Discover Top Posts Tagged with #bridge products

Bridge is Arguably the Greatest Card Game Ever – But it is Tricky

Further on from the guru Eddie Kantor’s 4 Basic Phases of Bridge, I came across his crib notes that my partner and I used to get us up and running in this most difficult, yet addictive card game.

Bridge – the Card Game: Some Winning Tips

As any bridge player will know, bidding is considered the most important aspect to master in the game. A good bridge playing bidder is a winning bridge player.

· Count – before opening take stock. Add your high card points (HCP): Ace = 4, King = 3, Queen = 2, Jack = 1. Holding 12 or more HCP, you should open the bidding.

· To open 1♥ or 1♠, you must have at least five cards in the suit.

· If you have two five-card suits, open in the higher-ranking suit first, i.e. spades before hearts. The suits rank from spades to hearts to diamonds and then clubs.

· If you have two four-card suits, one a major (spades or hearts), one a minor (diamonds or clubs), you should open in the minor. If you have two four-card minors, open 1♦.

· With a balanced hand, i.e. no voids, singletons, or two doubletons, open 1NT with 15 - 17 HCP.

· If your partner opens, holding less than 6 HCP pass. With 6 or more HCP, bid your longest suit at the one level, if possible. Responding at the two-level in a new suit requires 10-11 or more HCP. Replying 1NT indicates 6 to 10 HCP. This tells your partner you don’t have a four-card major when she opens 1♣ or 1♦.

· To support your partner’s first bid major suit you need three or more cards in that suit; to support any second bid suit, you need four or more cards in that suit.

· In bidding, the primary objective is to find an eight-card or longer major suit fit in the partnership.

Playing duplicate bridge at home – Bridge stationery and equipment that you will need.

This is a fun way of playing the game of bridge. To do so you need basically:

· You need at least 8 players (2 tables). If you want more players it is preferable to do so in multiples of 4.

· Card/bridge tables - you can use any table which accommodates 4 people, but it is nicest to use a standard card table.

· Bridge cloths - preferably plain coloured.

· Duplicate boards – at least one for each table.

· One pack of playing cards for each duplicate board

· Score sheets or travellers – one for each board.

· Movement cards - to direct players to their next table position after each round.

A "movement" in the game of duplicate bridge is a direction of circulating the pairs and boards around so that for every round each pair meets up with an opposing pair to play the next set of boards that neither has played. There are various types of movements, but these two – The Howell Movement and Individual are common and will show you how to set up the movement. It is essential to have these movement cards so that players know where to go and what boards to next play. You can get them at a bridge supply shop. https://www.bridgeshop.com.au/club-supplies/movements.html

#bridge shop #bridge shop australia #bridge cards #bridge game #bridge products #bridge card game

At the Bridge Table – Come up Trumps with these Bridge Products

Lay your cards on the table – admit that you need new bridge products

When searching for a new bridge table, I recently came across a new section on my favourite bridge website The Bridge Shop Australia which gives a fabulous array of digital bridge offerings all for free. So not only did the great new card table arrive efficiently and intact, (of course – what else would you expect from a renowned bridge supply shop?), I am now able to make use of all things digital regarding bridge at a click of a button.

Digital Bridge Care Pack –

This super pack is a partnership with The Bridge Shop and a few of their favourite suppliers that offers you various free downloads of bridge products to help you fill in the hours and days during this uncertain and unsettling time.

In conjunction with Master Point Press, three free digital bridge books:

· Bridge in the Menagerie by Victor Mollo

· A Great Deal of Bridge Problems by Julian Pottage

· Northern Lights by Ray Lee and Linda Lee

With thanks to Marty Bergen, a transcript of his lesson:

· To Finesse or Not to Finesse

This is a great article and a bridge product to keep up your sleeve. In his introduction, he states: “We all know how important finesses are. What is a finesse? It's a manoeuvre to win a trick with a card that is not an obvious winner. Many players love to finesse. It's usually simple and supplies immediate gratification – when it works. However, experts don't like to finesse. Why? Finesses lose half the time, and no one gets rich betting on 50-50 propositions. Of course, that doesn't mean you should never finesse. Finessing will always be an important function in the game of bridge.” Read on to get some interesting tips and hints – a great bridge product to keep you in good stead at the bridge table.

