Hi Bobby,The 9C holds,East now has to decide whether declarer has 4342 or 4243 as to whether he plays a second club? Is that just a pure guess or was he influenced by the method of scoring here,pairs as opposed to teams? Nevertheless the play of the JC by West points the way for East..no guessing! Regards~Patrick.

The JC also, however, means no guessing for declarer if he holds the 9C rather than East.

Nice defense, hard to make 3; how about N’s double? Too weak? What about the raise to 3 NT, also weak? I know change K and J and it makes, or some other tweak. Hey, I wonder about TOCM? As N I would not have doubled, and probably landed us in 3D, or passes 2Nt. Too conservative?

If I had doubled with that North hand, I would have been taken seriously in hearts. I sure thought that a negative double meant four in the unbid major and maybe the other minor as well. Here, the only four card suit North had was the one bid by partner. Expert bidding is too tough for me, that’s all.

Hi Patrick, Ted, Joe1 and Jim2,

While this hand is not very complicated, good questions and obviously both winning and losing answers, all added to making somewhat difficult non-standard bidding decisions.

Since bidding always preceeds the play let’s tend to it now. First, after opening the bidding at the one level, having LHO inject a one level overcall and then having the responder choose his best course of action, oft times no options are what could be called standard or automatic.

Enter Jim2 with his claim of a negative double of 1 spade by his RHO always will have at least 4 hearts and when not strong enough to bid 2 hearts may even have 5 or more.

Many partnerships demand such and all partnerships would like to comply, but sometimes exceptions should rule. On this hand there is just the right amount (or close) to the hand value expected (8-11+) and when the shouting and the furor dies the only card missing is a 4th heart. To compensate, the responder has a fit in partner’s minor allowing him to prefer diamonds as long as the bidding doesn’t get out of hand.

To not double but to raise diamonds instead is certainly a choice that many experienced players would opt, either a conservative 2 diamond call or rather an overbid of a limit raise (either 3 diamonds or a conventional cue bid of 2 spades showing a limit raise or better).

I prefer the negative double and although I concur to partner playing me for 4 hearts, I am hoping that my KJx will suffice.

Taking the untraveled road in bridge bidding always will run a risk, but merely meekly bidding 2 diamonds is also running the risk of missing a good game and my 3-3-4-3 hand pattern just doesn’t look nor feel right for leaping in diamonds.

So here we are now left with playing and defending this close contract. At all tables it will start with 2 rounds of spades, if for no other reason than the defense is hoping for their opponents to have gone off the rails with no spade stop.

Then it comes time to decide what to do. Knowing declarer, in the fullness of time, will be able to develop a spade trick if left to his own devices should, upon a complete analysis, turn the defensive focus to finding partner with the king of clubs with both the 10 and the 9 since the 8 is in dummy.

It has been suggested that West may have the king of clubs himself and well he might. However, if so wouldn’t he then give up a soft spade in order to create the setting 5th defensive trick if later in with his club king?

I do believe that West will expect a good declarer to play him for the club jack, not the king if he instead leads a small one, so if true why not be a good partner and show him the congratulatory jack as a precaution to keep from happening what Steve Landen did to his opponent, ducking the nine and convincing East not to continue clubs.

It is hands like these, especially when top players are in every seat, which show bridge to be the great test of skill that it will become.

And to say that analysis is a huge part of the game, but in reality, psychology plays just as large a factor especially on this hand with the lesser traveled road of a negative double without 4 of the other major and the bold play of the jack of clubs merely adding to the fun and, of course, the intensity.

Bridge standard rules are always followed only sometimes, but by the same token expert discipline should and is followed close to 100%, since without it, no partnership can overcome the disasters which will be sure to follow.

But that discussion is for another time,

Hi Bobby, If West with Jxxx or Jxx or Jx of clubs is likely to switch to JC, East has to ‘psychologically’ decide on playing a second club,on 9c holding trk.A pity,then,that East cannot know whether West started with Jxxx or Jxx of clubs here?!Or is there a way?

Hi Patrick,

While there is no way for East to be sure of West holding that necessary 10 of clubs (to go with his lead of the jack), he will find out when it happens, but “no harm, no foul” on the defense since East will not be able to cash the fifth spade anyway.

The major premise which allowed Bob Hamman to lead his unsupported jack of clubs is that, by merely leading a low club, declarer will know (95%+) that it is East not West who possesses the king, for otherwise West would merely establish his 5th spade so that he can pounce on the setting trick when or if, he eventually wins the king of clubs.

Making the wrong defensive play, which, in turn, sometimes allows a contract to be made is not worth the pain of disappointing partner later by not having a specific card he might have expected.