Correct auction;
^a a^s w!3 1 4> •^■s -w ^ 'Z-^ -^ fO fc-^ go £ bo "ti'rf _g S W 3 !2 a 03"^ P^ < 98 INFORMATORY DOUBLES If you have not made any bid your partner's double of any opposing bid (provided he doubles at the first opportunity) is informatory and distinctly states that he cannot defeat the contract. If you have already bid, or if partner has first overcalled an op- posing bid and has later doubled it, he makes a business double with the intention of defeating the contract. The informatory double is a peremptory demand that you make your best bid (regardless of how weak your hand may be) unless you believe that the doubled contract can be defeated for greater gain than you can derive from bidding. The double does not permit you to consider whether you will lose more by bidding or by letting opponents win a doubled contract. The doubler assumes all responsibility for results and demands your bid or the defeat of opponents' contract. Either at no trumps or at trumps (regardless of the number of tricks bid) your partner's informatory double definitely states that he can either support any bid you make or that he has a sound call of his own to which he will resort if your bid does not fit his hand. Informatory doubles show enough quick tricks to 99 CORRECT AUCTION bid. In its primitive form this double shows a no- trump hand lacking strength in one suit, so that the doubler fears to call no trumps over the suit which has been bid or hesitates to bid 2-N0 Trumps over an opposing no trumps. Both a no-trump bid and an informatory double inferentially show strength in at least 3 suits and deny cards warranting a major suit bid. But legitimate no-trump bids and informatory doubles are sometimes made where sound spade or heart bids could equally well be made. A "one- suit no-tnmiper" (a long established minor suit with a side ace) is bid at times. So a powerful major suit and little else is sometimes hidden beneath an informa- tory double. An informatory double of no tnmips usually re- quires you to bid yotir best suit. If that suit has already been bid by an opponent you can bid 2-N0 Trumps if you have safe stops in the suit with quick side tricks. In that case the opposing no trump must be rather a denial of the suit than a show of genuine strength. Ordinarily, however, you must bid your second-best suit when an opponent has already bid your best suit. If no suit has been bid you can some- times bid 2-No Trumps over i-No Tnmip, provided you hold no suit worth bidding and have honors in at least 3 suits. This can be done most safely if the original no-tnmip bidder sits at your right. If he sits at your left he has the opening lead and you may find that he has a one-suit no-trumper, with a long established suit to open. If you have only a lone 100 CORRECT AUCTION established minor suit and the opening lead you must let the double stand, unless your left-hand opponent bids. Otherwise you can rarely let the double stand with the idea of defeating it for a gain. Ability to do this means usually that you can go game at your own best call. Strength in 3 suits in your hand may mean a "camouflage double," and your partner ready to make a ** submerged bid" over any responsive call from you. Yoiir failure to bid will probably mean your loss of a game, partner's caustic remarks, and possibly permit opponents to win the doubled contract. Your partner is responsible for your forced responsive bid, but you are responsible for an attempt to defeat a doubled contract. If partner doubles a trump bid wherein your best suit is adversely bid, you have these choices: to bid your second-best suit if you can neither defeat the doubled contract nor hold sure stops in the suit; to let the double stand if you can defeat the contract but are not certain of game if you bid ; to go no trumps on sure stops in the suit, if you can go game, or if you cannot be sure of setting the contract. If you bid you can later double the opposing suit rebid at any time you are certain to defeat it. Partner must then decide whether to let the double stand or to continue your call. Stops in an adverse suit when you cannot afford to let an informatory double stand require you to bid no trumps, even without side strength, if no reasonable suit bid is possible. A very weak suit bid is preferable to no trumps on a 8 loi CORRECT AUCTION single stop unless you hold at least minimum no- trump strength. With a choice of bids there are several important considerations. Your partner is prepared for a major suit bid and it takes a trick less to go game than does a minor suit. A spade or heart call can usually win at least one more trick than a no-trump call of equal strength. No trump shows only stops to an adverse suit ; it gives no indications as to your strongest suit. The informatory double of no trumps and the cor- responding trtmip double have grown to be such im- portant features of modem Auction that a