Minibridge
Encyclopedia
Minibridge is a simplified form of the complex card game
Contract Bridge
designed to expose newcomers to declarer and defensive playing techniques without the burden of learning a detailed bridge bidding system
. The game was first introduced in France and the Netherlands in the 1990s. The variant described in this article is the one advertised by the English Bridge Union
for use in primary schools as a way to improve pupils' performance in mathematics.
Like other forms of bridge, Minibridge is played by four players in fixed partnerships, sitting crosswise. A full pack of 52 cards is dealt to the players, each receiving 13 cards. As in contract bridge, it is then decided which player becomes declarer, but a key innovation of Minibridge is that this decision is taken out of the players' hands. Declarer's partner then lays open their hand, and declarer announces a contract. This is a trump suit or no trumps, together with an undertaking to win more than half the tricks (partscore) or even to win 100 trick points or more (game). The remainder of the game is very similar to contract bridge. In particular, declarer's partner becomes dummy (i.e., declarer plays both hands).
Each player adds all high-card point
s in their hand and announces the result. The partnership with more combined high-card points then plays the hand. If both partnerships have the same number of high-card points (i.e., 20 each), the hand is redealt. Of this partnership, the partner with more high-card points becomes the declarer.
The partner with fewer high-card points becomes the dummy: this player's hand is put face up on the table, and is played by declarer in addition to declarer's own hand. If both partners have the same number of high-card points, the one who states his high-card point count first is the declarer.
Having consulted dummy's hand, declarer decides the denomination (i.e., the trump suit, if any), and whether to be in game or a partscore. For partscore, declarer needs to win 7 tricks in order to score. For game, 9–11 tricks are necessary, depending on the denomination.
Declarer's decision is often based on a few simple guidelines:
, except that declarer plays two hands). The player to the left of declarer leads to the first trick. Players must follow suit whenever possible. The winner of a trick leads to the next trick.
When a partscore contract is won, declarer's partnership scores their trick points plus 50 bonus points. To win a game contract, declarer must achieve at least 100 trick points. When a game contract is won, declarer scores the trick points plus 30 points for each trick beyond the minimum number needed to win the contract, plus a bonus of 300 points. If declarer does not win the necessary number of tricks, then declarer's partnership scores 0 points and the opposing party scores 50 points for every missing trick. In the table this is written as negative scores (which do not exist).
Card game
A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games...
Contract Bridge
Contract bridge
Contract bridge, usually known simply as bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard deck of 52 playing cards played by four players in two competing partnerships with partners sitting opposite each other around a small table...
designed to expose newcomers to declarer and defensive playing techniques without the burden of learning a detailed bridge bidding system
Bidding system
A bidding system in contract bridge is the set of agreements and understandings assigned to calls and sequences of calls used by a partnership, and includes a full description of the meaning of each treatment and convention...
. The game was first introduced in France and the Netherlands in the 1990s. The variant described in this article is the one advertised by the English Bridge Union
English Bridge Union
The English Bridge Union or EBU is a player-funded organisation that promotes and organises the card game of duplicate bridge in England. It has an office in Aylesbury with a staff of more than twenty people...
for use in primary schools as a way to improve pupils' performance in mathematics.
Like other forms of bridge, Minibridge is played by four players in fixed partnerships, sitting crosswise. A full pack of 52 cards is dealt to the players, each receiving 13 cards. As in contract bridge, it is then decided which player becomes declarer, but a key innovation of Minibridge is that this decision is taken out of the players' hands. Declarer's partner then lays open their hand, and declarer announces a contract. This is a trump suit or no trumps, together with an undertaking to win more than half the tricks (partscore) or even to win 100 trick points or more (game). The remainder of the game is very similar to contract bridge. In particular, declarer's partner becomes dummy (i.e., declarer plays both hands).
Bidding
| Rank | A | K | Q | J | 2–10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Each player adds all high-card point
Hand evaluation
In contract bridge, various bidding systems have been devised to enable partners to describe their hands to each other so that they may reach the optimum contract. Key to this process is that players evaluate and re-evaluate the trick-taking potential of their hands as the auction proceeds and...
s in their hand and announces the result. The partnership with more combined high-card points then plays the hand. If both partnerships have the same number of high-card points (i.e., 20 each), the hand is redealt. Of this partnership, the partner with more high-card points becomes the declarer.
The partner with fewer high-card points becomes the dummy: this player's hand is put face up on the table, and is played by declarer in addition to declarer's own hand. If both partners have the same number of high-card points, the one who states his high-card point count first is the declarer.
| Denomination | Partscore | Game |
|---|---|---|
| No trumps | 7 | 9 |
| Major suit Major suit In the card game contract bridge, the major suits are spades and hearts . The major suits are of prime importance for tactics and scoring as they outrank the minor suits while bidding and also outscore them... (♥ or ♠) |
7 | 10 |
| Minor suit Minor suit In contract bridge the minor suits are diamonds and clubs . They are given that name because contracts made in those suits score less than contracts made in the major suits , and they rank lower in bidding. In particular, one can make game with a bid of 4 in a major suit, while a bid of 5 is... (♣ or ♦) |
7 | 11 |
Having consulted dummy's hand, declarer decides the denomination (i.e., the trump suit, if any), and whether to be in game or a partscore. For partscore, declarer needs to win 7 tricks in order to score. For game, 9–11 tricks are necessary, depending on the denomination.
