"Ho Ho Ho" by Marti Ronemus

No matter how you celebrate your Winter hiatus holiday, we at Vu-Bridge wish you happiness and joy. The older I get, the more I realize that the joy of the holiday is not contained in boxes and gift bags, but in the faces of the people I love. (Does this mean I don't want the boxes and bags? Not hardly!)

Interestingly enough, I can spot experienced bridge players by their attitude toward the holidays. True addicted bridge players do all their shopping on line at 3:00 a.m., manage to get invited out for all holiday meals (thusly avoiding wasting time shopping, cooking and cleaning) and get rid of all visitors after three hours, not three days. That way they never miss a game.

Less experienced players disappear over the holidays and when we bump into them on those rare occasions we're in the mall, they hide. It's okay, gang. We know you'll be back soon.

AND!! Good news! I heard that calories consumed over the holidays do not count toward your totals.

So, quick... before Great Aunt Agatha gets there, here's a bidding challenge and a holiday hand.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ K Q J
♥ 8 4 3 2
♦ J 9 8 5 4
♣ A

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
1♥	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: Pass: Yes we've got an eight-card trump fit. Yes we have invitational point count. BUT!! This hand is no gift. We've got shortness in Pard's first-bid suit. Our trumps are lousy (although that's not as big a deal), our Spades are only worth two tricks. And what good is our five-card suit? Let it go. We've got other gifts to open.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ Q 8 4 3
♥ K Q 7
♦ J 9 3
♣ A K J

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♦	Pass
1♠	Pass	2♠	Pass
?

A: 3 No-trump: We need to give Pard a little wiggle-room. He could have raised our Spades holding only three. We certainly have game values opposite his minimum opener. Let's let him correct to 4♠ if he's got four of them. Otherwise, he'll pass.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

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

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
1♥	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: 3♦: This is certainly a forcing bid and shows a stopper. We could jump to a Heart contract, but why rush? If our Hearts were nicer, we could continue in Hearts. If Pard only has three Hearts though, we could easily end up in the wrong place. Let's explore.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

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

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♦	Pass
1♠	Pass	2♠	Pass
?

A: 4♠: We've got a stocking full of Spades. We don't mind a whole lot if Pard only has three. Also, we've really nothing else to say.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ A 6 5 4
♥ K 9 8 6 5 4
♦ 3
♣ 9 3

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
1♥	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: 4♥: This was a pathetic little lump of coal until Pard supported our Hearts. Ten card trump fit? Singleton? Doubleton? Ten cards in two suits? If this isn't worth a jump to game, we'll turn in our gift cards.

And on to our hand. Let's get this over with so we can get back to the party.

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

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