These pages contain previous 'featured hands' arising from Play & Learn sessions, dating from the very first session in Autumn 2009. These have now been grouped into the categories below — to get to one, click on it or select from the menu (left).
The categories are only a rough indication of the main interest point of each hand. The topics necessarily overlap, and in many case both the bidding and the play are discussed.
The articles are in reverse date order (most recent first).
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| Basic bidding |
The application of standard modern Acol, including transfers. Most of the hands are uninterrupted auctions not going beyond game.
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| Beyond basic bidding |
Again, mostly uninterrupted auctions, but often featuring a tricky bidding decision by one or both players.
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| Competing and sacrificing |
Hands which raise issues involved in competitive auctions – and which may end with one side making a sacrifice.
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| Using conventions |
These hands illustrate some useful conventions such as Ogust, Landy, 4th suit forcing and cue bids.
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| Looking for a slam |
A unrepresentatively large number of hands – but then slams aren't easy to bid and players like them!
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| Defence |
Opening leads, inferences from the auction, making (and noticing!) signals, etc.
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| Declarer play (in a suit) |
Lots of practice here in basic declarer play – see also many of the hands in other categories
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| Declarer play (in NT) |
Lots more practice in basic declarer play, this time in no trumps
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