All News

A first tournament win. Do you remember your first tournament win? For those fortunate enough to have won tournaments, the answer almost certainly is “yes”. Like one’s first A Point, it is a rather special feeling, one to... read more here

A strong opponent! Beware or ignore! Strong No Trump openings are not what they used to be. For many years, they would not contain less than 16 hcp and were a bid to be reckoned with, to be feared/respected. Now, they do not seem quite so... read more here

For Junior, Intermediate and Novice players…and others. It’s Fri   day. Take the guess (and the stress ) out of the finesse. Do your finesses always seem to go wrong? Well, they do not even if it seems they do. However, there... read more here

A Grand Journey. Recently, in an A Point Tournament, among 24 pairs who sat North/South, only two pairs reached any slam and only one reached grand-slam. 13 tricks were easy to make. I thought it would be instructive if the Panel gave some... read more here

When a Guess is a Certainty. Some guesses are more certain than others. In view of that, it was strange that more declarers did not make the 3NT contract on the deal below. The omens early on looked bad for the declarer: East... read more here

A “Five Level Leap”. The opposition are not vulnerable and have bid or implied the possession of three suits. We, have suggested game in the fourth. The Panel have a choice of action in what is likely to be the “pass out”... read more here

Kiwis on top in Trans Tasman Challenge The second round of the Trans- Tasman Challenge took place last Friday evening and produced another good set of results for the 8 New Zealand teams. All 8 New Zealand teams recorded victories, the biggest... read more here

for Junior, Intermediate and Novice players...and others! It's Fri Day Make the best of a bad bid! Well, you have got to, haven’t you? The bidding is in the past. You have reached the wrong game contract and you could be heading for a... read more here

Counting to 12!  Although North got to bid diamonds first naturally, it was South who became declarer in the ambitious 6D contract below. North DealsNone Vul ♠ A J 9 ♥ 3... read more here

Two Ways Home. Today’s deal came from the final round of the Auckland Easter Teams and gave both declarers a little headache. They were to solve it in different ways. South DealsBoth Vul    ... read more here

“Run, Rabbit, Run”  especially for new players. On Easter or any other day. While one usually passes with none or very few high-card points, there are times when one just has to bid. You are South and your partner has just... read more here

Guiding partner. no flash slam! Both defenders played a potentially wrong card on today’s deal but in each case, their partner was able to steer the defence back on course. It was in a “bread and butter” part-score deal. In... read more here

  Trans- Tasman Challenge Returns. A reformed Trans-Tasman Challenge started last night with the first of 8 x 16 board matches between top Australian and New Zealand teams. Teams can have up to 8 players so as to cut down on the need for... read more here

  You are on your own: you know that! Partner is there just to follow suit. The signs look ominous. What can you do to beat the contract? West DealsNone Vul ♠ A J 6 ♥ 10 5... read more here

for Junior, Intermediate and Novice players...and others! It's Fri day.  Keep your eye on the ball…. or else? Or else the news can be rather bad. At the risk of mixing metaphors, if you do not, you may find the horse has already... read more here

  A Reputation in Tatters. They say “one success does not make a summer” or maybe they do not! Yes, I know, it was a swallow but there are no swallows playing bridge, to my knowledge! This, though, was a hard pill to swallow!... read more here

A Time for care….and flair! When one’s opponents are in an unusual contract, one they should not make, your task as a defender is not to offer them any slim chance of making, if you can. On today’s deal, North-South were... read more here

Choices? Balanced hands after a take-out double can usually be handled reasonably easily. What though when we, the responder to a take-out double, are unbalanced and strong? An interesting auction developed on the deal below.  ... read more here

For Junior, Intermediate and Novice players…and others. It’s Fri   day! Leading to and from. When we take a finesse, we start normally with the hand that does not hold the key honours. Honours may be split between the two hands... read more here

2023 Youth Bridge Weekend. Zarias Werder (far right) was one of the winners of events at that weekend and unsurprisingly is starting to make an impression on the tournament scene.  A Journey to Gold. When one starts one’s bridge... read more here

Opposition help. There are times when pre-emptive bidding can tell the opposition too much. While it is possible that they would reach their top spot had the opposition not been so active, opponents’ actions can make it much easier for... read more here

The auction starts nice and gently but suddenly picks up at a frenetic pace. Can you keep up? It is your turn as North to bid…or pass. Any thoughts? Only East/West are vulnerable and everyone is having their say.  ... read more here

Tough but not Terminal. Bad trump breaks can be annoying but do not necessarily mean one cannot make one’s contract. Just look on them as a challenge! So, here is one for you: South DealsN-S Vul ♠ K Q... read more here

For Junior, Intermediate and Novice players…and others! It’s Fri  day. A little lie and a lucky lie! Unfortunately, neither lie favoured West on today’s deal. Sometimes the luck goes your way: sometimes not. That’s... read more here

Two Different Points of View. It was not truly a level playing field but there were two very different points of view expressed when our two South players were faced with a troublesome piece of pre-emption in a recent Teams match. What they had... read more here

A Thin Fine Line… …between success and failure. A good example of this occurred in the following board from the final of the Mixed Trial. Maybe you should: maybe not. Yet, with your opponents conducting a short relay auction, you... read more here

Mixed Team Trial. The Mixed Team Trial was in the end won fairly comfortably by Julie Atkinson – Pat Carter and Jenny Millington – Barry Jones. They had perhaps the toughest quarter final assignment in overcoming Tuffnell (Graeme... read more here

One chance out of one or one chance out of two? One chance out of one would seem to be a 50% chance of success while one chance out of two seems to have a 75% chance of success. So, it would seem obvious to go for the 75% line….but there... read more here