"The Raven" Nevermore! by Marti Ronemus

Edgar Allen Poe's poem, "The Raven" was published today in 1845. It's surprising how well his work has held up, how richly evocative his language is.

And for most folks, Poe's work is about as scary as it gets. But we bridge players know better. To be TRULY terrified is to find oneself in a four-level contract with a six card trump fit. Or to have a hand where we need three finesses to work to have a chance of success.

"Nevermore!" we cry. But we know it will happen again. And again.

Ready for some terror?

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ A Q J 10 9 5
♥ K J 2
♦ 5 3
♣ 3 2

Q: 1 - South:

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

A: 4♠: My goodness. Pard opened and we've got this rock? There's nothing to be afraid of.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

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

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
1♣	1♥	Dbl**	p
3♣	3♦	4♣	4♦
?

**Negative double

A: 5♣: We hate game in minors, but sometimes we just gotta do it. Our other choice of course is to double for penalty, but we like our chances for game. Pard was willing to bid 4♣.

We're going to play this hand at the end so we'll have to put our money where our mouth is.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

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

Q: 3 - South:

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

A: 3♠: We told our story with our 2♥ bid. We showed 8-11-ish points and a preference for Hearts. Pard's naming his own suit, after making a double, shows a monster hand and is forcing. Let's just show our slight Spade support and make it his problem.

We'll see Pard's hand in the next question.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

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

Q: 4 - Please pay attention: this time you are NORTH!!!:

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

A: 4♠: Pard gave us a wishy-washy 3♠ bid, but we like the fact that he supported our suit. Our 19 pt hand opposite his 8-11 spells game. No reason to back down now.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

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

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♥	Dbl
?

A: 4♥: A strong case can be made for a Redouble, but we like a preemptive jump to 4♥. Our goal is to scare them and take the contract. We might as well bid what we think we can make.

Enough of this scary stuff. Let's play a 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.
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