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Other 4NT (i.e not an ace-asking or key-card convention)

If a suit has been agreed then 4NT will be RKCB unless you use a different bid (e.g. Kickback or Redwood) as the key-card ask for the agreed suit.

Similarly, when a suit has been freely bid in the first two rounds of bidding and without interference then a jump to 4NT will be RKCB agreeing that suit, with the same proviso as above.

(Note that completion of a transfer is not a free bid.  A jump to 4NT following a red-suit transfer at the two-level should be quantitative.

The situation following a Stayman response is not quite so clear.

My suggestion is that you should adopt some other bid to agree the suit in a forcing manner (such as a Stayman-in-doubt 3♦, in which case an immediate jump to 4NT will be quantitative.)

An immediate raise of a natural opening bid in no trumps, or an artificial no trump sequence, will be quantitative.

But there are other situations in which the bidding has reached a high-level, and no suit has been agreed.

In such cases a bid of 4NT can frequently be put to better use.

Natural - in the highly competitive auction

If you have not agreed a suit and your opponents have pushed the auction rapidly to a high level then there is something to be said for playing no trump bids as natural.  This will particularly be the case when partner’s only offering has been a take-out double and thus clearly no suit has been agreed.

For example, after you have opened, LHO has made a preemptive overcall at the three-level and partner has doubled then natural bids of 3NT (15 to 17) and 4NT (18 or 19) might well prove to be invaluable.

Pick a slam

This will occur when the bidding has reached the four-level following a constructive bidding sequence, but no suit has been agreed.

The bid of 4NT without a jump and without suit agreement simply says that you have enough for a slam.  Can partner select the best strain based on the information available to him.

If there is any possible doubt about the meaning of this bid - could it be ace-asking, could it be to play - then a jump to 5NT can be used to carry the same message.

This can also arise after an opening bid of 1NT or 2NT (or an artificial 2NT sequence) with responder making a quantitative leap to 4NT.

Responder’s bid of 4NT invites you either to pass with a minimum or bid 6NT with a maximum.

Many club partnerships would use a bid of 5NT at this point as a ‘pass the buck’ return invitation - not exactly scientific, and with little for partner to go on which he didn’t know already.

Better is to play the bid of 5NT at this point as ‘pick a slam’.  There is unlikely to be much of a major suit fit available in this auction, but there might be a minor suit fit which will make the play for twelve tricks that much easier.  Note that in this interpretation of the sequence opener has already decided to give the slam a go, even if it might be a bit thin.  It’s just an opportunity to search for the easiest or best slam.

Two possible strains

This bid will usually occur in a highly competitive auction when the partnership has not had the opportunity to agree a suit.

Typically partner might have doubled an opening bid and RHO then raised the opener preemptively to the four-level.

You will usually have a hand with two five-card suits and obviously the values to compete.

4NT shows the shape of your hand, partner will bid the lowest suit he can stand, and you will correct if necessary.

Select a minor

This is an alternative to the ‘two strains’ option above, usually following vigorous bidding by the opponents in a major.

It has some similarity to ‘the unusual no trump’, and will usually apply after a major suit fit has already failed to materialise.  This does not differ greatly from one of the ‘pick a slam’ auctions considered above.

Most of the suggestions above are relatively easy to use and perfectly effective - but do be certain that you and your partner know which one you are playing in any given auction.

These conventions are invaluable when the right deal turns up, but don’t try them with an unfamiliar partner - they will play it as Blackwood or RKCB every time.

Context  -  Acol bidding - the auction  continues - in the slam zone.

This page last updated 26th Feb 2019