Taking a finesse that you know is going to fail is losing bridge. Finding options for ways to avoid that is a key to improving your play. Here we look at End-plays, one of the most useful declarer play tools to allow you to avoid a bad finesse.
Bidding, Competitive Bidding
One of the most important parts of bridge is raising partner. We try to raise Opener whenever possible. We may choose not to support partner immediately if we feel we have something more pressing to communicate, in which case we can respond in our own Major, use a negative double, or bid some number of notrump, but in general we strive to “support with support.”
Bidding, Constructive: Opener, Constructive: Responder
Here we look at a 3C response to 1NT used as 5-card Stayman. I nice modern addition to your bidding system. This in combination with a 2C Stayman response created an effective system for communication.
Bidding, Constructive: Opener, Constructive: Responder
When we respond to partner's 1NT opening it is nice to have transfer bids available. Here we look at an upgrade to 4-suited Transfers, called Size Ask, and see how it improves our bidding.
Bidding, Constructive: Responder
We can use a Stayman response, followed by a 2S rebid to show an invitational hand with length in the majors. But this bidding sequence can be useful with other invitational hands as well. Let’s see how else it can be used.
Bidding, Competitive: Doubles, Constructive: Opener
When we open a NT and partner uses an artificial conventional responses, like Stayman or Transfers, then the opponents might double as lead directing. We want to use this double against them. Here we discuss our options for bidding after this double.
