Insufficient bid? Call the Director --- always
By Jim O’Neill
You're enjoying a session of duplicate bridge
when all of a sudden your partner or an opponent
(you never do such things, of course) makes an
insufficient bid, or leads out of turn, or fails to
follow to a spade lead and quickly realizes he has
a spade.
What do you do now?
CALL THE DIRECTOR!
We don't think twice about calling the Director
when someone scores on our line or when we
have 14 cards and our left hand opponent has 12.
We know to call the Director when someone
revokes, or makes an erroneous claim, or even
when there's been a bid by someone after a long
hesitation by his partner.
But why bother the poor, overworked, underpaid
Director for something so trivial as an
insufficient bid or lead out of turn? You may
think you know what the Director would rule, but
even very experienced players often don't know
all the rules covering certain situations.
CALL THE DIRECTOR!
The Director should come to the table and
explain all the options available to each player.
That's the Director’s job.
CALL THE DIRECTOR!
The Director must be
summoned at once when attention is drawn to an
irregularity.
No player shall take any action until the Director
has explained all matters in regard to the
rectification and to the assessment of a penalty.
Summoning the Director does not cause a player
to forfeit any rights to which he might otherwise
be entitled. The fact that a player draws attention
to an irregularity committed by his side does not
affect the rights of the opponents.
It says so right in The Laws of Duplicate
Contract Bridge. (Law 9B if you want to look it
up).
Let's look at some of the more common
irregularities that may occur:
1. What if someone makes an insufficient
bid?
Simple – that player simply corrects to the
cheapest bid in the same suit or notrump and
that's that, right?
Well, no, it's not that simple. It's covered by Law
27, and there are a lot of things which could
happen.
First, the next player in rotation may "accept" the
insufficient bid, either by saying "I accept" or by
making a call.
So if your partner opens 1♠ and your righthand
opponent bids 1♦, you could, if you wanted,
accept that 1♦ bid and then bid, say, 1♥. (Note
that you don't have to bid higher than partner's
1♠ bid. You only have to bid higher than RHO's
1♦ bid.) Also, remember that no player should
take any action until the Director gets to your
table and explains all the rules.
So if the auction goes 1♠ by
partner, 1♦ by RHO,
DIRECTOR!
RHO can't just bid 2♦ now.
The Director will tell you that
you still have the option of accepting that 1♦
bid.
Second, even if the bid is not accepted, the player
making the insufficient bid does NOT have to
make the cheapest sufficient bid in the same
denomination (suit or Notrump).
In fact that player is allowed to make any
sufficient bid, or pass. (But not double or
redouble.) If he makes the cheapest sufficient
bid, there is usually no further penalty.
(There are some exceptions; more on that later).
Insufficient bid? Call the Director --- always
By Jim O’Neill
He can, however, pass or make any sufficient
bid. His partner will be barred for the rest of the
auction, and his partner could be subject to lead
penalties if his side becomes defenders.
So if you open 3♥ and your LHO (who likely
didn't see that bid) now bids 1♣ , DIRECTOR!
That player does NOT have to bid 4♣. Assuming
your partner doesn't accept the 1♣ bid, the 1♣
bidder could pass if he wanted, but his partner
will be barred (meaning he would have to pass)
for the rest of the entire auction.
The player who made that insufficient 1♣ bid
could continue to bid (or double) later if he
wanted, but his partner must pass.
Also, there would likely be lead penalties – if,
say, you were to end up as declarer in 3♥.
You could forbid RHO (the insufficient
bidder's partner) from leading clubs, or require
him to lead a club the first time he gets on lead.
Third, there are some cases where a player just
can't correct to the cheapest sufficient bid in the
same suit without penalty.
If either the insufficient bid or the lowest
sufficient bid in the same denomination is
conventional, the offender's partner may have to
pass for the rest of the auction, and may be
subject to lead penalties as well.
So if you open 1♥ and your LHO
(who of course didn't see that bid)
now bids 1♥, DIRECTOR!
LHO can’t now bid 2♥ without
penalty. Two♥ surely would be
conventional - whether you play Michaels or
strong take out; 2♥ wouldn't show Hearts.
So the 1♥ bidder could correct to any sufficient
bid, or pass, but whatever he does, his partner
will have to pass for the rest of the auction. In
addition, there may be lead penalties as well.
Also, under the new laws which went into effect
in 2008, an insufficient bid may be corrected
with a legal call which has the same meaning or
a more precise meaning than the insufficient bid.
A 2♣ response to 2 No Trump intended as
Stayman may now be corrected to 3♣ without
penalty since it has the same meaning.
Similarly, if you open 1♣, your
opponent overcalls 1♠ and partner
(not noticing the overcall) now
bids 1♥ - he may be permitted to
Double, or to bid 2♥, as each of
these are more precise than the 1♥
bid.
It is important that the Director consult the player
(away from the table is best) to determine what
the partnership's agreements are, and explain the
options available to the insufficient bidder.
2. What happens when a
player has an Exposed
Card?
If a player exposes a card, either by dropping a
card on the table, by leading out of turn, or by
failing to follow suit and then quickly correcting
it, that card stays face up on the table as a
“penalty card” and has to be played at the first
legal opportunity, right? Not exactly. Laws 48-50
deal with exposed cards.
First, no card from Declarer's or Dummy's hand
ever becomes a penalty card. After all, it doesn't
matter if Dummy can see one of his partner's
cards – he can't do anything about it; he just has
to play what Declarer tells him to play.
But if a Defender could see one of his partner's
cards – well, that's another matter entirely. So
when a Defender's card is in a position in which
his partner could possibly see its face, that card
becomes a penalty card.
Second, there is a difference between a
Defender's card exposed deliberately (leading out
Insufficient bid? Call the Director --- always
By Jim O’Neill
of turn, failing to follow suit, then quickly
correcting it, etc.) and a card exposed
accidentally (playing two cards to a trick,
dropping a card accidentally).
A card exposed deliberately will become a
“major” penalty card. An accidentally exposed
card can become a “minor” penalty card if it a
single card, and not an honor (2 though 9).
The penalties for a minor penalty card are not so
severe. An accidentally exposed card can be a
“major” penalty card if it is an honor (A, K, Q, J
or 10). If a defender has more than one penalty
card, they are all “major” penalty cards.
So what happens when a Defender has a penalty
card?
If it's a major penalty card, it must be played at
the first legal opportunity, whether in leading,
following suit, or discarding or trumping.
If a defender has two or more penalty cards that
can legally be played, declarer designates which
is to be played. Also, if a Defender has the lead
while his partner has a major penalty card, he
may not lead until Declarer has stated which of
the options below is selected.
Declarer may:
1. Require the defender to lead the suit of the
penalty card. If declarer exercises this option,
the card is no longer a penalty card, and is
picked up.
2. Prohibit him from leading that suit for as
long as he retains the lead. Again, if declarer
exercises this option, the card is no longer a
penalty card, and is picked up.
3. Allow him to lead any card in his hand; the
penalty card remains on the table a penalty
card.
The penalties for a “minor” penalty card are not
so severe.
When a Defender has a minor penalty card, he
may not play any other card of the same suit
below the rank of an honor (2 through 9), until he
has first played the penalty card.
(He is, however, entitled to play an honor card
instead). Offender's partner is not subject to lead
penalty.
When any irregularity happens, you know what
to do: