Before you Start. Who’s Who

Who’s who in a game of bridge?  Like all hobbies and sports, there is a lot of jargon that players need to learn.  Here is some of the basic jargon explained.

A game of bridge requires four people.  The game is played in pairs.  North partners South and East partners West.  Which pair is playing N/S or E/W is decided before the game starts.

Before you start a game of bridge you decide who will be the dealer.  If you are playing at home, the dealer will deal the cards.  If you are playing in a club you will probably be given a pre-dealt set of hands.

After each round the dealer rotates clockwise.

The dealer is the first person to speak when the bidding starts.  If s/he has less than 12 points in hand, then s/he says “Pass”.  The bidding rotates clockwise until someone has 12 + points in their hand and makes an Opening Bid. This person then become the Opener and their partner becomes the Responder