BRIDGE BITES #19
|
WHAT
DOESN’T HAPPEN
Brian Gunnell |
In Bite #18, our astute Declarer
remembered that his opponent had opened the bidding, sensibly deduced that said
opponent must have the missing high cards, and then played the hand
accordingly. This week’s deal is a bit more difficult, as Declarer must be
alert to something which did not happen!
E-W Vulnerable
West North East South
Pass Pass Pass 1NT
Pass 2♣
Pass 2♠
Pass 3♠ Pass 4♠
Pass Pass Pass
♠ 9542
♥
QT32
♦
K43
♣ A4 |
Dummy
West East
Declarer |
♠ QJT3
♥
A75
♦
AQ8
♣ K97 |
N-S crawl into 4♠ after a Stayman
auction and West leads the ♣J. It looks like a simple enough hand, and so it
is. Declarer loses two trumps and must avoid also losing two Heart tricks. How
would you play the hand?
►
To start with you will draw
trumps. You win the first trick with the ♣K and lead the ♠Q. East wins that,
then cashes his second high Spade, and exits a Spade. You can cash some minor
suit winners if you like but you already have all the information that you need
to make the contract a virtual certainty. How can you deduce who has the
♥K?
►
The key to success is to notice
something which did not happen That’s right, East did not open the
bidding! He has already shown up with the ♠AK … and West’s opening lead of the
♣J denied the Queen. That gives East 9 HCP, so surely he cannot also hold the
♥K,
that would be 12 HCP, and enough to open. So, you cash the
♥A
and lead low towards the board. West is an expert and nonchalantly plays low,
perhaps while stifling a yawn. But you are having none of that malarkey! You
confidently call for the Queen and it’s 10 tricks for the good guys!
►
|
♠ 9542
♥
QT32
♦
K43
♣ A4 |
|
♠ 86
♥
K986
♦
J952
♣ JT8 |
Dummy
West East
Declarer |
♠ AK7
♥
J4
♦
T76
♣ Q6532 |
|
♠ QJT3
♥
A75
♦
AQ8
♣ K97 |
|
Those negative inferences (in
this case the fact that East did not open the bidding) are easier to miss than
the positive ones. If we were exchange the ♥K
and the ♥J,
then East would have opened, and Declarer would make her contract by
deducing that East needed the ♥K
for that opening bid. That’s a more obvious train of logic.
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