Bridge Topic of the Week
INADVERTENT BIDS
• If you make a bid that is inadvertent (rather than just
careless), it may be possible for it to be altered without
penalty.
• Whether or not your pen is still on the bidding pad is
not relevant.
• The Director will need to decide whether the
inadvertency provisions applied.
• Inadvertency may still apply even after LHO has called.
Bridge Topic of the Week
HESITATION
• Hesitation is not an infraction in itself. An infraction
occurs when their partner is influenced by the
hesitation in the action they take.
• Hesitation generally reduces the options available to
partner. They may not take any action that is
suggested by the hesitation where other logical
alternatives to that action exist.
Bridge Topic of the Week
INSUFFICIENT BIDS
• It is never in a player’s interest to:–
a) alter an insufficient bid before the Director has
advised them of their options;
b) announce to the table what they meant to write.
• Many insufficient bids can be corrected without further
redress once the Director has assessed the situation.
Bridge Topic of the Week
ALERTING STAYMAN BIDS
• A response of 2♣ after a 1NT opening bid is not
alertable in an uncontested auction, no matter what
the meaning.
• However, normal alerting do rules apply if (a) if the
opponents have entered the auction, or (b) Stayman or
similar is used in any other sequence e.g. following a
2NT opening or a 1NT response.
• Normal alerting rules also apply to all responses to
Stayman and other asking bids.
Bridge Topic of the Week
DUMMY
• Dummy can attempt to stop Declarer committing an
infraction, but cannot be the first to call attention to an
infraction once committed.
• For example, if Declarer plays from the wrong hand by
either calling for a card from Dummy, or playing
incorrectly from their own hand, Dummy must not
draw attention to this, as the infraction has occurred.
Bridge Topic of the Week
MORE ON DUMMY
• Dummy should not play a card until Declarer has called
for it. This applies even when the card to play is
obvious, for example, when Dummy has a singleton in
the suit led.
• Dummy should only touch the cards when playing a
card nominated by Declarer, or to reorganise them.
Dummy should not move the cards to fill a space
created by a suit void, as this is disruptive to Declarer
and Defenders.
Bridge Topic of the Week
COUNT YOUR CARDS
• Players should count their cards before looking at
them.
• If missing or extra cards are discovered once play
commences, affected players can be disadvantaged.
For example, a missing card is deemed to be part of
the hand at all times, and a revoke may have occurred.
Bridge Topic of the Week
SLOW PLAY
• If the warning bell sounds and the first call has not
been made on a board, that board needs to be
averaged.
• The Director will make a decision as to what
percentage to award to each side, depending where
responsibility for the slow play lies.
Bridge Topic of the Week
SYSTEM CARDS
• Both players in a partnership should have identical ABF
system cards, and these should be made available to
your opponents at the commencement of each round.
• Systems should be designated as Green, Blue, Red or
Yellow, and with Brown Sticker where appropriate. If in
doubt as to the classification of your system, consult
the Director.
Bridge Topic of the Week
OPENING LEAD
• The player on lead (Declarer’s LHO) should select their
opening lead, and place it face down on the table in
front of them. Their partner should then acknowledge
that it can be faced. This minimises the possibility of
making an opening lead from the wrong hand.
• Once placed on the table, the card cannot be changed
without the Director’s consent, even though it may not
have been faced.
Bridge Topic of the Week
REVOKE
• When attention is drawn to a revoke, the Director
should be called. They will determine whether it is
established on not.
• If the revoke is established, the Director will determine
rectification after the play of the hand is completed.
There are statutory trick adjustments laid down in the
laws that cannot be reduced, but the Director can
award more tricks to the non-offenders if more
damage has been caused by the revoke.
Bridge Topic of the Week
PSYCHE BIDS
• A psyche bid is “a deliberate and gross misstatement
of honour strength and/or of suit length”.
• Psyche bids should be reported to the Director by the
psycher or their partner, and if the Director agrees that
it is a psyche, it will be recorded in the Club’s Psyche
Register.
• Partnerships that have a track record of psyches may
need to modify their system card accordingly.
Bridge Topic of the Week
PENALTY CARDS
• Whenever a card, other than the card being played, is
accidentally or intentionally exposed by a defender, it
becomes a penalty card. The Director must be called
when this occurs.
• Whether it is a minor or major penalty card will be
determined by the Director. Player obligations differ
depending which it is, and the Director will inform the
table of everyone’s rights and obligations.
Bridge Topic of the Week
CALL THE DIRECTOR
• Whenever an infraction occurs at the table, you must
call the Director.
• Players cannot make their own rulings. If they do, the
Director has the right to have players forfeit rights to
rectification they would otherwise have had.
Bridge Topic of the Week
CLAIM BY DECLARER
• When a claim is made by Declarer, they must state
their proposed line of play. This should make mention
of any outstanding trumps (e.g. “drawing trumps”),
and how they plan to travel between hands if relevant.
