İ.RAMİ AYDIN e-mail : Rami.Aydin@btinternet.com

41 Broadleas Park Web : www.rami.aydin.btinternet.co.uk

Devizes, Wilts. SN10 5JA

ENGLAND

Tel: ..-44-(0)1380-722719 January.2004

(BT-rami.aydin)

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EXTENDED NOTES ON SOME CONVENTIONS

-- PREFACE

-- SIGNALS

-- Some change on HELD

-- JACOBY TRANSFER BIDS

-- 5-CARD MAJOR

-- LANDY

-- UNUSUAL NT CONVENTION

-- BENJAMINISED WEAK TWOS (BENJAMINISED ACOL -- BENJI ACOL)

STRONG BIDS of BENJI ACOL-- 2 § and 2¨:

-- CUE-BID

-- MICHAELS CUE-BID

-- STAYMAN (FIT FINDING ON MAJOR SUITS)

-- EXTENDED STAYMAN

-- TO RESPOND TO YOUR PARTNER’S TAKE-OUT DOUBLE

-- NEGATIVE DOUBLE (SPUTNIK)

-- SPLINTER BID

-- BUCHANAN CONVENTION as RESPONSES TO 2§ OPENINGS

-- KEY-CARD BLACKWOOD

-- ROMAN KEY-CARD BLACKWOOD --RCKB--

-- ROMAN BLACKWOOD CONVENTION (CRO = colour, rank, odd)

-- JUMPING to 5NT BID without asking 4NT beforehand =

“GRAND SLAM FORCE”

-- IF YOU ARE PLAYING SIMPLE BLACKWOOD

and you are the ACE asking one

-- Some more TIPS and TACTICS in addition to the ones in MY BOOK.

PREFACE

Several friends keep asking me to write an expanded article about “CONVENTIONS” with more details and explanations than what is in “MY BRIDGE BOOK” which I published privately.

Here I am doing this with some of the most frequently used Conventions.

Before starting to write about CONVENTIONS I would like to explain on some basic things which unfortunately are forgotten by most of us. These basic and standard things should come before trying to use some extreme CONVENTIONS. But if I try to tell you everything I think of about the basics and standards I must copy my book’s “Tips and Tactics” section. I believe most of you have bought my book, so please read that section again and again because I honestly believe that there is some good advice there; you can view my WEB Site as well. But don’t forget that learning and trying to use some complicated conventions won’t save you from defeat

-- if your maths is not up to 13 and 40 and you can’t remember the result of any calculation

-- if you can’t listen to and observe what is going on around you on the table.

-- if you can’t DEFEND properly.

A good defence is more than half of Bridge. Don’t make your opponents win an unmakeable contract because of your bad defence.

There is one very important thing to remember that with every new convention you are trying to learn you have to forget some of your standard knowledge and your old playing habits because the new conventions won’t allow you to use those; they will contradict most of your old knowledge. You have to change them and adapt to new standards, new rules.

I must emphasise that if you are not sure what you are doing and your partner knows what he/she is doing, don’t change your normal play and understanding. Otherwise you will get yourselves confused and muddled, to the benefit of the opposition whom you want to beat by these new conventions. You should decide definitely and discuss several times with your partner. And if it is possible have some practice and play trial games.

If you don’t do these you will either miss your normal game scores / winnings or you will pay a huge penalty.

If you decide not to play any new convention you must still try to learn about them for the sake of understanding what your opposition is playing at.

“Conventions” vary a lot and almost every pair adapts their own versions, their own interpretations of them. In the old days there weren’t many conventions or players of them. According to the EBU rules we don’t have to know every convention --please don’t think that it is something to be ashamed of not to know them, but members playing different conventions other than the standard ACOL conventions are obliged to explain additional ones fully and accurately. Unfortunately sometimes either we don’t ask or we don’t get satisfactory explanations. This situation gives these people an unfair advantage over other players. I keep reading (possibly you too) bitter complaints from ordinary club members about these situations in the Bridge Magazines; even sometimes in books.

So, I would like to suggest to members playing different and varying conventions : Please explain properly. Telling fellow players just the name of the convention then stopping and waiting or not for more questions is not really fair.

If you are playing against these players Please ask them for full explanations. Don’t keep silent, ask again and again. Don’t be satisfied with just the name of the convention. The strength / how many points, the suit or suits, how many cards in one or two suits; what sort of signals etc. etc. keep asking and learn what sort of facts are hidden, then judge your own hand accordingly.

Although asking the opposition for explanation of their convention sometimes makes them wake up and saves them from a muddle as well, I believe you should still ask for explanation. Why am I suggesting this? Let me give you examples of CLUB Suit bidding.

-- Some people open with CLUBs because they use STRONG NT and by opening CLUBs they tell their partner that they don’t have their ”Strong NT point range” and the hand is in the “WEAK NT range”. So, what are their STRONG and WEAK NT ranges?

-- Some people open with CLUBs because they use 5-CARD MAJOR and by opening CLUBs they tell their partner that they don’t have a 5-Card Major. So, if they don’t have 5-card majors what type of hand do they have, balanced or freak, and what is the strength?

