A project of The Center for Bridge Education A San Francisco Nonprofit Foundation

Transcription

1 Handz A project of The Center for Bridge Education A San Francisco Nonprofit Foundation

2 Special Thanks to the Center for Bridge Education Board Members, to the support of our contributors, and to a generous contribution from Gail Gabiati Acknowledgments Richard Bellerose Concept and Design David Budd Editor Lauren Friedman Publicity Deborah Drysdale, PhD. Teaching Coordinator Edmund Wu & Kendrick Chow Video William Zhu Application Programming Handz is a product of the Center for Bridge Education a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation 2017 All rights reserved The capitalization and numbers in this booklet are used to clarify English words used in game terminology. Words used to refer to players, North, South, East, West, Dealer, Declarer, Defenders, are capitalized as is the word Level when referring to a stage of the game and lower case when referring to the level of bidding. Bids,cards, and numbers used for arithmetic are written as numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.), but words (one, two, three) otherwise.

3 Foreword Handz is a card game based on bridge, emphasizing card play. Handevaluation is presented; the complexities found in bridge bidding systems is avoided. The instructions below are divided into ten Levels, each Level adding a new twist to the game. When all players have mastered a Level, they should proceed to the next Level, but there is no need to move from one Level to the next for any reason except to add more challenge and enjoyment of the game. Those players with a knowledge of bridge should begin at the Level understood by the l experienced player. Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5 Level 6 Level 7 Level 8 Level 9 Level 10 The mechanics of play, introduction of various terms Doubles and redoubles Part score and game bonuses, point count evaluation Notrump, major suits, minor suits, slam bonuses Bidding level and strain (suit/notrump), such as 1 Vulnerability (no more scoring changes after this Level) Hiding the facts to test memory Disclosing the facts as a strategy Selective facts, only one revealer, communicate with bids More reliance on bidding agreements As players progress, a section of card strategies, called Tipz, will improve the players card skills. Before considering a move from Handz to bridge, players should become familiar with these play techniques. Skillful Handz players who undertake the complexities of modern bidding will have a huge advantage over those who take up bridge from scratch and jump right into the auction. Bidding makes little sense without a sound understanding of the goals of the game. Players with significant card experience are encouraged to jump between even-numbered Levels, combining the rules of two Levels at once to speed progress, if desired Center for Bridge Education 3

4 CONTENTS Level 1 5 The Mechanics of Play... 5 Scoring... 8 Style of Play... 8 Suggestions... 9 Level 2 10 Doubles and Redoubles Bonuses and Point Count 11 Hand Evaluation Level 4 13 Suit Rank, Majors & Minors, Strain Scores Slam Bonuses Level 5 15 Level and Strain Bidding Level 6 17 Vulnerability Level 7 19 Memorize the Fact Sheets Level 8 20 Pass, Bid, Reveal Partnership Agreements Level 9 23 Find Options to Revealing Signals Level Reveal = Pass Appendix A 27 Three Player Handz Appendix B 30 Laws and Adjustments (for the serious players) Ethics Appendix C 34 Agreement Explanations Appendix D 37 Glossary Tipz Section (card play) 41 Tipz Table of Contents Center for Bridge Education

5 LEVEL 1 The Mechanics of Play Handz is a partnership game played with four players. The players sit at a (typically square) card table, the partners facing each other. Their positions are named for the points of the compass north - south - -. North and South are partners; East and West are partners. Handz is played with a standard deck of 52 cards, no jokers. The deck contains four suits, spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs. Within each suit the cards are ranked from the ace to the 2 (called a deuce). A K Q J A K Q J Dealing, Sorting, Distribution A dealer deals all the cards, one at a time, to each of the four players. Each player will have thirteen cards. The players sort their cards by suit and rank, without allowing other players to see them. After sorting the cards, players use the supplied markers to write on the coated Fact Sheets, in the designated boxes, the number of cards they have in each suit (called the distribution). This can be seen by everyone. Example hand: Q 3 A Q J 7 5 Q A10 Q 3 A Q J Confirm that the numbers add to 13 cards in each hand on each sheet. Confirm that there are 13 cards of each suit across all four Fact Sheets. Hand Strength In addition to the distribution of cards in each suit, players estimate the strength of their hand s high cards according to these guidelines: 1. An average hand has 1 ace, 1 king, 1 queen, and 1 jack, so = With an extra ace or king, the hand is above average With two extra aces or kings, the hand is strong If missing an ace or king, the hand is below average. 5. Without a high honor, the hand is weak. Mark the Hand Strength box: 7 5 Q A 10 SPADES HEARTS DIAMONDS CLUBS How strong is my hand? Two extra aces or kings One extra ace or king Average (A K Q J) One missing ace or king Two missing aces or kings 2017 Center for Bridge Education Weak Average Minus Average Average Plus Strong 2017 Center for Bridge Education 5

6 Handz is a trick-taking game. Each deal consists of thirteen tricks, each player, in turn, playing one card to each trick. The highest card played wins the trick for the partnership. The objective is to take as many tricks as possible. Before play begins, the players attempt to predict how many tricks their partnership will take by bidding. Bidding is a commitment to take a minimum number of tricks. A bid asserts that the partnership will take more than half of the tricks. A bid of 1 commits to seven tricks, more than half of 13 or 6+ the bid. A bid of 3 commits to winning at l nine tricks; 7 is the maximum bid, committing to all the tricks. Because high cards win tricks, holding aces and kings will help players win more tricks than the opponents, but there is another important factor. One of the four suits can become a super suit, also called trump. If trump cards are played on a trick, only the trump cards determine the winner of the trick trump cards beat all others. The player who makes the highest bid gets to select the trump suit, the super suit. Each player evaluates the combined total of cards in each suit of the partnership s combined hands. A trump suit should contain at l eight cards in the two hands. (A combination of eight or more cards in a suit is called a fit.) Before bidding, a player should determine whether a fit is available. Starting with the Dealer, each player considers whether the combined partnership hands is adequate to bid. A hand s strength is determined by two characteristics: distribution and high cards (strength). Distribution has two qualities the greater the number of cards a partnership has in a super suit, the more tricks that suit will take; the fewer cards in the opponent s suits, the fewer tricks will be lost in those suits because the super suit will trump them. When both sides have average hands (on balance, perhaps one partner is + and the other or ++ and or both 0 ), the side with the larger fit (more combined cards in a single suit) is favored to make more tricks if able to name the super suit, otherwise, the partnership with the stronger combined hands is favored. All things being equal, the first player to bid has an advantage because the next bidder must risk a higher bid in order to win the right to name the super suit. For instance, if the Dealer bids 2, no other player may bid less than 3. Do not spend too much time with this evaluation, because it will quickly Center for Bridge Education

7 7 S PA D E S H E A RT S D I A M O N D S C L U B S How strong is my hand? Two extra aces or kings One extra ace or king Average (A K Q J) One missing ace or king Two missing aces or kings 2017 Center for Bridge Education A 9 NORTH DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER south How strong is my hand? Two extra aces or kings One extra ace or king Average (A K Q J) One missing ace or king Two missing aces or kings 2017 Center for Bridge Education S PA D E S H E A RT S D I A M O N D S C L U B S How strong is my hand? Two extra aces or kings One extra ace or king Average (A K Q J) One missing ace or king Two missing aces or kings Center for Bridge Education 6 be replaced by another method of determining strength. The player who makes the last bid, the highest bid, will be the Declarer and will play both of the partnership s hands. Before play starts, the Declarer names a super suit or, without a combination of eight or more cards in a suit, will name notrump no super suit (this selection is called the strain). The player to the left of the Declarer plays the first card (called the opening lead). There are no restrictions as to what card can be played, either on this lead or any subsequent lead. After the lead card is shown, the partner of Declarer (called the Dummy) places the Dummy s cards on the Place the super suit, Q if there is one, to the left of 10 Declarer 4 2 The Dummy Facing Declarer table for all to see. All players should take a moment to review the Dummy. Declarer instructs Dummy to play a specific card, then the Leader s partner plays, Declarer playing last. All cards must be of the suit led, if possible. After seeing which hand won the trick, each player places the played card face down, separate from the other players. Tricks won by the partnership are placed vertically; tricks lost are placed horizontally, as illustrated. Dummy Q A J J A K 3 6 K 3 Q 10 4 Q A J A J K 6 3 K 3 West Direction of play DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER 9 9 East SPADES HEARTS DIAMONDS CLUBS A Cards played in front of each player Declarer (south) Won trick, vertical Lost trick, horizontal The Defenders won the first trick and set it face down vertically; the opponents lost the trick and laid it horizontally. The winner of each trick 2017 Center for Bridge Education 7

8 leads a card of that player s choice to the next trick. Cards are played in clockwise rotation as seen from above the table. A player without a card in the suit led may play any card. Cards of another suit are called discards and cannot win the trick unless the card is of the super suit, then it wins the trick unless a higher super suit card is played on the same trick, then it wins. At the end of the hand, everyone counts and agrees to the number of tricks won and lost. If Declarer has succeeded (six tricks plus the bid) the declaring partnership scores 30 points times the number of won tricks more than the first six. If the Defenders defeat the Declarer s bid (the contract), the Defenders partnership scores 50 for each trick that Declarer was deficient (undertricks). This Level familiarizes players with the mechanics of Handz. Scoring Consult the Scoring Guidelines for instructions on keeping score. In the interest of saving paper, Handz scores are kept on erasable plastic cards. To tally the results, write over the player s heading. Style of Play While the method of playing cards in Handz, where each player keeps the cards played rather than tossing them into the center of the table, will be unfamiliar to many, there are advantages to this form of play. For instance, the hands can be later played at another table. Also, having the hands available in the order played helps adjudicate irregularities, such as a failure to follow suit or, in higher Levels, inaccurate Fact Sheet claims. Play as many (or few) hands with these rules as needed to feel confident, then proceed to Level 2. Summary Handz is a partnership game; the object is to take as many tricks as possible. A trick is four cards, one contributed in clockwise order from each player. Players must play a card of the same suit as the lead card, if possible, otherwise, any card. The winner of a trick starts the next trick by playing any card. The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, unless a trump card is played. The highest trump card always wins the trick. Before play begins, Declarer names a trump suit or notrump the strain. The Declarer is the player who makes the highest bid. A bid is a commitment to win six tricks plus the number of the bid a bid of Center for Bridge Education

