Archived Tip of the Weeks

A K 9 7 6 4

Learn Bridge - Bridge Lessons - supervised bridge- bridge trip to Israel- educational duplicate bridge weekends- children's bridge course-learn-taster sessions- bridge in a weekend

NOVICES TIP 2

When Counting LOSERS BE OPTIMISTIC- with AXX opposite X you have No Losers since you can ruff after one round

NOVICES TIP 7

Once you decide on plan, try and play in tempo so that you can keep track of what has gone. If you have long periods of trancing midway then you will lose track of your plan. By playing out semi-quickly now, you will be able to count much better

NOVICES TIP 19

If you need to establish a second suit it might be wise to sometimes establish the second suit first if your trumps are a bit rickety.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 19

If partner pre-empts and you have a good hand be prepared to raise partner to game with a singleton in his suit or even a void sometimes. Partner will not need help from you in his LONG suit so all the goodies you offer him outside will be dynamite.

eg partner opens 1© and you hold

ª	A854 raise to 4©
©	2 don't even consider 3NT
¨	AK53 unless you want a new partner
§	AK92 next week

ADVANCED TIP 19

Don't be lazy MAKE NO COST CUE BIDS when you can

ª	Q76 After opening 1NT partner replies 3ª
©	76 bid 4 § cuebid agreeing the Spades and showing MAX
¨	AQ5
§	AQ32
	If you take this on board then every time your partner doesn't cuebid you will know they wont have an ace on the way !!

NOVICES TIP 20

Trumping losers in the short hand adds to your trick tally since you are not depleting your long suit. Conversely trumping in the Long hand doesn't always achieve very much and more often or not it weakens your control of "your" trumps suit. Trumping in is like eating chocolate not always that good for you. Next time you ruff something make sure you are actually achieving something and not just taking the chocolate !!

INTERMEDIATES TIP 20

If you bid in 3rd or 4th seat you can OPEN LIGHT. In third and fourth seat you do not have to have a rebid ready. Since your partner has already passed there is little fear of missing out on anything. You can certainly open all the following hands in 3rd and 4th seats and merely drop out of the auction thereafter.

ª	AQ764	ª	K9	ª	AJ10765
©	762	©	542	©	76
¨	K5	¨	AQJ753	¨	K65
§	432	§	63	§	32
	Open 1ª just		open 1¨		open 1ª

Opening with 1ª is particularly pre-emptive

ADVANCED TIP 20

a) If you partner opens and next hand overcalls 1NT if you have 8/9 points then make a PENALTY DOUBLE immediately to show that you have balance of power.

b) If you bid on after partner opens and the opposition overcalls 1NT you are now showing less than 8 points and could compete on all sorts of rubbish, either supporting partner or freely bidding your own goodish 5 card suits or 6 six card suits

NOVICES TIP 21

If you aren't sure what to bid then best to bid NEW SUIT even if its a three card suit in most scenarios a bid of new suit should be treated as forcing for one round.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 21

In a competitive situation DON'T PUNISH PARTNER for competing. Sometime partners are competing and balancing knowing that you have points. Do not go and spoil it by bidding on.

This is particularly relevant when partner balances in 4th seat causing the opponents to bid on to the three level and you now go and bid one more (UGH) be pleased you have pushed them to three level.

ª	AQ76 After partner passes for 2 rounds he
©	76 suddenly dredges up a bid of 2ª
¨	Q5 after 1© - 2© by the opposition
§	A32 when they now bid 3© be happy to now Pass

ADVANCED TIP 21

If partner leads an Ace and there is a singleton in dummy, then there is little point in making an attitude signal so make a SUIT PREFERENCE Signal at trick 1. Playing a very high card would be asking for a switch to a higher suit and a particularly low card would be saying switch to lower ranking suit. Don't be a slave to signals as sometimes partner is known to hold nothing on the auction so he might not be able to signal anything !!!!!!!!

NOVICES TIP 22

The Double of 1NT opening bid is for PENALTIES and promises one more point than the opponents maximum. Therefore if opponents are playing weak No trump you need 15 to double. and if they are playing 15-17 then you need 18 or more. Partners should stand the double and watch the opponents squirm. This is main disadvantage of weak no trump so make sure you take your penalties when you can. You will be at the receiving ends yourself sometimes.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 22

If the contract belongs to you and your partner and they take a sacrifice

a) make sure you double the final contract

b) lead a trump to cutback their powers of a possible cross ruff

ADVANCED TIP 22

If there seems to be no way to generate an extra trick, then try a dummy reversal, whereby the short hand will eventually become the dominating trump drawing hand because you have done sufficient ruffing in the long hand that the short hand now has more trumps than the long hand originally started with.

NOVICES TIP 23

To Overcall the opponents 1NT opening bid requires a sensible suit either good quality 5 card suit or preferably 6 and LESS than 15 points (probably about 9-14). The reason its less than 15 points is because with 15 you would be doubling especially if you read tip 2 this month. (this tip is the corollary of tip 2)

you can make natural overcalls with all the following hands

ª	AQ765	ª	K9	ª	65
©	76	©	542	©	76
¨	K5	¨	AQJ753	¨	KQ5
§	A32	§	63	§	AJ10953
	overcall 2ª just		overcall 2¨		overcall 2§

INTERMEDIATES TIP 23

Looking for a missing queen and you have a two way finesse, If you want the defender to cover the honour, try leading an honour and if they don't cover as most players might then go up with the Ace or King and finesse on the way back

ADVANCED TIP 23

Even if you are not going to try an endplay it is often good technique to get rid of as many suits as possible from both hands before letting the opposition in and then maybe you will get a pleasant surprise when one of the defenders might give away a trick when they get in

NOVICES TIP 24

If you are going to overcall with a minimum number of points then make sure you SUIT QUALITY is up to scratch- you could even overcall with 6/7 points if you had with 1ª

ª	A K 9 7 6 4
©	7 3 2
¨	5 4
§	3 2

INTERMEDIATES TIP 24

Lead back the higher of two remaining card in partner's suit so partner knows you started with three cards, otherwise play your lowest one back and then he can deduce that you started with 2 (and could not help yourself) or 4. This assumes he is watching all the small cards being played at tricks one and two.

ADVANCED TIP 24

Partner has led a suit in which you have a potentially blocking situation, so seriously consider unblocking at trick 1. Partner leads King promising Queen and Jack and you have A6, you need to play that Ace to avoid blockage or if partner leads the Queen and you have King doubleton again throw away that King on the King immediately.

NOVICES TIP 25

Support Majors but when partner opens a Minor introduce your Major even if you have support for the Minor

INTERMEDIATES TIP 25

Attack when your opponents bid a small slam in a suit. Lead from KXXX or QXXX , you only need partner to turn up with the other high honour to establish one trick or even two for the defence.

ADVANCED TIP 25

Don't take your aces too quickly when you defend, especially in second seat even if there is a singleton in the dummy and you are afraid your Ace might disappear. Declarer will often go wrong when finessing if you are patient with those Aces you are not supposed to hold.

NOVICES TIP 26

Play the lower of touching honours when following suit - NB this is the opposite of leading

INTERMEDIATES TIP 26

Try and work out what partner has led from, if they lead a two its probably 4th best from 4 card suit, if they lead a middling card and there are five in dummy and you have five too its probably a singleton.

ADVANCED TIP 26

Covering Honours and not covering honours is not always easy. If you can see all the touching honours in dummy then don't bother to cover. If there are two touching honours you can cover the second one, but not the first.

NOVICES TIP 27

If there are two touching honours in dummy don't cover first time around. Cover second time around with
                                         QJ95                       if you cover the Queen first time around declarer will be able to finesse your poor partner's

                             1083              K62               10 in a moment. Cover second time around and partner makes his 10

                                        A74

INTERMEDIATES TIP 27

Not sure what to keep then keep the same long suit you can see in dummy - it's known as keeping length with dummy and prevents dummy's long card

becoming a winner

ADVANCED TIP 27

In third seat try to hold back your honour to cover dummy's honour so in situations like this

Q64 partner leads the 2 and dummy plays low play your 9 and hope for the best. If declarer

1032 AJ9 has all the remaining high cards it makes no difference BUT IF partner has the 10 you will now

K875 maintain two tricks for the defence rather than the tricks to declarer

NOVICES TIP 28

Only ruff if its producing extra tricks - ruffing just because it makes you feel good is like taking sugar it just gives you a high and

doesn't necessarily mean you are generating extra tricks, especially if you are ruffing in the long hand

INTERMEDIATES TIP 28

You have 8 trumps but lousy ones including the Ace, why not duck a round of the suit and then you will not lose control of the trump suit.

