Contract Bridge

Bid a contract, then make it with dummy’s help. 4 players, in partnerships.

Also known as Bridge.

Who To Play With

or
bots

How to play Contract Bridge

  1. 1Four players in two partnerships: North–South against East–West. Everyone gets 13 cards.
  2. 2The auction starts with the dealer and goes around the players in turn. Each bid names a number of tricks over six (1 to 7) and a trump suit or no trump; it must outrank the last bid (♣ is lowest, then ♦, ♥, ♠, NT at each level). You may also pass, double the other side’s bid, or redouble their double.
  3. 3Three passes in a row end the auction; the last bid is the contract. If all four players pass, the hand is dealt again.
  4. 4The declarer is the player on the winning side who first named the contract’s suit. The player to the declarer’s left leads, then the declarer’s partner lays their hand face up as the dummy, and the declarer plays the dummy’s cards as well as their own.
  5. 5Follow suit if you can. The highest trump wins the trick, otherwise the highest card of the suit led. In no trump, the highest card of the suit led always wins.
  6. 6We play Chicago: a game is four deals. Nobody is vulnerable on the first deal, the dealer’s side on the second and third, and both sides on the fourth. Each deal is scored on its own; part-scores don’t carry over.
  7. 7Making the contract scores 20 per trick bid in ♣/♦, 30 in ♥/♠, and in no trump 40 for the first and 30 for each after; doubling doubles that and redoubling quadruples it. Add 300 for a game contract (100+ trick points), 500 if vulnerable, or 50 for a part-score; 500/750 for a small slam and 1000/1500 for a grand slam. Overtricks score their trick value, or 100 each (200 vulnerable) when doubled and twice that redoubled, and making a doubled contract adds 50 (100 redoubled). Honours aren't scored.
  8. 8Going down gives the defenders 50 a trick (100 vulnerable), more when doubled: 100, 200, 200 then 300 each (vulnerable 200 then 300 each), twice that when redoubled. After four deals the higher total wins.

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