In conjunction with Brad Coles of Australian Bridge magazine, a free copy of:

In conjunction with Didier Levy of Vu-Bridge, a free copy of:

Bridge Crossword puzzle

Eddie Kantar's Tip of the Day

Vu-Bridge Hands of the Week

Bridge Base Online

· Fun and friendly free on-line bridge club

· How to use Bridge Base Online

Bridge Baron 29

· Download a free trial version of Bridge Baron 29

Jack 6

· Download a free trial version of Jack 6

In conjunction with Grand Slam Books

· Paul Marston’s weekly bridge column with a link to Bridge Solver, so you can play the hands yourself.

In conjunction with Joan Butts School of Bridge

· ABF Education offers you one free month's access to Joan Butts’ Online School of Bridge. Joan is the ABF National Teaching Coordinator, and her Online School of Bridge offers hundreds of contract bridge lessons, videos and programmed hands so you can brush up your game and practise new techniques.

And lots more bridge products to keep your hand in at the bridge table.

#bridge products #Computer bridge #bridge shop

At the Bridge Table: The Bridge Shop Travel Guide

Not able to get out and about? Well, join the online travel club from around the world. We are all locked in and finding new travel destinations either virtually or from our TV screens. Well, I have found a great place to visit and it is The Bridge Shop Australia.

If you are into the game of bridge, bettering yourself and turning an old dalliance into a serious challenge then this is the site to do some exploring.

Anyone in the know in the worldwide bridge community will have heard of The Bridge Shop Australia. It is a household name in Australia and has a world-wide and well-deserved reputation for first-class products and customer service. Visit, explore, purchase and become a subscriber and you will, no doubt about it, rate the trip and experience 5/5.

And it is worth a repeat visit.

Looking for

a new card table and card table cloths

Go to the card table section and click: https://www.bridgeshop.com.au/club-supplies/tables.html

Yes, indeed a new cloth on your new card table – how about this green felt bridge cloth made of dark green felt with suit symbols printed in each corner?

Searching for a

great gift for your fellow isolated bridge buddies

who just so happen to be into golf as well?

Ladies Golf Playing Cards

A double-deck of playing cards. These beautifully designed cards make a perfect gift and are suitable for Bridge, Whist and many other traditional card games. - Double pack of 52 cards and two Jokers - Gift style packaging - Bridge size 58mm x 89mm

To tempt your further to explore The Bridge Shop route – check out the

Coming Soon

at The Bridge Shop section

Like to know when these items are in store? Click on the picture and The Bridge Shop will send you an email as soon as they are in stock.

If you are a bridge playing beginner – then the section

Beginners' Resources

is right up your street

· Beginners’ bridge books

· Interactive bridge playing CDs

· Bridge Baron

· Cheat Sheets

· V-Blue Course for Newcomers

And lots more valuable products to help you on your bridge learning journey.

If you take playing bridge seriously and are on a journey of getting you back up to speed at the game of bridge then check out the

Classic Rewind

section

Various award-winning books are featured; as an example Eddie Kantar's Introduction to Declarer Play and Introduction to Defense. These have both been recently updated and revised by Barbara Seagram. Both are essential reading for the improving player and are still regarded as the classic way to play even after fifty years.

You are often able to download a sample of the featured books to see if they suit your level and style.

So all very user-friendly advice and tour guidance on The Bridge Shop’s website. Do yourself a favour and go on a great bridge experience at https://www.bridgeshop.com.au

#bridge shop #bridge books #bridge products #bridge cards #bridge table #the bridge shop

On the Hunt for Bridge Supplies?

Have you been rummaging through the internet looking for a decent place to buy your bridge supplies? Look no further than the Bridge Shop in Australia – the one stop shop for all things bridge.

It is not like searching in the woods for truffles with your friendly pig. This is easy and far less time-consuming. The rewards are equally delectable though.