9 requires the bidder to win at l ten tricks, A trump suit should contain eight or more cards in the combined hands. Without a suit of eight or more cards, choose notrump. The Declarer s partner s cards are placed in columns on the table for all to see and for Declarer to play the Dummy. The person whose hand is Dummy should make no comment during the play, except to prevent Declarer from playing a card from the wrong hand. If Declarer succeeds by making at l the number of tricks committed, the partnership scores 30 times the number of tricks over six taken. If Declarer fails to make the number of tricks bid, the opponents get 50 points for each trick Declarer is short. Cards are played on the table separately, each player keeping track of tricks won and lost by the orientation of the face-down cards, vertical if won (standing up); horizontal if lost (dead soldier). If no one bids, the hand is called a pass-out and is not played no score. Normally, if a hand is passed out, the deal proceeds to the next player, but by house rules players may simply play the next hand with the same dealer, making no indication on the score sheet. Suggestions The Dummy s Fact Sheet may be set aside during play to reduce clutter. The Dealer is determined by the table marker, regardless of who actually deals the cards. Normally, North maintains the official score, but any player may keep a private score. After each hand, erase the Fact Sheets with the eraser on the markers. Keep the pile of won and lost tricks in order until all players agree on the result. If anyone disagrees, the hand can be replayed one trick at a time. Avoid overtaking or trumping your partner s tricks, unless there is a good reason to do so. Tricks won belong to both partners. Attempt to remember how many cards of each suit have been played by every player and compare that with the Fact Sheets. Keep track (in your head) of how many trump each player has. It is not necessary to play any specific number of hands at each Level. Players familiar with similar games will naturally be ready to advance sooner. Proceed from Level to Level when all the players agree Center for Bridge Education 9

10 LEVEL 2 Doubles and Redoubles It may be obvious that stealing the bid away from opponents can be made with little risk by making a bid that deprives the opponents of a bid a bid of 2 prevents the opponents from bidding 2. It sometimes pushes them to a higher bid that will fail. In Level 2 the opponents may increase the risk for theft, but also the reward for success. Double Instead of simply overbidding the opponents, there is an option to challenge the bid with a double. Doubling increases the penalty for failure, but it also increases the reward for success. For instance, a player who bids 2, gets doubled, and makes eight or more tricks, earns 60 points per trick twice the normal score for the partnership. Each trick short of the bid rewards the defense with 100 points per undertrick. A double does not end the bidding; the bidding ends when a non-pass call is followed by three consecutive passes. Either opponent may bid again, though it makes little sense for the bidding side. The partner of the doubler may bid again, called pulling the double, either doubting that it can be set or believing that bidding higher will score more points. For example, an opponent who bids 3 and is doubled may only go down one trick (100 points) because of a long trump fit, while the doubling side can make four (120 points) or five (150 points). Redouble Doubled opponents may choose to redouble, insisting that the contract will make and that the benefit will be even greater. Of course, the penalty for failing is also much greater. The result is four times the undoubled score whether making the contract or failing. Summary Instead of bidding or passing, a player may choose to double the last bid, presuming it was bid by an opponent. A doubled contract that fails loses twice the points otherwise lost (100 per undertrick). A doubled contract that succeeds earns twice the points otherwise won (60 per trick). Either doubled opponent may choose to redouble or bid higher. A redoubled contract can lose substantially more points for failure (200 per undertrick). A redoubled contract can gain substantially more points for success (120 per trick) Center for Bridge Education

11 BONUSES AND POINT COUNT Contract Bonus The bonus for making a contract is 50 points. This changes the point at which a competitive, failing bid can be advantageous. Now, a bid of 3 that makes nine tricks scores 140, instead of just 90, so a competing bid must be set three tricks to make up for that, or be doubled. Game Bonus The game bonus is awarded to a bid of 4 or more that wins the contract and succeeds. In Levels 1&2, there was no reason to bid more than 1 if the opponents could not compete. Players with great cards just bid 1 and then took most or all the tricks. Now there is a 250 point bonus for taking the risk of bidding 4 or higher. That bonus is significant. The problem is that players lack adequate information to decide whether to bid 4 without some tools. A method of judging the strength of a hand more precisely follows. Use the second side of the Fact Sheets now. Hand Evaluation High cards have a greater playing value than low cards. Aces are more useful in taking tricks than other cards, except for trump cards, which is why winning the bid and calling the trump suit is important. Instead of guessing whether a hand is above or below average, each player should assign a value in high card points (hcp) according to this list: Ace = 4 King = 3 Queen = 2 Jack = 1 The total value of the deal = 40: four aces = 16 + four kings = 12 + four queens = 8 + four jacks = 4 SPADES HEARTS DIAMONDS CLUBS HIGH CARD POINTS 2017 Center for Bridge Education ACE = 4 KING = 3 QUEEN = 2 JACK = 1 Q 3 A Q J 7 5 Q A10 Q 3 A Q J 7 Fig. 2a 5 Q A 10 Example hand in Fig. 2a is entered on the Level 3-10 side of Fact Sheet. There are 40 points in a deal, so an average hand has 10 hcp, which is the same as having one ace, one king, one queen, and one jack Center for Bridge Education 11

12 All players record the hcp and distribution (number of cards in each suit) on their Fact Sheets for all to see. The Fig. 2a hand has three queens (six points), two aces (eight points) and one jack, for 6+8+1=15. Be sure that the hcp total = 40 and that each suit count total = 13. Guidelines With a trump fit (eight or more cards in a suit) 25 points will usually make ten tricks game bonus if the bid is 4 or more. Without a fit, 27 points may be needed to make ten tricks in notrump. Penalty Doubles Reward for setting a doubled contract (undertricks) starts at 100 and then increases: 100, 300, 500, 800, 1100, 1400, 1700, and 300 more for each additional. The first two jumps are just 200 each, then 300 for each subsequent after the third undertrick. Summary Game bonus for bidding 4 or more and making the contract The honor cards ace, king, queen, and jack are given numeric values to help determine the strength of a hand. A trump suit fit will usually allow for an extra trick or more. Doubled contracts can result in a game bonus or a larger loss. The back of the scoring guidelines have some play advice at this Level and higher. Also, enthusiastic players will want to consult the advice in the Tipz section in the back half of this booklet Center for Bridge Education

13 LEVEL 4 Suit Rank, Majors & Minors, Strain Scores Handz ranks suits into two groups, minors (clubs and diamonds) and majors (hearts and spades). The third type of contract is notrump. We call the selection of a contract in a suit or notrump the strain. Scoring Changes The minors earn 20 points per trick above the first six; majors earn 30 points per trick, as before; and notrump earns ten points more per contract than the majors. For example, making eight tricks in clubs scores 40 (20 for each trick more than 6) + 50 for making a contract, = 90 points. Making eight tricks in notrump scores 60 (30 for each trick more than 6) + 50 for making a contract, + 10 for making a notrump contract, = 120. Making a doubled (or redoubled) contract scores an additional 50 points above the amounts for the doubled trick scores and possible game bonus. Game Bonus Change The game bonus amount (250 points) is unchanged, but the number of tricks required in the bidding is different for notrump, majors, and minors: Notrump - game requires a bid of 3, or 2 doubled (2x), or 1 or 2 redoubled (1xx). Majors - game requires a bid of 4 (no change), or 2x, or 1xx. Minors - game requires a bid of 5, or 3x or 2xx. (See chart on next page.) This affects hand evaluation for the game bonuses. To bid 3nt a partnership is advised to hold only 25 points between them (instead of the 27 recommended in Level 3), with all suits protected by high cards. To bid 4 of a major suit the advice is unchanged at 25 points (the trump suit will usually provide an extra trick without additional high cards). To bid 5 of a minor suit (game), the partnership is advised to hold 28 points. Slam Bonuses A new set of bonuses is given for bids of 12 tricks (bid 6) and of 13 tricks (bid 7). These are called slam (or small slam) and grand slam, respectively. Players must risk committing to taking 12 or 13 tricks in the bidding to make the respective bonus. Simply bidding 1 or 2 and making all the tricks does not entitle the partnership to a slam bonus. To bid at the 6-level a partnership is advised to hold 33 points; to bid at the 7-level, 37 points. Slam bonuses cannot be achieved by being doubled or redoubled, but the value of overtricks is increased. See the supplied scoring sheets Center for Bridge Education 13

14 Players need not know how to calculate the scores. Experience will provide advice about sacrifice bids. Slam bonus = 500 points for any bid of 6 that takes 12 or 13 tricks. Grand slam bonus = 500 additional points for any bid of 7 winning 13 tricks. Accumulative Scoring Slam bonuses are awarded in addition to the game bonus, the trick score, and the 50 points for making the contract. While slam bonuses are the same for all strains, the final score, which includes the extra values for the trick scores, makes the notrump grand slam worth ten points more than a major suit slam, and the minor suit slam scores ten points less per trick than other suit contracts. Bonus Chart For those who like to see things in chart form, here is how the bonuses are awarded. The numbers on the side, the recommended high card points, are only a guide. When holding extra trump cards and short suits (to score trump tricks) it may be unnecessary to hold so many high card points. recommended hcp any contract 50 3 notrump 4 hearts 4 spades 5 clubs } diamonds any 6 or 7 bid Any 7 bid Total of bonuses =1300 game bonus Add 50 if doubled or redoubled. This extra is not increased by the redouble. The disparity in scores between minors, majors, and notrump contracts is entirely due to trick values, not bonus values. Players at this level are ready to learn a few tips from Tipz, printed in the back half of this manual Center for Bridge Education

