All News

Hard to Make: Hard to Defeat. When a game contract is made 14 times, even a few times with an overtrick, and fails just four times, you would think the right is on the declarer’s side, that the contract should be made. Indeed, that would be... read more here

                                 And Double is? Well, we know what our double meant... read more here

John Evitt - 1946-2021. A strong force at and away from the table. Recent converts to the New Zealand bridge world may not be too familiar with the name of John Evitt. John passed away last weekend in Auckland after a period of ill-health. He... read more here

Call the police! SUIT STOLEN …for less experienced players and others. What do you do when instead of opening your lovely long and strong suit at the 1-level, the opposition open it for you? You might think you could bid the suit... read more here

       It’s Jan’s Day.     Calling Sherlock. Well, actually, you do not need him as you can do all the detective work yourself. So, do you have your magnifying glass ready? Be prepared... read more here

Out of this World. It started as a “will I/won’t I” double a pre-emptive opening. It ended as a rather amazing auction. South DealsNone Vul     ♠ A 10 9 ♥ A K... read more here

  The importance of Signals. They can only be a guide but at times a really useful guide. Sometimes, though, to get the right answer, you have to ask the right question and, arguably, our West on the deal below did not do that, to their... read more here

Damned if you do..and damned if you don’t...  ....bid, that is! Making a bid on the hand below seems extremely risky but then so is passing! As you are in the “pass-out” seat, there is no-one left to save you if you needed... read more here

For the right event.                        A Wish comes true. It sounds like when it happens you should then have made your contract.... read more here

Jan’s Day: A “Freaky” Day. There’s nothing very balanced about the two deals featured today. Indeed, of the 8 hands, the closest to being balanced had two doubletons! The two deals include 4 void suits and 5 singletons.... read more here

 in memoriam: Naida and Howard Sadd. It has been a busy start to the year for the dealers with most tournaments being either Teams or Swiss Pairs.  We kicked off this year with the Marlborough 10A Teams at the end of January.  A... read more here

 National Swiss winners, Michael Ware and Grant Jarvis. Great Weekend: Freak Hands. National Swiss Pairs. The National Swiss Pairs, held last weekend at the Wellington Bridge Club, provided interest from start to finish. It started with a... read more here

Creating an Illusion? Psychology is one aspect of bridge. What does it mean when an opponent fires back at you the suit you have just played? When you are in a small slam and have lost one trick, you cannot afford to make too many wrong guesses!... read more here

  A Lighter Look.     “Memories”.  For many years, our National Congress featured an “Even Homer Nods” award where an award was made at the end of Congress for the top player who made a bit... read more here

  “I heard you, partner….but!” For Less Experienced Players..and Others When only 1 out of 8 pairs reached the right game on the following deal in a “not so new” player session, it seemed worth investigating... read more here

Read on to see the bridge connection...well, maybe! Greetings once more from the Winterless North. It seems like forever ago I did my last round up and, checking in, it was indeed way back in 2020. So, we have a fair bit of catching up to do.... read more here

At a time when so many are sad about the cancellation of the Taranaki Bridge Congress, let’s look for some better news with respect to our National Congress. Sponsorship from Apex Car Hire We mentioned last time that Apex will be a... read more here

“You get the coffees, partner!” Jan’s Day: Who Gets to Play? One decision we have to make during the bidding is the level we wish to play. Another is which partner should be declarer. When you have bid and agreed a suit, or... read more here

8 + 2 = Not Enough That’s enough tricks when you are in 4 of a major contract but the answer is one short of what you need when you are in a minor suit game. 10 tricks equate to down 1. Oh, from where do those numbers come? The number of... read more here

Choices! You have had one or two little problems going round the room, some tricky decisions and you did not get them all right. Why are you always in the hot seat…or so it seems? Anyway, you pick up a flat four count. It’s time for... read more here

Judgement Call Well, nearly every bid we make at the bridge table involves some level of judgement, unless we literally answer how many aces we hold or the like. We are not nearly at that level yet. We are about to, maybe, open the bidding and,... read more here

         For Less Experienced Players…and Others.          Some Days it isn’t and Some Days it is! That is the worth of King doubleton! Only a few days... read more here

101 years young, Mavis Meyer. We’ve seen a great start to the year based on participation at local tournaments with booked out notices going up well in advance of the event day.    Of course, the latest change to alert... read more here

  Jan’s Day: Exciting Slam Leads   We gave you one lead problem overnight. Today, we have two slams as reported by Jan where the lead was or could have been crucial. This is what we left you with yesterday:  ... read more here

A Difficult Deal. You have been dealt a strong hand and with your partner in the bidding, you know you are going to be in game. Indeed, on a different day, you might even have been thinking of slam. Yet, there’s a good philosophy that you... read more here

  A No Trump Link. We left you on Friday with two bridge hands and asked you the link between the two of them. A little unfair question, really, considering the lack of information given. Hopefully, you have not spent too much of the... read more here

  Don’t Change Course: You might just be steering in the right direction.   Well, that statement is not always true as there are times when a switch is required when you are defending. However, sometimes the most passive defence... read more here

  For Less Experienced Players:  Minor Nightmare!   Well, it should have been a fun hand. You have 13 cards distributed as evenly as possible among the two minor suits, two decent suits as well, as both were headed by the KQ..and... read more here

  Wise old owl!   Jan’s Day: Smart Defence Only a few days ago, we told you how Bridge is a game of mistakes, or of avoiding them. Today’s article is an exception, with the hand won by good inspired defence. Equally... read more here

                    Planning….   You are lucky if you can make a plan to make your contract, “lucky” in the sense that you have a... read more here

  On the same Wavelength.   Are you? You and your partner. Every so often, even the most experienced partnership will sometimes hit unfamiliar territory in their bidding but they should have the more common situations off pat. That... read more here