ADVANCED TIP 28

Counting your losers as well as your winners sometimes pinpoints hidden dangers on the hand. Where you thought you had an easy ride suddenly you see that there could be a problem. Now you can act on it and maybe keep one of the opponents off lead.

NOVICES TIP 29

No entries in the other hand why not ruff something to get to the other hand

INTERMEDIATES TIP 29

Short of entries why not duck a round and keep that precious Ace in the dummy as your entry later, sometimes you might need to duck twice in situations like this A6543

KQ2 J10

987

ADVANCED TIP 29

A ruffing finesse is often better than a simple finesse, because even if it fails you have been able to chuck a loser whilst doing it !!

NOVICES TIP 30

If you have high cards in a suit that you need to ruff do the ruffing early before cashing the high cards . You can always cash those high cards later once you have draw trumps

AKQ65 opposite 7 play your Ace then ruff a low one, return to West to ruff the remaining 5 and later on in the hand you can enjoy the KQ after drawing trumps.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 30

When the defenders try to make you ruff inn the long hnad so depleting your trump length consider discarding and in this way you will not lose control of the trump suit

ADVANCED TIP 30

If you have to make a decision about whether to take ruffing finesse or simple finesse the decide which "nasty" opponent you don't want to get the lead and then take the appropriate finesse through them so

AQJ10 if East is the safe hand and West the "nasty" opponent AQJ10 if West is the safe hand and East is now

do the simple finesse the nasty opponent do the ruffing finesse

9 9

NOVICES TIP 31

When you try and evaluate a hand don't just look at the points, look at the points and consider if they are "Good Points" or "Bad Points" QJ54 is not so good as QJ109 and both these suits are "only" 3 points. Which of the following hands would you rather have ? a) ♠ A654 ♥ K86 ♦ Q32 ♣ J54 (10 points) a) ♠ 54 ♥ 86 ♦ 432 ♣ AKQ542 (9 points). The first hand has lousy balanced 10 points with no potential whereas the second hand has a great 9 points with potential of 6 tricks

INTERMEDIATES TIP 31

Don't raise partner's second suit unless you have 4 card support

ADVANCED TIP 31

Playing Match Point Pairs, if partner offers two suits and the first suit is a Major promising five cards, prefer to give "False preference" to the first suit holding two cards in the first suit and three in the second. You want to be playing in the 5:2 Major fit rather than the 4:3 Minor fit.

NOVICES TIP 32

Sometimes you need to get your second suit established before touching trumps. Leaving a trump on the table by not drawing them means you cannot be as easily forced by the opposition

INTERMEDIATES TIP 32

Most of the time when you have choice between a ruffing finesse and a simple finesse it is best to take the ruffing finesse option. Even if the rufing finesse fails you have managed to chuck a loser elsewhere and you have set up a winner from the ruffing finesse for later.

ADVANCED TIP 32

If you think that there might be a chance that you will be overruffed throw away a loser elsewhere instead- loser on loser. Now you retain all your trumps and the other loser disappears.

NOVICES TIP 33

If somebody initially passes and then turns up with 10 points you know he will not have any more since he didn't open in the first place.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 33

Once dummy comes down add your points to dummy's points and take the total from 40 to tell you have many points the opposition have between them (see Novices tip this week)

ADVANCED TIP 33

Before tackling trumps sometimes it is a good idea to try a finesse elsewhere to decide how to actually play the trump suit. If your finesse outside has worked then you can take the safety play in trumps, if the finesse has failed then you might need to take a straight finesse in trumps too avoiding any possible safety play.

NOVICES TIP 34

If partner leads a Jack against 3NT and there are only low cards in dummy and you have the Ace or King make sure you put it on partner's Jack. He might have led from KJ109 or AJ109 and you do not want declarer getting away with blue murder by winning the first trick with the Queen. If declarer doesn't have the Ace and Queen sticking your King on will not cost

INTERMEDIATES TIP 34

If your partner didn't open 1NT then you can rule out that he has a balanced hand with 12-14 points. There is so much to learn from bids that aren't made as well as bids that are.

ADVANCED TIP 34

Don't double borderline part scores that might only go one off. If they make you have given away a certain bottom and if they go off you will still get a relatively good score.

NOVICES TIP 35

Not sure what to lead then eliminate what you can't lead, avoid leading from tenaces and unsupported honours and more often than not you will arrive at what you can lead

INTERMEDIATES TIP 35

Two suits of equal length and you are leading against No Trumps then lead from the better suit as you need less from partner to make the suit good so with choice of leading from J642 or K642 lead from the K642 suit

ADVANCED TIP 35

If you drop high honour on partner's Ace lead it shows either a singleton, and, of course you could not help yourself or that you hold the honour below it. If partner leads Ace and you have QJ64 play the Queen and then partner knows you have Jack and if need be he could underlead his remaining King to get you in. (You are telling him you have an entry)

NOVICES TIP 36

If Spades is your suit never be afraid of bidding one more because you have the boss suit and you will not need to increase the level when you outbid the opposition- Be competitive with this boss suit.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 36

Support with 3 card support rather than reply 1NT especially if you have a doubleton elsewhere. The doubleton and three card support gives you some ruffing values.

ADVANCED TIP 36

After the opposition makes an informative Double you as partner of the opener should now be prepared to make weak raises in openers' suit so now 1♥ - Double 2♥ shows 4-5 points

1♥ - Double 3♥ shows 6-9 points

1♥ - Double 2NT should now show good raise in partner's suit

NOVICES TIP 37

With 4 or 5 rubbishy cards (a suit with no honours) against a No Trump contract prefer to lead 2nd highest and then a low one next and then partner will know you have not led from a good suit

INTERMEDIATES TIP 37

If opponents end up in the third suit after bidding three suits lead a trump

ADVANCED TIP 37

A direct raise of 1♠ to 4♠ or 1♥ to 4♥ should be done with WEAK DISTRIBUTIONAL hands two five card suits and no more than 6/7 points. The aim of the bid is two fold. Firstly, you might make the contract. Secondly, you might cut the opposition out if the contract might belong to them should they have the balance of points.

NOVICES TIP 38

The only time you might think of overcalling on a four card suit is if you have three honours such as AKQ6 or KQJ7 or AKJ3. The hand just about meets the SQOT test.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 38

If you are going to win a trump trick anyway with a holding such as K104 or Q104 consider not overtrumping and perhaps your one trump trick will turn into two trump tricks.

ADVANCED TIP 38

Don't finesse empty honours. If you have J65 opposite AQ42 lead the low one towards the Queen. Leading the unsupported Jack will just mean the opposition will cover to promote their 10 or 9.

NOVICES TIP 39

1NT reply is not just a reply showing 6-9 points balanced , it is also a catchall dustbin bid showing poor hand when you aren't able to go to the 2 level with hands like

♠ 32 or ♠ void

♥ 54 even ♥ 653

♦ Q9874 ♦ AJ654

♣ KJ42 ♣ Q5432

INTERMEDIATES TIP 39

If you are going to win a trump trick anyway with a holding such as K104 or Q104 consider not overtrumping and perhaps your one trump tricks will turn into two trump tricks.

ADVANCED TIP 39

If the opposition has found a fit at the 2 level make sure you balance as you cannot afford to let them make +110

NOVICES TIP 40

After making a pre-empt do not bid again as you have made a limit bid and now you must leave all decisions to partner.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 40

want to make a forward going strong bid then employ a fourth suit forcing bid .

ADVANCED TIP 40

Use Culbertson's Law of Distribution. If your hand and the dummy hand is very distributional with a singleton in either hand then expect the opponents' hands to be distributed strangely too. Expect your trump suit to break 3:1 and not 2:2.

