Law of Total Tricks - Total Trumps Principle

By combining LoTT with the scoring table, it is argued that the following Total trumps principle is quite often a winning strategy:

Bid to a number of tricks equal to the number of trumps you and your partner hold (and no higher) in a competitive auction.

Thus, if with an eight-card fit, a pair is safe to bid to the two level but are unsafe to go to the three level. But, with a nine-card fit, the three level will be safe.

In this context, "safe" does not necessarily mean that the contract will be made. But if not, it means that it is a worthwhile sacrifice against the opponents' contract. For example, if the opponents have bid to two spades, and you have a nine-card heart fit, the "law" says you should bid three hearts. Assuming the opponents have an eight-card spade fit, there are 17 total tricks. If the opponents can take eight tricks, LoTT says you can take nine. If the opponents can take nine tricks, LoTT says you can take only eight. But down one (even doubled, if not vulnerable) is a smaller negative score for you than letting the opponents make three.

Derived from LoTT, this principle assists players in judging the level to which they should bid in a competitive situation. At its simplest a player should bid to the level of their calculation (from the bidding) of the number of trumps held by their side:

• When the balance of HCP is unfavourable, bidding to this level will act as a useful sacrifice
• When the balance of HCP is favourable, bidding to this level will be an achievable contract
• When the HCP are fairly equally split between the two sides, bidding to this level avoids the danger of a misplaced sacrifice

In certain competitive situations, vulnerability can influence the optimum contract. Thus, with the HCP evenly split and facing a bid at the three level by the opposition, bidding to a level above the number of trumps held can be a useful sacrifice at favourable vulnerability.