Jim Priebe - Matchpoint Defense

TITLE PAGE
MASTER POINT PRESS | TORONTO

© 2006 Jim Priebe. All rights reserved. It is illegal to reproduce any por-
tion of this material, except by special arrangement with the publisher.
Reproduction of this material without authorization, by any duplication
process whatsoever, is a violation of copyright.
Master Point Press

331 Douglas Ave.
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5M 1H2
(416) 781-0351
Website: http://www.masterpointpress.com
http://www.masteringbridge.com
http://www.ebooksbridge.com
http://www.bridgeblogging.com
Email: info@masterpointpress.com
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Priebe, Jim
Matchpoint defense / written by Jim Priebe.
ISBN 978-1-55494-133-9
1. Contract bridge--Defensive play. I. Title.
GV1282.42.P74 2006 796.41'53 C2006-902111-2
We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada

through the Book Publishing Industry Development Program (BPIDP) for
our publishing activities.
Editor Ray Lee

Cover and interior design Olena S. Sullivan/New Mediatrix
Interior format and copyediting Suzanne Hocking
Printed in Canada by Webcom Ltd.
1234567 10 09 08 07 06
Countless thanks to my wife, Joan,
for her help in preparing this
manuscript.
“As you learn more and more insight into the ways of the
game, you will realize that the hard part is applying the correct
snippet at the appropriate moment.”
Phillip Alder, writing in the Toronto Sun

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction Defensive Philosophy 9

Chapter 1 The Stake 13
Chapter 2 The Heart of Matchpoint Defense 14
Chapter 3 Opening Lead Thoughts 27
Matchpoint Tactics 27
Leading Aces 28
When Not to Lead an Ace 34
Other High-Card Leads 35
Chapter 4 Signals 42
Trump Suit Signals 42
Suit Preference on the Opening Lead 49
Smith to the Rescue 51
Chapter 5 Middle-Game Maneuvers 54
Honor-Card Leads in the Middle of the Deal 54
Chapter 6 Doubled Contracts 58
Chapter 7 Playing the Field 64
Sizing Up Declarer 64
Taking Advantage 66
Capitalizing on Greed 68
Chapter 8 When the Bidding Smells 70
Unusual Contracts 70
Chapter 9 The Defenders’ Squeeze 82
Chapter 10 Spotlight on Spot Cards 85
Chapter 11 Partnership Insights 91
When Partner Makes a Mistake 91
Chapter 12 Problems 98
Problems 1-10 Club Games — Warming Up 99
Problems 11-25 Getting Serious 119
Problems 26-30 At Sectional Tournaments 151
Problems 31- 35 Playing at Regionals 161
Problems 36-43 At the Nationals 171
Problems 44-49 Wild Ones 187
Problem 50 Almost Impossible 199
TABLE OF CONTENTS 7
“It is agreed by nearly all experts that defense is the most difficult part of
the game. If good defense is difficult at rubber bridge or IMPs, at match-
points it is nearly impossible. In addition to the other handicaps faced by
the defenders, at matchpoints they often don’t even know what their
objective is.”
Kit Woolsey in Partnership Defense
INTRODUCTION
DEFENSIVE
PHILOSOPHY
Matchpoint bridge is an intriguing blend of technical and psychological

problems. Every session of matchpoints yields a satisfying crop of intri-
cate plays and an assortment of subjective maneuvers. On average, we
defend half the deals we encounter, declare one quarter and spend anoth-
er quarter as dummy. What better opportunity could we find for improv-
ing our results than looking to our defensive skills?
Successful defense requires above all attention to detail. Brilliant
plays are there, but only on one deal in a thousand. Busting squeezes,
breaking up endplays, derailing trump coups all make the headlines.
When they occur, they provide opportunities to win points. They do not
come up often. The bulk of defensive opportunities come on bread and
butter deals, where a player watches the spots, processes all of the clues
available, considers some alternatives and makes a good play. When we
complain that we had very few cards East-West and couldn’t do anything,
we are really saying that the best defensive players won that session.
It helps to have a mental database of tactical maneuvers at the ready.
One cannot work out every defensive problem from first principles and
the ability to apply tactical insights both speeds up play and makes it
more accurate.
Two important aspects of the matchpoint game differentiate it from
other forms of bridge and are worthy of special attention.
INTRODUCTION 9
Every Trick Matters
Signals, lead methods, counting and thinking in general are common to
both forms of the game. At IMPs, the setting trick is all important. Playing
matchpoints, defenders can never relax. With few exceptions, every trick
is important, not just the setting trick. One can never assume that the
defensive problem of the moment is routine. A single deal may account
for as much as four percent of a session’s work. A lapse in concentration
may send these points to the opposition and ruin an otherwise good
effort.
The Field is Uneven

In a pairs game we change opposition every two or three deals. As we
move through the field, we find a remarkable difference in the skill levels
of our opponents. This is true even in a national championship event.
National champions, world champions, social players and all levels in
between make up the field we encounter. A game at our local club will
pit us against a blend of real experts, beginners and solid players. Declarer
play is often imperfect. Even the best declarers slip on occasion. Mistakes
and misguesses are a rich source of matchpoints for capable defenders.
In games at our regular club and in many tournaments we know our
opponents. We can judge the quality of the bidding with some accuracy
— we know the players who bid forever and the very timid bidders —
but there is still considerable guesswork involved. Even when we know
our opponents well, we can never be quite sure of their state of mind. An
expert pair who has had a couple of poor results may decide to shoot for
the remainder of a session and gamble all of the matchpoints on certain
deals. A beginner may do this unknowingly. We must constantly make
judgments on our objective: Should we defend aggressively or passively?
Are we trying to set the contract or prevent overtricks? These judgments
are based on our assessment as to whether a contract is sound and nor-
mal, a wild fling or something in between.
The deals I present in this book are all from actual games. The stan-
dard of declarer play and the bidding is what you might find in any actu-
al duplicate game: a mix of world champions, national champions and
enthusiasts of varying ability.
10 MATCHPOINT DEFENSE
1/2 title
CHAPTER 1
THE STAKE
In a twenty-six board duplicate game, each deal counts for close to 4% of

a session’s work.The following table summarizes the findings from data I
compiled from a National Life Master Pairs, as well as several years’ worth
of deals from world-wide pairs contests. The conclusions were the same,
albeit with large variance.
CONTRACT DEFENSIVE RESULT IMPACT ON

SESSION SCORE
Partscore One overtrick 1 percent

Set 2 percent
Game One overtrick 1 percent
Set 2 percent
Slam One overtrick 1 percent
Set 4 percent
Doubled One overtrick Negligible
Set 3-4 percent
What this table tells you is that every overtrick you deny to your oppo-
nent will improve your score by one percent in a session. Secondly, if you
set a contract, you get a rich reward, especially if the contract is a slam or
a doubled contract. Finally, the chart reinforces a point that we all know:
if we double them, we had better set them.
Throughout the book, where actual matchpoint records were avail-
able, I have shown the score that different results would have achieved.
THE STAKE 13
CHAPTER 2
THE HEART OF
MATCHPOINT DEFENSE
Good matchpoint defenders routinely ask two questions as soon as

dummy hits the table.
Is this a normal contract?
Is there hope of setting it or are we playing to prevent overtricks?
Let’s start with an abnormal contract. You are East.
♠ 82
♥ 954
♦ AJ972
♣ Q42
♠ 765
N ♥ K 10 8 6 2
W E ♦ 10 8 4
S ♣ A6
WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

1NT
pass 2NT pass 3NT
all pass
West leads the ten of spades and declarer’s jack wins the first trick. As
soon as dummy is spread, it is clear that few North-South pairs in the field
will reach this contract. Not only that, but it appears that the opening
lead has cost a trick. You are headed for zero matchpoints if this contract
makes. Overtricks are of no consequence.
Declarer wins with the king of diamonds and a second diamond picks
up West’s queen at Trick 3. Declarer calls for a low club from the table.
Are you ready?
This is not the time to duck. Declarer needs only one club trick to
score up his game, and if you duck, you can say farewell to all of the
matchpoints on this deal. You can assume declarer has five diamond
tricks and three spade tricks. One club trick will let him make his game.
Your best hope is to rise with the ace of clubs and shift to a heart, hoping
that partner has the right holding for you.
This was the full deal:
♠ 82
♥ 954
♦ AJ972
♣ Q42
♠ Q 10 9 4 3 ♠ 765
♥ AJ7 N ♥ K 10 8 6 2
♦ Q5 W E ♦ 10 8 4
♣ 875 S ♣ A6
♠ AKJ
♥ Q3
♦ K63
♣ K J 10 9 3
The next example illustrates the opposite extreme. Here, you are defend-
ing a completely normal 3NT contract.
♠ J75
♥ Q73
♦ K7
♣ A K J 10 9
♠ Q9632
♥ A 10 N
♦ 864 W E
♣ Q64 S
THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 15

1NT
pass 3NT all pass
You lead your fourth best spade to partner’s ten and declarer’s ace.
Declarer plays ace, king and another club and you are on lead with the
queen. Partner has followed once and then pitched two small hearts. The
North hand tells you that opponents are close to a slam. Declarer has
made the normal play in clubs and will have little trouble making nine
tricks. The defensive issue on this deal is one of overtricks.
From declarer’s failure to play dummy’s spade jack at Trick 1 you can
tell that the declarer has a doubleton ace-king of spades and that your
right play is to continue spades. Now declarer cannot afford to knock out
your ace of hearts — he will go down if he does. The best he can do is
to guess the location of the diamond queen for nine tricks (in fact, his lack
of entries will force him to get this right). Had you shifted to a diamond
or a heart instead, declarer would have run off with eleven tricks and all
of the matchpoints.
This was the deal:
♠ J75
♥ Q73
♦ K7
♣ A K J 10 9
♠ Q9632 ♠ 10 8 4
♥ A 10 N ♥ 98642
♦ 864 W E ♦ Q532
♣ Q64 S ♣ 2
♠ AK
♥ KJ5
♦ A J 10 9
♣ 8753
Elementary, My Dear
♠ 864
♥ K42
♦ A K J 10
♣ J 10 8
♠ Q J 10 9
♥ J 10 9 7 N
♦ 75 W E
♣ KQ7 S

1NT1
pass 3NT all pass
1. 15-17 HCP.
As West, you lead the queen of spades. Declarer wins with the ace in hand
and leads a diamond to dummy’s ace. East follows with deuces to the first
two tricks. Declarer leads dummy’s jack of clubs to partner’s three and
your queen. What do you play next?
The layout is surely something like this:
♠ 864
♥ K42
♦ A K J 10
♣ J 10 8
♠ Q J 10 9 ♠ 7532
♥ J 10 9 7 N ♥ Q53
♦ 75 W E ♦ 9632
♣ KQ7 S ♣ 53
♠ AK
♥ A86
♦ Q84
♣ A9642

You consider a shift to the jack of hearts. You seem to have the lux-
ury of two club entries and can see that two spade tricks will not be
enough to set the contract. Declarer will go down if partner has three or
more hearts to the ace-queen. However, if partner has the ace-queen of
hearts, then declarer opened 1NT with at most 13 HCP — not likely. How
about four hearts headed by the ace? That will do it. Then declarer has
15 HCP — definitely possible.
Before you put the jack of hearts on the table, you should realize that
all bets are covered by continuing spades. This will net two spade tricks
and two club tricks. Then, after cashing your tricks, you can play the ♥J.
This will set the hand whenever possible and otherwise produce the
maximum result for the defense.
On the actual hand, a heart return at Trick 4 allows declarer to make
eleven tricks. A spade continuation holds declarer to nine and gives East-
West a good matchpoint score.
What’s at Stake? First or Second Place?
This deal illustrates the high stakes involved in careful defensive play in
matchpoint games. Nothing fancy was needed to win the event in which
this hand was played — just solid attention to details. Keep in mind that
every hand in a twenty-six board matchpoint game accounts for four per-
cent of your overall session score. Every overtrick is sure to be worth one
or two percentage points.
♠ AQ5
♥ AQ5
♦ 87
♣ A J 10 9 2
♠ K83
N ♥ K973
W E ♦ A642
S ♣ 75
1♣ pass 1NT
pass 2NT pass 3NT
all pass
North-South are playing a forcing club and their auction reveals no inter-
est in a major-suit contract. West leads the six of spades, ducked in
dummy and won with East’s king. Declarer wins the diamond return with
the king and then plays the king of clubs, followed by the three of clubs,
picking off West’s queen. Declarer now leads dummy’s last diamond.
How should East plan the defense?
This was the actual deal:
♠ AQ5
♥ AQ5
♦ 87
♣ A J 10 9 2
♠ 10 6 4 2 ♠ K83
♥ 10 6 4 2 N ♥ K973
♦ J53 W E ♦ A642
♣ Q4 S ♣ 75
♠ J97
♥ J8
♦ K Q 10 9
♣ K863
East must duck the diamond. Declarer may well go wrong and put in the
ten. West can then win with the jack and lead a heart to hold declarer to
nine tricks. If South guesses diamonds correctly and wins with the
queen, he still must lose the ace of diamonds and a heart trick.
Rising with the ace of diamonds and continuing a diamond leads to
–460. Ducking delivers –430 when declarer guesses diamonds correctly
and –400 when declarer misguesses. The scores in this game were as fol-
lows:
–400 = 10 matchpoints
–430 = 6.5 matchpoints

In the actual deal, East won with the diamond ace and continued with
a diamond, allowing declarer to score 460. East-West ended with a total
of 63.98%, good for second place. The North-South pair (winners of the
event) scored 64.02%! The hand was played in a large, multiple section,
one-winner duplicate game. As it happened, the first and second place
teams clashed on this round and the defense on this deal determined the
overall winner.
Cooperation Essential
♠ Q5
♥ J3
♦ K 10 9 2
♣ K6532
♠ J 10 9 6
♥ 9754 N
♦ Q85 W E
♣ 10 8 S
The bidding has gone:

1NT
pass 3NT all pass
You lead the jack of spades to dummy’s queen, East’s king and declarer’s
ace. A diamond to the ten holds and declarer cashes four rounds of
hearts, ending in his hand. East pitches the nine of clubs on the last heart.
Declarer plays another diamond, won with East’s ace. After East leads the
spade three, declarer plays the eight and you win with the nine. You cash
the ten of spades and declarer pitches a diamond. What now?
This was the whole deal:
♠ Q5
♥ J3
♦ K 10 9 2
♣ K6532
♠ J 10 9 6 ♠ K7432
♥ 9754 N ♥ 10 6 2
♦ Q85 W E ♦ A6
♣ 10 8 S ♣ AQ9
♠ A8
♥ AKQ8
♦ J743
♣ J74
Both East and West can see that they can beat the contract by continuing
spades, but is there a better line? A count of declarer’s points (nine in
hearts, four in spades, one in diamonds) makes it certain that East holds
the ace of clubs. Instead of playing the fourth spade,West can play a club
now, which will never lose. If East has the ♣A-Q, as in the actual hand,
East will win two clubs, and then cash the spades for down three.
The spade spots here are interesting. If West continues a fourth
spade, East can cooperate by playing his last low spade and waiting for
partner to lead a (forced) club. Had West’s holding been J-10-9-8, the
defense would have been forced to play a club because the spades are
blocked. On the actual holding of J-10-9-6, if we interchange dummy’s ♣K
and East’s ♣A, it would be necessary for East to use the ♠7 to overtake
partner’s ♠6 to ensure a one trick set.
The scores were:
+150 = 9 matchpoints
+100 = 5.5 matchpoints

Set or Hold?
This is a question defenders must routinely ask themselves when dummy

comes down. The answer may become clear early or late in the play, and
when it does, defenders need to act quickly.
♠ QJ72
♥ KJ
♦ 64
♣ A K J 10 8
♠ A6
♥ Q92 N
♦ J 10 7 2 W E
♣ Q962 S

pass
pass 1♣ pass 1♥
pass 1♠ pass 2NT
pass 3NT all pass
West leads the ♦2 to the king and the ace. Declarer plays a club to the
jack as East plays the seven. Declarer continues with the king of hearts
(East showing an odd number) and then the jack of hearts. West cannot
afford to duck. He wins and sees all of the matchpoints on the line.
Declarer’s hand is known at this point. His 2NT bid was invitational, and
he is marked with the ace- queen of diamonds and the ace of hearts. East
is marked with the king of spades, otherwise South would have opened
the bidding. The only chance for the defense to take three tricks on this
deal is for West to play ace and another spade. If he continues with a dia-
mond, declarer wins with the ace, cashes three hearts, repeats the club
finesse and walks off with eleven tricks and a top board.
This was the whole deal:
♠ QJ72
♥ KJ
♦ 64
♣ A K J 10 8
♠ A6 ♠ K 953
♥ Q92 N ♥ 8 64
♦ J 10 7 2 W E ♦ K 985
♣ Q962 S ♣ 7 4
♠ 10 8 4
♥ A 10 7 5 3
♦ AQ3
♣ 53
You Generate Some Excitement
N-S vul.
♠ Q 10 2
♥ J 10 8 6 2
♦ A84
♣ 62
♠ A863
♥ 4 N
♦ Q J 10 W E
♣ A Q J 10 5 S

1♣1
1♠ dbl2 3♠3 3NT
all pass
1. 16+ HCP.
2. 6+ HCP.
3. Preemptive.

You are sitting West and the vulnerability seems right to conduct an ‘oper-
ation’ over your opponents’ forcing club. Partner is able to cooperate and
your barrage robs North-South of the bidding room they needed to
explore the best contract. You lead the ace of clubs and continue with
the queen and the jack. Declarer wins the third round and plays hearts.
You quickly see that your opponents have an eleven-card fit in hearts and
that most other pairs will play the contract in four hearts. If declarer’s
hand pattern is 2-6-2-3, with the kings of diamonds and spades, other
tables will coast to an easy 620. Your job is to avoid a deadly –630 score.
All the matchpoints are on the line here. Four percent of the session’s
score will go to the winner of this one deal.
On the run of the heart suit, East can signal a holding of four spades
and five diamonds and you can visualize the whole deal with some cer-
tainty. You discard three small spades and one club without a problem.
When South plays the last heart, you must discard a diamond, relying on
partner to have started with five diamonds to the nine. You save a club
along with the ace of spades and when South leads a spade, you take two
tricks, holding declarer to his contract. This was the actual layout:
♠ Q 10 2
♥ J 10 8 6 2
♦ A84
♣ 62
♠ A863 ♠ J975
♥ 4 N ♥ Q
♦ Q J 10 W E ♦ 97653
♣ A Q J 10 5 S ♣ 973
♠ K4
♥ AK9753
♦ K2
♣ K84
Correct discarding on this deal ensured all of the matchpoints and four
percent on your score. We all know that four percent in a session can
make the difference between scoring in the fifties versus the sixties,
which in turn can mean fourth or first place.
Staying Alert
E-W vul.
♠ K3
♥ K97
♦ 10 8 6
♣ AQ975
♠ A 10 9 2 ♠ Q864
♥ J4 N ♥ 86
♦ Q43 W E ♦ AKJ2
♣ J 10 4 3 S ♣ K86
♠ J75
♥ A Q 10 5 3 2
♦ 975
♣ 2

1♣ pass 1♥
pass 2♥ dbl 3♥
all pass
West leads the ♣J. Declarer plays the ace, ruffs a club, plays the ace-king
of trumps and ruffs another club. She travels to dummy’s nine of hearts
and cashes the two good clubs, pitching diamonds. Declarer has guessed
well here by avoiding the club finesse and playing to drop the king
instead of smothering the ten. When she finishes running good clubs, she
will come off dummy with a low spade.
East and West must share two jobs if they are to salvage some match-
points. East must be prepared to rise with the queen of spades when he
gets the chance, and both players must keep track of the trump situation.
Declarer has played five trumps at this point and has one left. She must
not be allowed to make a spade trick. West must keep three diamonds
and two spades. After winning with the queen of spades, East plays two
diamonds, forcing declarer to use her last trump. When South leads a low
spade at Trick 12, West can claim the last two tricks. If he mistakenly

keeps three spades, West will have to concede the last trick to declarer’s
jack and –170 will get very few matchpoints.
Simple deals like this generate plenty of matchpoints for alert defend-
ers. All they need to do is think clearly and keep track of declarer’s hand.
CHAPTER 3
OPENING LEAD
THOUGHTS
MATCHPOINT TACTICS
Is there any real difference between lead tactics at matchpoints and IMPs?
One big difference lies in the frequency of passive leads. Passive leads are
much more common, more desirable, and more successful at matchpoints
than at IMPs.
Say that you are West, on lead with a hand such as this:
♠K953 ♥KJ82 ♦85 ♣853

1NT
all pass
South opens a weak notrump and all pass. You do well to lead a passive
minor-suit card. On a typical layout such as the deal below, a lead of either
major suit costs a trick.
♠ 86
♥ 10 9 6 5
♦ AQ7
♣ 7642
♠ K 953 ♠ J 10 2
♥ K J82 N ♥ Q4
♦ 8 5 W E ♦ J 10 9 2
♣ 8 53 S ♣ A K Q 10
♠ AQ74
♥ A73
♦ K643
♣ J9
OPENING LEAD THOUGHTS 27

This deal is an extreme example of a beneficial passive lead. One can eas-
ily construct deals where a heart or a spade lead would work. Here, how-
ever,West’s weakness and North’s silence indicate that East has significant
values, possibly close to an opening bid. When either East or West wins
the lead, the best continuation will be obvious.
This theme carries through to higher level contracts as well. On a
hand like this:
♠98742 ♥43 ♦75 ♣ K 10 3 2
I prefer a heart or a diamond lead against an auction of 1NT-3NT. A red-

suit lead has some chance of hitting partner’s suit and a minimal (but not
zero) chance of picking up partner’s holding.
LEADING ACES
We have been taught or we have learned from our own experience that
when defending suit contracts we will not get rich by leading a suit head-
ed by an ace (without the king). Most of the time we should avoid these
suits. Nonetheless, players do well to explore the exceptions. Lead a suit
headed by an ace when:
1) The opponents have had an exploratory auction and avoided

either a slam or 3NT.
2) We are defending a slam contract where declarer seems to have

plenty of tricks and stopping an overtrick will yield a good score.
3) We are defending a slam contract where controls are not fully

explored during the auction. In this case, the lead of an ace will
often stop an overtrick and occasionally set a contract.
4) Partner has made a one-level overcall or opened the bidding third

hand on an obviously weak hand. These bids are generally made
with lead direction in mind, and, when no other lead stands out,
the lead of an ace in partner’s suit can be profitable.
Here are some examples. You pick up this hand:
♠AQ86 ♥64 ♦84 ♣ Q J 10 8 4

1NT
pass 2♦1 pass 2♥
pass 3♦ pass 4♣2
pass 4♦ pass 4♥
all pass
1. Transfer to hearts.
2. Cuebid in support of one of North’s suits.
After this auction, it appears that neither player has a control in the spade
suit. Even though the club queen is a desirable lead on most deals, here
the spade ace stands out.
This was the full deal:
♠ 53
♥ A Q J 10 9
♦ KQ753
♣ 9
♠ AQ86 ♠ K 10 9 4 2
♥ 64 N ♥ 8 32
♦ 84 W E ♦ 6 2
♣ Q J 10 8 4 S ♣ 6 52
♠ J7
♥ K75
♦ A J 10 9
♣ AK73
North-South have twelve tricks on any lead except a spade.

