| Score: First of eight hands
Upcard: Jack of Clubs
Dealer: South
Maker: North Assists
Discard (by South): Queen of Diamonds |
West, with first bid, decided to be foxy, and play for a Euchre. He quickly passed. After all, he figured that South would never turn down the Right. Really now? North pounced on the hand like a snow leopard, and ordered the Right into his partner's hand. (In this tournament, North was not required to go alone when ordering to his partner.) In any case, the call was speculative, as North had no voids. However his logic was plausible - partner would have the Right, and perhaps a void or side suit Ace. South buried his lone Queen of diamonds.
West decided on an opening lead of the spade nine, a dubious choice. North ruffed with his club Queen, and shifted to the Jack of diamonds (in case his partner held the lone Right). South was thrilled to win the Right via the ruffing route, and the Left completed a point for the N/S team. Yes, there was lots of screaming here. East and West each retained attorneys, and the battle was on. Once again, you are on the jury. This time East is the Plaintiff, suing West for “ruining their game.” You have seen the play. Was Defendant West's nine of spades an inspirational lead? Could Plaintiff East have done anything to salvage the defense?
Who do you rule in favor of this time, and why?
The verdict is in!
The jury returned after a few hours of careful deliberations, ruling in favor of the Plaintiff, East.
After paying damages to East, West was later charged in criminal Euchre Court with two misdemeanors: lack of aggressive bidding and a poor opening lead. AFTER SOUTH IS ORDERED BY HIS PARTNER, THIS HAND CANNOT BE SET IF NORTH / SOUTH PLAY PRECISELY. One of this month's contest entries stated, "leading the nine can't be good if you have another non-trump Ace in your hand. How many nines have ever gotten through on the first trick, anyway?" Well stated, Duncan! As the cards lie, the Ace of hearts has no bearing on the final result. A better lead is the Ace or King of clubs. Someone has to win this trick with a Bower; otherwise, a second trump lead "crashes" the Right and Left together!
If North wins trick #1 with his Left (the only way to make the hand), he shifts to a diamond. South ruffs with the Right, and tables the King of spades. West is skewered here (the "X-Ray" attack). If he trumps high, North discards a red card, and is sure to win the club Queen. If West trumps low, then North completes his side's book with his lone trump en passant. If North ducks the opening lead and South wins the Right, the hand collapses, as West's trumps cannot be shut out. There is a lot more to this hand than meets the eye, and there is lots of hindsight here. Would the average North player fly with the Left on trick one and risk colliding with a possible singleton Right in partner's hand? Euchre is not such a simple game after all! Conclusion: West should have ordered the Right to South, as three trump and a side Ace are a good bet.
The winners of the Euchre cards were DuncanTazR and Rolfe_Ukeman. Congratulations!
Survey Question
Here's a question for you about "donating." Suppose that you are playing North/South in a ten point game. The score is 9-6 in the opponents' favor. You are South and the dealer. The Jack of hearts is turned. You hold:
 A
 K 9
 J
 9
You are licking your chops at the prospect of a Loner and four points for the win! Suddenly, West jolts you, as he orders the Right into your hand. Of course he is Euchred, and you score only two points. On the next hand, West gets lucky and picks up an unbeatable hand, and you lose the game. Did you get hosed? Should there be a rule against this tactic? Should the opponent who intentionally orders in order to prevent a Loner lose FOUR points if she is Euchred? Suppose the opponents take all five tricks after being ordered up? What are your thoughts? Please send your commentary to: heartsmoon@aol.com | |
