Please get in touch with Tim Hewson, ABC Teaching Coordinator, on avenuelessons@gmail.com to register interest for courses or for details of course content and delivery. There may be some opportunity for you to play some Bridge with Tim Hewson to assess your level if you are unsure.

• January Classes start week commencing 6th January 2025. There are two new beginners classes other classes are continuations at same time on the same day, same teacher(s). 
• Contact details and instructions for booking and payment for courses are included below the details of courses, near the end of this page. 
• Please use the correct code when paying online.

Wednesday evening play sessions continue every week.  Still just £5 per session to the public and £3.50 to members. 

Book for a term in advance at £120. Ten lessons per term. 

FOR NEW BEGINNERS - Monday 6th January 2025  7-9pm  by Andy Osborn

REF - PiQ    Beginners    £120 for ten-week term

No previous bridge experience required. 

Indicative content: getting started with 'mini-bridge'; how to evaluate a hand; the 3 roles - defender, declarer and dummy; the essence of bidding at 1-level, balanced and unbalanced hands.

FOR NEW BEGINNERS - Thursday - 9th January 2025  10am-noon  by Dudley

REF - ReS    Beginners    £120 for ten-week term

No previous bridge experience required. 

Indicative content: getting started with 'mini-bridge'; how to evaluate a hand; the 3 roles - defender, declarer and dummy; the essence of bidding at 1-level, balanced and unbalanced hands.

Beginners are becoming term-2 In January 2025

REF R2  .. £120 for ten-week term 

Tuesday 7th January 2025, evenings 7 – 9pm with Nick and Dudley

One term's experience required. 

Indicative content: declarer play - develop tricks in long suit, finesses, communications & entry; defence - opening lead in NT or trumps, defender's partner and subsequent play; competitive auction - overcall and use of double, overcall of 1NT and with long suits, whose auction is it? (Term1 was - getting started with 'mini-bridge'; how to evaluate a hand; the 3 roles - defender, declarer and dummy; the essence of bidding at 1-level, balanced and unbalanced hands.)

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Beginners are becoming term-2 In January 2025  

REF Z2  .. £120 for ten-week term

Lunchtime 12 - 2 Thursday from 9th January 2025 with Ollie Powell

One term's experience required. 

Indicative content: declarer play - develop tricks in long suit, finesses, communications & entry; defence - opening lead in NT or trumps, defender's partner and subsequent play; competitive auction - overcall and use of double, overcall of 1NT and with long suits, whose auction is it? (Term1 - getting started with 'mini-bridge'; how to evaluate a hand; the 3 roles - defender, declarer and dummy; the essence of bidding at 1-level, balanced and unbalanced hands. )

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CONTINUING CLASSES

REF L or SUP   All Welcome Supervised Play - £5 per session (club members £3:50)

Every Wednesday evening 7:00 - 9:00pm 

These sessions are supported by more experienced players and/or teachers, who can be asked for assistance during the bidding and play.  The format is relaxed, with no competitive scoring, although potential scores are discussed. Results can be compared with other tables and with club duplicate sessions.

They are a “stepping stone” to moving on to club membership, and participation in DupliCake (Wednesday afternoons) or full Duplicate games.  

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REF Q2      Year 2 .. ten classes  £120 

Monday evening 7 - 9 pm from 6^th January 2025 with Ollie Powell

Indicative content: competitive bidding - double used again, double 1NT, takeout after overcall, raising partner, emergency escape when partner's 1NT is doubled; declarer play - SWOT, counting, managing danger hand, some ducking, ruffing finesse, loser on loser, lead toward honours; Tidy up - bid to show shape and 6-card suits, when to raise with 3-card support, some awkward hands. (last term - developing the auction, defensive guidelines; competitive bidding; declarer play.)

REF S2      Beginners Term 3 .. ten classes  £120 

Wednesday evening 7 - 9pm from 8^th January 2025 with Andy Osborn

New joiners/re-starters with some basic experience welcome – please email to discuss.

Indicative content: Stayman, Higher level openings, Slams. (last term - Bidding stronger hands, improving results in declarer play and defence, introducing competitive bidding.)

YEAR 2 AND BEYOND

REF A2      Continuing Bridge (Year 2) Term 3  .. ten classes  £120 

Tuesday mornings 10:30am-12:30pm from 7^th January with Ollie Powell

New joiners with previous learning or experience welcome, please email. Indicative content (depending upon the term): defenders play - signals and discards, safe exits; slam bidding - Blackwood,  competitive bidding; declarer play; defenders play; slam bidding, cue bidding before Blackwood, source of tricks such as long powerful 2nd suit. (last term - competitive bidding, declarer play, etc)

REF C3    Continuing Bridge (Year 3) Term two  .. ten classes  £120 

Tuesday evenings  7.00 - 9.00pm from 7^th January 2025 with Ollie Powell

New joiners with previous learning or experience welcome, please email. Indicative content: comprehensive and integrated bidding system, variety in defender's play when to use each, some more sophisticated declarer play elimination of suits, discovery plays, Jacobi convention and Splinters.

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REF F3       Improvers Year 3+  .. ten classes  £120  

Thursday mornings  10am – 12pm from 9^th January with  Oliver Powell

Those new to the club who are considering this course please email Tim Hewson the teaching coordinator at avenueLessons@gmail.com the content is more tailored to the group's level. Those who join this course would have prior experience of:

1. bidding ACOL 4-card / 5-card  Majors weak / strong NT
2. when to bid game / part game alone and in competition
3. the play of suitable leads as well as signalling and use of discards
4. how and when to bid pre-emptively with weak 2s and weak 3s
5. the 2C and 2NT and responses the positives as well as delayed positives. 

Also participants need the conventions such as:

• unnatural NT and Michaels 
• 4th suit forcing, 
• Ogust (in 3-weak twos)
• Landy (or alternative),
• Unassuming Queue Bid,
• Stayman and red suit transfers (possibly transfer into minors) [transfer to minors / 11 points], 
• Jacobi and Splinters
• simple Blackwood and Roman Key Card Blackwood 1st and subsequent bids,
• avoiding phantom sacrifices

Do you understand: discovery plays, counting in 2 even 3 suits, end plays, when to play to go off?

Existing students should book a class by contacting the tutor and confirm by email to avenuelessons@gmail.com.

New students should contact avenuelessons@gmail.com

PAYMENT

All fees are payable in advance (but see Beginners below) and should be paid direct to the Club account at Barclays Bank by BACS. 

The Avenue Bridge Club

Sort Code: 20 88 13   Account: 93986020  

Payment reference is CLASS/Ref letter/name e.g. CLASS/G/JBloggs

Beginners who wish to do the free Taster session before committing, will pay for the whole term promptly after the first session, if they wish to continue.  Beginners who wish to secure their place on the course and to to commit to the term in full, should make their payments as above.

CONTACT

Any queries should be addressed to either the tutor of your chosen class or our Teaching Coordinator, avenuelessons@gmail.com

GENERAL

The running of any course is dependent upon enough students being recruited.