Hand of the Fortnight

Number 8

 

Theme:   The art of gentle (legal) deception

Dealer is North. The bidding has gone

                        N                     E                      S                      W

                        1C                   /                       1NT                 /

                        /                       //

You are sitting West. Your opening lead is HK. Dummy is revealed as follows:

                                                   North

                                                S:   T 9 4

                                                H:   A J 7

                                                D:   A J 9

                                                C:   A T 9 7

                 West

            S:   K Q 8 2

            H:   K Q 9 2

            D:   Q 8 6

            C:   4 2

 

Main Points:

1)          Declarer captures it immediately with the HA partner (East) playing H6.

2)          Declarer then calls for the S4. East plays low while Declarer (South) plays the SJ. You capture with the SQ (correctly). What do you lead next?

You know South’s bid suggests 6-9 HCP. South’s immediate Spade play suggests that 5 of these HCP are SJ and SA. Naturally you think it would be a tad rash to lead back a Spade!

3)      So you try C4. Declarer plays low from Dummy, partner plays CK, sending you back HT.

Play continues with Declarer eventually scraping up 7 tricks to make the contract.

You might say that there’s nothing unusual about that but the last 2 cards played by East and West were SA and SK.... as discards on a Club trick!! Both were “deceived” into wishing to avoid setting up 1 or 2 more Spade tricks for N/S (if they led Spades).

4)          Technically with South’s hand, the bid should have been 1H. With 6-7 HCP it sometimes works out better to immediately show partner that you’re restricted to 6-9 HCP to restrain bidding. But on other occasions be ready to have a rather disappointed partner if they had 4 of the (weak) major that you haven’t bid .... and that 1NT goes down instead of your being in an easy 2H or 2S.

Note: This was a ploy I used at a Thursday ‘06 session at Maitland Bridge Club when I wanted to talk the opponents into not taking 4 or 5 tricks off the top (in Spades). I was also trying to “persuade” the opponents to lead another suit where I was missing honours (Clubs and/or Diamonds above) and where I needed to avoid losing 2 tricks in one or both of those suits. My CQ (South) was set up here without being wasted on a finesse, etc.

And yes, on other occasions my responding 1NT (with 6 HCP including a weak 4 card major) has not worked! Yet on infrequent occasions it has worked when the opponents set up the 13th card in a major (in your hand) – believing you would not have a 4 card major.

 

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