To Bid or Not to Bid: The Law of Total Tricks

This excellent bridge book has the fine reputation that it does because it is so thorough and detailed an explanation of the Law of Total Tricks. Larry Cohen is the most passionate supporter of this law in the game; and he does a complete job explaining it, illustrating it with interesting example hands, and summarizing with useful maxims that tend to stick with you after the reading is over. Especially good is his compelling discussion of whether to rebid when the bidding goes 1H-1S-2H-2S-? or even 1H-1S-2H-2S-3H-?. He also makes some good points about bidding at the higher levels with a known long fit. This is one of the few books we believe should be in every serious player's library; yet it is basic enough and entertaining enough to benefit relative beginners and more expert players alike. No wonder it is an award winning book on bridge!

Before reading this: I open 1 Spade, 2 Heart overcall,partner raises to 2S, RHO raises to 3 Hearts. I auto-matically bid 3S, just as Pavlov's dog automaticallysalivated. Down one. 3H would have gone down one.Oops. Wrong guess. Sorry, partner. Next round, Ipass 3H and it makes. 3S would have made. Oops. Wrong guess. Sorry, partner.After reading this: I look less at how many high-cardpoints I have and more at how many hearts and spades Ihave. Do I have S Q9542 H QJ7 or S KQJ92 H 432? Do Ihave 5 or 6 spades? Now I bid 3 Spades when it's rightand pass when it's right.Buy two copies and give your partner one. Hide it fromall opponents. The IMPs will now dribble to your team,five or six IMPs at a time. Likewise, so will thematchpoints: 9x on 12 top instead of 2x on 12 top, againand again on these unspectacular hands.

I don't understand how anyone could intelligently win a matchpoint game without understanding the LAW. This isn't just a way of improving your competitive bidding; the LAW is the whole theory underlying this area of bridge.The author's presentation of the concepts is illustrated with numerous examples and exercises to allow the reader to quickly absorb the ideas. My advice to my partners: know this book inside out. My request of my opponents: pay no attention!

If your bridge library were extremely small, one MUST item would be The Law of Total Tricks. It's a gem, one that will change the way you think at bridge and one that will help you make those tough part-score and higher competitive decisions which are ordinarily such "guess work". This book will help you evaluate your bidding options with much greater assurance and accuracy.

The law of total tricks has been around for about 40 years, but it's never been as thoroughly and completely explained as in this book. Cohen shows how the law should be used to resolve your competitive bidding decisions and to make the opponents' life more difficult. He also shows how modern bidding, and how the conventions he developed with Marty Bergen, try to give your partnership the information you need to make total trick decisions. Simply the best book on the subject.