All News

For Junior, Intermediate and Novice players…and others. It’s Fri day.

Few points: must act.

Today’s deal is aimed at less experienced players but there is a lesson here for everyone. Sometimes, the hardest decisions at the bridge table come in unexpected moments, when you have very few high card points and think you can just sit back and pass while the others at the table sort out the final contract.

Not so. Watch and decide what you would do when the bidding gets just a little tricky.

 

 

You are very happy to pass at the first opportunity and when the bidding comes back to you for the second time, you can pass comfortably once more.

Your partner has shown diamonds and spades and suddenly just as it looked like the bidding was going to die in 2, your partner emerged with a double.

What does the double mean? What should you do?

What you should not do is panic. Take a deep breath, a drink of coffee maybe and think about your partner's bidding. 

Such a double can best be described as “an action double”. Your partner has obviously a very good hand, probably 18 or 19 hcp, and wants you to look at your hand (not much to look at!) and make a sensible decision. That decision may be that you choose to pass hoping that the contract could be defeated but only if you choose to do so…and to do so, you would need longer and better trumps than what you hold. So, what action do you take?

Just remember what your partner has said about their hand. They have 4 spades but you have only 2 small ones. 2 does not feel a great choice. They started with 1. While it is possible they have only 4 diamonds (they open the lower of 2 x 4 card suits), they may well have more. The choice, therefore seems to be between bidding 3 or 3, your own 5-card club suit. Were you to have 6 or more clubs, then 3 would be a good choice. However, you do not and it is usually better if the strong hand is declarer not dummy. Not only does it make it harder for the defence not being able to see the strong hand but there is an added advantage for you to be dummy!

So, after a little thought, you should emerge with 3. That’s much better than passing 2x without thinking of what your partner is doing. Surprisingly, they would be genuinely pleased with your dummy after South leads a high heart:

 

South also had a good hand: hence their 2 call. What made your partner so happy was that you only had 2 spades and had 3 diamonds (Oh, Q was potentially useful too.). South played two high hearts and then a third one, hoping their partner was short of hearts. However, East discarded one spade on the Q.

Then, East played a spade to the ace and a second spade. North won and tried a club but East took their ace and ruffed their last spade in dummy. East had lost only 2 hearts and a spade at this point. They would lose to the A but then their remaining four diamonds and the K were all winners. 9 tricks and contract made, quite easily, really.

It was just as well you bid 3, even though it did not appeal at the time. Had you passed, 2x would have made quite comfortably. There is even a chance that South could have made 9 tricks in hearts.

Note how East can enlist the help of their silent partner to find a good contract by doubling. Without that double of 2, East would pass and the partnership would get a poor result.

Not true!

So, even though you had almost nothing, you had an important decision to make in the bidding. Keep focused even though you are hoping that you can pass quietly throughout.

Richard Solomon

Go Back View All News Items