Blum on Bridge Gerber
	When John Gerber presented his "4 club ace asking convention" to the bridge world, little did he know how often it would be misused and applied at the wrong times. It's oh so simple, but for some reason we "experts" love to confuse ourselves with the facts. The Gerber Convention is a way to find out how many aces partner holds, as in the Blackwood Convention, but "4 clubs" is the asking bid. Now that sounds easy, doesn't it? It is used in most auctions where a 4NT bid would serve as a quantitative raise, not Blackwood, and that is wherein problems seem to arise. Let's clear up part of the problem by making this rule: The only time a 4 club bid is used to ask for aces is when partner's last bid was either 1NT or 2NT, or your own last bid was a 2 club Stayman bid (This asks partner to bid his four-card major if he has one). Also note that 4 clubs is "never" Gerber unless it is a jump bid. Thus, if partner's bid was 3NT 4 clubs by you it is not Gerber. Because the use of 4 clubs is so important as either a natural or cue bid it is better in most cases to use Blackwood as the ace ask despite the fact Gerber is initiated at a lower level. Though many of you know the steps I will state them for those who either don't know them or are not sure. The responses to 4 clubs are as follows: 4 diamonds show no aces or all four aces; 4 hearts shows one ace; 4 spades shows two aces; 4NT shows three aces. Suppose you hold KQJ1095-4-K4-KQJ10. Partner opens 1NT. Your response should be a classic 4-club response. All you are interested in is how many aces partner holds. If partner bids 4 spades showing two aces, you pass. If partner bids 4NT showing three aces, you bid 6NT. If partner bids 4 diamonds he must have all four aces, not zero aces. Why? Because he opened 1NT showing between 15-18 hcps and you have 15. Therefore, the partnership holds at least 30 points. If partner had no aces, he would be missing 16 points so it just doesn't add up. Over partner's 4 diamond call you happily bid 7NT. Earlier I mentioned the "quantitative" raise. Much of the confusion as to when to use "Gerber" is connected to when the bid of 4NT is or is not Blackwood. It is not Blackwood if used directly after partner's bid of 1NT, 2NT, or 3NT. In these instances the bid of 4NT is "quantitative and invites partner to bid 6NT. Partner should pass 4NT with a minimum and bid 6NT with a maximum opener. There is one other situation when the bid of 4NT is quantitative. If you have bid 2 clubs, Stayman, over partner's 1NT opener and subsequently bid 4NT after partner's second bid that call is a quantitative raise. You hold KQ10-AJ4-AQ53-432. Over partner's 1NT opening bid with this 16 point balanced hand, bid 4NT. This asks partner to either bid 6NT with a maximum or pass with a minimum. Should partner who opened 1NT with 15-17 points have 16, give him a coin to flip. Then make sure to blame him if he gets set. You hold AJ32-KQ43-63-AQJ. Over partner's 1NT you bid 2 clubs, Stayman, asking opener to bid his four-card major. You hope to be in slam should he bid one of your major suits. However, he bids 4 diamonds that states he has no four-card major. Holding 17 points you must jump to 4NT, a "quantitative" raise, asking partner to bid 6NT with a maximum or pass with a minimum or to take out the proverbial coin. Of course if you held another point you would simply bid 6NT on your own. By the way, according to the Encyclopedia of Bridge, John Gerber was involved in a little known incident that occurred in 1963. While at the Grand Hotel Bilia in Italy playing for the world "Bermuda Bowl" as non-playing captain he received an anonymous letter. A translator deciphered the first sentence that accused the Italian Blue Team of cheating. He asked the translator to stop and deliver the letter to Italy's captain, Carl' Alberto Perroux. Perroux, after reading the letter to his team, suggested the match be played with screens running across the table, fully 12 years before present day screens were employed. Gerber would have none of it. The goodwill engendered by this exchange inspired Perroux and his team to present their championship trophies to Gerber and the American team in what was described as the greatest act of sportsmanship in bridge history.