Bridge Play of Cards

How To Win Tricks | Bridge Bears
Declarer Play
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton
Welcome to my series of Declarer Play articles. These

articles build upon each other, so I recommend that you
study them in order.
No-trump contracts
It's best to learn no-trump techniques first because they apply to most
trump contracts, as well.
♣ Count winners for no trump

♦ Long suits
♥ Count defensive winners

♠ Split assumptions
♣ Review the bidding

♦ Read the lead
♥ Watch discards
♠ Stoppers
♣ The dangerous opponent

♦ The hold-up play
Trump contracts
♣ Trumping Losers
Count Winners for No Trump
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton
This is one of a series of Declarer Play articles. These

Introduction
As soon as the bidding is over, determine the number of tricks you
need to make your contract.
Declarer always needs six tricks (sometimes called a 'book') plus the
number she has bid. In the following chart, I've used no trump as an
example, but the numbers are the same for suit contracts.
1N → 6 + 1 = 7 tricks
2N → 6 + 2 = 8 tricks
3N → 6 + 3 = 9 tricks
4N → 6 + 4 = 10 tricks
5N → 6 + 5 = 11 tricks
6N → 6 + 6 = 12 tricks
7N → 6 + 7 = 13 tricks
You can assess your goal – the number of tricks you need – before
the opening lead is made and before you see the dummy. But don't let
your opponents rush you. If they lead quickly, count out your goal
while they wait.
Bridge is a thinking game. You are allowed to take a few

moments to think. You're also allowed to put your hands
in your lap and count on your fingers if it helps.
When the dummy comes down, you will count the winners you already
have (explained below) and compare it to what you need. Usually you
won't have enough winners to make your contract. Don't panic... this is
normal.
Fortunately the defense doesn't usually have enough winners to set
your contract either.
So both sides will work to develop more.
If you develop and cash enough tricks to make your contract, it won't
matter how many tricks the defense later develops. There won't be
enough tricks left for them to undo your success.
Similarly, if the defense cashes enough tricks to set your contract,

there won't be enough tricks left for you to make your contract, no
matter how many winners you later develop.
That's why no trump is often described as a race. You have to develop

and cash enough tricks to make your contract before they develop and
cash enough to defeat it.
Much of no trump declarer play is about counting. We count to

determine our goal. We count the tricks we are certain to win. We
count tricks we can develop. We count defensive winners. And we
count to see if we will be able to cash enough tricks before the
defenders can cash theirs.
The counting we need to do isn't particularly difficult, though there will

be a lot of it, including frequent revisions to our counts.
Let's get started.
When the dummy comes down, count

winners
What do we mean by winners?
Winners are cards that cannot lose if you lead them. They can be
called "master cards," "certain winners," "sure winners," "cashable
tricks," "tricks," or various other names. What you call them doesn't
matter as long as they cannot lose.
example 1
You
♠ AQ
♥ AK3
♦ KQJT
♣ 5432
♠ – 1 winner. If you lead the ♠Q, it can lose to their ♠K. Even if you
lead toward the ♠AQ and finesse, it could lose.
♥ – 2 winners
♦ – 0 winners. Any diamond you lead can lose.
♣ – 0 winners
Yes, you can force out the ♦A and develop 3 diamond winners. But
you haven't done that yet. So don't count your diamonds as winners.
You could view the diamonds as 3 potential winners.
example 2
Dummy
♠ 752
♥ AK8
♦ KJ42
♣ 986
You
♠ QT96
♥ Q64
♦ AQ
♣ QJ73
When counting winners, combine your high cards with Dummy's.
♠ – 0 winners
♥ – 3 winners
♦ – 4 winners (be careful; they're blocked)
♣ – 0 winners
To unblock your four diamond tricks, cash the ♦AQ first. Then cross to
the dummy with a heart, so you can lead the ♦KJ.
If Dummy didn't have a winner in another suit, you might have to cash
the ♦A, then overtake your ♦Q with Dummy's ♦K. Overtaking would
get the lead in Dummy so you could cash the ♦J. If you have to do
this, count only 3 diamond winners because you will "crash" two of
your honors.
example 3
Dummy
♠ AK7
♥ AK8
♦ KJ
♣ KT652
You
♠ QJ64
♥ QJ4
♦ AQ
♣ QJ93
Master cards are usually winners. But not always.
In this example, you have 12 master cards:
♠AKQJ, ♥AKQJ, ♦AKQJ

But you cannot win 12 tricks with your 12 masters.
How many winners do you have in each suit? Count for yourself
before peeking...
♠♥♦♣
example 4
Dummy
♠ 76
♥ KJ8
♦ A73
♣ QT973
You
♠ K2
♥ QT43
♦ Q842
♣ AKJ
How many winners do you have? show answer
example 5
Dummy
♠ KT74
♥ AJ
♦ KJT98
♣ K6
You
♠ Q5
♥ KQT32
♦ A72
♣ AQJ
How many winners do you have in each suit?
♠♥♦♣
Do we ever count skaters as winners?
Yes, sometimes...
Count how many cards the opponents have in your suit. If you have
enough top honors, you can make them follow suit to your master
cards until they completely run out. Even your smallest cards will then
be winners. Counting will tell you if this is guaranteed to work even
before you start cashing your top honors.
Like this...
example 6
Dummy
♣ 8743
You
♣ AKQ652
You have 10 clubs, so they have only 3.
With three top honors, even a 3-0 split doesn't stop you from cashing
all 6 clubs.
So you can count 6 winners.
example 7
Dummy
♣ 874
You
♣ AKQ652
I've taken away one of Dummy's spot cards. (My wife says that's
mean.)
Now they have 4 clubs, including the ♣J.
If you play your ♣AKQ, a 4-0 split would allow them to win the fourth
round with their ♣J, stopping you from cashing more clubs. So you
can't count your small cards as skaters.
Actually, there's a good chance the clubs will not split 4-0. You could
play one round of clubs to see if both opponents follow suit. If they do,
you've ruled out a 4-0 split and you could then count 6 winners.
However, there are three reasons not to do this:
1. First, and by far the most important reason, it can become a

bad habit if you begin cashing tricks before you plan your
declarer play for the entire deal.
2. Second, you may need to preserve your three big clubs for
later entries. Again, you must make a plan for your declarer
play before you know if you need the big clubs for entries.
3. Third, if you keep your club strength concealed, your
opponents may make mistakes placing the honors, and
pursue an inferior defense.
A well made plan may indeed begin with testing how the clubs split,
but make your plan first.
We'll get to planning soon enough, but for now remember not to
assume long cards are winners unless a possible bad split doesn't
matter.
example 8
Dummy
♦ K98
You
♦ AQ653
You have 8 diamonds.
How many diamonds do they have? show answer

Whenever you are hoping for skaters, count their cards and consider
how they might split between the two defensive hands.
How many diamond winners do you have? 3 5
You could cash two of your masters to see if they both follow suit. If
so, there would only be one diamond outstanding and you could then
count 5 diamond winners. But again I caution you not to start cashing
tricks until after you have made a plan.
Next we'll look at a hand where we count and plan before we play.
A simple declarer's plan for a no trump contract
After you have counted your winners, compare that number to the
contract you are declaring to see how many additional tricks you need
to develop.
Then look at each suit to see where you might develop the tricks you
need.
example 9
Dummy
♠ QT8
♥ J942
♦ JT6
♣ 873
You
♠ KJ53
♥ QT8
♦ AKQ4
♣ AK
The opening lead is the ♣5.

Your contract is 3N. How many tricks (winners) do you need to
develop? show answer
Where might you get more tricks? show answer
The quickest and easiest way to develop three more tricks is to drive
out the ♠A. Leading hearts is not a good choice because they have
more master cards to drive out (two in hearts but only one in spades),
and you can only establish two tricks in hearts – not enough.
Now we're ready to make a plan.
1. Win the club opening lead with your ♣K.

2. Lead spades to establish 3 additional tricks, bringing your
total to the 9 tricks you need. If they don't take their ♠A on
the first round, persist with spade leads until you have 3
spade winners.
3. When they win their ♠A, they will lead another club. They will
be doing the same thing with clubs that you are doing with
spades – establishing more tricks. Win this second club lead
with your ♣A.
4. Cash your 9 tricks, making your contract. Do not try for
overtricks by leading hearts. They would win and
have ♠A, ♥AK, and 2+ clubs – enough winners to defeat your
makable contract.
The plan for this hand is very straightforward. It could be

summarized as:
• win the lead
• establish the tricks you need
• get the lead back
• cash your tricks
Notice that the number of winners changed during the play. You
started with 6 winners and quickly improved to 9 winners by playing
spades.
Meanwhile, the defense started with 3 winners (♠A, ♥AK) and

established more by driving out your two club masters.
They didn't get to cash their newly established clubs
because you cashed your tricks first.
That is the essence of a good plan – a logical sequence

of plays where you can cash enough tricks to make your
contract BEFORE they can cash enough tricks to set it.
To make such a plan, you must count winners.
example 9, repeated
Dummy
♠ QT8
♥ J942
♦ JT6
♣ 873
You
♠ KJ53
♥ QT8
♦ AKQ4
♣ AK
Little Bear speaks up, "You said it's not good to play hearts? But if we
play both spades and hearts, can't we get 5 more tricks – 3 from
spades and 2 from hearts? Then we could make some overtricks. I
like overtricks."
You are correct, Little Bear, that all those tricks would add up to
overtricks for us. But if you play hearts the opponents will cash their
tricks BEFORE you can recapture the lead to cash yours.
After they drive out our ♣AK, they have 2+ club skaters to cash. (The
exact number depends on how the clubs split between the two
defenders.) Together with their ♠A and ♥AK, that makes enough
winners to defeat our 3N contract.
You were just counting your own tricks, Little Bear. You
have to count their tricks too.
example 10
Dummy
♠ AJT5
♥ AQ72
♦ K98
♣ 87
You
♠ K73
♥ JT9
♦ AQ653
♣ K9
This hand is another example of the importance of cashing your tricks

before the defense cashes theirs.
Again you are declaring a contract of 3N.
The opening lead is ♣3.
Third hand plays the ♣Q, and you win the trick with your ♣K.
You need two more winners to make your contract.
How many winners do the defenders need to set your contract? Five.
I've peeked at their cards, and I can tell you that (with your ♣K gone)
they now have 4 club winners ready to cash. They need just one more
defensive winner to set your 3N contract. That means you cannot
afford to lose the lead when developing more tricks in the other three
suits.
Where can you get the two more winners you need?
1. You can finesse in spades. If the ♠Q is on your left, you can

repeat the finesse for two additional winners. However, if the
finesse loses, they get a trick with the ♠Q followed by 4 club
tricks. That's down one. So sad.
2. You can finesse in hearts. If the ♥K is on your left, you can
repeat the finesse 3 times, making an overtrick. That's better
than playing spades because of the overtrick. However, if
your finesse loses, they get the ♥K followed by 4 club tricks.
That's also down one. Ditto sadness.
3. You can play diamonds and hope for two skaters, just
enough to make your contract. However, if you try to cash a
fourth diamond and the suit doesn't split, you will lose that
diamond and 4 clubs. Down one. Hmmm... this is all starting
to sound sadly familiar...
Which brings us to a critical point: YOU MUST COUNT their diamonds

when you play your diamond masters. Counting allows you to test for
skaters without losing the lead. Then you will only plan on cashing
diamond skaters when your diamond spot cards actually are skaters.
Little Bear speaks up, "Uncle Smokey uses binoculars to

look for bees going in and out of holes in the trees. Then
he only climbs the trees that have honey in them. I think
Uncle Smokey would be good at bridge."
Me: sigh...
example 10, repeated
Dummy
♠ AJT5
♥ AQ72
♦ K98
♣ 87
You
♠ K73
♥ JT9
♦ AQ653
♣ K9
After winning the opening lead with your ♣K, what do you think about
playing each of these suits next? Decide about each suit first before
looking.
♠♥♦
Summary of the plan:

