BRIDGE BITES #44
|
CHERCHEZ LA FEMME
Brian Gunnell |
♠ A873
♥
QT9
♦
985
♣ K32 |
E-W
Vulnerable
South West North
East
1NT
2♠
Pass 3♠ Pass
4♠ Pass Pass Pass
That 1NT
opening showed 15-17 HCP, after which the
auction
inches its way up to 4♠. West leads the
♦Q,
won by
your
Ace. You have one loser in each of the side-suits, so to
make your contract
you must avoid losing a trump trick. |
Dummy
West East
Declarer |
♠ KJT92
♥
3
♦
AK643
♣ Q4 |
In your search for the Queen of
trumps you could choose to finesse against West, or to finesse against East, or
to “play for the drop” (hoping that the suit is 2-2 or the ♠Q is singleton).
The general rule, when holding a 9-card fit, is to play for the drop, all things
being equal that is about a 58% chance.
So, the question is “Do you play
for the drop?”
►
Absolutely not! Why settle for
58% when you can have 100%? Yes, it’s time for some counting. N-S have a
combined 22 HCP, that leaves E-W with 18. West has already played the
♦Q,
leaving precisely 15 or 16 HCP in the East hand. As East has already advertised
15-17 he must have all the missing high cards with the possible exception of one
of the missing Jacks. So at Trick 2 you lead a Spade to Dummy’s Ace and then,
when East plays low on the second round, you finesse the Jack with complete
confidence. That’s 10 tricks for those who count, but only 9 for the
rule-followers.
►
Here’s the full deal:
|
♠ A873
♥
QT9
♦
985
♣ K32 |
|
♠ 4
♥
876542
♦
QJT
♣ T65 |
Dummy
West East
Declarer |
♠ Q65
♥
AKJ
♦
72
♣ AJ987 |
|
♠ KJT92
♥
3
♦
AK643
♣ Q4 |
|
That was too easy, let’s kick it
up a notch and change the problem slightly. We’ll leave the bidding the same,
and Declarer and Dummy will have the same hands (which are about to be repeated
below before they disappear off the top of your screen), but we’ll change the
unseen hands around a bit.
►
♠ A873
♥
QT9
♦
985
♣ K32 |
Dummy
West East
Declarer |
♠ KJT92
♥
3
♦
AK643
♣ Q4 |
This time
the opening lead is the Heart Five, which East wins with the Jack. East
continues with the ♥K
and you ruff. Who has the ♠Q now?
There’s no way of knowing. West has 1-3 HCP, but you don’t know what they are.
All you know is that West has no points in Hearts. Where can you find more
information?
►
It must be safe to play three
rounds of Diamonds, the suit is most unlikely to be 4-1. How so? East opened
1NT so won’t have a singleton, and West would probably have led one if he had a
singleton. So, you cash ♦A,
♦K, on
which East plays the Queen and then the Jack. There’s nothing to be gained by
playing a third Diamond, instead you lead a Club to Dummy’s King and East’s
Ace. Back comes the ♣J and the problem
can now be solved. Who has the ♠Q?
►
Yes, this time it is in the West hand! By
postponing trumps and playing on the side-suits first, you have discovered that
East has all the missing high cards in Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs. That comes
to 16 HCP and the ♠Q is surely with
West. Here’s the full deal:
►
|
♠ A873
♥
QT9
♦
985
♣ K32 |
|
♠ Q4
♥
87654
♦
72
♣ 9765 |
Dummy
West East
Declarer |
♠ 65
♥
AKJ2
♦
QJT
♣ AJT8 |
|
♠ KJT92
♥
3
♦
AK643
♣ Q4 |
|
That was well sleuthed by
Declarer, unearthing the necessary clues before playing the vital suit (trumps,
in this case). But East could have done better, he went like a lamb to the
slaughter. If Declarer wants to gather useful information then it is East’s job
to lead him up the garden path. He would have done better to win that opening
lead with the Heart King (a false clue that he does not have the Jack).
At Trick 2 he shifts to the ♦Q
then, later when he takes Dummy’s ♣K
with his Ace, he returns the Ten (more misinformation, it suggests that
he does not have the ♣J either). Tricky
stuff! Now, our gullible Declarer will place two Jacks with West, leaving no
room for the ♠Q. So, Declarer finesses
for the ♠Q against East, and it’s down
one! Nice defense!
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