All News

Last weekend the Coffs Coast Gold Bridge Congress took place and this attracted players from both sides of the Tasman. It was no small event either with 50 Open and 20 Intermediate teams taking part. Ex Kiwis Liam Milne and James Coutts had a... read more here

Fri Day   for less experienced players The Best Bid is….. “Which rule do we follow today?” That might be the thought running through North’s mind after West started with the bidding, 1H. An opening... read more here

The End Justifies the Means Match Point Pairs can be a brutal game but should we really be playing for tops and suffer the occasional (or is it more than the occasional?) bottom or look for average plusses? What then about the following?... read more here

Longest First? The basic concept of opening bids is to open your longest suit first. Two recent deals challenged that theory..or at least one of them did. Your choice as opening the bidding then with:      ... read more here

Being Pushed Around. Your best hand of the night. The strongest hand you have held in terms of high card points for weeks…and what happens? The opponents bid up to game. The vulnerability, naturally, is in their favour. What are you going... read more here

              Another Crappy Overcall? That’s what partners usually have, don’t they? Not vulnerable, anything goes. Well almost…or maybe not quite so true when... read more here

It's Fri  for our Less Experienced Players Do you know where you’re going? A bidding problem for you today on the second round of bidding. Your partner opens with 1H and after your 2C call, partner bids 2D. What is your next bid with... read more here

A Question of Style? Well, so it would seem with today’s bidding problem. You are playing Teams and have been dealt a pretty long suit. You have a mixture of a constructive and pre-emptive hand, the latter coming from having very little in... read more here

Is that dummy? It’s Tough on Defence! You probably already know that! So, let’s walk through this particular deal. You are playing Teams. South DealsNone Vul     ♠ A Q 3... read more here

Missed Opportunity. Some contracts are just unmakeable as long as the defence is accurate. That would apply to today’s deal though when declarer gets a favourable lead, they should be careful to take full advantage. South... read more here

Losers or Loser! Well, if you do not get rid of them, that’s what you will be. So, you had better make a good plan, quickly. Your slam looks a little dicey. North DealsE-W Vul ♠ A K Q J 6 4 2... read more here

It’s Fri Day…for those new to the game. Run, Rabbit, Run!    We are going to focus today on a bidding situation which so many of our newer players get wrong. Have a go at today’s question and see how you fare.... read more here

Twice in a Lifetime? Well, it’s not for me. I am still waiting for the first time. At a time when I thought every South would be reaching for a little used convention locked deep far down in their box of favoured conventions, few did. Would... read more here

The Danger Hand. There was an interesting tussle recently between the declarer and the defence on the following board. Generally, the declarer came out on top but that was more because many defenders gave East a relatively easy ride. We will not... read more here

or is it? Not Quite So Simple. When your contract seems very straightforward, you should take extra-special care. Maybe it is not as simple as it seems. West DealsBoth Vul ♠ J 8 2 ♥ 6 5... read more here

The Problem Solver. That’s a brave, maybe even foolish, statement to make about a bid but the suggestion today may help. So, what would you bid as North in this position?     ♠ K J 10 9 8... read more here

It’s Fri  Day… for those new to the game. Hold up for your Contract! “Hold up” or else you will be forced to give up your contract! That’s the message in today’s deal. See below what we mean.... read more here

In Search of the Perfect Pre-empt. Does it exist? Am I dreaming? This is the story of my last week of pre-empts. I had found, or partner did, to be exact, that Q8 to 7 was not the perfect suit. I opened 3 (there was a little more hcp on the... read more here

  Do you believe them? Today, we have a recent real bidding problem (actually, all our problems are recent and real!). We have a “taster” question first of all which hardly anticipates the drama that was soon to unfold. So, try... read more here

The Hot Seat. That was the case of those players who sat North in one match of last Sunday’s Auckland Provincial Teams. Yesterday, we gave you the problem of what to open with 9 diamonds to the AJT and HA. The opening bid dictated the type... read more here

Slow or Fast? There is no right or wrong way to bid a hand like the following. There is the way that works and the way that does not! How would you start the bidding at Teams Nil Vul?    ♠ J 4... read more here

This area will be full of coffee drinkers and bridge players reminiscing during the National Congress. Saturday October 1st until Saturday October 8th 2022 Are you?  That’s just about 2 and a half months away. It’s getting... read more here

It's Fri Day  for our newer players One Wrong Takes It Light but Two Wrongs Makes It Right! We’re going to show you all four hands from the start today which should help you with the problem for declarer, which suit to play at trick... read more here

Getting Better and Better and even Better Still! You started with a good hand, 18 hcp. It got better when your partner opened the bidding at the 1-level. The news got better still when you discovered a 4-4 fit (maybe partner has more than a... read more here

A Few Fingers Needed. Something was needed to stop the declarer making a seemingly impossible nine tricks. A last-minute check maybe when it all looks so easy for a defender. There was a big clue that West missed on the following deal.... read more here

David and Goliath repeated? More “Giant Slaying” at Rubber? A couple of months ago, we reported how last year’s National Rubber Bridge winners, Anthony Ker and Russell Dive, were beaten by a pair very much the Juniors in the... read more here

So simple but so hard to find. I just love today’s deal because of the simple solution involved in making your contract. Just take a look. Your 4S bid after your right-hand opponent’s 1C opening seems the obvious thing to do.... read more here

It’s Fri   Day  for our newer players. Finessing Twice Over! Remember your bridge teacher saying “Be brave” when you lead towards the AQ of a suit. Put in the queen and if that scores a trick, then it pretty... read more here

             great shape…but is that enough? Shape without Substance. When one’s partner raised the opponent’s pre-empt by one level, especially a minor pre-empt, I... read more here

or as close as you can! Pushy Partner says “Play it Perfectly, Please!” You have got to go for your vulnerable games, or so they say, playing Teams. Well, our partner certainly did when they used Stayman and then invited in no... read more here

Just the best! Diamonds are a girl’s (and boy’s) best friend. Today we look at a slam hand from the National Teams last weekend. Thanks to GeO Tislevoll, one of the event winners, for providing the deal and his analysis. Firstly, he... read more here