ACBL17 – General: Bridge to English Translation Ward Trumbull
Mar 10, 2003
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+ (plus)
For purposes of instructions, “+” is used to mean “Or More”. E.g. an overcall
should be in a suit with 5+ cards.
Above the Line
See Rubber Bridge Scoring below.
ACBL
ACBL stands for the AMERICAN CONTRACT BRIDGE LEAGUE which is
headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. It is basically an organization to promote
duplicate bridge, but of course duplicate bridge players come from players who
have been weaned on rubber bridge.
Ace from Ace/King
For many years the standard lead from a suit headed by the ace and king was the
king. However, the standard lead today is the ace.
“Alert”
This is a verbal announcement used in duplicate bridge to alert the opponents that
your partner’s bid is invoking some type of bidding convention. You should make
the announcement immediately after partner’s bid. Social bridge players should
also alert their convention bids. In our course the following convention bids should
be alerted:
Transfer Bids
Ogust after a weak 2 bid
Jacoby Step Response after a strong 2 club bid
Some such bids that are exempt from the alert are:
Stayman Strong 2 clubs
Gerber and Blackwood Weak 2 bids
Western Cue Bid
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ARCH
This a reminder acronym to help declarers learn to evaluate and play a hand.
A - Analyze the opening lead
R - Review the bidding
C - Count your winning and losing tricks
H - Determine HOW you’re going to play the hand
See ACBL16 - ARCH - Declarer Checklist
Attitude
This is the signaling technique used by defenders to indicate preference for or
against a suit that partner leads. In general, high cards mean “come on” and low
cards indicate “stay away”.
Auction
The process of the bidding sequence to determine which team will declare the hand
(deal). The auction ends when three players in a row PASS after the last non-pass
bid.
Axioms and Rules
Down thru the years many bidding and playing AXIOMS or RULES have evolved.
Beginner bridge players should learn these saying, and then use them with
discretion. That is, they are only guides to better bridge but they are not cast in
concrete. Here are a few:
1. Cover an honor with an honor
2. Second hand low
3. Third hand high
4. The Rules of 11, 15 and 20
5. If you want to see the queen, lead a jack.
6. Fourth longest and strongest
7. Eight ever - nine never
See ACBL06 - Bridge by the Numbers for an explanation of some of these axioms
and rules.
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Balanced Hand
A hand with any of the following distributions:
4-4-3-2 4-3-3-3 5-3-3-2
Where the numbers represent no particular suit. When a player typically opens the
bidding with 1 or 2 notrump, they should have a balanced hand. That is, no voids,
no singletons and preferably no 5 card major suit.
Below the Line
See Rubber Bridge Scoring below.
Bid
1. Each player’s verbal response during the auction, starting clockwise with the
dealer. The only bidding options are:
PASS
A trick level and a suit (e.g., 2 diamonds)
A trick level of notrump (e.g., 3 notrump)
Double
Redouble
2. It also is used to refer to the final contract. E.g. “What’s the bid?”.
3. For instruction purposes, the opening bid is called THE BID and the next bid
by the same player is called THE REBID.
Book
The first six tricks usually taken by the declarer. Tricks after that are counted
toward making his/her contract. For example, if the contract is 3 hearts, the first
six declarer tricks are BOOK, and the next 3 count toward the 3 hearts. In fact
many rubber bridge players squeeze the first six tricks into one pile, i.e., a book.
Convenient Minors
This is part of the Five Card Majors bidding system/technique. If you have an
opening hand and no 5 card major suit, you open the bidding with 1 of a minor.
Now you are not guaranteeing a 5 card minor suit. That minor suit could have
as few as 3 cards, and in a are case as few as 2 (heaven forbid). When opening
convenient minors, it is a good rule not to open 1 diamond unless you have 4+
cards in the suit.
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Conventions
As bridge has evolved over the years, bidding techniques have become more
effective and of course more complicated. When one of these bidding systems
becomes popular with the masses, they become Bidding Conventions which are
often named after the person who invented them or the international star who made
them popular. There are many bidding conventions today (possibly in the 100s).
The course that we teach includes the following conventions:
Blackwood Jacoby Transfer Minor Suit Transfer
Gerber Jacoby Step Response Texas Transfer
Stayman Ogust Unusual Notrump
Limit Raise Key Card Gambling Notrump
Coups
These are elaborate declarer plays that are used to make difficult contracts easy.
