January 19th, 2011 ~ admin ~ Comments Off on The Aces on Bridge: Wednesday, January 5th, 2011 
| Dealer: South
Vul: Both
|
North
♠ Q 10 9 2
♥ 8 6 5 3
♦ A J
♣ J 7 4 |
|
| West
♠ A 7 5 3
♥ K 9 7
♦ 10 9 8 4 2
♣ 6 |
 |
East
♠ K 6
♥ Q J 10 4
♦ 7 6 5
♣ Q 9 5 3 |
| |
South
♠ J 8 4
♥ A 2
♦ K Q 3
♣ A K 10 8 2 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| 1 ♣ |
Pass |
1 ♥ |
Pass |
| 2NT |
Pass |
3NT |
All Pass |
|
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|
Opening Lead: ♦ 10
“Praising all alike, is praising none.”
— John Gay
Today’s deal from the United Kingdom arose in the annual House of Lords vs. House of Commons bridge match for the Jack Perry Trophy. Over the last 35 years the standard of bridge in this match has generally been respectable, with quite a few occasional and even serious duplicate players bringing a touch of class to the proceedings.
When Bridget Prentice for the Commons made her natural lead of the diamond 10 against three no-trump, declarer, Lord Skelmersdale, took care to play dummy’s jack, recognizing that he might need an extra entry to dummy should East hold club length. (He could of course have played the ace, so long as he unblocked the king or queen under it.)
A club to the ace first would have captured a singleton queen, but rightly concerned with the paucity of entries to dummy, declarer called for the club jack, covered with the queen by East (Dr. John Marek) and captured with the ace. The club king was played next, bringing the 4-1 break to light. But now, Lord Skelmersdale’s careful play at trick one allowed him to re-enter dummy with the diamond ace to finesse against East’s club nine. That was nine tricks, and a game swing to the Lords when South for the Commons did not manage the minor suits to best effect.
This line of play guarded against four of the possible four-card club combinations with East, while losing to a singleton queen in either hand, so it was clearly the odds-on play.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
A 7 5 3 |
| ♥ |
K 9 7 |
| ♦ |
10 9 8 4 2 |
| ♣ |
6 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
|
1 ♣ |
Dbl. |
Pass |
| ? |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
ANSWER: You do not have enough to invite game but have more than enough to bid twice in competition if appropriate. Since your most likely game is spades, you should plan to respond in spades, then bid diamonds if the opponents repeat their clubs. This would suggest equal or better diamonds. With longer spades, you would not bother with the diamonds at all.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2011. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 18th, 2011 ~ admin ~ 2 Comments
| Dealer: South
Vul: E-W
|
North
♠ 10 7 5
♥ 9 7 4 2
♦ A 9 5
♣ 10 7 6 |
|
| West
♠ A 9 8
♥ 6
♦ J 10 8 7 4
♣ 8 4 3 2 |
|
East
♠ 6 4 3 2
♥ 8 5 3
♦ K 6 2
♣ K Q J |
| |
South
♠ K Q J
♥ A K Q J 10
♦ Q 3
♣ A 9 5 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| 1 ♥ |
Pass |
2 ♥ |
Pass |
| 4 ♥ |
All Pass |
|
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| |
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Opening Lead: ♦ Jack
“I think no virtue goes with size.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
When today’s deal first arose, a sizable percentage of the field opened the South hand an inelegant two no-trump — it is, after all, closer to a balanced 20-22 count than anything else. They played in three no-trump, missing out on their nine-card heart fit when North sensibly rejected the opportunity to use Stayman, and they found that nine tricks were immeasurably easier than 10.
I’m not convinced that one deal proves anything, and there is certainly something to be said for the one-heart opening, given South’s lack of first-round controls. But at some tables where South declared four hearts, he was able to prove that there are few nearly hopeless contracts that cannot be brought home by a well-timed display of technique or virtuosity.
Against four hearts one could hardly blame West for selecting an unfortunate diamond jack as his opening salvo. Dummy played low and East took the trick with his king. If declarer had unthinkingly followed low he would have preserved his two sure diamond tricks, but with no way that he could reach dummy to cash the diamond ace and discard one of his slow club losers.