player must understand thoroughly their numerous phases to cope successfully with up-to-date players. Aside from the regulation double, showing no- trump strength in 3 suits and weakness in the remain- ing suit, there are three other important varieties : the first is the *'2-suited double"; the second is the "camouflage double"; the third is the ''masked double." A regular informatory double demands assisting strength in 3 suits. If p^artner bids your weak suit you must be able to shift to no trumps or to another strong suit. The two-suited double is made on tops of a major suit, and a long powerful minor suit. If partner happens to bid the major suit you let his bid stand, but otherwise you bid your minor suit. The camouflage double is made against no trumps 102 CORRECT AUCTION on a single powerful suit which may not go game imless you can coax an opponent to double your contract. If you bid the suit it will probably result either in a dangerous shift by opponents or else they will let you undertake an undoubled contract. Your immediate bid might force an undesirable call from your partner, resulting in one of you playing at too high a bid, whereas your double will force a bid from either partner or opponent which you can overcall. An underestimation of your strength sometimes produces the desired double, and sometimes you find sufficient help in dtimmy to go game anyway. The masked double is made against a suit wherein you are very strong, with ability to support either of two remaining suits, or to go no tnmips if partner bids your weak suit. One particular object of this double is a hope that opponents will continue their bids to a point where you can double for heavy penalties. You must always realize the possibility of a camou- flage double or a masked double. Neither overcall an opposing bid made immediately after partner's double nor go on with your bid made in response to his double if partner shifts your call, unless you would do so with- out the informatory double. If partner bids a suit and then doubles a subsequent call he requests you to make your best bid unless you hold normal trump help for his call. You frequently hold cards neither worth a raise nor a change of call; then you must decide which you most nearly hold. Such doubles usually come from hands where partner 103 CORRECT AUCTION has chosen to bid a short strong suit instead of no tnimps. What he most probably wants in yoiir hand is length in his suit. Opponents sometimes jump their bid after an informatory double to prevent the doubler's partner from making anything except a free bid from genuine strength. You must repeat your double in such cases (provided your cards warrant it) if yotir partner does not bid. Partner's double of each of two opposing suit bids asks you to choose between the two unbid suits or to bid no trumps if you hold stops to the suit first doubled. In the latter case decide between a suit bid and no tnmips almost as if the second doubled suit had never been mentioned, A partner with stops to the first doubled suit and no trump strength will bid no trumps before you have an opportunity to double the second suit. Therefore partner's no-trump bid made only after you have doubled both opposing suit calls cannot argue well for your success unless you hold unusual strength in 3 suits. If you cannot well stand leads through your hand of the suit last doubled you had better risk a call in one of the unbid suits. Leads through your tenaces in the second doubled suit and return leads through your partner's stops in the first doubled suit are apt to prove very disastrous to you. An informatory double ranks as a no-trump bid and promises more than the strength needed for a minimum no-tnmiper; in fact it more nearly ranks as an opening 104 CORRECT AUCTION third-hand bid. Any no-trump bid, particularly one opening the bidding third hand, aside from its chances to go game, tends to subdue opposing bids through fear of serious losses. That is also one of the most patent results of informatory doubles, if made by a sound bidder. Otherwise they become subjects of ridicule, like gauzy no-trumpers. If your partner has passed his opportunity to open the bidding you cannot credit him with more than the average i}4 quick tricks. If your partner has failed to overcall the bid of his preceding opponent or if your partner's pass is followed by an opposing no trumps, you must credit partner with even less than the average 1^4 quick tricks. If he holds unusual length of suit he can bid unnecessarily high or rebid in response to your informatory double to show real strength. Both experience and probabilities set a minimum requirement of 2>^ quick tricks to double a trump bid of One and 3 quick tricks to double i-No Trump. You must also hold a total of at least 4 probable tricks' assistance for partner's most imfavorable response to your double, or else a sound call to which you can shift