2/5/23 (60 min)
In the balancing seat we usually “borrow a king” from our partner. Since NT bids are precisely defined this point change to our hand dramatically affects our bidding. Here we look at our balancing NT bids and the followup bidding that partner makes.
12/5/22 (65 min)
The modern system for bidding when we have a fit for partner's minor, called inverted minors, works on improving our ability to look for game or slam in a minor suit -- which is the most common time we want to support a minor suit. Make sure you and partner have a good grasp of these methods, both for playing them and playing against them.
12/12/22 (66 min)
One of the most powerful tools we have in competitive bidding is the preemptive raise. When we have a minor suit fit the opponents will often have a major suit fit. We want to make it as difficult as possible for them to find that fit and using preemptive raises is one the best ways to make their life difficult.
12/19/22 (69 min)
There are certain minor suit hands that can play extremely well in NT contracts. If evaluated correctly these hands can be bid in a way that makes the auction relatively simple. Let's make sure that you do not torture your partner with these hands when you could keep it simple and get to the right contract.
12/27/22 (63 min)
When we have a good hand and a minor suit fit then we may want to explore a minor suit slam. Part of the art form of minor suit slam bidding is using tools to explore slam while keeping a NT contract in the picture. Here we look at how to use these tools and better judge our minor suit slam.
3/21/22 (65 min)
When we have a good fit for partner we want to let them know it as soon as we possibly can. We also need to communicate our values. All of this must be done while keeping the auction at a reasonable level. Here we look at how to compete and describe our hands.
3/28/22 (65 min)
The Law of Total Tricks is one of our most important competitive bidding guidelines. Join us as we look at how to make use of it. There are some conventional bids that do this, but it is even more important to understand how to make use of this tool to help you better compete.
4/4/22 (65 min)
The Double is our most valuable competitive bidding tool. Most players feel comfortable using Takeout, Negative, Responsive, and Support Doubles. But one of the keys to good competitive bidding is to become better at using the double later in the bidding. Here we look at these more sophisticated uses of double!
4/11/22 (64 min)
We frequently use a Takeout Double to compete in the bidding. But this often does not end the auction. There is often more bidding by the opponent's or by partner. Here we look at how to continue the bidding in these auctions to allow us to best make a cooperative decision with partner.
4/18/22 (65 min)
People open the bidding and compete in the bidding more and more aggressively these days. We actually can sometimes make a slam even when the opponent's bid. But we also have to be careful not to get the auction too high, the 5-Level down 1 is a bad result. Here we look at our tools for trying for Slam in competitive bidding auctions.
