TWiB Lesson #498 (1 of 8)
Here we look at defensive situations in the middle of the hand - we start with a look at covering the opponent's honors -- which one to cover?
TWiB Lesson #592 (8 of 9)
When partner opens the bidding 1-minor (1m), a jump shift to 2-Major (2M) by Responder can be used for a variety of different hand types. Both the standard approach of a strong jump shift and the common approach of a weak jump shift leave a lot to be desired. The modern style is for good hands to go slow, which makes a strong jump shift less appealing because it eats up valuable bidding space. With players responding to a 1m opening bid with 1M more and more aggressively, this makes using a weak jump shift less common…
TWiB Lesson #572 (6 of 9)
When responding to partner’s 1-Major opening bid, Responder tries to apply the Law of Total Tricks (LOTT) – getting to the size of the partnership’s fit as quickly as possible. This LOTT bidding is especially effective when our side has a 9+card fit. Bergen Raises are a set of conventional bids Responder can use when responding to a 1-Major opening bid with 4+card support (at least a 9+card fit). Let’s see how this system works.
TWiB Lesson #574 (8 of 9)
Jumping in the auction eats up a lot of bidding space, which is likely to make communicating with partner more difficult. Since our jump bid may make future communication more difficult, it should have a specific meaning. When partner opens the bidding, Responder’s jump shifts can be used to show a variety of different types of hands. We need to decide, as a partnership, which ones we want to use. We will choose different agreements for different situations.
TWiB Lesson #575 (9 of 9)
When partner makes a bid, and we choose to bid a suit of our own, this is called a freebid. In most normal situations freebids show values (called positive freebids) and are often forcing 1-round. We’ve all heard the saying -- a new suit is forcing by an unpassed hand. Unfortunately, this is not always true, but it is often our agreement. Let’s look at freebids made by a passed hand and see how the fact that we are passed changes these situations.
TWiB Lesson #577 (2 of 9)
When Opener makes a jump shift into a new suit with their second bid, it is a strong bid that creates a game forcing auction. This is a good bid because it ensures we reach game, but it is a bad bid because it eats up a lot of bidding space without fully describing our distribution. This is a problem. One of the most difficult opening hands to describe to partner is the unbalanced single-suited (one 6+card suit) hand with 18-19 HCP. This is one of the strongest hands that does not open the bidding 2♣. Let’s look at a system that helps us improve our jump shift methods.
TWiB Lesson #498 (1 of 8)
Here we look at defensive situations in the middle of the hand - we start with a look at covering the opponent's honors -- which one to cover?
TWiB Lesson #499 (2 of 8)
When you can ruff one of Declarer’s tricks it is extremely satisfying. Here we work on techniques that will allow us to do so as often as possible!
TWiB Lesson #500 (3 of 8)
Here we look at how we defend in the middle of the hand, with a focus on leading a new suit -- how and when to do so!
TWiB Lesson #501 (4 of 8)
Should we return partner’s lead? Show we shift to a different suit? This is always a difficult decision! Here we look at how to make this decision and help our partnership take the tricks we are entitled to.
TWiB Lesson #502 (5 of 8)
Here we look at how to play when we have multiple touching honors. How to we play these different sequences in different situations can e very confusing.
TWiB Lesson #503 (6 of 8)
When you are behind the dummy and attack it you should be able to do so in ways that show your partner a very strong holding. These surround plays and power shift help partner know the strength of your holding.
TWiB Lesson #504 (7 of 8)
When we are defending a hand there are many important situations that we need to know about when to attack a suit and when it may cost to do so. These card combinations and how to play to get the most out of them are vital.
TWiB Lesson #505 (8 of 8)
Discards are an important way to communicate with partner. But not just the first discard, every discard matters. Here we look at discards later in the play.