Dancing in the Dark
You are on lead with this hand:

♠A98 ♥42 ♦ J 10 8 6 4 ♣ 10 9 6
This was the auction:

1NT
pass 4♦1 pass 4♥
pass 4NT pass 5♥2
pass 6♥ all pass
1. Texas.
2. Two keycards.
On this type of auction, North-South have no clear idea of controls in each

suit. The slam is a stab, based on the reasonable hope that there will be
enough controls in the right places. The opponents are likely to have
plenty of tricks once they gain the lead. The ace of spades is a reasonable
lead against an auction such as this. On the actual deal, shown below, the
lead sets the contract and any other lead allows the opponents to waltz
away with all thirteen tricks.
♠ J 10 3
♥ K Q 10 9 7 5
♦ K9
♣ AK
♠ A98 ♠ K7642
♥ 42 N ♥ 6
♦ J 10 8 6 4 W E ♦ 932
♣ 10 9 6 S ♣ 8742
♠ Q5
♥ AJ83
♦ AQ7
♣ QJ53
Cashout at Trick 1
You find yourself on lead with this hand after a wild and wooly auction:
♠842 ♥ 10 5 ♦986 ♣ A Q J 10 8

1♦
pass 1♠ pass 3NT
pass 6♠ pass 6NT
all pass
Here, when the opponents are likely to have all of the controls and plen-
ty of tricks, the lead of the club ace will salvage a few matchpoints. You
would prefer to defend a game contract or even a spade slam (if partner
guesses to lead a club), but you make the best of what you were dealt.
This was the deal:
♠ A K Q J 10 9 3
♥ A97
♦ —
♣ 752
♠ 842 ♠ 6
♥ 10 5 N ♥ QJ864
♦ 986 W E ♦ 10 4 3 2
♣ A Q J 10 8 S ♣ 643
♠ 75
♥ K32
♦ AKQJ75
♣ K9

They Have Avoided Notrump
West holds:
♠ Q 10 2 ♥AQJ86 ♦4 ♣ J 10 4 2

1♦
1♥ 3♦1 pass 5♦
all pass
1. Preemptive.
West notes the failure of North-South to bid notrump and seriously con-
siders leading the ace of hearts.
This was the deal:
♠ A53
♥ 975
♦ 10 9 7 5 3
♣ 95
♠ Q 10 2 ♠ 864
♥ AQJ86 N ♥ 10 4 3 2
♦ 4 W E ♦ J62
♣ J 10 4 2 S ♣ K86
♠ KJ97
♥ K
♦ AKQ8
♣ AQ73
The lead of the ace of hearts will be richly rewarded. The continuation of
the queen of hearts and yet another heart when he wins with the queen
of spades will set up partner’s jack of diamonds and produce a fine score.
The adventurous South players who rebid 3NT romped off with nine
tricks because no West led the ace of hearts. (Al Roth actually made such
a lead from a holding of A-Q-10-x-x in the life masters pairs many years ago
when an opponent bid 3NT with a singleton king. He promptly cashed
with five tricks.)
Underleading Aces
You are on lead with this hand after the auction shown.
♠J864 ♥ 10 6 ♦ Q 10 8 4 ♣ A 10 2

1♥
pass 2NT1 pass 3♦2
pass 3♠ pass 4♥
all pass
1. Game force in hearts.

2. Singleton or void in diamonds.
The bidding tells you to expect few winners in diamonds and that declar-
er did not value his club holding or his whole hand highly enough to cue-
bid. Partner did not double the spade cuebid, so he will not have concen-
trated values there. Partner may have the king of clubs or that card might
show up in dummy. A low club lead looks most logical, and on the actu-
al layout, holds declarer to ten tricks and a fine East-West matchpoint
score. This was the deal:
♠ A9
♥ A98752
♦ A5
♣ 975
♠ J864 ♠ K 10 3
♥ 10 6 N ♥ —
♦ Q 10 8 4 W E ♦ KJ9632
♣ A 10 2 S ♣ Q864
♠ Q752
♥ KQJ43
♦ 7
♣ KJ3

The risk of underleading is reasonable here, because the opening leader
has a weak hand. He can be reasonably (but not absolutely) sure that part-
ner has some high cards and will gain the lead at some point. With a
stronger hand, where it is unlikely that partner will ever gain the lead, he
should try some other approach. On this deal, close attention to the bid-
ding indicates that an unusual lead may result in a good payoff.
WHEN NOT TO LEAD AN ACE

When the opponents bid a slam against you and bypass Blackwood, you
have a clue to help you with your opening lead. They usually have a void
somewhere and are gambling on good fitting cards or a favorable open-
ing lead, or both. Consider this lead problem (you are West):
♠AJ986 ♥43 ♦64 ♣A765

1♥
1♠ 2♠ pass 5♥1
pass 6♥ all pass
1. Asks for second-round spade control.
North-South were capable players and would not undertake a slam effort
lightly. They have misfired here because of the duplication of values in
clubs. West should realize that declarer has solid hearts, good diamonds
and a void in clubs. Why else would he bypass three levels of bidding
(including the opportunity to use Blackwood) and jump to the five-level
in an uncontested auction? A trump lead is best here, letting declarer fend
for himself.
This was the deal:
♠ K4
♥ J 10 9 5
♦ Q7
♣ KQJ43
♠ AJ986 ♠ 10 7 2
♥ 43 N ♥ 6
♦ 64 W E ♦ KJ832
♣ A765 S ♣ 10 9 8 2
♠ Q52
♥ AKQ872
♦ A 10 9 5
♣ —
West in fact made the ill-judged lead of the club ace. After this, declarer
had no trouble making twelve tricks. Note that the ace of spades yields
the same result. Declarer can win any continuation, pitch dummy’s losing
diamond on the queen of spades and ruff three diamonds in dummy.
If West hangs onto his two aces and leads any of the other eleven
cards in his hand, the slam goes down. The result here is the difference
between top and bottom — four percent of your session’s score. The
moral of the story: when good players bypass Blackwood on their way to
a slam, you can be sure they have a void somewhere. Think twice before
leading an ace.
OTHER HIGH-CARD LEADS
Only One Trick
You often encounter deals where partner has most of your side’s assets
and you find yourself on lead after a competitive auction. You hold the
following hand (vulnerable against not):

♠K9753 ♥ J 10 7 ♦9653 ♣7
The bidding proceeded as follows:

1♠ 2♣
4♠ 5♣ all pass
You will have only one opportunity to lead from your side. If you start
with the ♠K, you may hold the trick and can deduce how to do further
damage when you see dummy.
This was the deal:
♠ J4
♥ K86
♦ K Q 10 2
♣ Q432
♠ K9753 ♠ A Q 10 8 2
♥ J 10 7 N ♥ AQ92
♦ 9653 W E ♦ 864
♣ 7 S ♣ 8
♠ 6
♥ 543
♦ AJ
♣ A K J 10 9 7 5
East can play the queen as a suit-preference indicator at Trick 1, and a

heart shift then beats the contract by two tricks. The routine lead of a low
spade allows declarer to romp home with his contract.
Leading Minor Honors
Many players are aware of the need to lead the king from the holding illus-
trated in the previous deal. The idea can be extended to minor honors as
well. Let’s look at an example.
N-S vul.
♠ A 10 9 7
♥ A 10 8 6
♦ 543
♣ 10 8
♠ Q86 ♠ J42
♥ Q N ♥ 975
♦ J 10 9 8 7 4 W E ♦ —
♣ J32 S ♣ AKQ9754
♠ K53
♥ KJ432
♦ AKQ2
♣ 6
West is on lead after this auction.

1♥
pass 3♥ 5♣ 5♥
all pass
It can hardly cost West to lead the jack of clubs. At worst, East will mis-
count the club suit at some point in the play. That is unlikely to cause a
problem, however, and on this deal, there was a great reward in store for
anyone making that lead. East can play his lowest club to signal suit pref-
erence, and a diamond shift does declarer in.
Alarm Clock Leads
When you have some unusual information to convey to partner that you
cannot describe in the bidding, you can sometimes get the message
across with the opening lead. The most common case is the one where
you hold a void and would like partner to give you a ruff.

Both sides are vulnerable and you, West, hold:
♠J3 ♥— ♦QJ53 ♣ K Q 10 9 7 6 5
Consider your lead after this auction:

4♠
5♣ 6♣ pass 6♠
all pass
You are on lead and should play an unusual club honor in the hope of
communicating to partner your message of a heart void. Lead the queen
(with standard leads) or the king (if playing Rusinow).
On this kind of layout, an alert partner can play you for a void, which
is most likely in hearts. She will rise with the ace of spades and pray that
you have a second trump.
♠ 54
♥ A K Q 10 7 6
♦ A 10 8 7
♣ A
♠ J3 ♠ A2
♥ — N ♥ J985
♦ QJ53 W E ♦ 9642
♣ K Q 10 9 7 6 5 S ♣ J83
♠ K Q 10 9 8 7 6
♥ 432
♦ K
♣ 42
A Spectacular Lead
Sometimes an auction calls for a spectacular lead. You are again in the
West seat, on lead after listening carefully to the auction.
♠864 ♥J6 ♦A2 ♣ K J 10 9 6 4

pass 1♦ pass 1♥
2♣ 2♠ pass 3♣
pass 3♥ pass 3NT
all pass
From South’s failure to blast into 3NT, you can tell that he has a concern
about the club suit. Dummy is likely to come down with a singleton club.
The best shot here is to lead the king of clubs. This was the layout:
♠ AJ93
♥ K97
♦ K Q 10 9 5
♣ Q
♠ 864 ♠ Q 10 2
♥ J6 N ♥ 8432
♦ A2 W E ♦ J863
♣ K J 10 9 6 4 S ♣ 53
♠ K75
♥ A Q 10 5
♦ 74
♣ A872
On the actual deal, declarer must go two down with the king of clubs
lead, and he would otherwise make his contract easily. Had East held the
doubleton queen of clubs, he would need to unblock to support West’s
fine effort.

A Doubled Slam
You are West and find yourself on lead after a tortured auction.
♠8642 ♥3 ♦ 10 8 6 ♣ K 10 8 6 2
N-S vul.

1♣ 1♦
pass 2♣ pass 2♥
3♣ 4♥ 5♣ 6♥
pass pass 7♣ pass
pass 7♥ dbl all pass
What are your clues?

First, you know that declarer has four hearts; otherwise, he would
have bid them first or tried an unusual notrump. Second, he has diamond
length, possibly six or seven. Third, he passed your partner’s 7♣ bid
around to North, guaranteeing first-round club control. This must be a
void. Fourth, he did not make a takeout double; therefore he does not
have 4-4-5-0 shape. Most likely his shape is 2-4-7-0 or 3-4-6-0. Fifth, dummy
has good diamond support, either three or four cards long. Finally, part-
ner was willing to risk the opponents bidding a grand slam, and then he
doubled it. Partner has a sure trick somewhere.
This was the deal:
♠ KJ9
♥ K864
♦ KQ53
♣ J3
♠ 8642 ♠ Q75
♥ 3 N ♥ Q753
♦ 10 8 6 W E ♦ —
♣ K 10 8 6 2 S ♣ AQ9754
♠ A 10 3
♥ A J 10 2
♦ AJ9742
♣ —
In case you were wondering, the score for a doubled, vulnerable grand
slam in a major suit, making, is 2470. A diamond lead would produce
+200 and quite a few matchpoints. A pedestrian club lead would also
set the contract, but the clues indicate that the diamond is a sure thing.

CHAPTER 4
SIGNALS
Signaling is vital at matchpoints, perhaps even more so than at IMPs. A

good result hinges on every trick and defenders must do everything pos-
sible to clarify the position for one another. The downside, of course, is
that signaling also helps declarer. The bottom line is that defenders
should accept the risk of helping declarer and provide one another with
all the assistance they can give.
The most important signals help partner in situations where he is
faced with a blind guess. Unless you can guide him, partner is bound to
go wrong a percentage of the time. Here are some thoughts on signaling
in general.
Against suit contracts, it is useful to give count your top priority.
Working out how many tricks will cash in each suit is your main task.
A corollary to this thought is that you must tell partner what he really
needs to know. Thus, if you have promised four trumps during the auction,
you do not need to strain to show that in the play. If you have promised
at least four, and you have five or six, try to get that message across early.
TRUMP SUIT SIGNALS

Traditionally, the priority in following to the trump suit has been to show
count. This helps when partner knows you have an extra trump left to ruff
something.When you follow ‘up the line’ in trumps, suggesting an even num-
ber, partner can sometimes work out that a forcing defense will succeed.
Suit preference has been a distant second priority in trump signals.
On many deals your number of trumps is known or totally irrelevant, so
you can use spot cards to show suit preference instead. On a frequency
basis (an important aspect of matchpoint play), suit preference is often
the most important message you want to give partner.
The following examples illustrate these ideas.
Please Play Clubs, Partner!
♠ J 10 4 2
♥ AQ
♦ 98542
♣ Q2
♠ A5
N ♥ 97
W E ♦ J763
S ♣ AJ8753

1♠
pass 3♠ pass 4♠
all pass
A heart lead is won with dummy’s queen and East plays the nine.
Declarer plays the jack of spades, ducked, and another spade, won by East.
West plays the three and then the seven of spades. How should East play?
♠ J 10 4 2
♥ AQ
♦ 98542
♣ Q2
♠ 73 ♠ A5
♥ 10 8 4 3 2 N ♥ 97
♦ K 10 9 W E ♦ J763
♣ K 10 9 S ♣ AJ8753
♠ KQ986
♥ KJ65
♦ AQ
♣ 64
SIGNALS 43
West can tell that at least one and possibly two club pitches are coming.
East is in the dark; he cannot be sure who has the king of hearts. Both
defenders should realize that diamond tricks are not disappearing, and
West’s trump plays should be interpreted as suit preference signals to
indicate the need for a club shift.
Both vul.
♠ 10 8 6
♥ J 10 3
♦ 10 9
♣ K J 10 9 8
♠ AK975
♥ 2 N
♦ AK53 W E
♣ Q73 S

1♠ pass 2♠ 4♥
4♠ 5♥ dbl all pass
You lead the ♠K and East plays the queen. Is partner showing count or
attitude?
♠ 10 8 6
♥ J 10 3
♦ 10 9
♣ K J 10 9 8
♠ AK975 ♠ QJ42
♥ 2 N ♥ 97
♦ AK53 W E ♦ QJ864
♣ Q73 S ♣ 64
♠ 3
♥ AKQ8654
♦ 72
♣ A52
At a lower level, East’s play of the queen would be showing the jack and an
indeterminate number of spades. Here, at the five-level, East-West are in a dan-
gerous situation. If West continues with a second spade, declarer will make
his contract with an overtrick. Disaster! No matchpoints for East-West. Here,
the queen must be used as a count signal, showing four. After West confident-
ly switches to diamonds, East plays the four and West cashes a second dia-
mond to defeat the contract by one trick. West’s problem would be magni-
fied had his diamonds been headed by the ace-queen instead of the ace-king.
Count in the Trump Suit
♠ Q83
♥ 864
♦ K5
♣ KQJ95
♠ A ♠ 6542
♥ K Q J 10 9 2 N ♥ 753
♦ 10 8 6 W E ♦ J932
♣ A72 S ♣ 43
♠ K J 10 9 7
♥ A
♦ AQ74
♣ 10 8 6

1♥ pass pass 1♠
3♥ 3♠ pass 4♠
all pass
As West, you lead the ♥K to declarer’s ace and win the trump lead per-
force. Partner follows with the deuce of trumps. Here, a suit-preference
signal to show club interest makes no sense, so you assume that partner
is showing you count in the trump suit. In this case, partner has either
two or four trumps. You can help the defense if he has four trumps and
declarer only five. Another round of hearts forces declarer to trump,
SIGNALS 45
shortening his remaining holding to three — the same length as partner.
Declarer plays the jack of trumps and discovers the bad break. To make
his contract, he must now play clubs. You have the chance to develop a
third trick by either giving partner a club ruff or forcing declarer a sec-
ond time and then setting up partner’s fourth trump as a trick.
Trump-Suit Preference
♠ K4
♥ KJ4
♦ Q J 10 9 8
♣ 864
♠ J9762
♥ 86 N
♦ A2 W E
♣ K932 S

pass pass 1♦
pass 3♦ all pass
As West, you lead a low club. Partner wins with the ace and returns the
ten. You play a third round, hoping that partner can ruff. No such luck.
Declarer wins and tackles trumps. You win the second round and think
about your best continuation.
Without an agreement on trump suit preference, you would have a
blind guess here. Fortunately, when partner plays the five of trumps and
then the three, you know to play spades. A heart switch would allow
declarer to make her contract. Note that count in the trump suit here is
of no value to the defenders.
This was the deal:
♠ K4
♥ KJ4
♦ Q J 10 9 8
♣ 864
♠ J9762 ♠ AQ53
♥ 86 N ♥ 10 7 3 2
♦ A2 W E ♦ 53
♣ K932 S ♣ A 10 8
♠ 10 8
♥ AQ95
♦ K764
♣ QJ7
Continue or switch?
♠ A 10 4 2
♥ Q2
♦ Q98
♣ Q J 10 3 2
♠ Q53
♥ K654 N
♦ 10 6 5 W E
♣ K75 S
After South opens a 15-17 notrump and shows spades in response to

Stayman, North places the contract in four spades. You lead a diamond and
partner’s jack loses to the ace. Declarer picks up your queen of spades, while
partner contributes the nine and then the six of trumps. Partner plays the
seven of diamonds on the third trump. Declarer then plays the queen of
clubs to your king. What now?
SIGNALS 47
You know that partner did not have three spades, so his echo must
be interpreted as a suit-preference signal for hearts. Partner’s diamond
discard tells you that he has an even number of diamonds remaining (four
in this case), so declarer started with two. You can place declarer with the
king of diamonds, because he would have played dummy’s queen at Trick
1 holding ace and a small diamond. You should switch to a heart to hold
declarer to ten tricks. This was the deal:
♠ A 10 4 2
♥ Q2
♦ Q98
♣ Q J 10 3 2
♠ Q53 ♠ 96
♥ K654 N ♥ A J 10 7
♦ 10 6 5 W E ♦ J7432
♣ K75 S ♣ 96
♠ KJ87
♥ 983
♦ AK
♣ A84
Note that on each of the last three deals, it was easy for the defenders to
pick out whether partner was signaling suit preference or count by his
trump-suit plays. In real life, it is not so easy to distinguish the meaning
of the signal. Players should not give up easily, however. The payoff is
worthwhile on the deals where you can read the signals correctly.
SUIT PREFERENCE ON THE OPENING LEAD
The opening lead normally delivers two important messages:
• Leader’s count in the suit (as in fourth best).

• Leader’s attitude in the suit (e.g. lead second highest from a
bad holding; high from a doubleton; low from three or more
to an honor).
If we complicate matters by adding a suit-preference dimension, we can

end up with chaos. Nevertheless, there are a few occasions when we can
give a suit-preference message. Here are a couple:
• We have made a preempt, such as a weak two-bid or three-bid.

