How The Bridge Rule Of 20 Works With Examples
It's only supposed to be used for opening the bidding in first and second seats. In third seat players often open light anyway so there's no need for a special rule. In fourth seat there's no need to open light to disrupt opponents. They've both passed!
The Rule of 20 considers both high card points and distribution.
Count your high card points.
This is your basic high card point count. You don't add anything for length or shortage, you simply count 4 points for each ace, three points for each king, 2 points for each queen and 1 point for each jack.
Add the length of your two longest suits.
Length is strength so two 5 card suits are better than two 4 card suits.
Open if the total comes to 20.
For example, if you have high card points and two 5 card suits your total comes to 20 and you have enought to open the bidding.
Rule of 20 Practice Dealer
Test random holdings to master light openings.
The Rule Of 20 In Action
Here's a hand from one of our daily free bridge games.
An Opening Hand With 10 High Card Points
South's points are the ♠A (4), ♠K (3) and ♥K (3). That's 10 high card points. The two longest suits are spades (5) and hearts (5). That's 10 length points. 10 high card points + 10 length points = 20. 20 total points is enough to open.
The Rule of 22: Taking The Rule Of 20 A Step Further
Not all points are equal! The rule of 22 takes into consideration 'quick tricks' as follows:
To use the rule of 22, start with the rule of 20, add your quick tricks and check if the total comes to 22.
- AK in a suit = 2 Quick Tricks
- AQ in a suit = 1.5 Quick Tricks
- A or KQ in a suit = 1 Quick Trick
- K in a suit = 0.5 Quick Tricks ( not singleton K )
An Opening Hand Using The Rule Of 20
South's points are the ♠A (4), ♠K (3) and ♥K (3). That's 10 high card points. The two longest suits are spades (5) and hearts (5). That's 10 points length. The ♠A and ♠K is 2 quick tricks. The ♥K is .5 quick tricks. That's 2.5 quick tricks. 22.5 is enough to open.
Singleton Kings Are No Good
South has 10 high card points. South has 10 length points. The ♠A and ♠Q is 1.5 quick tricks. The ♥K is 0! Singleton Kings don't count. That's 1.5 quick total. 21.5 total points is not enough when using the rule of 22.
Honours In Short Suits
Honours in short suits don't pull their weight. They don't help us set up tricks in our long suit and, especially in the case of singletons, they often don't win tricks at all.
Weak Suit
The diamond honours aren't well placed. They're not helping to establish your long suits. If you open 1♠ and partner responds 2♥ what will you bid? Maybe it's still worth opning this hand but things could go wrong.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Rule of 20 in bridge?
The Rule of 20 is a bidding guideline used to determine if a light hand with fewer than 12 High Card Points (HCP) is worth opening. If the sum of your total HCP and the length of your two longest suits equals 20 or more, the hand is considered strong enough to open.
Does the Rule of 20 apply in the 3rd or 4th seat?
No, the Rule of 20 is primarily designed for 1st and 2nd seat opening decisions. In the 3rd seat, players often open even lighter to disrupt opponents. In the 4th seat, players typically use the Rule of 15 instead.
I favor light opening bids, when you're my age you're never sure they're going to get back to you in time.