1. Win the opening lead with your ♣K.
2. Test the diamonds.
o If the diamonds split 3-2, cash your 9 winners (no
finesses).
o If the diamonds don't split, finesse in hearts.
Actually, if the diamonds don't split 3-2, there are times when you
might prefer to take the spade finesse rather than the heart finesse.
For example, if RHO (right hand opponent) has promised 5+ hearts in
the bidding, you would know the heart finesse would fail, and prefer to
take the spade finesse. You would know the heart finesse was going
to lose because you COUNTED the hearts, and LHO doesn't have
any.
The main skill for good declarer play is counting.

This was a difficult hand for beginners. I suggest you review it before
moving on.
Long Suits
♠ ♥ ♦♣
By Ralph Welton

One of the first things we do as declarer is count winners. Most hands

won't have enough winners to make the contract, so we look for ways
to develop more.
On this page we'll look at suits where we hope to take extra tricks with
small cards. To do that we need to play the suit enough times so the
defenders run out. This establishes our remaining cards as skaters.
Testing for Skaters

example 1
Dummy
♥42
You
♥AKQ865
How many winners? 3 6
When you start playing your masters, watch to see when

someone discards.
If someone discards on the first round, what is the split? show answer
If someone discards on the second round, what is the split? show

answer
If no one discards on the second round, what is the split? show
answer
How many of your masters will you have to cash to confirm that you
have a skater?
123
example 2
Dummy
♠ K42
You
♠ AQ65
How many winners? show answer
Is there any hope for a skater? show answer
How many of your masters will you have to cash to confirm that you
have a skater? show answer
Testing this suit for skaters is not risk-free. If spades don't split in three
rounds, their remaining spade will be higher than your ♠6. In other
words, playing your ♠AKQ may establish a winner for the wrong team.
Ouch!
Even if there is a 4-2 split, there may still be hope for a skater. But you
have to be a little sneaky about it. Since your four-card holding is
concealed in your closed hand, you may do well to delay playing this
suit as long as possible. Maybe the defender with the four card holding
will make the mistake of discarding one of his spot cards. That
reduces the original 4-2 split to a 3-2 split, which your three master
cards can pick up. Then you will have a skater that wasn't possible
early in the play.
example 3
Dummy
♦K432
You
♦AQ65
This example is almost the same as the last one. I've given Dummy an
extra spot card.
You have 3 winners, and you want to know if you have an additional
fourth round skater.
The best spot card you can save for the fourth round is your ♦6. If
either defender has four or more diamonds, his best card will outrank
yours. So you will not have a fourth winner if either defender has a 4
or 5 card holding in this suit.
Count how many diamonds they have. What are the possible
splits? show answer
How many of your masters must you cash to confirm that there is a 3-
2 split so you will have a skater? show answer
Many players prefer to simply count cards rather than thinking about
splits.
In example 3, the defenders have 5 diamonds. If both follow suit when

you cash your first master, that's 2 of the 5. Then you lead another
master and (if they follow suit) add 2 more = 4. So there's only one of
the original 5 left, and it will fall under your third master.
example 4
Dummy
♣AKQJ4
You
♣7
Dummy has a nice club suit – 4 winners.
The defense holds more clubs than you do. But what about your fifth
round ♣4? Might that be a skater? show answer
What are the possible splits for their 7 cards? show answer
How many of your master cards must you play to be sure you have 5
club winners? show answer
A short cut...
When you're hoping for a favorable split that gives you skaters, think
of the numbers for the split you want (3-2, 3-3, 4-2, etc.).
• If the two numbers are not the same, the smaller number
is how many rounds of the suit must be played to confirm you
get what you are hoping for. For example, if a 4-2 split is
good enough for the skaters you want, you must play the suit
twice to confirm those skaters.
• If the two numbers are the same, you need to play that
number of rounds. For example, if you must have a 2-2 split
for a skater, you need to play two rounds to confirm that split.
Following this shortcut does not create skaters. It just tells you
whether or not you have them. If the suit doesn't split as you hope, you
don't have the skaters you want.
Losing Tricks to Create Skaters

example 5
Dummy
♥986
You
♥5432
A very weak heart suit.
No honey in this suit... or is there?
Is there any chance you could develop a skater? show answer
Can you test for skaters?
It's not even clear what that would mean. In our first four examples, all
of our "testing for skaters" was about cashing winners in a given suit
while watching for discards to see if the split was what we were hoping
for.
With this weak heart holding, we're going to lose the lead every time
we lead the suit. Then we'd have to recapture the lead (in whichever
suit they lead) before we could lead the next heart.
But it is possible to have enough high cards in each of the other suits
that there are no worries, and all you are concerned about is trying for
one heart winner.
example 6
Dummy
♥986
You
♥A432
I've added a winner to our lousy heart suit.

Since you have the master card, you can choose when to win a
trick.There is an advantage to winning at a specific time – the round
you know if you have a skater or not.
When should you win your ♥A?
1st round 2nd round 3rd round
For the question you just answered, I didn't give you a choice to win
your ♥A on the 4th round. Why would the 4th round be an awful time
to win your ace? show answer
When you intentionally lose a trick by playing low cards

from both hands, we call that "ducking." For this hand we
play the suit like this:
1. Duck the first round. Watch for a discard. If no discard...

2. Duck the second round. Watch for a discard. If no discard...
3. Win the third round with your ♥A.
o If no discard (a 3-3 split), cash your skater.
o If someone discards, abandon hearts and hope they
never cash their remaining heart winner.
example 7
Dummy
♥986
You
♥AK32
I've improved our heart suit with a second winner.
Think about what you learned in example 6. The worst time to win one
of your masters would be the fourth round. That would waste a master
card when a spot card might be a skater.
So we're going to win our two masters before the fourth round. That
means we're going to duck once.
Would it be OK to duck the first round and win the next two? show
answer
Would it be OK to duck the second round, winning the first and third
rounds? show answer
Would it be OK to duck the third round, after having won the first two
rounds? show answer
example 8
Dummy
♠ AQ842
You
♠63
How many cards do the defenders have? show answer
How do you hope they split? show answer
3-3, which would give you two skaters.
You want to win the trick on the round that confirms you have skaters.
Which round should you win your ♠A? show answer
Assuming you have entries to the dummy in other suits, it won't matter
whether you duck the first or the second round. And of course you will
lead toward your ♠AQ and finesse before the third round.
You can lead from either hand when ducking or cashing your ♠A. But
you must lead from your own hand when finessing. So if the lead is in
your hand, you might as well begin with the finesse, and duck the
second round.
But if the lead is in the dummy, begin with a duck.
What is the maximum number of winners you might get from this
suit? show answer
What is the minimum number of winners you might get from this
suit? show answer
Many suits are like this, where you can't tell how the
opponents' cards split, so you can't tell how many
winners you can develop.
example 9
Dummy
♣AQT643
You
♣82
Is it possible to have a lucky lie of the cards where you could win all
six club tricks? show answer
How should you play the first club trick? show answer
example 10
Dummy
♠AJT3
♥Q72
♦K9
♣AJT5
You
♠K
♥AKJ9
♦AQ653
♣Q94
Your contract is 6N. How many more tricks must you develop? show
answer
How many extra tricks might you get from each suit? (Try to work it out
before peeking...) ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣
You can play for an honor to drop in spades, play for a 3-3 split in
diamonds, or finesse in clubs. You could pick any one of these
options, and make your 6N contract if it works.
But one of them guarantees that you make your contract,

even when all three "fail."
Go back and recount winners, assuming the ♠Q doesn't drop, the

diamonds don't split, and the club finesse loses. One of them gives
you 12 tricks, as long as you do it first. Which one? show answer
What could go wrong if you first try spades and the ♠Q doesn't drop,
and then you take the club finesse? show answer
Little Bear says, "I like overtricks. The club finesse might give me an
overtrick."
Yes, Little Bear, overtricks are nice. But don't risk your contract in
hopes of making an overtrick.
Count Defensive Winners
♠ ♥ ♦♣
By Ralph Welton

Counting your own winners is straightforward. What you see is what

you get.
But counting defensive winners means counting what you don't see.
Actually that's pretty easy too. They always have all the honors you
don't have.
example 1
Dummy
♠JT87
♥AK64
♦Q72
♣65
You
♠Q94
♥Q53
♦AK52
♣KQJ
How many winners do you have? Remember to look at both hands,

and don't count skaters unless you are certain they are winners. show
answer
How many winners do the defenders have? show answer
example 2
Dummy
♠A9
♥QT5
♦KJT72
♣952
You
♠Q94
♥J976
♦A96
♣QJT
example 3
Dummy
♠KJT9
♥Q8
♦QT72
♣952
You
♠Q9
♥JT97
♦KJ96
♣QJT
Why does counting winners matter?