SHOP. LEARN. PLAY. ADD TO CART.

SHOP to your Queen of Heart’s content and whilst you are on the the hunt for bridge supplies, have a little PLAY, and of course Jack – you can LEARN something too all at this fab shop called The Bridge Shop.

At the Bridge Shop, they have what you thought you did not need, until you saw what is on offer. A change of mind? Most definitely.

For Club and Home Supplies of Bridge Paraphernalia: Test your bridge supplies against this list – how many do you have?

· Bidding boxes and refills

· Boards

· Bridge Cloths

· Card Holders

· Home Bridge Kits

· Instant Duplicate Computers

· Movement Cards

· Party Tallies

· Pens and Pencils

· Playing Cards

· Table numbers

· Rubber bridge scorers

· Silent bidding pads and holders

· System cards

· Wallets

· Bridge tables

· Team score sheets

· Travelling score sheets

· And more…

Talking about playing bridge and all that.

The no. 1 essential thing, other than 3 other bridge players, is to have a decent set or sets of playing cards. Nothing beats playing with new super-duper playing cards. Your game instantly improves.

This is a fact. It is like playing with old balls at Wimbledon – it is simply not strawberries and cream is it?

The other fact is a good card table. Imagine the Wimbledon champions playing on a rocky bed of weeds. The same applies to playing cards on a proper card table.

There is a wide range of playing cards from some of the world’s best card manufacturers available at the Bridge Shop. You should have in your arsenal some ordinary, but good playing cards and for impressing your fellow players, some really special ones.

Because you deserve it I would suggest:

v The Monet Gallery decorative playing card series. These come in a set of double decks and are beautifully designed around the artwork of Monet. They come in bridge playing size of 58mmx89mm. If you think your friends deserve them too, they make a super gift.

v Because you really deserve it – how about some monogrammed playing cards? They are so James Bond. They will make a super gift to a fellow card playing friend – just select on-line which initials you want and order at a push of a button.

v This is one of the best bridge tables on the market. It is called The Edwardian. It has a velour top, a mahogany trim and the essential foldaway cast steel legs. It is the standard card table measuring 90cm x 90cm x 72 cm high.

You simply have to have one. I do!

#bridge shop #bridge books #bridge products #bridge supplies #bridge shop australia

Did You Know That the Game of Bridge Can Be Lethal?

Even if you have all the bridge products in the world, the honed skill of a top bridge athlete, the best-dressed table, magic playing cards and Eddie Kantor as your partner, you could still be in jeopardy.

In 1929 Myrtle Bennet shot and killed her husband for not making a contract of four spades.

She was acquitted.

It transpired that her husband was an abusive man and she got away with Bridge Murder. Lucky her – how often have you wanted to do away with your partner and get away with it because he made a very stupid mistake? (Yes, Cedrick the Sharp, this applies to you.)

The point is that Myrtle did not allow her bridge to go to the dogs or grow rusty even though she occasionally found it very difficult to get herself a new bridge partner at the bridge table.

She did find one partner and when he made an impulsive bid, he apparently put down his hand with some diffidence and stated: Partner, I am afraid you will want to shoot me for this.

7 tips on how you can avoid being taken out when playing the game of bridge or similarly, you committing an offensive bridge crime:

Tip # 1.

Find yourself the right partner. Bond with that person. As in James.

Tip# 2.

Keep yourself abreast of the latest bridge products to ensure you are not regarded as Shirley the Sheep at the table i.e. a person commonly known as an old-fashioned bridge player with no sense of what needs to be done to keep up to date with the game. This can be very offensive and very boring to the partner.

Tip# 3.

Know that post-mortems must only be done after the game – preferably at dawn the day after.

Tip# 4.

Keep ahead of the pack (including the cards) by posing as an expert witness. To do this you need to keep a stash of products that will inspire all your bridge chummies and make you look professional.

Tip# 5.

If you have offended your bridge chummies or more seriously your bridge partner, then revert to giving that person a super bridge gift. A new set of monogrammed personalised playing cards with a note saying: “I promise never to not lead your call again”. Or something along those lines. Have a stash of bridge greeting cards for this exact purpose, i.e. Wrong Bid Greeting Card, or A Wandering Dummy Greeting Card.

