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Why Take One Finesse When You Can Take Two?

Good players do not take them if there is any way to avoid doing so. Their track record is no better than yours or mine. They have a habit of failing!

So, why am I suddenly advocating taking more rather than less finesses? Let’s look at a fairly uninspiring part-score deal. Oh, you know the type that occur many times in a session. Ignore “uninspiring” part-scores at your peril. They cost many more imps or match-points than failed small slams!

West would be eyeing dummy with some regret after they opened a 12-14 1NT which ended the bidding. North led a low club. This is what West saw:

West                              East (dummy)

 AK54                           J1032

 QJT                            763

 987                             AJT6

 A97                             QJ

Oh why did partner not use Stayman? It would be a very sad day when 2 by West failed. (There is no great reason why East should try Stayman, especially at Pairs, but West is still allowed his 2 second cry of anguish!)

If the Q does not make a trick, then declarer has 4 spade tricks along with 2 in clubs and at least one in diamonds. There might be chances for extra tricks too. Thanks for passing, partner.

However, what if the spade finesse fails or no queen appears if you play the suit from the top and gave up a spade to make the fourth spade? The defence will take away your remaining club hold and will come to a spade, two heart, one certain diamond and 2, maybe 3 club tricks. Looks like down one unless clubs break 4-4.

That is indeed what happened at the table. Declarer took a losing spade finesse at trick 2(Q held trick 1) and was soon one down.

A finesse has a 50% chance of success. You can argue that one hand might have more spades than the other but basically when neither opponent has bid, that percentage is true. Two finesses in the same suit have a 75% success rate. If one fails, the next should succeed. (OK, I know that never works for you but on balance, it does.) So, to the question we raised first of all. Maybe we should prefer a 75% chance to a 50% one?

Did anyone look at our diamond suit?

 

So, at trick 2, play a spade to the ace and run the 9. South will win to play a second club. Duck (in case South has AK and KQ and only 3 clubs.) and win the third club. Now play a second diamond and if that finesse wins, cross to the K (a bonus if the queen appears) and repeat the diamond finesse in case North held a four card diamond suit. (If South held KQx and had ducked the second round of the suit smoothly, you will have egg on your face but you must compliment South on a brilliant duck.) On a good day like this one, you have 7 tricks.

Essentially, the deal is about taking two diamond finesses instead of one spade finesse. Unless your finessing is really low success rate, you will have two chances to take a successful finesse as opposed to one. You may not outscore those who scored +110 but your score is on the right side of the sheet. See, sometimes, even good players take finesses.

Richard Solomon

 

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