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Different Leads: Different Problems

On the following board, most West players did the normal thing of leading their partner’s suit. You cannot be wrong even if you are not right! What would be your plan assuming you play low from dummy, East inserting 9 at trick one with your jack scoring?

 Opening Lead 7.

You had already had an awkward bidding sequence in that you elected to call 1NT with hardly the best spade hold in the world, J84. However, 2 seemed to rather escalate the bidding and 7 or 8 tricks in 1NT might prove a reasonable score.

Your problems magnified when partner invited you to game. You were really quite maximum for an Acol 1NT response but you still had the worry of your spade hold. Nevertheless, a maximum it was and if you survived an initial spade lead, then maybe 9 tricks could be made. So, you bid to game and held your breath at the 7 from West. What would dummy’s spades be?

Partner’s spade cards proved quite comforting but five diamond, two spade and one heart trick still left you a trick short. Where would you go for trick number 9?

Same Auction: Different Lead

At another table after the same auction, West decided to ignore their partner’s overcall and led 5 which went to East’s K. East returned 9 to your Q which held the trick with West contributing 4. This time, you have a heart, five diamonds and a club trick…and your plan is?

After the spade lead and duck, you do not have time to set up a club trick unless West holds both AK (and even then a heart switch could be uncomfortable). In view of the spade overcall, this is unlikely. You can lose the lead once more but not twice. East will be able to run off three spade winners before you count to 9. Note East’s duck at trick one. They know they have to lose the lead twice to set up their spade tricks.

So, the 9^th trick must come from hearts. You are going to have to take one heart finesse…and if that fails, you are going to have to take a second into the danger hand, East. Therefore, you need West to hold at least one of the missing heart honours.

Notice, though, that you cannot run off your diamond winners before trying one heart finesse. If you do which two cards do you throw from dummy? You can throw one heart safely but what do you discard on the last diamond. If you throw another heart and then play a heart to the queen which loses to the king, you are then almost certain to go down. If you throw a club, the defence could take 5 quick club tricks.

So, you should take your first heart finesse at trick 2. On this day, it did not matter whether you played small to the 10 or to the queen. It was going to be a good day!

 

If you played small to 10, you could repeat the finesse, play one more round of spades and make an overtrick but you will at least make 9 tricks even if you played small to Q. Finesses do work!

Different lead: Different Problem

What though after that nasty small club lead? Notice West’s technically and practically correct second round duck of the A. Unless West held 4 or 6 clubs, in which latter case they are likely to win the ace and switch, declarer cannot play on spades for their ninth trick. With the 5-3 break, when East wins the A, they return their remaining club enabling West to take 4 club tricks to beat the contract.

South has a real dilemma. If the clubs break 4-4, then South cannot afford to lose a heart trick (3 clubs, a heart and a spade loser). Yet, if clubs break 5-3, then declarer cannot afford to touch spades. West’s 5 lead followed by 4 suggest that West started with five clubs (as did East's 9 at trick 2). Therefore, declarer had to score five diamond, one club and three heart tricks… two successful heart finesses. Shut your eyes and play a heart to the 10. Open them and find you are still on lead!

Of course, a devious West could false-card by playing 7 on the second round of the suit, trying to suggest a 4-card holding. South would then do very well to play on hearts, reasoning that if West had only 4 clubs, they would probably opt for leading partner’s 5+ card suit.

Importance of West's duck

Notice the importance of West ducking the second round of clubs. If they win the second round and play a third round, South can play on spades reasoning that either clubs break 4-4 or that East would not have another club to lead when in with the A.

It’s all about counting your tricks whether you are a defender or a declarer. With no outside entry, West had to hope East had a third club and therefore ducked the second round. After the initial spade lead, it was important South did not immediately play off their diamond winners. Do not squeeze yourself!

      

   Different leads : same worry!

    

       

      

Different problems on different leads though this time the answer should have been the same 9, maybe 10 tricks.

Richard Solomon

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