Our count in the suit is known (within narrow limits, at least)
and we can lead an abnormally low or high card to deliver a
suit-preference message.
• Occasionally when we hold a void, we may elect to underlead
a strong holding in an effort to get partner on lead. We need to
tell him which suit we are void in.
For example, you hold the following hand:
♠KJ8642 ♥53 ♦64 ♣AQ2
After your weak two spade bid has been raised by partner, you are on lead
against a heart contract. The deuce of spades would be a good shot to
indicate where your outside strength lies.
Now you hold these cards:
♠AKQJ643 ♥753 ♦642 ♣—
After your three spade bid has been raised by partner, the opponents buy
the contract in five hearts. You might try underleading all those beautiful
spade honors. Here the three is obvious. Similarly, holding a diamond
void, you might try the six of spades and hope partner can read it.
No guarantees accompany these leads! I have been on the wrong end of
–850 scores, when less creative efforts would have produced +300.
SIGNALS 49
Informative Auction
♠ A Q 10 5 3
♥ AJ75
♦ KQ
♣ Q5
♠ K7642 ♠ 9
♥ — N ♥ Q864
♦ J9876 W E ♦ 10 5 4
♣ A32 S ♣ J 10 9 8 6
♠ J8
♥ K 10 9 3 2
♦ A32
♣ K74

1♣1 pass 1♥2
pass 1♠ pass 1NT
pass 2♥ pass 3♥
pass 4♥ all pass
1. 16+ HCP.
2. Natural, game force.
On lead against four hearts, West knows that partner is short of spades.
Dummy has promised five, and declarer has shown a balanced hand (at
least a doubleton spade) with five hearts. The lead of the deuce of
spades has two potential benefits: declarer may read it as a singleton and
partner can read it as a suggestion of a club entry. If declarer runs this
to his jack, you are hoping that partner has an entry in trumps. On this
deal, with nothing to guide him, declarer may start trumps by cashing
the king. East can gain the lead on the third round of hearts and knows
that a club lead is the most promising continuation. Note that West’s
spot cards in diamonds and clubs make it difficult to give a proper sig-
nal in either of those suits. Preventing the overtrick produces an above-
average score.
SMITH TO THE RESCUE
♠ Q2
♥ A843
♦ J
♣ A J 10 9 4 2
♠ J83
N ♥ Q5
W E ♦ Q 10 4
S ♣ K8765

1♣ pass 1♦
pass 1♥ pass 3NT
all pass
West leads the ♠5. Dummy’s queen wins and East signals encourage-
ment.1 East then covers the jack of diamonds and is on lead after win-
ning the third round of diamonds with the ten. West plays up the line to
three rounds of diamonds. How should East continue? This was the deal:
♠ Q2
♥ A843
♦ J
♣ A J 10 9 4 2
♠ 10 9 7 5 4 ♠ J83
♥ KJ92 N ♥ Q5
♦ 653 W E ♦ Q 10 4
♣ Q S ♣ K8765
♠ AK6
♥ 10 7 6
♦ AK9872
♣ 3
1. Smith Signal: Defenders can tell each other whether they like the opening lead or not
by signaling in the suit declarer plays. High-low in the enemy suit means:“I like the lead”
(perhaps because the suit is now ready to run, or perhaps because there is absolutely
nothing better available).
SIGNALS 51
If East shifts to the queen of hearts when in with the diamond ten, he
ensures that East-West receive their average. Note that this play requires
a high degree of trust and discipline in a partnership. At IMPs, the notion
that partner led from ♠A-10-x-x-x would be compelling, and the thought
of five fast tricks for the defense would no doubt seduce East into return-
ing the jack of spades. On this deal, the Smith signal reveals the flaw in
that idea.
Extensions of Smith Signals

When you play with partners who are good spot watchers, you can
extend Smith signals beyond the usual message of “I really liked the lead”
or “I cannot help you further in the suit you led.”
Here is an example:
♠ K Q J 10 5
♥ Q 10 8 4
♦ A 10
♣ 53
♠ A84 ♠ 762
♥ K93 N ♥ J75
♦ J3 W E ♦ K753
♣ K9872 S ♣ Q64
♠ 93
♥ A62
♦ Q9864
♣ A J 10
Sitting West, you lead the seven of clubs after this auction:

pass pass
pass 1♠ pass 1NT1
pass 2♥ pass 3NT
all pass
1. Semi-forcing.
First of all, the defenders should note that only a minority of the field will
be in game. Declarer, a passed hand, can have no more than invitational
values for his 3NT bid (limited to 10 or 11 HCP). The North hand, with
only 12 HCP, would not accept a game invitation in notrump at most
tables. Overtricks are irrelevant on this deal. Therefore, the defenders’
goal must be to set the contract.
South wins partner’s queen of clubs with his ace and starts spades.
After South’s abrupt jump to game, it is safe to assume that he is well for-
tified in clubs (A-J-10 at least). West can place his partner with either the
king of diamonds or the ace of hearts. East may have the jack of hearts as
well, in which case West can set the contract by shifting to hearts. On the
layout shown, West needs to continue with a low club to defeat the con-
tract. He has a blind guess as to how to defend if he does not have a suit-
able signaling agreement.
If West can find out that his partner has the ace of hearts, he must
assume that he also has the jack and should shift to a heart.
If West knows that his partner has the king of diamonds, he can only
set the contract with a low club return and pray that his partner started
with three clubs.
Playing regular Smith signals, East can only show that he has no fur-
ther help in clubs. When a defender is following with three or more small
cards in the suit declarer is establishing, he has six ways of playing his
three cards. I suggest the following approach:
High-middle-low: I have plenty of help (usually another honor, or

five originally).
High-low-middle: I started with four originally, but no other
honors
Low-high-middle: No further help, side card in high-ranking suit
Low-middle-high: No further help, side card in low-ranking suit.
In the deal under discussion, East can play the two, the six and the seven
of spades, showing that his high card is in diamonds. West can forget
about the heart suit and continue with a low club. After the spades are
finished, one defender must gain the lead with a red suit to take three club
tricks for the defense.
SIGNALS 53
CHAPTER 5
MIDDLE-GAME
MANEUVERS
HONOR-CARD LEADS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DEAL
“Middle Game” in chess terminology refers to plays made after the open-
ing is completed. It is an apt term in the world of bridge also and I am
going to borrow the phrase here.
In bridge, what differentiates middle-game plays from opening leads
is knowledge of the layout. As play progresses, you learn much and can
infer much more about the opponents’ holdings. So in the middle game,
throw out all those opening-lead tables!
With a holding such as ♥Q-9-7-3 on opening lead, one would never
think of leading the queen. Mid-deal, however, having determined that
the heart holding around the table may be
♥ K54
♥ Q973 ♥ AJ62
♥ 10 8
you can see that the queen is the only lead that will let the defenders
immediately pick up the whole suit.
Holding ♥K-10-2 on opening lead, one would always lead the deuce.
In the middle of the deal, however, with a combination such as:
♥ Q943
♥ K 10 2 ♥ AJ65
♥ 87
West can see that the only effective strategy is to lead the ten and hope
that East has the right spot card holding to produce a fourth trick.
Royal Start
Now take a look at this deal:
♠ K86
♥ 75
♦ AJ2
♣ Q 10 8 6 4
♠ J3 ♠ 975
♥ A K 10 8 3 N ♥ QJ42
♦ K864 W E ♦ Q93
♣ K3 S ♣ J97
♠ A Q 10 4 2
♥ 96
♦ 10 7 5
♣ A52
Defending against three spades,West starts by cashing two high hearts. A

diamond shift is obvious now, and on the lead of a low diamond, East
should play the queen. If he plays the nine, hoping partner has the
K-10-x, declarer will make ten tricks. If West’s holding had been K-10-x-x,
he would have led the ten to make matters clear for East.
MIDDLE-GAME MANEUVERS 55
Spot-Card Plays
♠ AQ3
♥ 32
♦ J753
♣ J953
♠ 642 ♠ 10 9 8
♥ K 10 5 4 N ♥ AJ872
♦ Q2 W E ♦ 10 8 6 4
♣ 10 6 4 2 S ♣ 8
♠ KJ75
♥ Q9
♦ AK9
♣ AKQ7

2NT1
pass 3NT all pass
1. 21-22 HCP.
West makes an aggressive lead of the ♥4. Looking at all four hands, one
may wonder what the problem is. Suppose East wins with the ace of
hearts and returns his fourth-best heart, the ♥7. South plays the nine at
Trick 1 and the queen at Trick 2. West goes into the tank. If declarer orig-
inally held ♥Q-J-9-8, a duck and a prayer that East has another entry is
best. If declarer originally held Q-9, as in the actual layout, East-West can
set the contract quickly by cashing five hearts. At IMPs, this is not a
problem: the goal is always to set the contract, and the heart suit offers
the only hope. At matchpoints, however, the problem is quite different. A
heart return may lead to a score of –460 and few matchpoints against a
field that chooses a less aggressive lead strategy.
Two corollary thoughts emerge from studying this deal. The East
player should consider the problem that West will have when he sees the
♥7 on the table. He cannot differentiate between an original holding of
♥A-7-2 and the actual holding. A return of the heart deuce will help part-
ner greatly. West will play East for a four-card heart suit, but after a second
of thought, West will realize that a third heart can never cost and he will
continue the suit.
Consider a fifth-best return at Trick 2 when a fourth-best spot card
will create ambiguity.
A related theme occurs when your partner leads a suit where you
hold A-2 or K-2, as in the following example:
♠ 753
♥ Q7
♦ A J 10
♣ K9753
♠ K 10 6 4 ♠ A2
♥ 9642 N ♥ J 10 5 3
♦ K986 W E ♦ 742
♣ 4 S ♣ Q J 10 8
♠ QJ98
♥ AK8
♦ Q53
♣ A62
North-South arrive quickly in 3NT and West leads the ♠4. East wins with
the ace and should not return his deuce. Doing so might lead West to con-
clude that East started with four spades and persuade him to make a dam-
aging return into declarer’s remaining J-9. Instead, East should shift to the
club queen and continue with a second club (which cannot cost) before
returning his last spade.
MIDDLE-GAME MANEUVERS 57
CHAPTER 6
DOUBLED CONTRACTS
Don’t be Fooled by a Crafty Declarer
♠ KQ
♥ 6
♦ Q 10 8 6 4
♣ A8642
♠ 9753
N ♥ J974
W E ♦ KJ7
S ♣ K3

1♣
2♣1 2♠2 4♥ 5♣
pass pass dbl all pass
1. At least 5–5 in the majors.

2. Club support with spade values.
Partner leads the king of hearts (showing the ace) and shifts to the jack of
spades. Declarer wins with his ace, ruffs his queen of hearts (covered by
partner’s ace), plays dummy’s ace of clubs, cashes the king of spades and
leads a club. How should East defend? If West has the ace of diamonds, a
diamond return sets the contract two tricks. That is impossible on the bid-
ding. Declarer’s play of the queen of hearts was a ruse. West makes the
defense clear here by playing a low heart on the first club (remainder
count shows three cards remaining) and a low diamond on the second
club. In any case, whether declarer’s hand shape is 2-2-3-6 or 2-3-2-6, anoth-
er heart now will not cost. A ruff and discard will not help declarer.
This was the actual layout:
♠ KQ
♥ 6
♦ Q 10 8 6 4
♣ A8642
♠ J 10 8 6 4 ♠ 9753
♥ A K 10 3 2 N ♥ J974
♦ 532 W E ♦ KJ7
♣ — S ♣ K3
♠ A2
♥ Q85
♦ A9
♣ Q J 10 9 7 5
Watch Your Signals
Consider East’s play at Trick 1 on the following deal:
♠ 76
♥ J53
♦ AK54
♣ J 10 9 2
♠ 3
N ♥ 10 7 2
W E ♦ J 10 6 2
S ♣ Q8543
With only North-South vulnerable, this auction takes place:

1♠
2♥ dbl 3♥ 4♠
5♥ 5♠ pass pass
dbl all pass
DOUBLED CONTRACTS 59
Your partner,West, leads the ace of clubs (promising the king). If you sig-
nal encouragement, West cannot differentiate between club holdings of
Q-x-x, x-x and your actual holding. The play of a second club allows
declarer to set up a club trick for a diamond or heart pitch. This was the
deal:
♠ 76
♥ J53
♦ AK54
♣ J 10 9 2
♠ 10 5 2 ♠ 3
♥ AQ9864 N ♥ 10 7 2
♦ 8 W E ♦ J 10 6 2
♣ AK7 S ♣ Q8543
♠ AKQJ984
♥ K
♦ Q973
♣ 6
Setting up a club trick in dummy will result in the defense finishing –850.
East needs to play his lowest club, and West can continue with the ace of
hearts, after which the defense just waits for a diamond trick.
Extracting the Maximum
♠ 76
♥ 953
♦ 8754
♣ Q 10 9 2
♠ Q J 10 5 2 ♠ A983
♥ A4 N ♥ K Q 10 8 7
♦ 9 W E ♦ K6
♣ A7653 S ♣ 84
♠ K4
♥ J62
♦ A Q J 10 3 2
♣ KJ
With only East-West vulnerable, the following auction takes place:

1♠ pass 2NT1 3♦
4♦2 5♦ dbl all pass
1. Forcing spade raise.

2. Singleton diamond.
East finds himself on play with the ace of spades at Trick 1. How should
he proceed? North has made an eccentric bid that will not be duplicat-
ed at any other table. Instead of a nice average +620, East-West are faced
with a possible +500. They must do everything possible to turn the tables
on North-South. How can they achieve +800? Looking at the whole lay-
out, it is obvious that the defenders must prevent declarer from reaching
dummy for a diamond finesse. Lacking double-dummy vision, what are
the clues?
If East had a singleton club, he would likely have made a splinter bid
at his first turn.
If East had a six-card heart suit, he would prefer to start with a 2♥ call
rather than a spade raise.
If West were void in diamonds, he could overrule East’s decision to
play for penalties and bid on.
Both defenders should reason that declarer is likely to have a distribu-
tion of 2-3-6-2. Other distributions can be ruled out by the bidding.
At Trick 2, East shifts to the ♣8. If declarer plays the king, West must
duck. If declarer plays the jack, West must win. After the club king and a
duck, declarer tries his best by cashing the king of spades and exiting with
a club. West wins this and plays ace of hearts, following with the four of
hearts. East wins with his queen and continues with the king of hearts.
When declarer follows with the jack, the defenders have a complete
count on the deal. Holding the magic ♦9,West should pitch a club on the
third heart and trust his partner to continue with a fourth round of hearts.
Declarer is in a desperate position now. He can see that if he is unable to
get to dummy for a diamond finesse, he will score –800 and a zero. He
may well ruff small in his hand, hoping for an entry to dummy with the
eight of diamonds. West scores his nine of diamonds and leads a club
back. Declarer must ruff this in hand and concede another trick to the
king of diamonds. Plus 1100 for the defense! If West had a small diamond
instead of the nine, he should ruff his partner’s good trick and play a club.
Again, declarer is forced to ruff dummy’s good club and concede a trick
to East’s king of diamonds. The defense comes out on top with +800.
Note that all of the matchpoints were on the line on this deal. The
difference between +500 and +800 will be close to four percent on the
East-West total points for the session. Whether East-West are +800 or
1100 will make little difference, except for the satisfaction they derive
from their fine play.
Perhaps you think that North’s bid showed poor judgment. North on
this occasion was a North American champion several times over. He
made his bid knowing how difficult it is to make accurate decisions at the
five-level. It is not easy for East-West to judge that a bid of five spades is
totally wrong.
At the One-Level?
Yes, at the one-level. Doubled contracts at the one-level are unusual, espe-
cially when the opponents have favorable vulnerability going for them.

1♣ 1♠
dbl all pass
After this auction with East-West vulnerable,West considers his lead from
♠874 ♥KJ53 ♦ A 10 9 7 ♣J8
How do the defenders ensure that they will take nine tricks? A good rule
for defenders to follow when defending one-level contracts with the
trump holder under the bidder is Lead trumps!
This was the deal:
♠ 6
♥ Q86
♦ 642
♣ 976542
♠ 874 ♠ AKQ5
♥ KJ53 N ♥ 97
♦ A 10 9 7 W E ♦ QJ
♣ J8 S ♣ A K Q 10 3
♠ J 10 9 3 2
♥ A 10 4 2
♦ K853
♣ —
The drama is more or less over at Trick 1. If West leads a trump, East wins
with the queen and plays his diamonds. Declarer may refuse to cover, but
it does not matter. After two rounds of diamonds, East can continue with
a high club. Declarer ruffs, cashes the ace of hearts and leads a heart.
West wins with his king, cashes the ace of diamonds and continues with
the jack of clubs. Declarer cannot now take more than three tricks.
It may seem normal to lead partner’s suit against a doubled contract,
but here, if West leads his jack of clubs at Trick 1, declarer can ruff and
eventually scramble four tricks. A score of –500 leaves the defenders ana-
lyzing the play to see how they could have done better.
The defenders can be reasonably sure that their side has game, and a
notrump small slam can actually be made with these cards if declarer
guesses hearts correctly. Many in the field will open 2NT or even 2♣ with
the East cards, and there will be no interference. East has taken a bit of a
gamble here, because if declarer escapes with four or more tricks, the
partnership will score zero matchpoints.
CHAPTER 7
PLAYING THE FIELD
SIZING UP DECLARER
In a matchpoint game, there is a great difference in the quality of play one

encounters. That is not to say that all IMP play is high caliber, but at
matchpoints, the variation is particularly marked. You meet several pairs
in a session, all of whom use different methods, both in bidding and in
defense. One or two of the pairs may be bona fide experts; one or two
may be rank beginners (or are playing like beginners) and the remainder
will have varying levels of capability. The field may be playing its best, or
may be missing a trick or two in the play. Quality will be uneven, and
defenders must be aware of that fact as they move through the field dur-
ing a session. Often you will have to form your opinion as you go along.
Consider the following deal:
♠ AK93
♥ A75
♦ —
♣ J 10 8 7 5 3
♠ 10 8 2
♥ Q 10 4 3 N
♦ 864 W E
♣ AK9 S

2♦1 2♠
3♦ 4♦ dbl 4♠
all pass
1. You and partner have agreed to play “somewhat disciplined”

weak two-bids — that is, always a good six-card suit.
You are West. You lead the ♦8 (highest from three when you have raised
partner), which is ruffed in dummy as partner plays the queen. Declarer
crosses to the heart king and ruffs a second diamond. After cashing
dummy’s two high trumps, he cashes the ace of hearts and ruffs a heart
to his hand. He draws your last trump and plays the queen of clubs. You
have the whole deal worked out now. Declarer started out with five
spades, two hearts, four diamonds and two clubs. He was dealt eleven
tricks, which he could have made had he chosen to establish clubs and
draw trumps. The competent declarers in the field will score +450 for
making five spades. You will get an above-average result by winning with
your club king and shifting to a diamond, for a score of –420.
But wait! You have done well to lead partner’s suit instead of a high
club. Don’t waste this opportunity! Your exact count tells you that
declarer is left with one spade, one club and the king and a small dia-
mond. You can endplay declarer now by cashing your second club and
exiting with a heart. Declarer has no option but to ruff this and lead away
from his king-small holding in diamonds.
PLAYING THE FIELD 65

This was the deal:
♠ AK93
♥ A75
♦ —
♣ J 10 8 7 5 3
♠ 10 8 2 ♠ 4
♥ Q 10 4 3 N ♥ J862
♦ 864 W E ♦ A Q J 10 3 2
♣ AK9 S ♣ 64
♠ QJ875
♥ K9
♦ K975
♣ Q2
TAKING ADVANTAGE
There are days when you encounter a capable declarer who offers you
the gift of a slight slip in the play. Plenty of matchpoints lurk if you accept
it.
♠ A86
♥ J864
♦ K 10 8 7
♣ J2
♠ QJ753
N ♥ A5
W E ♦ J53
S ♣ A75

1♠ 2♥
pass 2♠ pass 4♥
all pass
West leads the nine of spades. Without much thought, declarer ducks in
dummy and wins East’s jack with his king. North has made an aggressive
cuebid here. Not everyone will choose to do so and some pairs will not
be in game. When declarer plays a club to the jack, East must think care-
fully about the possibility of setting the contract.
Partner’s three of clubs at Trick 2 suggests a five card suit and tells East
that declarer started with three clubs, no doubt the K-Q-4. There is room
for partner to have one high card, and if it is the ace of diamonds, declar-
er can be beaten.
This was the deal:
♠ A86
♥ J864
♦ K 10 8 7
♣ J2
♠ 92 ♠ QJ753
♥ 73 N ♥ A5
♦ A964 W E ♦ J53
♣ 10 9 8 6 3 S ♣ A75
♠ K 10 4
♥ K Q 10 9 2
♦ Q2
♣ KQ4
East wins the second club. If he plays back the queen of spades, he locks
declarer in dummy for the moment. This prevents declarer from enjoying
an entry to his hand with the ten of spades. Stuck in dummy, declarer
now tries to get to his hand with a diamond. West wins with the ace and
can divine declarer’s problem. He should deduce that declarer lacks the
ace of hearts and that he can get to partner’s hand with a trump. East
wins with his ace and gives his partner a spade ruff for the setting trick.
Declarer could also have made the contract by simply drawing trumps,
but it is far from clear which ace West holds. If he has the ace of trumps,
that line of play will fail.
Declarer’s failure to win the first trick in dummy gives the defense an
opportunity for a top board.

