Texas transfer, or simply Texas, is a bidding convention in contract bridge designed to get the partnership to game in a major suit opposite a one notrump or two notrump opening, thus making the opener declarer and keeping the stronger hand hidden from the opponents. [1] Texas is used in response to a notrump opening when holding a six-card or longer major suit and at least game-going features; responder may have interest in slam via continuations in Blackwood or its variants. Originated independently by David Carter of St. Louis and Olle Willner of Sweden. [2]
After a notrump opening, responder bids the suit below [3] his major at the four-level, i.e. if he holds hearts, he bids 4♦ and if he holds spades, he bids 4♥. Opener is obliged to bid the next available major suit, i.e. after a 4♦ bid by responder, he bids 4♥ and after a 4♥ response, he bids 4♠ setting the contract.
The standard defense to the Texas transfer: double is one-suited and lead-directing, 4NT is for the minors, four of responder’s suit is a Michaels cuebid. A delayed double after opener accepts the transfer is a three-suited takeout. [2]
| West is dealer | ♠ | AJ732 | |||
| ♥ | 4 | ||||
| ♦ | J96 | ||||
| ♣ | K963 | ||||
| ♠ | Q4 | N | ♠ | 1095 | |
| ♥ | AK8 | ♥ | Q1076532 | ||
| ♦ | A1053 | ♦ | 82 | ||
| ♣ | Q872 | ♣ | 5 | ||
| ♠ | K86 | ||||
| ♥ | J9 | ||||
| ♦ | KQ74 | ||||
| ♣ | AJ104 | ||||
| West | North | East | South |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1NT | Pass | 4♦! | Pass |
| 4♥ | Pass | Pass | Pass |
The 4♦ response is the Texas transfer conventional bid, is alertable and requires opener to rebid 4♥. [4]
This effective pre-emptive sequence by East-West gives North-South no convenient way to discover their eight-card spade fit and a plausible 5♠ contract.
The natural-sounding sequence 1NT - 4♥ can pose a memory problem where a forgetful opener may pass the 4♥ transfer bid. [1] In the variant known as South African Texas, responses of 4♣ and 4♦ are used as transfers to hearts and spades respectively. With minor suit bids being more distinctive, opener is more likely to recognize them as the partnership agreement requesting a transfer to a major. [5] A disadvantage is that the use of a 4♣ bid as ace-asking Gerber is no longer available. [1]
A comparable transfer convention known as Namyats employs the 4♣ and 4♦ opening pre-emptive bids as transfers to 4♥ and 4♠ respectively as a slightly different hand type (usually stronger) compared to a direct 4♥ or 4♠ opening.
Texas transfers may be used after the opponents overcall the notrump opening, usually through to the three spade level but that if the overcall is at the four level, all bids by responder are natural. [1]
Stayman is a bidding convention in the card game contract bridge. It is used by a partnership to find a 4-4 or 5-3 trump fit in a major suit after making a one notrump (1NT) opening bid and it has been adapted for use after a 2NT opening, a 1NT overcall, and many other natural notrump bids.
Standard American is a bidding system for the game of bridge widely used in North America and elsewhere. Owing to the popularization of the game by Charles Goren in the 1940s and 1950s, its early versions were sometimes referred to simply as 'Goren'. With the addition and evolution of various treatments and conventions, it is now more generally referred to as Standard American. It is a bidding system based on five-card majors and a strong notrump; players may add conventions and refine the meanings of bids through partnership agreements summarized in their convention card. One standardised version, SAYC, is widely used by casual partnerships and in online bridge.
Polish Club is a bridge bidding system which was developed in Poland, where it is the most popular bidding system, and which is also used by players of other countries. It is a type of small club system.
In the card game of bridge, the unusual notrump is a conventional overcall showing a two-suited hand. It was originally devised by Al Roth in 1948 with Tobias Stone, to show the minor suits after the opponents opened in a major.
The Jacoby transfer, or simply transfers, in the card game contract bridge, is a convention in most bridge bidding systems initiated by responder following partner's notrump opening bid that forces opener to rebid in the suit ranked just above that bid by responder. For example, a response in diamonds forces a rebid in hearts and a response in hearts forces a rebid in spades. Transfers are used to show a weak hand with a long major suit, and to ensure that opener declare the hand if the final contract is in the suit transferred to, preventing the opponents from seeing the cards of the stronger hand.
The Michaels cuebid is a conventional bid used in the card game contract bridge. First devised by Michael Michaels of Miami Beach, FL, it is an overcaller's cuebid in opponent's opening suit and is normally used to show a two-suited hand with at least five cards in each suit and eight or more points.
