So you tend to be dealt very bad hands. I know exactly you feel! But, facing the facts of life and recognising that it is not your fault, you are going to have to accommodate this failing and improve your defence. It is a hard part of the game; even in international competitions, the standard of defensive play is, to put it kindly, modest. Yes, you will get plenty of reports of brilliances involving spectacular switches, deceptions, unblocks and discards of honours. But for every one of those, there are countless others in which the display would disgrace any beginners' class. I am going to assume that you are a regular club or tournament player who knows the basics of defence but who comes unstuck when it comes to situations where you have to work the hand out in detail. This book will help you to improve dramatically in this area. -- Danny Roth.

Defense is the hardest part of playing bridge, but that doesn't mean that it's impossible to learn. The authors explain how to make a plan as a defender: how to work out from the auction and play what declarer probably has, and which of the strategies available to defenders is likely to be successful.

test

This Bridge Guide encourages players to see the potential of weak hands. When the defenders know the standard opening lead guidelines and how to use signals and the Defenders' Plan, they start to maximize the partnership's trick-taking potential on defense, even when holding the weakest hand at the table.

This book is designed to give a comprehensive view of the rules of play for defense. The book contains rules for how to defend against a long suit, when and how to ruff, how to handle a forcing defense, how to defend against a squeeze play or an endplay, when and how to duck, when to play 2nd hand high or 3rd hand low, how to play from E, when to underlead your Ace, how to discard and deceive, how to defend against a notrump contract, how to signal and how to lead. Under each subject, there are numerous examples illustrating each rule of defense.

A book of bridge problems and chess problems, for the reader interested in both games.