Master Bridge – serie

For those needing to grasp the fundamentals of sound bidding and play, Ron Klinger's BASIC BRIDGE is the answer. GUIDE TO BETTER ACOL BRIDGE is intended for the large majority who are ready to advance beyond the basics.While GUIDE TO BETTER ACOL BRIDGE emphasises better bidding, each chapter contains examples of play, which highlight areas of winning declarer technique and defence. At the end of each section, a revision test enables the reader to measure the rate of progress.The book can be used by teachers conducting courses, or as a self-teacher.

For everyone who plays - or is interested in the international phenomenon that is the world of bridgeIn RIGHT THROUGH THE PACK AGAIN, joint winner of the INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE PRESS ASSOCIATIONS'S 2009 BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD, each card tells the story of its importance in a particular deal and in so doing the book pays homage to the original concept in the bridge classic RIGHT THROUGH THE PACK. The Old Master is in a coma and the cards attempt to bring him back to consciousness, to revive him with their tales of derring-do. Not only are the deals themselves entertaining, but they are instructive too. You can test yourself on the problems and then go to the solution later in the book and thus improve your own game.

MIRACLES OF CARD PLAY led the way for the hugely entertaining series of stories about the bridge-playing monks of St Titus. It would be no exaggeration to say that this series of hilarious stories is without equal in world bridge and is a tribute to the bridge and writing skills of two very distinguished authors.

Average players tend to focus on point count for their bidding decisions, but the expert recognises that the shape of the hand also plays a vital role. Knowing the implications of shape will help you find the best contract more often. The book not only reveals how to use hand patterns to winning effect, but also how to incorporate the ideas of shape in your bidding system.The power of shape is not limited to the bidding. Successful play or defence is often linked to a knowledge of the pattern of the opponents' hands. The second part of this book will show you how to discover and make use of this invaluable information.Follow the recommendations in this exciting and original book and your partnership will be in great shape!

UNHOLY TRICKS by Terence Reese and David Bird is a further collection of bridge tales involving the eccentric monks of St Titus. In addition to their usual rubber bridge games - and they play for surprisingly high stakes at the monastery - the monks become involved in duplicate matches against nuns, visiting Italians and even the local police.

The world of bridge has winners and also-rans. What would you rather be? Winning might not be everything, but it is much better than finishing second or third, and way ahead of being out of place.This book examines the attributes and skills you need to be on the winner's dais more often, not only the personal qualities and psychological requirements, but also the methods you are using and the standard of card play required. TO WIN AT BRIDGE is a challenge full of tips and telling advice, which if followed will produce a positive lift to your game.

Readers of David Bird's humorous bridge stories will give a delighted welcome to this new addition to the celebrated series. As ever, the irascible Abbot makes his acerbic presence felt and the long-suffering fraternity diverts itself with much entertaining and excitingly interesting bridge.For more than 30 years, David Bird's tales of the bridge-crazy monks of St Titus have appeared in magazines around the world. In this tenth collection in book form, the pompous and self-important Abbot hosts a tricky visit from Monsignor Vecchio, a representative of the Vatican authorities. Everything must be done to ensure that the visitor, a very moderate bridge player, finishes well in the monastery duplicate. In another story, the Abbot visits the Convent of St Hilda's and is not overjoyed to be put in partnership with the 80-year-old Mother of Discipline.Regular followers of David Bird's work will know what to expect - a first-rate mixture of excellent bridge, entertaining characters and sparkling dialogue.

The opening lead is one of the toughest areas of the game. By following the guide-lines in this book not only will you find the winning lead more often, but also you will be able to avoid the futile or dangerous leads which make declarer's task easier. By giving less away with the opening lead, your scores are bound to improve.This book is about the logic and methods for finding the best lead time and time again. The first section deals with the approach you should adopt before you even consider plucking a card from your hand. It provides a series of steps to enable you to come up with the best start. This is followed by a section of practical problems that arose in major competitions where the very best players did not always find the right answer. Most importantly, the solutions to each problem include the logic behind the right choice and the clues that should point you in the right direction. After completing this book, perhaps you will not find the killing lead every time, but you will find it more often.

Many players feel trepidation when faced with playing a no-trumps contract. In this book Ron Klinger shows you how to approach such contracts without fear. The correct lines and logical thinking are explained clearly and you will not only make your contracts, but also score overtricks as well.This book is about the strategy of succeeding as declarer when you play no-trumps. The first section deals with the approach you should adopt before you even play a card from dummy. Then follow heaps of practical examples, problems for you to solve, deals that arose in major competitions where the very best players did not always find the right answer. Most importantly, the solutions include the logic behind the right play, the clues to locate the missing cards and ideas on how to induce opposition error when you have no legitimate chance for success.In this book, Australian expert Ron Klinger shows you how to come out on top more often. Where you might have felt reluctance when playing no-trumps, you will emerge with a new sense of confidence. No-trumps will no longer hold any fears for you.