CAPITALIZING ON GREED
Players often choose notrump over minor-suit contracts, hoping that their
opponents will be charitable in donating tricks. Defenders can often
score well when this occurs.
♠ 10 9 4
♥ 842
♦ KQJ
♣ AK83
♠ J83
N ♥ J 10 9
W E ♦ A65
S ♣ Q J 10 4

pass
pass 1♦1 pass 1NT
all pass
1. North-South were playing a forcing club system and 1♦ prom-

ised a three-card suit, possibly with longer clubs.
West leads a low spade to the ten, the jack and the king. Declarer leads a
diamond to the king and East ponders the defense. From partner’s play
of the ♦9, it looks as though declarer has five diamonds. He has at most
10 HCP for his 1NT bid. Is there any way to prevent him from scoring his
diamonds? If you can win with the ace of diamonds, blocking the suit,
and guess where declarer’s entry is, you can make South wish that he had
raised diamonds.
Fortunately, it is not much of a guess. Say declarer has maximum val-
ues — 9 or 10 HCP. You can see all of the honors in clubs and diamonds,
so declarer’s values are all in the major suits. Partner’s lead of the deuce
of spades tells you he started with four.
Declarer’s possible major-suit holdings are:
♠ K-Q-x ♠ K-Q-x ♠ K-x-x ♠ A-K-x

♥ K-Q-x ♥ A-x-x ♥ A-Q-x ♥ K-x-x
(as in the
actual layout)
There are several weaker holdings, but the same theme applies. A heart
shift either wins the whole heart suit (example 4) or forces declarer to
use his heart entry prematurely (examples 2 and 3) before the diamonds
can be unblocked. In examples 1 and 2, partner can always prevent
declarer from gaining entry to his hand in the spade suit. If declarer plays
the nine, West can duck; if declarer plays a spade to the king, West can
win.
This was the actual layout:
♠ 10 9 4
♥ 842
♦ KQJ
♣ AK83
♠ A752 ♠ J83
♥ A753 N ♥ J 10 9
♦ 98 W E ♦ A65
♣ 652 S ♣ Q J 10 4
♠ KQ6
♥ KQ6
♦ 10 7 4 3 2
♣ 97
A heart shift will net the defenders a score of –90, an above-average

result. Declarers in diamonds will score either +90 or +110, depending
on whether or not they guess the spade suit correctly. Worst of all, if you
hold up on the diamond ace until the third round or win it early and fail
to return a heart, declarer will be +150. The greedy declarer will chuckle
all through the rest of the session.

CHAPTER 8
WHEN THE
BIDDING SMELLS
UNUSUAL CONTRACTS
At matchpoints, the first sight of dummy will sometimes convince you

that opponents have reached an unusual contract, one that will be dupli-
cated nowhere else in the field. Both partners must be alert to the fact
that extraordinary measures may be warranted.
♠ 752
♥ 93
♦ A75
♣ K 10 9 7 5
♠ A 10
♥ A74 N
♦ Q642 W E
♣ 8632 S

1NT
pass 3NT all pass
West leads the ♦2 to the nine and the jack against this contract. East and
West must immediately be on the alert when they see dummy. This auc-
tion will not be repeated at any other table in the room. Other methods
may propel North-South to the game, but most, and possibly all of the
other pairs will play in a partscore. The defenders should note that the
contract must be beaten and that overtricks are of no consequence here.
Once again, the opening lead has cost a trick.
When South leads the jack of hearts at Trick 2, West must be ready to
take the ace of hearts and switch to a spade. Declarer is very likely to have
five club tricks to go with his three known diamond tricks. One more in
hearts will make nine.
This was the deal:
♠ 752
♥ 93
♦ A75
♣ K 10 9 7 5
♠ A 10 ♠ KQJ4
♥ A74 N ♥ 10 8 6 5
♦ Q642 W E ♦ 10 9 3
♣ 8632 S ♣ J4
♠ 9863
♥ KQJ2
♦ KJ8
♣ AQ
Unless West wins with the ace of hearts and plays the ace and ten of
spades, the defenders are headed for a poor result. Declarer would have
given the defenders an easier time had he cashed his club winners before
tackling hearts. He must assume that clubs are running, and he desperate-
ly needs to steal a ninth trick. His only hope is the heart suit. The best
time to strike is early in the deal, before the defenders can gather much
information. In this case, declarer has given the defenders a very tough
problem to solve.
WHEN THE BIDDING SMELLS 71

A Matter of Trust
♠ A K 10 6
♥ 8
♦ AK42
♣ AQ86
♠ QJ
N ♥ A K Q 10
W E ♦ Q753
S ♣ J97

1♦ 1♥ pass
pass dbl pass 1♠
pass 4♠ all pass
Your partner leads the nine of hearts. You have agreed to lead low from
three or four small cards when you have not supported partner, so you
can play partner for a doubleton and declarer for six hearts. You win the
first heart and shift to the jack of spades. Declarer wins dummy’s ace and
then plays ace, king and another diamond, ruffing in hand. He finesses the
club, cashes the ace and ruffs a club. After ruffing a heart in dummy, he
leads the last club. How do you defend?
This was the deal:
♠ A K 10 6
♥ 8
♦ AK42
♣ AQ86
♠ 8432 ♠ QJ
♥ 93 N ♥ A K Q 10
♦ J96 W E ♦ Q753
♣ K 10 5 3 S ♣ J97
♠ 975
♥ J76542
♦ 10 8
♣ 42
On this auction, South could hardly expect his partner to show up with
more than half the high cards in the deck. Instead of passing, South chose
to respond one spade to his partner’s takeout double. All indicators point
to a three-card spade suit. Declarer can be counted on to have started
with six hearts. He has followed to four minor-suit cards, and therefore
has no more spades. Another clue is the play to Trick 2. When you
returned a trump, partner followed with the deuce. There is no logic in
his showing interest in clubs, so you should read this as a count signal,
suggesting four trumps originally; it is not a suit preference play. Trust
partner to have four trumps and declarer to have three.
This is the position at Trick 10 when declarer leads dummy’s last club.
♠ K 10
♥ —
♦ 4
♣ 8
♠ 843 ♠ Q
♥ — N ♥ AK
♦ — W E ♦ Q
♣ K S ♣ —
♠ —
♥ J765
♦ —
♣ —
If you ruff and cash a diamond, you leave declarer with no losing options.
His holding of ♠K-10 will produce the game-going tricks.
You must duck the club, pitching a heart. Partner will win with his
king and have nothing but spades left. You have to hope that declarer will
misguess the position when partner leads a spade. With any luck, you will
win with your ♠Q and partner’s last trump will produce a one trick set.

Sandbagger
N-S vul.
♠ A8
♥ J6
♦ AJ43
♣ Q9864
♠ K7642
N ♥ 753
W E ♦ 72
S ♣ 10 7 5

1♥
dbl redbl 2♠ pass
pass 3♣ pass 4♥
all pass
You are East here and win the spade lead with the king, as declarer ducks
in dummy. You now have to decide on the best defense.
This was the deal:
♠ A8
♥ J6
♦ AJ43
♣ Q9864
♠ 10 9 5 3 ♠ K7642
♥ A N ♥ 753
♦ Q 10 8 6 W E ♦ 72
♣ AJ32 S ♣ 10 7 5
♠ QJ
♥ K Q 10 9 8 4 2
♦ K95
♣ K
South has sandbagged here, hoping to buy the contract in four hearts and
expecting that East-West have a good non-vulnerable save in four spades.
After the redouble, the auction is forcing and he loses nothing by passing
at his second turn.
If East makes a diamond switch now, playing partner for the king-
queen of diamonds and the ace of hearts, a holding that would yield a set
(and a reasonable play at IMPs), he may persuade partner that he has a sin-
gleton diamond. After West wins with the ace of trumps, if he continues
with a second diamond, declarer will run all the hearts and squeeze him
out of his ace of clubs for –650 and just half a matchpoint for East-West.
East’s best move at Trick 2 is to return a club.Then the defenders will have
no problems cashing their three tricks.
Weak Two-Bids Promise How Many Six-Card Suits?
Consider East’s problem here after West has led the ♣3.
♠ AQ864
♥ K6
♦ KQ987
♣ 2
♠ J9753
N ♥ 75
W E ♦ A J 10
S ♣ A96

2♥
pass 2NT pass 3♣1
pass 3♥2 pass 4♥3
all pass
1. Explained as “one of the top three honors in trumps”.

2. Signoff.
3. Not today.

South has taken an unusual action here — she has overruled her partner’s
signoff. She supposedly has a poor trump suit. What could account for
her bid? Players, even top experts, sometimes open two-bids with distri-
bution that is not recommended in the textbooks. How should you
continue?
This was the deal:
♠ AQ864
♥ K6
♦ KQ987
♣ 2
♠ K 10 2 ♠ J9753
♥ A 10 2 N ♥ 54
♦ 6543 W E ♦ A J 10
♣ Q53 S ♣ A96
♠ —
♥ QJ9753
♦ 2
♣ K J 10 8 7 4
The deal poses a very difficult defensive problem. East must piece togeth-
er all of the clues to orchestrate a successful defense. The three of clubs
tells him that partner has at most four clubs and declarer at least five, pos-
sibly six. The spade position is dangerous. If declarer’s distribution is
1-6-1-5 or 0-6-1-6 dummy’s spades will provide a home for a diamond loser
unless the ace is cashed now.
To earn any matchpoints, East must win the ace of clubs, cash the ace
of diamonds and lead a trump. West must cooperate in this maneuver by
winning with his ace of trumps and playing another trump. Declarer can
take five hearts, two diamonds, a spade and a club. Plus 100 gives the
defenders a very good result. Note that if declarer had ruffed the diamond
ace, she was likely to make her contract in any case.
The Cowboys Roll In
We have all encountered high rollers who take a shot whenever they see
a reasonable opportunity. These folks get erratic results. They sometimes
string together a few seventy percent sessions and intersperse them with
forty percent games. Are you going to send them on to seventy this time?
You are on lead with
♠753 ♥ 10 4 ♦QJ6 ♣ A K Q 10 8

1♣ 2♣ pass 2♥
pass 6♥ all pass
On this bidding, you can be sure that North is prepared for a club lead.
He obviously has a major-suit freak. A diamond lead is a good shot here,
and you can send the cowboy on his way to the forties. This was the deal:
♠ AKQJ84
♥ AKQ98
♦ 73
♣ —
♠ 753 ♠ 962
♥ 10 4 N ♥ 62
♦ QJ6 W E ♦ AK42
♣ A K Q 10 8 S ♣ 9753
♠ 10
♥ J753
♦ 10 9 8 5
♣ J642

The Gambling Three Notrump Strikes
♠ K842
♥ 872
♦ 3
♣ A J 10 8 2
♠ J 10 7 6 ♠ A93
♥ A K 10 9 N ♥ QJ653
♦ 10 2 W E ♦ 987
♣ K75 S ♣ Q3
♠ Q9
♥ 4
♦ AKQJ654
♣ 964

3NT1
all pass
1. Solid suit with no outside ace.
The auction is short and sweet. West leads the king of hearts, gets an
encouraging signal from partner, but is unsure of the heart layout. Partner
may have started with Q-x, Q-x-x or something better in hearts. East’s
spade holding surely includes the ace and may be as good as the A-Q-x. A
shift to the jack of spades will clarify matters. East must be attuned to
partner’s intentions here. From West’s viewpoint, the defense could easi-
ly have three or four spade tricks (not on the actual layout). East’s action
is clear: rise with the spade ace and continue an original fourth-best heart.
The defense duly collects +200 and plenty of matchpoints.
Born to Preempt
E-W vul.
♠ 97532
♥ Q J 10 5
♦ AJ
♣ Q7
♠ AKJ8
♥ K832 N
♦ Q975 W E
♣ 5 S

1♦ 3♣
dbl all pass
After leading the king of spades, West can see that most East-West pairs
will cruise to 3NT and end up +600 or 630. South may not have much,
but he has bought a pretty good dummy.You need a score of 800 to prof-
it from his impertinence. Plus 500 will get you a zero. After the king of
spades lead, West should not rush to give his partner a ruff. Best defense
now is to shift to a diamond. This was the layout:
♠ 97532
♥ Q J 10 5
♦ AJ
♣ Q7
♠ AKJ8 ♠ 8
♥ K832 N ♥ A64
♦ Q975 W E ♦ K8642
♣ 5 S ♣ AJ42
♠ Q64
♥ 97
♦ 10 3
♣ K 10 9 8 6 3

Declarer wins the diamond switch in dummy and leads a club. East can
rise with the ace and lead another club, letting partner know that he does
not need a spade ruff. When South comes off dummy with a heart, this is
ducked to West’s king. A heart return allows East to cash his ace. The
defense can now wait for their club trick and two more spade tricks, end-
playing declarer in his hand with diamond plays.
Three spades, two hearts, two clubs and a diamond net the magic 800
and make South sorry he embarked on his foolhardy adventure. If West
rushes to give partner a spade ruff, declarer can play clubs for one loser
and waltz off with a score of –500 and plenty of matchpoints.
You Balance Them into Game
There is no need to panic and perhaps less reason to double ‘in a rage’.
You balanced in the first place to push the opponents up a level. If they
now bid game, occasionally they will make it. Remember that the per-
centages are with you — you just need to put your defensive skills to
work.
N-S vul.
♠KQ5 ♥ A Q 10 6 4 2 ♦92 ♣42
After overcalling one club with one heart and hearing a club raise on your
left, you (West) are unwilling to sell out cheaply in two clubs. The vulner-
ability is right for a two heart bid. This indeed pushes the opponents…
but to a contract you were not expecting. After this auction, you consid-
er your opening lead.

pass pass 1♣
1♥ 2♣ pass pass
2♥ 3♣ pass 3NT
all pass
Declarer is about to take a bunch of club tricks. If you lead a heart, it may
be the game-going trick. No one has mentioned spades, so you decide to
give that a shot. No matter how he wriggles now, declarer cannot take
more than eight tricks. A heart lead would have given up the eighth trick
and declarer could have set up a ninth trick in diamonds. No doubt he
would have struggled to contain himself if he had scored +600.
This was the deal:
♠ J2
♥ 975
♦ AQJ
♣ Q 10 9 7 5
♠ KQ5 ♠ 10 9 7 3
♥ A Q 10 6 4 2 N ♥ J
♦ 92 W E ♦ K7543
♣ 42 S ♣ J86
♠ A864
♥ K83
♦ 10 8 6
♣ AK3

CHAPTER 9
THE DEFENDERS’
SQUEEZE
It is not often that defenders are able to squeeze declarer. On this deal I
did not enjoy being squeezed by two women (National champions).
♠ A53
♥ 10 9 7 2
♦ 74
♣ 8754
♠ K74 ♠ 10 9 8 6 2
♥ K N ♥ AJ864
♦ A K Q 10 6 3 2 W E ♦ 5
♣ J2 S ♣ 63
♠ QJ
♥ Q53
♦ J98
♣ A K Q 10 9

1NT
dbl all pass
I took my chances in 1NT doubled, trusting to my ready-made club tricks.
Seven rounds of diamonds made me wish I had rescued myself. On the
seventh diamond, I discarded a second heart. East had signaled in hearts
and watched my discards. When West led the king of hearts, East overtook
and cashed the jack for eight tricks and all of the matchpoints. Had I kept
a second heart, she could have ducked the king of hearts and forced me
to concede my queen to her ace later.
Dummy’s Turn
Opportunities to squeeze dummy are even rarer. Here is an example:
♠ 10 7 5 2
♥ Q3
♦ 9865
♣ K72
♠ K986 ♠ Q43
♥ 10 7 6 4 N ♥ 852
♦ KJ4 W E ♦ A732
♣ 86 S ♣ AQJ
♠ AJ
♥ AKJ9
♦ Q 10
♣ 10 9 5 4 3

1NT
all pass
West leads a low spade to East’s queen and declarer’s ace. Declarer plays
a club to East’s ace. East can see that there is no rush in the spade suit
because he has plenty of club entries. He shifts to a heart, declarer’s trans-
portation suit. Declarer wins this in dummy and now must pay the price
for not having played a spade back at Trick 2. He plays a spade now, but
it is too late. West wins with the king and leads another heart. Now, when
South cashes his hearts, he can pitch clubs from dummy; when he exits
THE DEFENDERS’ SQUEEZE 83

with a club, however, East squeezes the dummy with the third club. A
spade discard allows the defenders to cash two more spades, and a dia-
mond discard lets them run the diamond suit. Declarer ends up down
two. It is hard to fault declarer’s play here. He had good chances to make
his contract with some luck in clubs, and the defenders had to play dou-
ble dummy to pull off a two-trick set.
CHAPTER 10
SPOTLIGHT ON
SPOT CARDS
♠ J 10 9 8 7
♥ J 10 6
♦ 98
♣ A53
♠ A ♠ K32
♥ 54 N ♥ 32
♦ Q 10 6 5 4 3 2 W E ♦ AKJ
♣ Q72 S ♣ K J 10 9 4
♠ Q654
♥ AKQ987
♦ 7
♣ 86

1♣ 1♥
pass 2♥ pass 2♠
3♦ 3♠ pass 4♥
all pass
West leads the ace of spades, hoping for a ruff. East contributes the three
and South the six. To get his ruff, West must find East with the ace of
trumps or the ace of diamonds. The ♠3 is intended as suit preference for
diamonds (the higher ranking suit) but is a very hard card to read.
West must realize that ♠K-3-2 is a distinct possibility for East. A dia-
mond shift lets East underlead his ♠K to give West a ruff. A club return
by West now sets the contract two tricks.
SPOTLIGHT ON SPOT CARDS 85

The following deal illustrates the danger of misreading a high card in
a possible suit-preference situation.
♠ K975
♥ A 10 9
♦ AJ
♣ 9875
♠ Q 10 ♠ 73
♥ J642 N ♥ Q83
♦ 10 9 6 4 2 W E ♦ K8753
♣ J2 S ♣ A K 10
♠ AJ862
♥ K75
♦ Q
♣ Q643

1♠
pass 2NT1 pass 3♦2
pass 4♠ all pass

2. Shortness in diamonds.
West hits upon the excellent lead of the jack of clubs — not everyone’s
choice, but a winner here. East cashes the king and ace and returns the
♣10 for West to ruff. West must not regard the ten of clubs as a request
for a return of the high-ranking suit. A heart return now will undo the
good work of the opening lead and hand declarer his contract. A spade
or diamond exit holds declarer to nine tricks. Notice that if he really
wanted a heart return, East could play clubs in the order A-K-10!
Watch Your Attitude
With North-South vulnerable on this next deal, most North-players intro-

duced a weak two-bid with the North hand. It was up to East-West to
make them pay for the indiscretion. In this problem, North-South were
playing multi and East-West had a good defense prepared.
♠ KQ8753
♥ J4
♦ Q2
♣ J75
♠ AJ964 ♠ 2
♥ 962 N ♥ K 10 7 4
♦ K3 W E ♦ A984
♣ 632 S ♣ A Q 10 9
♠ 10
♥ AQ83
♦ J 10 7 6 5
♣ K84

2♦1 pass2 2♠3
pass pass dbl4 all pass
1. Weak two-bid in a major.

2. Double here shows a balanced hand.
3. Pass or correct to hearts.
4. Takeout double of spades.
West leads the king of diamonds, hoping for a ruff, and East plays the four,
discouraging. Some players would take the carding in this situation as suit
preference, since, with the queen of diamonds visible in dummy, West
obviously has short diamonds. East would certainly like a club shift at this
point, but that play is hardly clear to West. East may hold the ♥-K-Q and a
trick may be lost unless he plays a heart now. Once he decides to lead a
heart,West must shift to a low heart (preferably the six to clarify attitude).
The nine clarifies attitude even more clearly, but costs the setting trick.
After the play of the nine, declarer can pick up East’s ten and discard a
club. He romps home with eight tricks. East-West do not get to enjoy
their two club tricks.

Keeping track of spot cards at every stage of a deal is important. We are
accustomed to seeing twos, threes and other small cards as indicators of
partner’s interest in a suit, and sevens and nines as indicators of shortness
and values elsewhere. We must deal with each situation in context, howev-
er. What is partner to lead from K-J-9 in an unbid suit? Surely he should lead
the nine. What about Q-9-8? Certainly you expect him to lead the eight.
Here is an example:
♠ Q97
♥ J 10 9
♦ K 10 5 3
♣ Q75
♠ A642 ♠ 8
♥ Q43 N ♥ A862
♦ J98 W E ♦ Q742
♣ 862 S ♣ 10 9 4 3
♠ K J 10 5 3
♥ K75
♦ A6
♣ AKJ

1♠
pass 2♠ pass 4♠
all pass
West makes the good lead of the eight of diamonds. East must be aware
of possible West holdings. Unless West is known as an habitual under-
leader of aces at Trick 1, East should withhold his queen and encourage
with the four. Declarer wins with the ace and begins to draw trumps.
West holds off until the third round, wins with the ace and continues the
attack on diamonds. South wins in dummy and leads a heart. He needs
one heart trick to make his contract, and if he guesses right, the defense
is powerless. Half of the time he will guess wrong, and now the defense
is in control. West continues a diamond after winning with the ♥Q and
South must ruff. He draws the last trump and leads a low heart, praying.
East wins with the ace and cashes a good diamond for one down. If East
produces the queen of diamonds at Trick 1, he will end the defense.
Protect the Nine
♠ 762
♥ 643
♦ AK87
♣ Q86
♠ A J 10 9 ♠ K8543
♥ 8 N ♥ 75
♦ 942 W E ♦ Q653
♣ A 10 7 5 3 S ♣ 42
♠ Q
♥ A K Q J 10 9 2
♦ J 10
♣ KJ9

1♥
pass 2♥ pass 4♥
all pass
West decides to lead the ace and another club. Declarer wins in hand with
the king and plays six rounds of hearts. West must take care not to part
with a diamond, lest she set up a ruffing finesse against the queen of dia-
monds. After one diamond pitch, the nine of diamonds would fall under
the ace-king and declarer would have a marked finesse against the queen
in East’s hand. East, of course, gives up the ship if he pitches a diamond.
Did anyone lead the nine of diamonds?