Declarer's decision is often based on a few simple guidelines:
- Two balanced handsBalanced handIn the game of bridge a balanced hand denotes a hand containing no singleton or void and at most one doubleton. As a bridgehand contains thirteen cards, only three hand patterns can be classified as balanced: 4-3-3-3, 4-4-3-2 and 5-3-3-2...
usually require about 25 high-card points to score a game bonus. - With eight cards in either Major suitMajor suitIn the card game contract bridge, the major suits are spades and hearts . The major suits are of prime importance for tactics and scoring as they outrank the minor suits while bidding and also outscore them...
(a fit), that suit should usually be the trump suit. - Without a fit in a Major suitMajor suitIn the card game contract bridge, the major suits are spades and hearts . The major suits are of prime importance for tactics and scoring as they outrank the minor suits while bidding and also outscore them...
, play notrump.
Play of the hand
Cardplay is as in any other form of Bridge (and as in any other variant of WhistWhist
Whist is a classic English trick-taking card game which was played widely in the 18th and 19th centuries. It derives from the 16th century game of Trump or Ruff, via Ruff and Honours...
, except that declarer plays two hands). The player to the left of declarer leads to the first trick. Players must follow suit whenever possible. The winner of a trick leads to the next trick.
Scoring
The declarer must always win at least 7 of the 13 tricks played. Each trick beyond 6 scores 30 trick points, or 20 trick points in case of a minor suit contract (clubs or diamonds). For a notrumps contract, 10 trick points are added to the trick points total.| Tricks | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denomination | Trick points | |||||||||||||
| No trumps | – | 40 | 70 | 100 | 130 | 160 | 190 | 220 | ||||||
| ♥ or ♠ | 30 | 60 | 90 | 120 | 150 | 180 | 210 | |||||||
| ♣ or ♦ | 20 | 40 | 60 | 80 | 100 | 120 | 140 | |||||||
| Denomination | Total score: partscore | |||||||||||||
| No trumps | –350 | –300 | –250 | –200 | –150 | –100 | –50 | 90 | 120 | 150 | 180 | 210 | 240 | 270 |
| ♥ or ♠ | 80 | 110 | 140 | 170 | 200 | 230 | 260 | |||||||
| ♣ or ♦ | 70 | 90 | 110 | 130 | 150 | 170 | 190 | |||||||
| Denomination | Total score: game | |||||||||||||
| No trumps | –450 | –400 | –350 | –300 | –250 | –200 | –150 | –100 | –50 | 400 | 430 | 460 | 490 | 520 |
| ♥ or ♠ | –500 | –450 | –400 | –350 | –300 | –250 | –200 | –150 | –100 | –50 | 420 | 450 | 480 | 510 |
| ♣ or ♦ | –550 | –500 | –450 | –400 | –350 | –300 | –250 | –200 | –150 | –100 | –50 | 400 | 420 | 440 |
When a partscore contract is won, declarer's partnership scores their trick points plus 50 bonus points. To win a game contract, declarer must achieve at least 100 trick points. When a game contract is won, declarer scores the trick points plus 30 points for each trick beyond the minimum number needed to win the contract, plus a bonus of 300 points. If declarer does not win the necessary number of tricks, then declarer's partnership scores 0 points and the opposing party scores 50 points for every missing trick. In the table this is written as negative scores (which do not exist).
External links
- MiniBridge Boot Camp – For those who don't know one card from another!
- Bridge-Squad one-page summary – American MiniBridge
- Bridge-Squad four-page summary – American MiniBridge
- MiniBridge – Information from American Contract Bridge League.
- What is Minibridge? – Information from English Bridge Union.
- About Minibridge – Brochure, 8 pages.
- About the EBU's Minibridge initiative
- http://www.nofearbridge.co.uk/minibridge/lessons/lesson1.php - Interactive / Learn to Play Online
- http://www.nofearbridge.co.uk/beginners_booklet.pdf - How to Play and Win at MiniBridge
- Minibridge section of Auction Bridge article from pagat.com card games website.
- http://www.wbfteaching.org/introduction/default.htm
- http://bridge.soc.ucam.org/teaching/bridgelesson1.doc
- http://www.greatbridgelinks.com/gblCLASS/Mini.html
- http://www.watson-eaton-bray.freeserve.co.uk/freebies3.htm
- http://www.schoolbridgeleague.com/learn-to-play-rules_mini.aspx
- http://www.minibridge.co.uk/
Free software
- http://www.osk.3web.ne.jp/~mcbridge/minib_e1.htm
- http://www.bluechipbridge.co.uk/MiniBridge.htm
- http://perso.orange.fr/vincent.brevart/english/