15 LEVEL 5 Level and Strain Bidding In previous Levels, it was possible to outbid the opponents by taking their bid away. A bid of 3 prevented the opponents from bidding 3. That is going to change and most players will love it. Suit Rank A bid includes a number and a suit or notrump (strain). For instance, instead of bidding 1, 2, 3, players now bid 1, 1, 1, 1 or 1nt (for notrump). Strains have an order, exactly as in the example bids, minors are the lo, then majors, then NT. The suits on the Fact Sheets are in the same order as the bids from left (highest) to right (lo): spades, then hearts, then diamonds, and the lo bid is clubs; the highest bid is notrump. After a bid of 1, the next player can make any 1-bid, because all strains are higher than clubs. After a bid of 1, the next bidder must bid a suit with a 2-bid or more, because spades is the highest suit, but notrump is the highest of all and a player may bid 1 notrump over 1. Vocabulary Handz follows the terminology of bridge. The selection of a contract is the strain, because it might be a trump or notrump contract, so it would be confusing to say suit contract. The word bid is used to refer to a commitment to take some number of tricks as the Declarer; the term call is the broader term for any bid, double, redouble, or pass. Game Bonuses Are Unchanged Game bonuses are awarded for 3nt, 4, 4, 5, and 5, providing each bid is at l that high and the contract is successful. A game bonus can be earned for a lower bid if doubled and lower still if redoubled. Declarer no longer names the strain after winning the bid because the winning bid establishes the strain. If the last bid is 4, then hearts are trump. A double now refers to the specific contract, which can serve useful purposes. (More on this under Artificial Bids below.) Slam bonuses are awarded in addition to the game bonus for bidding 6 of any strain (and taking 12 tricks) or 7 of any strain and taking all the tricks. Remember that slam bonuses are not achieved by bidding less than 6 or 7 and being doubled Center for Bridge Education 15

16 Rule Change In previous Levels, the player who makes the winning bid is the Declarer, perhaps doubled. That is now changed. The Declarer is the partner who first bid the strain that becomes the final contract, not the final bidder. Artificial Bids Bidding can be a language. Since partners know their distribution, it should be obvious to both players as to what strain the final contract must be. Using a bid in a suit that both players can see is not to be the final contract can have a special meaning, but it cannot be secret. For instance, players who hold 30 points or more and know that they will play in spades can bid other suits to show aces or just values in those suits. Doubles of artificial bids can also have special meanings. For instance, a partnership with nearly 30 points and a spade fit might bid another suit to show an ace or, by agreement, some number of aces. A double of this bid could ask for a lead in that suit, suggest a sacrifice in that suit, or any other meaning that makes sense in context. Distributional Values Trumps are most valuable when they can be used to take tricks from the opponents by trumping (also called ruffing) the opponent s non-trump winners. To use trump this way, some non-trump suit must be short, having fewer than three cards in the suit. Shortness is especially useful in the hand that holds the fewer trump. Mentally (not on the Fact Sheets), add points to your combined total for short suits and extra trump length (more than eight). The 10-cards (the cards between the 9 and the jack) are worth more than zero, less than one. When they support a jack, a 9, or even a higher honor, holding 10s can sway a close bidding decision. Summary Bidding requires two components, a level (how many tricks) and a strain (suit or notrump). Each strain is ordered above or below the other strains from clubs (lo) to diamonds, hearts, spades, and NT. The last bid sets the strain be sure it is in the suit or notrump where you want to play! Consider distribution (short suits) when deciding if a hand is strong enough for game Center for Bridge Education

17 LEVEL 6 Vulnerability There is a second table marker in this version of Handz where each pair is alternately marked in red or white. Red and white are used to indicate a concept called vulnerability. Being vulnerable is similar to being doubled in that the reward for making game and slam bonuses is greater, but the cost of failing to make the contract is also greater. (Doubling and redoubling make both risk and reward greater still.) Vulnerable NORTH To determine who is vulnerable, consult the table marker on each hand. If the DEALER marker shows one or both sides in red, DEALER that partnership is vulnerable. There are four states of vulnerability: none, north/ DEALER south, /, both. Numbers 1 4 in the example show the four states in order. The DEALER score sheets also show who is vulnerable DEALER The Dealer is established by table marker for each board number, not the person who DEALER south actually shuffles and deals the cards. The dealer rotates in a regular pattern for all 24 boards. The vulnerability varies relative to the Dealer so that each time a player is the dealer, the conditions of vulnerability are different. Scoring A vulnerable pair scores an extra 200 points for a game (+450 bonus instead of +250), an extra 250 points for the small slam bonus (+750 bonus instead of 500), and an extra 250 for the grand slam bonus (+750 bonus instead of 500). The small slam bonus and grand slam bonus are accumulative, meaning that bidding and making a vulnerable grand slam in a major suit includes 210 for tricks won (30 x 7), +50 for making a contract, +450 for making a game, +750 for making a small slam, +750 for making a grand slam = It is unnecessary to calculate these scores because Handz provides a scoring guides with the scores calculated. Undertricks are twice the value for defenders when the declaring partnership is vulnerable (100 per undertrick instead of 50 per undertrick). DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER 2017 Center for Bridge Education 17 DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER DEALER

18 Doubles The losses for doubled contracts are also greater: 200 for the first undertrick and 300 for each subsequent undertrick. Doubled overtricks are worth 200 extra; redoubled overtricks are 400 extra. These are calculated on the scoring sheet provided. Redoubles The losses for redoubled contracts are twice that for doubled contracts: 400 for the first undertrick and 600 for each additional adds up fast. Sacrifices, Stealing the Contract Vulnerability affects the calculation of making a sacrifice bid against a game contract. caution: Sacrifices against game contracts where the opponents would be set are huge losses. Here is a summary of how vulnerability affects the profitability of a doubled sacrifice bid against solid game contracts when doubled: We They Maximum loss acceptable not Vul not vul 2 not vul vul 3 vul not vul 1 vul vul 2 Summary Vulnerability is arbitrary, that is, it is decided by the board number. Game and slam bonuses are enhanced when vulnerable. Bonuses are increased for being vulnerable, but the bidding requirements are the same. There are no slam bonuses for bidding less than six whether doubled or not. There is no score enhancement for being vulnerable and bidding less than game. The penalties for failing to make a contract are greater when vulnerable. Bridge Congratulations. You now know all the rules to bridge, but to play bridge, you need to learn the guidelines for bidding, which give bridge players a means of communicating strength and distribution without Fact Sheets. In the next four Levels, Handz introduces changes to the game that emphasize a greater reliance on communication by bidding, instead of the Fact Sheets. When you feel confident with Level 10, you will be ready for a newcomer game of duplicate bridge at a local club or online Center for Bridge Education

19 LEVEL 7 Memorize the Fact Sheets You have mastered the complete rules of scoring in Handz. Well done. Refinements in the next four Levels will make the game more challenging, especially more taxing on memory. Those players who have gotten this far are essentially playing bridge, but without much knowledge of the complex agreements that make up bidding (the auction) in the game of bridge. Levels 8, 9, & 10 will acquaint players with the basic structure of bridge bidding. Flipping the Fact Sheets After the Declarer is determined, the contract established, the first card is led, the Dummy revealed, and the first trick is retired (turned face-down), everyone will flip over the Fact Sheets so that all players will have to rely on memory as to who held how many points and what each player s distribution was at the start of the hand. Once flipped, no player may refer to the Fact Sheets during play. It is good practice for the third hand (partner of the opening leader) to take as long as necessary to imagine the cards in the undisclosed hands in order to plan the best defense. This also gives the player who made the opening lead time to work out a plan. Declarer, being the last person to play, controls the time that the trick remain visible to work out a plan before retiring the first trick and hiding the Fact Sheets. For those who intend to move on to playing bridge, hesitation on the opening lead is excellent discipline. It is often said that the most common mistake in bridge is playing too fast on the first trick. This Level is meant to make all three players (Dummy can sleep) concentrate before playing. It is not just the first trick that matters here, but the plan for the rest of the hand. Summary Pay attention. Players should be familiar with the concepts in the Tipz booklets before moving on to Level 8. This is the last Level used for 3-handed bridge, as described in Appendix A Center for Bridge Education 19

20 LEVEL 8 Pass, Bid, Reveal Revealing strength and distribution (filling out a Fact Sheet) has its advantages (helping partner find the best contract) and disadvantages (letting the opponents know how to declare or defend against revealed hands). In Level 8, players have the option to reveal their hands on the Fact Sheet. Dealer First Starting with the dealer, each player, in turn, has three options: Pass Bid Reveal Passing is the option to wait and see. The decision then goes to the person on the left. Bidding can show the strength and distribution of a hand. For instance, 1 might show partner an agreed number of spades (like five or more) and a specific range or minimum of high card points. It also establishes the bidder as Declarer if the bid is in the strain of the final contract. Revealing is the option that helps partner to find the best contract. Choose this option by writing the hcp and distribution on the Fact Sheet. Only one partner on the declaring side should reveal; the other knows the combined strength and distribution of the two hands, so don t show both to the opponents. If a Defender reveals, the partner should reveal also. A player who is defending a contract with a revealed hand has given Declarer a count of distribution and high cards of all four hands. If the Defender s partner has not also revealed, then that one Defender cannot deduce the two unseen hands. There is no cost for the second defender because Declarer already knows (or can know) what the distribution and high cards are in both Defender s hands. Strategy A particularly strong hand should not reveal. It is commonly understood in bridge that it is an advantage to have the weaker hand be Dummy and the stronger hand be hidden (Declarer). If a hand is particularly valuable, there is good reason to make a bid that gives partner some indication as to whether to reveal strength and distribution. A player with a good hand, say fifteen or more points, should always bid, with the intention of showing Center for Bridge Education

