They had J♦ J♥ A♣ J♣ 9♣. His team is losing 6-8 and he is sitting first chair left of the dealer. The Ace of spades is turned down. What should you do? Order up hearts, diamonds, clubs or pass? Bring partner with or go alone?Here are some possibilities with some comments.
1. Order Clubs. You'll have a pretty good chance of making your point but you have 2 losers in the red suits.
2. Order Red. Diamonds or hearts aren't really different. You've got 2 guaranteed winners and a probable winner in clubs.
3. Pass. You've got 2 winners in all suits. If the opponents order they're in trouble. If your partner orders, a sweep is likely.
The euchre universe point system shows that ordering Clubs is inferior to a red call. In clubs you have 20 points total. In a red suit you have 24 points. Clearly, you shouldn't order clubs.
Passing could lead to a euchre but you are gambling that your opponents or partner will order. If opponents do order, they've probably got 3 or 4 trump and will have a great chance of making it. Also, euchre is a game for assertive players. Passing is a losing game.
The best option is to order up one of the red suits. Unless you've seen other cards flashed, there really isn't a difference between hearts or diamonds. I like hearts so that's what I'd order.
The only question remaining. Do you go alone or with partner?
The point system says go alone (>23 points). The chances of you being euchred are remote and the chances of you scoring a march alone and winning the game is great. That's what I'd do.
3 comments:
Observation: The point system favoring red over clubs doesn't take next vs. green into account, correct? If not, should it, and if so, how? Maybe some bonus points for calling next?
That said, I can also see how irrespective of next vs. green, one of the red suits looks like a good call. If none of the opponents have three trump, they need two clubs (out of the remaining K-Q-10) to stop a march.
You raise a good point about the point system. When I first put it together I didn't think about Next calls. In fact, following the point system you would order someone up from the first seat if hearts were the upcard and you had 2 red jacks and an off-Ace. A much better play would be to pass and order up diamonds when you get a chance in the second round.
The system definitely needs to be adjusted. But for beginners, it works ok.
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