"You've Been Chopped!" Bidding over Pre-empts by Marti Ronemus

For those of us who enjoy "Chopped" on the Food Network, we found a few gems where the chefs paid a very high price for mistakes in the kitchen.

Way back in 1531, Richard Roose, a chef for a high-placed bishop, decided to "prank" the fancy dinner by adding a laxative to one dish. Turned out to kill a couple people. Roose's sentence from the courts? To be boiled to death. (This is TRUE!)

In 2012 an Australian chef made a very fancy dinner for a gathering of fellow chefs. Sadly, the mushrooms he picked for the sauté were poisonous and several of his colleagues died. Obviously he wasn't a Vu-Bridge subscriber, because we warned about this a little while ago.

Finally, the most frightening. In 2014 a very famous Chinese chef, Peng Fan fatally misjudged his ingredients. He was butchering a cobra for the soup, and a half-hour after decapitating the snake, he went to throw the head in the waste bin. It bit him!! This story is frightening on so many levels, from culinary to cautionary, that I suggest we move on to our quiz.

We are revisiting a subject from a recent quiz, bidding over the opponent's Pre-empt. We can Pass, Double or Overcall. What will it be?

We tackled this subject earlier in the month, so this should be a good review.

Our choices are: Overcall, Double or Pass. Which shall it be?

Question 1

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

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	2♥
?

A: 3♣: No way the snake wins on this one. We've got a nice hand and a great suit. We are promising a decent five-carder, and a sound opener. We've got this.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

Your Hand
♠ A Q 10 8 7 2
♥ 3
♦ 8 4 3
♣ Q 8 4

Q: 2 -

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	2♥
?

A: Pass: Rats. We have to let this recipe go. We can't pre-empt a pre-empt. We would have opened this 2♠, but are now out of the auction. If we bid 2♠, we would be promising an opening hand. We have to let it go for now, and hope to take action later.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

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

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	2♥
?

A: 3♠: This hand is way too nice for just a plain old overcall. We need to jump. Last question, we saw how you can't pre-empt a pre-empt. This question answers the burning question, when DO we jump! Here's a little rule of thumb: When the bid to your right is LIGHT, a jump by us shows might. (Notice the rhyme.) When the bid to our right is STRONG (like a regular opener) a jump by us shows WEAKNESS. Got that?

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

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

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	2♥
?

A: Double: Perfect. We're promising an opening hand with shortness in the opponent's suit, tolerance for any suit. This meal should be safe.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

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

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	-	2♥
?

A: 2 No-trump: Maybe you'll recall that this bid tells Pard we would have opened 1 No-trump but their pre-empt robbed us of the ability to do so. Pard will know he can now use Stayman or Transfers if appropriate. Unlike the last hand where we doubled, we have stoppers in the opponent's suit, which is what makes all the difference.

We got through the meal prep safely. Now, on to our hand.

And now, let's look at a different kind of tiger when we play our 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!