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You’ve probably heard
some, if not most, of these before. But, depending upon your level and your experience, perhaps some
may be new to you. I hope you’ll
give them a try. They work!
1.
BID MORE ON THE FIRST ROUND. Whenever possible, "Get it
out of your system on the first round
of bidding" while it’s still safe
to do so.
2.
GET IN AND GET OUT EARLY. If you don’t find a fit, get out of
the bidding.
3.
MAKE THE OPPONENTS MAKE THE LAST GUESS – NOT YOU. On highly
competitive deals, bid as high as you are
willing to go immediately, then get
out and watch them deal with the problem.
4.
GIVE THE OPPONENTS A PROBLEM WHENEVER YOU CAN DO SO WITH RELATIVE SAFETY.
If they have no problems, they will play well. If they have problems to cope with, then, no matter
how good they are, they won’t be
able to solve them all.
5.
DON'T SELL OUT AT THE 2-LEVEL WHEN THE OPPONENTS HAVE AN 8-CARD FIT. However,
if you think that either side may have no 8-card fit it is correct to sell out at the two-level.
6.
DON’T PLAY TO TRICK ONE UNTIL YOU HAVE A PLAN. Applies both
to defenders and to declarer. If you
don’t know what you’re playing
for, don’t play!
7.
NEVER MAKE A PENALTY DOUBLE OF A PART-SCORE WITHOUT FOUR TRUMPS. (That
means never!)
8.
LIMIT YOUR HAND WHENEVER YOU CAN. Partner knows the partnership level, and the bidding goes smoothly
from here.
9.
NEVER LIE ABOUT TRUMP LENGTH. If you do, partner cannot make
winning LOTT decisions. Or, he will choose
the wrong trump suit. Or, he will
misdefend because he has the wrong count.
10.
WHEN YOU HAVE A RAISE, RAISE. Whenever you can, raise your partner’s suits.
11.
WHEN YOU KNOW WHAT’S TRUMP, TELL PARTNER. He makes better
decisions when he knows.
12.
WHEN YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO – DO IT. Don’t make partner
guess.
13. BID
YOUR LONG SUITS - DON’T MAKE A TAKEOUT DOUBLE.
14. BID
YOUR FIVE-CARD MAJORS – DON’T MAKE A TAKEOUT DOUBLE.
15. IF
YOU KNOW THAT YOU DON’T WANT YOUR DOUBLE TO END THE AUCTION – DON’T
DOUBLE. Find another bid. Perhaps 1NT or 2NT takeout (or 4NT), or a flexible cue-bid or a
natural bid.
16.
DON’T BALANCE! There are exceptions, of course – e.g.,
when they have found a fit and are passed
out at the two-level.
But, as a general rule,
balancing is losing bridge. Bid your hand
on the first round, before they know what to do.
17.
LONG SUITS FIRST! With a 6/5, open or respond in the sixcard
suit. Similarly, with 4/5 in the minors, try
to open 1C if you can – open 1D
only when you must.
18. WITH
WEAKNESS, DON’T PLAY IN NOTRUMP – FIND A TRUMP FIT. When we have around half the high cards (or less),
no spots, and no source of tricks, we’ll
usually take more tricks in a trump
suit, even when both hands are balanced. Therefore: Don’t pass 1NT openings with bad hands, unless you must.
19.
FOUR-OF-A-PREVIOUSLY BID MAJOR IS ALWAYS TO PLAY. Not a Q-bid – NEVER.
20.
IF YOU HAVE A CHOICE OF BIDS AND ONE OF THEM IS 3NT – BID 3NT.
21.
PLAY WITHIN YOUR PARTNERSHIP. Always have what this partner expects you to have, no matter what else
you may think is right. Change your
system later, not at the table.
22.
PARTNER NEVER HAS THE RIGHT HAND. Be practical - don’t
look for the miracle unless you can do so
safely.
23.
ALWAYS BELIEVE YOUR PARTNER. He’s on your side. Trust the information he gives you. Always assume that
he knows what he’s doing, even when
it looks as if he’s lost his mind.
24.
WITH A 6-CARD SUIT, BID TO THE 2-LEVEL BY YOURSELF. WITH A 7-CARD SUIT, BID TO THE
3-LEVEL BY YOUSELF. (No exceptions)
25.
WE HAVE NO PENALTY DOUBLE OF THEIR BID-AND-RAISED SUIT AT THE TWO-LEVEL.
This includes their support-double sequences.
26.
WHEN YOU’RE ABOUT TO BECOME DECLARER WITH FOUR-SMALL TRUMPS, UNDERBID.
27.
WHENEVER A NATURAL AND LIMITING NOTRUMP CALL IS ONE OF YOUR OPTIONS, THAT’S
THE RIGHT BID. If 1NT is one of your options, bid 1NT.
28. WHEN
THERE IS NO FIT, UNDERBID.
