Hand of the day #609
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This conundrum was written by Eddie Kantar and was originally published in the book Take All Your Chances - you can find out all about it further down the page.
West opens 2♦, weak, partner passes, East bids 3♦, you join in with 3♠ and partner is happy to boost you to 4♠. West leads the ♦Q. Plan the play.
After stripping diamonds and drawing trumps, you could take three finesses and if just one of them worked (a rousing 87%) you would make your game. Those three finesses are leading up the ♣K and, if that loses, leading up to the ♣J, and if that loses taking the heart finesse. Could all three finesses lose?
You deserve to go down if you took the three-finesse line when there is a 100% line available. After stripping diamonds and drawing trumps, play the ♥A, ♥K and ♥J. If West wins the ♥Q and leads a club, you must take a trick with the ♣K. If East wins the ♥Q and leads a club, play from your hand and again you have a sure club trick. Either way the most you can lose is two club tricks and your contract is insured.
Notice you have two equally divided side suits, clubs and hearts. It is more important to throw them in with a heart to force a club play than vice versa. Forcing a club play means you can’t possibly lose more than two clubs and one heart. If you throw them in with clubs to force a heart return, you could lose three clubs and a heart (when East wins the third club and West has the ♥Q).
With touchy side suits there are oodles, the idea is to force the opponents to lead the suit first. If your only losers are in a “touchy suit” (meaning you have to play the suit first), strip the hand, if possible, before attacking the suit. Good things can happen, very good things, wonderful things.
The West hand: ♠3 ♥Q95 ♦QJT975 ♣A82
The East hand: ♠42 ♥T876 ♦K84 ♣QT97
Selecting the best line of play in a bridge hand as declarer is not easy. Most novices know something about basic odds and percentages, and can often find a line that offers a reasonable chance of success. However, the expert will skillfully combine options, so as to take advantage of more than chance. Rather than putting all his eggs in one basket, he will 'stay alive', squeezing out every extra chance. In this book of intermediate problems, Kantar shows the reader how to do this — there is always a line of play that will allow you take all your chances, and bring home your contract.
