Basic Conventions
Here are some basic conventions that no one (in my opinion) should ever be caught without. All of these are assumed to be fitting into a standard framework. If you are reading this, you probably play standard.
Stayman:
What is it?
This is usually the first convention a new player learns. It applies after partner has opened 1NT,
showing 15-17 points in the standard system. After partner's 1NT, a bid of
2
is artificial (says
nothing about clubs). Rather, this bid is responder's way to ask "do you
have a 4-card major?" After the 2
by responder, opener's rebids have the following meanings:
2 |
I do not have a 4-card major suit. |
2 |
I have 4 hearts. I may also have 4 spades. |
2 |
I have 4 spades and I do not have 4 hearts. |
When to use it: Use Stayman when you have at least invitational values (8 HCP) and at least one 4-card major. In practice, this is often combined with Jacoby transfers (see below) and those bids are used with major suits of 5 or more cards. Stayman is appropriate when holding one major suit of exactly 4 cards or when holding 5/4 in both majors. Stayman is often not used when responder has 4333 distribution with one 4-card major.
Why use it?
One of the main goals in bidding is to find 8-card fits in a major suit. This convention allows you to explore
for a 4-4 fit in the majors at a low level. The ability to find 4-4 major fits is vastly more valuable than
having a natural 2 bid.
What happens next? The followups depend on opener's response:
- 2 - With only 4-card majors, responder knows there is no 4-4 fit. Responder bids 2NT with an invitational hand or 3NT with a game-forcing hand. If Responder is 5/4 in the majors, he can bid the 5-card suit at the 2 level with an invitational hand, or at the 3-level with a game-forcing hand.
- 2 - If responder also has four , he can raise to 3 with an invitational hand or 4 with a game force. If responder has spades, he bids 2NT or 3NT depending on strength (invitational or game-forcing). Opener can pick between NT and , since by bidding 2, opener did not deny also having four
- 2 - If responder also has four , he can raise to 3 with an invitational hand or 4 with a game force. If responder has hearts, he bids 2NT or 3NT depending on strength (invitational or game-forcing).
(Jacoby) Transfers
What are they? These bids also apply after a 1NT opening. After partner opens 1NT, bids of 2 and 2 are not natural, but rather show at least 5 cards in the next higher suit. That is 2 shows at least five and 2 shows at least five . These bids request that partner, (the 1NT opener) bid this next higher suit at the 2-level. Opener almost always does so, and when opener does not bid 2 of the shown suit, the most likely other bid is 3 of the known suit. This jump to the 3-level is called a "super-accept" and shows 4-card support and a maximal (17 point) hand.
When to use it: These bids should be used whenever responder (opener's partner) has a 5-card major suit, even with a very poor hand. If you have a very weak hand after partner opens 1NT, it is usually better to play in a suit contract. With a 5-card major and partner having no singletons (shown via the 1NT bid), there is at least a 7-card fit, and possibly more. Note that when responder makes one of these bids, opener should announce "transfer" to inform the opponents that the bid is a transfer bid.
Why use it? These bids are called transfers because, if the partnership eventually plays in responder's major, the 1NT opener will be declarer. It is usually better for the strong hand to declare as this keeps the strength hidden, and the opening leader may lead around to a tenace in declarer's hand on the opening lead, giving an extra trick. Also, the 1NT bid, being limiting, makes responder the captain, and the followups after opener completes the transfer are quite good for finding the right spot to play. These bids allow responder to guarantee having another turn to bid while still keeping the auction at a low level.
What happens next? After opener completes the transfer by bidding 2M (here M is either or ) responder has the following bids available:
- Pass - This shows less than invitational values (fewer than 8 points). Responder believs that 2M is a better place to play than 1NT.
- 2NT - This shows an invitational (8-9 points) hand and exactly 5 cards in the suit shown. Opener is asked to choose between notrump and the suit, and between a part-score and game. The first decision is based on how many cards opener has in partner's suit, knowing partner has exactly 5. The second decision is based on values: a 15 point hand will stop in a part-score, a 17 point goes to game, a 16-point hand can do either, using judgement.
- 3M - This shows an invitational hand and at least 6 cards in the suit shown. Opener will almost always either pass this (with a minimum) or go to 4M (with a maximum).