Tip# 6.

Do not compound a crime in the game of bridge. If you or your partner (this is surely more likely), make an error, do not lose you cool and commit a crime. Simply understand that most contracts can still be beaten after one defensive error, but seldom after two.

Tip# 7.

When your partner makes a nice play a kind word at the end of the round will go a long way to warding off evil thoughts. If this consistently happens – go all out and buy a Superb Jumbo Index set of playing cards for her and say – “Thanks Dolly the Dummy, you make a BIG difference in my game!”

#bridge products #bridge shop #bridge game

Bridge The Game of Extracting Your Opponent’s Teeth

I do not jest. This is what it is all about. And generally your opponent’s teeth are like crocodile teeth.

Successfully done, you are on the way to becoming a good bridge player. The Game of Bridge as I have so often stated, is not for sissies, my dears. It is a croc eat croc world out there, and you need to develop a thick skin to be able to master the game.

The Game of Bridge – 15 Warm-up tricks of the trade

As in any competitive sport my dears, you need to do some stretching exercises, as well as limbering up to be fit enough to go out and extract some teeth.

1. First things first. Do not play with dog-eared sticky cards. You would not play golf with your tennis racquet, do not play bridge with anything other than good bridge cards.

2. Have a couple of sets of bridge cards available in your bridge drawer – yes that means buying a few good sets. (You can, I will allow this, play with Cruella Deville using your oldish playing cards. And, yes, you can gloat when she takes two out of her hand because they have stuck together. But no-one else!)

3. Treat your partner well. Listen and obey. You have gone to the bridge game altar with her.

4. This partner must be on the same wave length in terms of leads and conventions. You don’t necessarily have to love her, just obey. That is life – no so?

5. Know the level of skill of your precious partner. If she is weak, the crocs will attack sooner. Protect her.

6. The divorce can come after the game, not during.

7. Practice your post-mortem skills. Don’t get your teeth extracted again – so use these skills to improve your game.

8. No raised eyebrows, drumming of fingers on the table, or heavy sighs.

9. You simply have to remember the bidding – you may have forgotten how you got to the bridge table, but remember the bidding.

10. Spot the player who hesitates during the bidding. A sure give away that he has a problem hand. He is the croc who is still basking in the sun and seeing fish where there aren’t any.

11. Spot the player who starts counting on her fingers (or claws in some instances) – sure give away that she has a few points. No-one is going to take a long time counting points, if they only have 6 high card points

12. You must know what your croc opponents are plotting. So know the specific bridge game they are playing.

13. Defending is equally as important as attack. Don’t let them take your teeth. So watch the cards as if you are watching a card trickster – the small ones are equally as important as the big ones.

14. You are allowed to huff and puff if someone takes too long sorting their bridge cards out. This is a no-no.

15. You must count the cards. The bridge cards, not the birthday cards on the mantelpiece.

You are nearly there. Remember extraction needs focus and strength. Just go out and do it.

#bridge the game #bridge game #bridge shop #bridge products #bridge equipment

Bridge Products – Up your Game, Learn Concrete Facts and Develop Steely Nerves

A reminder folks of the fact that if you are not prepared to lose your friends over a board game like Chess, a card game like Poker or your opponents in the game of Duplicate Bridge – then you are not putting enough effort into it.

Up your game with some of these interesting tit-bits you can use in your play-time. I discovered them whilst searching for bridge products online.

Poker Card Shark or Poker Card Sharp? Some Card Sharp Facts for You to Impress Your Fellow Poker Players:

1. Which are the most popular playing cards in the world? Bicycle and for under $10 you can buy a pack.

2. Which King is the only one in a deck of cards that does not have a moustache? King of Hearts

3. When does a deck of cards become statistically random? After five interlocking shuffles.

4. Where does the term “One-eyed Jack” come from? The Jack of Spades and Hearts are depicted in profile, meaning you only see one side of their faces.

