Bridge Card Cheat Sheet

The parts of a playing card, and how cards and suits rank in contract bridge. Keep it on the table while you bid and play.

Parts of a card

Spot card (2 to 10). The number of pips equals the rank. Also called a small card or pip card.

Court card (J, Q, K). Shows a figure instead of pips. Also called a face card or picture card.

Ace. One large pip. In bridge the Ace is the highest card of its suit, never low.

Back. Identical on every card in the pack, so nobody can tell one card from another. Clubs often use packs with two back colours.

Rank in contract bridge

Cards within a suit

Honours

AKQJ10

Spot cards (written “x”)

98765432

Highest on the left, lowest on the right

A trick goes to the highest card of the suit led, unless someone plays a trump. The highest trump then wins. A card of any other suit never wins.

Suits for bidding

NTNo Trumpshighest

♠Spadesmajor

♥Heartsmajor

♦Diamondsminor

♣Clubslowest · minor

Each bid must be higher than the last: same level in a higher denomination, or a higher level. 1♠ outbids 1♥; 2♣ outbids 1NT. Suit order only matters in the auction. In play, all suits are equal except trumps.

1♣1♦1♥1♠1NT2♣2♦…7♠7NT

High card points (HCP)

Card	Points
Ace	4
King	3
Queen	2
Jack	1

10 points per suit, 40 in the pack. An average hand holds 10. Around 12 or more is enough to open the bidding.

Trick scores by suit

Denomination	Per trick over 6
♣ ♦ Minors	20
♥ ♠ Majors	30
NT	40 first, then 30

Game needs 100 trick points: 3NT, 4♥, 4♠, 5♣ or 5♦.

Words at the table

Pack: 52 cards: 4 suits of 13.
Hand: The 13 cards each player is dealt.
Trick: One card from each player, played clockwise.
Book: The first 6 tricks. A “2♥” contract needs 6 + 2 = 8 tricks.
Trumps: The suit named in the final contract. Beats every other suit.
Follow suit: You must play the suit led if you hold one.

Void: No cards in a suit.
Singleton: Exactly one card in a suit.
Doubleton: Exactly two cards in a suit.
Balanced: No void or singleton, at most one doubleton (4-3-3-3, 4-4-3-2, 5-3-3-2).

Hands are written suit by suit, highest first, with “x” for a small card:

♠ K Q 7 4♥ A J 3♦ 9 8 2♣ Q x x

Say a card rank first: “the seven of hearts”. Written: ♥7.