NOVICES TIP 41

If dummy has a long suit try to get it established so you can get all your extra tricks from that nice long suit

INTERMEDIATES TIP 41

Trying to get your long suit going and short of entries to get to it, then duck a round and retain the high card Ace or King in situations like this

AK8542 opposite 93

ADVANCED TIP 41

Choice of ruffing finesse or simple finesse then its probably best to go for the ruffing finesse because even if ruffing finesse fails you can still throw away a loser from the other hand while you are doing the ruffing finesse

NOVICES TIP 42

With grotty trumps such as A654 opposite 8732 so that you do not lose control of the suit play a low card from each hand and retain that most valuable Ace .

INTERMEDIATES TIP 42

Trying to get your long suit going and short of entries to get to it, then duck a round and retain the high card Ace or King in situations like this

AK8542 opposite 93

ADVANCED TIP 42

If you have a vulnerable holding that you do not want the defenders to lead through eg K65 opposite 432 you do not want the defenders to be leading through your king (you want to be last person to play) so when playing other suits, try to lose the lead to the safe hand

NOVICES TIP 43

When you know you have a trump loser it is often better to lose that trick early rather then later.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 43

You can often prevent a trump promotion by discarding losers on losers rather than being in a hurry to ruff.

ADVANCED TIP 43

When the defenders try to make you ruff in the long hand and seriously deplete your trump holding consider discarding instead and maintaining your trump length.

NOVICES TIP 44

When you have a good fit of 4:4 or 5:4 or 5:5 and a reciprocal shortage facing length in the side suits consider a CROSS RUFF and trying to make all your trumps separately

INTERMEDIATES TIP 44

If you notice declarer doesn't draw trumps, when you get in, attack declarer's trumps suit and draw two for one.

ADVANCED TIP 44

In order to keep communications open between your hand and dummy, when you have the Ace with two or three small cards facing a doubleton try ducking the first round of the suit.

NOVICES TIP 45

If you have entry problems because of a lack of high cards generally, then you might need to delay drawing trumps and to use the actual trump suit as the entries to transport yourself from one hand to the other. This is particularly applicable if you need to establish another suit.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 45

Be aware that you might have more entries than you originally thought in situations like this AQJ52 Opposite K1063 - if the suit breaks no worse then 3:1 then you have three entries to the K1063 side if you need an extra entry -the six can beat the 5 and two.

ADVANCED TIP 45

Be prepared to hold up your Ace more often even if a singleton is showing in dummy. Declarer who might have KJ in the closed hand will very likely now finesse the Jack not expecting you to hold up. If declarer has all the winning cards (KQJ) by holding up the suit, it is not yet established. Going in with the Ace straight away just helps declarer out more.

NOVICES TIP 46

If you are second player you should play low on a low card and not waste your honour on a low card

INTERMEDIATES TIP 46

If in doubt, continue the suit led and don't open up new suits that might help declarer more than the defence.

ADVANCED TIP 46

Follow partner's defence especially if they make a strange switch. Continue their suit and get a pleasant surprise when they ruff because they switched to a less than obvious singleton.

NOVICES TIP 47

If you overcall more often, sometimes you will find fit with partner and be able to take a worthwhile sacrifice when partner subsequently supports you.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 47

If you are lucky enough to have two suits and the opposition have found a fit then introduce your other suit as you too will also have a fit and may be able to outbid them especially if that other suit is Spades.

ADVANCED TIP 47

If you do a direct cuebid over their opener it is of course Michaels Cue Bid. However if you DOUBLE JUMP CUE BID then its saying please bid 3NT if you have stopper in opener's suit- I have good hand and good source of tricks. Maybe the bidding has gone 1♥ and you have

♠ K7 you fancy your chances in 3NT as long as partner has a Heart stopper so jump to 3♥ now

♥ 54

♦ AKQJ764

♣ A5

NOVICES TIP 48

Try to take photographic picture of your hand so that you can reconstruct it in the middle when you are trying to remember what has gone. If you remember that you started with 5 trumps and you have three left then you will be able to deduce that two rounds have gone so eight cards have gone.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 48

Not sure which way to take your two way finesse with KJ109 in the closed hand and A543 in dummy then try playing the Jack from the closed hand and if they don't cover (NB Most people will cover even if they shouldn't) go up with the Ace and finesse the other person on the way back.

ADVANCED TIP 48

You have all winners left bar one try ending up in the closed hand at trick 12 and maybe the opponents will save the wrong card.

NOVICES TIP 49

As declarer when you are winning the trick and you have AKQ of the suit win with the Ace and then you will remember the other two are high more easily and keep track of the suit

INTERMEDIATES TIP 49

If you want to create an illusion and you have AKQ of a suit win the trick with the Ace and you might well fool the defenders who might think the other defender has the missing high honours.

ADVANCED TIP 49

Dummy has a singleton and partner has led an Ace make sure you now give a SUIT PREFERENCE signal. No point in encouraging or discouraging or giving the count so best to say what suit you want your partner to switch to now J

NOVICES TIP 50

Even with 10 points, NO BID when partner opens 1NT as the total is never going to be more than 24 and if you bid 2NT partner should treat that as invitational and will bid 3NT with a maximum 14 count. If they have just 12 and Pass then 8 tricks is going to be an uphill struggle. BE DISCIPLINED HERE & PASS

INTERMEDIATES TIP 50

Even if you haven’t got top trumps still draw trumps especially if you have good outside strength that you do not want the opponents to ruff

ADVANCED TIP 50

Really stuck for a lead in No Trumps, and nothing appeals, then lead dummy's second suit and very often you will find a delighted partner sitting over dummy with a good holding in that suit.

NOVICES TIP 51

With Ace or Ace Queen opposite K1098762 play off the Ace early before it blocks you

INTERMEDIATES TIP 51

Be competitive and sometimes you push the opponents out of their comfort zone.

ADVANCED TIP 51

Partner opens with weak 2ª and next player says Double be prepared to rush the auction with jump to 4ªand be disruptive further.

NOVICES TIP 52

Sometimes you need to set up your send suit before drawing trumps. You might need the trumps for entries.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 52

If you have long solid seven or more card Minor such as

♠ 57

♥ 54

♦ AKQJ765

♣ 35

and no outside strength instead of opening 3♦ Open 3NT and this is an even more effective pre-empt

ADVANCED TIP 52

Fourth suit forcing says “TELL ME MORE ABOUT YOUR SHAPE” do you now have 5 or even 3 card support for one of my suits. Bid your shape out

NOVICES TIP 53

Not sure where to win the tricks when drawing trumps then try and keep as many entries as possible in the hand with hardly any entries at the start of play. So if one hand has 7 entries and the other hand has only 2 then try and keep the two entries in the hand that started with two.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 53

If you open with a weak two or a weak three this is a limit bid and you should not bid again unless partner forces you to do so or invites you. All decisions rest with partner - do not take phantom sacrifices in a competitive auction and certainly don't make any fatuous Doubles

ADVANCED TIP 53

Not sure which way to take you two way finesse with AJ1095 in one hand and K832 in the other if the Jack is in the closed hand why not start with the Jack- you will be surprised how many people will cover (even if they shouldn't) and if they don't cover then go yo with dummy's King and finesse on the way back- its not guaranteed but its better than nothing :)

NOVICES TIP 54

INTERMEDIATES TIP 54

ADVANCED TIP 54

NOVICES TIP 55

With KQ4 opposite J10832 don't forget to play the King Queen first so as not to block the suit- when you don't have the top card in a suit the High Card from the short hand principle still holds good.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 55

If you overcall more often then you are helping partner with a lead- of course don't overcall if you do not want a suit led J

ADVANCED TIP 55

If you overcall then your side will be in a good position to know when to take a viable sacrifice- Why give them a free run ?

NOVICES TIP 56

In No Trump, Don't leave singleton King or Queen in dummy as it is completely exposed to attack from the defenders in situations like this K5 or Q6 go up with the honour and hope that the leader has led from

Q64 K72 the Ace- then your remaining holding has some sort of protection and now it is a matter

of keeping Right hand opponent off lead (West becomes the safe hand)

INTERMEDIATES TIP 56

They lead and from dummy you should low play most of the time as this will certainly yield a high card from third player and you will be better placed.

ADVANCED TIP 56

Partner bids 4NT followed by 5NT confirming all key cards are held in the partnership and you have a good secondary suit such as KQ765 of a suit you can go directly to the Grand Slam now as partner is unaware that you are handing partner 5 tricks outside on a plate.

