Mark keeps his client list confidential to protect the privacy of his clients. Mark has worked with intermediate and advanced players to help them to analyse hands better, and Mark has helped experts (up to and including International level) to keep their focus under pressure, and to improve their overall ability to analyse each hand and, in particular, using negative inferences to work out who has what cards.
Intermediate Player: Mark is an exceptional teacher. Having had tutoring before I expected a standard, prescriptive lesson. No one could have predicted the effect that this teacher has had on the way I approach this highly complex and tactical game. Where he differs from others, in my experience, is that he quickly evaluates the way you, as an individual, learn. This is not a "one size fits all" approach. His tutoring reflects time spent on the method that will best fit your particular "learner profile". For me, he immediately recognised how I would learn best. The result is that lessons are highly productive and I have progressed beyond my own expectations. The joy of having Mark as my teacher is that I never feel despondent; he can always find something in the way I've played that urges me to continue with confidence. This is a real talent and I can't recommend him more highly.
Advanced Partnership: We were very pleased that Mark was able to teach us as a partnership, as we thought his lessons may only be for individuals. It has worked wonderfully well. My partner and I learn in different ways (I like to read and analyse, she likes to play and practice) and the teaching method has suited us both.
Mark thinks carefully about the homework he sets, which problems he would like us to debate and answer together, and which to answer individually to help him analyse differences in our style and approach which we had not recognised (and we have been playing together for 8 years!). He spends a great deal of time on this, more than we had expected.
The homework, individual lessons and playing practice (all done via Skype and on BBO) have stretched our capabilities, and Mark's enthusiasm and thoughtful approach has opened our eyes to the way the more advanced players think. It is a little early to analyse our improvement in percentage terms at the Club (we have had 10 lessons) but we now have the tools to be able to think about the game in far greater depth.
As a result, the game is not as 'easy' as it was - the knee-jerk "12-14 balanced, open 1NT; less than that, pass; more than that, open a suit and rebid NT" will no longer do - there is now far more to think about in assessing what the best bid and continuation might be!
Advanced Online Player: Mark is a natural teacher. He is patient, sensitive but quite firm, also generous with his time. The method of teaching online is perfect, one to one in your own home. If anyone is keen to up their game he will kick start you as he has me, not with many complicated conventions but with the ones he considers the most useful. He has a delightful sense of humour but the teaching he takes seriously.
ex Junior English International: Mark helped me when I was still a schoolboy by encouraging me to analyse hands during the play, and to learn how to use aggression in the bidding to my advantage. Mark was an excellent mentor, he had a great understanding of my own skill and ability, and was able to help me to understand how to improve.
Intermediate Club player: I was struggling with knowing when to bid and when to pass during the auction when both sides were bidding. I would nearly always make the wrong bid, and get a bad board. Mark helped me to understand Unassuming cue bids and better judgement in competitive auctions. I now get a lot of good boards when battling for the partscore contract.