Minibridge

Why take the auction out

The play of the cards in bridge is learnable in an afternoon. Follow suit, highest card wins, trumps beat everything else.

The auction isn't. It's a coded conversation with meanings attached to every call, and it is the part of the game beginners usually find hardest.

Minibridge takes it out and lets a beginner spend their first sessions on declarer play and defence. They can enjoy that straight away, and they'll need it whatever bidding system they learn later.

How a deal runs

Deal the pack out, 13 cards each. Everybody counts their high card points (ace 4, king 3, queen 2, jack 1) and says the number out loud.

There are 40 in the pack, so the two totals must add to 40. The side with more of them declares; there is no such thing as passing it out.

Of that partnership, the player with more points is declarer. Their partner becomes dummy and lays their whole hand face up on the table straight away.

Choosing the contract

This is the one decision minibridge adds to the game, and it carries straight over into real bidding. Declarer, looking at 26 cards, names a trump suit or notrump, and how high to go.

Two questions, in this order:

1. Is there an eight-card fit? Count each suit across both hands. Nine spades here, so spades are trumps. With no fit anywhere, play notrump.
2. Is there enough for game? About 25 points between the hands is the usual threshold. 27 here, so bid game: four spades.

A real auction is mostly spent answering the same two questions. A beginner who has chosen fifty minibridge contracts will already have a feel for what the bidding cheat sheet sets out.

Scoring

Normal bridge scoring. Tricks bid and made are worth 20 each in a minor, 30 in a major, and 40 for the first plus 30 thereafter in notrump.

Reach 100 and you get the game bonus, which is why 4♥, 4♠ and 3NT are the contracts worth stretching for. Many teachers simplify further at first and score only the tricks.

What it teaches, and what it hides

It teaches counting a hand, planning the play, drawing trumps, finessing and defending. It can't teach anything about how partners communicate.

• Declarer sees 26 cards before choosing. In bridge you commit to a contract knowing only what partner has described, which is a much harder problem.
• There is no partnership inference. With no auction, there's nothing to work out from partner's bids.
• The defenders know the strength split immediately. Everybody announced their points, which never happens in real bridge.

When to move on

Minibridge is a stepping stone, and its value drops off once you can plan a hand without help. Some teachers move pupils on after a single session.

A reasonable marker: when you stop needing to count the fit twice and start noticing before trick one which suit is going to give you trouble, you're ready for the auction. Start with how to play bridge, then opening bids and responses.