These opening bids constitute a simplified version of the Tangerine Club system and were developed by Mr. Jan Eric Larsson of Lund, Sweden, who developed the Tangerine Club system. The most distinguishable feature regarding the designation is quoted by the author, who states: When 1 Club is unambiguously strong and 2 No Trump shows 5-5 plus in the Minor suits, the system is called the Cranberry Club. The reason or origin of the designation itself is unknown.

Note: The text authored by Mr. Jan Eric Larsson in the year 1995 is available also in .pdf file format and is only archived and preserved in .pdf file format on this site for future reference.

Note: The cranberry is a slender, trailing native North American shrub (Vaccinium macro-carpon) that grows in moist, sandy soil. The fruit berry is small, red, quite tart, and high in vitamin C. The berries are used either fresh or in processed foods such as juices, jams, and jellies. Vines are planted in sandy, peat-rich soil that is acidic and often flooded with water for more efficient harvesting. Cranberries grow wild in the northern climes of North America. The cranberry is one of only three fruits native to North America.

Note: The etymology of the word cranberry is part translation of Low German kraanbere, from kraan crane and bere berry.

Note: The definition of tangerine is that it is a widely cultivated variety of mandarin orange having deep red-orange fruit with easily separated segments. The name tangerine comes from Tangier, Morocco, the port from which the first tangerines were shipped to Europe in 1841. The adjective tangerine, from Tangier or Tanger, was already an English word (first recorded in 1710), meaning of or pertaining to Tangier. This adjective had been formed with the suffix –ine, as in Florentine. The fruit was first called a tangerine orange, later reduced simply to tangerine.

Opening Bids Only

Bid		Strength		Meaning
1 :		15+ high card points		Shows any shape.
1 :		10-14 high card points		Shows a 4-card plus Diamond suit, or
		10-11 high card points		Distribution: 3-3-3-4 exactly
1 :		10-14 high card points		Shows a 4-card plus Heart suit.
1 :		10-14 high card points		Shows a 4-card plus Spade suit.
1 NT:		12-14 high card points		Shows a balanced shape; no 5-card Major suit.
2 :		10-14 high card points		Shows a 5-card plus Club suit.
2 :		5-9 high card points		Shows a 5-card plus Diamond suit.
2 :		5-9 high card points		Shows a 5-card plus Heart suit.
2 :		5-9 high card points		Shows a 5-card plus Spade suit.
2NT:		5-9 high card points		Distribution: 5-5 plus in the Minor suits.

Following a 1 No Trump opening, a first response of 2 Clubs is invitational whereas a first response of 2 Diamonds is Stayman and game-forcing. All responses to a 1 Club opening are considered natural and are based on the Precision Club bidding system.

The picture shows Anu Uus and Jan Erik Larsson on the cruise ship Liberty of the Sea, with the pictures presented by Carina Westlin. Source.

Note: It is to Anu Uus that Jan Eric Larsson dedicated his write-up of The Tangerine Club while at Palo Alto, California, United States, on April 24, 1995.

If you wish to include this feature, or any other feature, of the game of bridge in your partnership agreement, then please make certain that the concept is understood by both partners. Be aware whether or not the feature is alertable or not and whether an announcement should or must be made. Check with the governing body and/or the bridge district and/or the bridge unit prior to the game to establish the guidelines applied. Please include the particular feature on your convention card in order that your opponents are also aware of this feature during the bidding process, since this information must be made known to them according to the Laws of Duplicate Contract Bridge. We do not always include the procedure regarding Alerts and/or Announcements, since these regulations are changed and revised during time by the governing body. It is our intention only to present the information as concisely and as accurately as possible.