The Aces on Bridge: Sunday, 12 April 2026
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Dear Mr. Rigal:
If my partner opens one heart and the next player overcalls four spades, what does my four no-trump mean?
By Agreement, Dodge City, Kan.
There are three possible definitions: Blackwood for hearts, any slam try for hearts, or two places to play (the minors). I think the most frequent is any slam try, but I can imagine playing it as a two-way call, indicating primarily a hand with both minors, but which could also be good for hearts (planning to remove partner’s five clubs or five diamonds back to hearts). I suggest playing it that way and, of course, alerting it as such.
Dear Mr. Rigal:
When I lead a king at trick one against a suit, what does partner’s jack signify?
Top of a Sequence, Wausau, Wis.
This simply shows the 10 and denies the queen, just as it would on lead. The idea is to let you know it is safe to continue the suit from K-Q. Partner should not drop the jack from J-x unless you have agreed that the king asks for an unblock. In general, third hand should follow low from honor-doubleton when a high card is led, and should try to do it in good tempo.
Dear Mr. Rigal:
During the play, is it acceptable to detach your card when it is someone else’s turn?
Poor Form, Newport News, Va.
No, you should avoid this, as it could be viewed as a rushing tactic. Pick out your card only when it is your turn. There are many additional ethical issues if you do this on defense. Let’s just draw a line and say: “Don’t do it.”
Dear Mr. Rigal:
You hold ♠ A-5-4-3, ♥ A-K-6-3-2, ♦ 3, ♣ 9-8-3, nonvulnerable vs vulnerable, and hear your partner open one spade. The next hand overcalls two diamonds. Say you bid four diamonds, a splinter, and your left-hand opponent raises to five diamonds, passed back to you. What now?
Unexceptional, Great Falls, Mont.
I would say this hand is middle of the road in terms of offense for a splinter in competition, and I would therefore double. If I had more shape, say a void in diamonds or a fifth spade, I might be inclined to bid again. As it is, I expect to beat five diamonds with my top cards fairly often, and I am not particularly concerned about only taking 200 when we had 450 available in spades. This would be a tougher call at other colors.
Dear Mr. Rigal:
Dear Mr. Rigal:
What sort of discards do you prefer? Attitude? Count? Odd-even? McKenney? Something else?
Natural Approach, Holland, Mich.
I use attitude discards, meaning if playing standard carding, I discard low to say I do not like a suit, high if I want it led. Count is as likely to help declarer as partner in the long run. (Note, though, that you can give count when following to declarer’s lead, and partner can usually work out the rest.) I can understand using suit preference when there is uncertainty between the other suits. For the record, I have played and enjoyed odd-even discards, where odd encourages and even is suit preference. I do not believe there are ethical problems with it; others do not agree.
Barry Rigal
Barry Rigal is an English-born bridge player, author, commentator, and journalist who has won major national titles in both the UK and the United States and served as a VuGraph commentator for decades at European and World championships. He has written and edited numerous bridge books and articles and has been President of the International Bridge Press Association, contributing widely to the game’s literature and education.
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