"Shih Tzu as Wolf?" Challenging Auctions by Marti Ronemus

See that little ball of fluff trotting down the sidewalk? It's a Shih Tzu (pronounced "sheed-zoo). One of our most popular dogs, adored because of its affectionate, loyal, loving and perky nature, it is more closely related to wolves than any breed save sled dogs. TRUE FACT!!

Tibet is their origin, but they quickly became the favorite of Chinese royalty. When the Communist party came to power, Shih Tzus (and all other Chinese purebred dogs) were considered frivolous and a sign of decadence and were brought to extinction. Seven males and females were hidden, and the breed reconstructed from those 14 dogs.

Before you dash out and get one (have you seen the puppies?!), you need to know they are STUBBORN, and one of the most difficult to housebreak.

Our bridge question: Is your partner more or less stubborn than a Shih Tzu? Let's find out.

Question 1

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

Q: 1 - As South, what should be your bid?

South	West	North	East
1♣	1♠	Double	pass
?

A: 2♥: Pard's Double is our friend, the Negative Double, showing the two unbid red suits. It is often the only way partner can show a four card major. Occasionally, partner will have a five-card suit, but not enough points to buy the two-level. SO! Don't be reluctant to bid the suit just because you only have three-card support. It's great support and you have some ruffing values. You'd prefer to bid No-trumps, but not without that Spade stopper. If Pard is grumpy and complains, tell him you had a Diamond in with the Hearts.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ K 2
♥ A 3
♦ A K J 4 2
♣ Q 10 9 6

Q: 2 - As South, what should be your bid?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Double
Redouble	3♥	pass	pass
?

A: 4♦: My goodness, everyone is in the action! When we redoubled we promised another bid. With our ♥A, we could entertain the thought of No-trumps, but it might not be good enough. With our 17 pts opposite Pard's opener, this auction is going somewhere. Our 4♦ bid is forcing. A new suit at the four level surely cannot be passed. We expect great things. All we need from Pard is a Heart singleton shown by a cue-bid, and we can then use Blackwood. We smell the chocolate-chip aroma of a minor suit slam. Yum.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

Your Hand
♠ A J 4
♥ A K 4
♦ 4
♣ A Q 8 7 6 2

Q: 3 - As South, what should be your bid?

South	West	North	East
1♣	pass	1♠	pass
?

A: 2♥: This reverse is the cheapest way for you to show your Big Hand. 3♣ is an alternative, but takes up a lot of room. Pard is 100% justified in thinking you have a four-card suit, but you will correct later. Desperate times call for desperate measures. (If he squawks, trade him in for a partner with a sense of humor.) This gives you room to give delayed Spade support on your next bid which promises three-card support.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

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

Q: 4 - As South, what should be your bid?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	1♠
double	pass	2♥	pass
?

A: 3 No-trumps: We certainly have the values for game, and partner did show Hearts in response to our Negative Double. If we were sure he had four of them, we could jump to 4♥. BUT! We don't want to play for ten tricks with a 4-3 fit if it can be avoided. Since we've got a stopper in Their suit, plus a nice Club fit, our 3 No-trumps indicates to partner that we're protecting him from that three-card response. If we didn't have the Spade stopper, we'd rebid 3♣, which most partnerships would agree is game-force and denies a stopper in Their suit.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

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

Q: 5 - As South, what should be your bid?

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♦	pass
1♠	pass	2♠	pass
?

A: Pass: We haven't shown our true colors, er... shape, but we didn't have the cash to start with Clubs and rebid Spades. North limited his hand with his 2♠ bid, and let's face it, our hand isn't nice enough to invite. If They got back in the action, maybe at favorable vulnerability we might scrape up another bid, but for now, that four-letter word "pass" will have to do. And now, we have the challenge of actually MAKING the hand! Let's see if we can do it.

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

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What next? You may enjoy playing our prepared hands series.
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