They have names such as Alcatraz, Bath Coup, Coup En Passant, Deschapelles
Coup, Merrimack Coup, Morton’s Fork Coup, Pitt Coup, Robert Coup and Scissors
Coup.
Cross Ruff
This is a declarer technique to make a suit contract without pulling trump (or only
one round of trump) and taking the remaining tricks by alternately ruffing in his/her
hand and dummy’s hand. The trick is to cash all outside aces and kings first.
Cue Bids
This is where you bid the suit that the opponents have already bid.
1. An immediate cue bid of the opening bid suit is a very strong takeout
double.
2. It can also be used as an aid to reach a 3 notrump contract where you
have one stopper in the opponents suit, and you are asking partner to
bid 3 notrump if he/she too has a stopper. This is known as the Western
Cue bid.
3. There are other reasons for cue bidding that are used by advanced players.
Deal
1. The act of passing out the cards to the players, 13 cards each.
2. It is also used to refer to a player’s hand.
3. It is also used to refer to the completed play of a contract.
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Declarer
The first person to bid the suit or notrump of the final contract. Many times that
player’s hand does not contain as many trump suit cards as there are in the
dummy’s hand. Also in notrump, often the hand with more High Card Points (HCP)
is the dummy’s hand.
Discard
To play a card from one suit when another suit is lead and you don’t have any
cards in that suit. Of course the play of a trump card would be a ruff and not a
discard.
Double
When bridge evolved from the card game of Whist, the concept of the DOUBLE
was added. By invoking a double in the bidding, the opponents can significantly
increase their scoring points if they set the contract. However, as bidding
techniques have also evolved over the years, there are many more reasons to
double during the bidding. We teach at least 16 reasons to double.
See ACBL02 - Doubles and ACBL02X - Doubles Index.
Doubleton
When a hand has only two cards in a suit.
Drop Dead Bid
This bid is a Standard American bid that most neophyte bridge players never heard
of. It is only applicable when your partner opens with a 1 notrump bid. If you have
a worthless land (0-7 HCP) and a 5+ card suit, you should bid it at the 2 level; and
the notrump bidder must pass (i.e., DROP DEAD).
Duck
To deliberately not take a trick to enhance subsequent play in that suit. Typical of
this technique is to hold up with an ace when the declarer is playing a long suit in
dummy when there are no other side suit entries. If you take the ace too soon, the
declarer may still have another card in that suit.
Dummy
1. This is the hand (13 cards) of the partner of the declarer. After the opening
lead, the dummy hand is displayed by suit (red/black/red/black) with
higher ranking cards at the top. If it is a suit contract, the trump suit cards
are displayed at dummy’s right which is the declarer’s left.
2. The partner of the declarer is also called the Dummy.
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Duplicate Board
This is the holder used in Duplicate Bridge to pass the hands from table. It also
designates which player is the dealer and the vulnerability of both teams.
End Play
The technique in which declarer (in the last few tricks) gives up the lead to an
opponent which forces him/her to make a favorable lead into your hand or dummy.
Example:
Hearts are trump and the last 3 cards are:
H - 8
C - K 5
H - none H - J
D - 8 6 4 D - none
C -A Q
H - none
D - 7
C - 8 5
If declerer leads a club to the king, he will lose 3 tricks to west.
If declarer ruffs the diamond, in dummy, west is END PLAYED:
1. If he overruffs with the Jack, you’ll get the king of clubs.
2. If he doesn’t overruff, you get the diamond trick.
Establish a Card in a Suit
This involves playing a suit until a lower card in that suit is good. For example: You
have A K Q 5 in a suit and the dummy has 6 7 8 in the suit. You play the ace, king
and queen. If the suit breaks 3/3, your 5 is established. A 3/3 break means LHO
has 3 cards in the suit and RHO has the same.
Exposed Card
Occasionally a player’s card drops out of his/her hand and is EXPOSED to the
other players. The rule is that that card must remain exposed and be played at
the first opportunity. Other exposed cards are:
1. You accidentally play two cards instead of one. One of them or both
become exposed cards.
2. You lead out of turn on opening lead when your partner is on lead.
3. You lead out of turn after a trick, thinking you took the trick, which you didn’t.
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Face Card
This is a generalization that refers to Jacks, Queens, Kings and sometimes Aces.
