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The Rodwell Files #4
The Rodwell Files, Part 4: The DOs and DON'Ts of Cardplay
Eric Rodwell's contributions to bidding theory are well-known, but in these ground-breaking books he reveals for the first time his unique approach to the play of the cards.
First, he describes and explains the process for deciding on a line of play — using concepts such as +L positions, tightropes, trick packages and Control Units as well as exploring more standard themes such as counting winners, losers, and distribution. Included here too is a checklist of 'defogging questions' to get you back on track when your analysis gets bogged down. Then he moves on to a host of innovative ideas in cardplay, strategies and tactics that can be used by declarer or defenders, each one illustrated with real-life examples from top-level play. Many of these ideas will be new to anyone below the bridge stratosphere. Finally, under the heading 'DOs and DON'Ts', Rodwell talks about the mental side of the game: areas where players often go wrong in their approach to the problem at hand, areas that mark the key differences between an average player and a successful one.
The original 'Rodwell File', the collection of notes on which these books are based, has been in existence for more than twenty years, but it is only now that the author is prepared to allow his 'secrets' to become public knowledge.
Included in this volume:
PART 5 — THE DOs AND DON’Ts OF CARDPLAY
Chapter 16: The DOs of Cardplay
1. Count HCP’s, Shape, Winners and Losers
2. Reconstruct Both Unseen Hands
3. Pay Attention to Negative Inferences from Earlier Plays
and/or Bidding
4. Check Your Work for Errors — Do It Twice
5. Anticipate Possible Snags
6. Check Out a Minor Option Before Taking the Main Line
7. Look for the Possibility of a Dummy Reversal
8. Use the Defogging Questions when Your Analysis Gets
Bogged Down
9. Make Sure You Are Aware when the Play Follows a Tightrope
10. Keep Up with the Facts as They Become Available and
Restock Regularly
11. Make Sure You Register Information as it Becomes Available
12. Be Alert to the Need for a Change of Tack
13. Trust the Opponents’ Carding
14. Notice and Take Correct Inferences from Surprising Actions
by an Opponent
15. Look for Ways to Create a False Impression in the Mind
of an Opponent
16. Prepare Your Falsecards
17. Lead Toward High Cards to Prevent Them Being Ruffed Out
18. Cash Your Tricks Before the Opponent(s) Can Discard
in a Suit and Subsequently Ruff Your Winners
19. Routinely Unblock Spotcards
20. Be Alert for Situations Where One of the Opponents
Can Be Cut Off
21. Be Alert for Unusual Types of Holdup Play
22. Be Alert for (Perhaps Unusual) Ducking Plays
23. Try to Neutralize the Opponents’ Winners
24. Always Consider Partner’s Problems on Defense
25. View the Play from the ‘Danger Hand’ Perspective
26. Try to Figure Out Why an Opponent Is Playing a Hand in a
Certain Way
27. Be Prepared for a Play
28. Watch for Situations where Communication Problems Exist,
or Could be Made to Exist
29. Always Consider the Merits of Passive Play
30. Be Prepared to Make an Attacking Shift if the Situation
Demands It
Chapter 17: The DON’Ts of Cardplay
1. Don’t Take Speculation as Fact
2. Don’t Mire Your Thought Processes in Speculation Once
Facts Are Available
3. Don’t Make a Play in a Crucial Suit Before All Possible
Information Is Obtained
4. Don’t Strip Out Your Side’s Suit as a Defender
5.
First, he describes and explains the process for deciding on a line of play — using concepts such as +L positions, tightropes, trick packages and Control Units as well as exploring more standard themes such as counting winners, losers, and distribution. Included here too is a checklist of 'defogging questions' to get you back on track when your analysis gets bogged down. Then he moves on to a host of innovative ideas in cardplay, strategies and tactics that can be used by declarer or defenders, each one illustrated with real-life examples from top-level play. Many of these ideas will be new to anyone below the bridge stratosphere. Finally, under the heading 'DOs and DON'Ts', Rodwell talks about the mental side of the game: areas where players often go wrong in their approach to the problem at hand, areas that mark the key differences between an average player and a successful one.
The original 'Rodwell File', the collection of notes on which these books are based, has been in existence for more than twenty years, but it is only now that the author is prepared to allow his 'secrets' to become public knowledge.
Included in this volume:
PART 5 — THE DOs AND DON’Ts OF CARDPLAY
Chapter 16: The DOs of Cardplay
1. Count HCP’s, Shape, Winners and Losers
2. Reconstruct Both Unseen Hands
3. Pay Attention to Negative Inferences from Earlier Plays
and/or Bidding
4. Check Your Work for Errors — Do It Twice
5. Anticipate Possible Snags
6. Check Out a Minor Option Before Taking the Main Line
7. Look for the Possibility of a Dummy Reversal
8. Use the Defogging Questions when Your Analysis Gets
Bogged Down
9. Make Sure You Are Aware when the Play Follows a Tightrope
10. Keep Up with the Facts as They Become Available and
Restock Regularly
11. Make Sure You Register Information as it Becomes Available
12. Be Alert to the Need for a Change of Tack
13. Trust the Opponents’ Carding
14. Notice and Take Correct Inferences from Surprising Actions
by an Opponent
15. Look for Ways to Create a False Impression in the Mind
of an Opponent
16. Prepare Your Falsecards
17. Lead Toward High Cards to Prevent Them Being Ruffed Out
18. Cash Your Tricks Before the Opponent(s) Can Discard
in a Suit and Subsequently Ruff Your Winners
19. Routinely Unblock Spotcards
20. Be Alert for Situations Where One of the Opponents
Can Be Cut Off
21. Be Alert for Unusual Types of Holdup Play
22. Be Alert for (Perhaps Unusual) Ducking Plays
23. Try to Neutralize the Opponents’ Winners
24. Always Consider Partner’s Problems on Defense
25. View the Play from the ‘Danger Hand’ Perspective
26. Try to Figure Out Why an Opponent Is Playing a Hand in a
Certain Way
27. Be Prepared for a Play
28. Watch for Situations where Communication Problems Exist,
or Could be Made to Exist
29. Always Consider the Merits of Passive Play
30. Be Prepared to Make an Attacking Shift if the Situation
Demands It
Chapter 17: The DON’Ts of Cardplay
1. Don’t Take Speculation as Fact
2. Don’t Mire Your Thought Processes in Speculation Once
Facts Are Available
3. Don’t Make a Play in a Crucial Suit Before All Possible
Information Is Obtained
4. Don’t Strip Out Your Side’s Suit as a Defender
5.
165 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 2, 2011
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