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All care along the way.

One can bid and then play some boards in a routine fashion, finding a fit easily, perhaps drawing trumps and then claiming for the required number of tricks. Then, there are others:

 

1 promised at least 2 clubs with 2 a Weak Jump Overcall. South owned up to a four- card heart suit. Where to from here?

It would be all too easy to presume that one’s partner now held clubs and hearts and therefore head off to 3NT. Yet, even if 1 promised at least 4 clubs, you still know very little about your partner’s hand. You still do not know if 3NT is where you want to be. There are two big unknowns.

The first is whether they could still hold four spades. If they do and say did not have a hold in diamonds, then you certainly want to play in spades. Even if they do have a diamond hold, the spade game could well be a safer spot.

Then, if they have not got four spades, it could well be that the one diamond hold you have will not be enough for 9 tricks. You will not always have say 5 or 6 club tricks and enough aces and kings to come to 9 tricks.

There is so much you do not know that you have to ask for further information….and there is only one way to do that:

 

As you can see, the club suit was not “running” at all in no-trumps. It was very possible that South held four spades. North was very relieved to have checked.

When West led J, South ducked that round to their singleton Q. Declarer still had some work to do and certainly required West to hold A. When that happened, there appeared to be only 3 losers, 2 clubs and a heart…and South was able to come reasonably comfortably to 10 tricks.

However, at another table, North became declarer because East did not remain silent:

 

After North’s negative double and East’s aggressive diamond raise, South decided to play game in a major suit, also rather an aggressive action as North could have been weaker. Hence, North became the declarer and received a diamond lead.

There was though no second diamond trick this time. Thus, North had more work to do. A won the first trick and a diamond ruff followed. Now came a spade to the North hand and a second diamond ruff. Declarer cashed dummy’s remaining trump, K, and discovered the bad news that there were three players at the table whose original trump holding was four.

It was time to play a club from the South hand. West took their ace and tried a fourth round of diamonds. The declarer ruffed with Q with East discarding their remaining club. North had only A left and East had two trumps.

So, North played A and still needed 3 tricks with these cards remaining:

When North played K, East had no answer. If they ruffed, they would be forced to lead away from Q. Since West was known to hold only 2 hearts (1 spade, 6 diamonds and 4 clubs after the club ruff), the odds firmly favoured East to hold Q. (A Weak Jump would surely not hold a 13 count.) Thus, those three tricks came from the heart suit.

Had East discarded a heart on K, North could simply cash AK giving East the last two tricks. Either way, the contract would be made.

So, no straightforward board to bid nor to play. We would have it no other way…as long as we finished with + 420.

Richard Solomon

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