• A careless or incomplete claim may cost you tricks that
you would otherwise make.
• Claims should be made where possible - it is
discourteous to continue play when the outcome is
certain.
Bridge Topic of the Week
CONCESSION BY DEFENDER
• When a concession is made by a Defender, their
partner may dispute it. The director must be called, but
the concession can be withdrawn and play can
continue.
• Any comments made by the player in making the
concession, or any cards exposed in this process,
remain as Unauthorised Information to their partner.
• The Director should be called if this happens.
• You cannot concede a trick that you can not lose.
Bridge Topic of the Week
REMOVING AND REPLACING CARDS
• Cards should not be removed from the board until at
least one player from each side is present.
• This also applies to a sit-out pair – they must not
remove the cards from boards on the sit-out table.
• Cards must be shuffled before being returned to the
board.
Bridge Topic of the Week
QUESTIONS DURING THE AUCTION
• During the auction, at your turn to bid, you may ask
questions about any part of the opponent’s auction. It
is unwise to ask about a specific part of the auction, as
this may convey unauthorised information to your
partner.
• It is prudent not to ask questions unless the answer
affects your call. Showing seemingly unwarranted
interest in an opponent’s call, particularly an alerted
one, may pass unauthorised information to partner.
Bridge Topic of the Week
EXPLANATIONS AFTER THE AUCTION
• At the completion of the auction, the Declarer should
offer the opponents an explanation of any unusual
bidding sequences in their auction, especially self-
alerting calls (e.g. doubles, cue bids) that may have an
unexpected meaning.
• In any event, it is a good policy for the player on lead
to request a full explanation of the auction before
choosing their opening lead.
Bridge Topic of the Week
RECORDING RESULTS
• When you’re on opening lead, your first priority after
the auction is to make the opening lead. This should
be done before entering the contract into the
Bridgemate or writing on your personal scorer.
• The same applies to dummy – after the opening lead is
faced, spread your hand before doing anything else.
Bridge Topic of the Week
WHEN IS A CARD PLAYED?
• For a Defender, a card is played when it could have
been seen by their partner. It doesn’t matter whether
or not partner did see it, nor does it matter if Declarer
saw it.
• For Declarer, a card is played when it is placed on or
near the table in the played position. It doesn’t matter
whether or not a Defender has seen it.
Bridge Topic of the Week
MIS-INFORMATION
• If your partner makes an incorrect explanation during
the auction, say nothing at the time, but:
(a) If your side ends up Declaring, you advise the table
before the opening lead is selected;
(b) If your side ends up as Defenders, advise the table
at the completion of play of the hand.
• The director should be called if either side may have
suffered damage.
Bridge Topic of the Week
ALERTS
• Alerts are made by circling the bid and saying “alert”.
Saying “alert” minimises the chance of an opponent
making a bid before you have had a chance to circle
your partner’s bid.
• Do not explain the meaning of the bid you are alerting
unless asked by an opponent.
Bridge Topic of the Week
PRE-ALERTS
• You should pre-alert your opponents to any unusual
conventions in your system before you commence the
first board.
• Pre-alerts should always include a statement about
your general system (e.g. Standard American), and
should also state your no-trump range.
• In general, pre-alert your opponents about anything in
your system that they may assume has a different
meaning, especially self-alerting calls.
Bridge Topic of the Week
EXPLANATIONS
• When explaining a bid, explain it fully. Don’t just state
the convention name.
• For example, don’t just explain a Michael’s bid as
“Michaels”. State “Michaels, showing 5/5 in the other
major and a minor, less than an opening hand”.
• Don’t explain your partner’s bid unless asked by an
opponent.
Bridge Topic of the Week
ASKING ABOUT A REVOKE
• Dummy may ask Declarer about a possible revoke.
• Either Defender may ask their partner about a possible
revoke.
• The usual form is “No spades, partner?”
• It is not necessary for a player, when showing out, to
state “having none”, and can indeed be irksome to the
opponents.
Bridge Topic of the Week
DECEPTION
• You cannot attempt to deceive an opponent except in
your bids and cards played.
• This includes things like deliberating for a few seconds
before playing a singleton to make an opponent think
you have a choice or cards to play, or hesitating when
an opponent is finessing through you in order to make
them think you have the missing honour.
• Bridge is not poker – bluffing is not allowed!
Bridge Topic of the Week
SECRET AGREEMENTS
• Your systems and methods must be transparent. Your
opponents are entitled to know everything about your
bids and plays that your partner does.
• This includes system agreements as well as matters of
style, and also any agreed temporary departure from
the system.
• All players must have systems cards, and opponents
are entitled to ask questions of the player’s partner
about bids or plays, and are entitled to a full answer.
