Why take lessons with Jeff Badler?

You will discover that I have seemingly unlimited patience. I will stay after class if you would like something explained again. I make my lessons challenging and fun because I never forget this is a game.

My method:

I start each lesson with an interactive lecture on Zoom. Students are encouraged to ask questions. I want you to stay engaged with me. There will be no need to write everything down because for every lesson, I have created class notes which you will receive in advance. It is helpful if you read them before class to familiarize yourself with the material, and then I will go over each element.

When I finish explaining the new material, I will take you to a teaching platform called Shark Bridge, where you will be able to play hands. You will get to play many practice hands at every lesson. This helps solidify the concepts you just learned.

You will have access to recordings of all classes in my 6-week courses, ensuring you can review the material anytime.  Also, you won’t have to worry about missing a class. Of course, life gets in the way. Very few people make it to every class.  But you will never fall behind if you keep up with the recordings.

You will also receive copies of the hands we play in class along with explanations on how to play each one. There is a wonderful practice website we use and for the introductory course, the Club includes a 6 week free subscription. I will assign reinforcing exercises for you to practice. (Adults don’t like doing homework, so I call them “reinforcing exercises.”)

I will load the hands into an app created by our teaching platform that allows you to replay them as many times as you wish. This is a very helpful tool, as repetition is the key to learning.

I stay focused on my students the entire two hours of every lesson. I monitor their bidding and play of the hands, and will often comment if I see a student making an incorrect move.

My Background:

My first career was running a fine jewelry company on Park Avenue in New York City. A client introduced me to bridge and I signed up for lessons. After the first class, the instructor pulled me aside and said, "Do you know what just happened here? I see card sense like yours once every ten years. You are going to be spending a lot of time here." "No I'm not," I replied. "I run a jewelry company and I don't have time for this!" Her answer was, "Remember this conversation."

When I started teaching at Honors Bridge Club, I had one goal: to share my love and enthusiasm for bridge.

In my over 40 years in the fine jewelry industry, I developed a reputation for being a stickler for quality. I pushed artisans to do their best work because I only wanted deliver great jewelry. This sense of perfectionism has carried over to my teaching.

My attitude about classes is simple. I don’t want to give good classes…

I only want to give great classes!


Covid came and I quickly adapted to teaching online and strived to perfect teaching this way. I enlisted the help of education professionals who taught me techniques that made my classes better. Not only did my students love the classes, but they became players more quickly.

I've invested hundreds of hours to create notes, clear and concise explanations of hands and recordings.

I am pleased to be ranked the #1 instructor in the U.S by the leading teaching platform for absolute beginner through advanced beginner students.

I am accessible:

You are welcome to email me when you have questions. I answer as promptly as possible. I can also come to the class early or stay after in order to assist you.

My students

Originally, my focus was on teaching absolute beginners. But my students wanted me to take them further. So I developed several series that will take you to well beyond the Beginner level. There are students that have been taking 2 or 3 lessons a week with me for more than three years. They love sharing their successes in tournaments with me and I am very proud of them.

Bridge attracts people of all ages. Most of my students are between 25 and 70, but I have taught students ranging from 12 to 96 years old. I am pleased to be teaching students from all over the U.S. and also have students from England, Spain, France, Guatemala and Anguilla.

Approximately half of my new students have been referred by friends and family members. I am so grateful for referrals as they are the greatest compliment I can receive.

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"I loved the course! It was well structured. You give great explanations on planning the play of the hand. Thank you for the wonderful classes."

Linda
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"I enjoy all your classes. For me personally I get much more out of it watching you play the hands. I learn so much that way. You 100% explain the thought processes. For me that is key."

Mark
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"Your classes are always so well organized with a mix of teaching and playing of hands. I find getting the pre-lesson exercises in advance very helpful because then the explanation is more meaningful."

Laura
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