David Stevenson Answers Your Frequently Asked Questions
In most clubs people have got used to bidding boxes. But do people use them correctly? Do they know exactly what they should be doing? It is simple enough, is it not? You take calls out of the box when it is your turn and when the auction is finished you put them all back in the box. If you make a jump bid at any point you take the Stop card out first, make the bid and put it away. You alert if partner makes an alertable call. You make your call on each round as soon as your RHO has made his call. Are there any problems?
Most people put their calls on the table in a way that everyone else can see but some people occasionally just leave them in a ragged line or put one call on top of another so they cannot be seen properly. This is wrong. The calls should be easily visible. While it is normal and correct when making a bid to take out the bid you want to make and all the cards behind it and put them neatly down, some players just take the one card out that they want to bid. This does no harm but makes it more tricky to return the bids at the end.
Suppose you wish to make a jump bid, either an opening bid at the two level or higher, or a bid that skips a level from the last bid made by either side. Before you make it you take the Stop card out and put it on the table, then you take your bid out, and then you wait some time, at least six or seven seconds, then you put the Stop card back in the box. While most players use the Stop card correctly, too many put it straight back in the box which is wrong.
Suppose your RHO makes a jump bid: he takes out the Stop card, makes his jump bid, and then leaves the Stop card out as he should. What must you do? You must wait until he puts it away before making your call, and try to look interested. The idea of a Stop warning is so you have a few seconds to think without it being known whether you have anything to think about.
If you look bored or ostentatiously look at your watch or whatever, you are destroying the whole point of the Stop warning procedure by making it clear you have nothing to think about, which provides unauthorised information to partner.
Unfortunately, as mentioned above, a lot of people do not use the Stop card properly, putting it away immediately after making their jump bid. You are still required to pause and look interested for at least six or seven seconds. Even worse, some players do not even use the Stop card, but the rule is the same — you should still pause.
Another unfortunate habit is for some players, even quite experienced ones, to not use the Stop card when they think the opponents are unlikely to bid, as for example jumping to slam at the end of a long auction. This is wrong because that is exactly the time the next player may wish to consider whether to make a Lightner double or similar. Similarly, people who jump to 3NT assume everyone will pass so they often ignore the Stop procedure, but the next player may have a hand that might or might not double. The Stop procedure is a simple rule and once you get in the habit of doing it properly it is easy to follow.
Suppose the auction goes 1NT by LHO, partner passes and RHO bids 3NT without the Stop card. You have a hand on which you might double: what do you do? The solution is simple: you use the time allowed after a Stop bid to think about it. Even if you pass now and partner makes a strange lead there will be no problem since you have followed the rules.
If your partner makes an alertable call, for example a 2NT bid that shows both minors instead of a balanced hand, then you should alert. To do this you take the Alert card out of the box and show it to both opponents. Just tapping it, or taking it half an inch out of the box and putting it back, or just showing it to your RHO are not acceptable. You must make the alert clear to both opponents. The Alert card must be in a position where they can see it easily and should then be put back in the box before your partner’s next call. If your partner makes a bid that requires an announcement, for example a natural 1NT opening in England and Wales, then you must make the announcement clearly so both opponents hear.
What happens at the end of the auction? After three passes the cards remain on the table until the opening lead is faced when they are put back in the box. Players should not remove them immediately after the last pass; in fact some players take their cards away to indicate they are making the last pass. Not only is this illegal, it can be quite annoying and you can always ask them to put the cards back.
One habit that a lot of people have got into is indicating the last pass of the auction without displaying a Pass card. Some tap a previous Pass card, some say “Pass”, some wave at the table, some knock on the table, some take their cards away. Taking their cards away is just wrong but the other habits do little harm.
One thing that has been known to happen is that a player accepts an insufficient bid. Now as the bidding progresses a player may want to repeat a previous bid but cannot since he has already used that card. For example, after bidding 2❤️ and two passes, your RHO bids 2♦️. You are allowed to accept this and even bid 2❤️ again. The accepted method is to borrow a 2❤️ card from one of the other players.
A similar situation is when a player runs out of certain cards, usually Pass cards, occasionally Double cards. Any sensible solution is acceptable such as borrowing them or moving Pass cards from one end of the line to the other.
