Hand of the Fortnight

Number 1

 

Theme:     Giving up on a finesse because of limited entries into dummy

 

You are sitting West as declarer playing a 4 Hearts contract.

The bidding has gone:

                        S          W        N         E

                        /           1H       1S        X

                        /           4H       /        /

                        //

 

                   West                                        East

            S:    A                                                  S:   7 3 2

          H:   A Q J T 7 6 3                               H:   8

            D:   K  8 5                                           D:   9 6 3 2

            C:   K 3                                               C:   A Q J 9 5

 

Opening Lead: SK

 

Main Points:

            1)         Unless you overtake the CK with the CA, you have only 1 entry to East’s hand.

            2)         If you’d planned to immediately play 3 rounds of Clubs (to ditch 1 loser),

                        the 3rd round gets trumped by H4 ( North). You now have no entries into dummy.

            3)         If instead you used 1 Club entry into dummy and tried the Heart finesse, it fails.

4)         North’s bidding suggests that the HK and the DA are in North’s hand. It’s actually

good news if the HK is in North’s hand if you give up on trying the Heart finesse.

(If South took the HK, they may lead a Diamond through your thin holding.)

 

Trick 1:           Take the SK with the SA.

Trick 2:           Play the HA. Occasionally the HK will be singleton and fall.

Trick 3:           Play the HQ. Even if Hearts are 4 – 1, this is no problem here. (North had the HK.)

Trick 4:           North would usually lead the SQ. Ruff it with H3.

 

If Trick 4 was a Diamond taken by the DA, you can soon clear trumps, cash the CK then cross to East’s Clubs to ditch Diamonds. Contract made taking 10 or 11 tricks (depending on whether the DA was cashed by North/South for Trick 4). Unless Diamonds and Clubs split badly, you may have a Diamond ruffed but you still make your contract

 

This was a hand that actually arose. What happened at the table?

Many pairs playing this hand went down taking 9 tricks probably cashing the CK then using East’s CA as an entry for the failing Heart finesse. Unfortunately now the other Club tricks are unreachable.

 

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