Welcome on this bridge site, created by :   Chiel Verwoest .
since dec-26-1998 you are visitor number:  

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INTRODUCING M.A.F. M.A.F.  is a bidding system for  bridge players. It is a combination of a number of traditional conventions and many, at least for the author, completely new ideas.
This system does not contain elements that are not allowed by the rules of the  NBB .
This internet site gives a description of the system. It will be explained why several basic choices were made.
For an overview of the contents we invite you to scroll the menu parts of this frame. Be sure that you do not forget the overview of the overviews.

The MAF system is build on four simple points of departure":

Hands having normal opening strength are opened with:
• 1 ª or 1© if if the hand contains a 5-card in that suit.
• 1§ if the hand contains a 4-card in a major suit.
• 1¨ if the hand does not even contain a 4+card in a major suit.
• 1NT, similar to many other systems, if they are balanced and contain 15-17 hcp's .

Around this foundation a complete system was built. This system is described on this site. The description includes many details. If you are interested, than here is a second recommendation. Read this introduction first and have a short look around on my site. Convince yourself through this site-seeing that the system is described seriously and comprehensively, but that you need instructions to study it efficiently. A guide is provided here for your convenience and will be always available in the bottom button bar.

The main characteristics of the MAF system are listed here:

• The system is based on several doctrines:
  • Natural systems are easy to learn and memorize, therefore MAF is natural.
  • With multi-way opening/response/overcall bids card hands can be efficiently and accurately described.
  • Jumps should usually show weak hands, in order not to loose bidding space, e.g. needed for control-bidding, with strong hands. Moreover weak jumps disturb the opponents bidding.
  • A bidding system should aim primarily on achieving contracts in NT or in major suits.
  • The use of responses which are forcing and multi-way can be very powerful. MAF allows for application of responses like that on all 1-level opening bids.
• MAF is a "5-card major" bridge bidding system for reasons explained already by the sources that inspired me and from which I borrowed more.
• 1§ is multi-way and nearly always forcing.
• 1¨ has "deduced" and distinct sense This is a unique and powerful property exclusively of MAF. The bid is usually  forcing.
• 1 NT is strong. (15-17 points)
• MAF comprises nine different opening bids which are multi, 4 are not multi and of 2 it is arguable. Multi opening bids are on average multi in more then three ways. Of course all multi opening bids are forcing.
• The system holds a range of six different opening bids which may mean six hands of different strength all having a balanced NT-distribution.
• For each of the 1-suit opening hands: weak(6-11), normal (11-15), strong (16-19) and very strong (>=20), a proper opening bid is available.
• For all types but two (the weak 5,4 minors) of the 2-suited opening hands: weak(6-11), normal (11-15), strong (16-19) and very strong (>=18), proper bid sequences are available.
• MAF even has possibilities for opening 3-suited hands, two kinds of these 4/5,4,4,1/0 distributions: strong (16-19) and very strong (>=20) can be described.
• With the weak 2-suits opening bid distinction is made between on one hand 5,4- or 5,5-and on the other hand 5,6-distributions. The 5,5 distribution in the major suits is treated especially.
• Conventions are available which allow "low-level-splintering" for opening hands as well as for the responding hands which contain a void or a singleton.
• MAF is mainly an offensive system. The defence however is not neglected. Some leaks in the standard defensive system have been sealed with new conventions.
• MAF is flexible: Many commonly known conventions which are applied in any system, like the [re]doubles (negative, supporting, take out, competitive, etc.), Stayman, Jacoby, Niemeijer, Ghestem, Truscott, Lebensohl, Landy and many others, may be applied freely in all their variations.
• MAF may be personalized, that is: completed with personal favorite conventions or modified all according to personal preferences.

I hope you do not mind me telling you, that I am self-confident enough to say, that bridge players will never regret that they took the pains of reading about MAF:

• MAF may be learned in three or more steps: EASY, a little more complicated: COMPLETE , and finally sophisticated: COMPLEX.
• Starting bridge players may choose for MAF just as well as for any other system.
• There are many good reasons for more experienced players, to switch to MAF.
• I am sure that even "professional" bridge players will appeciate many aspects of the system. They might dislike the idea of the opponents getting same amount of information out of the bidding as your partnership does, and that is a hell of a lot indeed

With these qualities MAF completely meets the design criteria. Therefore at least somebody is happy now, and that somebody is me.
Of course I hope that many people will visit this website and become happy too. If you are here for the first time I recommend (again) to read the valuable tips and hints first. hey are about browsing this site and why you should use a particular browser.
Those visitors of this site who are really interested and want to study MAF off-line should make use of the opportunity given here to download MAF completely and install on your own computer.
This here is especially for Americans who are not used to driving on the wrong side of road like many other (sorry, but I think this is funny) english speaking tribes on this world do.
You should read the description in a strange order, at first the most easy bid: 1NT (the description here is also a further introduction into the rest of this website) and then successively: 1ª, 1© and somewhat more difficult: 1§ and finally the most complicated 1¨. In this way the logical structure of the system is more easily understood. In the menu the same arrangement is chosen.

I did not design the MAF-system all by myself. Though I did not study much papers and books, I must tell you about the sources from which I stole or derived ideas and where I got the inspiration from.

Finally I like to tell that I have been searching everywhere for a probability table, that gives the "chance of getting a hand with a given distribution and a given strength, measured in HCP points". It might be interesting for some of you to know that, not being able to find it,  I finally decided to start trying to calculate the table myself. After long strenuous calculations I succeeded to draw up these tables. This result is probably unique. If you want to see them, then click here now in order to get the proper menu (if need be you must return to the framed window first, to be able to see and click the probability menu). The result is valuable anyway. It can be applied measuring the "weight of importance" of certain "families of hands". The frequencies of occurrence of every of the multi meanings of every opening bid can now easily be calculated for any arbitrary bidding system. The results for MAF are published on this site now.

Chiel Verwoest,   MAAAA *
december 1998,
HERVELD NOORD

*   AAAA = Anonymous Acronym Abuse Association

have a look at the disclaimer: you have the right to copy, apply and enjoy MAF, but you do not have the right to exploit my MAF-fe pages commercially without my written permission.