Declarer’s thought processes
might go something like this:
-
East’s 4♠ suggests six Spades and yet he did not preempt, so perhaps he
has some values, which would have to be in Spades and Hearts.
-
West’s 3♠ was preemptive, showing a weak hand and typically four Spades.
3♠ was also bid when vulnerable, so perhaps West was fortified by shortness
somewhere, probably in Hearts.
Having concluded that, how will
Declarer play the trump suit, hopefully for one loser, allowing her to make 11
tricks?
►
Declarer will reason that if
trumps are 2-2 then how she plays the suit does not matter too much. But, if
they are 3-1, and if East has the length (as seems likely), then Declarer might
as well lead the ♥J
from Dummy on the first round of the suit. One of two good things might happen:
-
West might have the singleton Ten, holding the trump losers to one.
-
East might hold ♥KT6
or ♥QT6,
and make the (big) mistake of covering the Jack. Mirth and merriment will be
politely suppressed when this crashes West’s singleton honor, handing Declarer
an impossible contract.
►
|
|
♠ Q3
♥
J973
♦
K
♣ AKQJT7 |
|
|
♠ J872
♥
Q
♦
JT974
♣ 953 |
North
West East
Declarer |
♠ AKT964
♥
KT6
♦
63
♣ 84 |
|
|
♠ 5
♥
A8542
♦
AQ852
♣ 62 |
|
The moral of the story is that,
when we get to a crummy contract, it pays to give the opponents the chance to
find a crummy defense.
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