- 3NT - This shows a game-forcing (10+ points) hand and exactly 5 cards in the suit shown. Opener picks between passing 3NT and bidding 4M.
- 4M - This shows a game-forcing (10+ points) hand and at least 6 cards in the suit shown. Opener passes.
- New suits - Show a game-forcing (10+ points) hand and show a 2nd suit of at least 4 cards. Opener can pick a game or begin cue-bidding in search of a slam.
- 4NT - This is a quantitative invite to slam. Opener picks the strain (M or NT) and the level, settling for 4NT/5M or going on to 6NT/6M based on strength.
Splinters
What are they? A splinter is a game-forcing double-jump shift to a new suit after partner opens 1 or 1. That is 1-3/4/4 or 1-4/4/4.
When to use them: A splinter should be used when responder has all of the following:
- A more than game-forcing hand of about 14-16 points.
- At least 4-card support for partner's major.
- A singleton or void in a side suit
Why use them? When responder is in this point range, game in opener's major is a near-certainty, but slam needs some extra help as there are at most 29 points guaranteed between the two hands, well short of the 33 that is the goal for a small slam. However, the singleton/void here may be worth a great deal as opener can ruff losers in that suit with dummy's long trumps. The splinter is a way to force to game and also communicate the presence of the short suit to opener. Opener can then make an informed decision based on his hand strength and location of losers to determine whether to stop in game or explore slam.
What happens next? This is often a judgement call. Opener must consider how many tricks he is likely to lose, given the information about partner's hand. If slam seems very unlikely, opener can sign off in 4 of his major. 4NT can be used to ask for aces (see below) and other new suits are cuebids showing control of the suit bid. If opener makes a cuebid, responder is encouraged to make further cuebids about controls in his hand, if possible, though care should be taken to avoid bypassing the trump suit, which would force the final contract to a higher level.
(RKC) Blackwood
What is it? If you play bridge, you will eventually want to ask the question, "Partner, how many aces do you have?" Blackwood is a bid of 4NT, after a trump suit is agreed to or offered, that asks this question. One exception of note is that a bid of 4NT by responder after making a Jacoby transfer (see above) is quantitative and not Blackwood.
When to use it: Many beginning players believe that Blackwood is used to find slams. This is not quite right. Blackwood is an invaluable tool in slam exploration but the purpose is not to find slams, but rather to stay out of bad slams. The proper use of Blackwood is to determine if there are too many missing aces to proceed. Readers who are familiar with the 33-point target for slams may note that it is not possible, holding 33 HCP, to be missing two aces. This is true, but recall that distribution can be counted toward this total. It is possible to have a hand which will take 12 tricks as soon as opener gets the lead, but is nevertheless missing 2 aces. In this case, slam should be avoided, lest the opponents take the first two tricks. Thus, the proper time to use Blackwood is when you believe there is a strong possibility of having slam, and want to make sure the opponents cannot cash tricks off the top to set you. Blackwood can be used after a trump suit is known and agreed by both sides, or (and it should be noted that not everyone plays this version) if one partner introduces a new suit as a possible trump suit, and the 4NT bid is made immediately thereafter. Thus, 1 - 1 - 4NT is Blackwood and sets as trump.
What happens next? The responses to basic Blackwood are as follows (after 4NT):
- 5 - "I have zero aces or all four." The 4NT bidder should be able to tell, from his own hand, which possibility is correct.
- 5 - "I have exactly one ace."
- 5 - "I have exactly two aces."
- 5 - "I have exactly three aces."
The 4NT bidder can also continue the auction to look for a grand slam by bidding 5NT. This asks for kings in the same way that 4NT asks for aces, the responses are the same but one level higher.
Variant: RKC Blackwood: When considering trump slams, it is often important to also know about the king of trumps, and possibly the queen as well. RKC stands for Roman Key Card, and adds the king of trumps to the 4 aces to make 4NT a question about these 5 Key Cards. The responses to 4NT RKC Blackwood are:
- 5 - "I have zero or three keycards."
- 5 - "I have one or four keycards."
- 5 - "I have two or five keycards (almost always 2) and I do not have the queen of trumps."
- 5 - "I have two or five keycards (almost always 2) and I have the queen of trumps."