To succeed in four hearts, one must break the rules by discarding an honor unnecessarily. Notice the difference if at trick one declarer unblocks his diamond queen under the king. Later, declarer can lead his low diamond and finesse the nine, so that he can reach dummy and generate the discard he needs for his contract.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
6 4 3 2 |
| ♥ |
8 5 3 |
| ♦ |
K 6 2 |
| ♣ |
K Q J |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
|
1 ♦ |
1 ♥ |
| Dbl. |
2 ♥ |
Dbl. |
Pass |
| ? |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
ANSWER: Your partner’s double is card-showing and should show extra values, denying four spades (since he would have bid the suit if he had them). He will therefore typically have both minors and extras, or a balanced 18-count or so with an unsuitable heart stop for no-trump. You should simply revert to three diamonds to show support in a relatively minimum hand.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2011. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 17th, 2011 ~ admin ~ 2 Comments
| Dealer: South
Vul: E-W |
North
♠ Q 10 4 2
♥ 5 2
♦ A 6 2
♣K J 5 2 |
|
| West
♠ 6
♥ A K Q 10 7 4
♦ Q 10 9 8
♣ 10 3 |
|
East
♠ J 9 8
♥ J 8
♦ 7 5 3
♣ Q 9 8 7 4 |
| |
South
♠ A K 7 5 3
♥ 9 6 3
♦ K J 4
♣ A 6 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| 1♠ |
2 ♥ |
3 ♥ |
Pass |
| 4♠ |
All Pass |
|
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| |
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Opening Lead: ♥ King
“Everything has been said, yet few have taken advantage of it. Since all our knowledge is essentially banal, it can only be of value to minds that are not.”
— Raoul Vaneigem
There are some themes dear to the hearts of bridge writers. As a consequence these themes come up more frequently in bridge columns than in real life. Today’s deal falls into that category, but that should not detract from your enjoying the problem and its solution.
With that huge hint, consider how you would play four spades after West leads three top hearts, East having echoed on the first two rounds.
The auction and the play have strongly suggested that hearts are 6-2 and that there is a danger of an overruff in hearts. If you ruff the third heart with dummy’s spade 10, East may overruff and leave you to rely on the diamond finesse. If you ruff the third heart high, you will need the spade jack to fall in two rounds or for the diamond finesse to be working. In each case you can somewhat improve on your chances by trying to ruff out the club queen, but as you will see, the layout of the cards today means that all routes are doomed to failure.
With so many unsuccessful scenarios, it may surprise you to discover that there is an equally simple route to success, one that will essentially insure your contract unless trumps are 4-0. Simply discard a diamond from dummy on the third heart. Now you can obtain the lead, draw trumps, and ruff a diamond in dummy at your leisure.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
10 6 3 2 |
| ♥ |
J 8 7 3 |
| ♦ |
K 7 |
| ♣ |
J 10 9 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
2 ♣ |
Pass |
2 ♥ |
| Pass |
3 ♦ |
Pass |
3 ♥ |
| Pass |
4 ♥ |
Pass |
6 ♥ |
| All Pass |
|
|
|
ANSWER: No one could fault you for leading from your club sequence, but there is a more creative shot available. Imagine that you lead your diamond seven. Declarer does not know he has a trump loser yet, so if dummy has the A-Q, he may reject the diamond finesse and find a way to create two losers for himself where Fate had only created one!
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2011. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 16th, 2011 ~ admin ~ Comments Off on The Aces on Bridge: Sunday, January 2nd, 2011
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Dear Mr. Wolff:
At a pairs tournament what is the correct remedy if a partnership comes to the wrong table and starts to bid before the error is noticed? Should the result be thrown out for the nonoffenders? Should the offenders be penalized?
— Musical Chairs, Pleasanton, Calif.
ANSWER: No, the board is not automatically thrown out, in that once the right players come to the table, they should try to achieve a result. Unless the auction takes a significantly different route, making the deal impossible to play, the new result should stand. I’d be reluctant to penalize the guilty pair unless they really did something willfully stupid.
Dear Mr. Wolff:
You recently posed this problem: You hold SPADES Q-7-6-4-2, HEARTS 10-9-7, DIAMONDS Q-3, CLUBS A-Q-4. After partner opens one diamond and rebids two clubs over your one-spade response, you said that the best call is false preference to two diamonds. Would you consider using the fourth suit (forcing for one round) as a catch-all bid? Or do you play the fourth suit as a game force?
— First Responder, Grand Forks, N.D.
