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.
3/23/21 (73 min)
Highly distributional hands that have a lot of HCPs often have a large amount of playing strength! We need to make sure and communicate both our values and distribution to partner in order for them to understand how high to drive the auction.
3/30/21 (74 min)
Certain distributions can cause us a problem with our opening bid and/or rebid. We will look at these problem hands and discuss how important it is to make a plan for your second bid before you make your first one.
4/6/21, (72 min)
When we open the bidding, partner responds, and right-hand opponent overcalls – we then have some interesting rebid options as opener. We look at these with a particular focus on the Support Double and see how it helps us describe our hand.
4/13/21 (68 min)
The Negative Double is one of Responder's most valuable bidding tools. Here we look at what Opener does after their partner makes a Negative Double -- how they describe their shape and strength as well as what bids are forcing.
4/20/21 (70+ min)
Just as the negative double is a valuable bidding tool for Responder, the responsive double is equally advantageous for the Advancer (the 4th player to bid). We look at how we use this tool to effectively compete in the bidding.
4/27/21 (70+ min)
When partner makes a simple overcall we have lots of ways that we can continue the bidding. Here we look at those options and how we can further compete in the bidding.