21 the type of hand. If balanced (no singleton or void and no more than one doubleton) bid 1nt. With an unbalanced hand, a bid can show a good suit with a 1-level bid or more. Partner should reveal or raise the bid, but the original bidder of the strain is the Declarer. Honesty If partners make agreements about their bids, the opponents have a right to know what is meant by those bids. An explanation, if asked, is given by the partner of the bidder. It is not necessary for the bidder to explain the bidder s intent, only the partnership s agreement. There is no penalty for making a bid that is outside of the partnership agreement, so long as the partner of the bidder is unaware that the bidder might be deliberately misrepresenting the bidder s strength or distribution. However, when only one player reveals strength or distribution, it is impossible for the four players to validate the hcp or shape before the hand is played. If these values are inaccurate, the opponents are entitled to compensation. Penalties For each high-card point different from the correct total, the opponents receive 50 points. For each suit with the wrong suit count, the opponents get 50 points times each wrong suit count. The suit count error should be at l 100 points, because if the suit count does not add to thirteen, the opponents should spot it right away and if the count is thirteen, there must be at l two distribution errors (or none). Partnership Agreements From this Level forward, players are encouraged by the changing rules to rely more on bidding and less on Fact Sheets. We offer suggested agreements, which players are encouraged to change as they see fit. The opponents are entitled to know these agreements. Flip over any Fact Sheets after the first trick, just as in Level 7. First Call The first call refers to any player whose first opportunity to bid is not preceded by another bid. We recommend a player reveal (fill out the Fact Sheet details) when holding 9 12 points. With less, pass; with more, bid. If players agree to only bid a major suit when holding five or more cards in the suit, an opening of a minor suit will promise only three cards Center for Bridge Education 21

22 (A distribution of , four spades, four hearts, three diamonds, and two clubs, for instance, requires the bidder to bid a three-card suit if a spade or heart bid requires, by their agreement, five cards.) Balanced hands can bid notrump if holding hands within three specific ranges: 15-17, 20-21, and (rare). To fill in the gaps, players bid a minor suit and on the second turn bid 1nt to show or bid 2nt to show For hands with points, start with 2 and then bid 2nt. Responses The partner of the first bidder (the Responder) should pass with fewer than six points, unless Opener (the first bidder) has bid 2, in which case Responder bids 2 or reveals on the Fact Sheet to keep the bidding open. Overcalls An overcall is a bid made by the side opposing the first bidder. We recommend that simple overcalls be five-card suits (or better) and if forced to the 2-level, sixcard suits. A double can be a way to ask partner to reveal, but this fails under the rules of Levels 9 and 10. Signals When partner leads, show attitude toward the suit by choosing a spot card rank according to the partnership s agreement. We have recommended playing the lo spot (2-9) card to show interest in the suit; the highest card shows disinterest, which is expert. Some do the opposite, which is standard. When Declarer leads a suit, a spot card should help partner find which other suit is better. A high card suggests a higher ranking suit (excluding trump); a low card, a lower ranking suit. Naturally, a player often should play an honor card instead of a signal. NOTE: Speaking of the rank of the suit is the rank of the suit when bidding spades highest, clubs lo. Become familiar with our suggestions before making new agreements. DEFENSE OVERCALLS RESPONSES OPENINGS AGREEMENTS Pass to Applies to Levels 8-10 For suggestions and instructions, Reveal to see Appendix C 1/1 to may have as few as 3 cards in Rules. 1 /1 to must have 5 or more cards in the suit Opening bids are 1NT to balanced, no singleton, no 5-card major suit made by the 2 to artificial bid, any suit and shape, partner must bid first bidder 2 /2 /2 to qweak long suit; qother who does 2NT to balanced, no singleton, no 5-card major suit not pass. 3NT to qbalanced hand, all suits stopped; qother Minors 1 /1 /1 to 4-card suits, lo first; 5-5, higher first Responses are made by the 1NT to 2NT to 3NT to, no major suit partner of the 2/2 to raise partner, 5+ card support, no major suit first bidder, 3/3 to double raise, 5+ card support, no major suit the opening Majors bidder. Raise partner with 3-card support, otherwise, as above Notrump 2NT to balanced hand, no major suit 3NT/1NT to balanced hand, no major suit Otherwise, reveal for partner to decide. 1-level suit to 5-card suit, qother An overcall is the first 1NT to balanced hand bid or double by either 2-level suit to 6-card suit, qother opponent of the 2NT to describe opening bidder. Double qpenalty q requests partner to reveal (Level 8) or requests bid (Levels 9 & 10) qhigh spot = Clike qlow spot = Clike Defense refers to Playing to suit led by... the partners who are Partner qattitude qother the opponents of the Declarer qsuit pref qother Discards Declarer. Defenders signal to each other with Against NT qattitude qsuit pref qother their cards. Against suit qattitude qsuit pref qother Other Agreements: An explanation of the agreement card can be found in Appendix C Center for Bridge Education

23 LEVEL 9 Find Options to Revealing Level 8 players seldom play a hand without a hidden hand having been revealed and giving at l two of the three active players (excluding Dummy) a complete picture of the other hands. The rules in this Level will give players an incentive to communicate more with bids than by revealing. Only One Revealed Fact Sheet Only one player may use the reveal option the player who exercises that option first. This presents a potential difficulty when using double as a request to reveal, because lho (left-hand opponent), especially if expecting to be Dummy, can reveal in front of the Doubler s partner, denying that option to the next player. Partial Information The player who chooses to reveal may show all five of the facts about the hand, hcp and number of cards in each of the four suits, or any subset from one to four. That player may, in a later round of bidding, add more facts to the sheet, just as in the game of bridge a sequence of bids fills in a description. Strategy Changes It is less effective to use the double to request that partner reveal when the lho can preemptively reveal some detail and remove the option from the doubler s partner. Partner must then choose to double the contract, bid, or pass. Therefore, a double should have a more narrowly defined meaning to help partner decide what to do. We recommend the following: Always have shortness in the enemy suit. Have at l three cards in each of the other suits. Have twelve points or more (less with great distribution, like ). If the opponents have shown two suits, the double should ask partner for the better of the remaining two suits. If the first player to reveal (the only player to reveal) becomes a Defender, the revealed information is potentially valuable to the Declarer, but not to the player who has used the reveal option. Revealing as a Defender often gives up more than it delivers. One exception is to help partner find the killing lead. A Defender may simply show the suit that should be led Center for Bridge Education 23

24 Signals Good defenders strive to make every card deliver some information. For instance, if holding three low cards in the spade trump suit (4 3 2), players may presume it is irrelevant which of the three cards is played when trump are pulled by Declarer. Not so. If partners agree to play trump-suit preferences against a suit contract, then playing the 4 first suggests the best outside suit is hearts (the highest suit); the 2, clubs (the lo suit); the 3, diamonds (the middle suit, middle card). It is even possible to show the order of preference might suggest hearts, clubs, then diamonds last; 4 3 2, hearts, diamonds, clubs. When discarding (unable to follow suit), a card can show attitude about the discard suit chosen based upon attitude agreements. Playing high = dislike, discard an 8 or 9 to show no interest in the suit discarded, a 2 or 3 = like the suit. Some choose to discard in a suit of no interest and the card indicates which of the remaining suits is preferred (high or low). As players can see, the game of bridge gives partnerships lots of opportunities to customize bidding and play. It is one of the reasons why this game never gets old. Without Fact Sheets, it can be difficult to know how many cards each of the undisclosed hands has in each suit. When playing to Declarer s leads, one can play spot cards in an order that shows count (also called parity odd or even) in the suit. We recommend high then low to show an odd number of cards; low then high, an even number. Since the two cards cannot be played at once, partner should consider carefully whether the card is the lo or highest card likely to have been available. These suggestions, given in greater detail in Appendix C, are advanced and offered to players who might want to play more competitively. They will be useful at bridge tables Center for Bridge Education

25 LEVEL 10 Reveal = Pass Only one change is new to this Level, but it creates more strategy changes and pushes players to rely more on bidding. All three of the top Levels, (8, 9, and 10) encourage players to use bidding to communicate, just as in bridge. Revealing = Passing After the first bid, three passes in a row ends the auction. Now, one of those calls may be a reveal instead of a pass. For instance, bid-pass-revealpass ends the auction (or any arrangement of the last three). This forces a change in some strategies. When partner opens with a bid and the next player passes, choosing to reveal can end the auction if the next player passes! In this case, revealing Dummy to the opponents has accomplished nothing. If partner doubles, choosing to reveal could end the auction (doubled) and give the Declarer a huge advantage in determining how to play the hand. A player who doubles or overcalls the opening bid gives the partner of opener an opportunity to reveal without threatening to end the auction the opener will have another chance to bid because the double is not a pass. One Step from Bridge The difference between Level 10 of Handz and Contract Bridge is the occasional use of a Fact Sheet. What makes bridge such a daunting endeavor is the complex bidding agreements between partners, but few new bridge players will have the card-playing ability of those who have mastered the ten Levels of Handz. Moving on to Bridge Handz has taught you how to play bridge. You now know the rules of bridge. To become a competitive bridge player, one needs to learn the ways that bridge players communicate and compete in the auction. There are no more rules about bridge to learn, but without a method of showing shape and strength as with Fact Sheets, bids must have precise meanings. What follows here are suggestions taken from the most common ideas of bidding in bridge. New players are often tempted to invent methods of bidding. While this is perfectly okay (so long as the opponents are informed of all agreements), the world s best bridge players have discovered good practices over the last 2017 Center for Bridge Education 25

26 eight decades that aspiring bridge players would do well to follow. Hand Types Bridge players divide hands into two different types of distribution: Balanced hands (no voids, no singletons, no more than one doubleton, no five-card major suit) Unbalanced hands (hands that violate the rules for balanced hands) Balanced Hands (briefly) By making the bids of 1nt and 2nt show specific ranges of high card points, bridge players use bids starting with 1 in a minor suit and then 1nt or 1 in a minor suit and then 2nt to show the intermediate ranges: 1nt = high card points 2nt = high card points 1 or 1 followed by a rebid of 1nt = <15 or hcp 1 or 1 followed by a rebid of 2nt = hcp 2 followed by a rebid of 2nt = hcp (2 promises a strong hand.) Unbalanced Hands A bid of a suit followed by a rebid of the same suit or a bid of another suit shows an unbalanced hand with points. The first suit is almost always five cards or more. With stronger hands, many players use the artificial bid of 2 to show partner great strength and demands that partner not pass. The partner usually bids 2, called a waiting bid. Creative Use of Double Experienced bridge players use double for penalties only about 10% of the time. There are many creative uses of this bid, the most common is the take-out double of an opponent s bid to ask partner to bid a suit, the best suit held, or bid NT to show stoppers in the opponent s suit. Duplicate Bridge A version of bridge called duplicate is played in clubs and tournaments all over the world. By having different tables play the same hands, the scores of the tables can be compared and the luck of the draw is eliminated. It is easy to play duplicate Handz. With a party of eight players, we encourage playing duplicate with teams. Please ask for instructions or consult the internet. This discussion is to encourage players to move on to bridge when ready and interested. It is not important to play bridge instead of Handz and if a group of players enjoy just the card play, stopping here is fine Center for Bridge Education