--- Some people open with CLUBs although they don’t use STRONG NT and they don’t use 5-CARD MAJOR either but the bid is alerted. When you ask they say “Club is his best minor suit”. So, it looks as if it is a normal Club suit opening, but why it was alerted? Something must be hidden beneath it. You will have to keep asking and will get a short answer every time and you will have to ask again until you get tired and fed up of asking. When the hand comes down as dummy you will see that Club suit is a 3-card suit as “the best of minor suits” and the strength is said to be between 6 and 10 points !!! So, possibly they captured your part score or even game by putting you in doubt.

-- Some people just use a CLUB opening as normal, standard ACOL opening to which you are accustomed.

All these comments above are some points to remember. At the end you will have to decide yourself according to your belief and knowledge about Bridge. Just don’t forget that Bridge is a fascinating and UNPREDICTABLE game and THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS TO EVERY RULE.

Thus everyone playing Bridge should accept from the outset that, even though you play by different Conventions, every hand is different and unique, and therefore may or may not fit the rules.

I can’t help putting what Ben Cohen and Rhoda Barrow (Lederer) say in their book of "Calling a Spade a Spade"

".....using the straightforward common ‑ sensical natural bidding of the Acol System, which means calling a spade a spade, not a bloody shovel or a diamond, or any other fancy name, the right contract can unerringly be achieved even in the most difficult situations."

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Now,I would like to start with SIGNALS because they are an important part of Bridge

SIGNALS

1) The Attitude Signal

2) The Length Signal

3) The Trump Echo Signal

4) The Suit-Preference Signal

5) The Honour Signal

1) The Attitude Signal ( “Come-on” signal )

This shows how much interest / enthusiasm you have for your partner’s lead. If you play a card higher than necessary you tell your partner that you like the suit and encourage him to continue. You confirm your message by playing a lower card on the second round. You are trying to tell your partner that you either have a high card in the suit or you have singleton or doubleton and you are going to ruff next time. If you play a low card in the first round you are telling your partner that you have no interest in the suit and it is most likely that you have 3 or more cards in that suit.

SO : High-low = Encouragement

Low-High = Discouragement

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An adaptation of Attitude Signal = HELD

“Attitude signal” HELD (High-Encourages ; Low-Discourages) is the one almost everybody knows and plays. A different version is based on HELD with some additions.

A high card encourages a lead of that suit. and a low card discourages it, but a low card also encourages a lead of the other suit of the same colour.

For ex. : -- If you want a Spade lead, you discard either a High Spade or a Low Club.

-- If you want a Heart lead, you discard either a High Heart or a Low Diamond.

-- If you want a Diamond lead, you discard either a High Diamond or a

Low Heart.

-- If you want a Club lead, you discard either a High Club or a Low Spade.

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2) The Length Signal ( or “Count Signals” or “Distributional Echoes” )

This signal is used both in suit and NT play. The main use is when the declarer leads / attacks a suit or trump either from hand or from dummy and you don’t see any possibility that you can win a trick in that suit. You can use this situation to indicate to your partner the suit’s length in your hand by playing

high-low with an even number of cards ( 2 or 4 ) in the suit and

low-high with an odd number ( 3 or 5 ).

This enables your partner to count how many cards in that suit the declarer might have. This information is very useful and important for your partner to decide in some critical situations. For example to duck or not; if he/she has got a high card in that suit when dummy has a long suit with no side entry.

When trump suit is being played if you use this signal you might help your partner to decide if you have any chance to ruff ; whether you still have any trump left in your hand or not. But you might get mixed up with “The Trump Echo Signal”.

3) The Trump Echo Signal”

in which high-low and low-high are used in the opposite sense / exactly reversed of “The Length Signal”. SO; you must definitely decide which one you will be playing. And remember that “The Trump Echo Signal” might not be safe for certain situations and it would be unwise to start an echo with 3 trumps.

4) The Suit-Preference Signal

This is a signal to indicate to your partner where your outside strength is.

The best known is :

McKENNEY SIGNAL (or LAVINTHAL)

This is a signal / discard pointing the “SUIT PREFERENCE”, and is given when leading or following a suit.

The signal doesn’t apply to the suit led to the current trick, and seldom to the trump suit. The message relates to suits other than the one in which the signal is made. The idea is to guide your partner’s choice between the other two suits (usually other than trumps and the suit you have been playing). Sometimes you might get surprised and disappointed when your opposition leads your weakest and damaging part of your hand or dummy and ask yourself “How did they find this suit?”; it is because they used this signal.

How does it work? :

The play of an unnecessarily high card shows interest / strength in the higher-ranking of the other two side suits; low card shows interest / strength in the lower-ranking side suit, and is a request for your partner to play from that suit when he/she will continue playing or when he/she gets in. The most obvious occasion is when leading a card for your partner to ruff. You can indicate by your choice of card which of the two remaining side suits should be returned as your quick re-entry for being on the lead / on the play again so that you could give your partner another ruff.

If it is properly used, The Suit-Preference Signal doesn’t interfere with conventional encouraging and discouraging plays and discards.

5) The Honour Signal”

Discarding an Honour card is a very strong signal and guarantees the honour just below it, but denies possession of the honour just above it.