Alert. Stop. Pass. Eat. Spit Out. Duplicate Bridge Speak - Talking of Sharks.

My first game of duplicate bridge my partner used the “Alert” card. What on earth? I looked bright and shiny and intimated I was very much alert! What was he inferring? The opponents yawned and raised those shark-like eyebrows. Oh, to be so green.

Do yourself a favour and do some reading into how to behave at the duplicate bridge shark school, otherwise, you will be eaten alive and spat out before you can say pass. There are numerous books and how-to guides on playing duplicate bridge and bridge products that will help you to learn – get some in your tank.

I Discovered My Great Wicked White Shark of an Aunt Has a Dal Rossi Chess Set!

Wow – hopefully she will leave it to me in her will? I now look at it in a new light. These highly sought after pieces are the epitome of fine design and are regarded as being the top of the range chess sets in the world. I now covet it and that then puts me in the league of chess connoisseurs, which of course is where I should be anyway.

Dal Rossi chess sets are made in Italy and like so many other things coming out of Italy they are beautifully designed and the workmanship is superb.

Do some research and you will see that you can purchase a variety of Dal Rossi chess sets here in Australia.

Tips before you purchase a Dal Rossi set on-line:

1. Spend willingly as this will last a life-time and can be passed down (I hope you get the message aunt)

2. Select the chess pieces according to:

a. the person you are buying for i.e. a history boffin, or a high design guru and

b. to the size of the board. The board must be half the size (in cm) of the height of the (King in mm).

3. Choose the right box to store your pieces in.

#bridgeshop #bridge products #duplicate bridge

The Game of Bridge – as Seen Through a Sceptics Eye

The game of bridge is played by four people sitting at a card table.

It is a partnership game. You sit opposite your partner and your partner is the person who is generally the one doing all the talking and not paying much attention to the game. You have to be careful here, as you don’t ever want to upset your bridge partner. That is like playing Russian roulette. He will tell you over and over how many hands of rubber bridge he has played, and never got to play a grand slam! (Don’t at this stage mumble to yourself: “That’s because you never had the guts to call it.”)

You deal out 13 cards to each person.

Mostly, each person gets 13 cards, depending on how you deal. Some can end up on the floor. Try not to do this as a card could end face-up. Your opponents generally have beady eyes. James Bond once pulled this trick and won the game. Of course, he won the game.

You then cumbersomely gather your cards in your one hand and combine them into the 4 suits.

This can be tricky and takes a bit of time. Don’t drum your fingers on the bridge table. The cards must be displayed in a perfect fan. Most people, including my partner don’t fan their cards properly. They give the game away by demarcating the suits into little clumps. You can immediately tell that he has a 3, 4, 2, 4 split, because there are tiny, inconspicuous (not to me though and Cruella de Ville on my right) gaps between his cards. Remind yourself of the rule: never overtly criticise one’s partner; rather crack your knuckles.

Then someone says: “Who dealt these?”

You answer: “I did!” Eyebrows raise. Your opponent on your left says: “I must be lucky in love!” (There is a saying, if you are unlucky in cards, then at least you are lucky in love!) You sigh; you have heard this 100 times around the bridge table; it is not applicable to the game of bridge, because bridge is not based on luck, but rather on skill for heaven’s sake! It is not good bridge etiquette to show irritation towards your opponent. Rather take yourself off to the bathroom and wash your face with cold water.

So, getting back to the game itself; because you dealt, you open the bidding.

The objective is to win the bidding, hence the contract, and then play the game according to what you bid. If you bid 4S as an example, you then have to make “book”, which is 6 tricks, and then you have to make 4 additional tricks. In total 10 tricks. Numeracy 101 is what you need to begin playing bridge.

A common occurrence around a bridge table is that people continually count their tricks.

“1, 2, 3, how many more do I have to make?” Don’t reply to this, even though you want to say: “8, you silly old goat!”

So folks, that in a nutshell, is the bridge game. You will love it. Especially when your partner is the Dummy.

#bridge game #rubber bridge game #bridge shop #bridge products #bridge quipments #bridge australia