"A Place for Everyone?" by Marti Ronemus

Yes indeed. In 1996, the Dull Men's Club was founded in Great Britain by an accountant (surprise?) who wanted to exalt the "frighteningly normal" men who are considered mild-mannered and perhaps otherwise overlooked. Some of the members' hobbies? We have a lawn-mowing diarist and collectors of such varied items as vacuum cleaners, traffic cones, bricks and railroad timetables. Need I say more?

To our delight, a branch of this organization will open in the US within the year.

Sadly, we passionate bridge players will not be eligible. We are much too exciting as we're about to prove with our bidding.

Question 1

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

Q: 1 - South?

South	West	North	East
-	1♠	p	p
Dbl	2♣	2♥	p
?

A: 4♥: Tough one. We wouldn't be faulted for just raising to 3♥ (altho' that would qualify for membership in the Dull Men's Club). Our Clubs have lost value, but Pard did bid freely. Also the quality of our honors (other than Clubs) are just terrific.

We're going to play this hand later and see if we made a good decision.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ A J 2
♥ 6 5 4
♦ A 4 3 2
♣ A 4 3

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	2♥	2♠	p
?

A: 4♠: Once again, we prove our daring approach to life. We know Pard has at least 10 pts, with a solid Spade suit. We've got to have at least five Spade tricks, and two more with our Aces. We've got three quick tricks!

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

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

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	1♠	1 No-trump	p
2♦**	p	2♥	p
?

**Transfer to Hearts

A: 2 NT: Again, we can argue this one. We've got 9 HCP and 10 support points, and a case can be made for bidding 3 No-trump. What we don't like is that the opening lead is coming through our broken honors. Give yourself credit for bidding game if you did so.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ J 10 9 8
♥ A K 7 4 3
♦ A
♣ Q 10 2

Q: 4 - South?

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

A: 4♥: We like the singleton Ace, and today we are showing our mettle with our sanguine attitude. If you pass, we won't quarrel with you, but will sponsor your membership in aforementioned Dull Men's Club.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ K 7 3
♥ A Q J 10 8 7
♦
♣ A J 10 9

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	1♣	Dbl	p
?

A: 6♥: Pard made a vulnerable Takeout Double. We've got a spectacular hand opposite a Pard who has four Hearts. This hand is a trick-taker, especially with the lead coming into it.

We've proven our DIS-qualification for the Dull Men's Club, and now we're going to see if our courage will be rewarded. We're going to play Hand 1. And away we go.

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.
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