November 2007 - 43

November 2007

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Bridge Player's Survival Kit
Dummy
A K 7

Declarer
Q J 10 8
When you have solid honors but the
suit is lopsided (longer in one hand
than the other) you must be careful to
plan your transportation in advance.
Play the A, then the K. Now the
7 is your transportation to the long
side, where your queen and jack are
waiting patiently to be cashed.
The defenders also can use this
technique, but when they do it, it's
called unblocking. The contract is
3NT. Partner leads the Q.
Dummy
Q76
KQ52
632
632

Partner is leading the top of a
sequence (Q-J-10-x or longer). If
you play low (the 7), the lead will
be trapped in your hand when partner continues the suit. Partner has
the long side and needs to be in the
lead when your hand (the short side)
runs out of clubs.
So, how should you play?
Overtake partner's opening lead
with your king, then cash the ace
and shoot the 7 back to partner's
jack and 10.
It's not an optical illusion. It
just looks like one. (Ba-da-bum!)
Did you notice that both of these
fine defensive plays were possible
because you trusted partner to be
following the accepted protocols
for opening leads? Can your partner
trust your leads? Good defense is
usually a team effort, so don't let
your team down.
r

You
AK7

43

PLAY BRIDGE

be, but that is not true. Think about
the cost of passing 1. Their side will
continue bidding and they may get to a
nice partscore. If they make it and you
could have made some spades, you will
suffer a loss.
Yes, you can pass now and then bid
spades later, perhaps at the two level,
but isn't it better to bid 1 now? If you
do, you do not have to guess whether to
bid 2 later.
2. Bid 2. Do not forget to make a
stronger bid when you have extra values.
This hand has 7 high-card points, but also
a fifth spade and a singleton heart. You
also have high cards in suits your partner
has shown with his double. I estimate
this hand is closer to 10 or 11 points in
support of spades.
In comparison, this hand is worth much
less:
7 6 5 2 Q 6 3 J 7 3 A 7 3
You have 7 HCP, but some of your
values are in the opponents' suits and
may be wasted. Further, you have only
four spades and you have no distribution
at all. I would not bid even 1 with this
hand.
3. If your partner opened with 1 or
1, you would bid 1NT. When your
partner doubles for takeout, he is not
usually interested in notrump. He is
interested in finding a fit. You know there
is no obvious fit. With soft values, you
should pass.
4. Bid 2. Compare this hand with the
previous hand. This hand has a five-card
suit to bid. The previous hand did not
have even a four-card suit to bid. This
hand has some distribution. The previous
hand did not. Bidding 2 is clear. Do not
allow your side to be outbid when you
expect you have a fit.
5. Double. I would like to write pages
about this, but I must content myself
with referring you to my book on takeout
doubles. Make the following one of your
bidding principles: When your partner
makes a takeout double and RHO bids a
suit at the one level and you have nine or
more points with four cards in their suit,
a double is for penalty. It is not likely
that they will play in hearts, but your
double serves to alert partner to the fact
that you have values. He may be able to
do something. You will have to read the
book on why a double shows four cards
and not five or six.
r
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November 2007
