New bridge partnerships are born online every day.

Since bridge is a game of synchronization, being in-tune with your (new) bridge partner can be difficult. It’s like being made to do the foxtrot with someone you’ve just met, or standing in for the bass player when you’ve just met the band. 

A prior BBO Prime column entry took a closer look at how to make these new partnerships work better.

Here’s a follow-up with some more exercises to piece together a successful partnership from people who have practically just met. 

1. Read Their Profile First

Bridge players are encouraged to include more information about themselves and their bridge plays in their online profiles; how else are we supposed to get to know anything about you? 

Glancing over the profile of a player you’ve just met can help to reveal some essentials about how they approach their bridge game (and other details like their preferred bridge conventions) that might help your partnership to be more in-tune.

2. Discuss Conventions

Preferred bridge conventions and plays can have a lot to do with who taught you to play (and where you learned the game). 

When partnering up with any player from another club, background, country or school of bridge thought, take a moment to discuss your conventions before heading to the tables for your first game.

3. Play Other Games, Too

Bridge partnerships are also encouraged to reach outside the game of bridge for the occasional game of “something else”, whether this game is backgammon, chess, poker, Monopoly or Clue. 

Sharing in other board, card and table endeavors can quickly teach a pair of people how to synchronize their unspoken movements through what’s on the table.

4. Kibitz More Often

It’s likely that your bridge partner occasionally partners up with another player (gasp!). 

This is a good opportunity to watch what they’re doing in relation to another player. One that’s not you. 

Where the opportunity presents itself, join in as a kibitzer for games where your partner plays with anyone else. 

5. Start an Archive of Plays 

What about the games your partnership has played together? 

Start an archive of previous plays: A diary of partnership plays, if you will. It can provide you with a different perspective on where your partnership started – and often, it’s also a great way to see any flaws your partnership still shares at the table.

Simple screen capturing software can help you to record these games. All of them can be backed up to a communal cloud for your partnership.

6. Share Some Resources

Seen any great bridge-related resources around the internet? Share it with your new bridge partner. 

Whether it’s a video introducing a new convention or an article teaching a player specific techniques, sharing the same bridge resources can put you on the same page as a partnership.

If your bridge partnership feels stagnant or stuck, this might be one of the best ways to get out of the rut. 

7. Anything to Declare? 

Some bridge partnerships bid perfectly fine, but can’t seem to play in-sync: Just Declare is a great way to focus on the playing part – and regular runs through Just Declare can help a rusty partnership to get their play back on the right path.

8. For Bad Bidding

There are also many bridge partnerships that synchronize their play just fine, but dig a deep hole for the contract through their bidding methods. 

For bidding that doesn’t seem to synchronize well, take up a selection of bridge bidding puzzles and see how the both of you fare at them. (Of course, discuss your answers after this exercise to see where you can match up better.)