29.
SURPRISE: with 6-5 – DON’T PLAY 3NT.
30.
DON’T PLAY NOTRUMP WITH SINGLETONS AND VOIDS. Similarly,
don’t defend notrump with singletons and
voids. If you have an option, take
it. Don’t pass partner’s 1NT opening or rebid with a singleton. Don’t pass their 1NT opening with a
singleton if you can scrape up a bid.
31.
TAKEOUT DOUBLES ARE NEVER OFFSHAPE. (Okay, almost never)
Allowable exceptions are a) equal-level
conversion of clubs to diamonds; b)
strong notrumps c) 4-4 majors. NO OTHER EXCEPTIONS. We don’t start with double to show extra
highcards.
32.
DON’T PASS A GOOD HAND WITHOUT A PLAN. And be sure the
plan is a good one. Under most conditions -
get your message across immediately
before you are left without room to make a cooperative decision.
33.
DON’T OVERBID YOUR OWN GOOD HANDS. When the deal belongs
to your side this is not the time to be
pushy. In the long run you will lose
heavily. If you want to overbid, do so when the hand belongs to the opponents, where you have something to
gain.
34. ON
FREAK DEALS, DON’T DEFEND.
35.
AVOID DOUBLE-GAME SWINGS. Take out insurance.
36.
CONSTRUCT THREE HANDS. When you have a difficult bidding
decision, construct three hands for partner
which are consistent with his bidding
– a good hand, an average hand, and a
bad hand. Then go with two-out-of-three. (No, Zia didn’t invent this one even though Michael Rosenberg gave
him credit. Marty Bergen was the
originator of the idea – he calls it "plastic.")
37.
CHOICE OF GAMES COMES BEFORE SLAM BIDDING. When we don’t
have a trump suit, all ambiguous bids below
game should be interpreted as an
attempt to get to the right game, not as Qbids showing slam interest.
38. NO
Q-BIDS BELOW 3NT – 3-LEVEL BIDS SHOW VALUES, NOT ACES. As above, Choice-of-games comes before slam
bidding.
39.
IF PARTNER MAKES A SLAM TRY AND YOU HAVE AK OF TRUMPS – BID IT.
40.
NEVER MAKE A GRAND TRY WITH AKQ OF TRUMPS – PARTNER WON’T BID IT.
41.
IF YOU MAY BE HAVING A MISUNDERSTANDING, DON’T BID A GRAND.
42. IF
YOU’RE NOT CERTAIN, DON’T BID SEVEN.
43.
THINK FOR YOURSELF – DON’T BE A PARROT OR A PUPPET. You
can’t win by following rules. But, this
does not mean that you are free to
step outside your partnership. It’s a balancing act. Make your partnership rules and follow them, but
remember to use your own brain.
44.
PARTNER IS YOUR BEST FRIEND. You can’t win without him.
Treat him well - he doesn’t play well if
you don’t.
45.
KEEP AN OPEN MIND. Even the high and mighty may learn something from the most humble.
46. IT’S
ONLY A CARD GAME – IT’S NOT LIFE!
And a few more for less
experienced players to help you learn to bid better:
47.
POINTS DON’T TAKE TRICKS. The high-card points are only a
very rough guideline, and are not
nearly so important as other factors.
Forget the points and look at the fit. Look at long suits, good suits, trick-taking potential, hand quality,
position, etc.
48.
LISTEN TO YOUR PARTNER – he is giving you information. If you
are listening you will find that he is often
telling you what to do.
49.
BID IN CONTEXT. Always think about what is already known
(about your hand, and partner’s, and the
opponents) before you make a call.
50.
CONSTRUCT THE HANDS DURING THE BIDDING. Never make a decision
without picturing the other hands -
especially partner’s hand. And make
sure the hand you give him is one which is consistent with his bidding.
51.
MAKE FLEXIBLE BIDS RATHER THAN UNILATERAL DECISIONS. If you’re
not sure what to do, keep your options open.
52.
DON’T MAKE DECISIONS WHICH AREN’T YOURS TO MAKE. (Involve
your partner when you need him.)
53.
OVERBID WITH A GOOD FIT. Total tricks will play high.
54.
UNDERBID WITH NO FIT. Total tricks will play low.
55.
OVERBID WITH GOOD DISTRIBUTION.
56.
UNDERBID FLAT HANDS. 4x3 is the worst. But don’t overdo
it. If partner has a lot of shape, your 4x3
is quite likely to be a good hand for
him.
57.
DON’T BLOW A WINNING POSITION. When you’ve made them
guess at a high level, don’t bail them out
by bidding one more or making a silly
double.
58.
NO Q-BIDS UNTIL YOU KNOW WHAT’S TRUMP. Until there is a
trump suit established, all bids should be
treated as a suggestion of a place to
play.
Courtesy of K.T.McCallum
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