Friday, December 5, 2008

Would you get the defense right?

Playing online at OKbridge last night with Notzia, we bid to 4 with these cards:

7
8 3
A K 10 9 8 6 3
Q 10 4
K 10 9 5 A 6 3
Q 6 5 9
Q J 7 5 4 2
9 7 5 3 A K J 8 2
Q J 8 4 2
A K J 10 7 4 2
---
6

I was the dealer with both sides vulnerable and opened 3. I'm not sure what the best bid is with the South hand, but Notzia bid 4, a reasonable shot.

West led the 9 won by East with the jack. He continued with the A, and that was ruffed. Declarer advanced the J which was taken by the ace. The K was returned and ruffed.

Declarer ruffed a spade in dummy and cashed the A K, discarding two spades. When the Q J fell, he led the 10 and discarded his last spade. West ruffed, but now his Q fell under declarer's A K and the contract was made.

The contract can be defeated. At trick two, East can shift to the 9. Declarer wins and advances a spade. West has to win this and lead a heart, preferrably the Q. He gives up his heart trick, but it prevents a ruff in dummy and an entry to the A K.

Should West find this play? Would you find it?

Making 4 was worth 3.56 IMPs for our side. If we were defeated, we would have lost 9.30 IMPs, a huge swing.

The board was played 70 times. Ten times it was played in 3 , twice in 4 and once in 4. The other 57 contracts were 4 . You can see all the results of this board if you click here.

4 comments:

  1. Ha - reading your blog when you post about Bridge is like reading a foreign language.

    Just go all in? lol

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  2. Bridge is a foreign language, for sure. Maybe bet half the pot, then go all in if raised?

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  3. As an intermediate, I probably wouldn't find it. It takes a bit of imagination to guess a diamond void in declarer's hand, but the is really picturing a holding that can be defeated, isn't it?

    An instructive hand.

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  4. Thanks, Warren, for your comment. If your partner signals count on the spade lead, then if you decide declarer has 5 spades, and then you might guess he has 7 hearts. I say might, no one in the OKbridge field did. Sometimes, bridge is just too tough.

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