Contract Belote - Beginner 2

• To fully understand the bidding, use the tooltips:

  Tooltip of the bidding box

  Tooltip of the table

• In the prepared games accessible below, a short comment on a yellow background will be displayed at the end of each deal, so that you can check that you have chosen the right bid and played the right contract.
  

  If you want this comment to appear only after the comparison, open the General preferences on the Play page and check the box In a prepared game, display the comment only after the comparison. Note that even if the comment is not visible, clicking the message bar at the bottom of the window can display it if needed.

New suit bids

• You bid a new suit when your partner has opened the bidding and you bid a suit different from his opening suit.

• A new suit bid has the same meaning as the opening bid of the same level.

• The response to a new suit bid follows the same rules as the response to an opening.

• An exception is made for the 90 new suit bid which is more ambiguous. It is sometimes a rescue bid not to leave partner in a dangerous contract.

• You make an overcall when you are the first player of the team to bid a suit, the opponent having already opened the bidding.

• Overcalls that jump at least one level (for example, 100♠ after 80♥) have the same meaning as an opening. Partner will respond to it as if to an opening bid.

• Overcalls that stick to the opponent's bid (for example, 90♠ after 80♥) have an ambiguous meaning and can sometimes be strength bids (see further on).

• Strength bids are bids that stick to the last opposing bid (for example, 100♥ after 90♣).

• Strength bids show sufficient strength to make the declared contract, but do not promise specific cards (they can be made with the belote meld, many trumps, a good side suit, etc.).

• Overcalls that stick to the last opposing bid are sometimes strength bids. To remain competitive and hinder the opponents, you can respond to them as a normal overcall, but you will avoid interpreting them too precisely because the promised cards are not necessarily present.

• The 120 opening promises at least 3 trumps with Jack and 9 and a two-suited hand (the player has only two suits). If the opponent has the opening lead, at least 4 trumps are often needed to ensure the contract.

• The response to the 120 opening is rare. You support by bidding 130 with 3 Tens (or 3 suits with 10 or Ace), the 10s being protected (at least 10x) and outside the trump suit. 140 is the response with 3 Aces.

• The 130 opening promises a very strong hand with full control of trumps and only one loser. Partner, if he has the opening lead and 1 non-trump Ace, can sometimes bid a capot. When opening the lead, he will cash his Ace in priority.

What to know before practicing

• New suit bids and the overcalls that jump a level are very close to openings. Your knowledge acquired on the Beginner 1 page is therefore directly applicable. As for strength bids (which stick to the last opponent's bid), they promise enough strength to win the declared contract.

• Bidding systems are not perfect, and they do not guarantee that the contracts declared will be made. But their performance must be analyzed over the long term, on a very large number of deals.

• The prepared games are never counted in your statistics. You can therefore play them and replay them without fear of altering your statistical results.

• At the end of each deal, you can replay the deal by the Replay deal normally button of the primary toolbar.

  Replay deal normally button or shortcut F3.

• At the end of each prepared games, you can replay the game or only certain deals, using the Return to the prepared game button (bottom right of the screen).
  

Direct link to this page, that you are free to use: