"Whatever Happened to..." Responder decisions by Marti Ronemus

Richard T. James, a naval engineer, created the Slinky in 1945, and by 1950, had made BILLIONS (in today's dollars) from it. So what happened to him after he fell into all that money? He went bonkers, and went on one of the biggest "eat, drink and be merry" sprees of all times. Ultimately, he came to his senses (sort of), and repented. He swung too far the other way though, and gave away all his money, keeping only enough to join a cult and buy a ticket to Bolivia. He abandoned his wife and six kids. Fortunately wife Betty had her feet on the ground and saved the business.

So, with our bidding, will we follow Betty's example and be safe and sane, or like Richard, berserkly swing from one side to another? Hmmm.

Question 1

Your Hand
♠ 4
♥ Q 8 7 6
♦ A 5 4 3 2
♣ Q 6 5

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	Pass
1 NT	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: 3♥: Our 1 No-trump initial response showed 6-9 pts. Where do we get the nerve to now show 10-12? Our singleton, which initially was worth bupkis, is now quite an asset. As dummy, we get 3 pts for it, bringing our total to a respectable 11 (in today's dollars). Pard will know we didn't find a King, but rather must have picked up some distribution points.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ 4 3
♥ Q 8 7 6
♦ A 5 4 3
♣ Q 6 2

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	Pass
1 NT	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: Pass: We've lost that nice distribution, haven't we? We don't have enough to buy that ticket to Bolivia, so we'll just pass.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ 2
♥ Q 8 7 6 3
♦ A Q 5 4 3
♣ 4 3

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	Pass
1 NT	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: 4♥: We can't be faulted for bidding 3♥, but like James, we are a bit crazed with possibilities. We've got ten cards in two suits and a nine card trump fit. It's all too exciting, and worth a game bid. If we go down and Pard complains, we've still got that ticket in our pocket.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ 5 3
♥ Q 8 7
♦ A Q 5 4 3
♣ 4 3 2

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	Pass
1 NT	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: 2♠: This is tough. We have two seven-card suits. One is a 5-2 split and the other is a 4-3. If we are going to put it in a contract, we prefer the 5-2 split. It's much easier to play than a 4-3 fit. We cannot bid 2 No-trump, as that would show 10-12 pts, which we don't have. We like correcting to 2♠. Pard will know we only have two, because we didn't initially support.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

Your Hand
♠ 5
♥ Q 8 2
♦ A Q 5 4 3
♣ 4 3 2

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	Pass
1 NT	Pass	2♥	Pass
?

A: Pass: We've only got a seven-card fit, but with our singleton Spade, a Pass is the best we can offer. We can squeeze 10 pts out with distribution, but this hand should be downgraded and stay at a minimum.

And now, off to Bolivia!! We've got a nice hand to play on the way.

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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