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JACOBY TRANSFER BIDS

The idea is to make the strong hand the declarer / player. Because it is usually advantageous for the lead to come up to the stronger hand which is going to be concealed.

There are different versions of TRANSFER BIDS; but I think Oswald Jacoby is the most widely accepted and used one. As it is a response used at the 2-level to 1NT opening bids, it can be used at the 3-level to 2NT openings as well.

2§ remains STAYMAN

2¨ Shows Hearts (at least 5 cards) and asks opener to bid 2©

2© Shows Spades (at least 5 cards) and asks opener to bid 2ª

With a weak hand, Responder will pass these responses.

But 3§, 3¨, 3©, 3ª are not asking for Transfers, they are Natural and Strong.

How many points you have does not matter; you can make a transfer bid on 0 points or 19 points.

Hand types :1) WEAK. It is less than 10 points and there isn’t a chance for a game.

2) INVITATIONAL. 10 or 11 points. There is a chance for a game.

3) STRONG. 12 or more points. A game is sure

As well as helping the strong, concealed hand to be the declarer, it also helps the intermediate strength hands, not really suitable for playing in NT but suitable for playing a major suit game, to be bid a bit more easily. Even a Major suit contract can be reached according to the strength and the shape of the responder's hand.

1) With a WEAK hand after your partner’s transfer you PASS.

2) With a hand on which you want to INVITE game, you will first make the transfer bid and then :

* Rebid 2NT with a 5-card major

or * Rebid 3 of the major with a 6-card major

In response to 2NT, the opener with a minimum may pass or convert to 3 of the major, which responder should pass. With a maximum, Opener should bid either 3NT or 4 in Responder’s major.

3) With a STRONG hand, after transfer

* Jump to 3NT with a balanced hand including a 5-card major

or * Bid a new suit if you hold a 5-card major and a second suit

or * Jump to 4 of your major if it is 6-card

After asking for a transfer bid and after partner's response, if you make another suit's bid; that one is natural and it means that you have a 2-suiter hand. It is best to play this as forcing for one round.

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There are methods of extending transfers to the minor suits; but if you want to use these as well you have to talk and decide definitely.

a) 2ª ® Shows Clubs and asks opener to bid 3§

3§ ® Shows Diamonds and asks opener to bid 3¨

or b) 2ª is used to show a minor 2-suiter in a game going hand with Slam interest

or c) 2ª is used to show a game going hand with one long minor suit and Slam interest.

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HOW TO DEFEND AGAINST this type of low-level artificial bids depends on your partnership's understanding and decision. These can be used :

-- An unusual NT to show minor suits.

-- Double to show the suit doubled, and the non-touching suit.

-- Cue-bid in responder's real suit to show the remaining possible 2-suited combination (suits of the same colour).

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5-CARD MAJOR

According to some systems opening bid of 1© or 1ª guarantees at least a 5-card suit. The advantage of this is that your partner is reassured as to your 5-card suit and can raise it freely with 3 trumps or even with only 2 in competitive situations.

-- But one of the disadvantages is that you give quite important knowledge to your opposition about your hand structure and give them some freedom in their bidding

-- Another thing is that you might wait a long time until you have a 5-card Major to bid.

-- When your opponents open with a 4-card major on minimum hands they are using a pre-emptive value against you because it is difficult to contest against an opening of a Major suit than against 1§ or 1¨ and you might not enter the auction.

-- Because you can’t open a 4-card Major, it forces the opening bidder to make prepared and unnatural bids in minor suits. For example with a reasonable value hand -10,11,12 points, you have to open with a minor suit of a 3-card or even worse 2-card.

-- If you are playing a strong NT and have a hand of 12,13,14, even 15 points with no 5-card major, again you have to open with a minor suit of a 3-card even worse 2-card.

-- If you are playing a weak NT and have a hand of 15,16,17, even 18 points with no 5-card major, again you have to open with a minor suit of a 3-card even worse 2-card.

-- And the extended use of minor suit opening gives more space / freedom to the opposition.

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LANDY

It is a type of TAKE-OUT OVERCALL of 2§ as part of defence / competing against 1NT opening of an opponent.

It is used usually against WEAK NT and shows BOTH MAJORS promising that one of them is at least 5-cards and the other one most possibly 4-cards; in addition to this shape the hand is probably short in one or both minors. (Because a player with a balanced distribution would normally double or pass according to the strength of the hand.)

From the strength point of view the hand is usually from 9 up to 15 points. But although sometimes it could be higher depending on vulnerability and tactical reasons, it is seldom more than 15.

As a response to your partner’s 2§ you are expected to bid your longer major or if you bid 2¨ which is artificial, you are asking for more details from your partner to bid his/her longer major --possibly you have equal length on majors with a weakish hand.

The other bids are natural. But some players tend to use 3§ which is nothing to do with Clubs; it is artificial; to ask their partner / Landy bidder to describe his/her hand further, just like 2¨ bid above, but it is the only forcing response with a stronger hand.

As partner of 1NT opener how could you defend against Landy’s 2§ overcall?

· A double as third player shows a good defensive hand with the prospect of a good penalty.