Don’t Murder the Ten
♠ AQ82
♥ A52
♦ J743
♣ J2
♠ 74 ♠ 9
♥ Q 10 8 6 N ♥ K74
♦ 10 8 2 W E ♦ AKQ65
♣ K 10 9 6 S ♣ Q743
♠ K J 10 6 5 3
♥ J93
♦ 9
♣ A85

1♦ 1♠
dbl 2♦ 3♣ 3♠
pass 4♠ all pass
West leads the ♦2. After winning with the queen, East can see that if his
partner had a singleton diamond, continuing would be correct. However,
with a singleton in diamonds, partner would likely have at least five clubs
and would have been more active in the bidding. East must switch to
another suit. The spot cards make it dangerous to play another round of
diamonds — declarer, after drawing trumps, could then smother West’s
ten of diamonds and make his contract.
CHAPTER 11
PARTNERSHIP
INSIGHTS
WHEN PARTNER MAKES A MISTAKE
Occasionally, when one partner makes a mistake, cool-headed, clinical

continuation by the other partner can save the day. Here is an example:
♠ Q 10
♥ 864
♦ K 10 6 2
♣ K J 10 4
♠ A8 ♠ 972
♥ AJ53 N ♥ K 10 7
♦ Q853 W E ♦ 97
♣ 865 S ♣ AQ973
♠ KJ6543
♥ Q92
♦ AJ4
♣ 2

1♠
pass 1NT pass 2♠
all pass
PARTNERSHIP INSIGHTS 91
West leads the six of clubs. East wins with the queen and, hoping for a sin-
gleton or doubleton, decides to continue with the ace. South ruffs and
tables a low spade. West can see that East has mistakenly set up dummy’s
clubs for two pitches. If West now allows declarer to win a spade in
dummy, two hearts will go on the two remaining clubs and declarer will
end up making four. (It does not help West to ruff the fourth club with
the ace of trumps). West needs to rise with the ace of spades at Trick 3,
and East can cooperate by playing the nine (suit preference for hearts). A
low heart from West and a heart return will get East-West back to an aver-
age score on the deal.
All Up to You
♠ J82
♥ Q43
♦ KQ
♣ J9875
♠ 7
♥ A 10 9 7 5 N
♦ 8765 W E
♣ KQ4 S

2♠ 2NT
pass 3NT all pass
Holding the West cards, you reflect that you and partner play ‘sound’ pre-
empts and have visions of setting this contract. It is not clear where you
will get your tricks from, so you decide to lead partner’s suit in the hope
that the defense will become clear later. Partner, thinking of another deal,
plays the nine of spades at Trick 1. Declarer leads the king of hearts at
Trick 2. You duck, thinking that possibly declarer is about to establish
your main attack suit. He continues with a low heart and — ?
This was the deal:
♠ J82
♥ Q43
♦ KQ
♣ J9875
♠ 7 ♠ KQ9653
♥ A 10 9 7 5 N ♥ 6
♦ 8765 W E ♦ J 10 4 3 2
♣ KQ4 S ♣ 6
♠ A 10 4
♥ KJ82
♦ A9
♣ A 10 3 2
You should win this trick. If declarer started with three hearts, you can
play another heart and cash the setting tricks when you win a club. If
partner shows out, concede a heart trick and switch to diamonds, the only
hope for the defense. Now, in spite of partner’s mistaken duck at Trick 1,
declarer must go one down.
Note that declarer (a many-times world champion) made a good
move by leading the king of hearts at Trick 2. At most tables, declarer’s
first heart play was low to the queen and another to the jack. In those
cases, the defenders had an easy time collecting five tricks.
Who Can See Clearly?
Deals arise where one defender can see the defense clearly and needs to
act on his knowledge, rather than wait for his partner to make a wrong
guess.
♠ KQ
♥ AQJ8
♦ K92
♣ 8764
♠ 42
N ♥ 76
W E ♦ A 10 8 7 5 3
S ♣ AKJ

1NT 2♦ 2♠
3♦ pass pass 3♠
all pass
West leads the queen of diamonds and dummy plays the two. East pauses
at Trick 1 to consider his options: discourage with the three of diamonds,
show an even number of diamonds by playing the eight, or something else?
This was the deal:
♠ KQ
♥ AQJ8
♦ K92
♣ 8764
♠ 986 ♠ 42
♥ K543 N ♥ 76
♦ QJ6 W E ♦ A 10 8 7 5 3
♣ Q 10 9 S ♣ AKJ
♠ A J 10 7 5 3
♥ 10 9 2
♦ 4
♣ 532
East can see that the defense is most likely limited to one diamond trick. If
he plays a high diamond, West may well continue with a second diamond,
and declarer will make ten tricks. Dummy’s hearts have an ominous look.
East can see matters clearly and should give his partner no opportunity to
go wrong. He should overtake the diamond queen and play clubs.
All Accounted For
♠ Q
♥ AKQ3
♦ KQJ
♣ J 10 7 5 4
♠ KJ742
♥ J5 N
♦ A52 W E
♣ AK3 S
After this auction:

1♠ dbl 1NT pass
pass dbl pass 2♥
all pass
West leads the king of clubs, partner following with the nine, and declar-
er plays the six. What next?
This was the deal:
♠ Q
♥ AKQ3
♦ KQJ
♣ J 10 7 5 4
♠ KJ742 ♠ A 10
♥ J5 N ♥ 10 9 7 4
♦ A52 W E ♦ 10 7 6 3
♣ AK3 S ♣ Q92
♠ 9 8653
♥ 8 62
♦ 9 84
♣ 8 6
West should not be fooled here into playing more clubs. Declarer has a
yarborough and possibly only three hearts. The only points you cannot
see are the queen of clubs and the ace of spades; partner must have both
to justify her 1NT bid. So play a spade to partner’s ace and let him show
you the blessed ten of spades. Down two!
The scores on this occasion were:
Force the Right Play
♠ K 10
♥ AQ86
♦ K864
♣ 642
♠ A9876
N ♥ 53
W E ♦ AQ7
S ♣ KJ3

1♦ 1♠ 1NT
all pass
West tables the ♠J. Declarer calls for the king and East pauses to consider
his play.
This was the deal:
♠ K 10
♥ AQ86
♦ K864
♣ 642
♠ J3 ♠ A9876
♥ J 10 9 4 2 N ♥ 53
♦ 10 9 5 3 W E ♦ AQ7
♣ A5 S ♣ KJ3
♠ Q542
♥ K7
♦ J2
♣ Q 10 9 8 7
East knows the spade distribution around the table and he knows from
the bidding that partner surely has one entry. He would prefer that part-
ner use his entry to play diamonds, not spades. He can force the issue by
winning with the ace of spades (not ducking) and continuing a low spade
(the ♠9 would ask for a heart). When West later takes his club ace, he
must lead a diamond, which East will win before clearing the spade suit.
The defenders finish with seven tricks and a very good result.
CHAPTER 12
PROBLEMS
I derived this collection of fifty problems from deals that I have participat-
ed in at the table, either as declarer, witness or perpetrator. The deals
come from club games and tournaments of all levels: sectional, regional
and national. I have divided the problems accordingly, so expect them to
become more difficult as you progress.
As in any duplicate game, you will find uneven bidding and less than
perfect play. No brilliancies are required to solve the problems, just solid
deduction. If you find the following pages challenging, keep in mind that
they are geared towards sharpening your defensive prowess and improv-
ing your play at the table. Good luck!
CLUB GAMES:
WARMING UP
1 No Rush
♠ J 10
♥ J763
♦ KQ72
♣ KJ3
♠ K53
♥ 10 8 4 N
♦ A 10 8 4 W E
♣ 876 S

pass 1♠
pass 2♦ pass 2♥
pass 4♥ all pass
After you lead the seven of clubs, partner wins with the queen and declar-
er plays the ten. Hoping you started with short clubs and unsure of the
count, East continues with the club ace. Declarer ruffs and cashes the
ace, king and queen of trumps. Partner follows to two rounds of trumps
and then pitches the ♣2. He now travels to dummy with a diamond (you
duck and partner follows with the three) before leading the jack of
spades. How do you see matters? To Solution
CLUB GAMES - WARMING UP 99

♠ J 10
♥ J763
♦ KQ72
♣ KJ3
♠ K53 ♠ 84
♥ 10 8 4 N ♥ 92
♦ A 10 8 4 W E ♦ J53
♣ 876 S ♣ AQ8542
♠ AQ9762
♥ AKQ5
♦ 96
♣ 10
You now have a complete count of the South hand: four hearts, one club,
two diamonds (based on partner’s play of the diamond three showing an
odd number) and therefore six spades. If you duck the jack of spades in
tempo, declarer will surely repeat the finesse. You will win the second
spade and play ace and another diamond. If partner has the jack of dia-
monds or if declarer has a (now) singleton jack, all of declarer’s spades
will be stranded. Declarer must lose a second diamond and go one down.
Declarer could have improved his prospects by starting spades while
he still had a high trump in his hand.
Don’t forget to thank partner for playing the ace of clubs at Trick 2.
To Problem

2 Declarer is a Friend
Neither vul.
♠ 10 8 6 2
♥ A642
♦ 8642
♣ J
♠ Q97
N ♥ QJ975
W E ♦ KJ
S ♣ A97

1♥ 2♣
dbl pass 2♥ 3♣
South wins West’s ten of hearts lead in dummy. At Trick 2, you allow the
jack of clubs to hold. Declarer crosses to the king of hearts and plays the
king of clubs. Partner has followed with the two and the three of clubs.
How do you see the defense? To Solution

♠ 10 8 6 2
♥ A642
♦ 8642
♣ J
♠ AJ53 ♠ Q97
♥ 10 3 N ♥ QJ975
♦ Q 10 3 W E ♦ KJ
♣ 6432 S ♣ A97
♠ K4
♥ K8
♦ A975
♣ K Q 10 8 5
West has played the two and then the three of trumps, an ambiguous sig-
naling situation suggesting either an even number of trumps or suit pref-
erence for diamonds. Is it possible that a declarer rebid a broken five-card
suit to the three-level, unassisted? East should treat West’s signal as giving
count. If declarer had started with a seven-card club holding,West would
hold ten cards in the unbid suits and would be expected to bid some
more.
Continuing hearts causes declarer to lose trump control and go down
two. She can never enjoy the long diamond trick. A diamond shift sets
up a long diamond for her, allowing her to escape for –100 and very few
matchpoints for East-West. A score of +300 would win all of the match-
points for East-West.
In this case, it helps to know the opponents. South is obviously an
optimistic bidder, and could have done a much better job competing if
she had offered North a choice of minor suits rather than making a uni-
lateral stab in clubs at the three-level. However, it is not East’s job to give
a charitable contribution to South’s matchpoint score; his job is to earn
matchpoints. To Problem

3 Overcoming a Bad Lead
♠ 4
♥ 95432
♦ A85
♣ KQ53
♠ A 10 3 2
♥ AK876 N
♦ 963 W E
♣ 4 S

1♠
2♥ pass 3♣ 3♠
dbl all pass
After the auction, you know that partner is short in hearts. You decide to
try for club ruffs, hoping that partner will have an entry either with the
queen of hearts or a heart ruff. You lead your singleton club and are dis-
appointed to see the dummy. Partner wins with the ace and leads a low
club back. Declarer pitches the queen of hearts and you ruff. Can you sal-
vage any matchpoints here? To Solution

♠ 4
♥ 95432
♦ A85
♣ KQ53
♠ A 10 3 2 ♠ —
♥ AK876 N ♥ J 10
♦ 963 W E ♦ K 10 7 2
♣ 4 S ♣ AJ98762
♠ KQJ98765
♥ Q
♦ QJ4
♣ 10
South has sandbagged her values here, to good effect. Your lead of a club
was a poor choice for two reasons. It left partner in the dark about the
heart situation, and you had two trump tricks in any case and did not need
a ruff.
Partner’s low club return tells you that he has strength in diamonds.
You must hope he has the king. After you ruff the club continuation, you
must not try to cash a heart. Declarer can ruff this, knock out your ace of
trumps, win a diamond shift with the ace, ruff another heart, draw trumps
and finally give up a diamond and make nine tricks. You gain a one-trick
set if you shift to a diamond and get partner to lead another club to pro-
mote your spade ten. To Problem

4 Don’t Tell Declarer Everything
♠ Q 10 6 4
♥ AK932
♦ AQ
♣ 63
♠ A95
N ♥ 876
W E ♦ 10 4 2
S ♣ AKJ8

1♥ pass 1NT1
pass 2♣2 pass 3NT
all pass
1. Forcing.
2. Forced by the system.
You are East and survey the dummy after partner leads the nine of dia-
monds. Declarer wins with the queen and leads a spade to his king, fol-
lowed by the jack of diamonds to the ace and a heart to the queen. He
then cashes the king of diamonds, pitching a spade, plays the jack of
hearts and leads a heart to dummy. How do you discard as declarer runs
the heart suit? How do you play your remaining cards? To Solution

♠ Q 10 6 4
♥ AK932
♦ AQ
♣ 63
♠ J87 ♠ A95
♥ 10 5 N ♥ 876
♦ 98753 W E ♦ 10 4 2
♣ 10 7 4 S ♣ AKJ8
♠ K32
♥ QJ4
♦ KJ6
♣ Q952
You can be reasonably sure that declarer’s original distribution was

3-3-3-4, and that he has all of the unseen high card points. Partner has the
spade jack and nothing else. Declarer did not bid spades, cashed only
three diamonds and no doubt elected to shoot for the best score possible
in notrump in spite of his heart fit, because he had no ruffing value.
You can work out that most declarers will play in four hearts and
score 420. Your hand, on lead, will lead a high club. Declarer will set up
one club for a spade pitch and throw another on the third diamond. Your
job is to avoid –430.
If you keep two spades and the ace-king of clubs, declarer can exit
dummy with a club, endplay you, and make an overtrick. If you bare the
ace of spades and keep three clubs, declarer can still make an overtrick,
but he does not know that. If he comes off dummy with a spade, you win
with your ace, and now the only hope for your side is that partner has the
ten of clubs. When you lead the jack of clubs, you pray that declarer will
go wrong. You can see that your gambit will lose if declarer makes the
correct play, but sometimes declarers guess wrong.
Finally, should declarer play a club to get out of dummy, your best play
is the jack. Declarer may not cover this and you will end up with an
excellent score. To Problem

5 Endplay Dummy!
♠ J6
♥ AJ86
♦ 763
♣ AK53
♠ K 10 7 5 3
♥ KQ97 N
♦ J 10 4 W E
♣ 2 S

1♣ pass 1♦
1♠ pass 2♠ dbl
pass 3♥1 pass 3NT
all pass
1. Mistakenly expecting four hearts.
The bidding sounds a little strange and you do not fancy a lead of your
suit. You decide to try surprise tactics by leading the two of clubs!
Declarer ducks in dummy and partner wins with the nine, returning the
queen. Declarer wins with the ace in dummy and cashes five diamond
tricks, pitching a club and a heart from dummy. Partner follows twice and
then throws the nine of spades, a small club and a small heart. Declarer
leads a low heart towards dummy. You split your honors and declarer
ducks, putting you on lead. What is your plan? To Solution

♠ J6
♥ AJ86
♦ 763
♣ AK53
♠ K 10 7 5 3 ♠ A98
♥ KQ97 N ♥ 10 3 2
♦ J 10 4 W E ♦ 92
♣ 2 S ♣ Q J 10 9 4
♠ Q42
♥ 54
♦ AKQ85
♣ 876
Along with his queen-jack of clubs, you place partner with the ace of
spades to justify his spade raise. Declarer’s hand consisted of only the dia-
monds she has played and the queen of spades. If you now play the king
of spades and a spade to partner’s ace, he will be forced to win it and play
a club to dummy. You are assured a heart trick and declarer will end up
one down. To Problem

6 Keep Track of the Points
♠ AK73
♥ 10 4
♦ A432
♣ Q76
♠ Q 10 8 5
N ♥ 632
W E ♦ KQ87
S ♣ 82

1♣
pass 1♠ pass 1NT
pass 3NT all pass
Partner leads the jack of clubs to declarer’s ace. Declarer continues with
a club to dummy’s queen and a heart to his king. Partner wins with the
ace of hearts and continues with the jack and the nine. Declarer ducks
partner’s jack and wins the nine with the queen of hearts. He then plays
a spade to the king and a low spade. You win with the queen and now
what? To Solution

♠ AK73
♥ 10 4
♦ A432
♣ Q76
♠ 94 ♠ Q 10 8 5
♥ AJ98 N ♥ 632
♦ J95 W E ♦ KQ87
♣ J 10 9 4 S ♣ 82
♠ J62
♥ KQ75
♦ 10 6
♣ AK53
Declarer has shown up with 12 points so far — the ace-king of clubs and
the king-queen of hearts. Partner has shown up with two jacks, but
where are the other two? Declarer could have both, one or none. It looks
as though declarer has the spade jack; otherwise why would he travel to
dummy to play spades? Does declarer have the jack of diamonds?
Possibly, but then it may be doubleton and partner’s ten can save the day.
When you win with the queen of spades, return the diamond king.
Partner will play the nine and you can continue with a second diamond.
Now declarer, with spades blocked, cannot unravel his tricks if you dis-
lodge the ace of diamonds in dummy. Lots of matchpoints here! To
Problem

7 Don’t Waste This Declarer
♠ QJ75
♥ AJ
♦ AQJ2
♣ K98
♠ K8
N ♥ Q9763
W E ♦ K 10 7 4 3
S ♣ 6

pass pass
pass 1♦ 1♥ 1♠
3♥ 4♠ all pass
West leads the ♦8. Declarer plays the queen and you win with your
king. Now what? To Solution

♠ QJ75
♥ AJ
♦ AQJ2
♣ K98
♠ 10 4 ♠ K8
♥ K 10 8 5 4 N ♥ Q9763
♦ 8 W E ♦ K 10 7 4 3
♣ Q7432 S ♣ 6
♠ A9632
♥ 2
♦ 965
♣ A J 10 5
East must realize that partner can have only two reasons for not leading
his suit: either he has the ace (not possible here) or he has a singleton dia-
mond (definitely possible here).
Winning and returning a diamond nets 65% of the matchpoints. Two
pairs were in 6♠ making 980 (good club guess) and several others were
+480. If you took advantage of partner’s good lead and declarer’s mistake,
you did very well. To Problem

8 Hold Up For How Long?
♠ A 10 9 8
♥ Q76
♦ 97
♣ J 10 6 4
♠ J75
♥ J 10 5 3 N
♦ K86 W E
♣ A75 S

pass pass 1♦
pass 1♠ pass 1NT
all pass
You lead your fourth-best heart. Dummy plays low, partner the eight and
declarer wins with her king. She continues with the king of clubs, which
you duck, and partner plays one more eight.
(You and partner have agreed to play Smith signals when it is evident
declarer has no transportation problems.)
Declarer continues with a low club towards dummy. How do you
defend? To Solution

♠ A 10 9 8
♥ Q76
♦ 97
♣ J 10 6 4
♠ J75 ♠ 643
♥ J 10 5 3 N ♥ A982
♦ K86 W E ♦ AQJ4
♣ A75 S ♣ 82
♠ KQ2
♥ K4
♦ 10 5 3 2
♣ KQ93
Partner’s signal here is not a count signal. Declarer has the spade ace for
an entry to dummy’s clubs, so holding up the ♣A won’t prevent him from
reaching them anyway. East is telling you he likes hearts. You must win
your club now, as further holdup is pointless. You intend to unblock your
hearts, hoping that partner has four, but you certainly want him on lead
when hearts are finished. He needs to start diamonds from his side so
that you can make best use of your assets in that suit. There are several
holdings where a lead from partner’s side gains a trick or at least clarifies
(quickly) the position in the suit: J-10-9-(x), the actual one, Q-10-8-7 and
A-J-10-(x).
If you win the second club and continue hearts, unblocking the ten,
the defense scores +50 and an excellent score. If you duck, declarer
switches to spades and scores +90. To Problem

9 Too Easy
♠ K Q 10
♥ K 10 9 6 4
♦ 4
♣ J985
♠ J32
N ♥ J82
W E ♦ AQJ987
S ♣ A

1♦ 2♣
dbl 2♦1 dbl 3♣
all pass
1. Strong club raise.
Partner leads his three of diamonds and you win with the ace. What
next? To Solution

♠ K Q 10
♥ K 10 9 6 4
♦ 4
♣ J985
♠ 9874 ♠ J32
♥ AQ753 N ♥ J82
♦ 3 W E ♦ AQJ987
♣ 763 S ♣ A
♠ A65
♥ —
♦ K 10 6 5 2
♣ K Q 10 4 2
If you do not cash your ace of clubs now, declarer will waltz home
with eleven tricks. A trump play holds him to ten, and –130 is an excel-
lent score for you. This deal is so simple that it is easy to overlook the
right play. To Problem

10 Where Are Our Tricks?
♠ AKQ3
♥ KQJ2
♦ J 10 9 8
♣ 4
♠ J86
♥ A 10 9 8 4 N
♦ 76 W E
♣ QJ7 S

1♦ pass 1NT
pass 2NT pass 3NT
all pass
You lead the ten of hearts, won with dummy’s king. Declarer travels to his
hand with the ace of diamonds and leads a second heart. It’s your turn. To
Solution

♠ AKQ3
♥ KQJ2
♦ J 10 9 8
♣ 4
♠ J86 ♠ 10 4 2
♥ A 10 9 8 4 N ♥ 6
♦ 76 W E ♦ 432
♣ QJ7 S ♣ A K 10 8 6 2
♠ 975
♥ 753
♦ AKQ5
♣ 953
East and West must both stay alert here. West can tell that declarer has
four diamond tricks (East’s queen would be finessable had he held it) as
well as three spades and one heart for sure. A second heart would give
him nine tricks. He must picture East with a raft of clubs and then win
the second heart before shifting to a club. For his part, East should not
part with a single club to give partner a signal. He should pitch a low
spade and let partner know that he is responsible for spades. The scores
are as follows:
+300 = 12 matchpoints (when West takes the ace of hearts, shifts to
a club and East does not waste a club to signal)
+200 = 10 matchpoints (as above, but East signals with a high club)
–630 = 0 matchpoints (when West ducks the second heart)
To Problem