False Card
The tendency when playing a hand is to play a small card to a trick when you
don’t intend to take the trick. However, you may play a higher card to mislead
your opponents in the play of the hand. FALSE CARDING is an indication that
a player is advancing from a beginner to an intermediate player.
Final Bid
This is the last level bid (3 clubs, 4 hearts, etc.) followed by three passes.
Finesse
See ACBL14 - Finessing
Flat Hand
This is a hand with 4-3-3-3 distribution. If the final contract is in a suit, this hand
has no ruffing value.
Forcing Bid
This is a bid which partner must not pass (unless there is an intervening bid by the
opponents). Some typical forcing bids are:
Stayman Takeout Doubles Gerber/Blackwood
Transfers Cue Bids Ogust
Game
Game is 100 scoring points. To bid game a pair must reach a contract of:
3 notrump which is 100 points (40+30+30)
4 of a major suit which is 120 points (30+30+30+30)
5 of a minor suit which is 100 points (20+20+20+20+20)
To bid and make game, a team’s score is increased by Game Bonus points. Which
can be 300, 500 or 700 depending on the team’s vulnerability and whether they’re
playing rubber or duplicate bridge.
Go Down or Go Set
The way you describe the result of a contract that a pair did not make. You might
say “They go down 2” which means 2 tricks.
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Good Cards
These are cards that have been Established earlier in the play. See
ESTABLISHED above.
Go Up
This means to play the higher of two cards in a suit when they are not touching.
If you have A/K, K/Q or Q/J, they are touching honors and GO UP would not apply.
However, with such as A/Q or K/J, to GO UP would be to play the higher of the two
cards.
Hand
1. The 13 cards dealt to a player.
2. The completed play of a deal (e.g., “How did you do on that hand?).
Hand Hog
This is a player who seems to bid so that he/she will play the hand. These type
players tend to ignore major fits and bid notrump instead. Over the years my
partners and opponents have used this loving term when talking about my game.
Hold Up Play
See DUCK above.
Honors
This is only applicable to Rubber Bridge. From 10 thru ace are the HONORS. In
a suit contract, all 5 in the trump suit are worth 150 scoring points. Any 4 of the 5
is worth 100 points. All four aces in a notrump contract is worth 150 points.
Interference bids
These are bids that are made to give a little information to partner and a lot of
trouble to the opponents. A typical interference bid is an opening preemptive bid,
including weak 2 bids.
Lead Directing Bids
An overcall is a typical Lead Directing bid. There are also a variety of doubles
that are used to indicate the desired suit to be lead. See ACBL02 - Doubles and
ACBL02X - Doubles Index.
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Lead To ......
This is an axiom for defenders. If you are in doubt about which suit to play (lead),
the axioms are:
LHO - lead to strength in dummy.
RHO - lead to weakness in dummy.
Level
For purposes of instruction, the word LEVEL refers to the number of tricks (after
book) required to make a contract. In a 4 club contract, 4 is the level of the
contract.
Left Hand Opponent (LHO)
For purposes of instruction, the player to your immediate left is called your Left
Hand Opponent.
Limit Raise
When a player opens the bid in a suit and his/her partner later bids that suit,
it is called a RAISE in that suit. A raise from 1 heart to 2 hearts in called a
minimum raise. It indicates trump support and 6-9 HCP. In some bidding systems
(as taught in this class), an immediate raise to the 3 level (e.g., 1 spade and then
3 spades) is called a LIMIT RAISE. This indicates at least 3 card major suit support
and 10-11 HCP. It is an invitation to game if the opening bidder has more than the
minimum HCP for the opening bid.
NOTE: The text book definition for a limit raise is to have 4+ card support in a major
suit. But we think it is such a good bid that we only require a minimum of
3 cards in a major suit.
NOTE: A LIMIT RAISE in a minor suit requires at least 5 clubs or 4 diamonds.
See Convenient Minors above.
Major suits
Hearts and spades
Master Points
This is the unit which measures bridge achievement in tournament play (i.e.,
Duplicate Bridge). The points are awarded and recorded by the ACBL to its
members.
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Minor suits
Clubs and diamonds
MUD (Middle Up Down)
This is an opening lead technique that is used for 3 card suits without an honor
. The opening lead is the middle card, and then the higher card (UP) at the next
opportunity when that suit is lead.
