Hi Bobby,

A pity N/S couldn’t double 2H for penalties (from their viewpoint). South leads DK, East wins and plays a spade to the King ducked. On a heart off table, North rises with the Ace and plays a spade back to South who cashes DQ, gives North a spade ruff and gets a diamond ruff in return. CA then CK followed by North’s last diamond promotes South’s HQ for 3 off (I think).

Maybe the old fashioned big stick still has an occasional place for a side where one player opens a stong no trump, especially as East had already passed.

Regards,

Iain

Hi Iain,

The answer to your three to the point questions are, yes, yes, and then yes.

North’s double, instead of in yesteryear being primarily for penalties, now says, “do something intelligent, partner”, of course it becomes valuable, and wards off opponents looking for more safety to compete when that double means what it used to mean, and three, once a player has passed, yes he is likely limited in his distributional values so becomes more likely prey to his should be, hungry opponents.

However, and to be fair, the newer version of double offers more opportunities for competition rather than selling out to aggressive opponents, by allowing more frequent use of the TO double.

It also allows the doubler to blame his partner more often for choosing the wrong alternative.

Not that on this hand that South might not have chosen a penalty pass, with extra defensive values, including an adequate trump holding and a maximum NT.

However, at least on this hand, the more things change, the more they don’t stay the same, or something like that, usually meaning the opposite.

hi Bobby

Writing from memory, I watched people play this on-line, and I wrote directly on your site….

Do not remember the colors, but it does not matter.

———————Axxx
———————Axxxx
———————A
———————xxx

x———————————-KQxxxx
KT——————————–J
QJxxxx—————————Kxxxx
JTxx——————————x

——————–Jx
——————–Qxxxx
——————–x
——————–AKQxx

One side bid EW to 7D, got doubled for a fair score.
The other side bid to 6H NS, and
could not make it, D lead.

But a kibitzer said it was makeable, and, even looking at all four hands, many others said he was wrong.
I did not say to the audience, but I told that kibitzer that I could not see it, and asked him to show me,
doubting.

And finally, after being shown, I saw the line.

So I hope our readers enjoy this problem.

Best always

PP

Hi Peter,

Yes, 6 hearts can be made and I can liken it to a 6th month old kid being asked to attempt to ride a bicycle. No, unless he was born on the planet Krypton (Superman’s fictional birthplace), it would be virtually impossible, or a possibly better way to describe it, never done before.

However as that very kid grows up and reaches 6 years old, it might be not only possible, but plausible (maybe 8 would be more realistic). So it is with bridge learning and especially ways in which to take tricks, other than by either just power or instead trumping a trick legally while having no more of the suit led.

With the above as a backdrop I’ll now leave it up to anyone who wants to try, if only because of the ones who succeed being now blessed with getting to know more about the, no doubt, beautiful game we all are allowed to play, that is, being enabled by having all the cheats forever removed, never to infest us again!!!!

Well, I confess I saw it right away. It does depend on West having a singleton spade …. 🙂

Hi Jim2,

Never did I doubt for a nano-second that you would see it right away.

The problem would of course have been that East thought he had at least 6 spades, but alas only had 5. Upon further examination, that thought to be a spade, but turned out to be a 6th diamond. didn’t change until your side ventured the slam, always being prepared to be the sixth spade at all other tables, including yours, if you indeed had bid fewer.

The playing cards at your table would always pass muster athletically, even if your table was the only one which mattered.

It’s true! All of it! :-0