Bridge is played around the world - and often regarded as the best of all card games.'Many games provide fun, but Bridge grips you. It exercises your mind. Your mind can rust, you know, but Bridge prevents the rust from forming' Omar SharifIn this book David Bird builds on TEN WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR BRIDGE and presents ten further ways to increase success at the bridge table. In the area of bidding, the Jacoby 2NT convention is described - the most popular way nowadays of showing a strong major-suit raise and investigating slam possibilities. When bidding slams, it is critical to identify the presence or otherwise of the six key cards (the four aces and the king-queen of trumps) Roman Key-card Blackwood allows you to do this. Two important variations (Kickback Blackwood and Exclusion Blackwood) are explained. The Lebensohl convention is covered also, both when partner's INT has been overcalled and when you are responding to a double of a weak-two bid. On defence, the important topic of disrupting declarer's communications is explained. The book will also show how you can become an 'awkward defender', the sort of player that no declarer likes to face. Finally, five important areas of declarer play are addressed: holding up in a suit contract, using the entries provided by the trump suit, how to block the defenders' suit at no-trumps, the various ways to avoid an adverse ruff or overruff and how to overcome a 4-1 trump break.

Whether you play in person, or online, this is a must for bridge lovers around the worldThis is an important, and in some ways revolutionary, book. The point count method of hand evaluation was first proposed in 1914 and popularized in 1934 by Milton Work. The Banzai Method advanced by David Jackson and Ron Klinger improves on Milton Work by reassessing the relative values of the honour cards but also adds a further dimension to accurate hand evaluation by including the tens and is of crucial importance when assessing balanced hands. According to Eric Kokish, an internationally respected American authority, who has contributed the Foreword, the many example deals are an eye-opener. When you finish this book, it is unlikely that you are going to look at your hand the same way as you have in the past.

DOUBLED AND VENERABLE is the third title in Terence Reese's and David Bird's collection of stories about the bridge-playing monks of St Titus whose exploits delight readers the world over. The huge success of these books lies not only in their being extremely funny but also in their being instructional as they are crammed with gems of bridge bidding and play.

As Hugh Kelsey says in his introduction, the brilliant card player achieves his results with a combination of logic and flair. And although many people may think flair plays a disproportionate part, the expert player, in fact, produces his sometimes unbelievable results almost entirely by the application of logic. LOGICAL BRIDGE PLAY teaches you just how to apply logic to your card play in making the correct inferences and deductions, and in assessing the timing - the opportunity to become a master player is yours for the taking.

DEADLY DEFENCE covers every important aspect in bridge to make good bridge players into excellent defenders. It deals with opening leads (how to convey maximum information), defensive play when playing second hand, third hand and also when you are first to play to a trick, how to use signals more effectively and how to think on defence like an expert.

The card-play exploits of the monks at St Titus have a special place in bridge literature and their fame has now spread round the world. This collection of highly entertaining and absorbing stories from the monastery includes a further hilarious interlude with the missionary monks and the celebrated bridge-playing parrot in the Bozwambi jungle.

BRIDGE WITH THE BLUE TEAM sets down the most outstanding hands played by the Blue Team, the astonishingly successful Italian team which achieved a record number of victories in world-class championships, a feat unlikely to be equalled. The 140 chosen hands are first set out in single dummy form so that the reader can make his own decisions about playing the hand before reading the analysis provided. Sections at the end of the book give a summary of the bidding systems. Pietro Forquet is recognised as one of the most celebrated bridge players of all time, and in this book he demonstrates he would rank similarly as a bridge writer.

NEW INSTANT GUIDE TO BRIDGE is designed as a quick reference book for every bridge player who wants to be sure of the best bid, lead or play. It includes what you need to know for opening bids, responses and rebids. There is also guidance on hand evaluation, competitive bidding strategy, opening leads, declarer play and defence so that the reader will have all the basic essentials of good play within easy reach.

Defence is the hardest part of bridge and even top-class players make mistakes much too frequently. Part 1 of this book gives insights into how to become a deceptive defender and how to recognize special defensive situations. Part 2 consists of a series of quizzes and the answers contain the logic and reasoning behind the correct play. After all the quizzes have been completed, you will be amazed at how much more clearly you can see the winning defence at the table. And practice makes perfect if you tackle the problems again every three to six months. There is a lot of emphasis in the book on helping partner to pass vital information so that partner will be pointed into the right direction to find the winning play. No bridge player can come away from this book without a greater insight into how to be an accomplished defender.

David Bird has surpassed even himself and his inimitable combination of scintillating bridge and humour will swell the ranks of the cognoscenti with equally delighted new recruits. If you are not already happily enrolled, join now!

From the opening bid to much later rounds of bidding, from uncontested sequences to highly competitive auctions, this book will provide the groundwork so that you will know when silence can be golden. Each chapter covers the principles that indicate when bidding is the right course, and then which call to choose, and when passing is the winning action.

