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MAKING THE MOST OUT OF A PART-SCORE DEAL

A recent part-score deal shows the difference between positive and passive defence. Although there is a time for “going passive”, to get a good score you have to do just a little more than sit there and follow suit. So, how do you feel, defending 3 as South with the following hand? You lead a high club and both your partner and declarer follow suit with their only club, your partner’s being the queen.

 

 

What’s your plan? You can see three tricks in your own hand and thus need some help from partner to beat this contract. It seems there are three paths you can take. Playing hearts seems to have no future.

The passive defence

South led the 9, quite a reasonable switch since partner bid the suit freely. North took their ace and fired back the Q which declarer won with their king. Next came the A and a small heart. South won and not wishing to touch trumps, exited a third heart. Declarer ruffed in dummy as partner contributed the Q and then played off 3 runs of spades, losing the third one to South and claimed 9 tricks, losing just one trick in each suit. Just desserts for South? Probably. Look at the four hands.

The Overbidder

East was not made to pay for their overbidding. West promised nothing when they preferred spades to hearts. Indeed, West’s unwillingness to bid spades over 2 probably indicated either few points, few spades or both.                                             

3 was about to be beaten easily with two top spades, a spade ruff, A and K. East should never have been allowed to make 3, even with such a favourable lie of the heart suit.

Positive defence

One way the defence could have succeeded was for North to duck the first diamond. South was unlikely to have held a singleton diamond as East sounded like they held 5 cards in each major and had already shown up with a club. They could not have three diamonds. That’s where counting declarer’s hand becomes so important.

However, North did not need to take that chance. After the A and a second diamond, East played ace and a low heart. Where was the queen? If East was just missing the K, surely it would be better to play on trumps rather than hearts? Almost certainly, it is North who holds the Q. Thus, South could have ducked the second round of hearts. North wins and plays a high diamond. East just has to lose two trump tricks…and that means 3 down one.

Back to Trick Two

Let’s go back to trick 2. We said South played a diamond but there were alternatives. South could be brave and switch to a trump though would have egg on their face if East held SAKJ. On the actual deal, that switch should enable the defence to take 2 heart tricks as North can gain the lead to play a second trump.

However, there is another play at trick 2. Have you noticed your spade pips…Q93? Did you think of playing a low club? Your partner knows you have five clubs for your overcall and therefore should know you want them to ruff high. If they have no high trump, no damage is done. They just ruff as high as they can.

Here North plays J, a rather ugly card for declarer. He overruffs and plays a heart as before and if you draw the same inference, duck to North’s Q. North’s best continuation is a trump. East has to win leaving declarer with 1085 and South Q9.

Next comes a heart ruff. Diamonds have not yet been played. Therefore, a diamond is led and the defence will eventually score two trumps and one trick in each other suit.

Brave switch, maximum reward

If you were brave enough to find the trump switch at trick two, and duck the second heart, you may even beat the contract by two tricks as declarer can never get to dummy to lead a diamond. (The impossible lead of a low club at trick 1 does achieve this result.)However, just going positive…one down will get you a good score.

 Maybe, playing Pairs (too risky at Teams) with an opening hand, and a 2 level overcall from partner, North could double 3. Now, +300. How good that would be? Do not double, though, if your partner defends as negatively as actually happened. I can tell you the score for 3x…-530 and that does not feel good at any form of the game.  

 Richard Solomon

 

 

 

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