What would you play?
Choose an answer and see the reasoning. Work through the collection at your own pace, or revisit a different featured challenge each week.
Make a defensive Hearts pass
With the complete hand below, which option removes both exposed high spades and a high heart?
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A♠, K♠ and Q♥. Passing A♠, K♠ and Q♥ meets that defensive goal. Keeping low cards gives you ways to follow suit without winning. This is a practice goal, not a claim that one pass is best in every situation.
Spot the problem with nil
You hold the ace of spades. In standard Spades without jokers, can a nil bid safely avoid every trick?
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No: it cannot be beaten when played. The ace of spades is the highest trump. Whenever you play it, it wins that trick, so it conflicts with a nil bid’s goal of taking no tricks. The displayed card is enough to answer this question; it is not a complete hand.
Match or add in Scopa?
These cards are on the table and you play a seven. Under the same-value-first rule, what must you capture?
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The single seven. A single card with the same value takes priority. Capture the seven, leaving the five and two. Without a matching seven, the five-plus-two capture would be available.
Count the deadwood
After discarding, you have these ten cards. What is your deadwood total?
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7. The club run, the three eights and the heart run use nine cards. Only the seven of diamonds is unmatched, so deadwood is seven. Under a standard ten-point limit, a knock is allowed, but an undercut is still possible.