Little Bear looks puzzled. "I understand about counting my own
winners," he says, "so I'll know how many more I need to make my
contract. But why do I need to count their winners? They have
whatever aces and kings they were dealt. There's nothing I can do
about it."
That's a good question, Little Bear!
Counting winners can tell you which plays to make, and

which plays to avoid.
Let's look at a few examples...
example 4
Dummy
♠ AQ6
♥42
You
♠86
♥KQ7
Suppose you just need one more cashable trick (winner) from these
two suits to make your contract.
Which is the better option – driving out the ♥A to establish a heart

honor, or finessing the ♠Q, hoping the ♠K is on-sides?
The correct answer is...
...you have to count your opponents' winners before you will know
what to do.
If they don't have enough winners to set your contract, driving out
the ♥A is certain to give you the one more trick you need.
Certain, but "slow." You'll have to give up the lead and patiently watch
them play all the winners they already have before you can recapture
the lead and cash your own tricks. It's OK to get your tricks "slowly"
like this... IF the defense doesn't have enough winners to set your
contract.
example 4, repeated
Dummy
♠ AQ6
♥42
You
♠86
♥KQ7
But if they do have enough winners to set your contract, you must
risk the spade finesse.
It only gives you a 50-50 chance to get your one-more-trick. But if it

succeeds, you get your extra trick without losing the lead, so you can
cash your tricks "faster" and make your contract before the bad guys
have the chance to defeat it.
Of course, you won't know how many winners each

partnership has unless you count them.
example 5
Dummy
♠AK62
♥42
You
♠Q74
♥KQ7
This is similar to example 4. Again, you need just one more cashable
trick to make your contract.
Is it better to force out the ♥A, or play the top three spades, hoping for
a 3-3 split?
Driving out the ♥A is guaranteed to establish the trick you need. But it
loses the lead. It's "slow."
You can't tell if that's a good plan until you count the winners for the
defense.
If the defense doesn't have enough winners to set your contract...
✓ Play hearts (slow but certain).
If the defense already has enough winners to set your contract...
✓ Your only hope for one more trick would be a "faster"

fourth-round spade skater. It's "faster" because it doesn't
lose the lead. Faster, but not certain. You won't have a
skater if the spades don't split 3-3. Oh well... some
contracts do fail, no matter how well you count and plan.
One more point... there's a trap to be avoided:

You might think that if they can't set your contract you could try the
spades first. And if spades don't split, then play hearts.
But you must count tricks before you know if that's OK, because...
If the spades don't split 3-3, playing the ♠AKQ establishes a spade
trick for the defense (perhaps the ♠J?). Then when you play hearts,
the defense has that one-more-trick to cash before you can recapture
the lead. Would that ♠J be enough to set your contract?
No surprise... it's a counting question!
★ You must count tricks.

There's no way around it. All good declarers count tricks.
Every hand.
At the very least you must determine if the defense has enough
winners to set your contract.
example 6
Dummy
♠AT
♥Q76
♦AJT42
♣843
You
♠ K853
♥JT98
♦KQ6
♣K6
The opening lead is ♣7, and third seat plays the ♣J. Of course, you
win the trick with your ♣K.
How many winners does the defense have?
Two hearts and... hmmm... how many clubs? We know they have 8
clubs, but can't tell how many clubs they can cash because we don't
know how the clubs split.
You've already won the opening club lead with your ♣K. The
opponents have played ♣7 and ♣J.
♣AQT7 ♣J952
If clubs split 4-4, how many cashable clubs do they have? show
answer
♣AQT75 ♣J92
And if they split 5-3? show answer
♣AQT752 ♣J9
And if they split 6-2? show answer
Little Bear says, "Wait a minute! You said I need to count tricks, but
you also said I can't tell how many tricks they have because I don't
know how their suit splits. What's a bear to do??"
Good pick-up, Little Bear. In fact, figuring out how many skaters they
have is so important, we're going to spend the next several pages
answering your question!
Split Assumptions
♠ ♥ ♦♣
By Ralph Welton

You are declarer in a no trump contract. The opening lead is made,

and Dummy comes down.
It's time to count winners and plan. Better planning starts

with accurate counts for both offense and defense.
Counting your own tricks is easier than counting

defensive tricks.
You can readily see all your own high cards, and which suits might
take extra tricks from extra length.
How a suit splits is very important. If you have eight spades, including
all the top cards, the number of winners you can cash depends on
how the suit splits between your own hand and the dummy.
4-4 split = 4 tricks

Dummy
♠QT62
You
♠AKJ8

Dummy
♠Q62
You
♠AKJT8

Dummy
♠62
You
♠AKQJT8

Dummy
♠2
You
♠ AKQJT86
Counting long suits for the defense is not so

straightforward
You can't see how their suits split, or how many skaters they may
have. But we may be able to figure it out, or make an assumption
that's better than a pure guess.
That's where split statistics come in. Statistics can help

us see the opponents' cards in terms of how they split
between the two defenders' hands. Knowing the split
leads to better planning.
You're probably concerned that I'm going to suggest we study charts

of percentages for each of the ways a given suit might split.
Numbers... calculations... memorization... math!
No. None of that. Completely unnecessary.

You see, statistical percentages only tell you what happens most often
when you average a huge number of random deals. "Eight cards will
split 6-2 17% of the time." True, but not helpful.
You're not planning your declarer play for a huge number of random
deals – just one deal. What you want to know is how the opponents'
cards split on that one deal. A probability chart can't tell you that.
But we do need a place to start, so here's the one simplified

(statistical) guideline you need to remember:
Suits are most likely to split equally, without

hitting it exactly.
Which means...
• 10 cards split 6-4 (not 5-5)

• 9 cards split 5-4
That's it. It's a starting point. Not a final answer.
A Bridge Bear must also pay attention to the bidding, the opening
lead, and other factors. Each time we consider another factor, it will
help us confirm or reject our split assumption.
The more factors you learn to consider, the better your declarer play
will become. Even if you only learn to apply the split assumption
without considering additional factors, you'll be thinking about counting
defensive tricks. And your declarer play will improve.
Of course we will be discussing additional factors very soon... and

your declarer play will improve even more as the accuracy of your split
assumptions improves.
Split Assumption Practice
We begin with a two-step process for counting individual suits. Count
cards to figure out how many they have. Then use the simplified
formula to determine the split assumption.
example 1
Dummy
♠T82
You
♠K6
How many spades do they have? show answer
We don't yet know how they split, but what assumption should we start
with? show answer
example 2
Dummy
♥742
You
♥AT86
How many hearts do they have? show answer
What split assumption should we start with? show answer
example 3
Dummy
♣A9
You
♣Q4
How many clubs do they have? show answer
What is the split assumption? show answer
example 4
Dummy
♦–
You
♦AQ4
How many diamonds do they have? show answer
example 5
Dummy
♥642
You
♥QT5
How many hearts do they have? show answer
What does the Bridge Bears' statistical shortcut say about the
split? show answer
Little Bear: "Statistics are a lot easier than I expected!"
Me: "Just remember, our shortcut is only a starting point. We have to

look at other sources of information too. Sometimes we will have to
reject or adjust the starting assumption."
example 6
Dummy
♠KJ2
♥T8
♦AJ2
♣AKT96
You
♠QT96
♥K64
♦K74
♣QJ7
Contract: 3N – you need 9 tricks.
Opening lead is the ♥3. You play Dummy's ten. Third hand plays
the ♥Q. Obviously you will play your king.
You have two options for more tricks.
If you force out their ♠A, how many new spade winners would you
establish? show answer
If you finesse the ♦J, and the ♦Q is on-sides, you get one more
winner.
It might seem like three certain tricks (spades) is better than one
uncertain trick (diamonds). But spades loses the lead, while diamonds
might not. So you have to count their winners before you can decide.
Let's count. They have the ♠A and some heart winners. How many
heart winners? Use the split assumption for hearts to figure out how
many heart winners they have. And remember that hearts have
already been played once. show answer
If they cash all their winners – the ♠A and their 4 hearts, is your
contract safe? show answer
No! If they cash 5 tricks, there will only be 8 left for you. Down one.
You cannot give them the chance to capture the lead with their ♠A or
your contract fails.
So... which is better for you – leading spades or leading

diamonds? show answer
example 7
Dummy
♠KJ2
♥T8
♦AJ2
♣AKT96
You
♠QT9
♥K654
♦K74
♣QJ7
the ♥Q. Obviously you will play the king.
This hand is almost the same as example 6. Dummy's hand is

unchanged. The only difference is I've moved a spot card in your hand
from spades to hearts.

You still have the same two options for developing the extra winner
you need. You can force out the ♠A, or you can finesse the ♦J, hoping
the ♦Q is on-sides.
Playing spades is "slow but certain." Slow means you will lose the
lead. Certain means you know for sure you will develop the winner(s)
you need.
Taking the diamond finesse is "fast but not certain." Fast means (if it
wins) you will not lose the lead. Not certain means it might both lose
the lead and give an extra trick to the defense with the ♦Q.
OK... let's count defensive winners (using the split assumption) to see
if you can afford to go slowly or if you must go fast.
They have the ♠A and some heart winners. Use the split assumption
for hearts and figure out how many winners they have. And remember
that hearts have already been played once. So...split
assumption? show answer
If they cash all their winners – the ♠A and their 3 hearts, is your
contract safe? show answer
So... which is better for you – leading spades or leading

example 6
Dummy
♠KJ2
♥T8
♦AJ2
♣AKT96
You
♠QT96
♥K64
♦K74
♣QJ7
This hand is exactly the same as example 6. But I've changed the
contract from 3N to 2N.
the ♥Q. Of course you will play your king.
The count of your winners is the same. You have 8 winners – 5 clubs,
2 diamonds, and 1 heart.
You can establish 3 more winners with a "slow but certain" spade play,
or hope for one more winner with a "fast but not certain" diamond
finesse.
In example 6, we decided that you should take the "fast but not
certain" diamond finesse because the defense already had enough
winners to defeat 3N – ♠A and 4 hearts (5-3 split assumption). If you
gave them the lead with their ♠A, your contract would fail.
Is the diamond finesse still a good choice when your contract is

2N? show answer
We just decided that taking the diamond finesse was a poor plan
because it risks the contract when you already have enough tricks.
Does the "slow but certain" spade play also risk the contract? show
answer
There are always 13 tricks won in every bridge hand. No more, no

less. That truth can tell you if a plan you're considering is good or bad.
Add the cashable tricks for both sides.