· Naturally, bidding Majors; Spades/Hearts, shouldn’t be available because opposition told you (!) that they are interested in them most possibly by having 2-suiter hand on majors

· A response of 2NT should be employed and understood as “Unusual NT”, asking opener to bid a minor suit

· A hand with the strength which would raise 1NT to 2NT when there is no interference, can double first and then bid 2NT in the next round when there is an interference.

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UNUSUAL NT CONVENTION

An Over--call which can not be understood as a natural bid; but is a form of Take--out Double on the hands lacking HP but having a shape. The idea is to contest the part-score in competitive situations.

After a major-suit opening by opponents an overcall of 2NT generally shows 2--suited hands, usually the Minor suits (and usually 5-5, but in some cases at least 5-5), and asks partner to choose.

If opponents have bid a minor, the Unusual NT asks for the 2 lower unbid suits (=excluding the bid suit).

The Unusual NT may be used when the auction is still very much alive; meaning that not just after one of the opponents made a bid and then you used Unusual NT, but both opponents made a bid and then you could use Unusual NT.

Opponents You

1©--1ª -- 2NT : Asks for choice between minors ; § and ¨

1©--2© -- 2NT : Asks for choice between minors ; § and ¨

2©/ ª (Strong)-- 2NT : Asks for choice between § and ¨

1ª--2¨ -- 2NT : Asks for choice between © and § (unbid suits.)

1©--2§ -- 2NT : Asks for choice between ª and ¨

1ª--2© } 4NT : Asks for choice between § and ¨ (a possible sacrifice.)

3©--4ª }

But there are some sequences where doubt may exist, and you might think that it is genuine. Especially after just one suit bid of opposition. In this sort of situaton if you want to use Unusual NT it is advised that you should definitely bid 2NT, not 1NT. Because for genuine 1NT you need 15-16p and this number of points might occur but 2NT needs more points and it is unlikely; very rare.

Opponents You

1¨.... -- 2NT : Asks for choice between © and § (two lower unbid suits--at least 5-5)

2¨ (Strong)....-- 2NT : Asks for choice between © and § (two lower unbid suits--at least 5-5)

1§.... -- 2NT : Asks for choice between © and ¨ (two lower unbid suits--at least 5-5)

1©…. -- 2NT : Asks for choice between minors ; § and ¨

These situations above are not genuine, they are Unusual NT.

Another situation is when you PASS before : e.g.

PASS (You) -- 1¨ -- PASS (your partner) -- 1ª

1NT (you)

This is Unusual as well, because you would not intervene on a balanced hand that did not justify an opening bid. And it is asking for choice between © and § (unbid suits.)

Another situation is like this :

1© (opposition) -- PASS (you) -- 2¨ -- 2NT (partner)

This is Unusual as well, because it is more or less impossible for PARTNER to have the values for a natural 2NT when one opponent has opened and the other has responded at the level of 2. SO; your partner has got a black 2-Suiter hand and the CLUBS probably longer than the SPADES.

Some authors say this : “A point to remember about Unusual NT is that if opponents buy the contract at the end, the declarer will have a valuable knowledge of the distribution of the unseen hands.

Another point is that if you use Unusual NT with a poor quality and poor point minor 2-suiter after a major suit opening and a major suit reply of the opposition you might pay a heavy price by being doubled especially if they have a misfit on their suits with strong hands. For ex. if you have this type of minors : ¨ A9543 -- § KJ752

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BENJAMINISED WEAK TWOS

(BENJAMINISED ACOL -- BENJI ACOL)

Interestingly it is not a new technique / new science (!). A prototype of it was used in Auction Bridge, and then adopted in the Wanderbilt Club System. Van Vleck, Howard Schenken developed and introduced their own versions. Then Modern American System, and Neapolitan, and Blue Team Club systems used it in their interpretation. In this country Albert Benjamin adopted it into ACOL.

I wrote about WEAK TWOs as well in “ My Bridge Book” shortly.Now I will expand it a bit

A suit opening of 2, other than Clubs and Diamonds has been used as a PRE-EMPTIVE BID (to make life difficult for opposition / to block them and to be able to describe your hand within a narrow range).

It being so, there are different interpretations, and evaluations. You will have to adopt your own understanding and announce it.

Some authorities require;

-- A 6 card suit ; about 8-11 points - mainly concentrated in the suit bid.

-- A 6 card suit ; about 6-12 points

-- A 6 card suit ; about 5-9 points

And I believe in this country it is generally used as ;

-- A 6 card suit ; about 6-10 points

2© and 2ª are the real WEAK TWOS :

2© Shows 6-10 points + 6-card Heart suit

2ª Shows 6-10 points + 6-card Spade suit

Position at the table and Vulnerability may be a factor in deciding whether to make a weak two-bid.

But you can still use 2 Strong openings in this BENJI ACOL system with a different arrangement from what you are used to / what you have been using.

2§ Is used as “ACOL TWO -- 8 playing tricks” in ANY SUIT. It doesn’t mean Acol’s 2§ which

is 23+

2¨ Is used as if it is Acol’s 2§ bid; substitutes it; which shows 23+ points and is Game Force.

Responses :

Vary a lot. From the opposition point of view the best thing is to ask detailed explanations from them before game/competition starts or during the game, if they play Weak Two, and if so what sort of responses they use.

