Workshop/Post-mortem Pairs information

Who are they for?

Both Workshops and Post-mortem Pairs are aimed at helping players improve their skills at competitive bridge. Ideally, attendees will have finished bridge classes and been playing Club duplicate for some time. Nobody is excluded, but to get the most from the sessions it helps to have a sound understanding of the basics and a wish to improve results with improved card play technique and bidding innovation.

You are welcome to attend without a partner and either pair up on the day, where possible, or join a completed table. Non-members are also welcome.  The sessions are relaxed and non-competitive in order to maximize the learning experience.

Cost?

All sessions cost £5 per person on a ‘pay and play’ basis. Fees are taken using ‘cashless bridge’ accounts in the same way as other Club playing sessions.

Where and when?

Workshops and Post-mortem Pairs take place on Friday mornings at The Pavilion, King George V playing fields with a 10:00am start time and a scheduled finish of 1:00pm, although in practice Workshops tend to finish by 12:30pm. The season runs from the beginning of October to the end of July. A schedule of topics is available under the ‘Workshop/PMP’ tab on the website.

Workshops

Each Workshop covers a unique independent topic, allowing attendees to dip in and out as they wish. The format is approximately a 45 minute PowerPoint presentation followed by eight practice hands that specifically reference the topic taught. Detailed notes and hand records are provided by email after the session (or in hard copy on the day, by request).

 Post-mortem Pairs

These sessions alternate with Workshops. They are a chance to bid and play twelve random dealt boards in a non-competitive setting. Discussion with partner is actively encouraged (within reason!) At the end of each set of three boards the hands are shown on a screen and the host runs through possible bidding sequences as well as any card play hints of note (both for declarer and defenders). Some discussion of advanced bidding agreements takes place, but there is also a good amount of reinforcement of fundamentals.

The host

Sessions are run by Peter Clark, the County ‘A’ team captain for Hertfordshire.       

Friday Bridge Workshop dates 2024 - 2025