• If the total is less than 13, you might be able to establish and
cash more winners.
• If the total is more than 13, somebody is going to be unhappy
– unable to cash all their winners. If you lose the lead, you
will be the unhappy one who doesn't get to cash all your
winners. Only risk losing the lead if you need an extra trick to
make your contract.
• If the total is exactly 13, be very careful. If you give up the
lead while establishing a 14th trick, you won't get to cash it.
You may even wind up with fewer tricks than you had.
Consider what happens if you have 9 tricks and they have 4
(9+4=13), and then you take a finesse. Someone will lose
one of their "winners". If they win the finesse, they can cash 5
(five!) tricks (the 4 they had, plus the card that wins the
finesse), leaving only an unhappy 8 for you. If you win the
finesse, you can cash 10 tricks, leaving only an unhappy 3 for
them.
So... Be careful, and don't be greedy.
Split assumptions when establishing

winners
Most deals require the establishment of additional winners. But you
must be careful about suits where both sides can establish extra
winners in the same suit.
example 9
Dummy
♠KJ3
You
♠Q2
They have one cashable spade trick. You have none.
You can develop two high card winners by driving out the ♠A.
But you must be wary of doing so because the defenders have more
spades than you do. Playing your honors would establish skaters for
the wrong team.
How many spades do they have? show answer
We have honors for three rounds of the suit, so their skaters are the
fourth and fifth rounds. That's 2 skaters for them, plus their ♠A.
Your two high-card winners will be cashable before their two skaters –
which is good. Nevertheless, every time you play spades, they get
closer to being able to cash their two skaters.
You should delay playing this suit until after you have
established your winners in other suits... where they can't
establish skaters.
The spades in this example come from a hand Little Bear played in a
recent duplicate game. Let's see what went wrong when he played
spades too soon...
example 9, expanded
Dummy
♠KJ3
♥QT8
♦A62
♣KT65
You
♠Q2
♥KJ64
♦KQ4
♣AQJ7
Little Bear Gets No Honey
I don't want to put Little Bear on the spot, so I'm going to
pretend YOU are playing the hand. You don't mind if I
have you "make the mistake," do you?
Contract: 5N – Opening lead: ♦5
You need 11 tricks to make your contract.
You have 7 winners – 4 clubs and 3 diamonds. You need 4 more

winners from hearts and spades, so you will have to drive out both
major suit aces.
Little Bear started with spades, so we're going to pretend you repeat
that mistake.
You remember the guideline, "Play the honor from the short hand
first," so you lead the ♠Q and play the ♠3 from Dummy. You're
surprised when they let your ♠Q win.
Next you lead the ♠2, and play Dummy's ♠J. This time they win,
playing their ♠A. That's two rounds of spades. You have none left in
your hand and only the ♠K in the Dummy.
They now have the lead, and they lead a third round of spades, which
your ♠K wins. Now you're out of spades in both hands.
Use the split assumption to figure out how many ready-to-cash spade
skaters they have after the third round of spades. show answer
After driving out the ♠A, you have your two extra spade tricks, so you
turn your attention to hearts. What will they do with your first heart
lead? show answer
Your contract fails because they were able to establish the setting
trick(s) in spades while they still had the ♥A to capture the lead.
To prevent that from happening, you need to drive out

the ♥A before you play spades.
How do we figure out which suit to start? We count
cards and do split assumptions. They have 8 spades but
only 6 hearts, so they are far more likely to have length,
with potential for a skater, in spades. So play hearts
before spades.
When the defenders might have skaters...

example 10
Dummy
♦AQ3
You
♦542
You have one diamond winner. They have none.
You can finesse, hoping the ♦K is on-sides. If the finesse wins, you
keep the lead and have one additional winner. That seems good...
But the finesse might lose. That gives the defense an additional
winner – and the lead.
Even worse, you know they have something good (for them) they can
do with the lead. They can continue diamonds, driving out your ♦A and
establishing more diamond winners for themselves.
OK, pretend you've just lost your finesse and they've driven out
your ♦A. If the split assumption is correct, diamonds can be led four
times. Consider how many times they've already been played. Their
remaining diamonds are winners because your ♦A and ♦Q are gone.
How many uncashed diamond winners do they now have? show
answer
Before taking the finesse, you had the lead. If the finesse loses and
they continue diamonds, you'll get the lead back with your ♦A. But you
are not "back where you started." You have lost a great deal.
1. You have lost a trick to the ♦K.
2. They now have two more ready-to-cash diamond winners.
That's three new winners they didn't have before you
finessed.
Little Bear: "I like to take finesses!"
Yes, Little Bear, beginners often like to take finesses because they
have just recently learned how they work. Strong players hate the
huge downside of losing a finesse in a suit where the opponents can
establish skaters in the same suit. They always look for alternates that
are not so risky. You should too.
When you might have skaters...

example 11
Dummy
♦AQ3
You
♦J7542
As in example 10, you have one winner, and the defense has none.
You also have the same possible finesse, where you hope the ♦K is
on-sides.
But this time taking the finesse is not a potential disaster.
How does the play go? The first diamond trick is a finesse. Let's say it
loses. After you recapture the lead in another suit, you go back to
diamonds.
You win the second round of diamonds with your ♦A, and continue
with a third round, which you win with your ♦J.
How many times have diamonds been played? show answer
Assuming the 3-2 split assumption is correct, they will have no

diamonds left after you play them three times. So even if you lose the
finesse, you might make four diamond tricks – the ♦A and the ♦J are
high card winners, and you have 2 skaters.
The main point of these two diamond examples is....
It's risky to finesse when the opponents can win and

establish skaters in the same suit. But if you are the one
who can establish the skaters, it's not so risky. In fact, it's
usually quite good to establish long suits.
You have to count cards, do a split assumption, and

count tricks to figure out what's risky and what's not so
risky.
Which Suit First? Which Suit Last?

example 12
Dummy
♠JT87
♥AK54
♦Q32
♣65
You
♠Q94
♥Q63
♦AK54
♣KQJ
Contract: 3N. You need 9 tricks to make 3N.
Opening lead: ♥2. The split assumption for their 6 cards is 4-2.
You need 3 more winners to make your contract.
You can drive out the ♣A and promote 2 club winners.
You can drive out the ♠AK and get 2 spade winners.
And, if you're lucky, you can get one extra winner from diamonds. Why
do I say you have to be lucky for a diamond spot card to be a
winner? show answer
Meanwhile, how many winners do they have? show answer
How many more do they need to set your contract? show answer
The opening lead was a heart. If they persist in hearts, how many
extra winners can they develop? show answer
If they do develop that one very slow heart winner, that brings their
total to 4 winners – not enough to set your 3N contract.
So you can afford to develop your extra club and spade winners
"slowly." All you have to do to make your contract is avoid helping
them develop a fifth winner. That's why we won't be playing diamonds
any time soon. It would be bad if diamonds don't split and the bad
guys get an extra winner.
Now let's look at spades and clubs. If the split assumptions are correct
for those suits, you could play out all your cards in one of them and
your opponents will not get any extra skaters.
Which suit is that? show answer
We've worked out our plan:

1. Win the opening lead in hearts.
2. Drive out their spade masters.
3. Drive out their club master.
4. When your lesser honors are established, cash all your tricks
and make your contract.
This plan leaves out the details of losing tricks and recapturing the
lead. The first time we lead spades, they win and lead a second heart.
We win and lead a second spade. They win and lead a third heart. We
win and lead a club. They win and cash their heart skater. Then we
win whatever suit they lead and cash all our tricks.
With our plan, we will establish 10 winners – 2 spades, 3 hearts, 3

diamonds, and 2 clubs. Why will we only be able to cash 9
tricks? show answer
Little Bear: "The split assumption for their 6 hearts is 4-

2. But what if the assumption is wrong and the actual split is 5-1.
Wouldn't they have 2 heart skaters – enough to defeat our contract?"
Me: Ah... good question, Little Bear.
You are correct that two heart skaters would be enough to defeat 3N.
But we would discover it when the player with the singleton makes a
discard on the second round of hearts. If that happens we would have
to change our plan.
We could develop 2 extra tricks in spades, and hope for a

lucky 3-3 diamond split. If luck is with us, we would be
able to cash our 9 tricks before the defense can cash
their heart skaters.
There are more advanced possibilities for coming to 9 or 10 tricks

before the defenders can cash hearts, but that's beyond the scope of
this page.
Listen to the Bidding
♠ ♥ ♦♣
By Ralph Welton

When you declare a no trump contract, your count-and-plan must

include how many winners the defenders have – both high cards and
skaters.
Counting their cashable high card tricks is easy – they have all the
high cards you don't.
But counting their skaters can be a multi-step process.
We start with the Bridge Bears' split assumption for counting skaters. It
tells us to assume their cards split as evenly as possible, without
hitting it exactly. Then we'll look for additional information to confirm
or reject that assumption.
On this page, we'll see how reviewing the bidding can help.
example 1
Dummy
♠T82
You
♠K6
Left Hand Opponent (LHO) leads a 4th best spade.
They have 8 spades, so the Bridge Bears' shortcut for counting

skaters tells us to assume the split is 5-3.
Next we look for clues in the bidding that suggest a 4-4 split or a 6-2
split is a better assumption.
If you're not sure how many cards are promised by your

opponents' opening bids and overcalls, perhaps you
should review those pages before you tackle this one.
West North East You
2♠ P P 2N
P P P
For this hand, the bidding is definitive.
How do the spades split? show answer
Of course it's possible that LHO has made a mistake, or

lied, with his bidding. But in the long run we are far
better off if we believe the opponents' bidding, and draw
appropriate conclusions.
example 2
Dummy
♥752
You
♥K93
West leads a 4th best heart. What is the starting split

West North East You
1♥ P P 1N
P P P
What suit length does the 1♥ opening bid promise? show answer
example 3
Dummy
♣T82
You
♣K6
West leads a small club. What is the starting split assumption? show
answer
Next we test our assumption by reviewing the bidding.
West North East You
1♣ P P 1N
P P P
What suit length does a 1♣ opening bid promise? show answer

We reviewed the bidding and didn't find a reason to reject our original
5-3 assumption. The next several pages will cover additional sources
of information about split assumptions. If they too offer no new insight
into the split of the club suit, we will base our planning on a 5-3 split.
example 4
Dummy
♥T82
You
♥K6
West's opening lead is a 4th best heart. What is the starting split
West North East You
1♣ P P 1N
P P P
When West opens 1♣, we can't tell much about the split of his club
suit. But the 1♣ bid tells us a great deal about the split of
the heart suit.
Is our 5-3 assumption for the heart split confirmed? show answer
example 5
Dummy
♠543
You
♠AT86
West leads a spade spot card. What is the starting split