NOVICES TIP 57

Dummy has K432 and you have singleton 5 and left hand opponent leads the Queen- do not play the King. Play low and if you ruff enough times the Ace will fall from right hand opponent. Surely the leader has not led from the Ace so you know the Ace is on your right so little point in playing the King at trick 1 so in situations like this you will eventually establish a trick

K432

QJ1076 A109

INTERMEDIATES TIP 57

Stuck for a bid when Overcalling THINK INFORMATIVE DOUBLE especially if you have four cards in the unbid Major with hands like

♠ Q876 ♥ 72 ♦ AKJ83 ♣ Q6 over 1♥ Double is much better than mere 2♦

ADVANCED TIP 57

If you are short in opponents' suit by overcalling you are more likely to induce them to bid one more, defending 3♥ is better than defending 2♥

NOVICES TIP 58

If you reply in a NEW suit that is FORCING so even if you have 18 or 19 points you can just bid 1♠ over partner's 1♥ bid and you know the auction will not die

INTERMEDIATES TIP 58

In Blackwood or Roman Key Card Blackwood you must not initiate 5NT for Kings unless you know you have all the Aces held in the partnership. If you only have three and think you can still make a small slam you just bid it. Bidding 5NT says you are interested in the Grand Slam and you would not be interested in the Grand Slam with an Ace missing would you ?☺

ADVANCED TIP 58

When you are strong in an Opponent's Suit you pass without any trancing, hesitation or for that matter any reaction whatsoever. so with

♠ KQ1086 ♥ AJ2 ♦ AQ3 ♣ 76 you PASS when they open 1♠ There is no other bid known to man or bridge player and don't even dream

of bidding 1NT

NOVICES TIP 59

Don't rescue partner, don't suffer from singleton syndrome so with ♠ KQ1086 ♥ 2 ♦ Q432 ♣ Q63 having replied 1♠ to partner's Opening bid of 1♥ they then rebid 2♥ now NO BID and don't panic - they must have six if not 7 so why panic ?

INTERMEDIATES TIP 59

Adopt Unassuming Cue bids and then all raises of partner's suit can be weak and less weak and good raise can be made by bidding the opponent's suit.

ADVANCED TIP 59

Minor suit partials and slams are fine even at Matchpoints if they give you a chance of a positive score. Sometimes the field goes overboard and end up minus trying for un-makeable games, or stop in Games when you are bidding onto the Minor Suit Slam.

On the other hand Minor suit games are seldom correct as 9 tricks will materialize in 3NT when only 10 tricks were available in the Minor suit

NOVICES TIP 60

Not sure what has gone, then try and remember what you started with. So if you started with five hearts and you only have two left then you can work out that you must have played three rounds.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 60

Not sure which way to take the two way finesse try advancing the Jack from the closed and maybe one of the opposition might cover, If they don't go up with the Ace or King showing in dummy then finesse on the way back.

ADVANCED TIP 60

Squeeze play is not particularly easy. So if trumps are not relevant why not play off all the remaining trumps and see how the opposition squirm and they might not be able to guard the crucial suit between them.

NOVICES TIP 61

You have strength in declarer's main suit which doesnt end up as trumps then LEAD A TRUMP

INTERMEDIATES TIP 61

With 109 opposite AQJ84 when finessing play the 10 and let it run then you will still be in that hand (assuming the finesse has been successful) to repeat the finesse again.

ADVANCED TIP 61

Not sure what to play next why not duck the Ace and declarer might misguess where the Ace is

NOVICES TIP 62

If the bidding goes 1♣ 3♣ it shows 10-12 points and 4 card support so if the bidding goes 1♣ 1♥

2 ♣ 3♣

responder will still have 10-12 points as you have reached same destination in the auction of 3♣

INTERMEDIATES TIP 62

If you Double then bid your suit later you are showing 17+ points and Six card suit.

ADVANCED TIP 62

If opposition outbids you and the contract belongs to you don’t forget to DOUBLE THEM !! J

NOVICES TIP 63

If the opposition opens the bidding and you have balanced 19 points becaseu you are too strong for a 1NT overcall (ie16-18) start with INFORMATIVE DOUBLE and then bid No Trumps at your next opportunity and partner should be able to deduce that you have 19+ points.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 63

Every time you OVERCALL Think INFORMATIVE Double and maybe you will use it more often

ADVANCED TIP 63

Partner leads an Ace and in dummy there is a singleton make sure you make a SUIT PREFERENCE SIGNAL at trick one. There is no point in making any other signal now. So a high card will ask for a switch to the higher of the remaining two suits (barring trumps) and a low card will ask for a switch to the lower of the two remaining two suits (barring trumps).

NOVICES TIP 64

You started life with a six or seven card trump suit and you have inadvertently lost count of how many trumps have gone. As you still have three left ,draw an extra round just in case there is still one out. This is known as drawing lurkers.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 64

Your partner has just raised you 1© opening bid to 2© and you would like to invite then USE TRIAL BIDS rather than go a wishy washy 3© because sometimes it is hard to judge whether or not to go onto Game. Sometimes you maximum 9 points will not be the right 9 points and sometimes your minimum 6 points will suffice. With Trial Bids you merely bid the suit you where you need assistance. If partner has the assistance they bid 4 and if they don't they retreat to 3.

ADVANCED TIP 64

If you play Trial Bids (see tip above) then this frees the bid of 3© or 3♠ to be used destructively. Therefore the sequence 1♠ - 2♠ - 3♠ is now used pre-emptively to distress the opposition and to stop the from easily balancing especially if your suit is Hearts and you no longer give them the breathing space to come in with 2♠. They might be reticent to do so over the sequence 1© - 2© - 3© J

NOVICES TIP 65

It there are touching honours on show in the dummy then don't bother to cover the Honour with the Honour because the card you are trying to promote for your defending side is on show for all to see in the dummy.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 65

In a an artificial sequence such as the opponents using Stayman or Transfers don't forget to Double the artificial bid if you would like that suit led.

ADVANCED TIP 65

To create a trick for partner by covering an honour played, partner will generally need to have three or more cards in the suit. If he is marked with less by the bidding it rarely pays to cover especially in the trump suit in situations like this :-

Q 7 4 2 Here it would be fatal to put you King on dummy's Queen crashing partner's singleton Ace

A K 8 5

J 10 9 6 3

NOVICES TIP 66

With a minimum hand 54 distribution do not show the second suit if the second suit is beyond your barrier bid otherwise partner will think you are stronger (It is known as a reverse) so with


ª	A Q 5 4 open 1© and reluctantly rebid 2 © if partner bids 2 of a Minor
©	K J 9 6 5
¨	K 3
§	54

INTERMEDIATES TIP 66

Upgrade 14 point hands with 5332 if all your honours are in the five card suit and treat it like a 15 count and open 1 of a suit intending to rebid in No Trumps

ADVANCED TIP 66

Not sure if you hand is worth a 2© or a 3© response use the Losing Trick Count to sway you one way or the other. It often solves difficult decisions

NOVICES TIP 67

Having honours in your long suit pull their weight much more than having honours in the shorter suit AQ4 has potential of two tricks whereas AQ8754 has the potential of 5/6 tricks.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 67

only use Michaels Cue Bids and Unusual No Trump with either very weak hands (6-10) or very strong hand (17+) otherwsie partner will not be able to judge the rest of the auction

ADVANCED TIP 67

To judge whether a hand is worth a Gam try then use Tony Forrester's brilliant tip from Secrets of My Success " That if you can give partner two specific cards totalling 6HCPs and Game is a good bet then you should make a Game try by using a trial bid but if that is not enough then do not invite Game

NOVICES TIP 68

Responder replies 1ª followed by 2ª this is a very minimum hand and Opener should respect Opener's wishes and only bid on with 18/19 points . Most of the time opener should now Pass.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 68

A JUMP in a NEW SUIT by Opener is GAME FORCING and responder has to keep bidding- it shows a hand containing 19+ points (even stronger than a reverse such as

ª	A K J 6 4 open 1ª and rebid 3§
©	A 4
¨	7 2
§	A Q J 4

ADVANCED TIP 68

You can support opener's suit with three card support if you have ruffing values or partner is promising five card BUT to SUPPORT Opener's SECOND Suit you should now have 4 card support since Opener's suit might only be a four card suit