NOTE: This lead technique should be agreed upon by the partnership.
Negative Double
A bidding technique/system to indicate length in the major suits after an intervening
bid by the opponents. See ACBL02 - Doubles and ACBL02X - Doubles Index.
“No Bid”
Some players prefer to say “No Bid” instead of “PASS”. This is not permitted in
Duplicate Bridge.
North/South/East/West
It is traditional in bridge to identify the four players by the four compass headings.
North/South is one partnership, and East/West is the other. This a functional
designation when duplicate bridge is played. The North/South players are
stationary, and the East/West players move from table to table.
Note: This is also the standard for all newspaper bridge columns.
Notrump
There is no trump suit. I.e., if the hand is played in notrump, the result of each trick
is determined by high-card-wins in the suit that is lead. To open the bidding with a
1 or 2 notrump bid, the player typically should have a balanced hand with no voids,
no singletons and preferably no 5 card major suit.
Opening Bid
1. It is the first bid by the dealer, which of course could be PASS.
2. It is also used to refer to the first non-PASS bid. For example: the bidding goes
PASS, PASS, 1 heart, PASS
and then the next player asks “What was your opening bid partner?
Example:
N S E W
PASS 1 club PASS 1 heart
One club is the opening bid and 1 heart is the response.
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See ACBL01 - Opening Bids and Responses - 5 Card Majors and Convenient
Minors
Overcall
The first non-pass bid by a partnership after the other pair has opened the bidding
is called an overcall. If you overcall in a suit, you should have 5+ cards in that suit
and some face card values. An immediate overcall in notrump after an opening bid
implies 15-18 High Card Points and at least 1 (preferably 2) stoppers in the
opponents suit. See ACBL10 - Overcalls, Takeout Doubles, Cue Bids, etc..
NOTE: You do not OVERCALL if your partner opens the bidding. Your bid is
called a RESPONSE.
Overruff
This is the act of ruffing a trick after the opponents have ruffed that trick.
Overtake
This is the act of a defensive player to take a trick (with a higher card or ruff) that
has already been won by his/her partner. Sometimes this is a brilliant strategy, and
most often it’s a blunder.
Pair
See PARTNERS.
Partial Score
This a the trick score for any bid that’s made below the game level.
Partners
The players sitting opposite each other at the bridge table. Thus each table has
two partners. They are also called a PAIR or a TEAM.
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Points
Combine Points
The sum of High Card Points (HCP) and Distribution Points in a hand.
Distribution Points
The technique to upgrade the value of a player’s hand (13 cards) after a
trump suit has been agreed upon between the partnership.
A void in a suit is 3 points.
A singleton in a suit is 2 points.
A doubleton in a suit is 1 point.
High Card Points (HCP)
The technique used to initially evaluate a player’s hand (13 cards)
Aces are 4 HCP.
Kings are 3 HCP.
Queens are 2 HCP.
Jacks are 1 HCP.
Scoring Points
These are the points that a pair get after a hand (deal) is completed.
If the declarer makes the contract, that pair get the points. If the declarer
fails to make the contract, the opponents get the points. This is known as
“Going Set”.
Preemptive Bids
Bridge is a game of bidding, especially when your team has the High Card Points
(HCP). When you don’t, it sometimes pays to make interference bids to stifle the
opponent’s bidding. A very popular bid is the PREEMPTIVE BID. In this case you
do not have an opening hand point count (HCP), but you do have a long suit; so
you bid that suit at a higher level. Example:
With a 7 card suit open the bidding at the 3 level or skip to the 3 level if the
opponents open the bidding.
With an 8 card suit open or skip to the 4 level.
With a 9 card minor suit open or skip to the 5 level.
For the options on 6 card suits see ACBL03 - Weak 2 Bids and the OGUST
Convention.
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Psyche
This is a bidding technique more typical to Duplicate Bridge than to Rubber Bridge.
With a PSYCHE BID, a player bids a suit that he has weakness in (3-or-less-cards)
in an attempt to disturb the opponents bidding. The partner of the psycher does not
know that the bid is a PSYCHE. It gets great results and disastrous results if that
suit turns out to be partner’s strong suit, and you can’t shut up him/her in the
bidding.
