Bridge

Introduction to Bridge

Bridge is a trick-taking card game using a standard deck of 52 playing cards played by four players in two competing partnerships with partners sitting opposite each other around a small table.

For purposes of scoring and reference, each player is identified by one of the points of the compass and thus North and South play against East and West.

The game consists of several hands (or deals) each progressing through four phases: dealing the cards – generally done by computer in competitive events, the auction (also referred to as bidding), playing the hand, and scoring the results.

Dealing the cards and scoring the results are procedural activities while the auction and playing the hand are the two actively competitive phases of the sport.

Bridge at the SportAccord World Mind Games 2011

The Bridge competitions at the SportAccord World Mind Games are held under the auspices of the World Bridge Federation. 24 men and 24 women in total will compete in individual, pair and team events.

Individual event

Participants in an individual event play a set number of deals (usually 2 or 3) with one partner, before moving on to play with a different partner for the next few deals until they have played with as many other players in the competition as possible. Results are then computed to give an overall winner. Individual events are usually played using a very simple bidding system.

Pair event

In a pair event, the partnerships are fixed, one player playing with his or her partner for the duration of the event, which may comprise several sessions. A session is normally 24 or 27 deals, although it can be more or less. Because the partners will be familiar to each other, more complex bidding systems can be used with all relevant information about these being available to the opponents throughout the event.

Team event

Teams are comprised of between 4 and 6 players, often with a non playing Captain. Four players (i.e. two partnerships) play at any one time with one team playing as North South at one table, and at East West at the other. Scores can then be compared and a winning team established.

Visit the official website of the World Bridge Federations (WBF): http://www.worldbridge.org