"Happy Cat Month" by Marti Ronemus

For those of us who own or have owned cats, we realize you darn well BETTER keep them happy, or all heck breaks loose.

Want your favorite chair shredded? A little pile of you-know-what in an unexpected place? A mouse head on your pillow? A clawed swipe at your ankle?

In my life I've had cats that have done all these things, and more, to punish me for my many (perceived) transgressions.

BUT!! If you're smart enough to indulge their every whim (a snack at 3 a.m.?) nothing is more wonderful than the quirky companionship and love.

EXACTLY like our bridge partners, no? Happy partner, happy life.

Let's look at some bidding sequences and see if we can make our partners as happy as our kitties.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ K 10 9 8 7 3
♥ K Q
♦ J 10 9
♣ 8 5

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	3♥	Dbl	Pass
?

A: 4♠: Pard has four Spades, so we've got a 10 card trump fit. Our Heart points are not all working, but they do provide a stopper. We're kind of on the edge between 3♠ and 4♠, and decide to take advantage of our trump and shape by trying game.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

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

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
1♠	2♥	2♠	3♥
?

A: 3♠: Pard's shown a minimum hand with three trumps. Following The Law of Total Tricks, a raise of our suit in a competitive auction shows a weak hand and the number of trumps. We would let this one go, except we've got the ninth trump, and The Law will protect us. We are likely going down, but not that much! We will not be used as a scratching post by those cats.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

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

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	1♦
Pass	Pass	Dbl	Pass
2♣	Pass	2♥**	Pass
?

**New suit after doubling guarantees 18 plus points

A: 4♥: Pard doubled and then named his own suit. This ain't no kitten, folks, this is a full-grown tiger. If an overcall is 7-17 pts., we need a tool to show more than 18 pts. To double then name your own suit is what we use. Our response needs to show Heart support and a maximum hand (We already told Pard with our 2♣ Bid, that we've got 0-7 pts.).

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ A K Q 9
♥
♦ 7
♣ A K Q J 9 8 5 4

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	1♣	Pass	1♦
?

A: 6♣: C'mon--what else can you do? A double would be fine if you weren't sure where you were going, but you know exactly where you want to be.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ K 7 4
♥ K 7 6 5
♦ K 10 4
♣ J 10 2

Q: 5 - South:

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

A: 2 No-trump: Actually, this is fairly easy. A rebid of 2NT by responder shows 10-12 pts. We've also got a stopper(ish) in Their suit.

Okay, kitties. We're ready for our hand. Sharpen those claws and be ready.

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

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