Why aren't more Spades players making the switch to the king of all partnership card games? In my opinion, Bridge is the greatest card game ever invented.
Is it because of the complicated bidding? Or is the perception that it's an LOL (little old lady)game? Maybe people aren't aware you can play professionally and make a comfortable living. I admit Bridge at first seems pretty overwhelming to learn, and getting a new player through that initial phase is the hardest part.
When my dad tried to get me into Bridge when I was 15, he would take me to the club and it was filled with 65+ yr olds. This obviously made it difficult for me to get into the game and I decided to stick with Spades. I regret not getting into the game at a younger age, as now I have a lot of catch up to do. Fortunately during those years I decided to read a lot of bridge books knowing eventually I'd make the switch.
Spades is really the ideal groundwork to prepare for learning Bridge. The card play in Bridge takes years to become proficient in, but Spades players have a nice head start. Bridge experts will tell you that defense is the hardest area to get proficient in, and Spades players are already playing "defense" on every hand. This is a huge asset Spaders bring when they start out.
Contrary to what most think, the bidding is probably the easiest area to become proficient in even though it seems foreign and hard to grasp when you start (like any new language).
Last week I was playing Spades with one of the top professional Bridge players in the country (Justin Lall) and we were discussing this subject. He started playing Spades many yrs ago at a very young age, and now plays professional Bridge. He had said many times that Spades is the ideal primer for Bridge and is what got him started.
Here is a post Justin Lall made on this subject (under JLOGIC)
Is Bridge Dying?