Now review the bidding.
West North East You
– – – 1♣
1♠ P P 1N
After a 1♠ overcall, is the 4-2 assumption confirmed? show answer
You are allowed to ask East how frequently West

overcalls on four-card suits. The answer can help you
choose between a 4-2 and 5-1 split assumption.
example 6
Dummy
♥7
You
♥A93
The opening lead is a small heart. What is our split assumption? show
answer
Now review the bidding.
West North East You
3♥ DBL P 3N
P P P
Is the split assumption confirmed? show answer
★ You should not wait for the bidding to be over before you start
thinking about what it tells you. As soon as West opens 3♥, you
should be thinking, "7 card suit, weak hand."
example 7
Dummy
♥2
You
♥QT86
West leads a heart. What is the starting split assumption? show

answer
West North East You
1♦ 1♠ P 1N
P P P
How many hearts does West have after opening the bidding with
1♦? show answer
example 8
Dummy
♠743
You
♠AJ
West leads a small spade. What is our split assumption? show answer
Now let's review the bidding.
West North East You
– – P 1♦
1♠ DBL 2♠ 2N
How many spades does West have? show answer

example 9
Dummy
♦984
You
♦K73
This hand shows how considering two factors together, the bidding
and the suit led, can produce a more accurate assessment of the split.
West leads a diamond spot card. How many diamonds do they

have? show answer
They have 7 diamonds.
What is our split assumption for diamonds? show answer
West North East You
– – – 1♣
DBL 1♥ 1♠ 2N
Normally West would lead spades after his partner showed a spade fit.
But he didn't. He led diamonds. Why? He must believe he has far
better chances of defeating 2N by leading diamonds than by leading
the suit his partner bid.
So... How many diamonds does West have? show answer
Just to double check... Is it consistent with West's takeout double that

he could hold 5 diamonds? show answer
example 10
Dummy
♠743
♥K763
♦842
♣A43
You
♠K8
♥JT8
♦AQT5
♣QT73
This time we again consider two factors together, hcp and the bidding.
West leads a small spade. What is our split assumption? show answer
There are 40 hcp in the whole deck. Add yours to Dummy's. How
many total high card points do the opponents have? show answer
Now let's review the bidding.
West North East You
– – P 1♦
P 1♥ P 1N
Both East and West had an opportunity to bid at a low level, but didn't.
If one of them had most of their 21 hcp, he would have bid something.
That tells us that their hcp are divided between the two of them.
So what? How does that help us evaluate our split assumption?
Well... with their hcp divided, West has the strength for a 1♠ overcall
that he didn't make.
He's led a spade, but he didn't overcall 1♠
How many spades does he have? show answer
The examples on this page illustrate how the bidding can

help you make more accurate split assumptions. There
can even be useful information when your opponents
pass.
Little Bear says, "I can follow what you say in these
example hands, but I've never done it. So I don't think I'm going to be
any good at it. How important is it, really?"
It's a skill you must develop, eventually. But you can work into it
slowly, by starting with hand diagrams and bidding sequences from
books and here on Bridge Bears. Then you have all the time you need
to consider each bid slowly and carefully. With practice, reviewing the
bidding will become almost automatic.
Read the Lead
♠ ♥ ♦♣
By Ralph Welton

So far we've covered...
1. the importance of counting cashable tricks

2. the Bridge Bears' assumption about counting defensive
skaters (a shortcut so we don't need suit-length probability
charts)
3. how the bidding helps us count defensive skaters
If you haven't seen those pages yet, you should read them before
coming back here.
On this page, we'll see how the opening lead can be an additional
clue about the number of defensive skaters.
Fourth Best Leads

Most defenders make the agreement that their long suit leads will be
fourth-best. Their goal is to establish and cash skaters to defeat your
contract. They want their partner to be able to judge wisely whether to
continue attacking the same suit or to switch suits. So they make
leads that convey information about the length and strength of the suit
led.
Declarer too can watch the defenders' carding and use the information
to make better plans for declaring the hand.
So let's look at some fourth best leads and see what they tell us.
example 1
Dummy
♠T82
You
♠K6
Left Hand Opponent (LHO) leads ♠3 (fourth best).
They have 8 spades, so we start with the assumption of a 5-3 split. On

the previous page, we looked for clues in the bidding to help us decide
if 5-3 was right or wrong.
Now we're going to look at the opening lead.
When LHO makes a 4th best lead, he has the card he led (duh!) and 3
higher ones. That's exactly a four card suit, unless he also has lower
cards that we can't see.
So we look for spot cards lower than the one led to see if opening
leader might have any of them.
On this hand Dummy has the ♠2, so there are no "missing" cards
lower than ♠3 that opening leader might hold. That means LHO has
exactly a four card suit. The split is 4-4.
A fourth-best lead with no missing lower cards means

that opening leader's suit is exactly four cards long.
example 2
Dummy
♠T82
You
♠K6
This is the same hand, so we still start with the 5-3 split assumption.
But this time the opening lead is the ♠4.
Now there is ONE "missing" spot card lower than the ♠4.
We don't know which opponent has the ♠3.
If LHO doesn't have it, he has a 4 card suit. If he does have it, he has
a five card suit. He cannot have a 6+ suit because there aren't enough
missing lower spot cards for him to have that long a suit.
Stick with the 5-3 assumption for now, look for other
clues (especially in the bidding), and watch to see who
plays the ♠3.
example 3
Dummy
♠T82
You
♠K6
Same hand, again.
Opening lead: ♠5. Now there are TWO "missing" spot cards – the ♠4
and ♠3.
Let's use that information to test our 5-3 assumption.
Could opening leader have a 4-card suit?
There is one way opening leader can have just a 4-card suit – if his
partner was dealt both of the missing spot cards.
But there are three ways opening leader can have more than a 4-card
suit– he could have been dealt the ♠4, or the ♠3, or both of them.
That's one way for him to have a 4-card suit, and three ways for him to
have more than that. So he probably doesn't have just a 4- card suit.
This makes the 5-3 assumption more reliable than if we

hadn't looked for missing spot cards.
Little Bear says, "I don't like all

this "probably," "unlikely," "we can't be sure," and "stick with the 5-3
assumption". It's confusing and I still don't know for sure how many
cards the opening leader started with."
That's true, Little Bear. We often don't know for sure exactly how a suit
will split. But we can still make a decision about the best plan to follow
and the best plays to make.
It's like taking a finesse. We often know it's the right play to make,
even though we don't know if the finesse will win or lose.
Similarly, 5-3 may be the best split assumption to make, even though
the actual split might turn out to be different.
Practice
example 4
Dummy
♦A8
West East
♦4 ♦J
You
♦K2
Opening lead: ♦4. You play the ♦8 from Dummy, third hand plays
the ♦J, and you win the trick with your king.
Now let's see what the opening lead tells us about the accuracy of the
assumption.
How many spot cards, lower than the ♦4, are "missing"? show answer
So West has either a 4-card suit or, if he has the ♦3, a 5-card suit. But
remember, not all of West's diamonds will be winners. You have two
diamond winners – the ace and the king.
If West has a 5-card suit (a 5-4 split), how many skaters can they
If West has a 4-card suit (a 4-5 split), how many skaters can they
Remember to always think in terms of how the suit

splits, not just how many cards the opening leader
holds.
example 5
Dummy
♣Q8
West East
♣5 ♣J
You
♣K762
Opening lead: ♣5
How many lower spot cards are missing? show answer
The 4-3 split assumption will only be correct if East has both of the
missing spot cards. If the opening leader (West) has either of them, or
both, he has more than 4 clubs. Hmmm... save that thought...
Little Bear: "Save that thought?? Not much chance of that..."
I know you can do it, Little Bear! You play Dummy's ♣Q and third
hand plays the ♣J. Would he play the ♣J if he had a small spot card
to play? show answer
So we conclude that the opening leader holds both missing spot

cards. Reject the 4-3 assumption. What is the split? show answer
example 6
Dummy
♥7
West East
♥8 ♥J
You
♥AQ6
Opening lead is the ♥8. Third hand plays the ♥J.

If LHO has only one of the 4 missing spot cards, the 5-4 split
assumption is correct. But if he has two of them, the split is 6-3. And if
he has three of them, it's 7-2.
The more lower spot cards are missing, the more

important it becomes to consider other factors along with
the lead, especially the bidding, to improve the accuracy
of your split assumption.
Ask yourself if LHO made a bid that showed a 6 or 7 card suit – a

preemptive bid or a rebid of a suit. If he did, believe his bid and adjust
your split assumption to match. (see my article Listen to the Bidding)
If he didn't make such a bid, then ask yourself if he had

the opportunity to make it, but didn't. In that case the 5-4 assumption
is supported (but not proven).
example 7
Dummy
♠Q2
West East
♠7 ♠3
You
♠A986
West leads the ♠7 and Dummy's ♠Q wins the trick.
Now let's consider the bidding.
West Partner East You

– – P 1♦
1♠ DBL P 1N
P 3N
When West overcalls 1♠, we place him with 5+ spades. That means
we discard our original 4-3 split assumption.
In addition, we consider that he could have made a jump overcall

(preempting with a 2♠ or 3♠ bid) if he had a 6-card or 7-card suit. But
he didn't jump, so we have no reason to place him with more than 5
spades.
What is our revised split assumption? show answer
Considering the bidding makes us more confident about

our new split assumption.
Little Bear says, "Why should I care so much about

how their suits split? I always go after the suits that give me the most
tricks, and I know how many cards I have in my own suits. If I just
develop and cash enough tricks to make my contract, that's all I worry
about."
Making your contract should indeed be your first goal, Little Bear. But
that does not always mean going after the most tricks.
Do you remember talking about guaranteed tricks that lose the lead,
Little Bear, compared to uncertain tricks that might not lose the lead?
"Slow" tricks compared to "Fast" tricks?
Losing the lead, or not, is sometimes more important than "going after
the most tricks." Like this next example....
example 8
Dummy
♠ AQT
♥T43
You
♠J7
♥KQJ2
You have one cashable trick, the ♠A.
You can establish three "slow" heart tricks by driving out the ♥A. Or
you can hope for two "fast" spade tricks by leading the ♠J and
finessing. (If it wins, you can repeat the finesse to get two more
winners.)
Before you can decide which play is better, you need to figure out if
they have enough cashable tricks to set your contract.
Little Bear still looks puzzled, "Why is that?"
Because if they have enough cashable tricks to set your contract, it's
important not to lose the lead. In this example, you might choose to
play for only two additional tricks where you hope to keep the lead
(spades), and not three additional tricks where you will definitely lose
the lead (hearts).
As usual, you have to count their cashable tricks before

you can make a wise choice.
Little Bear: "OK.... Can you show me again how I can count their
skaters?"
Let's look at all four suits for the example hand I just gave you.
example 9
Dummy
♠ AQT
♥T43
♦AJT42
♣83
You
♠J7
♥KQJ2
♦KQ63
♣K92
Your contract is 3N. You need 9 tricks.
The opening lead is ♣4, and your ♣K wins the first trick.
How many cashable tricks do you have? show answer
What is the split assumption for clubs? show answer
Do you stick with the 5-3 assumption? show answer
How many cashable tricks do they have? show answer
Four cashable defensive tricks is not enough to set your contract, so it

would be OK for you to lose the lead.
What is your plan to make 9 tricks? show answer
Why is it a bad idea to finesse in spades? show answer

