An interesting end position

S
South
63
KQ8
AK73
KQ85

 After two passes, East makes a nuisance of herself, opening a preemptive 3 . You consider passing, hoping that pd can find a TO dbl, but eventually decide to bid an aggressive 3NT.

W
West
N
North
E
East
S
South
Pass
Pass
3
3NT
All Pass
 
 
 

 West leads  3, and east plays the nine. You have 2  , 3 ,1 and 1  at minimum, with a number of chances.

N
North
AK105
9762
Q865
4
3
S
South
63
KQ8
AK73
KQ85

 

You win the queen, and decide to play a heart honour from hand rather than crossing to dummy. You decide that your LHO is more likely to hold the  A, and if RHO has Jx or Tx, that wd help you set up the  9 in dummy.

Surprisingly, RHO wins the Ace, and returns a  . That puts paid to your plans of setting up  9 as it seems very likely that LHO started with JTxx.

You next try a  to Ten, not without hope as RHO has already shown up with  A and  AJ.

No luck, RHO produces the Jack and shoots back a spade. You win the king and cash the ace, discarding heart from hand while both opponents follow suit.

You now have 2  , 1 and 1 . If diamonds are good for four tricks, you can endplay RHO into giving you the  K if she started life with 2326 or 2317. 

Since you need to cash at most two diamonds for endplay to work.. you cash Ace and King, RHO showing out.. Oh well.. another game bites the dust.. or does it?

Here’s the position

 
8
None
West
N
North
5
97
Q8
 
W
West
Q
J10
J9
3
E
East
AJ1076
 
S
South
73
K85
 

 When you play the  5 to RHO, LHO can discard a heart, but what should he discard on the next club – whether his partner cashes the ace or plays a club to your King?

He’s squeezed in three suits – without the count. And you have your 9th trick afterall.

Does the defence have an answer? They don’t, but they DID. Until the previous trick. Yes, that precious  2 that your RHO discarded on the  K. If she holds onto that, she can underplay your  5 with  2. You are bound to get a   trick in this position, take it now. But now.. no squeeze. Partner has ample room to guard all three suits.

The full hand

 
8
None
West
N
North
AK105
9762
Q865
4
 
W
West
Q942
J1043
J942
3
3
E
East
J87
A5
10
AJ109762
 
S
South
63
KQ8
AK73
KQ85
 

 

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4 thoughts on “An interesting end position

  • June 10, 2017 at 5:43 PM
    Permalink

    But there was an answer to East’s retention of the Club 2 also! If declarer had discarded a diamond and held on to his precious little heart, he could still prevail. In this ending, when West discards a Heart, dummy can let go the Spade. Now, if East ducks, he sets up a Heart winner for the ninth trick. If East wins and cashes CA, West is squeezed in Hearts and Diamonds, like before. If East does not cash the CA, on the Club K, West is squeezed out of his game-setting S trick, and the Heart can now be safely ducked.

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