Goren System

Quick Summary

Goren is the classic American bidding system developed by Charles Goren, which dominated American bridge from the 1940s through the 1970s. It established the 4-3-2-1 point count and many fundamental bidding principles still used today.

System Overview

Opening Meaning

1♣/1♦ 13+ HCP, 3+ cards (sometimes 4+)

1♥/1♠ 13+ HCP, 4+ cards (4-card majors)

1NT 16-18 balanced

2♣ Strong, artificial, forcing (22+ or 9+ tricks)

2♦/2♥/2♠ Strong, natural (21-22 HCP)

3-level Preemptive

The 4-3-2-1 Point Count

Goren popularized the high card point system that became universal:

Card Points

Ace 4

King 3

Queen 2

Jack 1

This replaced earlier honor-trick methods and made bridge more accessible.

Four-Card Majors

Unlike modern systems, Goren uses 4-card major openings:

1♥ and 1♠ show 4+ cards
Responder needs 4 cards for direct raise
1NT response can have 3-card major support

Strong Two-Bids

Opening 2♦, 2♥, or 2♠ shows a powerful hand:

21-22 HCP with a good suit
Or 9+ playing tricks
Forcing for one round
2NT response is the negative (0-6 HCP)

Modern systems replaced these with weak twos.

Strong 2♣

The artificial game-forcing opening:

22+ HCP balanced, or
9+ tricks with any distribution
2♦ is the negative response
All other responses show values

Standard Responses

Bid Meaning

Single raise 6-10 HCP, 4+ support

Double raise 13-15 HCP, 4+ support (forcing to game)

1NT 6-10 HCP, no fit, no biddable suit

2NT 13-15 HCP, balanced

3NT 16-17 HCP, balanced

Historical Significance

Charles Goren (1901-1991) was known as “Mr. Bridge”:

Won 8 Bermuda Bowl world championships
Wrote bestselling bridge books
Syndicated newspaper column reached millions
Made bridge a mainstream American pastime
Time magazine called him “the most famous living bridge player”

Legacy

While modern systems like 2/1 have replaced Goren, his contributions remain:

Point count is universal
Strong 2♣ opening persists
Basic hand evaluation principles
Limit raises and invitational bids