Little Bear says, "I thought playing hearts would make
an overtrick, but now I see that they can cash four tricks. They can't
set the contract, but there will be only 9 tricks left for me, so no
overtrick."
True, but now let's make one small change...
example 10
Dummy
♠ AQT
♥T43
♦AJT42
♣83
You
♠J7
♥KQJ2
♦KQ63
♣K92
This is the exact same hand, with the same 3N contract, but with a
different spot card lead.
The opening lead is the ♣6, and your ♣K wins the first trick.
You still have 7 cashable tricks, and you still need 2 more.
The beginning split assumption is still 5-3.
But now there are missing spot cards. How many? show answer
Do you stick with the 5-3 assumption, or change it? show answer
How many cashable tricks do they have? show answer
Five. The ♥A plus 4 cashable clubs – enough to defeat your contract.
Five cashable defensive tricks is enough to set your

contract, so if you lose the lead your contract will fail.
Can you make a plan that allows you to cash 9 tricks without losing
the lead? show answer
Why would it be a bad idea to lead hearts? show answer
example 11
Dummy
♣52
West East
♣7 ♣Q
You
♣K96
The opening lead is the ♣7. You win with your ♣K.
What do we do next?
Little Bear: "Did West bid anything?"
That's right, Little Bear. We review the bidding. No, he didn't bid
anything. And he made no revealing passes either. What's next?
Little Bear: "We look at the opening lead."
Very good, my furry friend! How many "missing" spot cards are lower
than the ♣7 opening lead? show answer
There's nothing unusual about thinking your opponents could each
have one of the missing spot cards, so there's no reason to discard
our 5-3 split assumption.
Summary
Figuring out how many skaters the defenders have is an important
part of good declarer planning. We do this with split
assumptions, reviewing the bidding, and reading the lead.
After doing all of these, we adjust our plans based on whether or not
the defense has enough cashable tricks to set our contract. If they do,
we try to take enough tricks quickly. If they don't, we can choose a
slower but more certain plan.
What am I going to say next, Little Bear?
Little Bear doesn't think for more than a brief moment, "You're going to
tell me to count."
That's right, my honey-loving friend. Counting leads to better declarer

play.
Watch for Discards
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton

So far we've covered...
1. the importance of counting winners

2. the Bridge Bears' assumption about counting defensive
skaters (a shortcut so we don't need suit-length probability
charts)
3. how the bidding helps us count splits and defensive skaters
4. how to read the lead for more accurate counting
If you haven't seen those pages yet, you may want to read them
before coming back here.
On this page, we'll see how discards are a definitive answer about the
exact number of defensive skaters.
example 1
Dummy
♣ T82
You
♣ K6
Let's do a quick review of using the bidding and the opening lead to
test split assumptions.
West leads a club against your 3N contract. How many clubs do the
defenders have? show answer

West North East You
– P 2♦
1♥
P 2♠ P 3N
What does the bidding reveal about the length of West's club
suit? show answer
The opening lead is the ♣7. East plays the ♣J. How many lower spot
cards are "missing"? show answer
There's nothing unusual about thinking opening leader could have one
of the missing spot cards, giving him a five-card suit. At this point we
have no reason to reject the split assumption. So we will make our
plans based on a 5-3 split.
example 1 (repeated)
Dummy
♣ T82
You
♣ K6
The Play of the Hand

During the play, East follows suit twice in clubs, then discards on the
third round.
We know they have a total of 8 clubs (because we have 5), and we

also know how many of their 8 East had. So we no longer have any
doubt about the split in clubs. What is the split? show answer
Be alert to when an opponent discards. A discard makes

all of our assumptions, analysis, and speculations old
news. The discard settles the issue. If the split of the club
suit matters, it's time to revise your plan for declaring the
hand.
Little Bear asks, "If discards are so perfect for figuring

out the split, why do we bother with all those other uncertain ways of
figuring out splits?"
You have more than stuffing in that head of yours, Little Bear! That's a
very good question.
Sometimes we can wait for a discard before we decide what to do

about the actual split of a critical suit.
But most of the time, we need to make a plan right away, as soon as
we see the dummy. Discards won't happen until later in the play, and
by then it may be too late to start planning.
So we use split assumptions, the bidding, and the opening lead to

make plans we can implement sooner – before discards happen.
Often discards confirm that our plan is indeed good, but be alert for
times when a discard suggests our plan needs to be revised.
example 2
Dummy
♦ AQ642
You
♦ JT5
You have the majority of the diamonds, including a nice five card suit
in Dummy.
Of course you hope to establish Dummy's spot cards as skaters. What
is the split assumption? show answer
You lead the ♦J, covered by the ♦K, and you win the ♦A, while RHO
follows suit.
Next you lead Dummy's ♦2, and RHO discards. Oh-oh. It doesn't look
like they're splitting the way we hoped. Of course you win this trick
with your ♦T.
What is the split? show answer
If you play your last diamond master (♦Q) on the third round, will your
2 small diamonds then be skaters? show answer
You have two diamond spot cards left in Dummy, and LHO only has
one diamond left. You could still develop one fifth-round diamond
skater by leading diamonds and making him play his winner.
Dummy
♦ AQ642
You
♦ JT5
Now let's start over and try a different variation.
You lead the ♦J from your hand, intending to finesse, while hoping for
future skaters. But LHO discards.
What is the split? show answer
How many skaters can you establish? show answer
How many tricks can you win with honors? show answer
When you lead the ♦J and LHO discards, would it be OK to play

Dummy's ♦A to prevent RHO from winning the trick? show answer
example 3
Dummy
♠ K6
You
♠ A75432
If the split assumption turns out to be correct, how many skaters can
you establish? show answer
If the spades do indeed split 3-2, how many spades must you lose
before you can cash your skaters? show answer
How many rounds must you play to discover whether or not the split
assumption is correct? show answer
Heads up! Suppose you see a discard on the second round...

If you see a discard on the second round, what is the split? show
answer
After a second round discard, how many spades must you lose before
you have any skaters? show answer
After that unfavorable second-round discard, how many skaters can

you eventually establish? show answer
And now it gets as bad as possible...

Suppose you see a discard on the first round. The split is 5-0. How
many skaters can you eventually establish? show answer
How many tricks must you lose before you can cash your
skater? show answer
Little Bear comments, "That 5-0 split means the spade
honey pot is almost empty to begin with. Do I have other suits where I
can get an extra winner faster, without losing 3 tricks first?"
I hope so, Little Bear. Many contracts would go set if the defenders get
3 unexpected spade winners!
At least such horrible 5-0 splits occur only very rarely. But when they
do occur, you must see the early discard so you know what's
happening and can change your plans accordingly.
Pay attention to the actual cards discarded

We've seen that early discards help us diagnose the split of the
suit led.
Now we'll turn our attention to how discards help us figure out the split
of the suit discarded.
example 4
Dummy
♠ KQ6
You
♠ A753
You have three high card winners.
You have 7 clubs, so they have 6.
You can hope for a favorable split so you'll also have a skater. What
split is that? show answer
Dummy
♣ KQ6
West East
♣ J4 ♣ T982
You
♣ A753
But if the clubs split 4-2 (or worse), there will be no skater.
Unless...
Dummy
♣ KQ6
West East
♣ J4 ♣ T982
You
♣ A753
Suppose the defender with the four-card club holding cannot follow
suit when someone leads spades (or hearts, or diamonds). He must
discard something and chooses one of his clubs. That reduces the
split from the original 4-2 to only 3-2 remaining.
You can pick up a 3-2 split with your 3 master cards and have a
skater.
Why would a defender make such a discard, giving you an extra

skater?
Because he doesn't know what you hold in your closed hand. He
doesn't know his four small clubs stop you from developing a skater.
So he lets one go... and later regrets it.
Actually, he'll only regret it if you notice his club discard and later
realize your three club masters have captured all the rest of their
clubs, giving you a skater.
But if you don't remember that he discarded a club, you will see his
partner fail to follow suit on the third round and think there is one more
club outstanding (a 4-2 split). You would be fooled into believing you
have no skater.
Little Bear says, "I get confused with 4-2 splits that
might turn into 3-2 splits. Their 6 cards can't turn into 5 cards. So... I
just get confused."
Instead of thinking about splits, you could count their actual cards. You
know they have 6 clubs. Start counting them when the first discard
appears – that's 1 club. When they both follow suit to your first master,
that's clubs 2 and 3. If they both follow suit to your second master,
that's 4 and 5. Your third master extracts number 6, and that's all they
had. So your last club is a skater.
"Yes," Little Bear says happily. "I think that might work better for me.
I'll try it that way."
example 5
Dummy
♥ A96
You
♥ KQ43
What split would give you a skater? show answer
You cash your ♥A and your ♥K, both following suit. Can you tell yet if
you have a skater? show answer
Suppose you cash your third master card, and RHO discards. What do
you conclude? show answer
Dummy
♥ A96
West East
♥ J87 ♥ T52
You
♥ KQ43
However...
Suppose East has made an early discard from a 3-card holding. Now
he won't follow suit to your third heart master. He will discard another
suit.
If you didn't see his original heart discard, the one that happened
before you start playing your heart masters, you will think West still
holds another heart and you will think you have no skater when there
actually is one.
When there is an early discard, you must see what suit

is discarded and remember it. Otherwise, you may later
miscount that suit and draw the wrong conclusion about
skaters. You know you're going to be counting hearts to
see if you have a skater, so start as soon as you see a
heart discarded. Say to yourself, "One heart played."
example 6
Dummy
♠ T32
♥ A96
♦ K864
♣ KQ6
You
♠ J94
♥ KQ42
♦ A7
♣ A753
Your contract is 3N. How many winners do you have? show answer
The opening lead is a 4th best spade, the ♠5. There are no missing
lower spot cards. What does the lead tell you? show answer
Everyone follows suit to three rounds of spades. On the fourth round

