| North
Upcard -- Jack of Spades.
With four Aces, and the Left, West is very tempted to order up the Right. Some conservative (or very sly) Wests will pass, and play defense. Meanwhile, South will never turn down the Right with three trump and a good side suit. A Loner is not out of the question. The hand is a battleground between West and South -- no matter which of them names the trump.
Let us assume the hand is passed to South, and he picks up the Right. Out goes the Diamond 9, creating the two-suiter. The hand appears to be safe, and partner might provide a key card. West leads the Ace of Diamonds, and South trumps with the Queen. He now leads the Right -- a very careless play, and it fetches the Ace, 10, and 9. The King of Hearts is next, and the Ace appears. West leads the Left, drawing South's last trump, and the hand collapses. Two points to E/W!
Suppose that South ruffs the first Diamond, as in the above description. The King of Hearts is now led, and it dislodges the Ace. West cannot shift to the Ace of Clubs, as South will ruff with the King. The Right now wins a third trick. Instead, West must now lead a trump (they are both equal), and the Right is taken. The Queen of Hearts forces West to burn his master trump, and South wins the key third trick for his side with his last trump.
If West tries an initial trump (the Ace) lead, South wins the Right, and immediately shifts to a Heart. West takes the Ace. If West tries the Ace of Diamonds, South will trump, and play the Heart Queen. The bid is assured. West can lead the Left after winning the Heart Ace. South will release one of his remaining trump. Now, any return from West is trumped, and the Queen of Hearts takes the third trick.
The hand has a peculiar matrix that depend on West's plays. Either the Queen of hearts, or King of Spades will win the deciding trick. It should also be noted that South's lead of a Heart runs the marginal risk of being trumped by the East player. If West orders the Right to South, he is in the same pickle. Unless South is careless, his side will chalk up a sure two points for the Euchre!
Have you spotted a line of play not in the aforementioned analysis?
Duplicate Euchre
Duplicate is a variation of the game that eliminates the luck of the deal. It is based on the same format that is used by the Bridge players. A special Board that holds four hands travels from table to table. Your skill is measured by your ability to play the SAME cards as all other pairs in the same direction play. The first hand is always dealt randomly, and then each hand is carefully stored in its respective slot. Each Board is numbered, and indicates the dealer and compass direction (North/South; East/West) for all pairs. The upcard is placed in the dealer's slot, and the bidding commences with the Eldest hand. The cards are never thrown into the middle of the table. Instead, a card is carefully turned up or down in front of each player. It is quite easy to track the winner of the tricks.
Scoring is similar to the regular game; however, each hand is its own separate entity. The only possible scores are 0,1, 2, or 4. A variation of the scoring features rewarding a Pair with an extra point for taking a fourth trick. If the first round of bidding is passed by all, "stick the dealer" rule applies. After the Board has been played by all pairs, the scores are then compared or match Pointed. A master sheet is used to make the final tally.
Duplicate Euchre has been conducted at five "live" events with very favorable results. Players really enjoy the challenge of the Comparison game. Unfortunately, yours truly is the only Director who conducts Duplicate Euchre games. Perhaps someday, the concept will become more popular
Have a nice month. | |
