Types of SIgnals

Types of Signals

Winning Bridge is a Very Close Thing. At competitive bridge the other players will be as good as or better than you are, and much of the time all your signals won't make a significant difference -- it's when there is an advantage to be gained by sound defense that the winning difference shows up.

To win at Duplicate, all you have to do is get a few good boards per round while your competition is getting an average -- winning percentages at competitive bridge are 55 to 60%; not 80 or 90%. All you need is an occasional good board and relatively few bad boards to win at competitive bridge.

Signals can give you that edge.

There are three basic types of signals:

Count -- how many cards do I hold in this suit?

Attitude -- how do I feel about continuing the lead suit?

Suit Preference -- how do I feel about two other suits?

Think carefully about these three categories, then answer these three questions in your mind before reading on:

Q1: What can I do if I know my partner's attitude about this suit ?

Q2: What can I do if I can count my partner's cards in a suit ?

Q3: What can I do if I know which of two suits I should lead ?

A1: You can make the crucial shift to another suit at the right time or continue the suit originally lead.

A2: You can figure out the distribution of the declarer's hand

A3: You can lead the right suit for a ruff or a killer finesse

Obviously, to get these wonderful, legal communications from your partner, you must do the same for him -- follow your defensive plan and communicate reliably to your partner all the time. Do it even when it won't beat the contract or won't make any difference in the outcome of the contract.

Make it a habit your partner can trust. Winning bridge is harmony, not solos.