Getting started
Your first look at BriJ
Hi - you'll have reached this page because you're interested in
learning how to play bridge or you're wanting to practice / improve
your game. Bridge is increasingly popular with younger people,
particularly now it is being introduced into schools.
BriJ will give interested beginners a good start
and more experienced players a fun way of learning and practicing.
See below for links to other "how to..." pages. These include details on
how to set up
BriJ , notes on
BriJ bidding layouts and hints,
BriJ playing layouts and hints, connecting with
Bluetooth and the method
BriJ uses for
duplicate scoring.
Also, look out for the
symbol on these pages, signifying a link to a video that may help with the
topic.
The game of bridge is played in two phases:
bidding in an
auction and then
playing the cards. Each player is in
partnership with the player opposite. Each player bids in turn
to decide which pair of players gets the
contract. The contract winner plays both his or her cards and also partner's cards
(the
dummy hand which is
exposed to all the players after the first lead. Play is just like
whist apart from this.
The aim of the game is to make as many tricks as possible and ideally as many tricks as were promised in the auction.
When you launch BriJ, the cards are automatically shuffled and dealt.
You can select
New Game to redeal an
unlimited number of hands. Once you have dealt, you're invited to start bidding. If you're new to the game of bridge, a
Did you know? screen will appear
from time to time to help you on your way.
The idea is to bid, as in an auction, for the best
contract.
In a
duplicate bridge club, cards are arranged
so that every pair plays the same cards as everyone else, so the game is
very competitive!
BriJ has a way of
representing duplicate scoring to give some idea of the competitive
excitement of the game and give you a measure of how well you're
playing.
If you want to know more about the basics of Bridge, there are some
useful web links on our
Beginners page.
Guide to BriJ features
More information is available via the following pages
BriJ Benjamised Acol bidding style and playing
style is summarised in the following Convention card:
BriJ Bidding and Playing Conventions
This page also explains some of the jargon you may come across in
BriJ help and hint displays.
Touch here for the next topic: Bidding