The Rule Of 14 is a bridge bidding convention used in Acol bridge. It is used by the responder when they are replying to their partner’s opening bid.
When the opener has opened with a bid of one of a suit and the responder has a weakish hand with a suit that can be also be bid at the one level it is right to bid the suit rather than making a bid of 1NT.… Read the rest
Fourth suit forcing is a bridge convention. It is used to help you find the right contract, including finding 5-3 major suit fits and finding a stopper for No Trumps. It is used when you are responder and have 11+ points and:
If your opening partner changes suit again after your change of suit you might not have enough information to decide on the contract. … Read the rest
The Rule of 20 is one of the techniques you will learn when learning how to bid in bridge. It is used in just one situation – when deciding if your hand is suitable for opening the bidding. As a general rule, a hand should contain 12 or more high card points (HCP) if you are going to open the bidding. … Read the rest
What is a Slam?There are two types of slam – a small slam and a grand slam.
A small slam means you bid for and win 12 out of the 13 available tricks.
A grand slam means you bid for and win all 13 tricks.… Read the rest
It is a more accurate way of valuing an unbalanced hand when you know you have an eight card fit. Without using this method you will probably have used shortage points when valuing a hand with a known eight card fit.… Read the rest
Last year, I added a selection of bridge holidays for beginners. It proved to be a popular post, so here is an updated list of bridge holidays for beginner’s and improvers.
HF Holidays are offering two breaks for beginners. One in February 2012 and one in October 2012. … Read the rest
At first glance, this rule sounds rather complicated! Don’t worry, if you are the defending partnership it’s just a useful little technique to help you decide which card to play in the opening round of a game.
There are several “rules” that the opener can use to help decide which card to play when opening the first round in a game of bridge. … Read the rest
Learning how to score at bridge makes it easier to understand the bridge bidding system. Once you know how to score you will understand why it is better to play in hearts/spades/NT than diamonds or clubs and why players will continue bidding to the 4, 5, 6 or even 7 level instead of stopping at the 3 or 4 level.… Read the rest
If you are learning to play bridge it is helpful to find some bridge hands to play online.
At No Fear Bridge you will find hundreds of bridge hands to play, covering a wide range of topics.
Some hands allow you to play the whole hand and then show you what you have scored. … Read the rest
I recently downloaded some software that allows me to make videos of my computer screen. I’ve used it to make a short video to show you one of the quizzes on making the opening lead at bridge.
This is the Beginner’s leads training quiz. … Read the rest
Last night I was having a tutorial on how to decide on the opening lead. (Isn’t Skype wonderful! You can talk to each other via Skype whilst screen sharing so I could see my friend’s screen as she was teaching me.)… Read the rest
Most bridge players use bidding boxes. They can be used at a bridge club or competition, or used if you are playing a friendly game of bridge in your own home.
Why Are They Used?
Bidding boxes are used to avoid confusion when a bid is made.… Read the rest
If the opposing pair have opened the bidding you have to decide whether to pass and let them continue to make the contract or whether to overcall.
Why would you want to overcall?
Learning to play bridge is great way to meet people and keep your brain active and alert. But learning to play bridge can seem like a daunting task for a beginner, especially if you are older and don’t feel you can learn as quickly as you once did.… Read the rest
How to play bridge card game
Bridge is a game for 4 players. It is played using a standard pack of playing cards.
The players play as two pairs or partners – generally referred to as North & South and East & West. … Read the rest
If you have a friend or relative that wants to learn to play bridge – or wants to improve their bridge play – then this gift voucher is the ideal gift.
The voucher entitles the recipient to one year’s subscription to No Fear Bridge.… Read the rest
Bridge is a very popular game. If you are a bridge player you are guaranteed a full and active social life.
I remember when I moved into my second flat. One of my neighbours stopped me in the hall way and asked if I played bridge.… Read the rest
Choosing which card to play when you are making the opening lead is one of the fundamental skills that all bridge players need to learn.
In this article we are going to look at which card to lead if the bidding has ended in a No Trumps contract.… Read the rest
In recent weeks a lot has been happening over at No Fear Bridge.
Defence is one of the most important skills to learn. As a defender you want to try to prevent the declarer from making their contract. Learning the best strategies and how to give signals to your partner is crucial if you want to become a good bridge player.… Read the rest
Join Harold Schogger at the Pederson Hotel in the heart of the historic town of Winchester for a weekend of bridge aimed at novice players.
The weekend starts on Friday at 6pm with a sherry reception, followed by dinner and a supervised bridge play session.… Read the rest
I’ve spent a happy hour trawling the internet and produced a list of residential bridge courses for beginners.
HF Holidays have four 3 – 5 night holidays in their 2011 programme, in Bourton-on-the-Water, Malhamdale, Freshwater Bay and Abingworth.
Urchfont Manor Have are running a course from Jan 21 – 23. … Read the rest
If your partner has opened with a bid of 1NT you know they hold 12-14 points (in acol bridge) or 15 – 17 points (in American Standard bridge) and have a balanced hand.
How you respond, depends on the number of points in your own hand and the type of hand you hold.… Read the rest
One of the first thing a beginning bridge player learns is an opening bid of 1 NT.
Remember the opening bid is made by the first person to have 12 or more points in their hand.
You should make an opening bid of 1NT when you
a) have 12 – 14 points in your hand (if you are playing Acol bridge) or 15 – 17 points (if you are playing American Standard Bridge) AND
b) you have a balanced hand (no void, no singleton and no more than one doubleton)
A void = no cards in that suit, a doubleton = only two cards in that suit.… Read the rest
Before you start bidding in a game of bridge you have to start by working out the points value of your hand. You do this by adding up the High Card Points (HCP) value of your hand. It’s easy to do, you count:
4 points for each ace you hold, 3 points for each king, 2 points for each queen and 1 point for each jack.… Read the rest
This is an important definition. If you are opening the bidding, knowing whether your hand is balanced or unbalanced can be key to deciding your opening bid.
What is a Balanced Hand in bridge?
There are four suits in a pack of cards – spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs.… Read the rest
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. … Read the rest
