Notrump in a sentence

A notrump opener should have neither a suit longer than five cards nor more than one 5-card suit since an opening notrump bid shows a balanced hand.

If the notrump bidder has four cards in each major suit, the notrump bidder corrects to the previously unbid major suit.

Alternatively, North, if his hand lacks the values for game in notrump, may double, which by partnership agreement employs Stayman.

A notrump bidder who has at least four cards in each major suit normally responds in hearts, as this can still allow a spade fit to be found.

If the partnership's preceding call is a natural bid in notrump, then 4NT is usually played as natural.

In either case, a responder who rebids notrump over a response in a major suit promises four cards of the other major suit.

In rare cases, when the opener has maximum values and a fit in Diamonds with at least two of the top three honors, he may raise Diamonds, and responder may see a chance for game in notrump.

In the UK, Acol is the most common system; its main features are a weak one notrump opening with 12-14 high card points and several variations for 2-level openings.

It can find 3-5 fits, 4-4 fits (in Standard American ) and 5-3 fits (in Acol ), and also shows whether opener was maximum or minimum strength for his notrump bid.

Originally published in Bridge Bulletin, date unknown, p. 44. is an adjunct to Stayman for situations in which the notrump opener has denied holding a four-card major and responder has a five-card major and a four-card major with game-going values.

Over an intervening four of a suit by opponents it is usually played as a competitive raise, expecting to play four notrump.

Over an opposing pass it is simply a raise and a quantitative invitation to six notrump, a small slam.

Over these bids, the notrump bidder (1) with a maximum hand (17 HCP), goes to game over an invitational bid and (2) with four (or more) cards in each major suit, corrects to the previously unbid major suit.

Some partnerships also admit responder's rebids of a major suit that the notrump bidder did not name.

South would then show his major or bid game in notrump.

Standard Blackwood Where standard Blackwood 4NT is in force, a four notrump bid (4NT) asks partner to disclose the number of aces in his hand.

The practice of bidding Stayman with a relatively weak hand of this (or similar) shape and then passing the Notrump bidder's reply is often called "Garbage Stayman" because it is bidding Stayman with a "garbage" hand.

These bids are commonly referred to as "drop dead bids", as the opening notrump bidder is requested to withdraw from the auction.

This convention allows a partnership to find either a 5-3 fit, 6-3 and 6-2 fit while ensuring that the notrump opener, who has the stronger hand, will be declarer.

Those natural interpretations may hold in other auctions where the partnership has previously bid notrump naturally or shown a balanced hand conventionally.