Your mental toolbox to a better game
A few years ago, I ran a survey of Australia’s top bridge players asking them to rank bridge skills. In that survey, concentration was ranked most highly as an area that players wanted to improve. This finding was confirmed by a great many of the leading players who were interviewed in Samantha Punch’s recently published […]
Years ago, I was at a shooting competition overseas and I took the opportunity to speak with one of the German shooters at the event to talk about a tendency I had to hold onto shots for too long. This top-ranked shooter called this ‘chicken-finger’ and told me to believe in myself and to “not […]
As my home state of Victoria entered the third month of its second lockdown due to the pandemic, online bridge events have played a bigger part in my life. I thank the organisers of the various structured games that have taken place as life would have been quite dull without them. Bridge post-mortems are still […]
As an international shooter, my most memorable matches were events where I performed well against opponents who were also playing at the top of their game. I know of very few athletes who are excited by beating opponents who are not playing well or who are having an off day. It is much more exciting […]
One of my partners maintains an impassive expression no matter how awful the final contract. We are not all blessed with such equanimity in the face of an unexpected action by partner. Some players will often sense that their partner is unhappy with a bid which has been made or a signal which has been […]
In previous articles I have written about comfort zones and maintaining a positive outlook at the table. Sometimes circumstances combine at the bridge table to create a challenging and unfamiliar environment for players which stretches our comfort zone and tests our ability to stay positive. Recently my comfort zone was stretched when I lined up […]
Pressure comes in a variety of ways in all types of activities. Bridge players are not immune to this and may also feel pressure when playing an event. Whether it is the pressure of leading the event, the pressure of expectations, time pressure to finish because you are a slow player or have slow opponents, […]
Occasionally in bridge you play against one of those pairs whose bidding style might be described as optimistic. They push for every marginal game and slam. You just hope that today isn’t going to be one of those day’s when all the marginal games and slams come home. Recently I sat down in a team’s […]
As the tennis season approached in the Australian summer, it brought to mind various matches I have watched over the years, both in Australia and from overseas tournaments, where a lesser ranked player will find themselves holding a winning position against a more highly fancied opponent. It is heartbreaking to then see the lower ranks […]
Loss of concentration can be devastating for our results as bridge players. It is easy to dump 20 imps in the space of 3 or 4 boards through poor concentration. Top athletes generally have superb concentration – it is a skill which is developed over time – and if they lose concentration they have mechanisms […]