Most books about bridge focus on bidding and/or card play, but what about the players that hold the cards? In “The Art of Becoming a Top Bridge Player,” coauthors Professor Samantha Punch and Tim Rees draw together common themes from interviews of sixty international bridge players.

Intended for players of all levels who are intrigued by how bridge experts think, this book collates the experiences shared by top-level players. “There is little to separate expert bridge players in terms of technical ability,” explains Samantha Punch. “This means that the non-technical aspects of playing bridge at the top level can strongly influence success.”

What are the challenges that players face at high-level tournaments? How do the players prepare? How do they cope with losing? How did the players progress from being learners to international representatives? Answers to many such questions have been analysed to identify the common factors experienced by the experts, providing valuable guidance for aspiring serious players and those wanting to improve their results.

Jeff Meckstroth who has written a Foreword for the book says:

This is a unique and intriguing bridge book as it contains no bridge hands. Delving inside the minds of top players, you will hear how we think about the game and our approach to forming successful partnerships. An insightful and often entertaining read.

Bridge is a partnership game, which means that partnership dynamics are a considerable influence on success at the table. This book considers the attitudes of players towards their partners and highlights the components of winning partnerships. The qualities of a good bridge partner are examined in depth, encouraging readers to reflect on their own contribution to partnership dynamics.

Entwined with partnership dynamics and perhaps integral to bridge itself is mistakes. “You win at bridge by making the fewest errors, so we were curious how the players view mistakes,” says Tim Rees. The experts reveal their varied attitudes towards mistakes by themselves and their partner and the strategies that they adopt to maintain focus and regulate emotions after a mistake.

The top German partnership of Sabine Auken and Roy Welland have endorsed the book:

This book is a treasure chest of information that can improve anyone’s bridge game, regardless of their skill level. The opportunity to read how so many great players approach different aspects of the game is not only interesting, but highly educational.

 – ­Roy Welland

 You have all your system notes down pat, you know all the suit combinations by heart and you have studied all the opening lead theories letting you find the best opening lead more often than not. Still you don’t feel like a winner? Read on and let Samantha show you how to not only win all the postmortems, but how to also be considered a true winner by both your partners, teammates and even your opponents.  – Sabine Auken

The insight yielded from the interviews has been summarised as tips for players. Ranging from pointers for achieving success at competitions—yes, it really does help to get a good sleep before a tournament—to cultivating a constructive attitude towards losing, these tips can direct you along the path to becoming a better bridge player at any level.

“The Art of Becoming a Top Bridge Player”, coauthored by Samantha Punch and Tim Rees and published by Master Point Press, is available from Amazon or your favourite bookstore. The ebook is available here.

Samantha Punch is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Stirling and has been representing Scotland in international tournaments since 2008. She founded Bridge: A MindSport for All (BAMSA), which helps bridge organisations to use academic research to promote and sustain the mindsport of bridge.

Tim Rees is a transport researcher and international bridge player. He has been representing Wales since 1997. This blog was written by Dr Tash Lundin, a science editor from New Zealand who volunteers for BAMSA.

Final words go to England’s top player, Andrew Robson, whose top tips appear many times in the book:

What an interesting read – the inner story of the challenges of being a top bridge player. Whether you are one yourself, or an aspiring bridge player near the start of your journey, or, perhaps even especially, a non-bridge player, you will find Sam and Tim’s insights absolutely fascinating. Many of them are transferable to other elite activities but some are unique to our wonderful game.  – Andrew Robson