Dubious Logic

First Board

The first deal of an event is always important. Obviously you would like to win points on every board but setting the tone for the evening, the day or, as was the case at Brighton last weekend, a three-day campaign has extra value. It is good to get your eye in early; take a look from west's point of view:

It is preferable to overcall with a five-card major (rather than double) to ensure you locate the 5-3 fit if it exists. If game is remotely possible it will surely be in your major and spades of course out-rank the other suits at the same level. Partner's double raise was more on distributional than high-card values so your bidding game in competition was a little pushy but followed the dictum that if you think it might be right to bid four spades over four hearts – then it is.

North doubled and led heart ace then nine, overtaken by south. You ruff and take stock – how are you going to play for ten tricks?

You seem to be well supplied; all suits provide tricks, even two heart ruffs in hand increase those in trumps. Moreover, the defence (assuming trumps are not 4-0) seem only to have three aces. So, draw trumps and claim?

Let's say you play a spade, either low to the king, or an honour from hand. North will wait to win the queen or knave and play a club to south's ace for a top heart back. Suddenly North's ten of spades grows in stature and, whether you ruff low or high, will take a trick. The solution is to make sure there is no heart in dummy and keep the spade king there. Squander the diamond king under the ace then pitch the last heart on the queen, only then will it be safe to play trumps with an honour from hand.

That's how you play and ten tricks duly come in but the whole deal turns out to be:

With hearts 6-3 rather than 7-2 there was no defensive ruff and no danger. Still, it settles you in nicely. I heard of one other table where south opened four hearts (good bid) and west passed. Not only was he done out of his game, his first 'helpful' discard was an encouraging low diamond. Now crashing the diamond honours was not good for east-west – four hearts made.. His rationale? Well, he said he had started with two good boards and didn't like to push too much…

Published Saturday 29.Aug.2009