How to Play Yahoo!! Bridge

Bridge, officially called Contract Bridge, is similar to other trick-taking card games from the 16th century. After years of changing rules for Bridge based on locality, official rules were created and accepted by all players in 1925. Bridge is a blend of strategy and chance. It is made up of two teams of two people. You can play Bridge at Yahoo!! without having to shuffle the cards, deal the cards or count points by hand.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Yahoo!! account

1. Direct your favorite browser to Yahoo!! Games and select the Bridge game (see Resources below). Move past the advertisement quickly by clicking the "Click Here to Continue" words.
2. Choose the room that fits your current Bridge ability.
3. Choose a table to play at by clicking the "Join" button.
4. Look over your cards to start thinking about what you will bid during the auction. The auction is the process you go through to place a bid or pass.
5. Count the number of points in your hand. Aces are worth four, kings are worth three, queens are worth two and jacks are worth one point. Typically, a minimum of 12 points is needed to place a bid.
6. Place a bid higher than the previous bid, unless you bid first and can set the initial amount.
7. Pass on the bid if you cannot outbid the latest bid.
8. Place your hand down, with the cards facing up, if your team wins the bid and your partner is the declarer (one who named the suit to be played with the winning bid).
9. Play the first card if you are the player to the left of the declarer.
10. Follow the suit of the cards played unless you don't have a card of the same suit. If this happens, you can play a trump or pass points along to your partner.
11. Select the card to play from your partner's hand on his turn if you are the declarer. Play cards from your own hand on your turn.
12. Continue laying cards down until all of the cards in the hand have been played.
13. Check the score at the end of the hand and wait a moment for the cards to be dealt for the next hand.
14. Win the game of Bridge by being the first team to reach 100 or more points.

Tips & Warnings

• Find a partner and save her information so you can play together again in the future.
• Outbid an opponent by bidding a higher number or the same number with a higher suit. Suit order from highest to lowest is: no trumps, spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs. Bids automatically assign a trump based on the announced suit.
• Pay close attention to your partner's bid and the other team's to gauge the strength of your team's hands.