Why Bidding Matters

Your bid is a promise to win a specific number of tricks. Get it right:

  • Accurate bid → contract made → points scored
  • Overbid → contract failed → points lost
  • Underbid → bags accumulated → eventual penalty

Bidding is the single most impactful decision in each round.

Hand Evaluation: Step by Step

Step 1: Count Sure Tricks

Cards that will almost certainly win a trick:

Card Trick Value Notes
A♠ 1.0 Highest card in the game — guaranteed
K♠ 0.9 Only loses to A♠
Q♠ 0.7 Loses to A♠ and K♠, but often wins
Off-suit Ace 0.9 Almost always wins on first lead
Off-suit K (with Ace) 0.8 Combined A-K = 2 tricks in a suit

Step 2: Count Probable Tricks

Cards that might win depending on distribution:

Situation Trick Value
K in a suit without A (3+ cards) 0.5
K in a suit without A (2 cards) 0.3
Q in a suit with A and K 0.7
Q alone in a suit 0.1
Small spades (2♠-9♠) 0.3-0.5 each (late-game trump)

Step 3: Count Trump Length Bonus

If you have 5+ spades, you’ll likely be able to trump more side-suit tricks:

  • 5 spades: +0.5 additional trick
  • 6 spades: +1.0 additional trick
  • 7+ spades: +1.5 additional tricks

Step 4: Assess Short Suits

A void (0 cards in a suit) or singleton (1 card) means you can trump early:

  • Void in a suit + spades available = +1 trick per void (approximately)
  • Singleton = +0.5 trick (you’ll be void after the first round of that suit)

Step 5: Add Up and Round

Sum your trick values and round to the nearest whole number.

Example Hands

Hand A: ♠A K 7 3 | ♥A 8 4 | ♦K J 6 | ♣Q 2

Card Value
A♠ 1.0
K♠ 0.9
7♠, 3♠ (trump support) 0.5 total
A♥ 0.9
K♦ (no Ace, 3 cards) 0.5
Q♣ (no Ace/K) 0.1
Total 3.9 → Bid 4

Hand B: ♠Q 10 5 | ♥K 7 3 2 | ♦A 9 | ♣J 8 6 4

Card Value
Q♠ (3 spades) 0.6
10♠, 5♠ 0.3 total
K♥ (no Ace, 4 cards) 0.5
A♦ 0.9
Total 2.3 → Bid 2

Hand C: ♠A K Q J 9 4 | ♥ - (void) | ♦8 5 3 | ♣K 6 2

Card Value
A♠, K♠, Q♠, J♠ 3.5
9♠, 4♠ (extra spades) 1.0
Heart void (can trump) 1.0
K♣ (no Ace, 3 cards) 0.4
Total 5.9 → Bid 6

Advanced Bidding Concepts

Bag Awareness Bidding

If your team has 7-9 bags:

  • Round DOWN when uncertain
  • Consider whether you can actively avoid overtricks
  • A −100 bag penalty is devastating

Defensive Bidding

If the combined bids of all 4 players exceed 13:

  • Someone will fail their contract
  • Bid honestly — don’t adjust based on opponents’ bids
  • Focus on making YOUR contract

Score Situation Bidding

Score Context Bidding Adjustment
Ahead Conservative — protect your lead
Behind Slightly aggressive — you need big rounds
Opponents near 500 Focus on setting them — not your own score
Close game Bid exactly what you can make

Common Bidding Errors

  1. Counting Kings as sure winners — they’re only 50-90% depending on suit length
  2. Ignoring your spade count — 5+ spades adds extra tricks from trumping
  3. Bidding emotionally — bid based on cards, not hope
  4. Not adjusting for bags — when bags are high, round down
  5. Copying your partner’s bid — bid YOUR hand, not theirs