2/5/23 (60 min)
In the balancing seat we usually “borrow a king” from our partner. Since NT bids are precisely defined this point change to our hand dramatically affects our bidding. Here we look at our balancing NT bids and the followup bidding that partner makes.
12/5/22 (65 min)
The modern system for bidding when we have a fit for partner's minor, called inverted minors, works on improving our ability to look for game or slam in a minor suit -- which is the most common time we want to support a minor suit. Make sure you and partner have a good grasp of these methods, both for playing them and playing against them.
12/12/22 (66 min)
One of the most powerful tools we have in competitive bidding is the preemptive raise. When we have a minor suit fit the opponents will often have a major suit fit. We want to make it as difficult as possible for them to find that fit and using preemptive raises is one the best ways to make their life difficult.
12/19/22 (69 min)
There are certain minor suit hands that can play extremely well in NT contracts. If evaluated correctly these hands can be bid in a way that makes the auction relatively simple. Let's make sure that you do not torture your partner with these hands when you could keep it simple and get to the right contract.
12/27/22 (63 min)
When we have a good hand and a minor suit fit then we may want to explore a minor suit slam. Part of the art form of minor suit slam bidding is using tools to explore slam while keeping a NT contract in the picture. Here we look at how to use these tools and better judge our minor suit slam.
2/7/22 (66 min)
When partner leads a suit, whether on opening lead or in the middle of the play, we become the 3rd player to the trick. There is a tip "3rd hand high", but that is not always right. Here we look at which card we should play and how partner makes use of this information.
2/14/22 (65 min)
When we win a trick in the middle of defending a hand we must lead to the next trick. It is important, whether we are playing the same suit or shifting to a new suit, that we have good agreements with partner about what the card we lead means.
2/21/22 (65 min)
When our RHO leads a suit and we have to play 2nd to a trick, then we have some decision to make. We have a classic guideline of 2nd hand low! We will look at when this is good advice and when it is not.
3/1/22 (67 min)
When we are the final players to play to a trick life is much easier for us. In this case, we want to play the card that will most help partner while making life difficult on the opponent's. We look at a variety of situations where you want to make sure to help partner and others where "fooling declarer" is more important.
3/7/22 (70 min)
A large part of trying to defense a hand well is making a plan on defense. Doing this is similar to what you do as Declarer. You take a look at the dummy, combine that information with your hand and the auction, and try to understand what is going on. You then make a plan for how to start Declarer from accomplishing their goals.
