Ordering from seat 1

Euchre QOD: If you never get euchred, you’re not bidding enough.

Euchre Haiku:

Deal in twos and threes
Five to all and flip the last
Oh please be a Jack!

Euchre Lingo:
Short-suited: Being devoid of cards from any particular suit. Highly advantageous if this suit is lead because you can trump if you like.

I found more on euchre ordering strategy here. This is further validation of the importance of seat position and the need to adjust the point system.

SEAT 1 – The Lead Seat.

Of particular interest is the advice given about the first seat. As the lead seat, she has the advantage of being able to start the game with whatever suit she wants. But she also has no idea about how good the other players hands are because she has to bid first. I rarely find it useful to order up from the first seat in the first round. In fact, I often draw the ire of my usual partner because I have been known to pass from the first seat without even looking at my cards. That drives her nuts!

But the chances of having a great hand from this seat are pretty slim. I figure the added confusion thrown at my opponents will give me a psychological edge. I also realize that I’ll get to bid first if it gets passed around and if I had a good hand in the suit turned over, I probably still have a good hand in the “next” suit.

The general rule is that you need 21 card points (see previous post) in the first round to order up from this position, but only 16 points in the second round. But if you do have 21 points and the dealer picks it up, you’ll have a great chance of euchring her. And if it gets passed around to you, your 21 point hand in one suit is bound to be better than 16 in another, so you still have a good chance to make it without letting the dealer get short-suited.

Tomorrow we’ll look at ordering up from the other seats.