Unauthorized Information - the Stop card

Well there were four dedicated ladies who braved the snowstorm to come out Thursday. That was a blizzard wasn't it? I'll bet we got maybe 30-40 snowflakes out there all afternoon. Not the little ones either -- the big, fat, fluffy ones. (You would think we lived in Toronto for Pete's sake!)

Anyhow, the ones that came out were rewarded by not only bidding but making a slam each! (Except for Nancy who didn't actually get one and didn't want me to make one for her.)

During the session we did get to talking about the Stop card. A few of my novices were wondering if it was okay to use the Stop card after partner opens 1NT and then bid 2♣ to show ♣. That leaves you the option of bidding 2♣ over 1NT for Stayman.

Confused?

That means if partner opens the bidding 1NT you can bid 2♣ (Stayman) to ask for a 4 card major.
It also means if partner opens the bidding 1NT you can first pull out the Stop card and then bid 2♣ to show a weak hand with ♣.

I was pretty impressed with the little rascals for their inventiveness (think of the possibilities for that Stop card now!) but had to inform them that this was, in fact, cheating.

The Stop card should be used only if you are making a jump in the bidding. You do not have to use the Stop card when you are jumping in the bidding but you should make sure you either ALWAYS use it or NEVER use it. It would be very unethical to make a jump bid using the Stop card to show a good jump bid and then make a jump bid without using the Stop card to show a not so great jump bid.

If you and your partner have agreements as to when you will use the Stop card and when you will not use the Stop card you and your partner are probably acting on unauthorized information. This is strictly prohibited in the rules. We will talk more about unauthorized information in later posts. For the time being don't worry so much about breaking the rules. If you are wondering what is proper and what is improper behavior just ask a director. They will be able to explain the rules clearly. That is their job.