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015 – Bridge Game – An Overview

015

Bridge Game Overview

The following is a brief overview of how to play Bridge. Don’t worry too much if you don’t follow it all now, we’ll have a closer look at how Bridge is played in later lessons.

Watch video of a game - *Audio - turn your sound on

Bridge is played with a deck of 52 cards and the jokers removed. Play the video above to see the overview of a Bridge game.

Partners and Players

With 4 players in each game which are made up of two partnerships. North and South are partners and sit opposite, East and West are partners and also sit opposite each other. To start the entire deck of cards are shuffled and then dealt to the players one at a time in rotation, each player receiving 13 cards. The person who shuffled and dealt is called the Dealer, it is the responsibility of the Dealer to make the first bid whether it is a passed bid (P) or an opening bid. Bridge is a game of two phases – ‘bidding’ and ‘play’.

How to Bid your hand

The bidding phase is an auction where each player gets to estimate how many rounds they think they and their partner can win.  If they winner of the auction then achieves their target they win the game and gain points and the opposition loses points. If the winner of the auction fails to achieve their target then they lose points and the opposition gains points

The Bidding Pad

Playing your hand

The bidding phase is an auction where each player gets to estimate how many rounds they think they and their partner can win. If they winner of the auction then achieves their target they win the game and gain points and the opposition loses points. If the winner of the auction fails to achieve their target then they lose points and the opposition gains points

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The Acol Bidding System

*If you live in the UK, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand Acol is the most widespread system Acol has the following characteristics:
  • It is a natural system: most opening bids, responses and rebids are made with at least 4 cards in the suit bid, and most no trump bids are made with balanced hands.
  • It is a four-card major system: only four-card suits are required to open 1 or 1, unlike Standard American and many other systems where five-card suits are typically required.
  • It makes extensive use of limit bids: limit bids describe the hand so closely, in terms of high card points (HCP) and shape, that the one who makes the limit bid is expected to pass on the next round, unless partner makes a forcing bid.
  • Understanding and correct use of limit bids and forcing bids is fundamental to applying the system: all no trump bids below the level of 4NT are limit bids, as are all suit bids that merely repeat a suit already bid by the partnership; changes of suit may be forcing or not depending on the approach bids.
  • The level of the 1NT opening bid influences other bids: the normal choice is between a “weak no trump” (12–14 HCP) and a “strong no trump” (15–17 HCP).
  • All 1 of a suit opening bids then promise at least 4 cards in the bid suit
  • Notrump follow-up conventions include Stayman, Jacoby transfers Blackwood and Gerber Convention.