Correct contract bridge / by E.V. Shepard ; including the official Laws of contract bridge adopted by the Whist Club, New York, and by all the leading clubs in America.

ASSISTING PARTNER

I07

4-odd. Nothing can be lost by refusing to at once
assist a dealer's opening bid of one-odd when something over 3 tricks is not held: If the dealer has
an opportunity to rebid, he can be aided upon 3
tricks; if you decline to assist when you have nothing above 3 tricks, your partner may safely rebid a
5-trick hand that you have at once assisted, allowing you to again raise him if you also hold a 5-trick
hand. The habit of jumping partner's opening
declaration to 3-odd, because you hold just 5 assisting tricks, is a dangerous habit to form, as it indicates slam possibilities and should never be employed unless 3-odd means game or unless you expect that a slam may be made. Assisting partner
once, instead of jumping the bid as was done frequently at Auction, is sufficient encouragement for
him to rebid a 5-trick hand, or to show you a second
suit that may better fit your own holdings, possibly
allowing your side to collect a premium for overtricks or even to safely venture a slam. The same
partner who wants you to raise him on a bare 3
tricks is frequently the chap who loses game by not
rebidding his own 5-trick hand, after you have once
aided him, thus not allowing you to raise him to a
game contract. Such bidding is a relic of Auctionnot a feature of modern Contract.
Another antique is referring to the strength of
hands in terms of sure tricks instead of speaking of
probable tricks or probable assisting tricks. Card
distributions, minor honors held, and in dummy's
case length of trumps and ability to ruff, are important features lost sight of by telling merely how