of spades, RHO must make a discard. You should watch carefully to
see if he throws a card that might help you count a critical suit
correctly.
What kind of suit might that be? There are two suits where you must
count their cards accurately so you will know if you have a skater.
Which two suits? show answer
Clubs and hearts. The defenders have 6 cards in each suit. If they
have played all 6 of their cards when you cash your AKQ, your last
card will be a skater. A discard in either suit might help you. So start
counting their cards as soon as you see a heart or a club discard.
If RHO discards a diamond, might that help you? show answer
Whatever suit RHO discards, remember it.
Now let's look at your own hand. When the defenders cash the fourth
round of spades you are out, so you must pick another suit to discard.
Before you choose a discard, remember that you need one more
winner to make your contract. Don't throw it away!
What do you discard? ♥2 ♦7 ♣3
example 7
Dummy
♠7
♥ K983
♦ A8542
♣ Q32
You
♠ AJ6
♥ A62
♦ 76
♣ AK765
Your contract is 3N. The opening lead is ♠5. RHO plays the ♠9.
What is the split assumption for spades? show answer
How many winners do they have? show answer
Now count your own winners. show answer
You only need one more winner to make 3N.
Little Bear says, "This is an easy hand. The split

assumption for clubs is 3-2, so I can get 2 club skaters for an overtrick.
Even if clubs split 4-1, I can lose a club and establish one skater. I
have all the aces, so getting the lead back will be no problem."
Good plan, Little Bear. You win the opening lead with your ♠J. But
when you lead a club, LHO discards ♥4. Oh no... the clubs are not
splitting. Can you still lose a club to get one club skater? show answer
Before we continue with our analysis, what are you supposed to

remember? show answer
Now that we know what to remember, we can go back to our analysis.
Clubs cannot give us the extra trick we need. They split too poorly.
How about diamonds? If diamonds split as favorably as possible (3-3),

you could play 3 rounds (losing two of them) to develop fourth and fifth
round skaters. That would give you the trick you need plus an
overtrick.
Little Bear says, "I like overtricks! I think I'll try that."
Not so fast Little Bear. You need to count how many tricks it would
give them if you lose 2 diamonds.
When they win the first diamond, they would switch back to spades
and force out your ♠A. And when they win the second diamond, how
many spade winners could they cash? show answer
Dummy
♠7
♥ K983
♦ A8542
♣ Q32
You
♠ AJ6
♥ A62
♦ 76
♣ AK765
You cannot afford to lose 2 diamonds, because they would cash their
spade skaters and set your contract before you can cash diamond
skaters.
So clubs and diamonds don't work. No extra trick in those suits.
Now look at hearts. What can you hope for in hearts? show answer
What are you remembering? show answer
You play low hearts from both hands, both opponents following suit.
Remember we are counting their hearts, not yours. What is your new
count of hearts played? show answer
They force out your ♠A. And now it's time to see if you are going to
make your contract.
You cash your ♥A on the second round of hearts, and both follow suit.
No problem yet. What is the heart count? show answer
Then when you lead to Dummy's ♥K, one opponent follows suit and
the other discards. Now what should you do? show answer
Whenever there is a suit where the split matters, such

as when you might or might not have skaters, you
must see and count any discards in that suit.
Let's look at another example where you must see and count discards
in a suit where you hope for skaters.
example 8
Dummy
♠ 754
♥ K853
♦ 842
♣ AK4
You
♠ T863
♥ AQ2
♦ AKQ3
♣ 95
This is a challenge hand about seeing and counting discards.
Your contract is 3N. The opening lead is a fourth-best ♠2.
Let's count and plan.
You need one more winner. Where might you get it? show answer
Dummy
♠ 754
♥ K853
♦ 842
♣ AK4
You
♠ T863
♥ AQ2
♦ AKQ3
♣ 95
The play begins with...
The defenders cash their 4 spade winners and continue with a club,
which you win.
You could decide to test for a skater in either hearts or diamonds first.
You pick hearts and cash your three top honors. One of the defenders
discards on the third round. Little Bear whispers to me, "A 4-2 split
means no heart skater."
Next you cash your top three diamonds, and once again a defender
discards on the third round. Little Bear repeats his conclusion, "No
skater in diamonds either."
What mistake(s) did Little Bear make? show answer
Let's go back and talk about the play right before you played hearts.
How many defensive discards were made before the first round of
hearts?
012
If it turns out there is NO heart skater...

....you must play diamonds next, counting their diamonds to see if you
have a skater.
They were dealt 6 diamonds. To have a skater you must see all 6
played before you try to cash your fourth diamond. So, add previous
diamond discards to diamonds you see when you play your three
masters.
How many defensive discards would there be before you start playing
If both hearts and diamonds have skaters, will you make an

overtrick? show answer
We've seen how it can be important to watch their discards so we
know which suits are splitting favorable and which are not.
Now we're going to turn our attention to learning how to prevent the
opponents from cashing all their skaters when we lose the lead.
Stoppers
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton

Good declarer play relies on counting. Most of the counting we have

already practiced focuses on the number of tricks each side can cash.
For most hands, neither side starts out with enough winners to
succeed. So both sides will work to establish more.
That's why we view no trump contracts as a race. You

must establish and cash enough tricks before they do.
Losing the lead while establishing tricks is a normal part of declaring

no trump contracts. After you lose the lead to establish tricks, the
defense will (normally) lose the lead back to you while they try to
establish some tricks of their own.
Doing split assumptions and counting stoppers helps

you figure out when this back-and-forth of losing the
lead can turn into one side or the other cashing enough
tricks to make or break your contract.
On this page, we're going to see what stoppers are, and how counting
them will improve your declarer planning.
example 1
Dummy
♠ AQT2
♥ Q8
♦ KT32
♣ T75
You
♠ J96
♥ AK6
♦ AQJ84
♣ J6
Contract: 3N The opening lead is the ♣4.
How many cashable tricks do you have? show answer
What is the split assumption for clubs? show answer
Our next step is usually to review the bidding and look for missing spot
cards lower than the opening lead. But on this hand I'm just going to
tell you that the 5-3 assumption is correct.
They win the opening lead, and lead another club, and another, and
another, and another. 5 tricks. Ouch!
Our contract is already defeated (down one), because we

couldn't STOP them from cashing their entire club suit.
If we could have peeked into all four hands before choosing to play
3N, we would have seen that we have no club stopper, and we would
have known it was a bad contract. Playing with a trump suit would
have allowed us to trump their clubs, stopping them from cashing their
entire suit.
A stopper is a high card winner that can capture the

lead and stop the other side from cashing tricks in that
suit.
Notice that there are two parts to our definition of a stopper:
1. winning a trick
2. preventing them from cashing the trick(s) they establish
example 2
Dummy
♣ T75
You
♣ J6
These are the clubs from example hand 1.
You have no club stopper because you cannot win a club trick.
example 3
Dummy
♦ KT32
You
♦ AQJ84
These are the diamonds from example 1.
You have no diamond stoppers.
Yes, you can easily win 5 tricks in this suit.
However, your opponents don't have any diamond winners. And they
can't develop any for later. So your terrific diamond holding doesn't
satisfy the second half of our definition – to stop them from cashing or
developing diamond tricks. Lots of diamond winners for you, yes. But
no stoppers.
example 4
Dummy
♥ T87
You
♥ A6
You can capture the lead with your ♥A.
They can develop high card winners and skaters in this suit.
Is your ♥A a stopper? show answer
example 5
Dummy
♠ 752
You
♠ K84
The opening lead is a spade against your 3N contract.
Is your ♠K a stopper? show answer
If they lead a different suit for their opening lead, will you have a spade
stopper? show answer
example 6
Dummy
♣ QT872
You
♣ J964
Do you have any club stoppers? show answer
Now let's look at this suit from the defenders' point of view.
Do they have any club stoppers? show answer
When a stopper captures a trick, it's permanent. Nothing can undo a

captured trick.
However, stopping the opponents from cashing their tricks may be
only temporary. If they win a future trick in another suit, they can return
to leading the original suit and possibly cash their tricks then.
Both sides can have stoppers in the same suit.

example 7
Dummy
♦ Q7
You
♦ K9
Do they have a stopper? show answer
Do you have a stopper? show answer
example 8
Dummy
♠ KQ7
You
♠ 54
example 9
Dummy
♥ KQ7
You
♥ J3
You can develop two high card winners.
They can develop skaters. The split assumption for their 8 hearts is a
5-3 split, so we expect them to be able to develop 2 skaters.
example 10
Dummy
♠ 983
You
♠ AJT52
Do they have a spade stopper? show answer
Do you have a spade stopper? show answer
example 11
Dummy
♣2
You
♣ AK6
What is the stopper situation? show answer
When your stoppers are gone, how many skaters do you expect them
to have? show answer
example 12
Dummy
♦ JT98
You
♦ 53
How many stoppers do they have? show answer
How many stoppers do you have? show answer
Who cashes first?

example 13
Dummy
♦ KJT93
♣ 62
You
♦ Q2
♣ AK3
How many club stoppers do you have? show answer
How many diamond stoppers do they have? show answer
You have more stoppers than they do. So if they persist with club
leads and you persist with diamonds, you will be able to cash your
diamond tricks before they can cash their club skaters. Like this...
1. They start, and knock out your first club stopper.

2. You lead diamonds, forcing out their ♦A
3. They persist with clubs, forcing out your second club stopper.
4. You cash all your diamonds.
Whichever partnership has more stoppers in the
opponents' suit(s) gets to cash their own tricks first.
Stay ahead in the stopper race!

You have more stoppers than they do, but if they force out your first
club stopper and then you fiddle around with hearts or spades and
lose the lead, they will cash their suit before yours.
Let's follow how that would work:
1. They start, and knock out your first club stopper.

2. You lose the lead when you lead hearts or spades. (So
sad...)
3. They force out your remaining club stopper.
4. Then you lead diamonds (too late), forcing out their ♦A .
5. They cash their club skaters.
example 14
Dummy
♦ KJT93
♣ 62
You
♦ Q2
♣ A73
This example is almost the same as the previous one. I've taken away
one of your club stoppers.
Now you have the same number of stoppers as they do. You have 1
club stopper, and they have 1 diamond stopper.
Remember... if the number of stoppers is the same, whoever starts

knocking out the opponents' stoppers first gets to cash their tricks first.
How does the play go?

1. They start, and knock out your only club stopper.
2. You lead diamonds, forcing out their ♦A .
3. They cash their club skaters. They started first, so they
cashed first.
If you are lucky, they might make an opening lead in hearts or spades,
failing to knock out your club stopper. If you can win their heart or
spade lead, you can be the one to win the club-diamond race by
starting first.
1. They lead a heart or a spade.