NOVICES TIP 69

If you have four card suits and partner Opens the bidding you need to bid up the line and bid the first available suit - if you BYPASS a suit then partner is entitled to think you do not have that suit unless you are very strong and 5:4 in shape and will be that other suit later so with

ª	J 6 4 reply 1¨ when partner has opened 1§
©	A K6 5
¨	Q 9 7 2
§	3 4

INTERMEDIATES TIP 69

Giving preference is not the same as supporting and it is your duty to give preference however bad your hand is so with

ª	K J 6 4 3 when partner opens 1© you reply 1ª then partner rebids 2¨
©	4 2 you must remember to put partner back to 2© because partner must have bid his longest suit first so you PREFER
¨	Q 2 Hearts to Diamonds
§	7 6 5 4

ADVANCED TIP 69

Sometimes you will need to give FALSE PREFERENCE especially if you are playing Match Points so with

ª	K J 6 4 2 when partner opens 1© you reply 1ª then partner rebids 2¨
©	4 2 you should put partner back to 2© because partner must have bid his longest suit
¨	Q 7 2 and now you would prefer to play in the known 5:2 fit rather than the 4:3 fit as Hearts scores better than Diamonds
§	7 6 5 +110 or +140 ids so much better than +90 or even +110

NOVICES TIP 70

If your partner passed originally and then they reply afterwards it is NO LONGER FORCING and Opener is off the hook in having a rebid ready so with

ª	A K J 6 4 having opened 1ª after an initial Pass by partner when partner then
©	6 5 4 replies 2© you can now Pass as 4 is a long way off, even if responder
¨	K J 9 had a maximum Pass in the first place.
§	3 4

INTERMEDIATES TIP 70

Not sure what to bid next then Use NMF (NEW MINOR FORCING so with

ª	K 6 4 when you open 1© partner replies 1ª Now rebid 2¨ despite having only three
©	A K J 4 2 Rebidding NT without Club stopper is not totally satisfactory and using the NMF enables
¨	A Q 2 responder to give delayed Heart support, rebid Spades or even do a fourth suit forcing bid
§	7 2 NB Responder can also use NMF when he is stuck for a bid too,

ADVANCED TIP 70

1NT - 3§ or 3¨ reply of course is very strong Game Forcing BUT SHOULD DENY Four or five cards Major otherwise responder could have gone the Stayman route or a transfer route first so when partner opens 1NT and you have

ª	K 9 6 4
©	A 2 prefer to use Stayman here
¨	A K Q 7 5 2
§	7

NOVICES TIP 71

After an Opening bid of 2NT there are no weak take-out bids unless you are playing transfers. So with weak hand just pass. If its a long Major you might chance you arm and bid 4ª or 4© directly

INTERMEDIATES TIP 71

If partner makes a trial bid and you cannot help in the trial bid suit but you can still help in a suit that can be bid lower than 3 of the agreed trump suit

ª	6 4 you reply 2© to 1© and then partner makes trial bid of 2ª
©	K 9 4 2 rather than just going back to 3ª Bid 3¨ on the way to show some sort of help in Diamonds
¨	A Q 2
§	9 87 2

ADVANCED TIP 71

Partner jumps to 3ª after you open 1NT and you have

ª	K 9 6 don't forget to make ADVANCED CUE BID and say 4¨ to show Diamond Ace and fit in spades
©	A 2 It would be very lazy just to go 4ª
¨	A K 5 2 Bidding 4¨ says you are very happy to have a dialogue in possible slam
§	7 5 4 3

NOVICES TIP 72

If somebody leads a 2 against a No Trump contract if it is their 4th highest then you immediately know they only have four card suit and you immediately know distribution around the table of that suit. You also know that the person on lead has a balanced hand too as his longest suit is only a four card suit.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 72

If the bidding goes 1§ 3§ then much of the time if opener has a good hand they should now bid 3NT rather than go off into 5 . Who wants to make 11 tricks when 9 tricks could be so much easier ? so on following hand having opened 1§ and received a raise to the three level now bid 3NT

ª	6 4
©	K 9 4 take a chance that partner has a spade stopper - after all they have to have their 10-12 points somewhere don't they ?
¨	A Q 2
§	A K 9 8 7 2

ADVANCED TIP 72

If an opponent voluntarily drops an honour then the other defender is twice as likely to have the other missing honour and using restricted choice theory you should now finesse the other player in situations like this :-


	A K 9 5
J 8 6	Q queen falls when you play the Ace- now disregard the eight Ever nine never rule and come back to hand
	10 7 4 3 2 and finesse West for missing Jack

NOVICES TIP 73

If you are playing off a long suit from hand or dummy then from the other hand keep another long suit that might also produce winners.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 73

In 4th seat with Light Openers use the rule of 15 to encourage you to bid on the right hand and to stop you bidding light on the wrong hand where you open the door for the opposition. Add your HCPs and the number of spades you have and if the total is 15 or more GO FOR IT - if not throw the hand in

ª	A 7 5 2 ª 6 5
©	Q 9 4 Open 1C as total is © Q 9 4 throw hand in
¨	6 5 11+3 = 15 ¨ A J 9 8 7 2 11-2 = only 13
§	A J 9 8 7 § A 7 5 2 you do not want to give them opportunity to compete now with
	the Majors (Open Door Policy)

ADVANCED TIP 73

You and your partner bid a Minor and the opposition overcalls in a Major. You still fancy chances of 3NT . Use DAB Directional Asking Bid ie you bid the opposition's suit looking for a stopper in that suit - if partner has the necessary stopper than can now bid 3NT.

NOVICES TIP 74

If in doubt bid one more especially at the two level- if you bid to the three level maybe the opponents will bid one more and be out of their comfort zone.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 74

If you are thinking of bidding on miserable 5 points think it through- If partner is going to scream at you when your hand comes down at dummy then DON'T if not then go for it (or if your hand is likely to be concealed then go for it

ª	A 10 7 5 ª A 10 9 8 6 5
©	J 9 4 JUST PASS BUT © 9 4 certainly bid 1ª
¨	6 5 4 nothing going ¨ 3 2 very good suit and you will be ending up as declarer
§	7 6 4 for this hand § 7 5 2 if partner rebids 3NT as you will go 4ª

ADVANCED TIP 74

If a Minor suit has been agreed such as 1 3 then the introduction of new suit is looking for 3NT or possible slam. Partner with values in an unbid suit at three level is expected to bid that suit so you can bid 3NT next.

you have

ª	6 4
©	K 9 4 you open 1§ and partner goes 3§ so now bid 3 looking to partner to bid 3¨ and then you can bid 3NT
¨	A K 2 you do not really want to be in 3NT with the opponents taking the first 5 tricks in Spades do you ?
§	A K 9 8 7

NOVICES TIP 75

What should you do over the opposition's weak opening 2 or 3 Bid. Do the same as if they had opened 1 of a suit. Still make
a) sensible overcalls in a suit

b) 1NT with 16 -18 POINTS AND BALANCED (16-18 BUT OVER A PRE-EMPTIVE 3 BID MAYBE 17-19 WOULD BE BETTER)

c) Informative Double.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 75

Use the SQOT guideline for sensible overcalls- Add the Honours in the suit you are considering overcalling in plus the number of cards in that suit and the total needs to come to tricks required.