CLUB GAMES:
GETTING SERIOUS
11 Make the Overbidders Pay
♠ 10 8 4 3
♥ A32
♦ 962
♣ KQ8
♠ J76
N ♥ KQJ964
W E ♦ KQ8
S ♣ 5

1♥ 2♦
2♥ 3♦ 3♥ 5♦
all pass
East leads the five of hearts to dummy’s ace and declarer calls for the dia-
mond nine. Can you, East, keep your streak of good boards intact? To
Solution
CLUB GAMES - GETTING SERIOUS 119

♠ 10 8 4 3
♥ A32
♦ 962
♣ KQ8
♠ KQ95 ♠ J76
♥ 10 8 5 N ♥ KQJ964
♦ 3 W E ♦ KQ8
♣ J 10 9 7 3 S ♣ 5
♠ A2
♥ 7
♦ A J 10 7 5 4
♣ A542
The moment of truth! Partner often holds a singleton ten, jack or ace in
declarer’s suit and it is often right to duck with K-Q-x. Here, declarer sure-
ly has six or seven trumps and East must split to hold declarer to ten
tricks. If East ducks, declarer’s nine wins. He will continue with a trump
to the ace and play clubs, ruffing his last club in dummy to assure eleven
tricks. If East splits his honors, however, he can either draw dummy’s last
trump (if declarer continues trumps) or ruff in (if declarer plays clubs).
+50 = 9 matchpoints
–400 = 1.5 matchpoints.
Your score: 215.95 matchpoints (69.21%)
Your score (with correct defense) 215.95 + 7.5 = 222.45 matchpoints
and 71.29%.
Winners score: 221.85 matchpoints, 71.11%.
It is not often that you score 69% and come second. You would have
preferred to be consoling your rivals after they scored 71.11% and placed
second! To Problem

12 Salvage a Few Matchpoints
♠ Q953
♥ 953
♦ K863
♣ 64
♠ —
N ♥ K8642
W E ♦ 10 9 7 4
S ♣ 9873

1♠
2♥ 2♠ 4♥ 4♠
5♥ pass pass 5♠
all pass
Partner leads the five of diamonds and declarer wins your nine with the
queen. When he leads a low trump, partner goes up with the ace and
leads the seven of hearts. What is East’s defensive plan? To Solution

♠ Q953
♥ 953
♦ K863
♣ 64
♠ A2 ♠ —
♥ A Q J 10 7 N ♥ K8642
♦ 5 W E ♦ 10 9 7 4
♣ K J 10 5 2 S ♣ 9873
♠ K J 10 8 7 6 4
♥ —
♦ AQJ2
♣ AQ
East knows that partner has all of the missing hearts and is underleading
his ace. This is a sure indicator that West started with a singleton diamond
and is hoping for a ruff. East knows that he has no entry to help partner
with his plan, because declarer is void in hearts. East must be careful not
to waste his king of hearts now or later. Doing so subjects West to a
squeeze in clubs and hearts and declarer might make a valuable overtrick.
If East keeps the king to the bitter end, the defense will hold declarer to
his contract and score average points.
Although East-West would have done better to sacrifice in six hearts
(that contract is down only one), bidding decisions at the five- and six-lev-
els are always difficult to judge. West cannot be faulted for defending.
Prospects were good that his side would take three tricks. To Problem

13 Raise the Stakes for Declarer
♠ 10 7
♥ AK732
♦ K743
♣ 10 7
♠ 9853
♥ 8 N
♦ AJ8652 W E
♣ J9 S

2NT
pass 3♦ pass 3♥
pass 3NT all pass
You lead the six of diamonds. Partner plays the nine and declarer wins
with the ten. Declarer then returns the diamond queen to your ace. What
is your best move? To Solution

♠ 10 7
♥ AK732
♦ K743
♣ 10 7
♠ 9853 ♠ J64
♥ 8 N ♥ J 10 9 6 5
♦ AJ8652 W E ♦ 9
♣ J9 S ♣ K654
♠ AKQ2
♥ Q4
♦ Q 10
♣ AQ832
If you return a diamond and set up two winners, declarer may judge that
he cannot afford to risk allowing your hand on lead. He may elect to play
conservatively, cashing nine tricks and forgoing the club finesse. Minus
400 will be a good result for you.
If you fail to return a diamond at Trick 3, declarer has nothing to lose
by trying the club finesse. The theme of setting up your suit even when
you have no entry occurs frequently. You raise the stakes for those declar-
ers (all of them!) who are hungry for overtricks. To Problem

14 Preserve Your Trumps!
♠ K65
♥ 97632
♦ AQJ3
♣ 2
♠ 987
N ♥ AK54
W E ♦ 10 9 6
S ♣ KJ6

1♠
pass 3♠ pass 4♠
all pass
The auction is not typical here, but the contract certainly seems to be nor-
mal. Partner leads the ten of trumps. Declarer wins with the jack in hand,
takes a diamond finesse, discards a heart on the ace of diamonds, plays a
club to the ace, ruffs a club, ruffs a diamond and ruffs a club. He then
comes off dummy with a diamond. South has done well to take the dia-
mond finesse — he could have played a ruffing finesse — and that is not
good for your side. What is your plan from this point on? To Solution

♠ K65
♥ 97632
♦ AQJ3
♣ 2
♠ 10 2 ♠ 987
♥ J8 N ♥ AK54
♦ K8742 W E ♦ 10 9 6
♣ Q 10 7 3 S ♣ KJ6
♠ AQJ43
♥ Q 10
♦ 5
♣ A9854
This was the position as declarer played the jack of diamonds from
dummy.
♠ —
♥ 97632
♦ J
♣ —
♠ 2 ♠ 98
♥ J8 N ♥ AK54
♦ K8 W E ♦ —
♣ Q S ♣ —
♠ AQ4
♥ Q
♦ —
♣ 98
You must refrain from ruffing. Declarer is on her way to losing trump
control, and as you are the one with long trumps, you cannot afford to
ruff. This is not an uppercut situation. Had you started with a doubleton
trump, you would have been right to try for an uppercut. By holding on
to your 9-8 of trumps, you ensured that the best declarer can do is to cash
her remaining high trumps and concede the rest. If you waste a trump at
Trick 8, declarer can overruff, draws trumps, give up a club and end up
with eleven tricks and plenty of matchpoints. To Problem

15 Diagnose an Unusual Contract
♠ Q J 10 7 4
♥ KJ9
♦ 2
♣ 9873
♠ 9532
♥ Q764 N
♦ AKJ4 W E
♣ J S

2NT
pass 3♥ pass 3♠
pass 3NT pass 4♠
all pass
As West, you lead the king of diamonds. Partner plays the five and
declarer the ten. What next? To Solution

♠ Q J 10 7 4
♥ KJ9
♦ 2
♣ 9873
♠ 9532 ♠ 86
♥ Q764 N ♥ 2
♦ AKJ4 W E ♦ 987653
♣ J S ♣ Q 10 4 2
♠ AK
♥ A 10 8 5 3
♦ Q 10
♣ AK65
Partner cannot have much on this auction — probably a jack or queen.

Declarer may be fooling you with the ten of diamonds, but it could be a
true card. In any case, another diamond will shorten dummy’s trumps
and your fourth trump may cause declarer some problems. If you play
anything but a diamond at Trick 2, declarer will take eleven tricks and you
will net very few match points.
To safeguard his contract, declarer has to allow your second diamond
to win. He can ruff the third in hand and is safe against any further attack.
If he ruffs the second diamond, draws all your trumps and then mis-
guesses the heart queen, he will go down — he cannot prevent you from
cashing your remaining diamonds.
On this deal, declarer has only two trumps, one less than you would
expect. Note, however, that he made a good decision when he bid four
spades. Had he passed 3NT, your side could have cashed six diamond
tricks. To Problem

16 Never Say Die
♠ A7
♥ AK
♦ KJ8
♣ 876542
♠ QJ8
N ♥ 10 7 4
W E ♦ 10 9 4
S ♣ AKJ3

1♣ pass 1♠
pass 2♣ pass 3♠
pass 4♠ dbl all pass
You doubled this contract hoping that partner would avoid a possibly dis-
astrous red-suit lead. When partner leads the ten of clubs, you win with
the king and declarer drops the queen. What next? To Solution

♠ A7
♥ AK
♦ KJ8
♣ 876542
♠ 10 4 2 ♠ QJ8
♥ QJ9652 N ♥ 10 7 4
♦ 652 W E ♦ 10 9 4
♣ 10 S ♣ AKJ3
♠ K9653
♥ 83
♦ AQ73
♣ Q9
(Apologies to those living in cloistered circles who have never seen a

jump rebid on a bad five-card suit!)
All the matchpoints are on the line here. Four percent of the session’s
score will depend on your next play. Declarer surely has the ace and
queen of diamonds for her bid and your only hope is that she has false-
carded, that the ace of clubs will live and that partner has the ten of
spades (or the nine and that declarer misguesses). Cash the ace of clubs
and play another. To Problem

17 Watch Those Spot Cards
Neither vul.
♠ 9765
♥ 95
♦ Q J 10 9
♣ KJ3
♠ Q8
N ♥ AQ762
W E ♦ 74
S ♣ 10 9 8 6

1NT1 pass 2♦2 2♠
3♥ 3♠ dbl3 all pass
1. 15-17 HCP.
2. Transfer.
3. “I have some high cards; please do something logical, partner.”
West leads the king of diamonds and continues with the ace and the
three. Declarer followed with the five, the six and the eight, while you
ruff the third round with the ♠8. Now what? To Solution

♠ 9765
♥ 95
♦ Q J 10 9
♣ KJ3
♠ J4 ♠ Q8
♥ K J 10 4 N ♥ AQ762
♦ AK32 W E ♦ 74
♣ A52 S ♣ 10 9 8 6
♠ A K 10 3 2
♥ 83
♦ 865
♣ Q74
On this deal, East can help his side by paying careful attention to the spot
cards. If he makes note of declarer’s plays of the ♦8, the ♦6 and the ♦5
on the first three tricks, he can see that West might hold the two of dia-
monds (but is not guaranteed to). He is therefore asking for a heart
return. The play of the ace of hearts fetches the jack from West and the
heart continuation puts West on lead. He can cash the ace of clubs and
play his fourth diamond to produce an uppercut. The contract is down
three and East-West gain a top board.
A club back would give West a difficult problem. If he continues with
the fourth diamond now, declarer pitches a heart loser and the defense
garners only a two-trick set. To Problem

18 Process the Information
♠ 963
♥ A K 10
♦ K J 10 9
♣ 10 7 5
♠ 10 7 5
♥ J2 N
♦ 8753 W E
♣ J964 S

pass pass 2NT
pass 3NT all pass
You lead the four of clubs and dummy’s ten cheaply holds the first trick.
Declarer cashes the ace, king and queen of clubs, throwing dummy’s ♠3,
as East follows twice and then discards the eight of hearts and the deuce
of spades. Next declarer cashes the ace of diamonds and leads low to
dummy’s ten, which holds the trick. He then plays a low spade to his
eight, losing to your ten. How do you continue? To Solution

♠ 963
♥ A K 10
♦ K J 10 9
♣ 10 7 5
♠ 10 7 5 ♠ KQ42
♥ J2 N ♥ Q8643
♦ 8753 W E ♦ 64
♣ J964 S ♣ 82
♠ AJ8
♥ 975
♦ AQ2
♣ AKQ3
You now have a complete picture of the deal. Declarer is marked with
the ace, king, and queen of clubs, the ace-queen of diamonds, nothing in
hearts and the ace and jack of spades. That totals 20 points and leaves
partner with the balance. Forget your disastrous lead of a club (you will
have company); do your best to salvage some matchpoints. Declarer has
made the normal percentage play in spades, allowing you to win a trick
with your ten. Even though partner signaled interest in hearts, this is no
time to lead his suit. You can see that partner is about to be squeezed in
hearts and spades, and you can break it up by returning a spade. If you
lead a heart now, declarer will win in dummy, cash two diamonds and
partner will have to make a losing discard in either spades or hearts.
Declarer will then make twelve tricks.
Declarer could have timed the play better, but the deal nevertheless
illustrates the importance of processing the information available and
thinking twice before leading a suit in which partner has signaled interest.
To Problem

19 Consider Some Alternatives
♠ Q53
♥ J 10 7 5
♦ A953
♣ 73
♠ K86
♥ A63 N
♦ KJ4 W E
♣ J 10 8 6 S

1♠
pass 2♠ all pass
You, West, decide to make an unusual lead of the six of spades. Dummy
plays the three, partner the deuce and declarer wins with the seven.
Declarer plays a diamond to the ace, a club to his queen, the ace of clubs
and takes a club ruff with the five of trumps (partner follows to this trick
with the king of clubs). Declarer continues with a diamond to the queen.
You are on lead after winning your king of diamonds. It’s your play. To
Solution

At matchpoints, you must consider not only the possibility of setting
the contract, but also possibilities of taking three, four or five tricks. You
know declarer’s club holding for sure. How about trumps and his red
suits? Partner has played the ♦6 and then the ♦8, following to two
rounds of diamonds. These are count signals and declarer must have start-
ed with a holding of ♦Q-7-2 or ♦Q-10-2. What are his spade and heart
holdings? Let’s consider some alternative holdings for declarer.
HAND 1: ♠ A J 10 9 7 4 ♥— ♦Q72 ♣AQ95
HAND 2: ♠ A J 10 9 7 ♥9 ♦Q72 ♣AQ95
HAND 3: ♠ A J 10 9 7 ♥K ♦Q72 ♣AQ95
With Hand 1 declarer always takes ten tricks: five spades, two clubs and
two ruffs and the ace of diamonds. His hand is good enough for an imme-
diate game bid over a two spade raise.
Against Hand 2, the defenders can take two diamonds, a spade, a club
and a heart, holding declarer to eight tricks. West must courageously
underlead his ace of hearts to permit his partner to return his last trump.
Against Hand 3, underleading the ace of hearts costs a trick. Declarer
scores four spades, a heart, a diamond, two clubs and two club ruffs.
There is no exact answer here. A guiding thought might be that
declarer could have made a game try with Hand 3. Since he did not, he
is more likely to hold Hand 2.
My vote is with the courageous players who underlead their aces in
this situation. They risk a clear bottom against Hand 3, but win plenty of
matchpoints against Hand 2. Partnerships should agree to withhold crit-
icism when aggressive defensive tactics turn out badly. This was the deal:

♠ Q53
♥ J 10 7 5
♦ A953
♣ 73
♠ K86 ♠ 42
N
♥ A63 ♥ KQ842
♦ KJ4 W E ♦ 10 8 6
♣ J 10 8 6 S ♣ K42
♠ A J 10 9 7
♥ 9
♦ Q72
♣ AQ95
An underlead of the heart ace and a spade return by East stops the over-
trick and yields plenty of matchpoints to the defenders. To Problem

20 Count It Out
N-S vul.
♠ K6
♥ A Q 10 5
♦ J 10 8 3
♣ K76
♠ 874
♥ 74 N
♦ AKQ642 W E
♣ J4 S

pass 1NT1
2♦ 2NT2 pass 3♣
pass 3♦3 pass 3NT
all pass
1. 12-14 HCP.
2. Lebensohl.
3. Stayman with a diamond stopper.
You lead the diamond queen at Trick 1 and partner signals with the eight
of hearts. How should you continue? To Solution

♠ K6
♥ A Q 10 5
♦ J 10 8 3
♣ K76
♠ 874 ♠ J 10 9 3 2
♥ 74 N ♥ KJ832
♦ AKQ642 W E ♦ —
♣ J4 S ♣ 10 3 2
♠ AQ5
♥ 96
♦ 975
♣ AQ985
East cannot have more than 5 HCP. If four of them are in hearts, the
defense can score four tricks if West times his play correctly. If West cash-
es all three diamonds, declarer can refuse the heart finesse and take five
clubs, three spades, one heart and one diamond for 630. If East switches
to a heart at Trick 2, the defenders lose their diamond tricks forever.
Declarer can abandon diamonds and play on hearts. He is known to have
the nine of hearts (East signals with the highest from touching cards and
her play of the eight at Trick 1 denied the nine). The right line for the
defense is to cash exactly two high diamonds and switch to a heart. This
is the only line which holds declarer to nine tricks.
This is a seemingly simple deal, yet few players worked it out at the
table. West players either shifted to a heart at Trick 2 or cashed three dia-
monds before shifting. To Problem

21 Plenty at Stake at Trick 2
♠ 2
♥ K J 10 8 6 2
♦ J4
♣ J864
♠ KJ9875
♥ A N
♦ K32 W E
♣ 10 9 7 S

1♠ pass 4♦1 5♦
dbl all pass
1. Splinter.
Your partnership has the agreement that you seldom pull a high-level
double when partner has doubled in front of you. You lead the ace of
hearts and partner plays low, declarer following with the queen. How do
you continue? To Solution

♠ 2
♥ K J 10 8 6 2
♦ J4
♣ J864
♠ KJ9875 ♠ A Q 10 6 4 3
♥ A N ♥ 975
♦ K32 W E ♦ 5
♣ 10 9 7 S ♣ KQ2
♠ —
♥ Q43
♦ A Q 10 9 8 7 6
♣ A53
You can see that you are not about to take many tricks in the spade suit!
Partner has opening bid values. Where are his points? They must be in
clubs and spades. There is no rush at all to cash spade tricks. You can do
that after you win your king of diamonds. If you shift to the ten of clubs
at Trick 2, you set up two club tricks and an entry for partner to give you
a heart ruff. You will set the contract three for a top board.
If you switch to a spade at Trick 2, declarer makes his contract, and
you earn zero matchpoints! To Problem

22 Wait For It
♠ Q92
♥ KJ4
♦ 95
♣ AK872
♠ K876
♥ A762 N
♦ QJ7 W E
♣ 43 S

1♣ 1♦ 1♠
2♣1 dbl2 2♦ 4♠
all pass
1. Strong diamond raise.

2. Three-card spade support.
You lead the queen of diamonds to declarer’s ace. He leads the ten of
clubs to dummy’s ace and partner’s jack. He then plays the nine of spades
and you let it win. Next, he tries the queen of spades and you win with
the king. Partner has followed with the three and four of spades. What
next? To Solution

♠ Q92
♥ KJ4
♦ 95
♣ AK872
♠ K876 ♠ 43
♥ A762 N ♥ Q 10 5 3
♦ QJ7 W E ♦ K 10 8 6 4 2
♣ 43 S ♣ J
♠ A J 10 5
♥ 98
♦ A3
♣ Q 10 9 6 5
You realize that your opponents have bid game on a 4-3 trump fit. Few
pairs care to risk playing game in a known 4-3 trump suit. You need to
set this contract to earn any match points. As you can see, you missed
your first chance by not winning the first spade and giving partner a club
ruff. You can make your duck pay off, however, by returning a trump. The
defenders’ diamonds are all set up. Declarer can take five club tricks,
three spades and the ace of diamonds — nine tricks only. When he leads
a heart, you will rise with your ace and play diamonds.
Finally, should declarer switch to hearts in an effort to make a heart
trick before drawing your last trump, you rise with your ace and force
declarer in diamonds to set up your fourth spade. This was not the occa-
sion to give declarer a heart guess at Trick 5. To Problem

23 Top or Bottom?
N-S vul.
♠ A 10
♥ 8753
♦ 74
♣ J9864
♠ 64
N ♥ KJ2
W E ♦ A Q 10 6 5
S ♣ KQ3

1NT1 2♣2
dbl3 pass pass 2♠
dbl all pass
1. 15-17 HCP.
2. Showing a one-suited hand.
3. Penalty suggestion.
At this vulnerability, both sides have an opportunity for a good score.

Forget average! Partner leads the eight of diamonds and you win with the
ace. Which do you prefer, a top or a bottom? To Solution

♠ A 10
♥ 8753
♦ 74
♣ J9864
♠ J82 ♠ 64
♥ A 10 6 N ♥ KJ2
♦ KJ8 W E ♦ A Q 10 6 5
♣ A 10 7 2 S ♣ KQ3
♠ KQ9753
♥ Q94
♦ 932
♣ 5
You must prevent declarer from ruffing a diamond in dummy. Do not be

fooled by partner’s eight of diamonds lead. He has led his lowest card in
the suit.You must return a trump at Trick 2.
You may think that 3NT will go down two, and even +200 will give
you a good score. In the actual game where this deal occurred, many
South players led the king of spades against notrump contracts and ended
–430 or –460. Plus 500 was needed for a really good East-West result. To
Problem

24 Don’t Let the Silver Hair Fool You
♠ A J 10 8 6
♥ KQ63
♦ 8
♣ KQ3
♠ 5
N ♥ A 10 7
W E ♦ Q964
S ♣ J 10 8 7 6
Two silver-haired ladies arrive at your table and surprise you with an
aggressive auction.