if partner's response is unfavorable. You can raise tentatively partner's responsive bid to show strength on his particular call beyond the minimum required to make the informatory double. Partner must rebid his hand if he can see trick proba- bilities beyond the 4 tricks minimum expected of him. In that case you can raise him (just as if he had bid without your double) a trick for each >^ CORRECT AUCTION quick trick or other probable trick, which you have for him. To the strength needed to double a i-bid you must add yi quick trick (or r probable trick) for each added trick bid, to make sound doubles of higher bids. Sometimes a bad score warrants you in helping partner beyond your holdings when opponents have jumped a bid. Only on the rubber game does a similar situation often arise with informatory doubles. Sometimes you can risk a double to the score on cards slightly below standard requirements. INFORMATORY REDOUBLES If he has made no previous bid yoiir partner's redouble of an informatory double (provided he re- doubles at the first opportunity) is informatory. To a lesser degree the "informatory redouble" shows precisely what an informatory double announces. The informatory redouble shows minimum no-trump strength, 3 guarded suits and weakness in the fourth suit. This redouble of a suit bid shows that particular suit to be the weak spot in the redoubler's hand. Your partner's informatory suit redouble warns you not to rebid if you need trump assistance, but assures you of side support worth a raise. The re- double encourages you to go no tnimps or to change your trirnip call if you have a 2-suiter. At times the only possible response to an informatory double is a no- trump bid from the doubler's partner. Your partner's redouble tells you not to open the suit you have bid if you need assistance in establishing it against an opposing no-trumper. In that case you must open your second-best suit in order to put your partner in the lead. As soon as partner is in he will lead through the declarer the suit which you have bid, to make its establishment easy. This important phase of a sound informatory suit redouble requires 107 CORRECT AUCTION you to hold one or two of partner's suit. If you are void the redouble is out of place. If you hold more than two of partner's suit you can at once jump partner's bid over the double instead of redoubling. No bid must have two meanings (unless you are so strong that partner's misunderstanding can do no harm). Your partner's informatory redouble of your no- trtrnip bid encourages you to continue your call (if you can stop the suit bid which must follow the re- double) or else to double the opposing bid for penalties. Yoiu- partner's informatory redouble is the equivalent of a bid and your subsequent double of an opposing bid is strictly a business double. If your no-tnmiper is weak or if you are not sufficiently strong in the adverse suit safely to continue no trtimps, you can bid a suit with advance assurance that partner can either support it or can shift back to no trumps. The redouble does not obligate you to bid and you can pass if you lack a thoroughly sound call. On partner's redouble of your no-tnmip bid you must be careful about continuing it if you have a very weak minor suit, even if one of your stronger suit is bid against you. It happens about 2 in 9 times that opponents have the same suit as their strongest one. In response to an informatory double of no tnmips a player bids his best major suit even if it is slightly inferior to his best minor suit. If the major call does not fit the doubler's hand he may open a minor suit in which your side holds nothing and run it all 108 CORRECT AUCTION off against you. It is, however, tinlikely that after a double you will find a very long major suit led unless it has been bid. An informatory double shows bidding strength and ranks as an opening bid. An informatory redouble shows assisting strength and ranks as a supporting bid. Whether you should redouble an informatory double of partner's bid or should jump his bid is not a question of the strength in your hand. The informa- tory redouble requires the same strength as it does to jump partner's bid. The problem is easily solved by the way yotir strength is distributed. An informa- tory redouble requires strength in just 3 suits aggregat- ing at least 2 quick tricks, with added possibilities. Such strength distributed over 4 suits obligates jump- ing a no-trump bid instead of redoubling it. You redouble partner's trump bid to show outside help worth a raise but lack of normal trump strength to warrant an immediate raise. You jump partner's trump bid on normal trump holding to show at least I quick trick, with at least 2 other probable tricks, regardless of where the side strength lies. It is by observing consistently such niceties of the game that two experts manage to get more out of their hands than is possible to an