Let’s talk about your responses to 2© and 2ª first as their being WEAK TWOs. Then we could discuss 2§ and 2¨

-- When your partner opens 2© or 2ª generally speaking most common response; most possibly;

will be “PASS” but

-- A single raise of the weak two is supposed to be a further pre-emptive bid, not a constructive

bid. Any other response short of game is forcing one round.

-- Bidding a new suit as a response is usually made with a very strong hand with at least a

good 5-card suit

It denies support for opener’s suit and doesn’t want to play in the opened suit, suggests an alternative contract.

-- 2NT asks partner to describe his hand further about the strength and the suit quality of his

suit.

It suggests at least the equivalent of opening values.

How to respond to the 2NT enquiry :

3§ Shows : WEAK Suit Quality WEAK Points (6-7)

3¨ STRONG Suit Quality WEAK Points (6-7)

3© WEAK Suit Quality STRONG Points (9-10)

3ª STRONG Suit Quality STRONG Points (9-10)

And 3NT a solid, self supporting suit (e.g. AKQxxx)

( If you hold 2 of top 3 honours your suit is supposed to be STRONG )

Defence :

Standard procedure is to bid over as if it is a One-bid opening. Or we could say; use the same defensive method as against weak 3-bids

-- Double : for take-out.

-- 2NT : If you have a Strong NT opening hand with stopper/s in their suit. If a bit stronger 3NT (of course again with stoppers in the suit bid).

-- According to the value of the suit opened in weak two; an over call of 2 or 3 of a suit should be considered as natural. As if you could bid it anyway according to your hand's valuation.

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Now let’s talk about STRONG BIDS of BENJI ACOL

-- 2 § and 2¨:

2 § opening and responses :

As we said above if 2© and 2ª are weak 2 openings, we will use 2 § and 2¨ as strong openings. But 2§ opening bid doesn’t mean standard Acol’s 2§ which is 23+

Here 2§ is used as if it is “ACOL TWO -- 8 playing tricks” in ANY OF THE 4 SUITS.

And because Acol’s standard 2§ is used with a different meaning / understanding its NEGATIVE 2¨ will have a different meaning as well which is very strong and replaces original 2§.

This time NEGATIVE response to the 2§ opening will be given by NT just like what we could do when responding to a STRONG 2 opening of standard Acol.

As a response to the opening bid of 2§, responder will have to bid 2¨ as a relay and because it is used as a relay to allow partner to describe his hand, is not a negative bid , and opener will bid his natural suit, like below :

2© 8 playing tricks in Hearts

2ª 8 playing tricks in Spades

3§ 9 playing tricks in Clubs ( § and ¨ are 9pt because they need one level

3¨ 9 playing tricks in Diamonds up for contracts.)

After opener has described / shown his hand the responder can bid as he would if partner had opened a STRONG TWO of any suit.

2¨ opening and responses :

2¨ Is used as if it is Acol’s 2§ bid; substitutes it; which shows 23+ points and is Game Force.

You will bid and play exactly as you would do in Standard Acol.

The only difference is NEGATIVE RESPONSE of 2© (0-7 points)

After negative response of 2© if opener rebids 2NT, this shows a balanced hand with 23 - 24 points. Responder then can bid 3NT easily even with 2-3p.

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CUE-BID

A forcing bid in a suit in which the bidder cannot wish to play. Cue‑bidding is an extremly broad subject. There are hundreds of situations in which low--level cue--bids can be used effectively, and most of them are impossible to classify because they occur on the second or third round of bidding. Therefore even trying to simplify this subject is a difficult task.

Still; let's say it is applied to:

1) bids in the opponents' suit at any level.

When a player bids a suit which has originally been called by his opponents, he is said to make a cue-bid. A cue-bid is not made in the expectation of actually playing in the relevant suit; it is made for exploratory or control showing purposes.

For ex:

S: 1ª W: 2© N: 3ª E: Pass

4©

Here, N‑S are already committed to playing in at least a game in Spades, so 4© must be a Slam try, showing control of the Heart suit. First‑ round control of the Hearts (Ace or void) is virtually guaranteed.

2) bids to show controls at a high level after a suit has been agreed directly or by inference.

And again a Slam invitation is implied if it is made when the partnership is already agreed on a suit and committed to a game contract.

For ex.

N: 1ª S: 3ª| N: 1§ S: 1©

4¨ (cue-bid) 3© 4¨ (cue-bid)

In each case the side is committed to game, and a suit has been firmly agreed. The final bid is a Slam suggestion, and the cuebidder's partner acts accordingly. If his hand is completely unsuitable for Slam purposes, he signs off in the agreed trump suit at the lowest level. If he is willing to cooperate in a Slam venture, he can bid a Slam directly, or take some other strong action which will take the bidding past the game level.

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MICHAELS CUE-BID

A cue-bid in an opponent’s MINOR SUIT indicates a limited hand with ;

at least 9-cards and 6-11 points in the major suits

and is used as take-out double with a 2-suiter hand especially when vulnerability is favorable.