Rebid
For purposes of instruction, this is the second bid of the opening bidder after his
partner’s first bid, which is called the RESPONSE.
Redouble
If the opponents double a bid by your team, they are saying they intend to set that
contract and thus get additional points for doing so. If you think it is a bad double,
and that you can’t fail to make the bid, you may REDOUBLE, which will quadruple
the trick score you would have gotten by making the contract. Beware that if you
still go set, the opponents will score twice as many points as they would from just
the double.
See ACBL02 - Doubles and the ACBL02X - Doubles Index.
Response
For purposes of instruction, this is the first bid of the partner of the opening bidder.
Of course, it could be PASS.
See ACBL01 - Opening Bids and Responses - 5 Card Majors and Convenient
Minors
Example:
N E S W
PASS 1 club PASS 1 heart
One club is the opening bid and 1 heart is the response.
Right Hand Opponent (RHO)
For purposes of instruction, the player to your immediate right is called your RIGHT
HAND OPPONENT.
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Rubber Bridge
This is the social form of bridge normally played in someone’s home. You usually
play one-or-more rubbers during an evening. The object of a RUBBER is to win
two-out-of-three games before your opponents do.
Rubber Bridge Scoring
The scoring sheet for Rubber Bridge looks like this:
WE | THEY
|
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
|
Above the Line
The following partnership scores are recorded above the dividing line:
1. Honors points
2. Game and slam bonus points
3. Overtrick points
4. Setting trick points (where the other team went set)
5. Partial score bonus points (only if the rubber was not completed)
Below the Line
The only points scored below the line are the points for the tricks that were bid
and made. If that entry and/or the sum of multiple partial score entries totals
100 or more points, a line is drawn horizontally below that entry to signify that
a game has been made, and that team is now vulnerable.
Refuse a Trick
See Hold Up Play above.
Ruff
When a player takes a trick in a suit contract with a trump suit card when another
suit has been lead, it is called a RUFF (or trumped trick). Note that in this case
ruffing is the player’s option. It is not mandatory. This is not the case in card
games such as Pinochle.
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Ruff and Sluff
This situation refers to a declarer’s option in a suit contract when the opponents
lead a suit in which both the dummy’s hand and the declarer’s hand are void.
The declarer has the option to ruff with a trump card in one hand and sluff a
side suit card in the other.
NOTE: Good defenders should avoid leading a suit which offers the declarer a
ruff-and-sluff.
Rules
See Axioms and Rules above.
Save
See Sacrifice Bid below.
Sacrifice Bid
A concept unique to bridge is the ability to TAKE A SAVE. That means that your
pair bids a contract higher than the opponents previous bid that you truly don’t
think you can make. But you expect to lose less points than if the opponents took
the bid. Example:
The opponents are bidding hearts and your pair is bidding spades. They bid
4 hearts, which you think they can make for 420 points. But you think your
team can go set only one trick at four spades, which is 50 points for the
opponents. If they double you, a 1 trick set becomes 100 points.
Short Club Bid
Originally this was a 1 club opening bid when a partnership was playing Convenient
Minors. However, it has evolved into a forcing bid which partner should not pass.
Short Suit
A suit in which a player has a singleton or doubleton. It normally does not refer to
a void in a suit.
Side Suit
In a suit contract, the other three suits are called SIDE SUITS.
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Singleton
When a hand has only one card in a suit.
Slams
Small Slam
Any 6 level contract, either in a suit or in notrump. The declarer must take
12 tricks. The bonus points are 500 non-vulnerable and 750 vulnerable.
Grand Slam
Any 7 level contract, either in a suit or in notrump. The declarer must take
13 tricks. The bonus points are 1000 non-vulnerable and 1500 vulnerable.
Sluff
If a player cannot follow suit (doesn’t have any cards in the suit that is lead), he/she
may discard a card from another suit. This is a SLUFF. Note that in a suit contract
you do not sluff a trump suit card because that trump card would take the trick,
which would be a RUFF.
Social Bridge
This is another name for rubber bridge because it is frequently played socially in
someone’s home.
Squeeze
This is a declarer play technique in which the declarer runs (plays off) one or two
long suits, thus giving the defenders discard problems.
Stiff
This is a suit in which a card is a singleton. More specifically, it refers to honors.
That is, a “STIFF” honor (ace, king. queen or jack).
