Larry Neil Cohen (born April 14, 1959) is an American bridge player, writer and teacher. He is best known as an advocate for the "Law of Total Tricks" as a guide in the bidding. He has won 25 North American Bridge Championships (NABC) events including the Vanderbilt, two Spingolds, two Reisingers, three Life Master Pairs, and four Blue Ribbon Pairs, and he is a two-time winner of the Cavendish Invitational Pairs cash prize tournament.
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Cohen's most important work on "the Law" was To Bid or Not to Bid: The LAW of Total Tricks, published in 1992. It was the best-selling bridge book of the 1990s with more than 90,000 copies sold in six different languages and its sequel Following the Law was another bridge best seller. [1] He is known for long-term expert partnerships with Marty Bergen, Ron Gerard, and David Berkowitz, but announced his retirement from high-level competition in 2009 to devote more time to writing and teaching the game. [2] However, he has, on occasion, played in high-level competition thereafter.
Cohen was born in New York City. He learned to play bridge at age six with his grandparents and brother Paul Cohen, started playing duplicate at age 14, and began playing in tournaments at age 15. He became an American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) Life Master at age 17.
He now makes a living as a bridge teacher, often on cruise ships and as a guest speaker/teacher at country clubs and bridge clubs across the United States and around the world. In March 2020 he and his team successfully transitioned into live webinars. He writes monthly columns titled The Real Deal and Bidding Basics, in the ACBL Bridge Bulletin. [2] An extensive list of bridge articles and information can be found on his website and in his regular newsletters. He currently resides with his wife, Maria Eugenia, in Delray Beach, Florida.
