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TALES OF AKARANA

The “Get out of Jail Free” Card.

How can a lead be right and be so wrong? We will come back to that but will firstly look at a play problem. You have reached, or been pushed to the 5 level by the usual frisky non-vulnerable opponents. You are looking at:

 

Board 19
South Deals
E-W Vul
   
A Q 5
K J 10 7 3 2
A K 10 9
 
N
W   E
S
 
10 8 6 3 2
Q 8 4
A J
8 6 4
West North East South
You   Dummy  
      3 
4  5  5  All pass

 

You would seem to have a club loser and will have difficulty in avoiding losing a trump trick! So, it all seems to boil down to that spade guess/finesse. Pre-emptors are allowed to hold the Spade-smallK and will do so when you ask them nicely. So, trumps 2-2, please. Maybe play one high club and then a trump to the queen (come on, the pre-emptor will not have both the Spade-smallK and the Heart-smallA, will they!) You would not appreciate South ruffing your Spade-smallK on the second round of the suit, would you! If they ruff, let them ruff thin air!

So you have a plan? Oh, incidentally they led a diamond enabling you to dispose of that little spade. Then a club...well, you will see what will happen on that line very soon.

Of the 14 tables in play, 4 North-Souths played in 5Diamond-smallx, once making and three times one light. One East- West pair had an easy ride in 4Heart-small while another found the going just too tough in 6Heart-smallxx. The rest were in 5Heart-small. Three times it made and four times it failed.

Are you counting? There was one other table where the bidding did not end with the 5Heart-small bid.

West          North         East            South

                                                          3Diamond-small

4Heart-small              5Diamond-small              5Heart-small              x

All Pass

When was the last time you saw a pre-emptor double a 5 level contract? As North, I could not recall but I did know that something was up as I was the one with both the Spade-smallK and the Heart-smallA. Holding a 6 card club suit, I had a fair idea who was void in that suit. So, keeping partner happy, and hearing the message about not leading his suit, I led a club…but which one? Oh the wrong one? Which lead did I want back? Not a spade! Ouch, I chose somewhat naively the Club-smallQ.

Board 19
South Deals
E-W Vul
K
A 6
8 5 4 3
Q J 7 5 3 2
A Q 5
K J 10 7 3 2
A K 10 9
 
N
W   E
S
 
10 8 6 3 2
Q 8 4
A J
8 6 4
 
J 9 7 4
9 5
K Q 10 9 7 6 2

 

Partner got his ruff and returned a low spade and declarer took stock. If the finesse lost, there would surely be a second ruff and a terrible -500 (in reality -800!). So, declarer decided to cut his losses and play Spade-smallA. The losses were non-existent, +850.

Shame on me. I could have, should have led a low club asking for a diamond back. A decent declarer would eventually take the spade finesse for one down. At least then, I could not be blamed if partner disobeyed and played a spade at trick two. Yet, even then, I was not really blameless.

The only North who found the only 100% way to beat 5Heart-small was the pair defending 6Heart-smallxx where the lead recorded was the Spade-smallK! Is it so hard to find when partner has doubled 5Heart-small? Lead it. Win the trump played at trick 2 and then play Club-smallQ asking, demanding, pleading partner to return a spade.  

If you did that, you would not have the embarrassment of 5Heart-small making, even greater embarrassment when doubled. Partner was right about not leading a diamond and the double of 5Heart-small should have guided me if not to the best defence (and maybe it should have!) but at least to a defence which was likely to beat the contract rather than one which gave a desperate declarer a very lucky “Get out of jail free” card.

handcuffs.png

Richard Solomon

ps. On the line stated initially above, if South ruffs at trick three and returns a spade, declarer will either make or go three down depending on which spade he plays!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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