27 APPENDIX A Three Player Handz The game of Handz lends itself well to playing with three players. The players achieve individual scores (often called cutthroat), though the defenders of each hand play as partners. For many, the cutthroat intrigue and bluffing will make this variation exceptionally entertaining. An Option for Levels 3 7 In this game, the position of the participants (north,, south, and ) is fluid. Players may be moved from chair to chair and may play a different hand from the one first received in the deal; therefore, it is important to keep track of the dealer and rotate that privilege from player to player in a consistent, equitable pattern. Being the dealer can be an advantage. Do not use the table markers to establish the dealer; use the score sheet instead. Deal four hands. Three go to the participants and one is left face down in the center of the table. All three players record the high card points and suit distribution of their hands. The Dealer is responsible for filling in, by deduction, the hcp and distribution of the unseen hand by subtracting the total high card points of the other three players from 40; then subtracting the sum of each suit from 13. For instance: HCP Spades Hearts Diamonds Clubs Dealer Player B Player c Therefore Unseen hand Everyone can see the potential fit each player might have with each of the other hands not just the unseen hand. Dealer bids first. By looking at the other three hands, the Dealer considers which hand is the best match and makes a bid that is ideal for that match. The highest bidder gets to choose which of the three other hands will be the Dummy in the trump suit chosen by that bidder (Levels 3 4) or the suit specified by the winning bid (Levels 5 7), such as 4. In the example, the red curved lines show that every player has a fit with one or two other players. The Dealer may want to play in hearts with the 2017 Center for Bridge Education 27

28 unseen hand as Dummy, so Declarer makes the bid that fits the guidelines for the Level at which the game has progressed. Bid 4 at Levels 3 4, or bid 4 at Levels 5 and higher. Player B has no fit with the unseen hand and has a 10-card diamond fit with Player C, but the two hands have only fifteen hcp combined. Player B has an eight-card diamond fit with the Dealer, but does that justify a bid of 5 or 5? Probably not. Player 3 has a spade fit with Dealer and a diamond fit with player B and a club fit with the unseen hand. At Levels 3 & 4, Player C would have to bid 5 to outbid Declarer, but at Levels 5 and higher, Player C can bid 4, intending to use Dealer s hand as Dummy, i.e., stealing the contract! Dealer or Player B should double Player C in 4. The unseen hand does not bid. Strategy Sacrifice bids when scores are individual are questionable in that both opponents get the rewards. While one opponent can be denied a game or slam bonus, the second opponent gets a free ride, in this case, Player B. The Movement Players may need to change seats as a result of the contract. To insure that each player gets to be Dealer (to bid first) an equal number of times, the deal should be rotated among the players according to the 3-player score sheet and without regard to the table marker. Vulnerability (Level 6 and higher) is also determined by the 3-player score sheet, changing not by seat but by player (A, B, or C). The Declarer chooses which hand (of the other three) shall be Dummy. When Declarer takes a hand from another player, that player gets the unseen hand. When Declarer takes the unseen hand, a player opposite Declarer, if not an empty chair, must move right or left to the empty seat. When Declarer takes a hand from another player, the players move so that the player on lead is not the player who held the chosen Dummy (a player should not have seen the Dummy before making a lead). This may change the relative order of the players, but not the rotation of the deal. Scoring The players earn individual scores. If Declarer makes the contract, only Declarer is awarded points. If the Defenders defeat the contract, both defenders receive points for the undertricks, whether doubled or Center for Bridge Education

29 vulnerable, or both. The hidden hand will next be in the seat occupied by Dummy. Keeping the Leader Blind Player B Player C unseen Declarer If Declarer chooses the unseen hand, it is placed between players B & C and B leads. If Declarer chooses player C s hand, C takes the unseen hand and B leads. If Declarer chooses B s hand, B takes the unseen hand, B and C swap seats, C leads. If there is one player who for any reason must have a stationary seat, then whenever players must swap seats to keep a player who held the Dummy hand from making an informed lead (i.e., knowing the dummy), the swap can always be made with the non-stationary players, including Declarer. End of Game Because the scores on bridge hands can vary wildly, playing for a particular score can either occur too quickly or almost never. Better to choose to play a specific number of hands and then tally the result. A hand will typically take about seven minutes to play, so an agreement to play 25 boards can be presumed to take roughly three hours add time for coffee and biscuits. Odd Number of Players The use of 3-player rules provides great flexibility for school bridge clubs, where the number of players might vary from week to week. The club can play with three players, four players, six players (3+3), seven players (4+3), etc. This does not accommodate five players, but an instructor can alway fill-in to make two tables of three. When playing with three players, Declarer plays dummy and all players put their cards in the center of the table an the winner of a trick collects all four cards and places them face down, showing each trick clearly. Participants in 3-player Handz can progress from Level to Level just as the 4-player participants do, but it is not possible to go beyond Level 7 with this format because the hidden hand cannot be deduced unless the three players reveal their distribution and strength, which is not done at the start above Level Center for Bridge Education 29

30 APPENDIX B Laws and Adjustments (for the serious players) Fact Sheets Inaccurate high card points: If a single player writes the wrong high card point value on the Fact Sheet, while all three others are correct, there is no penalty. The other players should have added up the values, checking to see that the total is 40. A player who is habitually careless can be penalized by house rules. If two players make errors that cancel each other (one adds an extra point, the other one point less), there is no penalty providing the players are opponents. If the players are partners, their opponents are awarded 100 points for each pair of errors. If both are off by one, then 100 points; if both by two, 200 points. A player who makes a high-card-point error at Level 8 or above (when it is impossible for the other players to count all the points) is penalized 100 points to the opponents for each point off the correct total. Inaccurate suit count: As above. Each suit is counted separately. Auction Irregularities Insufficient bid: If a player makes a call that is not higher than the current bid, that player may correct the oversight by making a sufficient bid in the same strain (when playing Level 4 or higher) with no further penalty. If the sufficient bid is made in a different strain from the insufficient bid, either opponent may choose, before continuing, to bar that player s partner from any further bidding; the partner must pass for the remainder of the auction. A player may not change an insufficient bid to a double. If a player chooses to pass, rather than correct the insufficient bid, that player s partner shall be barred from the auction and must pass at every opportunity. If an insufficient bid is accepted by the next player, who either bids or passes (whether deliberately or obliviously), the insufficient bid is considered accepted without penalty. Bid out of turn: If a player makes a call (bid or pass) out of the correct rotation, the opponents may accept the bid (l likely option) or may stipulate that the partner of that player must pass for the remainder of the auction. If the second case, the offending bid is withdrawn and any legal Center for Bridge Education

31 call, including double, can be made in the correct rotation. Play Irregularities Lead out of turn (opening lead): If the wrong defender leads a card by exposing it (rather than playing it face down and asking permission to lead), Declarer shall select from five options: Accept the lead, have partner expose the Dummy, and then play from Declarer s hand next. Accept the lead, expose the Declarer s hand as Dummy and let partner declare the hand. Accept the card as a penalty card to be played at the first legal opportunity. The correct defender then makes any lead without restriction. Forbid the lead of the suit shown by the exposed card. The card is returned to the defender s hand with no further penalty, except that the leader may not play a card of that suit so long as that hand retains the lead. Require the lead of a card in the same suit as the exposed card. The card is returned to the defender s hand with no further penalty. Lead out of turn (after the first trick): If Declarer makes a lead from the wrong hand, either Dummy s or Declarer s hand, either defender (whichever speaks first) may, without consulting partner, accept or reject the lead. If rejected, there is no penalty. Declarer never has penalty cards. If by a defender, Declarer can accept the lead (unusual) and play continues without penalty. Alternately, Declarer has two options: Insist that the card be left exposed on the table to be played by that defender at the first legal opportunity. When the lead properly belonged to the other defender, Declarer may instead require or forbid a lead in the suit of the improper card and the erroneous card is returned to the defender s hand. (When a player is forbidden to lead a suit under these conditions, the restriction remains until the restricted player loses the lead.) Failure to follow suit: If a player fails to follow suit (called a revoke) and the partnership does not win the revoke trick nor any subsequent trick, one trick shall be moved from the offending side to the non-offending side. If the offending side should win the revoke trick or any subsequent trick, then two tricks shall be moved. It is the responsibility of the non-offending side to claim the revoke. Exposed card: If a defender exposes a card by playing out of turn or 2017 Center for Bridge Education 31

32 by failing to follow suit but corrects it before the start of the next trick, that card shall remain on the table, face up, and shall be played at the first legal opportunity. If a player with an exposed penalty card plays another card before playing the penalty card, the new card shall become a penalty card and the old penalty card shall be played instead. A revoke is established if either partner on the offending side plays to the next trick. An established revoke may not be corrected and the trick penalty (see Failure to follow suit ) is awarded to the opponents at the end of play. Claims: Any player may end play by claiming some number of the remaining tricks or conceding all. All the cards remaining in the claimant s hand are placed face up on the table. Play stops. The claimant should state a line of play, if necessary, and should state whether there are outstanding trump, else it may be presumed that the claimant has miscounted trump. No player may concede a trick that cannot be lost with legal play. (A player with a high trump, for instance, must win a trick with that card, regardless of whether the player knows that the trump is high.) If a player does not state a line of play, the opponents may not insist on an illogical play, such as playing a suit headed by the AK by starting with a low card. However, the claimant may not specify any finesse that is not stated in the claim, except for a proven finesse, such as when one opponent has shown out of a suit. Players making a claim must expose their hand for all to see until the opponents have agreed. Dummy: Dummy must not make any comment or assist in any way the play of the hand. Dummy may during the play keep partner from revoking (No more spades, partner?) or from playing from the wrong hand (You are in your hand, partner, or You are in Dummy, partner.). Dummy may not tell Declarer how many tricks are taken or needed. No player may look at a retired trick once it is turned face down, unless the opponents agree. However, any player may ask to see a trick before allowing the winner of the trick to lead to the next trick, providing the player has not retired the trick by turning the card played face down. Make it a habit to retire tricks with a slight pause. Dummy may not look at the opponent s hands for the sake of satisfying some curiosity Center for Bridge Education

