Playing at the ‘local dupe,’ aggressive bidding forced declarer to work hard (think), make good assumptions, and bring home a difficult six ♦ contract.
Vul: None
Dealer: South
« The bidding:
S
2♦
5 ♣ (one key card)
6 ♦ (no queen)
W
Pass
Pass
Pass
N
4 NT (1430)
5 ♥ (queen ask)
Pass
E
Pass
Pass
Pass
« Opening lead: ♥ J
NORTH
♠ 8 7 6 4
♥ A K Q
♦ A K 2
♣ A 10 3
WEST
♠ J 3 2
♥ J 10 9 5 3
♦ 5
♣ K J 7 6
EAST
♠ Q 10 5
♥ 8 7 6 4 2
♦ Q 8 7
♣ Q 4
SOUTH
♠ A K 9
♥ Void
♦ J 10 9 6 4 3
♣ 9 8 5 2
the play
1. West led the ♥ Jack, Ace from Dummy, East the 2, and Declarer the ♠ 9.
2. Declarer was not seduced into playing for two ♠s, three ♥s, six ♦s, and one ♣ to make the slam.
3. Declarer, realizing that ♦s may split 3:1 and the Queen was odds on to be with the 3, looked for a second line of play to increase the chances of making a slam.
4. By sluffing the 9 of ♠s at trick one, Declarer was hoping to set up the long ♠ in Dummy.
5. Declarer cashed the ♦ Ace first (in case ♦ Queen was a singleton).
6. ♦ Ace, East the 7, Declarer the 3, and West the 5.
7. ♠ 4 to the Ace and King.
8. ♦ 4 to the King (Queen still not appearing).
9. ♠ 8 from Dummy is trumped by Declarer with the ♦ 9. (Had East trumped with the Queen, Declarer would have thrown a ♣.) When East and West followed suit, the 13th ♠ was established.
10. ♣ 9 to the Ace.
11. ♥ King and Ace, discarding two ♣s.
12. East trumped the 13th ♠ with the ♦ Queen, as declarer discarded the last ♣. Contract made.
NOTE: The extra chance paid off as ♦s were 3:1. If ♦s were 2:2, contract was always going to make.
tip of the day
Q| Looking for the Queen, my partner and I have been using the ‘Eight Ever, Nine Never’ adage for years. I don’t keep track, but playing the AK with nine doesn’t seem to drop the Queen as much as it should. What is the correct play?
A| The short answer: percentages favor the AK play. That being said, when there are four cards missing in a suit, odds are the suit will split 3:1.
Do you have a good bridge tip? Email kennethmbland@yahoo.com.