ordinary good pair. As the above distinctions are sound and will in the long run gain points, they should be observed even when your partner cannot read their specific meanings. They are practical and not merely conventional, although a trained partner will derive additional 109 CORRECT AUCTION benefit from the latter feature. The average strength of partner's no-trump bids must to some extent in- fluence your acts. If he bids too filmy ones you require more than minimum strength to jump his bid or to redouble. If your partner's bid is doubled you shift his call precisely as you would had the doubler bid instead of doubling. Defensive bids cannot be made over an informatory double, as such bids show strength. Ordinary cards urge a pass instead of a bid, as the doubler's partner may then be forced to bid your best suit. In this case you may win 50 points a trick in penalties instead of making from 6 to 9 points a trick toward game. When your partner makes an informatory double of a trump bid which you can defeat you make a "business pass." But no such an event can well hap- pen against sound bidders if an informatory redouble is also made. The redouble has warned the original bidder to go no trumps or to bid another suit, if you pass because you can beat the call. If you are mis- taken in your belief that you can defeat it, even the redoubled odd trick means game on a major call. With a single exception (explained below) you must bid on an informatory redouble. Bid no trumps on a single stop to the adverse suit or even on 5 of that suit without a stop, if you have no 4-card side suit or even a 3 -card side suit with an honor. There is one case only where you must make an "informatory pass" on a redoubled suit bid. With no CORRECT AUCTION just 4 low cards of the suit bid, and three 3-card side suits, all of which lack an honor, you must pass. The very specific information thus given partner will best enable him to make his proper bid. If your partner is unfamiliar with the informatory pass over an in- formatory redouble you must bid a major 3-card suit. CORRECT AUCTION X ><5 XXMMOfXoa X XX X XXX>fXiXX XXXX>fX;<^ XO<XXXi4 I I I H^ S O O ^•§ c o .w • ^^ X >^ >^X XXX,^Xi x^x^x^oik xxx<x XX xxx>^ XXX oXl >fxx>^>f x<oox X X X >fx >f ^>fx XXX<i>k ^i X oxxxx o J3 112 X >f >f X >f X,X X >fX,XXXX X XXXXXX a X >< X >< X^ X XXi ><,a X X,X.>fX\kx X i4XXX<X X X XXX; XX k>^ >f i4<OXXX X X >? ^x ^ ^ X XX.X.X ^ : OXXXX^ ' BO 0 S S 3-^.S ^ ^ WooAQg 1 I I I ►^ I ^ 111 M XXXX XXXXXX xaxxox ><XX?,>f^ XXxX>^X' ><>;i : : XXX : :< CORRECT AUCTION >< XXX M ><><><>f XXX >< ><><><>< xox M>^M><MM MW< M >< >i^ >i^x >< ^><^><>< XX>f ><>^?^?^ XXXi 6^x M<M ^^ XXi ^^ >f X XXXi xxxxo^ <« ^^^^1^6. X XiX X B E J2 ^. o O Oi :>^« 3: o XX XX>f xxxx xox>f <^<x ^x^^ XJ^X ??^>;^ M-«i< Xi X xxxx xxxa axx^ «« « : : : Double No-bid 4-Hearts 1 CO •3 1 0 Your double XX\^ I 1 "7 ^>^x XX. 'X \^XXXxJL, i^iXXctcKOi >^XX XXX XXX XXX X axxociot ■X« .< tn r^ 2 ^ -ah E: -9. '-9 o-S P 12: 4i-uo XXXX XXXX x^^x <X\AX XX a X)AX< XX X xxxx Q^X^^X ■ ^ ■XXX '0 e o « E T ft 113 CORRECT AUCTION ^4' Xi4 MM >< Mm 1^ ^ ^ MM MM>;i>|iMMM><1 MMMMMMMM >f>f>f MMM MMMMMMMM MMMMMOMM MMMMMMMI^ I^MMMMMMM MMOMMMMM MMM MM^^^^>^« ^V^>;^><><MM OOMMMMoLoS) o <u- o^ 1.5 WtcJ ill's ^ tS 4> W M h rt S Q §J3 ft « 114 >;1 i^M>;i MM M MMMxMM M CpOMoMM M MMM-i^^ MM!^ >|^MM o MMMMMM ^ MMMooOf O MMMWMM M « >;^>;^MM M ><><>< k M M>;^o^ M!^ M : :MMM M M : :mmm o a: « MM>;1 M M<JMM M >< MMMIf M MMM>;1 M>< M 2 ^^SM!^ Hi,M.i>ai^ OMa<M ^>? M M !^M hL. M M 2 •• a ^ MhL,M< ft ft a a o o o wUa lit u ^*^ n STICK TO YOUR RULES Every honorable player scrupulously observes both the letter and the spirit of the Laws and the Etiquette of Auction. Deliberate violations of either are con- sidered serious offenses. The time has now come for players to be equally scrupulous about their bids. The Laws of Auction are no more definite than are the rules for making sound bids. Every card committee should require players to observe certain elementary principles. Players who would not think of cheating on the score do not hesitate to deceive their partners by announcing values in their bids which they do not hold. This deception is mainly due to ignorance. Players who feel obligated to know the laws do not take the trouble to master the elementary principles of the game. Such players are a continual source of annoyance to others and a cause of unnecessary losses to their partners. Your partner's acts are largely influenced by your own. This makes it obligatory not to deceive him. His implicit confidence means more to you in the long run than your sum total of occasional gains through imusual practices. We are all too prone to depart from rules, especially in our bidding. A hand looks too good to wait for a secondary bid, or we want to help partner and do so without full justification, or we fear that the 115 CORRECT AUCTION other side will go game, etc. Neither underbid