"Nat'l Irish Coffee Day" by Marti Ronemus

On my three visits to Ireland (how blessed and lucky can one girl be?), we had a routine: Each day at 4 p.m. we would find a local pub, sit at the bar and have an Irish Coffee and today we get to celebrate those memories. I think it was the company and delightful people we met, because coffee with a shot of booze, covered with whipped cream cannot be that magical on its own. Try one. It is the perfect blend of Alertness and Relaxation... which will win?

Sort of like today's bidding quiz. Will we meet the challenge? And then a wonderful hand. What a day.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ A Q 10 2
♥ Q 9 8 7
♦ A 2
♣ 6 4 3

Q: 1 - South, as usual.

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♥	dbl
Redouble	3♦**	Pass	Pass
?

**weak

A: 4♥: Wow. This bidding sequence is piled high with whipped cream! When we redouble, we promise to bid again, cross your heart and hope to die. Pard's Pass after West's weak bid is very instructive. It says, I have a minimum opening hand with no other suit. It's YOUR problem. We know we have game opposite a minimum opener, so we just bid it. Yum.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ A 10 6
♥ 10 6
♦ A K J 9 3
♣ 7 4 3

Q: 2 - As South?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♥	3♠
?

A: 3 No-trump: We've had just enough wee drops of Irish Coffee to make us bold... and aware! We've got the Spades stopped, and we're behind the Spade bidder. Pard opened the bidding and in a perfect world he'll have a Club stopper (his points have to be somewhere... why not Clubs?). Preempts are very effective, but we simply won't be robbed.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ K Q 6
♥ Q J 6
♦ Q 7 6
♣ A K 4 2

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	2 No-trumps	Pass
?

A: 7 No-trump: Listen, I don't care HOW many Irish coffees you've had, Pard's 20-21 pts., plus your 17 adds up to 37-38 and that's a Grand Slam. No point asking for aces. You can't be missing one!

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ A J 10
♥ 9
♦ K 7 5 4 3
♣ 10 8 7 6

Q: 4 - South--at what point do we lose our nerve?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
1♦	1♥	3♣	4♥
?

A: 5♣: We have no defense against Hearts. Our Pard's 3♣ rebid showed not only a six-card suit, but 16-18 pts. We've got the Luck of the Irish on our side. We may be a little short on points, but we've got a big trump fit and shape. What's the worst that can happen?

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ J 8 7 6
♥ 4
♦ A K J 10 9 8
♣ A 3

Q: 5 - It's almost Last Call. What's YOUR call as South?

South	West	North	East
1♦	Pass	1♥	Pass
?

A: 1♠: This auction will not end with our 1♠ bid, and with a 6-4 hand, we usually bid the six-carder, then the four, then rebid the six. You can't afford the chance of missing that Spade fit though.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Play this Hand

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

Play on ANY Device

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:

0 - 40%	We applaud your effort. Review the subject and try again. You'll be surprised how much better you'll do. We're here for you!!
41 - 50%	Buy your mentor a cuppa and ask for clarification on the ones you got wrong. No mentor? Make finding one a priority!
51 - 60%	Nice improvement! One more review and you'll have this down solid!
61 - 80%	What a good job! All that's left is some fine tuning
Over 80%	Wow! It's time for you to become a mentor. Find someone who needs help and share your knowledge!