Results from the Euchre Quiz

This was first written in January 2013. As 2016 draws to a close, the quiz has been taken over 10,000 times. I have rerun the numbers and they haven't changed very much from year to year. As we get more members and the site continues to evolve, our hope is that we will see the number of correct answers start to improve.

This quiz has given me a good amount of data showing where players could improve their game. The numbers given are actual and not adjusted. Many participants have taken the test more than once trying to improve their scores. Still, these results should be fairly accurate.

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Question 21) was the one most people had trouble with. 71% overall missed this question. With first time tries it was 84%. The Question Was - Your partner picked up the Ace of hearts. First seat leads the 10 of clubs. You take the trick with the only ace in your hand. Third seat follows suit and your partner throws off the 10 of spades. You hold no trump. Assuming you hold one of each of the other three suits, what suit do you lead back? The key to answering this is remembering your partner was the dealer. Being the dealer, that gave them the chance to discard, thus creating a void in their hand. It's most likely that they have two of the suit they still hold (here it was spades). It's up to you to lead into their void. It is doubtful that they are void in spades, which leaves diamonds.

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Question 24) was second with 66% missed. The Question Was - The score is 9 to 5 your favor. The dealer (your partner) just turned down the Jack of hearts. The first seat passed. What do you do? OK, so you know your partner has nothing in hearts and most likely very little in diamonds. Therefore it's a good chance they hold at least something in the black suits. A singleton ace in your hand is almost always good for a trick. So your two trump plus what is in your partner's hand should be able to take the tricks needed to make a point.

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Question 20) Missed by 64 %, the question was - You are in the second seat. Your partner (dealer) is an experienced player. The third seat is going alone in Hearts. You hold the following cards in your hand. What do you lead? This is a basic strategy in euchre that everyone should learn. Dealer discards next and the partner lead next. Dealer trumps next and stops a lone. You should discard next even if it is an Ace.

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Question 7) Missed by 59%, The Question Was - The score is 9 to 6 in your favor. You hold the following cards in your hand. You sit in the first seat and the Ace of Clubs is turned up. Do you pass or order? With the hand showing, there is a high probability the dealer has a lone in clubs. If they make a successful lone call, they will win the game. By blocking the call, you will give them two points, but you're still in the game. Also remember, you have the next deal. As the dealer, your team will have about a 70% chance of making a point. I have heard some inexperienced players say it is not fair to block an opponent's bid. I say losing to a lucky lone a 9 - 6 is not fair. The only time the first seat should not call at 6-or 7 to 9 is when they have a lone stopped (holding right, left-X, or Ace-X-X)

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Question 8) Missed by 55%, The Question Was - The dealer is going alone in Hearts. On the first lead, your partner plays the Ace of Spades. What do you play? We have all been taught not to trump your partner's ace. In most circumstances that is true. Here, however, we are trying to stop a lone call at any cost. We only need one trick to do so. Let's say they did hold a club in their hand. The lone is stopped. I know it was anyway, but if they didn't hold a club, now they have to use a bower to overtrump. This takes one high trump out of play. The hope is that you or your partner hold the left or Ace - X. It's just one more chance to stop the lone.

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Question 4) Missed by 46%, The Question Was - The score is 6 to 8 in your favor. Jack of Diamonds is the upcard. You sit in the third seat. Your partner is a skilled player and he passed. The second seat passed. You hold the following cards in your hand. Do you Order or pass? Here's where knowing basic strategies and knowing your partner comes into play. The only way your partner should have passed is if they had a lone stopped. This means they hold left - X or Ace - X - X in their hand. You hold three trump along with a green Ace. Out of the seven possible trump, you know where at least 6 of them are. This is more than enough information to make a point.

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Question 11) Missed by 43%, The Question Was - The score is 4 to 3 in their favor. The dealer just turned down the Ace of Diamonds. Do you pass or bid? To be honest, this one surprised me; it's just a basic next call. Take a chance, you have three trump and you have a partner. Points have been made on less.

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On the last seventeen of the questions, 60 - 80 % of the answers were correct. Given the large number of people that have taken the test, I would have to say that most players understand the basics of the game. Of the 7 questions that were missed, three involved when to bid. The one thing that I see over and over is that most people only bid with a sure point in their hand. They forget that they have a partner, and they lose games because of it. The last 4 involve basic strategies that should be learned. Euchre takes trying different methods until you find what works. There is a lot of information on this site. No, every play will not work every time, but many times they do work. Take a chance...

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In summary

There seems to be a few basic rules that many players are not using. Incorporating these into your games will increase your win/loss ratio dramatically. Next and reverse next work. No, they don't work every time, but in the long run, you will make more points. You have to take chances. Don't be afraid to bid. Don't worry about getting euchred. The reality is a euchre will only cost you a point. Why? Because if you had passed, the odds are they would have made a point. You may have even stopped a lone call

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Just as a side note:

I played in a tournament that had 12 tables. They were charging $2.00 for each euchre. We were euchred 11 times in twelve games. We also came in first, taking home the top prize of $190. (OK, minus the $22.00 in euchre fees). A nice prize and a nice afternoon playing cards.