Preempt is a bid in contract bridge whose primary objectives are (1) to thwart opponents' ability to bid to their best contract, with some safety, and (2) to fully describe one's hand to one's partner in a single bid. A preemptive bid is usually made by jumping, i.e. skipping one or more bidding levels. Since it deprives the opponents of the bidding space, it is expected that they will either find a wrong contract of their own, or fail to find any. A preemptive bid often has the aim of a save, where a partnership bids a contract knowing it cannot be made, but assumes that, the penalty will still be smaller than the value of opponents' bid and made contract.
In the card game contract bridge, a takeout double is a low-level conventional call of "Double" over an opponent's bid as a request for partner to bid his best of the unbid suits. The most common takeout double is after an opponent's opening bid of one of a suit where the double shows a hand with opening values, support for all three unbid suits and shortness in the suit doubled. Normally, the partner of the doubler must bid his best suit but may pass if (a) his right hand opponent intervenes or (b) on the more rare occasions when his hand is such that he wishes to convert the takeout double to a penalty double.
Multi coloured 2 diamonds, or simply Multi, is a contract bridge convention whereby the opening bid of 2♦ shows several possible types of hands. These always include a weak-two bid in a major suit; the additional meaning may be a strong balanced hand, or a 20-22 three suiter. The inherent ambiguity as to both suit and strength makes it a powerful and popular convention capable of seriously disrupting the opponents' bidding.
In contract bridge, an overcall is a bid made after an opening bid has been made by an opponent; the term refers only to the first such bid. A direct overcall is such a bid made by the player seated immediately to the left of the opener, i.e. next in the bidding rotation; an overcall in the 'last seat', i.e. by the player to the right of opener, which is made after two intervening passes, is referred to as a balancing or protective overcall.
EHAA is a highly natural bidding system in contract bridge characterized by four-card majors, sound opening bids, undisciplined weak two-bids in all four suits and a mini notrump, usually of 10–12 high card points.
Inverted minors refers to a treatment introduced by the Kaplan–Sheinwold (K–S) bidding system for the popular card game bridge. The original structure of Precision, another bidding system, also employed inverted minors over a 1♦ opening. However, the treatment is no longer restricted to users of these bidding systems. although partnerships that use a Short club system tend also to use the convention only after a 1♦ opener.
New Minor Forcing (NMF), is a contract bridge bidding convention used to find a 5-3 or 4-4 major suit fit after a specific sequence of bids in which opener has rebid one notrump. The convention is triggered by responder at his second turn by an artificial bid of two in an unbid minor; it requires that he hold five cards in the major he has previously bid and an unlimited hand ranging in value from at least game invitational strength to that sufficient to have interest in slam; he may also hold four cards in the other major. Accordingly, there are six bidding sequences in which the New Minor Forcing bid may be applied:
The Baron bidding system in contract bridge was developed in England in the 1940s as a variant of Acol and incorporates several conventions including the Baron Three Clubs, the Baron Notrump Overcall, the Baron Two Notrump Response and the Baron Two Spades and Three Spades.
Bridge base basic, also known as BBO basic, is a bidding system for the game of bridge based on the Standard American Yellow Card (SAYC). It is simplified, suitable for beginners, and widely used in internet bridge, particularly on Bridge Base Online. It is taught in Fred Gitelman's educational software called Learn to Play Bridge that is available as a free download from the American Contract Bridge League's website.
Transfer Walsh is a bidding convention used in contract bridge. After a 1♣ opening bid, responses of 1♦ and 1♥ show heart and spade suits respectively. The "Walsh" terminology refers to the fact that these bids may conceal an equal or longer diamond suit. It allows opener to play a greater proportion of major-suit and no-trump contracts, particularly when using five-card majors.
Unusual vs. unusual is a competitive bidding convention used in contract bridge by the opening side after an opponent has made an overcall showing two suits.
Astro is a contract bridge bidding convention used to intervene over an opponent's one notrump (1NT) opening bid. The name is derived from the initials of the surnames of its inventors - Paul Allinger, Roger Stern and Lawrence Rosler.
Aspro is a contract bridge bidding convention devised by Terence Reese as a British variant on the Astro convention to intervene over a 1NT opening bid.
Five-card majors is a contract bridge bidding treatment common to many modern bidding systems. Its basic tenet is that an opening bid of one-of-a-major in first and second position guarantees at least five cards in that major. This method has become standard in North American tournament play, but European methods vary.