IMPROVE YOUR PLAY
with Larry Matheny

Whenever you make a bid, you should have a goal.  It could be to buy the contract, impede the opponents, suggest a sacrifice, or request a lead.  But, you don't want to make a bid that can do nothing but help your opponents.  This is such hand and declarer was listening.

Scoring: Matchpoints (Pairs)
Hand #33
Dlr   W
Vul E/W
S A973
H AK105
D QJ54
C 7
S 2
H Q9742
D K7
C QJ962
    
S 108
H 86
D 98632
C A1083

S KQJ654
H J3
D A10
C K54
West North
 East
 South
Pass
 1D Pass
 1S
   1NT*
     3S    Pass
     4S
   Pass
     Pass
    Pass
                                                                      *weak with other two suits
                               
BIDDING:  After passing originally, West bid 1NT to show a heart-club, two-suited hand.  North's fourteen high card points and singleton made his hand worth a jump and South carried on to game.

PLAY:  West led the queen of clubs won by East.  A diamond was led at trick two and declarer stopped to analyze the hand.  The contract was not in danger as declarer had only two losers.  However, declarer remembered the bidding and after drawing trumps in two rounds, led the jack of hearts toward dummy.  West ducked but so did declarer.  The diamond loser went on the good heart and twelve tricks was a good score.

How would have declarer played if West had not shown hearts and clubs?  It's still possible he would have finessed hearts but he would only have ten tricks if it failed*.  Obviously we will never know but one thing is for sure, West did nothing but give away useful information to his opponent.  Since E-W were vulnerable it was highly unlikely E-W would buy the contract, so what was West's goal?

*After winning the diamond ace at trick two, declarer could ruff a club followed by all of his black suit winners.  In the three card ending, either opponent holding the queen of hearts and the king of diamonds would be squeezed.  This is an alternate line to the heart finesse.

Copyright ©2009 Larry Matheny.