ª	A Q 7 5 2 over 1ª here 5 Spades plus two honours ª 7 6 4 do not overcall 2 now
©	K 9 4 = Seven - Yes OK BUT © 8 4 5 + 2 = 7 - NO Not OK
¨	8 4 ¨ K 9 4
§	7 6 4 § A Q 7 5 2

ADVANCED TIP 75

If you have strong support for opener's second suit and not sure what to bid next use fourth suit forcing as a means to an end

ª	A 10 7 5 2 you reply 1ª to partner's opening bid of 1¨ and then miracle of miracles they rebid 2©
©	K J 9 4 you should now rebid 3§ to see what partner does next
¨	A 4
§	7 6 4

NOVICES TIP 76

To overcall 1NT you need a balanced 16-18 points so if you have any sort of balanced 13/14 or even poor 15 point hand JUST PASS.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 76

Prefer to play weak jump overcalls rather than strong because picking up strong 16 point hands is much less likely that 6-10 point hands with six card suit and you get into the auction much more quickly and weak jumps are much more fun to play

ADVANCED TIP 76

Play the Gambling 3NT opening bid which shows a solid seven card Minor with no outside defensive tricks so with

ª	5 2 Open 3NT and be an unfriendly destructive opponent.
©	9 4
¨	A K Q J 8 6 5
§	7 6

NOVICES TIP 77

To make a pre-emptive overcall you need to make a double jump for it to be a pre-emptive bid so over 3© then 3ª or 4¨ or 4§ would all be deemed to be pre-emptive overcalls

INTERMEDIATES TIP 77

After partner makes an informative double MAKE SURE you do a jump in new suit if you have 8 or more points. With 0-7 you would merely bid your best suit.

ADVANCED TIP 77

With 11 or 12 playing tricks needing partner to have specific Ace Open 4NT which says NAME THAT ACE. so with

ª	Open 4NT - if partner has Heart Ace and bids 5© you can bid 7¨
©	K Q J 10 - if they have no Ace (5§) you can bid 6¨
¨	A K Q J 10 6 5 - and if they have two Aces (5NT reply) you can bid 7NT
§	A K

NOVICES TIP 78

With J976 opposite AQ108 when finessing be aware that your QJ109876 are all equal cards and that you should play the Jack or 9 and let it run . Now if the finesse works you are still in the right hand to repeat a winning finesse.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 78

If opposition opens and you have a balanced hand with 19+ points start with DOUBLE and then bid No Trumps later and partner should be able to deduce you have this number of points. With 16-18 you would have bid 1NT straight away and with less you would just have passed.

ADVANCED TIP 78

When declarer leads low towards dummy's KQ10 and you are sitting over dummy with A87 duck the first round when the King wins and declarer might very well finesse your partner again for the missing Ace and now you can put on the Ace and maybe partner's Jack will be promoted when the cards are around the table as follows :-

KQ10

J32 A87

9654

NOVICES TIP 79

With three small cards if you are on lead try playing the MUD convention (Middle Up Down) rather than top of rubbish. So with 853 play the 5 followed by the 8. By doing that partner will know for sure when you are leading from a Doubleton and when you aren't

INTERMEDIATES TIP 79

If opposition opens and you have a huge one suited hand (maybe 18+ points and good six card suit) start with DOUBLE and then bid your suit later and partner should be able to deduce you have this number of points. With less you would have made a mere simple overcall from the start (simple overcalls promising from 8/9 up to about 16/17).

ADVANCED TIP 79

Looking for a queen and you have a two way finesse available, if one person has already shown considerable length in a different suit (maybe they pre-empted or bid a suit twice or partner showed out in that suit, then they are likely to be short in your crucial suit where the finesse needs to be taken and the longer hand is twice as likely to have the Queen, so, if in doubt and for no other reason, finesse that person for the missing Queen.

NOVICES TIP 80

Remember the bidding to help you work out who has what and more often than not it can be very revealing to help you place the opponents' high cards.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 80

Somebody leads a small card against your suit contract you immediately know they don't really have a good lead- they will not hold any AK combination or other decent honour sequence.

ADVANCED TIP 80

Before committing to a play in a suit test the waters elsewhere. If a finesse in another suit is working then you may be able to take a safety play in the first suit. If it doesn't work then you may have to take a finesse in the first suit as well.

NOVICES TIP 81

a) If you double their opening bid of 1NT it shows 15+ points and it is for penalties
b) if responder Doubles the 1NT overcall, this too is for Penalties and responder is showing 8+ points (opposite known 13)

INTERMEDIATES TIP 81

About to overruff the opposition, think again and consider discarding a loser elsewhere. (A loser on Loser Play). This will often avoid the embarrassment of a trump promotion (sometimes called an uppercut)

ADVANCED TIP 81

You have top cards in one suit opposite a singleton but need to establish the suit, try taking one top card then ruffing a small card. The other top cards can always be enjoyed later.

NOVICES TIP 82

With two five timers in all situations, whether opening, replying or overcalling you bid the higher suit first (HIGH FIVES)

INTERMEDIATES TIP 82

After intervention all raises of partner's suit should now be weak and pre-emptive as follows

N E S W

1© 1ª 2© should now be just 3/4 points and

1© 1ª 3© should be 6-9

with more use an Unassuming Cue bid ie bid 2ª

ADVANCED TIP 82

When the bidding goes 1© 2§ NO NO then it is incumbent on Opener to reopen the bidding at all costs with a Double, especially if they have just one or two Hearts. Partner might just be waiting to say Double for Penalties and you will be doing it for him.!!!!!

NOVICES TIP 83

A Jump in a new suit by opener is GAME FORCING and promises 18/19 points because responder is initially only promising 6 so with

ª	A Q 10 7 You open 1¨ and partner replies 1©
©	K 5 you can now make a jump bid of 2ª and this is now Game Forcing
¨	K Q J 10 6
§	A 3

INTERMEDIATES TIP 83

Partner makes an Informative double and you have very weak hand and length in opener's suit and you are not strong enough to convert it to Penalties then under duress you will have to bid a three card suit so with

ª	8 7
©	Q 7 6 After 1¨ Partner Doubles you have no choice but to REACT with 1©
¨	7 6 4 3 2
§	6 5 4

ADVANCED TIP 83

When the bidding has gone 1ª 2§ NO NO it is incumbent on Opener to reopen the auction at all costs with a DOUBLE especially if they have 1 or less clubs. Partner could easily be waiting to CONVERT your reopening Double.

NOVICES TIP 84

Unless there is a very good reason you should ALWAYS RETURN YOUR PARTNER'S SUIT (ARYPS). Partner could be getting his suit established, or partner might be getting a ruff because they have led from shortage and finally it is good for partnership morale to respect your partner's lead.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 84

ELIMINATION ELIMINATION ELIMINATION. - if you set about eliminating all side suits after drawing trumps it yields dividends more often than not and opponents will do you dirty work in the problem suit that you have avoided playing so far.

ADVANCED TIP 84

Try to RUFF with the WEAKER trumps and use the TOP TRUMPS for DRAWING TRUMPS

NOVICES TIP 85

You have a singleton or doubleton in the hand with fewer trumps (usually dummy) then this is clear sign to delay drawing trumps and do some ruffing in the short hand first while you have some trumps there.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 85

You have good trumps between the two hands and a good side suit that needs establishing then more often than not you will need to dislodge an opponents Ace or King in that side suit first, keeping trumps in both hands so you cannot be forced.

NOVICES TIP 86

After partner makes an informative double and you merely bid your best suit this shows 0-7 points only. If you have more REMEMBER to JUMP in your BEST SUIT.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 86

In the balancing seat you can BORROW a king so when the bidding goes 1♥ NO NO ? now you can bid with 3 less points (ie a King) ie you can join is with as few as 8 /9 with a suit overcall and in this position 1nT is only 10-14

ADVANCED TIP 86

Don't be a slave to Signals THINK FOR YOURSELF - don't stop thinking when partner signals see Barry Westra's Bols tip don't follow partner's signals blindly http://www.haroldschogger.com/westra.htm

ADVANCED TIP 85

Defend Slams by attacking while Game contracts can be defended passively. For more pointers on this Garozzo tip see Bols Tip

www.haroldschogger.com/garrozo.htm

NOVICES TIP 86

After partner makes an informative double and you merely bid your best suit this shows 0-7 points only. If you have more REMEMBER to JUMP in your BEST SUIT.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 86

ADVANCED TIP 86

Don't be a slave to Signals THINK FOR YOURSELF - don't stop thinking when partner signals see Barry Westra's Bols tip don't follow partner's signals blindly http://www.haroldschogger.com/westra.htm

NOVICES TIP 87

In Acol the bidding sequence 1♣ 1NT shows 8-10 balanced 4333 shape with 4 clubs whereas 1♣ 2♣ shows 6-9 points and bit more shape maybe 4432 or 5422

INTERMEDIATES TIP 87

After partner has made an informative Double and you have 8 or more points remember to JUMP BID in your suit (see tip 86).