33 A player must never hesitate or behave in any manner intended to deceive an opponent, such as pretending to deliberate about playing a card not held or pretending to consider bidding though not actually having any intention to bid. Players shall attempt, as much as possible, to bid and play cards at a consistent pace and method. Give every bid and play a slight hesitation so as not to convey information, either to partner or an opponent. Players who have developed the habit of snapping cards when placing them on the table should endeavor to break that habit. If a player hesitates before passing, the partner of that player must not consider what the hesitation might imply. However, when a player makes a bid that is one or more levels higher than necessary, the next player may and should hesitate for several seconds before bidding or passing to disguise from all, especially partner, whether the surprise jump created a quandary. A rapid pass can suggest weakness and a rapid bid can suggest strength. By hesitating, the other players, particularly partner, will not be compromised. A player must never use the laws of the game to affect partner s options, such as making an insufficient call in order to bar partner from the auction or making a deliberate lead out of turn or (as Declarer) intentionally revoking to discover whether to take a finesse and then correct the revoke. In tournaments, directors (referees) rule on irregularities, but in a home game of cards, habitual violations of ethics are tantamount to cheating and deny the participants proper enjoyment of the game Center for Bridge Education 33

34 APPENDIX C Agreement Explanations The first call is the bid made by the first person not to pass. 1. A pass is informative. Partner with DEFENSE OVERCALLS RESPONSES OPENINGS Pass Reveal 1/1 AGREEMENTS to Applies to Levels 8-10 For suggestions and instructions, to see Appendix C to may have as few as 3 cards in Rules. 1 /1 to must have 5 or more cards in the suit 1NT to balanced, no singleton, no 5-card major suit 2 to artificial bid, any suit and shape, partner must bid 2 /2 /2 to qweak long suit; qother 2NT to balanced, no singleton, no 5-card major suit 3NT to qbalanced hand, all suits stopped; qother Minors 1 /1 /1 to 4-card suits, lo first; 5-5, higher first 1NT to 2NT to 3NT to, no major suit 2/2 to raise partner, 5+ card support, no major suit 3/3 to double raise, 5+ card support, no major suit Majors Raise partner with 3-card support, otherwise, as above Notrump 2NT to balanced hand, no major suit 3NT/1NT to balanced hand, no major suit Otherwise, reveal for partner to decide. 1-level suit to 5-card suit, qother An overcall is the first 1NT to balanced hand bid or double by either 2-level suit to 6-card suit, qother opponent of the 2NT to describe opening bidder. Double qpenalty q requests partner to reveal (Level 8) or requests bid (Levels 9 & 10) qhigh spot = Clike qlow spot = Clike Defense refers to Playing to suit led by... the partners who are Partner qattitude qother the opponents of the Declarer qsuit pref qother Discards Declarer. Defenders signal to each other with Against NT qattitude qsuit pref qother their cards. Against suit qattitude qsuit pref qother Other Agreements: Opening bids are made by the first bidder who does not pass. Responses are made by the partner of the first bidder, the opening bidder Center for Bridge Education 16 points or less will know that game is unlikely. A player with 7-8 points who has passed is free to compete later without deceiving partner. 2. With average values, reveal. Partner will be in position to decide what to do. It is dangerous to bid with a mediocre hand. A reveal cannot be doubled. 3. Because the common agreement is to only bid a major suit with at l five cards in the suit, it is frequently necessary to bid a minor suit with only three cards. Often, the hand will be balanced, but outside the agreed ranges for a notrump bid. 4. With five or more cards in a major, open the major with hands as strong at 20 hcp. If holding five cards in two suits, open the higher ranking suit first A balanced hand should have no void, no singleton, no more than one doubleton (a suit with only two cards). There are three specific notrump opening bid ranges 15 17, 20 21, For hands much stronger than normal (>20 points), open these uncommon hands with the artificial bid of 2. Partner must not pass. 7. It may seem counter-intuitive, but an opening bid at the 2-level ( / / ) it is normally reserved for weak hands with six or more cards in a suit; at the 3-level (/ / / ), seven or more cards. Do not make a weak bid of 2 because that shows a strong hand! It says nothing about clubs If partner has bid a suit, bid a higher suit with four cards. With two 4-card suits, bid the lower ranking one at the 1-level; with two 5-card suits, bid the higher-ranking one first. 11. Without a suit of four cards or more at the 1-level, bid 1nt with

35 6 9; bid 2nt with 10-12; bid 3nt with if balanced. Bid a suit at the 2-level, below partner s suit rank, if unbalanced Raise partner s minor suit opening when holding five cards in the suit and 6 9 points; double raise partner with points. With more, reveal (except if playing Level 10). 14. Raise partner s major suit bid when holding three cards in the suit and 6 9 points; raise to 3 with 10-12; reveal with more (except at Level 10) If partner opens 1nt, raise to 2nt with a balanced hand of 8 9 (called an invite to game); partner will bid 3nt with 16 or 17 points. Bid 3nt with hcp. Otherwise, reveal (except at Level 10). Use reveal to show an unbalanced hand of any strength, allowing partner to determine the best contract. 18. To overcall a suit at the 1-level, the suit should have five or more cards and the hand should have nine or more points. If the next player passes, partner should respond just as if responding to an opening bid. If the intervening player bids, pass (partner will have another chance to bid with a strong hand), unless holding support for partner s hand or a good hand. 19. To overcall a suit bid with 1nt, the hand should be roughly the same as an opening bid of 1nt (15 17 balanced hand) with the opener s suit controlled with high cards. Partner should respond just as responding to a 1nt opening bid. 20. If the opening bid is of a higher rank than the overcall suit (requiring a 2-level bid), the overcall should be a 6-card suit with high cards. High cards are more valuable in long suits than short suits. A void or singleton, especially in the opener s suit, is much more valuable than a doubleton. 21. There are many meanings to a 2nt overcall in bridge. Agreements can be quite complicated, so we offer no suggestion to the Handz player. 22. There is no bid more versatile than double. Countless books are devoted to the myriad meanings bridge players have cooked up. Here we are suggesting one meaning (other than, We are going to set you. ) We suggest that double asks partner to reveal, if playing Level 8. At Levels 9 and 10, we would call the double a take out double, asking partner to bid a suit, or reveal the hand if the intervening player has bid something. 23. Make every card played convey a message. Spot cards (2 9) should be played carefully. One meaning is attitude about the suit led. There are two methods a high card is good; a low card is good. We recommend that 2017 Center for Bridge Education 35

36 players use low cards to say I like this suit, known as upside-down carding. 24. When partner leads a suit, use a low card to encourage the continuation of the suit; a high card to express disinterest. When Declarer leads the suit, it will be unlikely that your attitude toward this suit will be unknown. If intending to choose 2 or more spot cards, play a high card to show interest in a higher ranking suit (not the trump suit) and a low card to show interest in a lower ranking suit. This is called a suit preference signal. When choosing a spot card lead to a new trick and, lead a low card to show an honor in the suit (often meaning that you want the suit led back); a high card denies values or interest in a continuation of the suit. 25. When unable to follow suit (discarding), play a low card in a good suit; a high card in a worthless suit. Why Upside-down Carding? The common answer is that it is slightly less desirable to use an 8 or 9 in a suit you like, when a 2 or 3 might be available. Conversely, a suit holding of can probably lose the 9 without worry. The same is true in a suit being discarded. A high card might be useful in a good suit. There are deals where the rotation of play on a single suit has every player playing a higher honor card than the previous player (a jack, then queen, then king, won by the ace), the trick may have swept up three or four cards higher than a 9. Don t throw them away when you have good cards in the suit. Playing at Levels 9 and 10, the distribution of the hands may often be unknown. Practiced partners have created a signal to help each other, called a count signal. When playing to a suit that the Declarer has led and having a choice of spot cards, play the lo then a higher card to show partner an even number of cards in the suit (two, four, or six); play a higher card then the lo card to show an odd number of cards (one, three, or five). Careful counters can often work out the rest of the distributions. Count signals serve no purpose when the Fact Sheets show the Defender s distribution. These Concepts Are Difficult. No one should feel compelled to move beyond Level 6 until interested in tackling the complexities of bridge. We can say without hesitation, that persons who learn bridge rarely want to play any other card game. It is truly a wonderful pursuit Center for Bridge Education

37 Glossary APPENDIX D Auction: n The phase of the game where players bid for the contract. Board: n A numbered deal with preassigned dealer and vulnerability. n A common synonym for Dummy, as in The lead is on the board. Break: n The split of cards between defenders, i.e., if the defenders have five cards in a suit, those cards may break 5-0, 4-1, or 3-2. Contract: n The committed level and strain at which the declaring side has won the bidding. Doubleton: n A suit with two cards in a player s hand. Duck: v The act of deliberately playing a lower card than the current high card in a trick, often refusing to win a trick for some reason see hold up. Fact Sheet: n A laminated card supplied with the game on which all players write, using erasable markers, the details of each hand, such as the number of cards in each suit and the suit s strength. Finesse: v Playing cards in an order that either denies an opponent from scoring a high card or to make possible the scoring of a lower card which is played after the hand holding a higher card. n The act of playing a finesse. Fit: n A suit in which partners hold 8 or more cards. Hold up: n A refusal to win a trick(s) in a suit, often to break communication between opponents. Honor: n Any of the top five cards of a suit: ace, king, queen, jack, and ten. Lead: n The first card played in a trick. ( Opening Lead is the first card played in a deal.) v The act of playing the first card in a new trick. Level: n The progress (from 1 to 10) in the game of Handz, spelled with a capital L. n The numeric part of a bid (1 7) that commits a player, if not outbid, to make a number of tricks as Declarer (7 13, respectively), spelled with a lower case l. lho: n An acronym for left hand opponent, i.e., the player to the left. Long hand: n The hand containing more cards between partners in a suit divided unevenly. Major: n The suits hearts and spades. Major suits outrank minor suits in bidding and scoring. Minor: n The suits clubs and diamonds. Raise: n In Levels 4 and higher, a bid in partner s suit, which commits the partnership to making more tricks. (2) v to make such a bid. Reveal: n The voluntary disclosure of distribution and high card points on a Fact Sheet. Revoke: n Failure to follow suit. (Handz players avoid the word renege, which implies a deliberate play. Revoke is neutral, presuming an oversight or accidental play.) rho: n An acronym for right hand opponent, i.e., the player to the right. Ruff: v To play a trump on a trick where a non-trump is led, a synonym for trump as a verb. Ruffing finesse: n To play high cards toward a void with the intention of trumping if covered and discarding a loser if not Center for Bridge Education 37

