Problem Solution |
South Deals |
♠ |
7 3 |
♥ |
6 3 2 |
♦ |
K 10 9 3 |
♣ |
A K J 2 |
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♠ |
K Q 10 9 2 |
♥ |
K Q 8 7 5 |
♦ |
8 4 |
♣ |
7 |
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♠ |
8 6 5 |
♥ |
J 10 |
♦ |
Q 7 2 |
♣ |
10 9 8 5 4 |
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♠ |
A J 4 |
♥ |
A 9 4 |
♦ |
A J 6 5 |
♣ |
Q 6 3 |
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West |
North |
East |
South |
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Partner |
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You |
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1 NT |
2 ♣1 |
3 NT |
Pass |
Pass |
Pass |
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Before selecting a line of play, you should first count your tricks.
♠ = 1, ♥ = 1, ♦ = 2, ♣ = 4. The total is 8 tricks.
1 more trick is needed and that can come from ♦
or from ♠ (if your left hand opponent continues ♠ into your ♠ AJ) .
Also consider that if you duck the ♠ K lead, West may switch to ♥.
The simplest way to guarantee the contract is to win the ♠ K lead with the ♠ A.
Then play ♦ 5 to ♦ K and run the ♦ 10 through East.
If East has the♦ Q (quite likely as the bidding suggests that West has
only 3 cards in ♦ and ♣, leaving East with 8 cards in ♦ and ♣),
you will take 4 ♦tricks and score an overtrick.
If West has the ♦ Q and wins the trick, your ♠ J4 will act as a stopper to prevent West
from running his ♠ suit. (Your ♠ J4 would not have helped against a ♠ lead from East.)
You will score 3 ♦ tricks and still make the contract.
It is interesting to consider how you should play if you exchanged a small ♠ for your ♠ J.
Now it would be unsafe to win the ♠ A and finesse the ♦ into West’s hand as you no longer
have a second ♠ stopper.
Instead you would finesse through West so that if you lost to the ♦ Q, it would be East that won the trick.
What about the danger that East would return ♠ and that the defenders would take 4 ♠ tricks and the ♦ Q?
That is the danger you have to guard against.
You know from West’s 2 ♣ bid that he has 5 cards in both ♠ and ♥.
Using this information you calculate that East began with 3 cards in ♠ and 2 cards in ♥.
Before winning either the ♠ A or ♥ A, you should duck twice in ♠ or duck once in ♥ (if the opponents switch to ♥)
to ensure that if East wins the ♦ Q they will be unable to lead back the major suit in which you no longer have a stopper.
If West has the ♦ Q you will score 4 ♦ tricks and make an overtrick.
If East has the ♦ Q you will score 3 ♦ tricks and still make your contract.
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