"Borderline Personality Disorder Month" by Marti Ronemus

Usually I avoid Disease of the Month calendar items, but folks, I gotta tell you... and I say this with the greatest affection and respect... if ever there was a Made-To-Order month for bridge players, this is it. We are an eccentric, bright, creative, quirky group, and proud of it!!

Let's celebrate our unique (some might say "whacky") approach to life with five bidding challenges and a hand.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ 10 7 6
♥ K Q 4 2
♦ 9
♣ K 10 7 4 2

Q: 1 - South?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♥	Pass
?

A: 3♥: This is all about hand evaluation. We like a limit raise even though there are only 8 HCP. We have a singleton which brings us to 11.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ 10 7 6
♥ K Q 4 2
♦ 9
♣ K 10 7 4 2

Q: 2 - Gee, looks like exactly the same hand:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♥	2♦
?

A: 3♦: What a difference an overcall makes in the auction. 3♦ is our old friend the Cue Bid Response, promising a limit raise or better and a fit. With a minimum hand we would bid 3♥. Remember that a raise of your partner's suit is the weakest response you can make in a competitive auction, and a 3♥ bid would say, "Bad hand with four card support."

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ A K J 2
♥ A 9 8 7 3
♦ 6
♣ Q 8 5

Q: 3 - Through the magic of Vu-Bridge, we are now NORTH, the partner of the hand we saw in question #1 and #2. Pay attention!! Pard just made a cuebid.

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♥	2♦
3♦	Pass	?

A: 3♠: Pard's cuebid is forcing, forcing. We've only got 14 HCP, but this hand is much more than the sum of its points. We've got nine cards in two suits and a singleton. We need to show Pard that we've got the shapely hand, and our Spade bid does that. Pard now knows the whole story.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ K 10 7 5
♥ Q J 8 5 3 2
♦ K 8 2
♣

Q: 4 - South?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
1♥	Pass	1 No-trump	Pass
?

A: 3♥: Pard's 1 No-trump bid was very revealing, denying four Spades and promising at least two Hearts (without Hearts, he'd have another biddable suit, no?). Our hand is too good to bid 2♥. That wouldn't be forcing. We don't want to rush to game... at this point, our void is not an asset. We like the invitational bid showing the long Heart suit. Now it's Pard's decision. Let's drive him a little nuts.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ 6 3 2
♥ K 9 6
♦ A Q 9
♣ A 10 6 2

Q: 5 - South says:

South	West	North	East
1♣	Dbl	1♥	Pass
?

A: 2♥: Our Pard's 1♥ bid over the double promises five. If he didn't have a strong, biddable suit, he would have redoubled to show 10-plus pts. Now we know we have a Heart fit. Our minimum hand requires a minimum bid, and 2♥ is perfect.

And now, let's see if we can hang on to our sanity while playing a diabolical hand.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Play this Hand

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

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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!