August 2006 - 43

Now, on to what you should know
about the following auction:
West
North
East
South
1
Pass
1NT
?
Say you hold:
A Q Q 6 3 2 8 3 K Q 8 7 5.
You have an opening hand, so
bidding something is tempting.
Doubling is wrong because of the
doubleton spade. Even though the
two spades you have are nice, they
won't be enough support for a spade
contract. What about bidding 2?
The facts: East bid 1NT. He denied
having four spades. He denied having
four hearts. He may or may not have
diamonds. How many clubs does that
leave him?
Let me tell you a secret: when
someone responds with 1NT, he does
not have a biddable suit, and that
implies that he has his length in the
lower ranking suit (or suits). When
someone responds with 1NT after a
1 opener, he usually has four or
five clubs. If you bid 2 with this
hand, you are probably walking into
East's best suit.
How about this hand?
A J 3 10 9 8 3 4 3 A Q J 6
Double. If you would have doubled
1 by RHO, you should almost
always double when their side bids
1 and responds with 1NT.
❒
August 2006



Bridge Player's Survival Kit

trump! By converting your
takeout double to penalty, partner
has chosen this suit as trumps, so
help him draw them.
* Did the opponents sacriﬁce
against your game? Double them
and lead a trump. They usually
have little high-card strength and
hope to score tricks by ruffing.
When not to lead trumps
* Think twice before leading a
singleton trump. If partner has
length in the trump suit (and why
not, since you're short in it), you
might finesse partner's holding,
helping the declarer.
* When you are long in the trump
suit (four or more) you probably
shouldn't lead a trump. Lead your

side's long suit instead. It will be
hard for the declarer to ruff your
long suit and draw all of your
trumps!
* If the dummy has a long and
strong side suit, you should probably adopt an "active" defense
and try to cash any tricks your
side might have. If the declarer
gets help drawing trumps first,
then he'll next run dummy's suit,
discarding losers from his hand. ❒
Leslie Shafer is the editor of
Bridge Students 'R Us, a newsletter
for intermediate and newcomer
players (six issues per year for
$25). Write to 331 Market Street
East, #154, Gaithersburg MD
20878.

My Bridge Angel
By Pearl Balmuth

I have been playing bridge, on and
off, for 40 years, but don't ask me
why. I started playing bridge after I
got married to my first husband, a
bridge whiz who remembered every
card in his opponents' hand. He
was short on patience and long on
criticism. Needless say I was uncomfortable playing with him and 40
years later I still considered myself
a beginner, maybe an advanced
beginner, but a beginner nonetheless.
Over the years I took many bridge
courses, but the other students were
as bad as my first husband. If I took
too long deciding what card to play,
invariably someone would cast her
eyes up to the heavens. If they were
so smart, what were they doing in a
bridge course?
So you might ask why I am still
playing bridge? Well, the way I look
at it, if other people can catch on,
why not me?
Besides, it's fun telling people I'm
a bridge player, just to see their reaction. One mahjong player who I told
said, "Well, e-x-c-u-s-e me." Now
isn't that splendid? I felt very important to have elicited such a response.
Over the years my bridge partner

has been my friend of longest
standing, always giving me pep
talks. "I don't know why you feel
so insecure, you play a fine game,"
she would admonish me. But it was
no use. When I sat down to play,
my hands would shake and my heart
would beat fast.
Five years ago I moved to Florida
and found an "angel" bridge player.
My angel played bridge differently.
She talked and laughed during the
game. Something seemed amiss.
There was no looking up to the
heavens, there was laughter, not
tension, and there were smiles
instead of dirty looks. My heartbeat became regular and my hands
stopped shaking.
And then the fog lifted from
my brain, and I got it. What I had
always known burst forth. I did
know how to play bridge. You may
think it sounds farfetched. Perhaps
it does, but it's true. My angel was
responsible, but nowadays, when I
play bridge with beginners I have to
watch myself. If I'm not careful, my
eyes tend to move upward.
❒
The author lives and plays bridge
in Delray Beach FL.
43

PLAY BRIDGE

hand, and only a few poor ones.
The gains far outweigh the losses,
so doubling is recommended. Note
that your partner may bid a red
suit. Even if he bids spades, he
may have five of them. The opponents may buy the contract, and
you will not have to worry about
your spades. Only if he has four
lousy spades and only if he plays in
2 will you be in a poor contract.
The odds are that this will not be
the case.
3. Bid 2. Do not double. Doubling
with only two cards in one of the
majors is a really bad idea. Bid
2 now. Perhaps the bidding will
permit you to show your spades
later. If you double and your
partner bids hearts, you will hate
it. If you bid 2 and your partner
bids 2, you will be happy since
you did not promise heart support.
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2006
