Hand of the day #418
You can now play the hand of the day on BBO+ and compare how you get on with the...
You can now play the hand of the day on BBO+ and compare how you get on with the players in the article.
The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff
Opening Lead: ♥5
The higher a contract, the easier it usually is to play. Imagine for a moment that you were playing today's hand in six spades. How should you play it when the defenders lead two rounds of hearts? You would ruff, cross to dummy, and finesse the queen of trumps. The only chance would be to find East with a doubleton trump king.
With just 24 points between the hands, though, it is more likely that you would end in game. Now your aim is to make 10 tricks against any lie of the cards. How would you play the contract at teams or rubber, when the defenders again begin with two rounds of hearts?
The original declarer ruffed the second heart and played the ace of trumps, East showing out. When he continued with a low trump toward dummy’s 10, West stepped in with the jack.
Can you see what the winning defense is now? West played a third round of hearts, deliberately giving a ruff-and-discard. If declarer ruffed with the dummy’s bare 10, West’s K-9 would be worth two further tricks. If instead declarer ruffed in his hand, he would be down to the same number of trumps as West. He would lose trump control when he knocked out the trump king and was forced again.
Paradoxically, the only safe line is to lead a trump toward the 10 at trick two. You then have a small trump left in dummy to deal with a third round of hearts.
Bid with the aces
Answer: 5♦
Your partner's four-spade call showed a spade control (not necessarily good news) and interest in slam. When you hold solid trumps and partner looks for slam, you know he has a good hand. Here, the only sensible noise you can make is to bid five diamonds, suggesting no club control but something in diamonds. That lets partner decide whether to bid on past five hearts.
This Hand of the Day was originally published on aces.bridgeblogging.com.
You can now play the hand of the day on BBO+ and compare how you get on with the players in the article.