ANSWER: I prefer the fourth suit by an unpassed hand to be a game force. The only time that playing the fourth suit as forcing produces a troubling result is if you hold invitational values with a weak suit of your own, no stopper in the fourth suit and no primary support for either of opener’s suits … as here. As a passed hand, either a raise to three clubs or a false preference to two diamonds is not unreasonable.
Dear Mr. Wolff:
If I open a weak two-bid and my LHO overcalls in a suit, is it ever acceptable for me to bid again, or am I supposed to assume my partner will always know what is right? I balanced with a takeout double on just such an auction, and my partner was NOT amused!
— Double Dealer, Raleigh, N.C.
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|
ANSWER: Just because a second action is unlikely does not make it impossible. If you have pre-empted with a two-suiter, you can bid again (at your own risk), and if you have a maximum and are short in the opponents’ suit, you can experiment with a takeout double, so long as you trust your partner to take an intelligent action now.
Dear Mr. Wolff:
In third chair, with SPADES K-J-9, HEARTS A-Q-7-3-2, DIAMONDS 10-3, CLUBS A-7-4, I made a two-heart overcall over RHO’s one-spade bid. I caught my partner with one heart, four small spades, and only a three-count, and ended up taking a 500-point shellacking. Was I really so far out of line here?
— Risky Business, Olympia, Wash.
ANSWER: There are some hands where you might feel compelled to act with a five-card suit, and some where discretion is called for. Here, your apparently well-placed spade honors make an overcall acceptable to my mind, but give yourself jack-third of spades and a doubleton diamond king and I might be less inclined to recommend acting.
Dear Mr. Wolff:
As a long-time reader of your bridge column, I cannot recall a discussion of Stayman and the continuations after a two-no-trump opening by partner.
— Upper Levels, Dallas, Texas
ANSWER: My usual methods include playing a three-club response as Stayman for four-card majors. (Puppet Stayman for five-card majors is an option but not my preferred route.) After a three-diamond response to Stayman, Smolen applies, whereby bids in a major show 5-4 pattern with both majors, bidding the short suit. After a major-suit response, use the other major as a major slam-try, with bids of four of a minor as natural and strong, suggesting you also hold the other major. |
If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, e-mail him at [email protected]. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2011.
January 15th, 2011 ~ admin ~ Comments Off on The Aces on Bridge: Saturday, January 1st, 2011
| Dealer: North
Vul: Both
|
North
♠ A 7 5 4 2
♥ K Q 5
♦ A 8 5
♣ A 4 |
|
| West
♠ K J 8
♥ 10 9
♦ J 10 9 3
♣ K 7 3 2 |
|
East
♠ 10 9 6 3
♥ A J 8 7
♦ 7 6 2
♣ J 10 |
| |
South
♠ Q
♥ 6 4 3 2
♦ K Q 4
♣ Q 9 8 6 5 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
|
1♠ |
Pass |
| 1NT |
Pass |
2NT |
Pass |
| 3NT |
All Pass |
|
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| |
|
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|
Opening Lead: ♦ Jack
“Up Guards and at them again!”
— Duke of Wellington
One of the questions I am often asked is whether people should take the same approach in a pairs event as in a teams contest. The simple answer is that there is little difference in the bidding, but frequently one adopts a different approach in the play.
Succeeding at matchpoint pairs often involves collecting overtricks and undertricks, but teams is a purer (and simpler) form of the game, where your objective is to make your contracts, or defeat the opponents’ contract, if possible. As declarer in a pairs game, you will normally play for the maximum number of tricks rather than ensuring your contract at all costs.
Having said that, consider the following problem at teams. As West, you lead the diamond jack against three no-trump. Dummy’s ace wins the trick, partner playing the two. Declarer then plays the club ace and a club to his queen, East playing the jack and 10. Plan the defense.
From partner’s signal at trick one and his spot cards in clubs, it looks as though declarer has four club tricks and three diamond tricks. Those, plus the spade ace, mean you cannot afford to give him a heart trick or he will have his nine winners. You must try to set up the spades on defense, so your only realistic chance is to find partner with spade length.