1NT
pass 4♣1 pass 4♠
pass 6NT all pass
1. Gerber.
West leads the two of hearts and you are even more surprised when you
see the dummy. Declarer plays the king and you win with the ace. How
do you plan the defense? To Solution

♠ A J 10 8 6
♥ KQ63
♦ 8
♣ KQ3
♠ 9432 ♠ 5
♥ J982 N ♥ A 10 7
♦ J32 W E ♦ Q964
♣ 92 S ♣ J 10 8 7 6
♠ KQ7
♥ 54
♦ A K 10 7 5
♣ A54
The easy way to defeat this contract is to duck the ace of hearts, after
which declarer has no winning options. From East’s point of view, how-
ever, declarer might hold ♦A-K-J-10, and in that case, twelve tricks are
there for the taking. Ducking the ace of hearts would allow declarer to
subject East to a merciless squeeze, making all of the tricks (five spades,
four diamonds, three clubs and a heart). East therefore wins with the ace
and returns the ten of hearts to dummy’s king. On the run of the spades,
East fears to pitch two clubs, because he cannot be sure that declarer
started with only three clubs. Therefore his best plan is to pitch three dia-
monds. He dare not pitch the seven of hearts, because that sets up a
squeeze in diamonds and hearts against partner. On the actual layout,
after the third club, declarer will be in dummy with two small hearts and
a diamond. If East has pitched his third heart,West will have to surrender
the twelfth trick by discarding a good heart or a diamond control. Plus
50 here nets all of the matchpoints. Less than half the field will be in slam,
and most who are will be in spades, which makes easily with one heart
ruff. To Problem

25 Goat or Hero?
♠ Q 10 6 4
♥ J2
♦ A K 10
♣ 10 8 4 2
♠ A53
N ♥ 7654
W E ♦ J96
S ♣ Q93
You notice that your opponents are playing four-card majors and 16-18
notrumps. After this auction, partner leads the eight of diamonds to
dummy’s ten, your jack and declarer’s queen.

1♥
pass 1♠ pass 1NT
pass 2NT pass 3NT
all pass
At Trick 2, declarer tables the jack of spades and partner plays the seven.
Are you willing to be labeled a goat in your quest to become a hero? To
Solution

♠ Q 10 6 4
♥ J2
♦ A K 10
♣ 10 8 4 2
♠ K987 ♠ A53
♥ 10 8 5 N ♥ 7654
♦ 842 W E ♦ J96
♣ AJ6 S ♣ Q93
♠ J2
♥ AKQ7
♦ Q753
♣ K75
You expect partner to have the king of spades here and declarer to hold
a doubleton jack, since he didn’t raise spades at any stage. The best hope
for the defense lies in the club suit. Is there any chance for three tricks?
Not if declarer sees your hand. Otherwise, if you lead the queen of clubs,
declarer has some guesswork. If she ducks this, she goes down. Even if
she covers, she has a guess when West plays a low club back. If you play
your clubs right, you may qualify as a hero for the evening. Had declarer
held the jack as well as the king of clubs, she would cover your queen
quickly and you could don a pair of goat horns. To Problem

SECTIONAL
TOURNAMENTS
26 No Time for a Snooze
♠ Q432
♥ Q6
♦ AKJ92
♣ 43
♠ AK7
♥ J 10 9 4 3 N
♦ 74 W E
♣ J97 S

1NT1
pass 3NT all pass
1. 13-15 HCP.
You lead the jack of hearts. Dummy’s queen wins and partner plays the
two. Declarer plays a spade to the nine and your king. What next? To
Solution
SECTIONAL TOURNAMENTS 151

♠ Q432
♥ Q6
♦ AKJ92
♣ 43
♠ AK7 ♠ 10 6 5
♥ J 10 9 4 3 N ♥ 872
♦ 74 W E ♦ 863
♣ J97 S ♣ K Q 10 5
♠ J98
♥ AK5
♦ Q 10 5
♣ A862
A club shift now holds declarer to nine tricks and a score of minus 400.
Continuing hearts is a sleepy play and gives declarer an easy eleven tricks:
minus 460 for you. The scores are as follows:
Minus 400 = 9 matchpoints
Minus 460 = 3 matchpoints
To Problem

27 Reconstruct Declarer’s Hand with Care
♠ 64
♥ AK
♦ A98532
♣ Q82
♠ J 10 8 7
N ♥ J86
W E ♦ K64
S ♣ K97

1♥ 2♦ 2♥ 2♠
pass 3♠ pass 4♠
all pass
The bidding, as in many matchpoint pairs games, is suspect. North-South

lacked a clear agreement on what was forcing after an overcall. Dummy
wins partner’s ten of hearts lead and a spade to the king loses to partner’s
ace. The king of hearts wins the next trick and declarer calls for dummy’s
last spade. You now split, properly, and declarer wins with the queen, get-
ting the bad news, as partner shows out. Declarer cashes the queen of
hearts, pitching a diamond from dummy and plays the jack of diamonds
to the ace. He then ruffs a diamond and leads a club to dummy’s eight and
your nine. How should you defend? To Solution

♠ 64
♥ AK
♦ A98532
♣ Q82
♠ A ♠ J 10 8 7
♥ 10 9 7 4 3 N ♥ J86
♦ Q 10 7 W E ♦ K64
♣ AJ65 S ♣ K97
♠ KQ9532
♥ Q42
♦ J
♣ 10 4 3
You have a good picture of the whole deal now. Partner has made a very
light opening bid and the opponents have allowed themselves to be driv-
en far too high. You know partner has four clubs to the ace and jack; oth-
erwise how could he open the bidding? What now?
If you force declarer to ruff, you play into his hands by shortening his
trumps. On this deal, you want to strip declarer of his exit cards before
forcing him. If you cash the king of clubs and play a club, partner can
force declarer. Then he will play into your ♠J-8 for +300. If you return a
diamond instead, you let declarer ruff and exit in clubs. He can then make
his ♠K-9 for down two. Plus 200 is an excellent score for your side: 9.5
matchpoints, but why not get 12 matchpoints for +300? To Problem

28 Think of Overtricks
♠ KJ7
♥ 76
♦ A 10 7 4 3
♣ AJ8
♠ A64
N ♥ 5432
W E ♦ J9
S ♣ 10 9 6 3
After North opens 1♦, South makes a (forcing) 2♦ raise. North rebids 2♠
and South closes the auction with 3NT. Partner’s three of spades goes to
dummy’s jack and your ace. You now have a major decision to make. The
contract is not going down. Where are your tricks? To Solution

♠ KJ7
♥ 76
♦ A 10 7 4 3
♣ AJ8
♠ Q 10 8 3 2 ♠ A64
♥ K J 10 9 N ♥ 5432
♦ 82 W E ♦ J9
♣ Q5 S ♣ 10 9 6 3
♠ 95
♥ AQ8
♦ KQ65
♣ K742
How about hearts? A heart shift now nets –430. A spade return allows
declarer to cash his minor-suit tricks (three clubs and five diamonds) and
then endplay partner with a third spade, forcing him to lead into the ace-
queen of hearts. You can tell from declarer’s play of the jack of spades at
Trick 1 that partner has the ten (as well as the queen). Partner’s club hold-
ing is vulnerable. Assume that declarer has five diamond tricks, a spade,
three clubs and a heart. The scores are as follows:
To Problem

29 Win the Event!
♠ AKJ643
♥ 753
♦ 93
♣ A 10
♠ 2
♥ K2 N
♦ A Q J 10 8 6 W E
♣ KQ53 S

1♦ 1♠ pass 2♥
3♣ 3♥ 4♣ 4♥
all pass
After a competitive auction, it is not clear who has what. Dummy wins
your king of clubs with the ace and declarer takes a losing heart finesse.
You cash the queen of clubs and partner plays the nine and declarer the
jack. What next? To Solution

♠ AKJ643
♥ 753
♦ 93
♣ A 10
♠ 2 ♠ Q 10 8 5
♥ K2 N ♥ 86
♦ A Q J 10 8 6 W E ♦ 75
♣ KQ53 S ♣ 98764
♠ 97
♥ A Q J 10 9 4
♦ K42
♣ J2
The spade suit in dummy looks dangerous, and if declarer has six or seven
trumps, he will have an entry with the third trump. It is unlikely that
declarer has three spades in hand, because he might have chosen to raise
spades instead of bidding a non-forcing two hearts. With a doubleton, he
might have the queen; otherwise he might be as good as ♠10-9. If part-
ner has four spades to the queen, declarer cannot set up the spades. In
that case, partner’s spot cards in spades have to be good enough to pre-
vent a ruffing finesse. Partner’s nine of clubs may be an attempt to tell
you that he has something in spades. He certainly has nothing else to jus-
tify his four club call. There is therefore no need to panic here and switch
to diamonds. Simply returning a trump will set the declarer and give you
a fine score. Scores:
–420 = 1 matchpoint
+50 = 8 matchpoints
This deal actually swung the tournament. West cashed his ace of dia-
monds, allowing four hearts to make. The seven extra matchpoints would
have propelled East-West into first place. To Problem

30 Yes, an Individual
♠ 7
♥ 6
♦ KJ8642
♣ A K J 10 8
♠ J832
♥ QJ92 N
♦ 10 9 W E
♣ 753 S
Playing in individual matchpoint events with a different partner on every

hand results in some of the weirder contracts one can experience. In this
example, neither North nor South was sure whether the club bid was nat-
ural or a fourth suit game-force and South was reluctant to bid notrump.
North optimistically did not want to give up on slam. Sharp defenders
can do well when these misunderstandings arise.

1♠
pass 2♦ pass 2♥
pass 3♣ pass 3♠
pass 4♣ pass 4♦
pass 4♠ all pass
West leads the ten of diamonds. East cashes the queen and the ace and
plays the ♦3. When South ruffs with the ten of spades, what is West’s
plan? To Solution

♠ 7
♥ 6
♦ KJ8642
♣ A K J 10 8
♠ J832 ♠ Q64
♥ QJ92 N ♥ 10 8 7 4
♦ 10 9 W E ♦ AQ3
♣ 753 S ♣ Q64
♠ A K 10 9 5
♥ AK53
♦ 75
♣ 92
West must refrain from overruffing. An overruff allows declarer to win

any return, cross to dummy (if he is not there already), pick up the trumps
with a finesse of the nine and score his game. If West bides his time, the
defense is sure of two trump tricks and a plus score for plenty of match-
points. To Problem

PLAYING AT
REGIONALS
31 Danger Lurks
♠ 4
♥ K973
♦ AKJ
♣ J 10 8 6 5
♠ Q 10 6
N ♥ QJ8
W E ♦ 10 3
S ♣ K7432

1♠ dbl 2♠ 3♦
3♠ pass 4♠ 5♦
dbl all pass
It seems as though everyone has a lot of points here. After this auction,
West leads the king of spades and continues with a second spade.
Declarer ruffs in dummy, leads a club to the ace, a trump to dummy and
ruffs a club. He then leads a trump to dummy’s king and calls for a low
club. How should East plan the defense? To Solution
PLAYING AT REGIONALS 161

♠ 4
♥ K973
♦ AKJ
♣ J 10 8 6 5
♠ AKJ852 ♠ Q 10 6
♥ A 10 4 N ♥ QJ8
♦ 75 W E ♦ 10 3
♣ Q9 S ♣ K7432
♠ 973
♥ 652
♦ Q98642
♣ A
Part of the time, declarer will misguess the position, ruff the club and con-
cede two down. The danger to the defense is that the other times declar-
er will guess right. If East does not cover, declarer can run the eight of
clubs, pitching his last spade. He will then continue clubs, ruffing out
East’s king, and finally pitch his losing heart on the last club. East-West
will concede minus 550 for no matchpoints.
East should not rely on a misguess. He can ensure a set by covering
the eight of clubs with the king. Now, when declarer ruffs and attempts
to reach dummy with a heart, partner can grab his ace and cash a second
spade trick for down one. To Problem

32 Winning a Regional Event
♠ 10 3
♥ 10 9 5 2
♦ 987
♣ K 10 6 3
♠ KJ87
♥ 4 N
♦ AK6 W E
♣ AQ985 S

1♥
dbl pass 1♠ 2♥
2♠ 3♥ pass 4♥
dbl all pass
You, West, must justify your action. Declarer is known to be a sound

player.
The lead of the king of diamonds collects the five from partner and
the two from declarer. You continue with the ace of diamonds. Partner
plays the four and declarer the queen. How do you plan the defense? To
Solution

♠ 10 3
♥ 10 9 5 2
♦ 987
♣ K 10 6 3
♠ KJ87 ♠ 6542
♥ 4 N ♥ J
♦ AK6 W E ♦ J 10 5 4 3
♣ AQ985 S ♣ 742
♠ AQ9
♥ AKQ8763
♦ Q2
♣ J
Partner has chosen to encourage diamonds, meaning that she is not

encouraging you to find a switch. The club ace must cash and the spade
king must live if your double is to be successful. The problem is that if
you do not cash the ace of clubs now, you may not have a good exit card
when you win it later.
By cashing the ace of clubs now and exiting with a diamond (or a
trump), you ensure that declarer must go down one. You are looking at
24 matchpoints versus 2 — a difference of over 3% in your session
standing. To Problem

33 Take Advantage
♠ K64
♥ KQ3
♦ J2
♣ AJ865
♠ J97
N ♥ 10 9 7 5 4
W E ♦ A Q 10 3
S ♣ 2
After a simple 1NT-3NT auction where South shows 15-17 HCP,West leads
the eight of hearts. Declarer wins with the ace in hand, plays the ♣K-Q
and continues to run the club suit. You and partner pitch hearts and
declarer pitches a small diamond on the last club. He then leads a spade
to his queen and partner’s ace. Partner continues with the two of spades
and declarer wins with the king in dummy. Have you made a defensive
plan while all of this was going on? To Solution

♠ K64
♥ KQ3
♦ J2
♣ AJ865
♠ A 10 8 2 ♠ J97
♥ 862 N ♥ 10 9 7 5 4
♦ 975 W E ♦ A Q 10 3
♣ 10 9 7 S ♣ 2
♠ Q53
♥ AJ
♦ K864
♣ KQ43
Partner did well to avoid a spade lead on this deal. When declarer runs
the clubs, you can see that your hearts are useless and you can afford to
pitch them all. Declarer has nine obvious tricks — five clubs, three hearts
and a spade. He can make a tenth by leading a diamond to his king,
although he does not know this yet. When he fails to duck the second
spade, he gives East a big chance to shine. Up until partner’s play of the
deuce of spades, you were not sure of the location of the ten of spades.
Partner’s play absolutely guarantees that card. Unblocking the jack of
spades holds declarer to nine tricks and East-West march off with all the
matchpoints. To Problem

34 Avoid a Roadblock
♠ 10 2
♥ Q9
♦ AQJ86
♣ AKQ2
♠ A864
♥ 10 8 2 N
♦ 753 W E
♣ 975 S

1♦ 1♥ 1♠
pass 3♣ pass 3NT
all pass
After this auction, you lead the two of hearts to dummy’s nine, partner’s
jack and declarer’s ace. Declarer plays the ace, king, queen and deuce of
clubs, winning the fourth round with the ten in hand. Partner plays the
three of hearts on the third club, and the three of spades on the fourth.
How do you plan the defense? To Solution

♠ 10 2
♥ Q9
♦ AQJ86
♣ AKQ2
♠ A864 ♠ Q93
♥ 10 8 2 N ♥ KJ7643
♦ 753 W E ♦ K4
♣ 975 S ♣ J3
♠ KJ75
♥ A5
♦ 10 9 2
♣ 10 8 6 4
You threw the ♥10 on the fourth round of clubs! South withheld the
queen of hearts at Trick 1 in an effort to create a block in the heart suit,
but immediately lost the opportunity to make the contract. He needed to
finesse diamonds at Trick 2, praying that either the diamond finesse would
work or else the hearts would block. Partner’s strange-looking discard of
a heart tells you that he started with six and you can tell that an unblock
is required.
The unblock leads to +100 for East-West, worth eleven matchpoints
at the masterpoint store (Gatlinburg regional). Failure to unblock was
good for –400 and two matchpoints.
Alternatively, South could have bid three hearts over the three club
bid, allowing North to become declarer, in which case 3NT would make
(ten tricks on a heart lead). However, 3NT will go down if East leads a
spade and West wins and shifts to a high heart. To Problem

35 Careful, Careful
♠ J7
♥ J9
♦ K9742
♣ AQ63
♠ 52
♥ Q 10 5 4 N
♦ Q J 10 W E
♣ K 10 9 2 S

pass 1♠
pass 1NT pass 3♠
pass 4♠ all pass
You lead the queen of diamonds to dummy’s two, partner’s three and
declarer’s five. What next? To Solution

♠ J7
♥ J9
♦ K9742
♣ AQ63
♠ 52 ♠ 86
♥ Q 10 5 4 N ♥ K7632
♦ Q J 10 W E ♦ A83
♣ K 10 9 2 S ♣ 854
♠ A K Q 10 9 4 3
♥ A8
♦ 65
♣ J7
Declarer’s strong rebid in this case is based on a seven-card suit and not
a wealth of high cards. It looks as though your diamond lead may have
struck gold. The nine is a disturbing card in dummy, however. If you con-
tinue with a diamond, the nine will loom very large, whether declarer
started with one, two or three diamonds. It seems wrong at first to switch
to a heart, because declarer may have A-K-x in that suit. Nevertheless, that
is what you should do. Declarer could ruff a heart loser if he had one. To
Problem

AT THE
NATIONALS
36 Dramatic Irony
♠ A642
♥ 873
♦ KJ2
♣ Q 10 8
♠ J 10 9 7 5
N ♥ 6
W E ♦ 53
S ♣ AK975

1♦
pass 1♠ pass 2♥
pass 2NT pass 3♥
pass 4♥ all pass
West leads the three of spades and declarer wins with the king. He then
plays the king of hearts. West wins with the ace and plays the two of
clubs next. How do you, as East, see matters? To Solution
AT THE NATIONALS 171

♠ A642
♥ 873
♦ KJ2
♣ Q 10 8
♠ Q83 ♠ J 10 9 7 5
♥ A942 N ♥ 6
♦ A4 W E ♦ 53
♣ J432 S ♣ AK975
♠ K
♥ K Q J 10 5
♦ Q 10 9 8 7 6
♣ 6
South has given the defenders an exact blueprint of his hand — 6-5 in the
red suits. You can be sure that partner started with three spades from his
lead of the three. Declarer, therefore, has one club.
At the moment of truth, when you must play to the first club trick,
the defenders know more about the distribution than declarer does. Your
side knows that West holds four trumps and that you hold the ace-king of
clubs. Declarer does not have this information.
You should be ready to take advantage of the defenders’ knowledge
before declarer realizes what is happening. You should win the club with
your ace and return a low club. Declarer will surely ruff this, playing West
for the king of clubs and relying on a 3-2 trump break. When he discov-
ers the bad news, the very best he can do is to switch to diamonds and
concede one down. To Problem

37 Double Trouble
Neither vul.
♠ A7432
♥ 8652
♦ —
♣ Q852
♠ K65
N ♥ AK73
W E ♦ 83
S ♣ K743

1NT pass 2♣ 2♦
dbl all pass
West’s queen of spades holds the first trick and the ten of spades contin-
uation is won by dummy’s ace. A club is won by declarer’s ten as West fol-
lows with the nine. Declarer leads the ten of hearts to partner’s jack, and
partner continues with the heart queen. You expect that most tables will
be +400 or 430 with your cards, so you will need eight tricks to score
well. Seven tricks will give you 300 and no matchpoints. How do you see
the defense? To Solution

♠ A7432
♥ 8652
♦ —
♣ Q852
♠ Q J 10 ♠ K65
♥ QJ9 N ♥ AK73
♦ AKQ72 W E ♦ 83
♣ 96 S ♣ K743
♠ 98
♥ 10 4
♦ J 10 9 6 5 4
♣ A J 10
At the point where partner led the queen of hearts, you got a good pic-
ture of the entire deal. Declarer has ♣A-J-10 and partner has two small
clubs. Partner has shown up with the queen and the jack in both major
suits and is marked with ♦A-K-Q for his 1NT opening bid. You need to
score all five of partner’s trumps here. Partner will get a club ruff — that
is unavoidable. He also needs a diamond spot — the nine or ten would
be nice — but what if he only has the seven? In that case, he has to avoid
being endplayed. You must help him here. He needs to preserve a spade
and a heart for exit cards. If you overtake partner’s queen of hearts and
lead a diamond, you ensure that your side earns a 500 point penalty and
84 out of 90 matchpoints. To Problem

38 More Double Trouble
♠ KJ953
♥ 75
♦ AK9
♣ 10 7 3
♠ AQ7
N ♥ AQJ92
W E ♦ 42
S ♣ 865

1♦
pass 1♠ 2♥ pass
4♥ dbl pass 5♣
pass 5♦ dbl all pass
After this auction, West leads the king of hearts. How does the defense
carry on? To Solution

♠ KJ953
♥ 75
♦ AK9
♣ 10 7 3
♠ 10 8 4 2 ♠ AQ7
♥ K 10 8 6 4 N ♥ AQJ92
♦ J W E ♦ 42
♣ Q42 S ♣ 865
♠ 6
♥ 3
♦ Q 10 8 7 6 5 3
♣ AKJ9
East can see that partner has led an unsupported king, hoping that a lead
from his side will be useful at Trick 2. He can also see the danger in the
spade suit if declarer guesses the position. The defense must neutralize
dummy’s threat by leading a trump at Trick 2. East must overtake his part-
ner’s king and lead a trump.
After a heart continuation, declarer can ruff in hand, play a spade to
the nine, forcing East’s queen, win the trump return in dummy, take a ruff-
ing finesse against the ace of spades, return to dummy with a trump, ruff
a spade and then take two pitches of her losing clubs.
If the trump entry is used early, the defense prevails. To Problem

