LESSON 3 - The Bidding
The bidding is the exchange of information between the two partners to establish the highest contract the team can make. The information that follows is based on the principles of the "Standard American" bidding system, "5-card major" style.
This section will address the following aspects:
The strength of a hand determines its potential to win tricks when the play starts. It depends on two factors:
HIGH CARD POINTS DISTRIBUTION POINTS Ace = 4 Void (no cards in a suit) = 3 King = 3 Singleton (1 in a suit) = 2 Queen = 2 Doubleton (2 in a suit) = 1 Jack = 1 Any card over 5 in a suit = 1 Note: high cards singleton are not counted (except for the Ace).The value of a hand is the total of high card and distribution points. Experience shows that to make a game, the two partners should have the following minimum total number of points in the combined two hands:
3 NT = 26 HCp 4 in a major suit = 26 p 5 in a minor suit = 28 p small slam = 32 p grand slam = 36 pIt should be noted that when bidding a no-trump contract, only the high card points (HCp) are counted to evaluate the strength of the hand.
Another important factor in hand evaluation is the shape of the hand: balanced or unbalanced. A balanced hand has no voids, no singletons and maximum one doubleton. Thus, it can have the following patterns:
xxxx xxxx xxxxx xxx xxxx xxx xxx xxx xxx xxx xx xx 4-3-3-3 4-4-3-2 5-3-3-2All the other hands are unbalanced.
Typically, an unbalance hand is more suitable to play a trump contract. A balanced hand is good for a no-trump contract.
In case of a trump contract, the team playing it should have the control of the trump suit. Experience shows that the combined hands of the two partners playing a trump contract should have a fit of at least 8 cards in the trump suit. Typical patterns are 5-3, 4-4, and 6-2.
Once you evaluated your hand, you are ready to bid. To open the bidding for your team, your hand should meet the following criteria:
* 12-21 HCp
* biddable suit(s)
a) with one or more long suits (minimum 5 cards)
- open in the longest suit
- open in the higher ranking if 5-5 or 6-6
b) with no long suit (less than 5 cards)
- open in the longer minor
- open in 1D with 4Ds-4Cs
- open in 1C with 3Ds-3Cs
Note: Generally, only the high card points are accounted for when opening
because it is not known yet if the pair has a fit or not (you may be
short in the suit your partner wants to bid). After the fit is
established, the strength of the hand is re-evaluated, taking into
consideration the distribution points, too.
A biddable suit is a 4- or 5-card suit with minimum 4 HCp in it (e.g.: Axxx, or KJxxx, etc.). In case of a strong hand, QJxxx is also biddable.
According to the "5-card major" style, you open 1 in a major suit only if it is in minimum 5 cards (item a). Otherwise, you open 1 in a minor (item b) and bid the 4-card major in the second round.
* 16 - 18 HCp * balanced hand * stoppers in all the suits
With 19 - 20 HCp, you open 1 in a suit and show the additional strength in the second round of bidding (as it will be explained in a subsequent lesson).
If the hand has a doubleton, it should be Ax or KQ. Otherwise, open 1 in a suit.
There should be stoppers in all four suits. A stopper is a sure trick, such as Ax, KQ, QJ10, J1098. Sometimes, in a competitive game and with a maximum of points, you can open 1NT even if the highest card in a suit is not fully defended, such as QJx, or Qxx, or J10XX.
The Standard American bidding system indicates that you can open 1NT with only 15-17 HCp and stoppers in only 3 suits. However, my experience shows that it is better to have stoppers in all the suits, because if you do not have good cards in that suit, the opponets have them and the chances are they are going to lead in that suit. Consequently, at least as a beginner, open 1NT with 16-18 HCp and stoppers in all the suits.
A continous debating aspect is the opening of a balanced 16 -18 HCp hand with stoppers in all the suits, but with a 5-card major suit. Do you open 1 in the major suit or 1NT? Many players prefer to open 1NT, but the doubleton must be Ax or KQ.
With a balanced 16 - 18 HCp, stoppers, and a 5-card minor suit, you always open 1NT.
* How many points are in each of these hands? What do you open?
S A x x A Q x x x x K x A Q J x x
H A K J x x A x x x x x K J 1O x x
D Q J A x K Q x x x x
C x x x J x x x -- Q x
Ex. 4-1 Ex. 4-2 Ex. 4-3 Ex. 4-4
S A Q J x A Q J x K Q x K x x
H K Q J x x K Q J x K x x x x
D x x x A x x x K J x x
C Q x x Q x x K Q x A K x x
Ex. 4-5 Ex. 4-6 Ex. 4-7 Ex. 4-8
S K Q x x K x K Q x K
H x x x A Q x x x A Q x x A Q x x x
D A K x K Q x K Q x Q J x
C Q J x Q J 10 Q J 10 x x x x
Ex. 4-9 Ex. 4-10 Ex. 4-11 Ex. 4-12
This concludes the 3rd lesson. It will be a good idea to review this lesson before continuing with learning the bidding. The answers to the above exercises are presented in the next lesson. In any case, practice and have fun!
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