Your best play is to switch to the spade king, hoping partner has a four-card suit and the heart ace. Shifting to the king covers the situation where declarer has the bare spade queen.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
Q |
| ♥ |
6 4 3 2 |
| ♦ |
K Q 4 |
| ♣ |
Q 9 8 6 5 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
|
1 ♥ |
Pass |
| 2 ♥ |
3 ♠ |
4 ♦ |
4 ♠ |
| ? |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
ANSWER: Your partner’s second-round action is not a cue-bid. It suggests a red two-suiter, letting you judge whether to bid on in hearts over East’s call of four spades. With all your values in your partner’s second suit, you should certainly act now and bid five hearts. In auctions of this sort, opener should aim to help partner rather than look for slam.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2011. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 14th, 2011 ~ admin ~ 3 Comments
| Dealer: South
Vul: N/S |
North
♠ A K 8 5 4 2
♥ K Q 5
♦ 6 4
♣ A 7 |
|
| West
♠ 10 7
♥ J 10 8
♦ K 10 9 7
♣ K Q J 4 |
|
East
♠ Q J 9 6
♥ 2
♦ J 8
♣ 10 9 8 6 5 2 |
| |
South
♠ 3
♥ A 9 7 6 4 3
♦ A Q 5 3 2
♣ 3 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| 1♥ |
Pass |
2♠ |
Pass |
| 3♦ |
Pass |
3♥ |
Pass |
| 4♣ |
Pass |
4 NT |
Pass |
| 5♥ |
Pass |
5 NT |
Pass |
| 6♥ |
All Pass |
|
|
Opening Lead: ♣ K
“It is circumstance and proper timing that give an action its character and make it either good or bad.”
— Agesilaus
After North’s strong jump shift and a check on controls, you find yourself playing in six hearts. West leads the club king. What is the best plan to make 12 tricks?
The surest way is to set up dummy’s spades. After winning the opening lead with the club ace, your first move should be to play a trump to your ace. If hearts prove to be 4-0, you would need a 3-3 spade break and so would play the spade ace and king and ruff a spade. If the spades broke, you could then cross to the trump queen and play good spades, throwing your remaining diamond losers. When the defender ruffed with his penultimate trump, you could win his return and return to dummy with the trump king to enjoy the rest of the spades.
When both opponents follow to the first round of trumps, the type of hostile layout where you need to find the right play to succeed occurs when West is short in spades and long in trumps.
The way to overcome any 4-2 spade break is to play the spade three from hand and the two from dummy! Then you will be able to win the return, cross to dummy with the trump queen, and ruff a spade low in your hand. You can then cross to the trump king, drawing West’s last trump in the process, and discard your diamond losers on the four good spades.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
Q J 9 6 |
| ♥ |
2 |
| ♦ |
J 8 |
| ♣ |
10 9 8 6 5 2 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
2♥ |
Pass |
3♥ |
| Pass |
Pass |
Dbl. |
Pass |
| ? |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
ANSWER: If your partner had a takeout double of hearts, he would have acted initially, so he cannot have that hand, can he? Far more likely (especially looking at your hand) is that he has a heart stack and is doubling for penalties. You may not have all that much to bring to the festivities, but nobody really asked your opinion. Pass as requested, and trust your partner.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2010. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 13th, 2011 ~ admin ~ 2 Comments
| Dealer: South
Vul: E/W |
North
♠ Q J 10 6 4 2
♥ J 10 2
♦ K 7
♣ K J |
|
| West
♠ 3
♥ Q 9 4 3
♦ J 6 3 2
♣ 10 6 3 2 |
|
East
♠ K 9 7
♥ A K 5
♦ 10 8 5 4
♣ 9 7 5 |
| |
South
♠ A 8 5
♥ 8 7 6
♦ A Q 9
♣ A Q 8 4 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| 1 NT |
Pass |
4♥* |
Pass |
| 4♠ |
All Pass |
|
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| |
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| |
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Opening Lead: ♥ 3
“We live in an age disturbed, confused, bewildered, afraid of its own forces, in search not merely of its road, but even of its direction.”
— Woodrow Wilson
Today’s deal comes from “Masterpieces of Defense” by Julian Pottage, a writer who has demonstrated imagination and creativity in constructing bridge problems of all sorts. I wholeheartedly recommend his book.
Put yourself in the West seat and cover up the South and East cards to re-create the real-life problem you might be facing. A strong no-trump opening bid by South and a Texas Transfer by North sees you defending four spades. You lead the heart three, and partner plays king, ace and another, declarer following three times. What now?
The first question is whether your side might have a minor-suit ace to cash. You should assume that the answer is no — if you can trust your partner. The point is that if your partner had a minor-suit ace, he should have cashed it at trick three and not left you to guess what to do.
