01 Hand Valuation Bf S 2018 Truett Cates

01: Hand Valuation Bf. S 2018 Truett Cates

The Auction • Like commercial auctions, bridge auctions require that each bid be higher than the one before it. (Players can always pass) • Since there are 13 tricks in every deal, the lowest bid is for a contract to take more than half the tricks. • A bid of “ 1 club” represents a contract to take 6 + 1 = 7 tricks with clubs as trump. “ 4 spades” represents a contract to take 10 tricks with spades as trump. • There is a rank order of suits for the auction.

Bidding • How do you know whether your hand is worth a bid? • How does your partner know what you are expressing? • The auction is an exchange of information. • The information is conveyed by using a very small number of tokens or vocabulary items, and they can only be expressed in a certain order. Information conveyed is encoded in agreements between partners.

Table of Bids 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 nt 2 nt 3 nt 4 nt 5 nt 6 nt 7 nt These 35 “words” plus “Pass”, “Double”, and “Redouble” constitute the entire vocabulary of bridge auctions: a 38 -word dialect!

Agreements • The agreements we will use in this course are the most common ones for North American players today. . • Other agreements and systems of agreements abound in the bridge world, and before the month is over, you will doubtless encounter variants to the agreements in the course. • You are perfectly free to use other agreements: just make sure your partner is on the same page. • All systems of agreements begin with evaluating the trick-taking potential of a hand.

Potential to take tricks • A first step to evaluation the hand’s potential is to express the value in points. • Tricks can be taken in two ways: By high ranking cards, and by length. (When opponents are all out of clubs the lowly 2 will take the trick if led) • Aces are better than kings, kings better than queens, etc. • 5 -card suits have greater potential to take tricks than 4 -carders, etc. • Therefore our point-count system must take both factors into account.

Point count High card points • Ace 4 • King 3 • Queen 2 • Jack 1 Distributional points • 5 -card suit 1 • 6 -card suit 2 • 7 -card suit 3 • 8 -card suit 4

Shape: Balanced and Unbalanced • Three of the most likely distributions by suit are 4 -3 -3 -3, 4 -4 -3 -2, and 5 -3 -3 -2. These shapes are called balanced. • Together these distributions account for 47. 6% of all dealt hands • All others are called unbalanced. Note that a void, a singleton, or two doubletons make a hand unbalanced. http: //www. bridgehands. com/P/Probability_Hand_Distribution. htm

Point Count AK 42 7 0 Q J 10 8 7 3 3 2 Q 86 2 0 AKJ 42 8 1 10 8 7 6 5 0 1 10 8 0 0 Q 2 0 11 1 13 3 BFS 2016

Point-Count Practice A Q 10 6 0 KQJ 9763 6 3 J 43 1 0 J 1 0 972 0 0 AJ 5 0 Q 965 2 0 10 9 6 0 0 12 3 9

Practice QJ 9 3 0 43 0 0 KQ 854 5 1 J 10 9 3 1 0 A 72 4 0 AKJ 5 8 0 65 0 0 K 65 3 0 12 1 12 0

Practice A Q 10 6 0 J 43 1 0 972 0 0 Q 965 2 0 9

Scoring • Points are awarded on the basis of tricks that the declarer’s side takes (or fails to take) • The number of Tricks above 6 is multiplied by the trick score for that strain • • • Clubs Diamonds Hearts Spades Notrump 20 minor suits 20 30 Major suits 30 40 for the first, 30 for each subsequent • But to collect these points, declarer must make his contract. If she fails there are penalties for the number of tricks she falls short

Bonus points • Part score (making a contract less than game) • 50 • Game • 300 • Small Slam • 500 • Grand Slam • 1000 (100 points in tricks contracted for) 500 (12 tricks contracted for and made) 750 (All 13 tricks bid for and made) 1500 Note: Only tricks contracted for count toward bonuses.

Grant’s Golden Rules Combined points, roughly, needed to make game • 3 NT • 4 , 4 (Majors) • 5 , 5 (minors) • 6 of anything • 7 of anything = 26 points = 29 points = 33 points = 37 points

Suit Fits • With 25 -32 points and an 8 -card fit in a major suit, we would like to play in 4 or 4. • Without an 8 -card fit in a major suit, notrump is probably the best possibility.

Opening the Bidding • The first player to make a call other than “pass” is called the Opener. There is only one Opener for each auction. • The Opener’s partner is designated the Responder (There is only one responder in each auction. ) • We will be using a 5 -card Major bidding system. You wwill only open a major suit if you have at least 5 cards in it. • As you will see, there are many advantages to declaring major suits.

Opening bidding 15 -17 points, balanced, bid 1 NT • This is the most descriptive 1 -level bid. • Your partner will be well positioned to place the contract. (In the next lesson we will go into responses to 1 NT openers in detail. ) • 20 -21 points balanced, bid 2 NT

Opening the Bidding: 12 – 21 points • When your hand does not qualify for 1 NT, bid 1 of a suit • With a 5 -card or longer suit, • Bid at the one-level of your longest (e. g. 1 ) • Bid higher ranking of two 5 - or 6 -card suits • With no 5 -card suit • Bid your longer minor • Higher of 4’s, lower of 3’s

“Your bid, dealer. ” 9 8 A K Q 10 9 J 10 9 8 Q J 10 9 A 9 8 K Q 4 A 9 7

“Your bid, dealer. ” K Q 10 9 8 A K 10 9 J 10 9 8 Q J 10 9 985 A K Q 2 97

“Your bid, dealer. ” 10 9 8 4 3 A K Q 2 K 9 J 8 Q J 10 9 A 98 AKQ J 97

“Your bid, dealer. ” 10 9 8 A Q 8 4 2 K J 9 A Q J 10 9 4 10 9 8 8 K 9 7

Quiz: What is your call (dealer) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. K Q 4 3 K 8 2 K Q J 9 8 2 Q J 9 4 3 A Q 2 Q J 9 J 4 K 9 8 A J 10 2 A Q J 8 Q 9 3 K J 10 K Q 9 7 2 A K 9 2 K Q J 10 Q 8 7 6 2 K Q 8 4 K 3 J 9 6 A K Q J 9 2 A 5 10 9 7 4 A K Q K J 8 Q J 2 K 3 2 A J 4 2 K Q J 10 9 2

Guidelines: Declarer Play • Play high cards from the short side first. • Count your top-trick winners (at NT). • If you have enough off the top, take them at once. • If not, go to work, maintaining control in all suits. • Count your losers (in suit contracts) • Draw trump to gain control of the hand. • Get to work on your losers.