November 2024 - 36

RULING THE Game
Q
I was defending 4h with a
boring hand. Declarer had
already drawn my only trump.
It did not appear that I was going to
be contributing much to the defense.
I suspect everyone knew this because
the opponents had reached game
even after partner had opened the
bidding 1s.
At trick four, declarer led the dK
from their hand. Dummy pulled the
singleton 4 to the played position
before partner played. I mechanically
followed low, and then the declarer
called the director because I had
played out of turn.
The director told declarer that they
had several options. If they thought
my partner was going to follow suit,
they could ask for the highest or
lowest diamond to be played. If they
thought my partner was going to
show out, they could require them to
play a particular suit, or not to play a
particular suit.
Declarer knew my partner was
going to follow, because diamonds
had not been played before, so they
forced my partner to play his lowest
diamond. We never got a trick with
partner's ace, because declarer was
able to ruff their remaining diamond
losers in the dummy.
I don't understand this ruling. Why
were we punished so harshly for an
honest mistake?
A
Props to your director for
finding Law 57A in the book.
This Law exists to take away
any gain the defenders might produce
when the defender out of rotation
plays before the one in rotation. It
also applies when a defender leads to
the following trick before their partner
has played to the current trick.
However, your director failed to
read all of Law 57. In 57C2, the director
is reminded that the provision of
57A does not apply when dummy has
played prematurely of their own volition.
Law 57C1 covers the case where
36 | Bridge Bulletin | November 2024
declarer themselves has prematurely
played from both hands. In this case
as well, the defenders are not subject
to penalty for the wrong one having
played first.
It would be rather unfair for the
declaring side being able to do something
which is not proper procedure,
and then be able to extract a benefit
after having induced a defender to
play before their partner.
Q
Declarer put his hand face
down on the table after trick
two. He had just discovered
the 4-0 trump break and was probably
working on Plan B. When he
picked his cards back up, the cQ fell
on the table face up. My partner said
declarer had to play it because when
partner dropped a card on the table
last week, the director required him
to play it. We ended up defeating
their contract after this, which was a
good board, but no one would have
led the cQ at trick three. I feel a bit
guilty about this, but I accept that
mistakes are part of the game. What
is the right ruling?
A
Not that. We'll start with a
quick reminder about Laws
9B1a (the director should be
summoned at once when attention
is drawn to an irregularity) and 10A
(the director alone has the right to
determine rectifications when applicable).
Organized duplicate bridge is
not the Wild West, and your partner
is not the director. Sure, your opponent
was also within their rights to
call the director, but sometimes people
are intimidated by someone who
acts as if they know the rules. Or they
don't want to cause a scene.
The correct ruling is in Law 48A.
Declarer is not subject to restriction
for exposing a card (although Law
45C2 defines when a card is considered
played), and no card of declarer's
or dummy's hand ever becomes
a penalty card. Declarer is not
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required to play any card dropped
accidentally.
Perhaps your partner was thinking
about Law 49, which says that when
a defender's card is held in a position
in which their partner could possibly
see its face, that card becomes a
penalty card. Penalty cards and the
provisions that go with them exist
because there is potential for help to
the defenders if they could see each
other's cards.
Do not make your own rulings. Do
not let your partner make rulings. Call
the director. In this case, Law 11 says
that the director may take away any
gain your side produced by not calling
the director before continuing to
play. It also says that your opponent's
reward for failing to call the director
to protect their own rights is having to
keep the lousy score they got. 2
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November 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November 2024