** After an opponent opens 1§ / ¨ , a cue-bid in the opening suit shows both majors.

e.g. ª KJ742 © KJ83 ¨ 83 § 107

Overcall 1§ opening of opposition with 2§ or 1¨ with 2¨

** After an opponent opens a MAJOR SUIT;

1© / ª ; a cue-bid in the opening suit shows the unbid major and an unspecified minor.

If partner does not fit the unbid major, he can bid NT as a request to the cue-bidder to show his minor suit.

There is no upper limit of strength / point count on the major-suit cue-bid : the cue-bidder may have a powerful hand on which he plans to take further action.

The responder bids the full value of his hand when there is a known fit. New-suit responses to the cue-bid are not forcing. With a strong hand but no immediate fit, responder may seek clarification / further definition of the cue-bidder’s hand by a repeat cue-bid in the enemy suit.

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STAYMAN (FIT FINDING ON MAJOR SUITS)

I will put STAYMAN first very shortly so that I can explain Extended Stayman after this

1NT -- 2§ Usually shows 8--11 points + Shape -- Asking for a 4-card Major suit fit.

Responses :

With ONE Bid it at the 2-level

With TWO Bid the HEARTS first

With NONE Bid 2¨

After 2¨ response ; 3¨ asks opener’s better Major (Preferring length)

STAYMAN can be used after 2NT opening :

2NT (20--22) --- 3§ (4--5)

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EXTENDED STAYMAN

Let’s assume that your partner opens 1NT and you have a game-going hand with a 5-card and a 4-card in your majors. You use Stayman 2§. If opener bids one of the majors all will be well, but if he denies any 4-card major by bidding 2¨ you might want to know if opener has 3-cards in your longer major. You will bid 3¨ as an artificial bid to ask opener / your partner to show a 3-card major.

The responses your inquiry of 3¨ will be like these :

3© shows 3 Hearts and 2 Spaces.

3ª shows 3 Spades and 2 Hearts.

3NT shows 2-2 in the majors.

4§ shows 3 Spaces and 3 Hearts.

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TO RESPOND TO YOUR PARTNER’S TAKE_OUT DOUBLE

Take-out doubles are forcing and need to be responded even though you had nothing; unless your RHO makes a bid after take-out double and you have a really poor hand.

With no 4-card suit (other than the suit opened), YOU SHOULD BID YOUR LOWEST 3-CARD SUIT.

“A simple response to a take-out double can be made with 0 (zero) to about 8 points. If you have more you must jump”.

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NEGATIVE DOUBLE (SPUTNIK)

It has the character of a TAKE-OUT DOUBLE not PENALTY DOUBLE and it is used to solve some bidding problems arising after an opposition’s overcall / intervention.

If your partner opens and right-hand opponent overcalls, you can double with a moderate hand when no obvious bidding possibilty is available anymore and any normal bid is unsatisfactory. But the hand has some values and usually 4-cards in an unbid major. It shows about 7 to 10 points. This is called NEGATIVE DOUBLE

The opening bidder responds to the Negative Double according to his hand’s strength and prospects of a game. If he sees any prospect of a game he proceeds, and in this case a Cue-Bid is the only absolute force. If he has strength in the opponent’s suit as well, he can make a PENALTY PASS.

Although lots of players use negative doubles, you should be careful and fully decided about it. You might get confused and mixed up with PENALTY DOUBLES since you will lose the ability of doubling an intervening bid for penalties.

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SPLINTER BID

After your partner has bid a suit, to describe your hand’s structure you can use SPLINTER BID as a response if you have got a suitable hand for it.

It is a DOUBLE JUMP-SHIFT (one level higher than what is needed for a forcing bid) into a new suit to show shortage in the suit bid (singleton, even void) and primary / first hand support (at least 4-cards) for partner’s last named suit and suggest a Slam possibility. Neatly described sutructure of your hand makes your partner’s decision easier.

For ex.: 1 § (you) -- 1 © (your partner)

4 ¨ (you) -- you are telling your partner that you have singleton / or void in

Diamond and 4-card support for partner’s Heart suit)

or : 1 § (partner) -- 1 ¨ (you)

1 ª (partner) -- 4 © (you) -- you are telling your partner that you have singleton

or void in Hearts and 4-card support for partner’s Spade suit)

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BUCHANAN CONVENTION

as RESPONSES TO 2§ OPENINGS

The idea with these responses to 2§ opening is to make the decision a bit easier for a Slam. But you have to change / forget all your old habits / responses you have been using up to now. So, you might get confused and muddled up at the beginning of your new adventure. Another thing is that it still has some guesswork and luck in it just like all regular ACOL biddings or nonregular CONVENTIONS.

2¨ shows 0 - 3 points }

2© shows 4 - 6 points }

2ª shows 7 - 9 points }

2NT shows 10 - 12 points }

What this means is that you still don’t know exactly where within these margins the truth lies. (For example, is it 0 or 1 or 2 or 3 ? )

As you know 2§ opening is expressed and expected as 23+ points; but up to which point only the opener knows and he/she will calculate the total of both hands and will include some hopeful guesswork into the bidding and will bid either just a game or SMALL SLAM or GRAND SLAM.

For a SMALL SLAM you have to make 12 tricks out of 13 and theoretically you need 32-33 points for a suit slam and 33-34 points for a NT slam.