your hand nor bid before the proper time, nor overbid unless it is to save game at a trifling cost. Auction is indeed **a game of aces and kings." As yet few players have fully grasped the importance of making each bid and double clearly announce a definite minimum in quick tricks; you may hold more than you advertise, but you must never have less. If you lack proper values to bid immediately you must take a chance that later you can do so without deceiving your partner. Another great weakness in most games is player's ignorance of genuine quick-trick values of hands. Do not deceive yourself and others by misvaluations of yotir honors. Read and reread the chapter, "Variable Honor Values," until you know it by heart, then stick to it. Do not let anyone talk you out of the proper use of actual quick-trick values. You can win the maximum only by always having the odds in favor of your bids, leads, and plays. There is nothing new about the value at all calls of quick tricks. As far back as March of 19 13 my Scientific Auction Bridge set forth these same principles as fully as seemed wise at that time. Genuine quick-trick values and only genuine quick- trick values hold at all calls on the average, whether playing the combined hands, assisting your partner, or struggling against an opposing declaration. Such values are disclosed by sound bids as follows : CORRECT AUCTION MINIMUM QxnCK TRICKS DISCLOSED Bid made Quick tricks shown Pass Defensive takeout o o Supporting partner I Forced secondary bid I Free I>^ Forced primary *' ^H Free ^ 2 Informatory redouble 2 '' double of trumps 2H n. no trumps 3 BUSINESS DOUBLES AND REDOUBLES Your partner's double means "business" if you have already bid (or doubled) or if he has first overcalled the bid which he later doubles. This "business double" states that he expects to defeat the doubled contract for a greater gain than yoiir side can win by playing the hand. A "business redouble" comes only when a business double is redoubled. The redouble of an informatory double is never a business redouble. Do not double or redouble, even on a certainty, if there is a probable loophole for opponents to escape to a changed call less favorable to you. If your part- ner's bids and your own cards show the impossibility of an escape to a call less favorable to you there still remains the question whether the expected penalties will pay better than your own best declaration. Never double opponents before you help your partner at least once on proper strength, unless the penalty won will exceed what partner might win from game and honors. Many doubled contracts prove to be winners. Do not shift your partner's doubled contract unless you either would have done so or could safely have done so ii8 CORRECT AUCTION had he not been doubled. Bid after your partner has made a business double only to atone for your own deceptive bids, unless you are sure of game and a profit in excess of anjrthing probable from the double. Re- member that the fewer adverse trumps you hold the more your partner may have. Yoiir chief concern lies in yotir quick tricks and whether you have overstated them. A free double occurs when the fulfillment of an un- doubled contract will win game and a slight liberty only can be taken in such a case. A cinch double occurs when opponents can neither make their contract nor escape to a safer call. The latter double is the only safe one to make if opponents require a doubled contract to go game. A double discloses where opposing values chiefly lie. If both opponents have rebid, it indicates that the de- clarer can lead from one hand to the other at will. By thus finessing through the doubler's strength or by putting the doubler in and so forcing him to lead away from his honors, the declarer gains a possible trick. Many games are saved by refusing to double after both opponents show strength, thus forcing the declarer to guess where opposing strength lies. An average rubber runs 400 points or 200 points per game. The side winning the first game has 3 in 4 chances to win the rubber. Taking these known facts and momentarily disregarding all honor values it is very simple to determine how much you require in penalties to pay you better than winning any specified 119 CORRECT AUCTION game — first, second, or rubber game. In each illus- trative case we will assume that you can choose between definite penalties and game. Take four illustrative hands and no score, with a choice each time between going game or collecting 200 points penalty. If you collect 4 X 200 = 800 in penalties you must expect to finally win two rubbers and lose two rubbers, with a net profit of 800 points. If you choose to win the game each time you will ultimately win three rubbers out of the four, with a net profit of 800 points, just as if you had each time chosen to take penalties. Now take four hands and opponents a game in on each. If you each time collect 200 