Bridge - Beginner 1

• You must have understood that in bridge, one of the players lays his hand face up on the table and is called the Dummy. Dummy doesn't play. It is his partner (called the declarer) who plays his cards. If necessary, read the Making the contract or going down section of the rules of the game.

• To fully understand the card play, study the deals after having played them. Go back to the first trick using the Opening lead button, then go down from card to card by left clicking on the table, or go up by right clicking. After your study, return to the game by the red button at the top right:
  

  At the top right of the screen you can see the computer's decision
  as well as a short explanation to justify this decision.

• The number of tricks your team has already made and the number of tricks you need to make your contract or make the opponents go down are displayed as shown below:
  

  2 = Number of trick your team has already made
  9 = Number of tricks your team must make to win

• In the prepared games accessible below, a short comment on a yellow background will appear at the end of each deal, so that you can verify that you have made the right decision or chosen the right line of play.
  

  If you want this comment to appear only after the comparison, open the General preferences on the Play page and check the box In a prepared game, display the comment only after the comparison. Note that even if the comment is not visible, clicking the message bar at the bottom of the window can display it if needed.

Card play in No Trump: DEFENSE

• Just pass when it's your turn to speak.

• The opponents play a contract in NT. You are in defense and try to make them go down.

  Small technical points

• In NT, the opening lead (the first card of the deal) is often chosen in a long suit.

• You should always favor the lead of a top of sequence (K with KQJ64, Q with QJ103, etc.).

• Without a sequence of at least 3 cards, open the lead with the 4th best (ex: the 5 with KQ752).

• It's your partner North who will declare the final contract. Just pass.

• By naming the suit of the final contract first, North becomes the declarer and you the Dummy. Around a table, it is the declarer who selects Dummy's cards. Dummy does not play.

• But on a computer, the user is allowed to take North's place when he is declarer. The 4 hands will therefore be rotated so as to make you play North's hand. If the sounds are enabled, a little piece of music will accompany this hand rotation.

  Small technical points

• In No Trump, count your sure tricks first. If you have enough for your contract and cannot do better, cash your tricks being careful not to block your suits.

• If your contract is not yet ensured, you need to establish tricks (make winners with cards that were not initially). Establishing honor tricks consists in playing in a sequence of top cards (called honors). For example, by playing the King with the KQJ sequence, you will drop the Ace and establish two tricks (Queen and Jack).

• Establishing length tricks consists in playing in a long suit until the opponents can not longer follow. Then, your last low cards will become winners. For example, with AKQ32, you can play Ace, King and Queen. Hopefully, your 3 and 2 will become length tricks that count as much as your Aces and Kings.

• Just pass when it's your turn to speak.

• The opponents play a suit contract (there is a trump suit). You are in defense and try to make them go down.

  Small technical points

• In a suit contract, the opening lead is often chosen from the following possibilities:
  • A singleton (a single card), if you hope of ruffing later with low trumps.

  • A top of sequence that can establish a trick (K with KQ, Q with QJ10).

  • The Ace with AK, if you want to see the Dummy while keeping the lead.

• It's your partner North who will declare the final contract while choosing a trump suit. Just pass. The hands will be rotated so as to make you play North's hand.

  Small technical points

• In a suit contract, count the trumps of your team, and the cards remaining in the opponents' hands. The opposing cards will often be 5, 4 or 3. Knowing this number allows you to predict the most probable distribution:
  • 5 will most often break 3-2 (68% of the cases).

  • 4 will most often break 3-1 (50% of the cases), and 2-2 in only 40% of the cases.

  • 3 will most often break 2-1 (78% of the cases).

• Then, draw the opposing trumps while betting on the most probable distribution. For example, if you have 8 trumps in your line, the number of cards held by the opponents is 13-8=5. So, bet on 3 rounds of trumps (3-2 break) to get rid of all the opposing trumps. On each round of trumps, deduct the opponents' trumps that just dropped (5-2=3, 3-2=1, etc.). It is often easier.

• If you don't have enough winning trumps, you can establish honor tricks in the trump suit while drawing the opposing trumps. With 8 trumps in your line and only KQJ, you can draw 3 rounds of trumps, one of which will be lost (the opposing trump Ace is an inevitable loser).

• If you don't have enough high trumps in sequence, you can still establish length tricks and get rid of the opposing trumps at the same time. Accept to lose 1, 2 or even 3 trump tricks if your suit is weak, because if you don't draw trumps, you will lose a lot more. If a single opponent has only winning trumps left, you can often leave them to him (these are inevitable losers).

  Important property of the ruff

• Once the opponents have no more trumps, nothing can stop you from taking your ruffs. Your ruffs are then never urgent. Keep them for doing something useful (getting or giving the lead after establishing tricks, eliminating a suit, squeezing the opponents, etc.). Ruffing tricks just to make tricks are to be kept for the end.

What to know before practicing

• Around a table, once the opening lead is played, the Dummy lays down his cards on the table and the game stops. It is usual to let the four players reflect for one or two minutes, because seeing Dummy's hand brings a lot of information that everyone should be able to study carefully. Learn to do the same when playing bridge on the computer.

• If you are in offense, take the time to count your sure tricks in each suit, as well as the opposing trumps if there is a trump suit. Analyze your possibilities to establish tricks and count the losers you won't be able to avoid. Then start by making a first game plan. In bridge, you don't try to win the next trick. You try to make your contract, which requires planning several tricks in advance.

• If you are in defense, try to imagine how you can defeat the contract, what could be declarer's game plan, and how you could thwart it with the help of your partner.

• The prepared games are never counted in your statistics. You can therefore play them and replay them without fear of altering your statistical results.

• At the end of each deal, you can replay the deal by the Replay deal normally button of the primary toolbar.

  Replay deal normally button or shortcut F3.

• At the end of each prepared games, you can replay the game or only certain deals, using the Return to the prepared game button (bottom right of the screen).
  

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