Hand of the day #242
The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff The old-fashioned textbooks tell you to lead k...
The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff
A rubber bridge player at the Dyspeptics Club never really knows what he is letting himself in for. Yet he can always rely on South to hold far more than his share of the high cards, though according to him, it is just because he gets more out of them.
Opening Lead: ♥Q
In fact, in today’s deal North was an outsider. With a difficult call at his third turn, he suggested that he had three-card spade support, and that was enough to get South into the stratosphere via Blackwood.
On the lead of the ♥Q, South won in hand, unblocked the ♣A, then took the spade ace and king. Next, he accurately cashed the ♣K, pitching a heart, and ruffed a club, preparing to clear the trumps and claim the rest. However, West overruffed and, after prolonged thought, shifted to a diamond. South had no choice but to run this to his hand; when his ♦Q won, he drew trumps and took the balance.
While North was congratulating his partner, West made the mistake of saying there was nothing he could have done to set the slam. That gave East the chance to tell him that while there was nothing HE could have done, anyone who understood bridge would have prevailed on defense. Do you see why?
When in with his trump trick, West must shift to the ♦K. This dislodges dummy’s entry, and eventually the defenders collect a diamond or trump trick whatever South does.
Bid with the Aces
Answer: 4♥
It is easy to decide you have a bad hand — but remember that partner knew that you were weak when he invited game. In that context you have a GREAT hand. Bid 4♥, confident that you have something to spare (if you trust your partner, that is).
This Hand of the Day was originally published on aces.bridgeblogging.com.
I'm not full convinced! Yes I have something more than the minimum with 2H but not much more and maybe it could be not enough! For this reason I prefer to pass