points penalty you will collect 800 points penalty and win one rubber in four, thus coming out even. If you choose each time to take the game instead of the penalty you will win half the rubbers and come out even, just as if you had taken the penalties by doubling. Next take four hands where you are a game in. If you go rubber each time you net 4X400 = 1,600 points. If you choose to double and collect 200 penalties each time, you will have 800 points in penal- ties and you will still win three out of f otur rubbers or a net of two rubbers. These rubbers, each at 400 points additional to the penalties, will give you an- other 800 points. Thus again you will net 1,600 points total; whether you double or at once take rubber the final result will be the same. Last of all take four hands where you and opponents 120 CORRECT AUCTION have each won a game. You now have the choice each time of doubhng for 400 points or of taking an imme- diate rubber. The four rubbers are worth i ,600 points. The doubles are each worth 400 points or 1,600 points total. If you take the doubles you will lose half the rubbers, so that your final net winnings in either case will be 1,600 points. Aside from honor values we see that it does not matter who is ahead on the score or whether there is no game score, taking 200 points on a double and winning the game averaging about the same. But winning the rubber game and 400 points penalty average to be worth the same. Deducting opponent's honor values from double penalties and adding honors to your own game score necessitates defeating opponents for 300 points on any except the rubber game and defeating them for 500 points on the rubber game, to gain more by a double than by taking a sure game. You may sometimes desire to prolong a rubber against opponents who rashly overbid or who play a very inferior game. You may sometimes prefer to win a quick rubber to escape a poor partner. Aside from such considerations you will in the long run win most by defeating opponents by 3 doubled tricks in preference to winning any except the rubber game. You will win most by taking the rubber game in- stead of an3rthing short of 500 points penalty. The reverse of this depends upon how things are going. If you are losing all the rubbers anyway you had 121 CORRECT AUCTION better escape as cheaply as possible. With even chances on good hands you can better afford to go down 2 doubled tricks and win your honors than to let opponents score game plus their honors. You can better afford to risk a loss of even 3 or a possible 4 tricks, than to surely surrender the rubber game. In actual play you can rarely tell just how mucn you can defeat a high opposing call, but with a reliable bidding partner you can ordinarily approximate within a trick what you can win on your own high bids. First, you have to consider the probable accuracy of all the bids which you have heard, especially those of your partner. Is he inclined to stretch the rules, stick to them, or is he a little timid? Add to your own effective tricks against the opposing bid your estimate of what partner can win (see ** Stick to Yoiu- Rules"). The resulting estimate must show whether you can save game, can defeat opponents, or should rebid your hand. If you can surely save game you must stop short of an overbid. Usually prefer to take even 100 points* penalty in preference to anything short of game. A business redouble is seldom soimd. It has an extremely limited field with players of your own caliber, should never be used against better players, and sparingly against poorer players. Game on a doubled contract which you can just make is equivalent to setting opponents for 300 points on any game except the rubber game, and for 500 points on the rubber game. Before you redouble just consider how 122 CORRECT AUCTION much you can defeat any possible bid into which your redouble may frighten opponents. Sometimes you or your partner can see plainly that you must slightly overbid your hands to prevent opponents from winning a sure game. If you are doubled and either of you can also see that opponents must overbid their hands if they venture farther, then you can make a **fake redouble" in an attempt to frighten one of them into a losing rebid. In general, the best advice which you can give concerning re- doubles is, ''Don't." NO-TRUMP LEADS Departures from standard leads are at times ad- vantageous, and sometimes almost obligatory. A simple case will best illustrate one standard variation. Suppose that you hold Spades, 10-9-5; Hearts, 6-4-2; Clubs, K-J-8-5; Diamonds, 7-4-3. Suppose that the dealer at your right bids i-Club, you pass, your left-hand opponent bids i-Spade, your partner passes, and the dealer makes a final bid of i-No Trump. Your partner has shown no strength unless it lies in spades, but two things are apparent — that the dealer is weak in spades, and that his partner either has no-trump support or