For a GRAND SLAM you have to make 13 tricks out of 13 and theoretically you need 36-37 or more.

Let’s say you have 26 points as 2§ opener and get the response of 2© (4-6). The total is either 30, 31 or 32. What are you going to bid now? If you have an interesting shaped hand you might take the risk and bid the SLAM.

But, if you have 26 points as 2§ opener and get the response of 2ª (7-9). The total is either 33, 34 or 35. It looks as if a Small Slam is there but with a total maximum of 35 do you dare bid a GRAND SLAM?

If you have 29 points as 2§ opener and get the response of 2ª (7-9). The total is either 36, 37 or 38. It looks as if there is no Ace missing and if you reach the total of 38 you can say that there is no King missing either and you can bid a GRAND SLAM.

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KEY-CARD BLACKWOOD

Simple one :

The difference between this one and Normal Blackwood is that King of Trumps is count as an ACE

Responses :

5 § 0 or 4 key-cards

5 ¨ 1 or 5 key-cards (incl. K of trumps)

5 © 2 key-cards

5 ª 3 key-cards

If you leap to 4NT after your partner’s last bid suit you agreing the suit as trumps and looking for SLAM possibility

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ROMAN KEY CARD BLACKWOOD --RCKB--:

Another version again. Here, in response to 4NT, the King of trumps is counted as a 5th Ace.

5§ No Ace or 3 Aces.

5¨ 1 Ace or 4 Aces

5© 2 Aces or 5 Aces and denies the trump Queen.

5ª 2 Aces or 5 Aces and the trump Queen.

If the 4NT bidder wants to ask about the trump Queen, after 5§ or 5¨ response, he will bid the cheapest non-trump suit. The responder bids the trump suit at the minimum level if he hasn't got the Queen. But if he has got the Queen he will jump in the trump suit, or will cue-bid a second round control.

It looks as if to identify the real quality of the trump suit is possible with this convention and some players and writers praise it. On the other hand some players and writers criticise it by saying that it is too convoluted and makes messing up a lot easier. Sometimes you reach a point without the real suit having been supported; sometimes it will look as if the real suit has been supported but in reality it has not; sometimes counting the trump King as an Ace will puzzle you about the reality of a missing Ace and you can bid a Slam with 2 missing Aces.

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ROMAN BLACKWOOD CONVENTION

(CRO = colour, rank, odd)

This one is complicated.

A different version of Blackwood which was used in the Roman System, and that's why it is called such.

After asking 4NT bid your responses will be like this, according to the genuine form of the system:

5§ No Ace or 3 Aces.

5¨ 1 Ace or 4 Aces

5© 2 Aces of the same colour or rank.

5ª 2 Aces of unlike colour and rank

Following one of these responses; 5NT bid asks for Kings in the same way.

OR:

5§ No Ace or 3 Aces.

5¨ 1 Ace or 4 Aces

5© 2 Aces of the same colour.

5ª 2 Aces of the same rank

5 NT 2 Aces of unlike colour and rank.

With this version you lose the possibility of asking for Kings.

It is almost unnecessary to warn you that there are several more variations of this convention; like all the other conventions and I am not going deep into them, all these variations make things more confusing as if they themselves were not confusing enough . So, the best thing is to ask your opponents what theirs is.

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JUMPING to 5NT BID without asking 4NT beforehand =

“GRAND SLAM FORCE”

When you think that a SLAM might be possible and you want to investigate further during your bids an immediate jump to 5NT without using 4NT bid, asks “How many TRUMP HONOURS partner holds”.

The responses varies according to the agreements but a simple one is like this :

With no honours bid 6 of the trump suit.

With 2 honours bid 7 of the trump suit.

With 1 honour bid something else.

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IF YOU ARE PLAYING SIMPLE BLACKWOOD

and you are the ACE asking one

and YOU WANT TO STOP AT 5NT.

After realizing that 2 Aces are missing according to partner's response and Slam is not possible and the hand is more suitable 5NT; bid the LOWEST UNBID SUIT (at the five level) which asks partner to transfer to 5NT on which you will pass.

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I am not going into too much detail. And I am not writing about MULTI-COLOURED 2¨ (2 Diamond) because it is long and complicated. I am not writing about BLACKWOOD, GERBER and lots of others either, because I am assuming that almost everybody knows these main / standard ones.

The choice in all these conventions is yours. Personally I always try TO KEEP IT SIMPLE.

SIMPLE IS BEAUTIFUL, but you should know what your opposition is playing at.

GOOD LUCK.

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Here I want to add some more TIPS and TACTICS

in addition to the ones in MY BOOK.

If you are opener and will make a bid you have to think / plan for your REBID. Because, after your bid when your partner makes a bid he usually expects a second bid / REBID from you. Most of the time your second bid / rebid is going to describe your hand.

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An even number of cards against you will usually break unfavourably

and ;

When you realize that missing important high cards seem badly placed for your finesses, try to plan and find a way that one of your opponents will open-up and lead that suit for your benefit.

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When you are in second seat (after one pass) your pre-empt should be a good one because sometimes you will be disrupting your partner as well; for ex; you should have 2 of the top 3 honours in the long suit.

