Learn Bridge: The Bridge Centre Podcast

“Helen, I made an overtrick on Tuesday and my partner high-fived me. Then I made one in a teams match on Thursday, and my teammate said, "Nobody cares."”

Rules to remember. At pairs, overtricks matter and no-trump scores most. At teams, make the contract and bid your vulnerable games. Double low contracts when you hold their trumps. Don't double a freely bid game for high cards alone. Sacrifice not vulnerable against vulnerable, with a big fit and no defence. And when in doubt, defend.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, I bid my first slam last week.”

Rules to remember. Agree trumps first. Show interest below game. Control bids find the suit with two quick losers. Blackwood counts key cards. And don't use Blackwood with a void.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, last week my partner played the nine of hearts, then stared at me very hard.”

Rules to remember. Attitude when partner leads. Count when declarer leads. Suit preference when giving a ruff, or when the rest is obvious. Pick one discard method and stick to it. And a signal is information, not an order.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, when I'm defending no-trump and my suit isn't working, I switch to something new.”

Rules to remember. Pick one suit and keep attacking it. Third hand high, but only as high as needed. Return the right card. Unblock for partner. And discard from the suit nobody needs.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, I worked out that when I'm defending, I mostly just follow suit and wait for something to happen.”

Rules to remember. Decide your defence when dummy goes down: active, passive, trump attack or forcing. Count declarer's tricks. Second hand low, third hand high. Cover an honour when it can promote something. And count everything.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, I have a system for opening leads.”

Rules to remember. Listen to the auction first. Lead partner's suit. Against no-trump, lead your long suit. Against a suit contract, read the clues: trump leads stop ruffs, aggressive leads beat discards. Pick the right card so partner can read it. And use the Rule of Eleven.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, when I'm declarer, partner puts down dummy and goes to get a coffee.”

Rules to remember. Pause and plan before trick one. In no-trump, hold up with one stopper. In a suit contract, count losers, and ruff in the short hand. And eight ever, nine never.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, my beginners' teacher said: find an eight-card fit, or play in no-trump. Never anything else.”

Rules to remember. A four-three fit beats no-trump when a suit is wide open and the trumps are strong. Ruff in the short hand. Don't let them force the long hand. On a misfit, stop early. And when it's the opponents misfitting, double.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, my partner and I agreed to play a convention last week. Then she used it, and I'd forgotten it, and we ended up in four clubs with three clubs between us.”

Rules to remember. The rule to take away: write every convention on your card with its follow-up bids, and what you do when they interfere. Most accidents come from the follow-ups, not the conventions themselves.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.

“Helen, in beginners' class, the opponents always passed. It was very polite. One side bid, the other side waited its turn.”

Rules to remember. Use the Suit Quality Test before you overcall. When partner doubles, you must bid. A double after partner opens and they overcall is a negative double, showing the unbid major. Compete to the level of your trump count. And in the balancing seat, act a little lighter.

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Next Steps in Bridge is a free course from The Bridge Centre.