Assuming that to be true, where else might a defensive winner come from? Obviously, if partner has a natural trump trick, he will get it whatever you do, so try to determine when your play might make a difference. The answer is that if partner has precisely K-9-x of spades, you might be able to build a trump trick for him.
Your only legitimate way to achieve the trump promotion is by continuing with a fourth round of hearts. Whatever declarer does now, East must make a trump trick (provided he remembers not to overruff the spade queen.)
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
3 |
| ♥ |
Q 9 4 3 |
| ♦ |
J 6 3 2 |
| ♣ |
10 6 3 2 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
1♦ |
Dbl. |
Pass |
| 1♥ |
Pass |
1♠ |
Pass |
| ? |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
ANSWER: Although a takeout double normally shows support for all the unbid suits, an auction like the one shown (where your partner has suggested 17-plus in high cards and a good spade suit) does not promise suitability for any suit except spades. With a hand as weak as yours, where game is highly unlikely, pass one spade and try to stay out of trouble.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2010. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 12th, 2011 ~ admin ~ 2 Comments
| Dealer: West
Vul: N/S |
North
♠ 7 5 3
♥ K 6
♦ K Q J 9 7
♣ 7 4 2 |
|
| West
♠ J 10 9 6
♥ J 9 8 3
♦ 10 6 4 3
♣ 9 |
|
East
♠ K Q 4
♥ Q 10 7
♦ A 5
♣ J 10 8 6 5 |
| |
South
♠ A 8 2
♥ A 5 4 2
♦ 8 2
♣ A K Q 3 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
Pass |
Pass |
1 NT* |
| Dbl. |
2♣ |
3♦ |
Pass |
| 3 NT |
All Pass |
|
|
| *12-14 |
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Opening Lead: ♠ J
“Things have their due measure; there are ultimately fixed limits, beyond which, or short of which, something must be wrong.”
— Horace
Against three no-trump West leads the spade jack, overtaken by East’s queen. You duck and East continues with the spade king and a third spade, which you win with the ace.
You need to develop three tricks from diamonds to bring your total to nine. This will not be a problem if diamonds are 3-3 or the 10 drops doubleton, but with today’s layout you need to be careful. Suppose you play a diamond to dummy’s king, East will surely duck and win the next top diamond to exit with a club. You will win and cross to dummy with the heart king, but when the diamond 10 does not fall, you will no longer have an entry to dummy to be able to enjoy your extra diamond winners. You would be reduced to hoping for a 3-3 club break.
Even if East wins the first diamond, you would still be in trouble. Suppose you win the club and continue diamonds from the top. Your heart entry is still intact, but West will win the diamond 10 and cash the 13th spade, the fifth defensive trick.
So instead, why not run the diamond eight on the first round of the suit? If East wins with the 10, he can do you no harm. You win his return and now play your top diamonds, knowing you will be able to reach dummy’s established winners by crossing to the heart king.
Had East shifted to a heart at trick three, that would be another story.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
7 5 3 |
| ♥ |
K 6 |
| ♦ |
K Q J 9 7 |
| ♣ |
7 4 2 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
|
1♦ |
1♥ |
| ? |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
ANSWER: This hand falls inconveniently between a simple raise and a limit raise of diamonds. However, it would be reasonable to promote the heart king (given this auction) and upgrade the hand to a 10-count. If you think that makes sense, cue-bid two hearts, rather than jumping to three diamonds. The latter would show a weak shapely raise, not one based on high cards.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2010. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 11th, 2011 ~ admin ~ 10 Comments
| Dealer: East
Vul: All |
North
♠ 10 7 5 4 3
♥ Q 7 5
♦ A Q
♣ A 8 6 |
|
| West
♠ K
♥ 9 8 6 2
♦ K 10 2
♣ 10 7 5 3 2 |
|
East
♠ 8 6
♥ A K J
♦ 9 8 6 5
♣ K Q 9 4 |
| |
South
♠ A Q J 9 2
♥ 10 4 3
♦ J 7 4 3
♣ J |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
|
|
1♣ |
| 1♠ |
3♣* |
4♠ |
All Pass |
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
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Opening Lead: ♣ 3
“The race is over, but the work never is done while the power to work remains.”
— Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
Anna Gudge is one of the unsung heroes of bridge, a woman who coordinates the worldwide simultaneous events and organizes charity tournaments like those for the victims of the Pakistani Earthquakes and of recent tsunamis.