ADVANCED TIP 87

Once the opponents have opened with a weak 2 or a weak 3 if you overcall then you cannot pre-empt too. All your bids should be up to scratch. You can't pre-empt a pre-emptor

NOVICES TIP 88

When you DEFEND you must COUNT YOUR WINNERS and potential winners in the same way you would do so as declarer and then you can try and work out how to obtain extra tricks to defeat your opponents.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 88

Not sure what to play next then hold up your Ace to enable partner to signal when he cannot follow suit

ADVANCED TIP 88

If you have an overwhelming amount of trumps in one hand then look for a trump reduction play to generate an extra trick particularly if you are unable to finesse an opponent's trump Queen or King.

NOVICES TIP 89

Analyze partner's Opening Lead :-

i) Is it a possible singleton ii) Is it top of a Doubleton iii) Is it top of a Sequence

INTERMEDIATES TIP 89

When both you and your partner has bid a suit a Double of 3NT demands the suit bid by your partner to be led.

ADVANCED TIP 89

A defender with trumps (maybe 4 or more) should not attempt to shorten his trumps. In fact he should try and shorten declarer's trumps by leading and persevering with his long suit as much as he can.

NOVICES TIP 90

When the bidding goes

W N E S

1♥ NO 2♥ NO

NO ? and it comes back to you COMPETE- bid something and push the opponents up - double or bid 2ª

INTERMEDIATES TIP 90

As PARTNER of the INFORMATIVE DOUBLER adopt RESPONSIVE DOUBLES into your repertoire as follows

W N E S South 's Double shows a hand like ª K753 whereby you are happy to play in either

1♦ DBL 2♦ DBL ♥ K854 Major

♦ 1053

♣ J8

ADVANCED TIP 90

Not sure what to discard throw away what you don't want and woe betide the partner who gets in and plays that suit back J

NOVICES TIP 91

If you have a five or six card suit headed by a no card higher than a 9 then against No Trump contracts lead second highest rather than 4th highest. If you adopt second highest leads from "bad" suits then partner will know when to switch if there is no future in the suit that has been led.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 91

If your partner, the other defender, plays the cards in an abnormal way then he is trying to send you a MESSAGE and usually the message will be a suit preference signal to tell you what to switch to next

ADVANCED TIP 91

After an Opening bid of 4ª Double should be for penalties and 4NT should be Take-out but over other 4 Openers Double should be take-out - if agreed you and your partner might ;like to p;lay it the other way around but you do need to agree it beforehand.

NOVICES TIP 92

Lead top card from a Doubleton but from three small cards play MUD (Middle Up Down) and then partner will be in a position to know whether you will be able to ruff the third round or not when its a doubleton.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 92

There is much to be gained from bids that aren't made as bids that are made especially about the distribution. If your partner doesn't support your major immediately but subsequently supports it then you know THEY ONLY HAVE THREE otherwise they would have made a different bid earlier in the auction and supported straight away. Other such inferences can be made a long the way (

ADVANCED TIP 92

Doubles of freely bid slams and 3NT contracts should be LIGHTNER DOUBLES calling for an unusual lead- if you think you can defeat the contract by one trick any way and do not want an unusual lead then don't double otherwise partner will lead the wrong suit and the contract might still make. (No good being greedy for one trick)

NOVICES TIP 93

Upgrade hands with 10s and 9s and downgrade hands with 2s and 3s. K542 is not as good a suit as K1098 is it ?

INTERMEDIATES TIP 93

Don't Open sub minimum hands in 3rd seat unless you want that suit led

it is ok to open 1 with ª AQ984 but not with ª J8643

♥ K63 ♥ A94

♦ 32 ♦ K64

♣ 542 ♣ Q8

ADVANCED TIP 93

If as a Passed hand you jump in a new suit this says I have a FIT in YOUR SUIT and a fairly reasonable hand that was almost an Opener in first place.

NOVICES TIP 94

If 3NT is a possible contract then bid it. This piece of advice was coined by Bob Hamman the world's No 1 player

INTERMEDIATES TIP 94

Adopt 5 Card Stayman over 1NT openers (as well as 2NT Openers) because so many people now Open 1NT with a five card Major and by doing this you will be able to find all those 5:3 fits fairly quickly

ADVANCED TIP 94

As partner of the overcaller (the advancer), adopt COMPETITIVE DOUBLES to show good values and interest in the remaining suits especially if responder has only just given a mediocre weak reply in Opener's suit in situations like this :-

N E S W

1♥ 2 ♦ 2♥ DBL Double will now show 8+ points and interest in Spades and clubs, the unbid suit

NOVICES TIP 95

Try Passing with 18 points if the bidding has gone 1ª - 2♣ by the opponents as you can alreeady account for 21 points from the opponents' bidding so partner has 2 or less.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 95

In IMPS or Teasm play take safety plays but in MPS where every overtrick is vital throw caution to the wind. With AKQJ43 opposite 72 needing five tricks and no entry to the loing hand play a low card from each hand to cater for 50 break but playing MPS go for broke and play from the top expecting the more normal 3:2 or 4:1 break.

ADVANCED TIP 95

As dealer try and Open the bidding especially if you want a suit led

ª

A 10 6

ª

Q J 10

©

8
or
©

K J 9 5 4

¨

K 9 3

¨

A 8 7 6

§

K J 9 8 6 2

§

10

In Rixi Marcus' Bols Tips she says as dealer, both these hands should be opened

http://www.haroldschogger.com/markus.htm

NOVICES TIP 96

Use the rule of 14 to help you bid in a lower ranking suit at the 2 level. You add your HCPs plus your longest suit and if the total is 14 or more then you may bid that suit. You can also hear my dulcet tones explaining the rule of 14 by going to www.haroldschogger.com/teachingmovies.htm

If the total is less than 14 Use the DUSTBIN bid response and say 1NT

INTERMEDIATES TIP 96

In a basic sequence if the bidding goes 1© - 2NT it shows 11-12 points and if it goes 1© - 3NT it shows 13-15 . If you go around the houses and show another suit on the way but come to the SAME FINAL BID it means the same so 1© - 1ª or 1© - 1ª

2§ - 2NT 2 § - 3NT

it still shows 11/12 here and 13-15 here

I call it Theory of Final Destination and can be applied in other situations where you bid in new suit and then jump to 3 level in partner's suit to still show 10-12 points (but no 4 card support)

ADVANCED TIP 96

Playing 5 card Majors even if you have a fit in the Major with 4333 hand you can still sometimes rebid 2NT or 3NT as there might be no advantage to being in No Trump.

NOVICES TIP 97

Needing 4 tricks out of 5 with AQ73 opposite 98642 do NOT take an immediate finesse. Play Ace and then low towards the Queen just in case the cards are like this :

AQ73

J105 K

98642 if you commit to an immediate finesse you will lose 2 tricks in the suit

INTERMEDIATES TIP 97

Be aware of Misfitting hands and drop the auction as soon as possible With

ADVANCED TIP 97

In desperate situations don't telegraph your problem to the opponents or they will punish you with a double or bid and find their best contract, If you are really courageous with

Last person will find it hard to double or compete with 14 points J

see Jeremy Flint's Bols Tip Don't Cry Before you are hurt http://www.haroldschogger.com/flint.htm

NOVICES TIP 98

Upgrade long suits with Honours and downgrade doubleton Queens and Jack so Q765 is much better than Q5 when assessing the suit.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 98

Short of entries to dummy to your long suit DUCK so with A876 5 opposite 432 you might need to duck twice here retaining the Ace as your entry

ADVANCED TIP 98

Instead of overruffing try discarding a loser elsewhere and then set up your ruff in a different suit later.

a) you cut down the risk of a trump promotion

b) you keep control of thee trump suit

NOVICES TIP 99

Shortage points only kick in if you have four card support for partner's suit a FIT. This can be as a direct response or as Opener's rebid once partner has introduces a suit in which he has support. Now opener can re-evaluate his hand and count extra points for voids, singletons and doubletons. Harold hates shortages the rest of the time and would prefer it if people told him that they had two five cards suits or a six card suit and a four card suit. Having a void or singleton is not the core strength of most hands.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 99

If your partner in 4th seat protects and you have a good 10+ points DO NOT GET EXCITED. When partner is protecting he is bidding in the knowledge that you have these points so DO NOT PUNISH him for protecting. You will not be popular if you do so (

ADVANCED TIP 99

if you cannot help in the Trial Bid suit you should of course retreat to 3 of the agreed suit BUT IF you can show some other feature that is less than 3 of the agreed suit then attempt to show it so

ª	10 5		ª	9 4
©	Q 8 6 5	or	©	K J 9 5
¨	Q 9 3		¨	A 8 7 6
§	K J 4 2		§	10 3 2
	Now bid 3§			now bid 3¨

NOVICES TIP 100

Needing only 4 tricks from this combination AKQ54 opposite 762 and a shortage of entries to the long hand you should duck a round and then you can accommodate an unfriendly 4:1 break

INTERMEDIATES TIP 100

If you play transfers and want to do a weakness take-out into a Minor Suit then you really need to have Six card suit rather than just 5. The reason for this is because you will now be playing at the three level instead of the 1 level

ADVANCED TIP 100

Avoid 2NT reply showing 11/12 points balanced as its a horrid stifling reply. Adopt Jacoby 2NT reply which shows a good hand and a fit and asks partner to to show shortage.