In this hugely entertaining book David Bird describes the most spectacular and amusing disasters suffered by the world's top players. There are two reasons for studying such disasters - you can learn from them and (yes!) you can enjoy them.In common with the previous books in this mini-series, you will be directly involved in the action at various stages, invited to make your own choice of bid, lead or play. This is excitement in itself, for the hands are all taken from top-class matches.

BRIDGE WORLD said of the first edition: 'is as good a quiz book as has ever appeared...Instead of examples of well-known ideas, the author presents truly practical situations...the questions emphasise those aspects of bridge play that are truly important at the table. Our quibbles with the analysis are minor, and we recommend the book as outstanding of its kind.'

The established classic on inferential reasoning in bridge. Deduction is the process of working out what logically follows from facts known or assumed. Psychologists rate deductive reasoning as central to human intelligence and Albert Dormer believes that it is the use of this faculty in bridge that gives players their satisfaction. So why do they so often fail to make the right deductions? The answer lies in correct thinking and in asking the right questions. Albert Dormer, internationally respected both as a player and as a writer of great distinction, shows how, through the use of deduction, bridge players can greatly enhance their card play and enormously increase their pleasure in this fascinating game. DORMER ON DEDUCTION is a brilliant book, lucidly written and packed with practical advice.

The world's oldest, and leading, bridge magazine, The Bridge World, said of this book:'Guide to Better Card Play is an elementary-through-intermediate textbook on declarer play and defence. Appropriately, the two phases of the book receive equal attention. The book can be used either as a self-teacher or as the basis of a series of lessons. In addition to the tutorial material, which is comprehensive, careful and instructive, the work is choc-a-bloc with summaries, reviews, quizzes and example deals. There is even an appendix that allows your foursome to set up the practice deals yourself. We like almost everything about this book, we especially liked the attention to partnership methods, the topic selection, and the carefully constructed lesson deals. There are other good texts at this level, but Klinger's book has twice as much material as similar works. This is a very good buy.'

Played around the world - according to one famous player, if you play bridge, you will make friends wherever you go.If you want to bid accurately and achieve greatly improved results at the bridge table, you have to master the Losing Trick Count. It is a tried and tested method of hand evaluation which has stood the test of time. Ron Klinger, famous international player, author and teacher who has more books to his credit than many players have had good hands, has brought the LTC up to date by relating it to modern systems and conventions.Now in its fifteenth impression since original publication, this remarkable book is set to hold its place as the standard text on the Losing Trick Count.

Join the millions of people worldwide who have discovered the joy of bridgeKilling Defence at Bridge is one of the great classics of bridge. It carries the mark of a genius and was the first in a series of major books written by Hugh Kelsey, who became internationally recognised as a leading authority on the analysis of bridge. He coupled this incisive thinking with a brilliant skill with words and made the most complex techniques in bridge sound simple and easy to grasp. Killing Defence features a foreword by Ron Klinger, one of bridge's leading teachers.

'The most useful publication in the past twelve months. I unhesitatingly award my accolade to BRIDGE ODDS FOR PRACTICAL PLAYERS because every player should know the material it contains. This cannot be found elsewhere' THE TIMESBacking outsiders has ruined many a punter at the bridge table as well as at the race track. Few players have any idea of how to harness the odds to solve problems that constantly recur. Which is the best line of play? Is it better to finesse or play for the drop? Will the diamonds break? Can the chances be combined? What are the exact odds?Here is a simple guide to solving the problems that arise in assessing the odds in play at bridge. Keeping theory to a minimum, the authors show by means of many practical examples how to calculate the odds and how to come up with the right answer at the bridge table. Anyone who learns to apply the principles set out in this book need never again be accused of playing against the odds.

'One of the best introductory books I have come across is Basic Bridge. I recommend it to beginners and teachers alike' The European'By far the best' Bridge PlusThis is a definitive Acol textbook, equally valuable to rubber or duplicate bridge players. Set out as a course which can be used in conjunction with bridge classes or as a self-teacher, the book covers all the basic principles of bidding and play and is packed with exercises and quizzes on everything that has been taught. Recommended as the ideal textbook for learning the game, Basic Bridge will continue to be the standard beginner's guide to rubber and duplicate bridge for the foreseeable future. If you only ever buy one bridge book it has to be Basic Bridge.

David Bird is acknowledged as the world's best when it comes to humorous bridge fiction. As the bridge cruise traverses the Far East, the bridge organiser, Richard Knight, visits Pat Pong - the notorious red-light district of Bangkok - and is enticed by three attractive Thai girls into a bridge game. Other hilarious adventures take place in a drug den in Hong Kong, in backpacker land in Bali, in a Shinto monastery in Kyoto, and in the Double Bay Club in Sydney.A mixture of top-class bridge, exhilarating narrative and a host of true-to-life characters.