September 2021 - 48

Newer Players
Lessons Learned
Defensive ducking
G
rowing up, I was always
short for my age. This meant
that I perpetually lost physical
fights with my older sister, but it
also meant that I could hide pretty
easily.
One of my favorite activities was to
crouch behind a couch or chair and
then pop out to surprise my sister (and
then run away very quickly).
In bridge, one thing you can do to
really upset declarer is duck a trick and
surprise them later on - by winning it.
There are situations where ducking
is a given, such as when dummy has
a long suit and no side entries. You
should duck your winner for as many
rounds as you think declarer has cards.
Dlr: North  K Q J 10 9 5
Vul: None k 4 3
l 7 6
' 9 8 7
 A 6
k 9 5
l A 9 8 5
' Q 10 5 4 3
West North
All Pass
Partner leads the k6 to your 9 and
declarer's queen. Declarer plays the
7, partner plays the 2 and dummy the
9. Do you win it or duck?
You should hold up. Partner's 2
should be a count signal, showing an
odd number (three). That means that
declarer has two spades. Hold up this
time and win the second time.
What if I switch two cards?
East
2 Pass
South
3NT
 A Q J 10 9 5
k 4 3
l 7 6
' 9 8 7
 K 6
k 9 5
l A 9 8 5
' Q 10 5 4 3
The play starts the same (a heart
to the 9 and queen). Again, declarer
leads the 7, partner plays the 2 and
declarer plays the queen. Now do you
think we should hold up in spades? Yes!
Declarer is going to go back to their
hand and play low to the jack to finesse
again. While this play would be safe if
we had three spades, we don't always
get dealt that. If we duck smoothly,
declarer is going to be in trouble.
The full deal:
 A Q J 10 9 5
k 4 3
l 7 6
' 9 8 7
 8 4 2
k K 10 8 6 2
l 4 3 2
' A 2
 K 6
k 9 5
l A 9 8 5
' Q 10 5 4 3
 7 3
k A Q J 7
l K Q J 10
' K J 6
There are many other scenarios
where a well-timed duck can lead
declarer into trouble.
One common scenario is when
BY MICHAEL BERKOWITZ
michael@larryco.com
dummy has K-Q-10 and you hold
A-x-x behind dummy. Declarer leads
low to the king. If you win, then next
time, declarer is likely to finesse the 10.
(If declarer holds the jack, it's unlikely
that your play matters.) If you duck,
declarer might return to their hand and
lead to the queen, only to experience
the sky falling down - when partner
has the jack. You must do this in tempo
(without thinking a long time), or else
declarer will figure out what you are
doing.
Finding these ducks will improve
your game. It's possible that you'll occasionally
give up a trick, but putting
that fear into your opponents will pay
dividends.
Nominations for the
2022 ACBL Bridge
Hall of Fame Blackwood
and von Zedtwitz awards
Each year, the Bridge Hall of Fame
Committee considers candidates
for the Blackwood Award, given for
outstanding contributions to bridge
outside of expertise at the game, and
the von Zedtwitz Award, which honors
inactive players who have achieved
prominence in the game of bridge.
ACBL members in good standing
may submit candidates' names to the
Hall of Fame Committee for induction
into the ACBL Bridge Hall of Fame in
2022. To be eligible for induction, a
candidate must be at least 60 years
old and live in North America.
Please submit nominations for these
awards to the Bridge Hall of Fame
Committee at elections@acbl.org.
Nominations will be forwarded to the
chair of the committee. Nominations
must be received no later than Nov. 1.
48 | Bridge Bulletin | September 2021
September 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September 2021
