First Responses - "Shop Till You Drop" by Marti Ronemus

This time of year separates the REAL bridge player from the dilettante. REAL players do all their shopping online because going to the mall would cut into play time which is their reason for living.

And the malls miss us. Some mall facts? The first indoor mall in America was built in Edina MN and had two levels with 75 shops.

Mall Santas, a common sight this time of year, can earn a five-figure salary for six weeks' work. Personally, I think they deserve double for having all those kids sitting on them.

And as we all know, malls (due to internet shopping) are closing by the hundreds. Interestingly, many are being creatively reinvented as apartment complexes, churches and indoor farms.

So, let's get to work, and reinvent our bidding so we can get shopping.

Question 1

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

Q: 1 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
?

A: 1♥: We like to bid four-card suits up the line, but we are going to by-pass the Diamonds to bid Hearts. Here's why: Let's say we DO bid 1♦, and West then bids 1♠. If Pard has four Hearts, it's very possible we can lose our Heart fit. No-trump is not an option because we've got those four-card suits. Our bid is unlimited and forcing. When would we bid the Diamonds first? See question 2.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 2

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

Q: 2 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♣	Pass
?

A: 1♦: This time, we're going to bid slowly up the line. Remember, the better your hand, the slower we go until we find the perfect resting place. Again, unlimited and forcing.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 3

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

Q: 3 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♦	Pass
?

A: 1♥: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. The Hearts are terrible, but we bid UP THE LINE. A very hard concept for newer players to grasp is that we bid our SHAPE and TOTAL POINTS, rather than where our points are. I know, it doesn't initially entirely make sense, but eventually it will. Just do it. Unlimited and forcing.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 4

Your Hand
♠ 3 2
♥ A Q J 8 2
♦ 8 4 3
♣ 9 5 4

Q: 4 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♠	Pass
?

A: 1 No-trump: Sadly, we can't bid our Hearts. Why not? We don't have the money to buy the two level. A response of 1 No-trump is the only No-trump bid that doesn't show a relatively balanced hand. We may well get a chance to show our Hearts later, now that we've limited our hand.

Your result so far:

Open Question

Question 5

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

Q: 5 - South:

South	West	North	East
-	-	1♦	Pass
?

A: 1♠: With two five-card suits, we bid DOWN the line. Here's a little memory aid: "Five-five DOWN we dive. Four-four UP we soar." Again, we need to show our shape. We have a great hand, and surely Pard's got three of one or the other major. We'll find out.

And now, a hand to finish before we hit the mall.

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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