Master Long Suits for Bridge Success

Unlock the secrets to winning at bridge by mastering the art of establishing a long suit. Learn how to count cards, manage entries, and strategically lose tricks to turn your small cards into powerful winners, enhancing your gameplay in no-trump contracts. Tune in now for expert tips that will elevate your bridge skills!

What is Bridge Basics: Your Easy Guide to Winning?

Welcome to "Bridge Basics," the podcast that makes learning bridge easy and fun. Each episode breaks down strategies, game dynamics, and teaching tips for beginners. Whether you're new to card games or looking to improve your skills, you'll find valuable insights to enhance your bridge experience.

Establishing a long suit in bridge means turning your small cards into winners by exhausting your opponents' cards in that suit. You usually need a long suit, which is typically four or more cards, and a plan to manage your entries and the distribution of the cards.

First, count the combined length of your cards and the dummy's cards in the suit. This helps you figure out how many cards are missing and how they might split between the opponents. If you find five cards missing, a 3-2 split is the most likely scenario, with about a sixty-eight percent chance of that happening.

Next, you need to ensure you have enough entries to keep leading the suit until the opponents run out of cards. If you lack entries, you might have to lose a trick intentionally to preserve them. Often, you’ll need to lose one or more tricks in the suit before your small cards become winners. For instance, if you have five cards in a suit and the opponents split 3-2, you might lose two tricks before your last three cards can win.

Timing is crucial. Think about how many times you’ll need to lose the lead to establish the suit. You also need to consider whether the opponents can cash their winners in other suits before you regain control.

In a trump contract, you can establish a long suit by ruffing the suit in one hand once the opponents' cards are gone.

Let’s look at an example without trump. Imagine you have six hearts between your hand and the dummy, but you’re missing seven. If you keep leading hearts and the suit splits 4-3, after losing the first four heart tricks, your last two hearts become winners, as long as you have enough entries to reach them.

Now, in a suit contract, if the dummy has Ace and King of hearts, and you have two small hearts, you can play the Ace and King, then ruff the third round. If the suit splits 3-3, you can use an outside entry to the dummy to cash the remaining winners.

To sum it up, count the cards and plan for the split. Make sure you have enough entries to the long suit, and be prepared to lose tricks early to establish it. Time your plays carefully to avoid letting your opponents run their winners in other suits. Using ruffing in suit contracts can also help establish your long suit.

Mastering this technique is essential for improving your results in bridge, especially in no-trump contracts. Thank you for listening. Visit PodSights.ai to create a podcast on any topic.