Better Bidding Remember Bridge is Only a Game

Better Bidding

Remember… Bridge is Only a Game!

Learning To Become A Better Bidder There are two paths to become a better bidder! • Learn to more accurately evaluate your hand. • Learn to accurately communicate that improved hand evaluation to your partner via a COMPLETE BIDDING SYSTEM (a bidding language) that accurately describes your hand (e. g. , Two-Over-One). My VERY STRONG SUGGESTION: Do both!!!

Learning To Become A Better Bidder Typical Std American • Assessment • Partner opens 1♥ and you hold K 42, A 742, 97532, 2 • Is your hand ‘useless’, ‘weak’, ‘constructive’, ‘invitational’, or ‘game forcing’? • Language • Does P, 2♥, 3♥, or 4♥ reflect your assessment and do you have a partnership understanding of what that bid means?

Learning To Become A Better Bidder • Assessment Typical Two Over One • Partner opens 1♥ and you hold K 42, A 742, 97532, 2 • Is your hand ‘useless’, ‘weak’, ‘constructive’, ‘invitational’, or ‘game forcing’? • Language • Does P, 1 N/raise, 2/1 raise, 2♥, 2 N, 3♣, 3♦, 3♥, or 4♥ reflect your assessment? • I can teach you to accurately evaluate and communicate with your partner. But Learning and Remembering… Entirely Up To You!!!

Hand Evaluation Tools • Pure HCP is an excellent hand evaluation tool when the hand is balanced! • It’s usefulness falls off as the hand becomes unbalanced. • To make the point, Pard opens 1♥ opposite these hands. In plain english, tell me how ‘trick taking good’ are these hands? If pard opens 1♠, does anything change? ♠ T 9765 ♥ ♦ K 542 ♣ T 732 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 9765 AK K 54 T 73 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 953 98 K 54 T 732 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 987653 8765 K 5 -

Hand Evaluation High Card Points (HCP) • HCP works well as a hand evaluation tool when the hand is balanced. • Here is how pure HCP works: A=4 K=3 Q=2 J=1 MOST new players stop there… but they shouldn’t!!

Hand Evaluation High Card Points (HCP) Paul Harvey… The rest of the story!! 4 -3 -3 -3 shape is a negative (~-1 hcp equiv. ) A’s and K’s are ‘worth’ a little more than 4 and 3 (~. 1 hcp ea. equiv. ) Q’s and J’s are ‘worth’ a little less than 2 and 1 (~-. 05 hcp ea. equiv. ) Having four or more T’s and 9’s (total) is a plus (~. 2 hcp equiv. ) Having no T’s or 9’s (total)is a minus (~-. 2 hcp equiv. ) Having ‘connected’ honors is ‘worth’ more (~. 1 hcp ea. equiv. ) Having a GOOD 5+ card side suit is ‘worth’ extra (~. 5+ hcp equiv. ) In a suit, having 2/1/0 in the short hand AND trump agreement (~1/3/5 hcp equiv. ) In a suit, having 2/1/0 in the long hand AND trump agreement (~. 5/1/2 hcp equiv. )

Hand Evaluation HCP Quiz ♠ T 9765 ♥ ♦ K 542 ♣ T 732 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ 65 AKQ 65 K 42 832 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 9765 AK K 54 T 73 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 953 98 K 54 T 732 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 987653 8765 K 5 - ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ A 65 A 62 K 542 J 73 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ QJT 3 AK 9432 T T 9 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ 76542 AQ AQ 5432

Hand Evaluation Losing Trick Count (LTC) • LTC works extremely well when an 8+ trump fit has been found. • It is often off by a trick when the final contract is NT. • Here is how LTC works:

Hand Evaluation Losing Trick Count (LTC) • The magic number is 24!!! Remember that number!!! • Looking at a hand of 13 cards, count how many A, K, and Q you do not have in each suit, up to the number of cards you have in the suit or 3, whichever number is lower. Suit examples: Axx KQ xxxx A Kxxxxx 2 LTC 1 LTC 3 LTC 0 LTC 2 LTC • If you have a 3+ card suit with a Q but do not have the K or J in the same suit, count it as ½ LTC. Suit examples: Qxx QJx KQxxxxx Qx Q 2. 5 LTC 2 LTC 1 LTC

Hand Evaluation LTC Quiz ♠ T 9765 ♥ ♦ K 542 ♣ T 732 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ 8 65 AKQ 65 7 K 42 832 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 9765 AK K 54 T 73 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ A 65 A 62 K 542 J 73 8 9 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 953 98 K 54 T 732 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ QJT 3 AK 9432 6 T T 9 10 ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ T 987653 8765 7 K 5 - ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ 76542 AQ AQ 5432 8

Hand Evaluation LTC and HCP LTC <= 4. 5 ~ 5 – 5. 5 ~ 6 – 6. 5 ~ 7 – 7. 5 ~ 8 – 8. 5 ~9 >9 PLAYS to HCP ~22+ ~19 - 21 ~16 - 18 ~12 - 15 ~9 - 11 ~6 - 8 ~0 – 5 Verbal Description A Very Strong Hand A Very Nice Hand A More Than Average Hand (If Pard Opened) An Invitational/Limited Hand (If Pard Opened) A Constructive Hand (If Pard Opened) A Weak Hand

Using Losing Trick Count • Add your LTC number to your partner’s LTC number and subtract from the magic number… 24! • That is how many tricks you should be able to win! • An example use of LTC: • Partner opens 2 N (assume ~6 LTC). • You hold: K 86543, 32, 5432, 2 • Using LTC, how many tricks is your side an odds-on favorite to win with ♠’s as trump? • Answer: 24 –(5. 5 + 8) = 10. 5 Tricks ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣ QT 9 AKQ 97 AJ 8 A 2 A Typical 2 N opening hand 5 LTC

Take a View… Make a Decision… And Own It!!