38 Sacrifice: n A bid expected to fail, in which the loss from being set is presumed to be less than the value of the opponent s successful contract; (2) v To make such a bid. Safety play: n The intentional loss of a card which might not be lost if the cards lie favorably. A safety play is made to assure the winning of some minimum number of tricks in a suit. Set: v To prevent a Declarer from successfully achieving the contract; to be defeated in making the contract, as in Alas! I am set. Spot card: n A card below a ten; a non-honor card, sometimes called a pip, but not herein. Short hand: n The hand containing fewer cards between partners in a suit that divides unevenly. Signal: n An agreement to play spot cards by defenders in a specific order to convey information. v The act of playing a spot card for the purpose of communication. Singleton: n A suit with one card in a player s hand. Strain: n The final contract type, trump suit or notrump. There are five strains. Tenace: n Two cards in a given suit that have one missing card ranked between them. Trick: n Four cards played in sequence, one from each hand, won by the highest ranking card or trump. Trump: n A suit named by Declarer having a greater value than other suits. v The act of playing a trump card on a trick started with another suit, also called a ruff. Void: n A suit in which a player holds no cards. For a complete list of bridge terminology, Center for Bridge Education

39 Duplicate The game of bridge, more than any other card game, is a game of skill, which attracts people to play the game four or five times a week. Still, in a contest of a couple dozen hands, one partnership is likely to get better cards than the other, often giving the contest to poor bidding or play. In response, lovers of the competition developed a form of play called duplicate, where scores are compared with other partnerships or teams of two partnerships against other pairs or teams who play the same hands with the same dealer and vulnerability. It is outside the scope of this document to explain duplicate bridge, but it is entirely possible to play duplicate style Handz, especially in high school and college clubs. All participants have to be playing at the same Level or at l with the same scoring, which includes all Levels above Level 5. Handz is popular with experienced bridge players who use it to introduce the game to their children and grandchildren and their friends. It is possible to play duplicate style Handz with two tables, one table of bridge players, the other of Handz players. Each pair of bridge players teams with a pair of Handz players in the opposite seats, n/s at one table is teamed up with e/w at the other. While boards 1, 2, and 3 are played at one table, 4, 5, and 6 are played at the other, Then the boards are exchanged. After the agreed number of boards are completed, the teammates compare scores. Additional information can be found at various web sites, including Wikipedia: Center for Bridge Education 39

40 Three-handed Duplicate It is not possible to create a duplicate game with the instructions in Appendix A because it would often be comparing players who held different cards, either because the player swapped seats or because the hand taken by declarer could be different. That can be addressed. To modify the game for duplicate play, the unseen hand must belong to a specific player on each hand; the declarer cannot take another player s hand. Here is an illustration of it working: A B B B 1 A 2 C 3 C B 4 C C A A If C wins the bid on board 1, then B moves. A 1 C B If B wins the bid on board 1, then C moves. A B 1 C This results in C knowing the dummy before having to lead. When a player whose partner is the unseen hand, the procedure is normal, but when one of the players with a partner wins the auction, there will be times when that partner must move to a seat (as in the sixth illustration) where the leader has seen dummy (held the dummy s hand during the auction). This is the l distructive solution, but it is not perfect Center for Bridge Education

41 Afterward A Little History (fyi) To anyone learning Handz, the difference in trick values and bonus Levels of the various contract strains may appear unconnected. It comes from the popular form of bridge called rubber bridge, where bonuses were paid by trick scores that added to 100 or more. In that game, 3nt would earn 100 points because the first trick was worth 40 and the subsequent tricks were worth 30 each. Minor suits were worth 20 per trick, so minor suits required a bid of five committed tricks to reach 100. As with Handz, overtricks did not contribute to the bonus score. In rubber bridge, the score of any hand that did not achieve the bonus was carried over to the next hand. It was incumbent upon each player to remember the lower bonus threshold required when a previous hand put the partnership 20, 30, 40, etc., points toward the next game bonus. However, a comparison of deals played by different players with identical cards, called duplicate bridge, is impossible if each hand is influenced by the score of a previous hand a single deal could not really be duplicated. The bidding strategies that arise from these variations might look frivolous, but they are exquisite. Computer Application and Online Play The Center for Bridge Education is working to make Handz available on various computer platforms, just as bridge is widely available online and in stand-alone applications. Computers eliminate some of the tedium of a table game they shuffle, they deal, they enforce rules about following suit and who leads to a new trick, and they keep score. Online play keeps a record of the progress of individual players. It allows people in scattered locations around the world to play together. With all those advantages, bridge players who often play online still comb their hair, iron a shirt, and travel to a local club to play the same game with other humans. The social aspect of bridge will never be completely supplanted by a computer screen Center for Bridge Education 41

42 Some Cool Stuff For schools and colleges that use Handz to create bridge or Handz clubs, here are some commonly used products that enhance the game. Bidding Boxes As players progress to level and strain bidding, consider using bidding boxes to keep track of the auction. These easy-to-use devices are an essential component to all bridge tournaments today. They come in various styles and colors. A common supplier is Baron Barclay bridge supplies: also available at Amazon.com and duplimate.com/us/html/shop.html Boards An essential component of duplicate play are containers, usually plastic, to hold four hands for play at multiple tables. The point of duplicate bridge is to eliminate the luck of the draw, where results are compared only with other pairs who hold the same cards. Available at the same suppliers. Automated Duplication There are various machines that, controlled by a personal computer, produce duplicated hands for multi-table games. The advantage of duplicating over shuffle-deal-and-play is that the players can be given a printed hand record of all the deals for review. These save hours of work and enhance the game. Computers Computers can keep score of duplicate events when there are many tables and lots of tabulation. A favorite is free: clubs_page/acblscore/ Scoring machines can wirelessly communicate with a central computer to tabulate the results in an instant after the last hand is entered. Such innovation shows strong, worldwide interest in Bridge. Computers are used to post time in big digital letters to pace the game Center for Bridge Education

43 A guide to basic card techniques tailored to the game of Handz Intended for players with several Levels of experience not less than Level Center for Bridge Education 43

44 The suggestions in this section... are not intended to be directly applicable to bridge play. Because Handz players often know the distribution and pointcount strength of all four hands, and bridge players lack that information, Tipz provides suggestions that are specific to this game. Nevertheless, the deductive reasoning that arrives at winning strategies are apply to both. Seeing how handdistribution can deliver extra tricks will make those who move from Handz to bridge much better card players than those who try to learn bridge without seeing the inner workings of the deal. There are contracts that a good Handz player will make 100% of the time, while bridge players rarely succeed and good bridge players never could. This is a feature, not a bug. Handz players will enter the world of bridge fully aware of the way distribution might provide the key to a hopeless contract, and that is never a trivial thought process. Handz players can sometimes determine the location of a specific card, a king, for instance, by the known location of high card points. This is a skill requiring observation, memory, and counting in bridge. Handz provides awareness of the importance of counting. Picturing the layout of the hidden cards in a bridge deal is an act of imagination and deduction. Handz trains players to develop these advanced skills in smaller, easy-to-grasp steps. This section is by no means complete, but any player who has absorbed these concepts through the ten levels of Handz is ready to join the local bridge club or play bridge online. The bidding agreements suggested in the advanced levels are a reasonable foundation for common bridge bidding at beginner levels of that game Center for Bridge Education

45 Tipz Foreword The game of Handz is based upon the card play of contract bridge. Some may find that Handz is an easy, fun way to become a bridge player. We agree, but we also believe that the game is excellent by itself. The longer one plays and learns Handz the more skillful she or he can become at bridge one day. The strategies covered in this section are advanced. We recommend that players get to Level 4 before pursuing this. There are various ways that Handz players can compete with bridge players. For instance, a group of parents (or grandparents) who commonly play duplicate bridge can team up with their children (or grandchildren) in two-table competition two pairs of bridge players teamed with two pairs of Handz players. There are many ways that players can compare their scores with bridge scores in online competition. (Instructions are posted online at center4bridge.org/handz /) The Center for Bridge Education has developed this game to introduce the joys of challenging card-play while avoiding the drudgery of mastering the intense complexity of bidding. Our experience teaching bridge in schools for more than nine years has taught us that clubs are for fun not another advanced calculus class. This game gets players (of any age) from zero to good card-play in several fun, easy steps. Handz makes few demands on the instructors. Players can advance from Level to Level on their own. The drive to learning new play techniques comes from the players, not from the instructor. Any school can start a Handz club with only a supervisor (teacher) who may know nothing about the game. The instructions are simple. The goal is for a table of Handz players to be having fun within 15 minutes. If a table of four talented Handz players want to learn the bidding of bridge, they will be well-positioned, by Level 10, to take on that task without requiring instruction. Handz is a game with its own intrinsic value. While it can be an entry to playing bridge, that is not its primary purpose. Enjoy Center for Bridge Education 45

46 TIPZ TABLE OF CONTENTS Tipz Table of Contents 46 Conventions Used 47 Planning 48 Planning the Play at Notrump Planning the Play in a Suit Contract Distribution 51 Quiz Page Opening leads 55 Leading against Notrump Leading Against Suit Contracts High card points 61 Consider the Missing Cards Parity Positional Plays Finesses 67 Taking Advantage of Defender s Cards Level 8 and Above 71 Hold-ups 75 The Dangerous Hand Ducking 77 Surround Plays - Defense 79 Signals 81 Appendix Z 83 Other Sources 84 Internet Online Play Books Learning Bridge Center for Bridge Education

