Dubious Logic

A Useful Holding

Obviously it is very old hat to worry about stops in unbid suits when you call no-trumps these days – you don't want to get known as someone afraid of their own shadow. If the shape and the tricks are there, worry about the opponent's main suit by all means but for the others? Something will turn up. Two hands from Suffolk's Tollemache campaign described last week, one where we were beneficiaries, the other where we suffered. The first comes with an auction typical of the competition; everyone presses all the time.

For opening lead South produced the excellent shot of the diamond queen. I won the ace and North, recognising this as an unusual lead, realised South was trying to gain an entry for a spade through the close hand. An excellent plan except, of course, poor North didn't have one. So in an effort to wake South up, he signalled with the ten – an alarm clock signal. I had to play a heart for the rest of my tricks and South won and cashed a spade exposing the situation. His main plan shot down, he now woozily continued a diamond. Two things happened; the defender's hands were separated and my humble holding of four to the eight had become a stop.

West led a top heart and East played the nine. Whatever you play for attitude – signals to encourage continuation or not – some card combinations will give you problems. Everyone was playing low to encourage and this holding was awkward - of course, high to encourage would no doubt have found East with Q32. West switched to a club hoping to put East in and four to the eight had proved sufficient again. I think the switch is wrong: it's only necessary when South has exactly Q10x and even works when East does have an entry (♦K) and just ♥9xx.

Published Saturday 10.Dec.2005