lacks rebidding strength — while your even suit divisions argue short suits around the table. You will lose a trick if you open the clubs, and you may seriously mislead your partner if you open either red suit. Your only reasonable opening is the spade 10. It shows your partner that you are short in both red suits, that what strength you have lies outside the spade suit, and that your only long suit is clubs. When your partner enters he can open his best suit, or return clubs through the declarer. If you must open from a suit of 5 or more cards which has been bid over you previous to the final no-tnmip declaration, you may open with the lowest 124 CORRECT AUCTION card, instead of your fourth-best. Either lead shows that you are short elsewhere, yoiir deception cannot well injure your partner, but it may bother the de- clarer if he attempts to establish the suit over you in the erroneous belief that you hold only four. A fourth-best lead should, if possible, be made from a suit having fair chances to win a trick or more, without expecting partner's hand to do it all. If a low 4-card suit is headed by a sequence of at least 3 cards a better lead can be made with its top card than with its lowest one. Partner can usually detect the sequence lead and thus know that the suit contains no high cards. A 5-card suit headed by jack, or a longer suit lack- ing an honor, can usually be established in 3 leads. Counting on your partner to return your lead once, you generally require at least 2 re-entry cards in your own hand, one to secure the third lead of your suit, and the other to get in after yoiu: suit is established. If you cannot hope to establish your suit you must utilize re-entry in attempts to establish a suit for your partner. In leading from a sequence always lead the top card (imless that is the ace, then lead the king). On the following round lead the lowest card in your hand sure to win a trick. This is to show the length of the sequence. From A-K-Q-J-io-8 or K-Q-J-io-8 lead the king. On the second round lead the 10. The third round lead the lowest remaining card of the se- quence— in this case the jack. In case the 9 falls to 125 CORRECT AUCTION your king you lead the 8 instead of the lo for the second roiind, since the 8 will win as surely as the lo. It is yotir partner's business to note the fall of the 9 and to interpret correctly your lead of the 8. At trumps (unless you open the suit after all trumps are exhausted from your partner's hand) the second lead of a low card of a sequence may possibly fool partner into thinking that you hold only the ace, king, and the low card, and are offering him a ruff, saving the ace for future use. The safer way to lead at tnmips is to go down in regular order — K, Q, J, and so on. Never lead from the middle or bottom of a sequence either carelessly or to fool declarer. It is almost certain to fool partner and may cost you several tricks, as well as your partner's confidence. It is often important to know the length of partner's suit. With at least 3 honors in sequence, K-Q-J, you can show a 4-card suit by leading them down in regular order, king followed by queen. With more than four of suit you can follow the king lead by the jack. The general rule for no-trump openings demands an honor lead from a long suit containing 3 honors, with 2 honors in sequence. Six in ten times, however, you will find one opponent holding as many cards or more than you have in your 4-card suit. Then the opening lead of an honor may assist the declarer in establishing your suit against you. If yovir partner happens to have a card in sequence to one of your honors a f oiu-th-best lead usually wins a trick more than an honor lead. The chief advantage which the honor lead from a moder- 126 CORRECT AUCTION ately long suit possesses is the display of tops, which urgently requests your partner to return that suit when he is next in the lead. Lack of re-entry demands careful thought as to your proper opening from a strong honor suit. If you must lose a trick, do so early while your partner can return your lead. If you hold top honors you must weigh the chances of catching adverse honors against the chances of losing the remainder of your suit on a late block. Do not expect partner to follow suit twice to win- ning cards of your long suit (or to follow once and win the second trick), and still be able to lead you back a third rotmd. It can be done 63 times in 100 if you only hold 4, 54 times if you hold 5 ; but only 42 times when holding 6, and 32 times in 100 if you hold 7 of the suit. Where high cards are probably insufficient to clear a suit this probable inability of your partner to lead a third round necessitates in many cases a low opening lead when you hold no re-entry. Such procedure loses the first trick two-thirds of the time but it gives your partner enough better chances to lead a second round (if he holds re-entry) to more than