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The Best You Can.

If you do that on every board, you cannot feel bad about the result. Neither can your partner! Yet, did our South on the board below do the best they could in trying to make their game?

 

 

 

You reach 4and West leads Q. 2 showed a 6+ card suit and 0-6 hcp. Plan the play.

As North, you would feel quite happy that your partner has accepted your game invitation. Certainly, the North hand is no great collection but with a well-placed looking K, it would not take much for partner to make 4…like first-round heart control, reasonable trumps and some club honours. South had all of them and yet failed in their 4 contract. There was just one problem…West’s opening lead, that Q.

What happened?

South covered with K, as you do, with East’s ace winning. Back came a second diamond to West’s 7. West played J..and the contract could no longer be made.

 

 

 

South could ruff high thus promoting a spade trick for East or simply ruff low and be over-ruffed. The A was the 4^th trick for the defence. Of course, ruffing high is better since both defenders might have two trumps each...but not today. 

The best they could?

Had South really played the contract well? Not really. The contract was absolutely cold had the diamond break been 4-4 or 5-3. South would lose just two diamonds and the A.

Why, though, did South put up the K at trick 1? Did you? A kind of reflex, really. But why, this time? Once every 10,000 boards you play, maybe more, West will find the brilliant lead of Q from an initial holding of AQJT

Do not say a word….any word. Just think it!

and when you duck and then lose your king to the ace on the second round, your partner will ask (kindly, we hope) why you did not put up your king first time.

Pay out to that occasion. “Great lead” you will tell West and hopefully your partner is interested in your side of the story.

Remember that there is one other tiny reason to duck at trick 1…singleton ace in the East hand. 4 would then be cold even if trumps broke 3-1.

4 is actually unmakeable this time on the lead of Q. You duck the first two tricks and East returns a club. A third round of diamonds will beat South as above.

Yet, does East know what to do when in with the A? Do they know to switch to a club and not a heart? In a good partnership, they should because West can indicate what their partner should do at trick 3. A low diamond at trick 2 asks for a club, a high one for a heart, the higher of the other 2 non-trump suits. Of course, West does not know that their partner has a doubleton diamond but they must hope they do.

Not all partnerships have that kind of understanding…and that is why South is better to duck at trick 1. Then, if East finds a low club, too bad but they might switch to a heart.

So, you can judge as to whether South had done “the best they could”. I do not think so. One last comment. Just try leading the queen from AQJT against me in a suit contract. I will fix the board in advance to ensure my holding in the suit is singleton king in my hand!

 

What’s your bid? What’s your plan?

 

 

2 is a 2- way Multi which, by your partner’s 2, is confirmed as a Weak 2 in spades. East’s double is described as “take-out style, not necessarily more than a minimum opening hand.”  

It is your turn. What now?

Richard Solomon

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