NOVICES TIP 101

Partner opens 1NT and you have 10 points then JUST PASS- if you were to bid 2NT that would be an invitation to partner to bid 3NT with a maximum hand and your partnership would not have enough points to make 9 tricks

INTERMEDIATES TIP 101

With AXX opposite XX consider ducking in this suit to maintain the Ace as an entry when you really need it.

ADVANCED TIP 101

In 4th seat with 17/18 points PASS when the bidding comes around to you 1♥ NO 2♣ ? as you know opener has 13 points and responder has good 8+ points so your partner has Ziltch- can you remember to say No0 Bid under these circumstances

NOVICES TIP 102

33 points is enough for 6NT so if your partner opens 1Nt (12-14 points) and you have 21 then without any scientific frills you should bid 6NT straight away no messing.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 102

Needing three tricks from the following combination

A2 opposite J10643

Play Ace and a low one from both hands and you will always be OK if the suit breaks 33 or one of the opponents has KingDoubleton or Queen Doubleton

ADVANCED TIP 102

If you can give declarer enough rope he might hang himself- so with J105 in dummy you see 962 drop the J10 and if declarer has AKQ2 in closed hand he might think the suit is breaking badly and play low to the 9 and waste an entry unnecessarily. For more details on this tip and the whole hand where declarer goes wrong see "Give Declarer Enough Rope by Tim Seres" www.haroldschogger.com/timseres.htm

NOVICES TIP 103

If you know that you have a NINE CARD TRUMP FIT then add one extra point to your hand regardless- UPGRADE IT- if partner were to raise your bid to the three level and you started off with 5 when you only promised 4 then you know you have a nine card fit or If you are playing 5 card Majors and you started off with six, again you would know that a nine card fit has been found.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 103

If you jump rebid in your original suit 1♥ then 3♥ this shows 6/7 playing tricks or 6 loser hand but if responder is minimum they can now Pass. The JUMP REBID in SAME SUIT is NOT FORCING

ADVANCED TIP 103

You are not sure what to bid after there has been intervention over your partner's Opener then NEGATIVE DOUBLE is probably the answer so if the bidding goes

N	E	S	W
		1♣	1♦
?

and you, North, have

♠	Q 7 6 2
♥	A K 6 5
♦	5 4
♣	A 8

bidding in a new suit is unlimited and forcing and so is a Negative Double.

NOVICES TIP 104

With

♠

A K 7

♥

A K 6 5 3 2

♦

Q 5 4

♣

8

Don't just fall in love with your Hearts Remember to DOUBLE their weak 1NT to show any 15 point hand

INTERMEDIATES TIP 104

Use the Law of Total Tricks to upset the Opposition once partner overcalls. No Matter how many points.

if you have 3 card support now know you have guaranteed 8 trumps between you so raise to level of fit and bid 2 of overcaller suit

if you have 4 card support now know you have guaranteed 9 trumps between you so raise to level of fit and bid 3 of overcaller suit

if you have 5 card support now know you have guaranteed 10 trumps between you so raise to level of fit and bid 4 of overcaller suit

(With a good fit and good hand see next tip below)

ADVANCED TIP 104

If partner Overcalls and you have good fit and 10 or more points then use UCBS Unassuming Cue Bids so with

♠	Q 7 6
♥	8 2
♦	A K 7 4 3
♣	K 9 8

bid 2♥ when partner has overcalled their 1♥ bid with 1♠ .

The corollary of this is that if you actually raise partner's suit you will be weak - see Intermediate Tip 104 above

NOVICES TIP 105

If you have sufficient winners in the non trump suits then you should draw trumps straight away even if you don't hold the top one - you don't want the opponents trumping those outside winners do you ? L

INTERMEDIATES TIP 105

On every hand no matter whether its in No Trumps or a Trump Contract Count both winners and losers.

ADVANCED TIP 105

Choice between a ruffing finesse and a simple finesse most of the time its correct to go with ruffing finesse because even if its wrong you are ditching a loser from the other hand. Also when considering a ruffing finesse and simple finesse you should check who is the safe hand and who is the danger hand when doing so.

NOVICES TIP 106

If you need to establish a side suit you might need to keep trumps as entries so do not be in hurry to draw trumps under these circumstances.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 106

If your partner rebids 4ª or 4♥ or 3NT over your 1 level change of suit reply this rebid shows a very strong 18/19 points as you have only promised 6 points. Therefore it is not a closing bid and if you have a good hand you can now BID ON if you want to do so.

ADVANCED TIP 106

If you have a good hand and partner has bid 2 suits do not just give support for the second suit create a forcing bid of some sort- best way to do this most of the time is to bid Fourth Suit Forcing.

NOVICES TIP 107

You only have 4 trumps in the long hand and three in dummy and the opposition force you to ruff. Consider discarding a loser instead and you might not lose control of the trump suit.

INTERMEDIATES TIP 107

In the 4th seat you do not need to have a good quality suit to protect, With

ª109543 bid 1ª in 4th seat after there

♥ 92 has been an Opening bid of 1♥

♦ KJ7

♣ AQ5

ADVANCED TIP 107

If you want to play simple two suited overcall over their 1♣ Opening bid then you could try TRUSCOTT defence to 1♣ where each suit bid shows that suit and the suit above it and it works like this

1♦ = Diamonds and Hearts

1♥ = Hearts and Spades

1ª = Spades and Clubs

2♣ = Clubs and Diamonds

with all other bids being weak Jump overcalls

NOVICES TIP 108

Once you run out of a suit don't making a sweeping gesture and change your hand so its still red black red black as everybody will know you have run out of a suit J

INTERMEDIATES TIP 108

With an outside suit of QJ1095 opposite void don't try to ruff ouyt this whole suit do a "ruffing finesse" and eventually you can establish the 109

ADVANCED TIP 108

With K54 opposite 632 or

Q54 opposite 632

arrange to be last person to play and not the second with either your King or Queen. This is known as an avoidance play. You need to let the lead come all the way around to your king or Queen to give it some chance of making.

NOVICES TIP 109

Against a 3NT contract with a choice of two leads (from 4 card suits) prefer to lead a Major suit (they didn't bid Majors or Stayman or Transfer) as partner might be able to help more easily in that suit to establish it

INTERMEDIATES TIP 109

Be eager to shorten declarer in the long hand . If declarer has to trump in sooner than he wishes he could easily lose control of the trump suit. This is particularly effective at trick one when you have 4 trumps and you lead from your other long suit rather than leading from shortage. This is sometimes known as "long in Trump Lead Length".

ADVANCED TIP 109

A Reverse is forcing for one round and cannot be Passed. However bad your hand is, you must either give preference to partner's first suit, raise partner's second suit, repeat your suit or bid NT with a sub minimum hand, but you cannot Pass.

NOVICES TIP 110

With 6:4 shape prefer to show the 4 card suit as your rebid rather than repeat the six card suit, especially if it is a Major, so with

♠

A J 9 6 5 3 open 1♠ and plan to rebid 2♥

K Q J 9 7 3

A J 10 5

rebid 2ª when partner replies 2© and if partner should then bid 3© be prepared to Pass with such a horrid Misfit