My improvers group thought the Blackwood Convention was complex enough last year but I have hopefully convinced them that Roman Key Card Blackwood is a far superior method. It was devised by Eddie Kantar in the 1980s and it shows not only the number of Aces held but also the King and Queen of Trumps as well. It is therefore a much safer method of finding a slam and avoiding risky slam contracts as you can put the brakes on at a lower level.
The version I use is:
4NT asks for Key Cards (the four Aces and the King of Trumps).
The responses are:
4C* = 1 or 4
4D* = 0 or 3
4H = 2 without the Queen of Trumps
4S = 2 with the Queen of Trumps
5NT asks for Kings but not the trump King as you have already asked for it. the responses are the same as normal Blackwood.
Some players reverse the Club and Diamond* responses (0 or 3 then 1 or 4). The responses above are not the full story but lets keep it simple!
Try it.
The version I use is:
4NT asks for Key Cards (the four Aces and the King of Trumps).
The responses are:
4C* = 1 or 4
4D* = 0 or 3
4H = 2 without the Queen of Trumps
4S = 2 with the Queen of Trumps
5NT asks for Kings but not the trump King as you have already asked for it. the responses are the same as normal Blackwood.
Some players reverse the Club and Diamond* responses (0 or 3 then 1 or 4). The responses above are not the full story but lets keep it simple!
Try it.
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