There are a lot of extra points to be won by bidding and making a slam, and so it is important not to miss opportunities. A small slam is a contract at the 6 level (e.g. 6 Clubs), and a large slam a contract at the 7 level (e.g. 7 Clubs). There are various issues involved in this :

• Deciding on whether to go for a slam. This depends on the value of the hands held by you and your partner, and you can see from the 'bidding targets' table that at least 32 points are normally required for a slam bid. However, you should enter into the slam bidding process with rather less known points (e.g. 30), because you can 'duck out' at the 5 level, or even the 4 level; your partner may have a few more points than you credit him or her with.
• The timing of the start of the slam bidding process.The key thing here is to have decided on what contract you want to end up in before you begin the process.
• Deciding whether to use the Gerber Convention or the Blackwood Convention. The Gerber Convention allows you to start the slam bidding process at a lower level (4 Clubs as opposed to 4 No Trumps for Blackwood), giving you more bidding space, and so is preferred whenever possible. There are 2 circumstances under which Blackwood is necessary, firstly when a genuine club bid has already been made, secondly when the bidding has already reached a higher level than 4 Clubs.
• The bidding process.The first bid by the player initiating the process is 4 Clubs or 4 No Trumps, asking his or her partner to show the number of aces held. The response is shown in the table; for instance, a response bid of 4 Hearts to 4 Clubs indicates 1 ace. The initiator may then either do a 5 level bid of 5 Clubs or 5 No Trumps, asking his or her partner to show the number of kings held, or alternatively a 'shut out' bid for the contract (e.g. 5 Diamonds).

Note

If a Stayman 2 Clubs bid has been made, but no other clubs bid, the Gerber convention can still be used.

Example

Here you have 2 kings, 2 queens, a jack, a singleton, giving you 13 points.

Suppose that your partner opened the bidding at the 2 level. Then together you have sufficient points for a possible slam bid. Let us consider what your response should be to each possible 2 opener:

• 2 Clubs.You have support for your partner in clubs with a 4-card suit, so you can go straight to 4 No Trumps (Blackwood Convention), asking your partner for aces. A bid of 3 Hearts would also be valid, and could gain you extra points if you ended up in a contract of 6 Hearts. The Gerber Convention of 4 Clubs cannot be used, because clubs has been bid.
• 2 Diamonds.You do not have adequate support for your partner in diamonds, so you need to establish the suit for your contract first. Therefore, first show your long suit by bidding 2 Hearts. After your partner has bid again, perhaps by going to game (e.g. 4 Hearts), and you know the contract you wish to be in, you can initiate the slam bidding sequence with 4 Clubs or 4 No Trumps, as appropriate.
• 2 Hearts.You have good support for your partner's opening bid, so you should bid 4 Clubs, asking for your partner's aces.
• 2 Spades.Your initial reaction may be that, with the strength you have in all other suits, this is ideal for a no trumps contract. But, distribution points should not be counted on a no trumps contract, so the value of your hands jointly may only be 31 points, which may be insufficient for a no trumps contract. So on this hand you should respond with 3 Hearts, hoping that your partner may then bid 4 Hearts, and give you a better chance of making a slam (after a bid of 4 No Trumps by yourself) .
• 2 No Trumps.You do not have an even distribution, so bid 3 Hearts. Only bid 4 Clubs or 4 No Trumps after you know what suit you want to be in for your contract.

Now suppose that on the same hand you had opened the bidding with 1 Heart, and your partner had 20 points with support in hearts, then your partner's response should be 4 Clubs, asking for aces. You should reply with 4 Diamonds, indicating that you have no aces, as per the table. Your partner must then consider whether to continue with the slam attempt. If he or she only had 2 aces, then there would be a good chance of losing 2 tricks, so a bid of 4 Hearts would then perhaps be best. On the other hand, with no or only 1 missing ace, your partner should bid 5 Clubs, asking you to show your kings. You then bid 5 Spades, and your partner is forced to take the bidding to 6 Hearts for the slam contract.

Note

After your response of 4 Hearts in the last situation, if your partner had 2 missing aces, but a void in one of the suits with a missing ace, he could expect to 'trump in' in that suit, so could continue with the slam bid attempt.