May 2005 - 54

ADVANCED PLAYERS

The
Real Deal

Larry Cohen
www.larryco.com

This Real Deal was played in
the 2005 Cape Fear Regional in
Wilmington NC. Take the East cards
and play along.
Early in a knockout match, you
hold at favorable vulnerability:
8 2 K J 7 6 5 3 A Q 9 5 4.
The dealer on your left opens a 15
to 17 1NT, your partner passes and
RHO bids 2, Stayman.
Would you double? I would (and
did)! There is some risk - they
might redouble and make it - but I
think it is a risk worth taking. You'd
like a club lead, especially if the alternative is a spade or a diamond. I
take any chance I get to help partner
on lead.
LHO answers with 2 and RHO
jumps to 3NT. You expect this to
end the auction but LHO corrects to
4. What's going on?
Most pairs with 4-4 in the majors
bid hearts first when responding
to Stayman. It seems this pair bids
spades first.
West
North East
South
Partner
You
1NT
Pass
2
Dbl
2
Pass
3NT
Pass
4
All Pass
Partner leads the 2 playing
third- and fifth-best leads, so you
know he has an odd number of
clubs. This is what you see:
54

K74
7643
A Q 9 2
87
82
KJ
7653
A Q 9 5 4
This is one of those special
occasions where you know the
distribution of all four hands at trick
one. Declarer is 4-4 in the majors,
and must also have three clubs since
partner's 2 shows an odd number.
Therefore, declarer is exactly
4=4=2=3 and partner has what is
left, namely 4=3=3=3.
You win the A and declarer
follows low. What next?
Aside from knowing everyone's
shape, you also know a lot about the
high-card points. Between your hand
and dummy you see 19. Declarer
has 15 to 17. That leaves partner
4 to 6. If partner has the K, you
aren't beating this since he won't
have much else. Better is to hope
partner has something useful like
the Q and some other trick, so
your best chance is to return a club
since nothing else can help.
Declarer thinks this over (he probably started with K-J-x) and puts
up the king. He crosses to dummy
with a diamond to the queen and
plays a heart. Do you play the king
or the jack?
Sometimes, the fancy play of
the king can gain, but not here.
Furthermore, there is a great reason
to make the normal play of the jack.
Declarer plays the queen, and part-

ner wins the A - you've located
partner's values.
Partner plays another club and
declarer ruffs in dummy, playing
the jack from his hand. Then comes
another trump to your king. Now
what?
You should play another club. If
partner has the 10 you already
have beaten this, but even if he has
the 9, he will score it en passant.
It can't hurt to give this ruff-sluff
- if declarer had a spade loser to
worry about, he would have finessed
the J at trick two. The full deal:
K74
7643
A Q 9 2
87
 10 9 6 5
82
N
A 9 5
KJ
W E
 J 10 4
7653
S
 10 3 2
A Q 9 5 4
A Q J 3
 Q 10 8 2
K8
KJ6
On the fourth round of clubs,
partner's 9 is established as the
setting trick. Without your lead-directing double and repeated club
plays, the opponents would have
made their game. The other table
played in 3NT making with an overtrick. The winning defense creates a
12-IMP pick-up.

Try a demo of Larry's new
software My Favorite 52 at
www.larryco.com. Join Larry at
sea - August: Barcelona-Venice-
Athens; November and January;
the Caribbean.
Bridge Bulletin
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2005
