:
- "prevent the opponents from finding their best contract"
- "to reach game in case a fit is located"
- "and to improve the contract to a better partscore"
Related Articles
- "Respond Light" by Andrew Robson
- "Responding Light" by Josh Donn
- "Don't Let the Opponents Play Well" by David Loeb
