All News
PLAY and DEFENCE for Improving Players
HOW MANY TRUMPS?
Trumps can be dangerous objects in the hands of the defenders. Sometimes, though, we have to leave them in play, waiting to cause us grief.
What’s your plan in making 11 tricks with the following cards?
West East
AK1086 75
A KJ1094
AQJ962 10743
10 74
West North East South
1 Pass Pass 2
2 3 3 Pass
3 Pass 4 Pass
5 All Pass
North led 5 won by South’s ace. South continued with a low club.
There only seems to be a problem when South has all 3 missing trumps. A 2-1 trump break allows West the opportunity to ruff a second spade in comfort while if North had all 3 missing trumps, they can only score one trump trick, with the king. However, at the table, West led A and then Q and found herself in trouble when South returned a third trump:
North
J932
Q872
–
K8652
West East
AK1086 75
A KJ1094
AQJ962 10743
10 74
South
Q4
653
K85
AQJ93
One spade could be ruffed, another discarded on the K but there was still an inescapable spade loser in the West hand..down one.
The answer was to play either no rounds of trumps or at most cash only the ace. Cash the A and then play two top spades and a ruff a spade with 10. Had a high spade been ruffed, indicating a really bad spade break, then declarer would just have to hope the K would fall under the ace, i.e. a 2-1 break. As it was, with no worse than a 4-2 spade break, South could over-ruff but had no winning continuation. A trump return allows West to draw the remaining trump (if the ace had not been cashed) and then ruff a spade in comfort. A club gives West a useful ruff and discard while a heart allows declarer to discard two spades on high hearts.
As can be the case, two rounds of trumps is one round too many!
Richard Solomon
Go Back View All News Items