The same deals are played in different clubs around the world, and the event is scored over the whole field, with lots of masterpoints at stake. At the end you are given a booklet with a commentary on the deals.
The following deal occurred in a recent event. As South, plan the play in four spades.
Superficially, the contract seems to depend on two finesses if West’s openng lead is a heart, but on the lead of the club three, declarer can give himself an extra chance.
He should win the club ace and ruff a club. He then plays a diamond to dummy’s queen, cashes the diamond ace, ruffs a club, and ruffs a diamond. When it turns out that West started with king-third of diamonds, declarer no longer needs to risk the spade finesse. He should play a spade to his ace, and then, even if the spade king has not dropped, he intends to play the winning diamond jack, discarding a losing heart from dummy. When West’s spade king does fall, declarer emerges with an unlikely overtrick.
Incidentally, the percentage play in the spade suit (in abstract) is to finesse. If East has a doubleton spade, he is more likely to have the king than West.
BID WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
10 7 5 4 3 |
| ♥ |
Q 7 5 |
| ♦ |
A Q |
| ♣ |
A 8 6 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| 1♠ |
2♦ |
Pass |
Pass |
| ? |
|
|
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ANSWER: When playing negative doubles, you would normally reopen now with diamond shortage because partner may have a penalty double of diamonds and have been unable to act. True enough; but when you can see two diamond honors, is there any realistic chance partner has a diamond stack? Absolutely not. So if he passes over two diamonds, it is because he is weak, and you are therefore allowed to pass.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2010. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
January 10th, 2011 ~ admin ~ Comments Off on The Aces on Bridge: Monday, December 27, 2010
| Dealer: North
Vul: N/S |
North
♠ 9 4
♥ J 4 2
♦ 10 3
♣ K J 10 7 5 3 |
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| West
♠ Q
♥ Q 10 9 8 6
♦ 8 6 4
♣ A 9 8 6 |
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East
♠ 7 6 3 2
♥ K 7 3
♦ A Q J 7
♣ Q 2 |
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South
♠ A K J 10 8 5
♥ A 5
♦ K 9 5 2
♣ 4 |
|
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| |
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Pass |
1♦ |
| Dbl. |
1♥ |
2♣ |
Dbl.* |
| 3♠ |
Pass |
4♠ |
All Pass |
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Opening Lead: ♦ 4
“An idealist believes the short run doesn’t count. A cynic believes the long run doesn’t matter. A realist believes that what is done or left undone in the short run determines the long run.”
— Sidney Justin Harris
Today’s deal is all about counting. See if you can match declarer’s effort from the finals of a recent U.S. trials.
I thought Roger Bates handled his delicate four-spade contract very carefully, finding a fine line of play. His partner, Ralph Katz, thought the three-spade call was forcing — as would I — so maybe the South hand is not worth more than a bid of two spades at the second turn after the initial double.
The net result was that Bates declared a game that would have been impossible to make on a heart lead. However, on a diamond lead and heart shift (a trump switch would have worked better, but one can understand East’s play), Bates was still in with a chance.
He went up with the heart ace and played a club. West took his ace and tried two more rounds of hearts. Bates ruffed, led the diamond king, ruffed a diamond, then cashed the club king and saw the queen drop from East. If this was a true card, East was known to have started with three hearts, four diamonds, apparently only two clubs, and thus must have four spades. Accordingly, a single finesse in spades would not bring the suit home safely. The only legitimate chance was to find West with the singleton spade queen.
Accordingly, Bates played a trump to the ace and was rewarded when West’s queen fell — four spades bid and made.
LEAD WITH THE ACES
South Holds:
| ♠ |
Q 8 5 2 |
| ♥ |
J 9 4 |
| ♦ |
7 5 2 |
| ♣ |
A 9 4 |
| South |
West |
North |
East |
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1♣ |
Pass |
| 1♠ |
Dbl. |
2♣ |
2♥ |
| 3♣ |
3♥ |
All Pass |
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ANSWER: A trump lead looks very dangerous here if partner has a doubleton honor. Since everything else looks unattractive, starting with the club ace might at least give you an idea of what switch, if any, will be most effective.
For details of Bobby Wolff’s autobiography, The Lone Wolff, contact [email protected]. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, please leave a comment at this blog. Reproduced with permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc., Copyright 2010. If you are interested in reprinting The Aces on Bridge column, contact [email protected].
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