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.
4/18/22 (65 min)
People open the bidding and compete in the bidding more and more aggressively these days. We actually can sometimes make a slam even when the opponent's bid. But we also have to be careful not to get the auction too high, the 5-Level down 1 is a bad result. Here we look at our tools for trying for Slam in competitive bidding auctions.
8/24/21 (81 min)
Here we look at our Ace asking tools - Keycard Blackwood (1430) and Gerber. We will make sure we understand the basic and problems that we may face with these tools. But then we will get into the details of how to "upgrade these tools" using Specific Kings and other "special" bids that can help us solve some tricky slam bidding problems.
8/31/21 (81 min)
Jacoby 2NT and Splinters of many kinds help us to explore slam. Here we look at how to use them to describe our shortness below game, allowing partner to re-evaluate their hand. This is the key for us to bid slam with fewer than the traditional 33 HCP.
9/6/21 (76 min)
The shape of your hand is extremely valuable information for reaching slam. Here we look at bids that allow us to "pattern out" our shape and give partner information about the value of the "fitting honors". Here we look at how to explore slam.
9/14/21 (70+ min)
Here we look at control showing bids as a tool for exploring slam. We'll consider a variety of different types of cuebids (American, Italian, and Modern Styles) and look at how to make use of this slam bidding tool to explore slam.
9/21/21 (72 min)
This week we look at some useful tools to accompany our cuebidding auctions that allow us to explore slam - 5NT Grand Slam Force, Non-Serious 3NT, and the 5-Major obvious question.
9/28/21 (76 min)
Minor suit slams can be some of the most difficult in all of bridge. Here we look at the different tools we have for exploring things - Quantitative Bids, Minorwood, 5NT Choice of Slam, and more.
Tuesday 9/22/20 (84 min)
Modern Preemptive Opening bids take away the opponent's bidding space and force them into difficult decisions. Here we look at which hands are best for attacking and which hands can get us into trouble.