But; a third seat pre-empt (after 2 passes) is the opposite one and could be weaker / aggressive. Because only one player left to bid and your partner has already passed you can be almost sure that you will be disrupting the opponents, not your partner.

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After you made a PRE-EMPTIVE BID you should try not to make another bid unless you think that you are really forced to do so. Because you described your hand completely and definitely in just one bid. If your partner makes a bid just leave it, trust your partner.

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You need 5 (five) cards for an overcall.

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If your partner opens the bidding and you have an opening type hand you should expect a game for your side.

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If you double an opponent’s artificial bid you are telling your partner that you have that suit; it is your suit and asks your partner to lead it when you will be the opposition. Or, if he has support for it and has got good / reasonable hand to compete, even play in that suit

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If your partner opens 2§ (23+ points) YOU CAN’T SAY PASS because at least a game (25-26-27) is likely. But if he bids 2NT (shows only 23) after your first negatif answer of 2¨ it is the only time you can say PASS if only you don’t have 2-3 points.

You have 2 options of negatif answers. First is 2¨ and at the second round 2NT. If your partner still continues bidding he is still asking you for some possibility. You have several options but I can’t go details here, you should look a book.

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When your partner opens 1NT, to investigate SLAM possibility is easier than other SLAM investigations with the help of some logical conclusions and calculations on what you need theoretically for a SLAM.

As we all know there are 40 points in the card deck.

And you need;

** 32-33 points in suits; 33-34 points in NT for a LITTLE SLAM

** 36-37 or more points for a GRAND SLAM:

-- If your partner opens 1NT (12-14) and you have 20 points Slam might be there according to your partner’s 12 or 14 points. Here you use 4NT. This time it is not ACE ASKING - it shows that you have 20. It is to ask if NT is minimum (12) or maximum (14). If it is 12 or poor 13 partner should PASS, but if it is 14 or good 13 should bid 6NT directly.

-- If you bid 5NT (22-23) after your partner’s 1NT it asks to bid 6NT with a minimum, 7NT with a maximum.

-- If you can calculate 33-34 points in the 2 hands of the partnership opposition CAN’T HAVE 2 ACES (8 points).

-- If you can calculate 38 points in the 2 hands of the partnership opposition CAN’T HAVE an ACE or a KING (4 or 3 points).

And you can extend these sort of calculations for several situations / possibilities or non possibilities.

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Try to avoid a SLAM if you are missing 2 key-cards.

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You should remember that every rule, every convention might have several variations, so don’t hesitate to ask. When it comes to your bidding and it is your rule / your convention you can make small deviations from system when you are bidding if only your partner doesn’t know what you are doing. This deviations sometimes are inevitable and are a matter of judgement. Use your logic and judgement.

And I must remind you that none of these or some other conventions are definite winners. Everything depends on not only conventions themselves but several factors as well, and you might not be able to control.

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After new changes of ‘Law and Rules’ a reader in the EBU’s June 2006 issue of “English Bridge” magazine was saying :

“”…why was it thought necessary to give Green Points in simultaneous pairs events, thus encouraging POINTS HUNTERS TO RAID ‘WEAK’ CLUBS even more than at present?””

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An interesting slang term at Bridge : “COFFEE-HOUSING”

“It indicates indulging in unethical actions with the intent to mislead the opponents.”

It is said that term comes from the dubious activities of the card players in the Vienna coffee houses in the early twentieth century

So, be careful on this type of people.

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“PASS” is said to be one of the most difficult calls

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The people conduct opposition on you at the table are your HELPERS at the same time. You get good points, tops lots of times with their help not with your excellent (!) play. Their bids, their opening leads, the cards they play, the cards they discard, the way they signal and their mistakes will put some light on your decision and the route to take. So observe them carefully and try to get their help.

In any case usually they are nice people, be kind them. Say “HELLO” them when you go to their table; and not only to one of them but both of them. Laws, rules, ethics, curtesy ask you to behave like this anyway.

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Some friends, some players ask me;

“What is the easy way of learning how to play good Bridge and improve?” or

“What is the easy way on deciding which opposition hand should be the route to your finessing?”

These sorts of questions somehow reminds me the tricky question below and the logical reply to it but still you don’t know where the final answer lies.

“How long is a piece of string?”

Mathematicall answer :

“Twice the distance from the centre to one end.”

Some say : “BRIDGE IS AN EASY GAME”

I say : “IT IS NOT”

“Is there anything easy if you don’t put any effort in it?”

If so, KEEP IT SIMPLE so that you are not going to confuse yourself and muddled up. Although I play some of these conventions I still try to keep it simple

You don’t have to learn all hundreds of conventions and their variations. But you might like to try some and then even adopt one or two, but don’t go to extremes. And remember that with every new convention you are trying to learn you have to forget some of your standard knowledge and your old playing habits because the new conventions won’t allow you to use those, they will contradict most of your old knowledge. One thing to keep in mind is that new or old nothing is perfect.

In any case you should have SOME idea about some of mostly used ones by your oppositions, especially the ones rushing from clubs to clubs to hunt points. Because they want to confuse you and muddled up so that they could collect some points from your naivity. Don’t forget you can ask / demand explanation.

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