com- pensate for the times you may be fortunate enough to clear the suit if you made high leads at first, in order to catch opponents' unguarded honors. Take this suit, A-K-J-X-X-X, without re-entry. If you open with the top honors to try and catch the queen yotir average chances to establish it are only 48 in 100. If you open with the king to view dummy, and then temporarily abandon the suit, if dummy lacks 127 CORRECT AUCTION the queen, in order to secure a lead through the de- clarer, your chances are only a fraction better. If you lead your fourth-best card, the chances are 63 in 100 that you will finally establish your suit. You also gain 18 tricks in 100 deals over either of the first two methods. But if you open with your jack to force out the queen, your suit can be established 65 in 100 times. You also gain 27 tricks in 100 over methods No. I and No. 2, and 9 tricks in 100 over using the fourth-best lead. With only five cards in the suit the fourth-best lead is slightly better than the jack lead, and it is still better than the jack lead when you hold only four cards in the suit. But these differences are so trifling that they may be outweighed by the chances that partner will prefer to try the establishment of his own best suit in preference to helping you, unless you disclose your great strength by an honor lead. If yoiu* fourth-best card happens to be very low, or if it happens to be so high as to appear to be the top of a low sequence, partner may readily think that yovir suit is hopeless. Without re-entry, more certain results accrue from leading out the honor immediately below the missing one than by attempting to catch it by means of higher leads. With proper cards of re-entry more gain comes from high-card leads. You then add your chances of re-entry to partner's small chances of being able to lead your suit. This method averages to gain about one-quarter trick per hand over the method necessary when no re-entry is held. 128 CORRECT AUCTION The second no-trump lead from a suit like A-Q-J- X-X, if the king does not cover your queen lead, will be the jack, but the third lead must depend upon cir- cumstances. If the king lies well guarded in dummy, the declarer may refuse to play it upon the queen because he believes that you are leading from the top of a sequence Q-J-io and others, and that your partner holds the ace. In that case the deception is kept up by a second lead of the jack, which may be passed also. If the king still has a guard and partner and declarer follow both times, the lo must fall, and none of the suit remain except those held by yourself and dummy. If you are without re-entry the ace must be played to save that trick and to note from his discard what partner wants led. If you have re-entry and a low card to beat anything except dummy's king, you can lose nothing by leading it instead of your ace, trusting that the declarer will not correctly interpret the fall of the lo and will now expect your partner to play the ace. Unless you hold the 9 the fall of the 10 must show any observiing player that you led from A-Q-J instead of from either Q-J-io or Q-J-9. Even so it can do no harm to give him a chance to make a mistake, sometimes even a good player will do so. Upon an opening lead of queen from A-Q-J-X-X two out of three times the king will lie with pone or declarer. If your partner (the pone) holds four to the king, he will probably unblock in regulation style. With three to the king, and nothing to catch in the 129 CORRECT AUCTION dummy, he must overplay with his king, and return his next highest card of your suit. It is useless to hold up a high card unless it is needed to catch some- thing shown by dummy. If the declarer holds three or four to the king he will, in all probability, let you win the first trick. It is likely that you cannot tell until the second round how the cards are distrib- uted, and the only thing to do is to lead the jack on the second round, regardless of the other cards you hold. If the king does not fall on the jack, 'the ace must follow, and next a small card, if you have re- entry. If you have no re-entry and dummy's hand leads you to believe that yoiu: partner may have a third card of your suit, you can stop the suit after two rounds and try to put your partner in with another suit, in order to secure a lead of your own suit through the declarer. Without re-entry, and without hope that your partner has a third card of your suit, the only remaining thing to do is to lead your ace and then abandon the suit for one which may help your partner. Being blocked on the third round of a suit is more than twice as serious as being blocked on its second round, because your partner's chances to hold three of your suit are more than twice as good as his chances to hold four. On that account it is better to be blocked the first or second round than on the third. The de- clarer knows this and acts accordingly. 