Objective
You and the player sitting opposite are partners against the other two. On every deal both sides compete in an auction for the contract: a promise to take a certain number of tricks, either with a named trump suit or with no trumps at all. The side that wins the auction tries to make its contract, and the other side tries to stop it.
Points for contracts you bid and make count toward a game. The first side to win two games wins the rubber, and the side with the most points over the whole rubber is the winner.
Setup
Spread the deck face down and have each player draw a card. The two highest cards play as partners against the two lowest, and the player with the highest card deals first. Partners sit across from each other; the seats are often called North-South and East-West.
The dealer deals all 52 cards one at a time, so each player gets 13. Sort your hand by suit. The deal passes to the left after each hand.
How to play
The auction: the dealer speaks first, then each player in turn passes or bids. A bid names a number from 1 to 7 and a denomination (a suit or no trump). The number is how many tricks above six your side promises, so a bid of 4 hearts promises ten tricks with hearts as trumps. Each bid must outrank the last one, either with a higher number or with the same number in a higher denomination. You may also double an opponent’s bid, and your side may redouble if your bid has been doubled. The auction ends when three players pass in a row after a bid. If all four players pass at the start, the cards are thrown in and the next player deals.
The final bid is the contract. The player on the winning side who first named the contract’s denomination becomes the declarer. The player to the declarer’s left makes the opening lead. Then the declarer’s partner spreads their whole hand face up on the table, sorted by suit. This hand is the dummy, and the declarer plays it along with their own.
You must follow suit if you can. If you cannot, you may play a trump or any other card. The highest trump wins the trick; if no trump was played, the highest card of the suit led wins. The winner of each trick leads to the next. After all 13 tricks, count how many the declaring side won.
- 1Bid in turn: pass, bid higher, double or redouble
- 2Three passes in a row after a bid set the contract
- 3Declarer’s left-hand opponent leads, then the dummy goes face up
- 4Follow suit if you can; highest trump or highest card of the suit led wins
- 5Score the contract after all 13 tricks
Scoring
Rubber bridge scoring has two parts. Points for tricks you bid and made are written below the line and count toward game. Everything else (overtricks, bonuses and penalties) goes above the line. A game is 100 or more points below the line, made in one deal or built up over several part scores. When either side makes a game, both sides start the next game from zero below the line, though earlier part scores still count in the final total.
Once your side has won a game, it is vulnerable, and both its bonuses and its penalties grow. Rubber bridge also pays for honors: 100 for holding four of the five top trumps (A, K, Q, J, 10) in one hand, 150 for all five, or 150 for all four aces in a no trump contract.
| Item | Not vulnerable | Vulnerable |
|---|---|---|
| Each trick over six in clubs or diamonds | 20 | 20 |
| Each trick over six in hearts or spades | 30 | 30 |
| No trump: first trick over six, then each after | 40, then 30 | 40, then 30 |
| Small slam bonus (12 tricks bid and made) | 500 | 750 |
| Grand slam bonus (all 13 tricks bid and made) | 1,000 | 1,500 |
| Each trick short, undoubled | 50 to the defenders | 100 to the defenders |
Undoubled overtricks score their normal trick value above the line. A double doubles the trick score, makes penalties much steeper, and earns a 50-point bonus if the contract still makes (100 if redoubled). The rubber ends when one side wins its second game, which earns a bonus of 700 for a 2–0 rubber or 500 for 2–1.
Variations
Chicago, or four-deal bridge: the favorite at home games and clubs. A round is exactly four deals, vulnerability follows a fixed rotation, and each game made earns a bonus of 300 when not vulnerable or 500 when vulnerable in place of the rubber bonus. A part score made on the fourth deal earns 100.
Duplicate bridge: the same deals are played at several tables, and your result is compared with other pairs who held the same cards. This takes the luck of the deal out of the game and is the format used in tournaments.
Auction bridge: the older form, in which every trick you took counted toward game whether you bid it or not. Contract bridge, the game played today, counts toward game only the tricks you bid.
Tips from the table
Agree on a simple bidding system with your partner before you start. Most players count high-card points (ace 4, king 3, queen 2, jack 1). A hand with about 12 points is usually worth an opening bid, and about 25 points between the two hands is usually enough for game.
As declarer, stop before you play to the first trick. Count the tricks you can win for certain, then work out where the rest will come from before you touch a card.
On defense against no trump, lead from your longest and strongest suit. Against a suit contract, the top card of a sequence (the king from K-Q-J) is a safe start.
Do not chase overtricks at the risk of the contract. Making what you bid is worth far more than one extra trick.
Video Guides Are on the Way
We’re filming Game Guides that walk through full hands at the table, from the deal to the score.
Frequently asked
What is the dummy?
The declarer’s partner. After the opening lead, the dummy lays all 13 cards face up on the table and takes no further part in the play. The declarer plays both hands.
How many tricks does a bid of 1 promise?
Seven. Every bid adds six to the number you say, so the levels run from seven tricks at the 1 level up to all thirteen at the 7 level.
What does vulnerable mean?
A side that has already won a game in the rubber is vulnerable. Its slam bonuses grow, and so do its penalties when it fails to make a contract.
How is Bridge different from Whist?
Whist has no auction: the last card dealt sets trumps, and every trick counts. Bridge adds bidding, the dummy, and scoring that rewards making exactly the contract you named.
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