39 Focus on the Play
♠ A Q J 10
♥ 43
♦ K9732
♣ 86
♠ K6
N ♥ 10 7 5
W E ♦ AQJ
S ♣ Q J 10 5 3
You choose to defend after this simple auction:

2♥
all pass
Partner leads the king of clubs and shifts to the eight of hearts, which
declarer wins in hand with the queen. How do you see the defense? To
Solution

♠ A Q J 10
♥ 43
♦ K9732
♣ 86
♠ 9532 ♠ K6
♥ 86 N ♥ 10 7 5
♦ 10 8 6 4 W E ♦ AQJ
♣ AK9 S ♣ Q J 10 5 3
♠ 874
♥ AKQJ92
♦ 5
♣ 742
Declarer has a robust weak two-bid here. You would have done well to
balance in clubs, but the auction is over and your job is to earn some
matchpoints. When declarer tries the spade finesse, partner plays the
nine. You must duck this! Declarer is not looking at all four hands and
will surely repeat the finesse. When declarer comes off dummy with a
club, you win with the ten and play another heart. Declarer draws trumps
and tries a diamond to the king. You win and let partner cash a club. He
can now play another diamond, ruffed by declarer. When declarer repeats
the spade finesse, you will win the fifth trick for the defense. For this, you
score 57 matchpoints out of 90. To Problem

40 Take Advantage of Their System
♠ J873
♥ J5
♦ KJ7
♣ K 10 5 3
♠ AQ5
♥ K N
♦ Q 10 6 5 3 W E
♣ J987 S

1♥
pass 1NT pass 2♣
pass 2♥ all pass
On this auction, North-South were playing Flannery and forcing 1NT

responses to one of a major (“were” being the operative word). West
leads a fourth-best diamond, won in dummy with the jack, as East plays
the nine. West is in at Trick 2 after the jack of hearts, small, small, king.
Will North-South give up their current methods after your defense? To
Solution

♠ J873
♥ J5
♦ KJ7
♣ K 10 5 3
♠ AQ5 ♠ K964
♥ K N ♥ Q 10 6 4 3
♦ Q 10 6 5 3 W E ♦ 98
♣ J987 S ♣ 64
♠ 10 2
♥ A9872
♦ A82
♣ AQ2
After South showed up with five hearts, three diamonds and at least three
clubs,West knew that declarer held at most two spades. Declarer was also
marked with the ace of diamonds and values in hearts and clubs, so West
knew that declarer’s spades were weak. Ace, queen and another spade
force declarer to ruff. East can now split his ♥Q-10 on the next trump
play. When he wins the next trump, he plays the king of spades to force
declarer’s last high trump and set declarer one trick. This defense was
worth eighty-one and a half matchpoints out of a possible ninety. To
Problem

41 Now That You Doubled
♠ KQ3
♥ 53
♦ 10 9 5
♣ Q9753
♠ J 10 6 4
♥ A97 N
♦ K74 W E
♣ J42 S

pass 1♦ 1♠
1NT 2♠ pass pass
dbl all pass
West leads the four of diamonds to the five, the ace and the jack. East
cashes the king of clubs and South follows with the ten, West playing the
two and dummy the three. East then leads the three of diamonds to the
queen, your king and the nine from dummy. How should West continue?
To Solution

♠ KQ3
♥ 53
♦ 10 9 5
♣ Q9753
♠ J 10 6 4 ♠ 8
♥ A97 N ♥ Q 10 8 6
♦ K74 W E ♦ A863
♣ J42 S ♣ AK86
♠ A9752
♥ KJ42
♦ QJ2
♣ 10
When partner did not bid hearts, he is marked with at most four.
Declarer’s failure to bid Michaels also suggests that he has at most four
hearts and likely holds nine cards in the major suits. That leaves declarer
four cards in the minors. The ten of diamonds is an illusion — it looks as
though it will provide a pitch of a losing club. The defenders must ignore
this card. It will yield a trick to declarer, and it does not matter to the
defense whether declarer uses it to dispose of his last diamond (if he has
one), a losing club (if he has one) or a losing heart. The defenders need
to focus on three tricks in the minor suits and three in the majors, and not
panic into playing a second round of clubs.
Declarer will be able to ruff one heart in dummy, but if he tries to ruff
two, he will promote West’s spade holding from one to two tricks.
On the actual deal, a club return allows declarer to make eight tricks,
whereas a diamond return is perfectly safe. Declarer ruffs a heart loser,
but eventually loses a second heart for one down.
If we give declarer an original holding of two clubs and two dia-
monds, it still does not help the defense to play a second round of clubs.
Declarer can then pitch both of his losing hearts on minor-suit winners
and still end up only one down. To Problem

42 Now or Never
♠ 10 7 2
♥ K32
♦ K J 10
♣ K 10 9 3
♠ K94
♥ Q964 N
♦ 42 W E
♣ J864 S

pass pass 2NT
pass 3NT all pass
You lead the four of hearts to dummy’s two, partner’s ten and declarer’s
five. This looks alright! Partner’s ♥7 continuation is won with declarer’s
ace. Declarer travels to dummy’s ten of diamonds and leads the spade ten.
This is covered by partner’s queen and declarer’s ace. Declarer once
again goes to dummy with a diamond and leads a second spade to his
eight and your nine. Now what? To Solution

♠ 10 7 2
♥ K32
♦ K J 10
♣ K 10 9 3
♠ K94 ♠ Q65
♥ Q964 N ♥ J 10 8 7
♦ 42 W E ♦ 8653
♣ J864 S ♣ 72
♠ A J83
♥ A 5
♦ A Q97
♣ A Q5
You congratulate yourself on leading a heart instead of a spade, but the

work is not over on this deal. Dummy chose to avoid a slam try with sub-
stantial values. Could some pairs be in slam? Indeed, and making it as
well, on a spade lead.
You had better take your king of spades right now. If you try for more
tricks, you will find yourself embarrassed when declarer cashes his fourth
diamond. You will have to pitch your fourth club or your good spade.
Minus 630 was good for 22 out of 25 possible matchpoints. To
Problem

43 Four Tricks Needed
♠ Q 10 9 5
♥ 6
♦ 962
♣ K Q 10 9 4
♠ 63
N ♥ J
W E ♦ K8754
S ♣ AJ732

1♦ pass 3♦ 4♥
dbl all pass
West leads the ace of diamonds and in response to East’s signal, continues
a diamond, which declarer ruffs. South then plays the queen of hearts,
ducked, and the ten of hearts, won by West. When West now switches to
the six of clubs, East controls all of his side’s matchpoints. How should
he play? To Solution

♠ Q 10 9 5
♥ 6
♦ 962
♣ K Q 10 9 4
♠ J872 ♠ 63
♥ A832 N ♥ J
♦ AQJ3 W E ♦ K8754
♣ 6 S ♣ AJ732
♠ AK4
♥ K Q 10 9 7 5 4
♦ 10
♣ 85
Three tricks for the defense are obvious: one diamond, one club and one
heart. The essential fourth is a little more difficult. A club ruff? A good
heart spot in the West hand? The king of spades?
The clue here is in West’s play. If he had a sure spade trick or the ♥9,
the defense could not go wrong. There would be no need to play clubs.
Plugging away at diamonds would suffice. When he does lead a club, it
must be a singleton. East should win and return a club for a one-trick set.
Sorting out a doubleton versus a singleton is a frequent problem for
defenders and it is important to get it right. West could anticipate his part-
ner’s problem here. He knows that partner is virtually guaranteed to hold
five diamonds for a limit raise (so the second diamond will not cash) and
he knows partner holds the ace of clubs. A club switch at Trick 2 makes
the defense much clearer.
The play as it went left the defenders vulnerable to a ruse. A club play
by declarer at Trick 3 makes the defense virtually impossible. Note that
declarer must be aware of the defenders’ signaling methods for such a
ploy to work. If they play regular signals, only the eight will work. Against
upside-down signals, the five is the only play that creates ambiguity. To
Problem

WILD ONES
44 Six or Seven?
E-W vul.
♠ A753
♥ 10 9 7 5 3
♦ A7
♣ J 10
♠ QJ4
♥ AQ86 N
♦ 82 W E
♣ K642 S

pass pass 3♣
all pass
You lead the queen of spades, won with dummy’s ace. Declarer plays
dummy’s jack of clubs and you hold up, noting that he has made his bid
on a six-card suit. You are astounded when partner follows with a second
trump, which you win with your king. What now? To Solution
WILD ONES 187

♠ A753
♥ 10 9 7 5 3
♦ A7
♣ J 10
♠ QJ4 ♠ K 10 9 8
♥ AQ86 N ♥ K J
♦ 82 W E ♦ K 6543
♣ K642 S ♣ 5 3
♠ 62
♥ 42
♦ Q J 10 9
♣ AQ987
At this point in the deal, you know what is happening, but partner has no
idea that declarer has preempted on a five-card suit. He will not realize
this until late in the deal, perhaps too late. Declarer no doubt has a source
of tricks on the side, probably in diamonds. He might have elected to use
some other strategy if his side suit were in spades or hearts.
Declarer has six sure tricks in sight, and if he makes a seventh, you
will be +100, a poor score. If you find a way to score 150, you will do well
on the board. Most other pairs will be playing 1NT from your side with
a heart lead, and +120 your way will be a normal result. The only way for
the defense to score well is to hold declarer to four trump tricks and two
aces for +150. If partner ducks one diamond, declarer will take seven
tricks and you will not be happy with +100.
A good shift now is a low heart. Partner will win with his king and
play a second heart. After that holds, he can continue with a low spade
to your jack. Now you force declarer with a third heart, as partner pitch-
es a diamond. When declarer draws the last trumps, partner will have a
count on the deal. He can reduce to king and one diamond, along with
two spades. Whether declarer plays ace and another diamond or takes
the diamond finesse, partner wins and cashes his two spades. To Problem

45 15-17, Possibly
♠ Q64
♥ K 10 9
♦ Q J 10 9
♣ J97
♠ K 10 9 8
♥ J753 N
♦ A753 W E
♣ Q S

1NT1
pass 2NT pass 3NT
all pass
1. Strong notrump.
After you lead the ♠10, partner wins with the ace and returns the deuce.
You top declarer’s jack with the king and clear the suit. Declarer wins
dummy’s queen of spades, pitches the four of hearts from his hand, calls
for a diamond from dummy and puts the king on it, as partner plays the
deuce. You decide there is no point ducking, so you win and cash your
spade. Declarer pitches a low diamond. Now what? To Solution
WILD ONES 189

♠ Q64
♥ K 10 9
♦ Q J 10 9
♣ J97
♠ K 10 9 8 ♠ A752
♥ J753 N ♥ A862
♦ A753 W E ♦ 862
♣ Q S ♣ 53
♠ J3
♥ Q4
♦ K4
♣ A K 10 8 6 4 2
After declarer has accepted an invitation to game, you place him with 16
or 17 HCP. He looks to hold ♣A-K, the ♦K and the ♠J for 11 points, and
he should hold at least the ace of hearts and possibly the queen as well.
There is no point ducking the diamond, so you win and cash your spade.
What now? A heart lead looks dangerous, but you do not want to waste
your precious queen of clubs. Return a diamond? That accomplishes
nothing. What about declarer’s pitches — a heart and a diamond. No
clubs! Why save all those clubs?
Every reasonable deal you can visualize leads to nine tricks for declar-
er. But a heart lead cannot cost and may do some damage.
On this deal, it translates to +50 and plenty of matchpoints. To
Problem

46 Latecomer
E-W vul.
♠ 4
♥ 10 9 3
♦ J 10 8 7
♣ Q9532
♠ AK9753
N ♥ K
W E ♦ AK432
S ♣ 6

pass 1♠ 2♥
2♠ pass 4♠ pass
pass 5♥ pass pass
dbl all pass
North decided to listen awhile and then came in with a unilateral sacri-
fice. No one has any real idea whose deal it is. Partner leads the queen
of spades and your job is to salvage some matchpoints. To Solution
WILD ONES 191

♠ 4
♥ 10 9 3
♦ J 10 8 7
♣ Q9532
♠ QJ2 ♠ AK9753
♥ J75 N ♥ K
♦ Q96 W E ♦ AK432
♣ J 10 7 4 S ♣ 6
♠ 10 8 6
♥ AQ8642
♦ 5
♣ AK8
You made a good decision to pass the five heart bid around to partner.
Five spades cannot be made. You need to ensure a set in five hearts by
overtaking the spade and playing the king of diamonds. It seems at first
as though a trump shift is right, but the clubs in dummy look dangerous.
Unless you cash a diamond now, it will disappear. Declarer can win the
trump, ruff a spade, play four rounds of clubs, ruffing the last, and then
ruff a spade to enter dummy. He can then pitch a diamond on dummy’s
last club. Partner can ruff the fifth club, but he was about to win one
trump trick in any case.
If you let partner hold the first trick, he might find the diamond
switch, but why take a chance? He does not know whether your side
strength is concentrated in clubs or diamonds (or scattered) and will have
a tough problem. To Problem

47 Decisions, Decisions
N-S vul.
♠ QJ3
♥ 10 9 7 5 4 3 2
♦ 10 3
♣ 8
♠ A 10 9 7 5
♥ KJ86 N
♦ 2 W E
♣ A75 S

1♠ pass 2NT1 pass
3♦2 pass 3♥ pass
4♣ pass 4♠ 5♦

2. Singleton or void in diamonds.
The contract may be the same at many tables, but the auction will not be.
As usual, five level decisions involve guesswork. You, West, lead a low
heart and partner plays the ace, which declarer ruffs. The nine of clubs
hits the table. Did you make the right decision to double and defend? To
Solution
WILD ONES 193

♠ QJ3
♥ 10 9 7 5 4 3 2
♦ 10 3
♣ 8
♠ A 10 9 7 5 ♠ K862
♥ KJ86 N ♥ AQ
♦ 2 W E ♦ 84
♣ A75 S ♣ K6432
♠ 4
♥ —
♦ AKQJ9765
♣ Q J 10 9
This is not the time to duck! Playing your ace and returning a trump
ensures a one-trick set. If you duck, declarer can ruff out your club ace
and go home with a score of +750. To Problem

48 Fight Fire With Fire
You are West on lead after the auction shown.
♠AJ ♥QJ84 ♦ A J 10 7 ♣ 10 9 8

1♥1 dbl pass 2♠
pass 3♥ pass 4♣
pass 6♣ pass 6♠
all pass
1. You are playing four-card majors.
You know North is a good player and not a shy bidder. South’s creden-
tials are suspect. Pick a lead! To Solution
WILD ONES 195

♠ KQ2
♥ AK76
♦ —
♣ AKJ753
♠ AJ ♠ 876
♥ QJ84 N ♥ 10 2
♦ A J 10 7 W E ♦ 98642
♣ 10 9 8 S ♣ Q42
♠ 10 9 5 4 3
♥ 953
♦ KQ53
♣ 6
North has bypassed Blackwood and surely has a void. That can only be in
diamonds. The only lead that will give declarer a problem is a low dia-
mond. Declarer might unthinkingly ruff in dummy and end up one down.
Any declarer who pitches on the first trick instead of ruffing deserves
your sincere compliments. To Problem

49 One-Level Overcall Promises What?
E-W vul.
♠ 10 4
♥ J7432
♦ 10 5 3
♣ J 10 7
♠ Q32
N ♥ —
W E ♦ AK984
S ♣ Q9865

pass 1♦ 1♥
1♠ 2♥ 2♠ pass
3NT 4♥ pass pass
dbl all pass
The defense starts with the ace, king and queen of clubs. Declarer ruffs
the third trick and plays the A-K of hearts and another heart, won with
West’s queen. West followed to those trump leads with the six, the eight
and the queen of hearts. Partner now leads the jack of diamonds. You win
with the king and need a plan. To Solution
WILD ONES 197

♠ 10 4
♥ J7432
♦ 10 5 3
♣ J 10 7
♠ AJ75 ♠ Q32
♥ Q986 N ♥ —
♦ J6 W E ♦ AK984
♣ AK2 S ♣ Q9865
♠ K986
♥ A K 10 5
♦ Q72
♣ 43
The ten of diamonds is visible in dummy, so partner obviously has two dia-
monds, along with three clubs and what looks like five spades and three
hearts. Is it possible partner held five spades, heard you support him and
rebid 3NT, holding only three to the queen in a suit bid and raised by the
opponents? Then he doubled four hearts, knowing you are void! More
likely is that he is 4-4 in the majors. After all, he did follow up the line in
hearts in a situation where suit preference for clubs had no meaning.
If you lead a spade now, partner can win with his jack (or ace if
declarer plays the king) and continue with a diamond. You give partner
a ruff and he cashes the last spade trick. Plus 1100 and 11.5 matchpoints.
Had you given partner a diamond ruff immediately, you would have end-
played him. Plus 800 would not have been nearly as satisfying. To
Problem

ALMOST
IMPOSSIBLE
50 Almost Impossible
♠ 3
♥ 5
♦ K9753
♣ A K J 10 7 5
♠ A K J 10 6 4
♥ 2 N
♦ J642 W E
♣ 93 S

2♠ 3♣ 3♠ 4♥
all pass
After leading the ♠K, how should West continue? To Solution
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE 199

♠ 3
♥ 5
♦ K9753
♣ A K J 10 7 5
♠ A K J 10 6 4 ♠ Q8
♥ 2 N ♥ KQJ6
♦ J642 W E ♦ Q 10 8
♣ 93 S ♣ 8642
♠ 9752
♥ A 10 9 8 7 4 3
♦ A
♣ Q
The only continuation that beats the contract is a second spade. A trump
shift picks off one of partner’s three heart tricks and the minor-suit posi-
tion is such that declarer can discard all of his losing spades before draw-
ing trumps.
After a club return, declarer can cash two high clubs, ruff a club to
shorten his trumps one, cash the ace of diamonds, ruff a spade, pitch his
last spade on the king of diamonds and ruff a diamond. The position after
South has ruffed a diamond in his hand is as follows:
♠ —
♥ —
♦ 97
♣ J 10 7
♠ A J 10 6 ♠ —
♥ 2 N ♥ KQJ6
♦ — W E ♦ —
♣ — S ♣ 4
♠ —
♥ A 10 9 8 4
♦ —
♣ —

After declarer leads the ten of trumps to East’s jack, East must either
give up his trump trick by playing a trump into South’s A-9-8-4, or post-
pone the inevitable by playing a club. After a club return, South makes his
four of trumps and leads another low trump from his remaining A-9-8. East
is finished. To Problem
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE 201

INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED
SCORE MORE MATCHPOINTS
Yes, defending is hard, but we defend half the deals we play. And at
matchpoints, where every trick counts, the consequences of inaccu-
racy can be severe. In this book, Jim Priebe (the author of Thinking
on Defense) shows how to approach defending at matchpoints, as
opposed to other forms of scoring. The key aspects of matchpoint
defense are all covered, from choosing the opening lead to knowing
when to give up on defeating the contract and cash out.
Praise for Thinking on Defense

“First books by unknown authors are often unappreciated by the
bridge community, but it would be a mistake to pass this one up.
Invest some time and effort and read what Jim has to say."
Eric Kokish
"This super book does just what the title suggests, as it shows
you what to think about, and how to organize your thoughts
when defending a hand."
BRIDGE Magazine
JIM PRIEBE (Toronto) divides his time between bridge, writing and golf. He won
the Canadian Teams Championship in 2004 and represented Canada in the Istanbul
Olympiad later that year. His previous books are Thinking on Defense and Takeout
Double, a murder mystery with a bridge background.
MASTER POINT PRESS

Jim Priebe - Matchpoint Defense

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Jim Priebe - Matchpoint Defense

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

TITLE PAGE

MASTER POINT PRESS | TORONTO

Master Point Press

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

1. Contract bridge--Defensive play. I. Title.

GV1282.42.P74 2006 796.41'53 C2006-902111-2

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada

Editor Ray Lee

Printed in Canada by Webcom Ltd.

Phillip Alder, writing in the Toronto Sun

Introduction Defensive Philosophy 9

Matchpoint bridge is an intriguing blend of technical and psychological

The Field is Uneven

In a twenty-six board duplicate game, each deal counts for close to 4% of

CONTRACT DEFENSIVE RESULT IMPACT ON

Partscore One overtrick 1 percent

Good matchpoint defenders routinely ask two questions as soon as

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 15

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 17

What’s at Stake? First or Second Place?

THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 19

The bidding has gone:

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 21

This is a question defenders must routinely ask themselves when dummy

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

You Generate Some Excitement

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 23

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

THE HEART OF MATCHPOINT DEFENSE 25

♠K953 ♥KJ82 ♦85 ♣853

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

OPENING LEAD THOUGHTS 27

♠98742 ♥43 ♦75 ♣ K 10 3 2

I prefer a heart or a diamond lead against an auction of 1NT-3NT. A red-

1) The opponents have had an exploratory auction and avoided

2) We are defending a slam contract where declarer seems to have

3) We are defending a slam contract where controls are not fully

4) Partner has made a one-level overcall or opened the bidding third

♠AQ86 ♥64 ♦84 ♣ Q J 10 8 4

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

North-South have twelve tricks on any lead except a spade.

OPENING LEAD THOUGHTS 29

You are on lead with this hand:

This was the auction:

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

On this type of auction, North-South have no clear idea of controls in each

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

OPENING LEAD THOUGHTS 31

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

1. Game force in hearts.

OPENING LEAD THOUGHTS 33

WHEN NOT TO LEAD AN ACE

♠AJ986 ♥43 ♦64 ♣A765

This was the auction:

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

1. Asks for second-round spade control.

OTHER HIGH-CARD LEADS

Only One Trick

OPENING LEAD THOUGHTS 35