Learn bridge & calling systems
Everything you need to play at a Khel-Mitra table — and how the 💡 coach thinks. Points only, never money.
1 · The game in one minute
Four players in two partnerships: North–South against East–West. Each gets 13 cards.
- Auction (calling) — starting with the dealer, each player in turn passes or bids a number of tricks above six plus a trump suit or no-trumps: 1♣ 1♦ 1♥ 1♠ 1NT 2♣ … up to 7NT. Every bid must be higher than the last. You may also Double an opponent's bid or Redouble their double. Three passes in a row after a bid end the auction.
- Contract — the last bid is the contract: "4♠" means the side must win 6 + 4 = 10 of the 13 tricks with spades as trumps. The declarer is the player of that side who first named the trump suit.
- Play — the player on declarer's left leads; then declarer's partner (the dummy) lays their cards face up and declarer plays both hands. You must follow the suit led if you can; otherwise you may trump (ruff) or discard. Highest trump wins, else the highest card of the suit led.
- Score — make your contract and you score; fail and the defenders score. See scoring.
2 · Valuing your hand
| Combined HCP of the partnership | Usually enough for |
|---|---|
| 25–26 | Game: 3NT, 4♥ or 4♠ (5♣/5♦ needs ~29) |
| 33 | Small slam (12 tricks) |
| 37 | Grand slam (all 13) |
Shape: a balanced hand has no void, no singleton and at most one doubleton (4-3-3-3, 4-4-3-2, 5-3-3-2). Once you have found a trump fit, add support points for shortness: void 5, singleton 3, doubleton 1.
Rule of 20: with 10–11 HCP, open if HCP + the lengths of your two longest suits ≥ 20.
3 · Calling systems: SAYC and Acol
A calling (bidding) system is the agreed meaning of every call — so partner understands you, and the opponents are entitled to know it too. At a Khel-Mitra table the host sets one system for each side (N–S and E–W); the coach and the bots follow it, and tapping any call in the auction shows what it means.
SAYC — Standard American Yellow Card
- 5-card majors: 1♥/1♠ promise five.
- Strong 1NT: 15–17 balanced.
- 1♣/1♦ = "better minor" (3+).
- 2-over-1 new suit shows 10+.
- Weak twos (2♦/2♥/2♠), strong 2♣, 2NT = 20–21.
- Popular online and in the USA.
Acol
- 4-card majors: open your longest suit.
- Weak 1NT: 12–14 balanced.
- Balanced 15–17: open a suit, rebid 1NT.
- Raises need four-card support.
- Weak twos, strong 2♣, 2NT = 20–22.
- Traditional in the UK, India and the Commonwealth.
4 · Opening bids
| Opening | SAYC | Acol |
|---|---|---|
| Pass | Fewer than ~12 HCP (11 with the Rule of 20) | |
| 1♣ / 1♦ | 12–21, no 5-card major; better minor | 12–21 (15–19 if balanced), longest suit |
| 1♥ / 1♠ | 12–21, 5+ cards | 12–21, 4+ cards |
| 1NT | 15–17 balanced | 12–14 balanced |
| 2♣ | Strong, artificial: 22+ HCP or game in hand — partner must respond | |
| 2♦ 2♥ 2♠ | Weak two: good 6-card suit, 5–10 HCP | |
| 2NT | 20–21 balanced | 20–22 balanced |
| 3 of a suit | Pre-empt: 7-card suit, 5–10 HCP | |
5 · Responding to partner
Partner opens one of a suit
| Your call | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pass | 0–5 HCP |
| Raise to 2 | Support (3+ for a SAYC major, 4+ in Acol), 6–9 points |
| Raise to 3 | Limit raise: support, 10–12 — invites game |
| Raise to 4 (major) | Support and game values |
| New suit at 1 level | 4+ cards, 6+ HCP — forcing one round |
| New suit at 2 level | 4+ cards (5 for 2♥ over 1♠), 10+ HCP — forcing |
| 1NT | 6–10, no fit, nothing to bid at the 1 level |
| 2NT / 3NT | Balanced 13–15 / 16–17, no major fit |
Partner opens 1NT
| Your call | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pass | Too weak for game (under 8 vs strong NT, under 11 vs weak NT) |
| 2♣ Stayman | Asks for a 4-card major; you have one and invitational values |
| 2♦ / 2♥ transfer | Shows 5+ hearts / spades; opener bids the next suit — any strength |
| 2NT | Invites 3NT |
| 3NT | To play — game values |
| 4NT | Quantitative: opener bids 6NT with a maximum |
Partner opens 2♣
2♦ is an artificial "waiting" reply (says nothing about diamonds). With 8+ HCP and a good 5-card suit you may make a positive reply in that suit.
6 · Conventions the coach uses
7 · When they open
| Call | Typical hand |
|---|---|
| Suit overcall | Good 5+ card suit; 8–16 HCP at the 1 level, 10–16 at the 2 level |
| 1NT overcall | 15–18 balanced with a stopper in their suit |
| Double | Takeout: 12+, short in their suit — or any 17+ hand |
| Pass | Everything else (often wise!) |
8 · Card-play habits
- Opening lead: partner's suit; top of a sequence (A-K, K-Q, Q-J); against NT, 4th best of your longest suit; against a trump contract a singleton can work.
- Second hand low, third hand high. Cover partner's lead only to win the trick.
- Declarer: count your sure winners; in a trump contract draw trumps first unless you need ruffs in dummy; develop your long suit.
- Don't trump partner's winner — discard from a suit you don't need.
9 · Scoring (the score sheet)
Contract points (per trick bid and made)
| Trumps | Each trick over six |
|---|---|
| ♣ ♦ | 20 |
| ♥ ♠ | 30 |
| NT | 40 for the first, 30 each after |
Doubled ×2, redoubled ×4. Game = 100 contract points (3NT, 4♥, 4♠, 5♣, 5♦). Overtricks score their trick value (doubled: 100 / 200 vulnerable). Making a doubled contract earns 50 "for the insult" (100 redoubled). Slams: small 500 (750 vul), grand 1000 (1500 vul).
Going down
| Not vulnerable | Vulnerable | |
|---|---|---|
| Undoubled | 50 each | 100 each |
| Doubled | 100, 200, 200, then 300 each | 200, then 300 each |
| Redoubled | twice the doubled penalty | |
Rubber
Contract points go below the line; everything else above. 100 below the line wins a game (part-scores add up). A side that has won a game is vulnerable. First to two games wins the rubber: +700 if 2–0, +500 if 2–1.
Chicago
Sets of 4 deals. Vulnerability: deal 1 none, deals 2–3 the dealer's side, deal 4 both. Game bonus 300 (500 vul) when part-scores reach 100; a part-score on deal 4 earns +100. Quicker, and every deal counts.
10 · Playing on Khel-Mitra
- Host opens a table, chooses Rubber or Chicago and each side's calling system, then invites friends with a link or QR. Up to 3 bots fill empty seats — any mix of people and bots works.
- Bidding: tap a level, then a suit — or Pass / Double / Redouble. The 💡 coach shows the call it recommends and why; tap "Bid …" to use it.
- Understanding the auction: tap any call in the auction table to read what it means in your system.
- Playing dummy: when you are declarer, dummy's cards appear above your own — tap them on dummy's turn.
- Claim: declarer can claim all the remaining tricks (or concede them) to finish quickly.
- The score sheet keeps every deal of the session: contract, declarer, result and points, with running totals and the number of hands played.