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Spades glossary

What Is Double Nil in Spades?

2 min read

Double nil means both partners on a team bid nil in the same hand. There is no team contract and board doesn't apply. Each nil is scored on its own, ±100 (or ±200 blind), and at Spades Night any trick either partner takes counts as a bag.

Double nil is when both players on a team bid nil in the same hand. Two players each try to lose every trick, with no partner covering for them. It's rare, risky and occasionally brilliant. The general bidding rules are on the spades rules page.

How it works

  • Both partners bid nil (or one bids nil and the other blind nil).
  • The team has no contract. Board doesn't apply.
  • Each nil is scored on its own: +100 made, −100 failed. A blind nil is ±200.
  • At Spades Night, any trick either partner takes is a bag.

The outcomes run from +200 (both made) to −200 plus bags (both failed). Meanwhile the other team only has to make its own contract, and it will be trying hard to stuff a trick onto one of you.

Example

Your team leads 440 to 380 in a game to 500. You hold nothing above a 9 and two small spades. Your partner, bidding at the same time, sees a similarly empty hand. You both bid nil.

The other team bids 6. They win 12 books; your partner is forced to take one with a 10♦ late in the hand.

  • Your nil: +100
  • Partner's nil: −100
  • Bags: +1 point, 1 bag on the count
  • Your hand: +1. The other team: 60 + 6 bags.

Not a disaster. With board in play, the alternative was one of you carrying a 4-book contract with a hand this weak.

How Spades Night handles it

  • Allowed whenever nil is on. Bids are secret and simultaneous by default, so a double nil can happen without either partner planning it.
  • No team contract, no board.
  • Each nil ±100, blind nil ±200.
  • Every trick the pair takes counts as a bag.

Variations at other tables

Some tables ban double nil, or require it to be a planned call in sequential bidding. Some give the team an extra bonus if both succeed. Others let failed tricks count toward nothing at all instead of bags. Check before you try it.

When it makes sense

Almost never with a normal hand. It works when both hands are genuinely weak (no jokers, no deuces, no spade honours, short spades), and even then each of you must duck every lead on your own. With sequential bidding you can at least see your partner's nil before you commit. The nil strategy guide covers the single-nil version in depth.

  • Nil: one partner bids zero.
  • Blind nil: nil without looking.
  • Board: the minimum that double nil skips.
  • Bags: where every trick the pair takes goes.

Questions people ask

Can both partners bid nil in spades?

Yes. It's called double nil. Both players try to take zero tricks, with no teammate to cover them. It's allowed at Spades Night and at most tables.

How is double nil scored?

Each nil is scored separately: +100 if that player takes no tricks, −100 if they take any. Both can succeed for +200, both can fail for −200, or one of each.

Does board apply on a double nil?

No. With no number bids there's no team contract to raise, so the board minimum of 4 is skipped. Any tricks the pair takes are bags.

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