47 Handz CONVENTIONS USED The Illustrations in this section are described below. Showing a Full Deal The table West s distribution in order K north 10 Fig. 0a North is always Dummy High card points E/W/S never Dummy south 5323 A Q A K South is always Declarer A A K Q The Dummy s distribution and high card points are presumed to be clear to everyone, so they are never shown in an illustration where Dummy is visible to all players. Using a Non-specific Suit No suit symbol Distribution for this suit Q 10 x x north Fig. 0b 4 south 2 A K x x indicates cards with values too low to matter for the example Center for Bridge Education 47

48 Handz PLANNING When the opening lead is made and dummy is exposed, all three players (excluding Dummy) should take time to plan out the play, offense and defense. The strategies for planning notrump and suit contracts differ. Planning the Play at Notrump Notrump is often a race to see which side can establish long suit winners first. The defense has an advantage the first lead. Also, in most of the Levels of Handz (unlike similar trick-taking games) the defense knows which suits are theirs because the Fact Sheets show the distributions. Count Winners Declarer first determines how many winners can be taken after winning the lead without losing the lead. This does not imply taking those winners first. Instead, the Declarer plans the maximum tricks that can be established before the opponents defeat the contract. This is a big topic. It is not the purpose here to show all ways to get extra tricks that is for the follow-on lessons and further study but here is a simple example of the trick race. In Fig. 1a, South has bid 3nt all alone, partner has nothing. West leads a spade and South eagerly cashes two spades, then two hearts, then three clubs, then plays the king of diamonds. The opponents take the ace of diamonds and then take three spades, and three hearts, down two. Declarer laments that it was impossible to get to the 13th club in Dummy. Establish Winners by Giving Up Losers Instead, Declarer should have counted winners from the opening lead (2, 2, 0, 3 = 7). To make the contract, South must first establish the diamond winners by leading them from the top (king). When one opponent wins the ace, South has the remainder of the tricks, making twelve tricks instead of seven. As Declarer, count your winners in a notrump contract Center for Bridge Education north Fig. 1a 3523 south 5323 A Q A K K Q J A K Q

49 Planning the Play in a Suit Contract The strategy when planning a trump suit contract is to count losers. If there are more losers than the contract permits, search for ways to avoid some. Count Losers When Dummy is tabled, Declarer starts by counting the number of losing tricks in the South hand. It is not always easy to see the losers, but with a little practice, this exercise will become second nature. In Fig. 1b, there are no spade losers, one heart loser (dummy can cover the second heart, but not the third), two diamond losers, and one club loser. The contract is 4 in spades. How does South avoid four losers? By using dummy s trump to ruff diamonds. Eliminating Losers by Ruffing West leads the king of clubs. Declarer calls for the ace in dummy, winning the trick. Now a diamond is led to the ace and another diamond is played toward dummy, ruffing (Declarer can see from the distribution cards that East cannot overruff.) A heart is played to South s king and the third diamond is ruffed. Now three spades are played, pulling all of the Defender s trump. South must lose a club and a heart, making eleven tricks instead of just 9. Watch Out for Voids In Fig. 1c, North and South have all the high cards (all the aces, kings, queens, and jacks). South carelessly bids 7 in a spade contract without paying attention to the E/W distribution. West leads a club, which East ruffs. East returns a heart, which West ruffs, another club, another heart, another club and the defense has taken the first five tricks. J 10 4 A A north Fig. 1b 3433 south 2353 A K Q 7 5 K 6 2 A J 10 4 A Q J K 7 3 A K 6 4 north Fig. 1c 3036 south 2740 A K Q 7 5 K 6 2 A Q J Q J 2017 Center for Bridge Education 49

50 Of course this is an extreme example, but it is a warning to pay attention to the opponent s distribution. Voids, especially in the third hand (the Defender whose partner is leading), are dangerous. Defensive Strategies Against Trump It does the defense little good to establish long suits if Declarer is simply going to ruff them. The defense has three primary strategies: 1. Grab winners before they go away when Declarer pitches losers on winners. 2. Ruff one or more of Declarer s winners. 3. Prevent Declarer from using trumps to ruff losers. 4. For each of these there is a strategy: 1. Lead high cards. 2. Lead short suits (from shortness or in a suit where partner is short). 3. Lead trump (especially when dummy has shortness). Trump Leading Strategy Fig. 1d is similar to Fig. 1b. From the South hand, there appears to be a loser in hearts, three losers in diamonds, and no losers in clubs. Declarer has bid 4 in spades. If West leads a heart, a diamond, or a club, South can play two rounds of diamonds, losing both rounds, and still be able to ruff the third diamond in Dummy. What if West starts by leading a trump? South can win the lead in either hand and lead a diamond. East wins the trick and plays a second J 10 4 A A K 6 4 north Fig. 1d 3433 south 2254 A K Q 7 5 K trump (spades). Declarer wins that trick and plays a second diamond, but West wins that trick and leads the third spade, removing all of Dummy s trumps before Declarer can ruff a diamond. Down one. There will be more discussion about each of these strategies under Defense in a later chapter Center for Bridge Education

51 Handz 2 DISTRIBUTION Essential to playing Handz well is paying attention to the distribution of suits as written on the Fact Sheets. How the cards are divided between the opponents, called the split, is the key to winning extra tricks. The 3-3 Split When the Defenders have six cards in a given suit, north the Declarer has seven. Here are some examples where a suit splits 3 3 and how to take advantage of Fig. 1b that happy break. These examples presume that the hand is being played in notrump or that the trump 3 south 3 A K Q 5 have been drawn (removed from the Defender s hands). In Fig. 2a, South can simply play the AKQ5, high cards first, and take four tricks. When planning the hand, count all four as winners. From this point forward, insignificant spot cards will be designated with the letter x to avoid giving the reader an impression that the actual spot is intended to be important. K x x x In Fig. 2b, South must lose one trick. If it must be north lost, lose it on the first round. By playing the ace first, for instance, West and East will have a chance to Fig. 2b signal on the second card by playing their spot cards in a special order (high first, then low, for 3 south 3 example) to exchange information. If only one card A x x is played, it is more likely that the card is ambiguous, especially the card that wins the trick. A second reason is that both the ace or king will remain in each hand for transportation. Lastly, the thirteenth card will not be isolated. For instance, if Declarer plays the ace on the first trick, the king on the second, then gives up the third trick, an entry in the North hand will have to be available to cash the last card in the suit. There are exceptions to these recommendations, but they x x x are rare. north In Fig. 2c, two tricks can be made by losing two tricks in the suit. Without a reason to do otherwise, Fig. 2c lose them first. Then you will have access to the last 3 south 3 two by playing from either hand, cashing the ace and A x x x 2017 Center for Bridge Education 51

52 then the thirteenth card. The same principles apply when Declarer s seven cards are divided 5 2. As in Fig. 2a, if South holds AKQ43, that hand can take five tricks by simply playing the top three first. When the ace or king is in the short hand (the hand with only two cards), lose the second trick, unblocking the high card held in the short hand: A6 opposite K5432, play the ace then give up the second trick to establish the K54, though an entry is required in that hand. Losing the first trick will create a problem if there is only one entry card to the long hand and the Defenders force Declarer to play it before the ace is out of the way (unblocking). If both high cards are in the long hand, 65 opposite AK432, lose the first trick. If both in the short hand, AK opposite 65432, play the ace and king first and lose the third trick, presuming that when the last two low cards are established, there will be a means of getting to them, which requires two entries to the long suit, one to play the third round, one to cash the last two. The suit might be divided 6 1, making for five tricks. If AK5432 opposite the 6, lose the first trick, etc. The plan is just as above. If 7 0, the options will be limited to playing from the long hand. Always check for adequate transportation (communication between the two hands) before deciding on establishing long tricks. Considerations by the Defenders When holding Axx, it may be wise to duck twice to isolate the long card, but with plenty of entries in the hand with the long suit, it will not matter. If holding high cards over the only entry to the long hand, use those cards to deny declarer a way to get to the long hand. Playing the Odds In some of the advanced levels of Handz, the distribution of the suits may be concealed. When there are six cards held by the opponents, the likelihood that they will split 3-3 is just over 35%, while the likelihood of a 4-2 split is nearly 50%. K Q 10 x The 4-2 Split north The more common 4-2 split can be advantageous. In Fig. 2d, Declarer is guaranteed to make four Fig. 2d tricks in the suit regardless of who holds the jack. 4 south 2 South plays a card to the queen then returns a low A x x Center for Bridge Education

53 card to the ace. If the jack has not fallen, it must be in West s hand. Play a card toward Dummy and play the 10, unless West Q 10 x x plays the jack. north Fig. 2e is really the same, but in this case Declarer plays the ace and king from the South hand, Fig. 2e keeping the queen over West s jack. If the Defense 4 south 2 distribution is reversed (2-4 instead of 4-2), four tricks A K x are only available if the West hand holds the jack. In Fig. 2f, it is unlikely that the queen is in the East J 9 x x hand (twice as likely in the West hand because West north holds twice as many cards in the suit), but there is no reason to do other than play the ace and king. If the Fig. 2f queen falls, Declarer makes all four cards, because 4 south 2 the ten will be trapped by the lead of a low card from A K x South. Otherwise, three tricks are guaranteed. In this hand, if South plays low toward the jack first and East holds the queen, four tricks are reduced to two tricks when West holds the ten. The placement of the high cards in relation to the distribution of the Defender s cards can be any mix of these examples, with more variations than can be illustrated in a short manual. There are many other considerations to be learned under the section of this manual called finesses. If the Defense Holds Seven Cards Fig. 2g is a card-play example easy to understand x x x when the cards are divided evenly around the table. north West leads the suit and when East pops up with the king, South is tempted to snatch it away with the ace, Fig. 2g but since there are no other winners in the suit, the 3 south 4 ace might just as well be used to capture the three. A x x To keep the opponents from scoring three tricks in the suit, it is often best to play the ace on the third trick and then prevent East from gaining the lead to cash the fourth trick in the suit. This is called a hold-up play and it will come in various forms as will be shown in other chapters Center for Bridge Education 53