TUESDAY, MAY 17 , 2022. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ RE C7
BREWSTER ROCKIT: SPACE GUY! TIM RICKARD
CURTIS RAY BILLINGSLEY
SHERMAN’S LAGOON JIM TOOMEY
RED AND ROVER BRIAN BASSET
FRANK AND ERNEST TOM THAVES
RHYMES WITH ORANGE HILARY PRICE
LIO MARK TATULLI
HAGAR THE HORRIBLE CHRIS BROWNE
BLONDIE DEAN YOUNG & JOHN MARSHALL
MIKE DU JOUR MIKE LESTER
AGNES TONY COCHRAN
WUMO MIKAEL WULFF & ANDERS MORGENTHALER
MARK TRAIL JULES RIVERA
MOTHER GOOSE & GRIMM MIKE PETERS
BALDO HECTOR CANTU & CARLOS CASTELLANOS
SALLY FORTH FRANCESCO MARCIULIANO & JIM KEEFE
CLASSIC PEANUTS CHARLES SCHULZ
CLASSIC DOONESBURY GARRY TRUDEAU PICKLES BRIAN CRANE
SUDOKUNORTH
♠ A 7 4 3
♥ 9 7 4
♦ A 7 4 2
♣ 8 3
WEST
♠ 5 2
♥ A K Q J 10 8 6
♦ 6
♣ K 6 2EAST
♠ K J
♥ 5 3
♦ J 10 8 3
♣ Q J 10 7 4
SOUTH (D)
♠ Q 10 9 8 6
♥ 2
♦ K Q 9 5
♣ A 9 5The bidding:“I
’m giving up preempts,”
Cy the Cynic grumbled.
“They goad my opponents
into bidding with all the
more resolve, reach unlikely
contracts — and then make
them.”
Cy was today’s West, and
when South opened one
spade, Cy leaped to four
hearts.
“North was nowhere near
worth four spades,” the
Cynic told me, “but he fig-
ured South didn’t have many
hearts, so he bid it anyway.”
South was Ed, my club’s
best player. When Cy led two
high hearts, Ed ruffed with
the 10 of trumps, led the
nine to dummy’s ace and
returned a trump: king, eight,
five. East led the queen of
clubs. Ed ducked, won the
next club, ruffed his last club
in dummy and ruffed the last
heart with the queen.
“Ed had a count,” Cy said.
“He knew I’d had seven
hearts, two spades and three
clubs, so one diamond. He
led a diamond to the ace and
returned a diamond. East
played the jack, but Ed won
and got to dummy with the
seven of trumps to pick up
the diamonds.”
Preempts are indeed two-
edged swords.
DAILY QUESTION
You hold:
♠ K J ♥ 5 3
♦ J 10 8 3 ♣ Q J 10 7 4
Your partner opens one
spade, you respond 1NT,
he bids two hearts and you
return to two spades. Partner
then bids 2NT. What do you
say?
ANSWER: Partner is still try-
ing for game. He has about
17 points and may have 5-4-
2-2 pattern. Your decision is
close, but to go on to game
is reasonable, especially if
you’re vulnerable. Partner
may have a useful club
honor. It’s hard to see what
suit the defenders will use to
beat 3NT.N-S VULNERABLESOUTH WEST NORTH EAST
1 ♠ 4 ♥ 4 ♠ All Pass
Opening lead — ♥ KBRIDGE©2022, TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.
— Frank Stewart