"How Many Calories Can Fit on a Plate?" by Marti Ronemus

Have you ever heard of "Poutine?" (Pronounced poo-tin) It's a Canadian contribution to the world of Junk Food. I thought I had joyfully indulged in every junk food on Planet Earth, but I missed this one.

Picture a plate of hot, crispy French Fries, covered with a layer of cheese curds, and the whole thing bathed in gravy. This festival of carbohydrates started showing up in Warwick Quebec in 1957, and is widely considered a hangover cure.

I'm not too sure about this one, folks, but I'm willing to test it and report back to you. Anyone know where I can get some without heading for Canada?

Meantime, let's get our week started with some bidding challenges.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ 4 3
♥ K Q 6
♦ J 8 4 3
♣ A K Q 5

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	2♠	p
2 No-trump	p	3♥	p
?

A: 4♠: Bridge is a game of tricks. Pard is rated for 5-1/2 tricks. Initially we have three Club tricks and a Heart trick to add to the pot. That's not quite enough, so we ask Pard if he has an outside high-card feature. We are delighted to hear he's got a Heart feature, because it must be the ♥A. That means we've got enough for game!

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ K Q J 2
♥ K 9 3 2
♦ 7
♣ Q 5 4 3

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	p
1♥	dbl	3♣	3♦
?

A: 5♣: We're not sure (yet) whether Pard's 3♣ is defensive over the Takeout Double, or he's got a great hand. With our Diamond singleton and fabulous shape (not to mention our four Clubs) we cannot resist going to game, any more than we could resist a plate of Poutine.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ 10
♥ A
♦ J 9 7 5
♣ A K Q J 10 4 2

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
1♣	p	1♦	1♥
?

A: 5♣: With Pard's Diamond bid, it's hard to resist a slam try, but with East's entry into the auction, we are a bit nervous. We could struggle with any number of bids on this hand, but it seems best to bid what we're sure we have. Pard's Diamonds promise to be an asset. We're going to play this one in a couple minutes and see if we've overdone things.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ A 4
♥ K 10 9 6 2
♦ K 8
♣ J 9 4 3

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	2♦
2♥	p	3♥	p
?

A: 4♥: We like our ♦K behind the Diamond bidder (think we'll get a Diamond lead?). True, Pard has shown a minimum hand, but we like the nine card trump fit also, plus our ♠A. What more could we ask for, except maybe a little more hot gravy on it.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ Q J 8 4
♥ K
♦ K 9 4
♣ A K 10 4 3

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	2♠	p	p
?

A: 2 No-trump: Give yourself credit for either bid. Why did we choose 2 No-trump? In the direct seat, we'd have no problem overcalling 3♣, but we're opposite a passed Pard and need to show our values. We don't like bidding No-trump with a singleton, and will definitely lose the postmortem if we go down. But...
And now it's time for our hand. If we do well, there's a great plate of Poutine waiting for us to share.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Play this Hand

Now that you've bid five hands, let's see how your play goes.

Overall Results

Your results: out of Average:

What next? You may enjoy playing our prepared hands series.
More informations on our website: www.VuBridge.com

Rate yourself:

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