play better bridge: your home for online lessons

I have done everything there is to do in bridge, but teaching the game is my passion. I was introduced to tournament bridge at five years old. I soon began caddying at local tournaments until one fateful day when the tournament officials needed a fill-in. I played with one of them and we won. Well, I never went back at caddying. I studied every book I could get my hands on. I began teaching bridge lessons in high school and started the tournament circuit when I graduated. I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up, but I knew I wanted to play bridge.

I worked as a tournament director throughout undergraduate studies and law school. I tried practicing law for a few years, but the bridge bug kept calling me back. In 2002, I said goodbye to law and returned to teaching bridge in my home. This project quickly grew into an office building nearby. The Bridge Academy of North Dallas (BAND) became my teaching oasis and the place I built my curriculum that can take you from introductory concepts to the most intricate and complex parts of this game. At the beginning of the pandemic, BAND moved online and became BAND Online. As BAND celebrates 15 years of duplicate games and bridge lessons, it is now one of the largest virtual bridge clubs in the country. Visit

My other bridge projects over the years include Bridge Newspaper and Magazine Editor/Publisher, NABC Child Care Coordinator for 20 years, District Board Secretary, Tournament Chairman and Award Winning Journalist. As a player, I had my first national win at the 2003 Long Beach NABC. In 2010, my partner and I topped 420 pairs and won the World Mixed Pairs at the Philadelphia World Championships. In between playing, as a non-playing captain at the World Level, my teams won 6 medals ~ including 2 Gold, 2 Silver and 2 Bronze.  

The bridge success is exciting, but my passion is teaching. To this end, I have taken my classroom lessons online! I had to find a way to bring teaching back into my life as teaching on a regular basis in a class room was no longer an option. I am so excited to have such great programs like Shark Bridge to help us learn through the computer.

Play Better Bridge is now where I fulfill my passion for teaching and I hope it will become your home for online bridge lessons. As you work through the video workshops and seminars, feel free to send me your questions. Think of me as your personal virtual bridge coach. We also offer a mini lesson via Zoom every weekday morning at 9:45am Central Time here. Join PBB Online Lessons and together we will take your bridge game to the next level. My personal email is donna@playbetterbridge.com

Let's play some bridge!

Donna

"I love being part of Donna's Webinars. Donna is making me understand why I have been doing certain plays at the table and also explains why we should do certain extra aspects of the game. Please join us!” -Barbara

"Your workshop was fantastic. I received much value and enjoyed it very much. I was delighted that you obviously spent a great deal of time working on the presentation ~ and the graphics were superb." -Steve