Auction Bridge

About
Origin	England
Skills required	Tactics and Strategy
Gameplay
Type	Trick-taking
Players	3-4
Cards	52-card
Deck	Anglo-American
Play	Clockwise
Card rank (highest to lowest)	A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
Playing time	25 min.
Related games
Whist, Contract Bridge

The card game auction bridge, the third step in the evolution of the general game of bridge,^[1] was developed from straight bridge in 1904. Precursor to contract bridge^[2] its predecessors were Whist and Bridge whist.

The main difference between auction bridge and contract bridge is that in auction bridge a game is scored whenever the required number of tricks (9 in No Trump, 10 in Hearts or Spades, 11 in Clubs or Diamonds) is scored, and in contract bridge the number of points from tricks taken past the bid do not count towards making a game. Because of this, accurate bidding becomes much more important in contract bridge: partners have to use the bidding to tell each other what their suits and strengths are, so a judgement can be made as to what the chances are of making a game.

[edit] Origin

It is not certain to whom auction bridge should be credited. A letter in The Times (London), Januery 16, 1905, signed by Oswald Crawford, describes auction bridge as first played in 1904, while a book by "John Doe" (F. Roe), published in Alláhábád, India, in 1889, puts forward auction bridge as an invention of three members of the Indian Civil Service stationed at an isolated community, designed a three-handed form of bridge to compensate the lack of a fourth player. Their key contribution was the concept of competitive bidding for the declaration.^[3]

[edit] Play

The bidding, play and laws are the same as contract bridge.

[edit] Scoring

Note: A scoring table for Auction Bridge, from the Official Rules of Card Games, 1973 is as follows:

• Odd-tricks: no trumps are worth 10; spades 9; hearts 8; diamonds 7; clubs 6.
• Game was 30 points, and only odd-tricks counted towards game. The first side to win two games won the rubber and scored a 250 point bonus.
• Each under-trick was worth 50 points to the opponents.
• Small slam was worth 50 points; grand slam was worth 100 points.
• Honours were scored as follows: 4 trump honours in one hand 80; 5 trump honours or 4 aces in no trumps in one hand 100. For an addition honour in partner's hand, or for 3 or more honours divided between both hands 10 each.
• Contracts could be doubled and redoubled, which doubled or quadrupled the odd-trick and under-trick amounts. In addition there was a bonus of 50 points for making a doubled contract and for each over-trick, this was doubled if the contract was redoubled.

[edit] See also

• Russian whist

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Bridge.

• Rules of Card Games: Bridge