In 1989, James Kauder wrote a book called "The Bridge Philosopher." It is an "over the shoulder" book. The reader listens to Kauder's thoughts during the play of 61 deals.
Assume you become declarer at four spades after West opens the bidding with one heart. West leads the king of hearts and shifts to a trump. How would you play the hand?
While I'm a firm believer in the defensive mantra that 'aces are made to capture kings and queens, knowing when to use one of those prime cards to win a trick while capturing a monarch can be just as important.
As declarer, you should absolutely love it when the opponents tell you they play "jack denies a higher honor and 10 or 9 promises zero or two higher" as their opening lead convention.
A sure indication a declarer can have that he is up against top-class opponents is that his attempts to force out their high cards early will meet with failure. Most defenders recognise the advantage of...
To a defender, exploring multiple possibilities means training yourself to construct and examine several potential declarer hands as you plan each defensive campaign.
Let's examine two auctions that come up all the time. You probably have never given them much thought because they are so basic. What you may not have realized is that there is a magical quality to these auctions that you may have overlooked.
The matchpoint duplicate players, have a high priority on not only making the contract, but scoring overtricks as well. In fact, it is almost de rigueur to risk your contract for the almighty overtrick(s) if the odds favor taking the chance.
When I teach, I emphasize logic because logical thinking is essential at bridge. Logical thinking really amounts to clear thinking. How does one thought lead directly to the next?
