In real life, your partner doesn't say "Hey, I have 10 HCP, 4 Hearts and 2 Spades!" so you can find the contract to play. We make "bids". That's right.
Bidding is the first phase of the game, in fact. Each player, in turn, clockwise:
- either pass (like: let me sleep)
- or name a contract (like: 2, 3NT or 6, you know these now)
Learn more: contract
Actually, we can also:
- double an opponent's contract ("Let's play your 4, but you won't win and we increase the scores: it's going to hurt!")
- redouble a contract from your side that has been doubled ("Yes yes, he will make my 4, and we increase them even more: it's really going to hurt"). Rare.
But forget about that for now, we'll see it later. Besides, I didn't mention it.
To prevent bidding from lasting 4 hours, we require that each contract be higher than the previous one.
What do you mean, contracts have an order?
Yes:
| Level | NT | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1NT |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2NT |
| 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3NT |
| 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4NT |
| 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5NT |
| 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6NT |
| 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7NT |
So if someone has bid 1, no one can then bid 1.
If someone wants to bid Diamonds, they must bid at least 2. Understood?
The last bid is 2. What is the lowest contract among these three that you can still announce?
After a bid, three consecutive Passes end the bidding. If no one has bid, all four players must Pass. When a contract has been announced, we play the last bid contract, which is necessarily the highest.
The bids are presented in the table below. Which contract is played?
| SouthS | WestW | NorthN | EastE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pass | 1NT | Pass |
| Pass | Pass |
Who plays and who is the dummy?
In the side that plays the final contract, the first to have named their suit — or No Trump — becomes declarer. Their partner becomes the dummy. For example, you say 1, the player to your left passes, and your partner says 4. You will be the declarer, as you said "Hearts" first.
South bids 1, North 1, then South 4; the opponents pass each round. Who will play the dummy's cards?
| SouthS | WestW | NorthN | EastE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pass | 1 | Pass |
| 4 | Pass | Pass | Pass |
For now, play these deals while watching the bidding sequence unfold. Never mind what these bids mean for now, just watch how they unfold: clockwise and increasing.
Next step: you'll be the one bidding, I promise.
Deal 1 Deal 2Your progress
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