things you might not have noticed on your initial reading of a problem .
This is where repetition comes in . If you play tennis or golf , you will understand that hitting one forehand or one tee shot is not enough . You need to repeat , repeat , and then repeat again .
This topic , Defense , is covered in Bill Root ’ s second book , How to Defend a Bridge Hand . Both of his books are marvelous . Nothing trivial . All useful . The hard part will be finding either of these two books . The fun part will be reading them .
POSTMORTEM TO ALL OF THE ABOVE
When you are declaring or defending a hand , you should be sure you remember the bidding . All of it . Remember the initial passes if there were any . Remember the actual bids . Remember the last three passes that will occur in all auctions . Those passes may turn out to be full of information .
If you ever play in a practice session where you can do this , write the auction down on a piece of paper . This will reinforce your awareness of the bidding . This information , if remembered , will help you determine where unseen high cards might be . These modest reminders are big . Learn them . Use them .
Mike Lawrence vi / foreword