Stopper
This expression usually applies to notrump bids and notrump contracts. It means
that you have a face card in a suit that could or will win a trick in that suit. Often it
refers to a suit that the other team has bid. Typical STOPPERS are:
An ace in the suit Queen x x in a suit
King x in a suit Jack x x x in a suit
NOTE: You DO NOT have to have STOPPERS in all suits to open or overcall a
notrump bid.
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Suit Preference
When partner bids two suits and you choose one of them, this is called Suit
Preference. Typically when two suits are offered, the higher ranking suit is bid first.
Example:
Partner opens 1 heart, you respond 1 notrump and then partner bids two
diamonds. You are being ask to choose between these two suits. If you
pass, you chose diamonds. If your support for hearts is better (e.g., you
have 2 hearts and 2 diamonds), take partner back to 2 hearts.
Note: This does not imply heart support (3+ cards). It is a preference.
Suits
Clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades.
Support (or Trump Support)
The objective in bidding is for a partnership to find an 8 card suit (preferably a
major suit) between their two hands. Thus TRUMP SUPPORT means adding
the number of cards in your hand to the number of cards in partner’s hand to see
if there are 8+ cards in the suit. Example:
1. Playing 5 card majors, your partner opens 1 heart. You need 3+ hearts to
have trump support.
2. Playing convenient minors, your partner opens 1 diamond, which by
agreement should always be at least a 4 card suit. You need 4+ diamonds
to have trump support.
3. Playing convenient minors, your partner opens 1 club, which could be as
few as 3 cards (or even 2, heaven forbid). You need 5 clubs to have trump
support.
4. Partner makes an opening weak 2 bid, which indicates a 6 card suit. You
need only 2 cards in that suit to have trump support.
Trump support also applies when partner makes an overcall, which should be 5+
cards in that suit. You need 3+ cards to support.
Team
See PARTNERS.
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“Transfer”
This is a verbal announcement required in duplicate bridge to alert the other team
when partner makes a transfer bid in response to your notrump bid. It is
immediately after the transfer bid is made. Social bridge players should do
likewise.
Transfer Bids
Transfer bids are only applicable when a partnership opens or overcalls a notrump
bid. If the partner has a long suit, it is preferable to have the notrump bidder play
the hand in that suit. To do this you must bid the suit immediately below your long
suit to TRANSFER partner to that suit. The notrump bidder immediately should say
“ALERT” to let the opponents know that your bid was a transfer bid. Then when it
is his/her turn to bid, he/she must bid that suit. There are three transfer
conventions:
Jacoby Transfer Minor Suit Transfer Texas Transfer
See ACBL04 - Notrump Bidding with/without Conventions
Trick
When each player plays a card after an initial card has been lead. Each trick will
be won by one or the other team. The player winning the trick, leads to the next
trick. The exception, of course, is the opening lead made by the declarer’s Left
Hand Opponent (LHO).
Trump
This is the act of taking a trick in a suit contract by playing a trump card when
another suit has been lead.
Trump Suit
At the end of a bidding auction, there are only three possible outcomes:
1. The hand is passed out.
2. The final contract is in notrump.
3. The final contract is in a suit named by the declarer. That suit becomes the
TRUMP SUIT for the play of that deal.
Trump Support
See SUPPORT above.
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Uppercut
This is a defensive play in which one defender’s ruff promotes a trick for partner in
the trump suit. Example:
Hearts are trump and partner and declarer will ruff your club lead. You hold
Q x in hearts and partner holds J x. If partner ruff with the “x” card,
declarer can overruff and pull trump with the Ace and King. However, if
partner ruffs with the Jack, the declarer is UPPERCUT. That is, he could
overruff with the King but could not capture your Queen of hearts.
Void
When a hand has no cards in a suit.
Vulnerable
In social bridge, at the start of each rubber, neither team has of course made a
game score. However, whenever during the rubber either pair scores 100
points in one deal or multiple deals, they become VULNERABLE. The Bonus
Game Points for that game are 300 points. If they make a second game in that
rubber, the Bonus Game Points are 500 points. (an over simplification). Prior
to scoring that first game, the pair is considered NON-VULNERABLE.
In duplicate bridge the cards are stored in a holder and passed from table to
table. That holder has designations as to whom is the dealer and the
vulnerability of each team.