2. You win, and seize the opportunity to lead diamonds.
3. They stop you from playing more diamonds (with their ♦A),
and belatedly switch to clubs.
4. You play your club stopper, and cash your diamonds.
The Bridge Bears all clap... quietly, because furry paws don't make
much noise.
example 15
Dummy
♠ 54
♦ JT982
You
♠ AQ2
♦ Q3
Spades are led from your left. Good, your ace-queen play last.
If they are able to force out your second spade stopper, they will have
3+ spade skaters to cash.
And if you are able to knock out their diamond stoppers, you will have
3 diamond skaters to cash.
Who cashes first? show answer
example 16
Dummy
♥ A5
♣ QT9842
You
♥ KQ3
♣ KJ3
They lead hearts.
The split assumption is 5-3. If correct, they have enough hearts to

establish 2 future skaters. And you have enough clubs to establish 5
club winners.
Who cashes first? show answer
But suppose you don't play clubs right away. Instead, you try to do
something with spades or diamonds, and unfortunately you lose the
lead. They return to leading hearts, and...
Now who's ahead in the heart-club race? show answer
A Counting Shortcut
example 17
Dummy
♠ AJ3
♥ 765
♦ KJT93
♣ 62
You
♠ K852
♥ KQJT
♦ Q2
♣ AK3
This hand has the same diamonds and clubs as one of our earlier
diagrams. This time I'm showing you the other suits as well so I can
make an important point about the race to cash tricks.
We've learned that counting stoppers can tell us who gets to cash their
tricks first.
But this "cashing first" only applies to the suits we are comparing. It
does not mean you will be able to establish and cash all suits for the
entire hand.
Let me explain...
Previously, we compared their clubs to our diamonds. We have 2 club

stoppers and they have one diamond stopper. We have more
stoppers, so we can cash diamonds before they can cash clubs.
But what about hearts? We'd like to drive out their ♥A and have 3
cashable heart tricks to go with our 4 cashable diamonds. But
unfortunately we "used up" all our club stoppers to establish and cash
our diamonds. So, if they have too many ready to cash club tricks,
then we must not lead hearts.
There's a counting shortcut to figure this out:
You cannot lead anything until after you capture the lead.
After capturing the lead, count your remaining stoppers in
their critical suit – the suit they cannot be allowed to
cash. That number of remaining stoppers tells you how
many times you can afford to lose the lead.
After they make an opening lead in clubs, you will play one of your
club stoppers to capture the lead and stop them from cashing club
tricks. Then you have only one more club stopper left. So you can only
afford to lose the lead one more time.
With only one club stopper remaining, you cannot drive out two aces.
So you will establish diamonds, because playing diamonds gives you
more tricks than playing hearts. You will leave hearts untouched.
Making a Plan
How to declare a no trump hand:
The general approach is usually called "count and plan," but I'm going
to divide count-and-plan into more detailed steps to help you
understand what to do.
1. Take inventory, including counting stoppers and winners for

both sides, doing split assumptions, and adjusting split
assumptions based on the bidding and the opening lead.
2. Assess the threat, especially how many additional winners
they can cash when your stoppers are gone. The number of
stoppers you have tells you how many times you can safely
lose the lead when developing the tricks you need.
3. Make a plan to win the race. This plan must be based on the
information from the first two steps. Don't just play cards and
hope for the best.
Let's practice...
example 18
Dummy
♠ KQT7
♥ 863
♦ KT32
♣ A5
You
♠ J9
♥ AKJ5
♦ QJ874
♣ K6
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N (you need 9 tricks).
The opening lead is a club. What is the split assumption for

clubs? show answer
You have 4 winners (♥AK and ♣AK). They have two winners (♠A
and ♦A). Neither side has enough, so both sides will work to establish
more.
• They have good prospects to establish club skaters.

• And you have prospects in all three other suits. We'll see in
the "Make a plan" section which suits to play.
How many stoppers do you have? show answer
Assess the threat:
Would it be OK if they establish and cash club skaters? show answer
No. Three club skaters plus their 2 aces are enough to set 3N.
Dummy
♠ KQT7
♥ 863
♦ KT32
♣ A5
You
♠ J9
♥ AKJ5
♦ QJ874
♣ K6
Make a plan:
You will win the opening lead with one of your club stoppers. After
that, you can only lose the lead one more time because you only have
one club stopper left.
You cannot play both diamonds and spades. They have

aces in both suits, so you would lose the lead twice and
your contract would fail.
You can drive out one of those two aces, but you'll have to leave the
other suit untouched. Of course you'll play the suit that gives you more
tricks. Is that spades or diamonds? show answer
After you force out their ♦A, they will force out your last club stopper.
You now have the lead and 8 winners (the four you started with, plus
four new diamond winners). You still need another winner, but we've
already figured out you cannot play spades.
So where can you get one more winner, without losing the lead? show
answer
example 19
Dummy
♠ KQT7
♥ 86
♦ KT32
♣ A52
You
♠ J9
♥ AKJ5
♦ QJ874
♣ K6
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N (you need 9 tricks).
The opening lead is the ♣3. The split assumption for their 8 clubs is 5-
3, but... why do you reject this assumption? show answer
Count winners for both sides. show answer
Little Bear says, "This hand looks like the one we just
did. We still can't stop them from cashing club skaters before we have
9 certain tricks, so I guess we still take the heart finesse for our 9th
trick."
Me: "I see you are looking ahead at the stoppers. We have 2 club
stoppers and they started first, so we cannot force out their two aces
before they cash their club skaters. But let's finish our first two steps
before we jump ahead to making a plan."
Assess the threat:

Would it be OK if they establish and cash club skaters? show answer
Make a plan:
This time club skaters are no immediate threat, so we can go slowly
and drive out both of their aces. We will establish 11 tricks – 3 spades,
2 hearts, 4 diamonds, and 2 clubs.
How many of those 11 tricks will we get to cash? show answer
Why would it be a mistake to take the heart finesse? show answer
Are you a confused Bridge Bear?
If you are, go back and review each example until you can think your
way through all the steps while only looking at the cards in the
example diagrams.
This may take quite some time, but if you forge ahead without truly
understanding the material, your confusion will turn into frustration.
And there's no honey for Bears who get lost in the woods.
example 20
Dummy
♠ KQ7
♥ 863
♦ QT9872
♣ A5
You
♠ J9
♥ KQJT
♦ J64
♣ KQ6
Take inventory:
The defenders would defeat your contract if they take 6 tricks.
How many winners does each side have? show answer
The opening lead is the ♣4. What is the club split assumption? show
answer
Assess the threat:
Can you afford to let them establish and cash club skaters? show
answer
You will use one of your club stoppers on the opening lead. You have
2 more, so you can lose the lead 2 times, and each time you will be
able to recapture the lead with a stopper.
Let me repeat that. It's okay to lose the lead 2 times, but
not 3 times.
Make a plan:
Now let's look at the suits and see how many tricks you can establish
while losing the lead only twice.
We'll start with diamonds. They have 2 diamond stoppers, so you

would lose the lead 2 times before you could enjoy diamond skaters.
Would you get enough diamond winners to make the contract? show
answer
Maybe you could use your 2 lost-leads elsewhere and get the 5
winners you need. Like this...
How about playing both hearts and spades? They only

have one stopper in each suit, and you have enough club
stoppers to reclaim the lead twice.
How many tricks would you establish if you drive out their aces in
hearts and spades? show answer
If you choose the right suit(s) to establish (starting at

trick 2), you will make your contract.
example 21
Dummy
♠ K83
♥ J64
♦ KJ84
♣ KQ7
You
♠ 76
♥ AQ2
♦ AQ2
♣ AJT32
Take inventory:
You have 10 winners – 1 heart, 4 diamonds, and 5 clubs. If they lead

any of those three suits, you will win and cash all 10 of your winners,
winning the race and making an overtrick.
But the opening lead isn't in one of the suits where you have your
winners, it's the ♠5.
Assess the threat:
Is your ♠K a stopper? It's only a stopper if it wins a trick and captures

the lead. If it gets squished by their ♠A, how many tricks can they
cash? show answer
It seems like you need luck to have the ♠A on-sides.
• If you play your ♠K on the opening lead, you will indeed need
the luck of the ♠A being on-sides.
• Too bad your ♠K isn't playing last. If it played last, it would be
promoted to a winner and be a stopper. On this hand you
don't need an extra winner, but you do need a stopper.
Make a plan:
If only RHO were the one to lead, your ♠K would play last and be a
stopper. So...
...how can you pass the lead over to RHO and thereby
turn your ♠K into a stopper? show answer
At trick 2, RHO is stuck.

• If he leads another spade, your ♠K is promoted, stopping
them from cashing the setting tricks. You would be ahead in
the race to cash your tricks before they cash theirs.
• If he leads something else – anything else – win the trick and
cash the rest of your 10 winners, making an overtrick.
We've solved the hand. But let's continue with some additional
counting practice:
If RHO leads spades at trick 2, how many tricks would you

make? show answer
At trick 2, suppose RHO switches to leading a heart. If the ♥K is on-

sides you could finesse twice, winning the first finesse with
Dummy's ♥J, and make 2 extra overtricks. Is this a risk-free
finesse? show answer
If you don't finesse when East leads a heart at trick 2, what will you
do? show answer
When you take inventory, you know both sides have

enough possible winners to win the race. So when they
give you a chance to win the lead, seize the opportunity,
cash your tricks, and make your contract.
It's true that if you are psychic and you know the ♠A and the ♥K are
both on-sides, you can win the ♠K on the opening lead, take the
winning heart finesse, and make 12 tricks instead of only 10 or 11.
But if you are just a normal Bridge Bear like the rest of us,
you should take the safe path of turning your ♠K into a
stopper (by playing low from Dummy on the opening
lead) to guarantee your contract.
example 22
Dummy
♠ QJT92
♥ K7
♦ AQJ72
♣8
You
♠ K4
♥ QJT4
♦ KT98
♣ A95
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N.
A quick glance at our cards makes it seem like you can drive out the
two major suit aces and have 4 spade tricks, 3 hearts, 5 diamonds,
and 1 club. That's 13 possible tricks total.
Little Bear says, "With 13 possible tricks, taking 9 to make 3N should

be easy, right?"
Not necessarily, my fuzzy friend...
...because those pesky opponents start with a club lead, and persist
with clubs until they drive out your only club stopper. What is the split
assumption for clubs? show answer
Assess the threat:

As soon as you lead a major suit, they play their ace to get the lead,
and cash their club skaters. How many tricks can they take before you
can get the lead back? show answer
Little Bear looks disappointed, "What happens to my overtricks? I like

overtricks."
"Well, Little Bear, you start with only 6 cashable tricks, and you only
have one stopper. Your "easy" contract goes set because they cash
their tricks first. You have to discard some of your planned winners on
their club skaters." (Little Bear pouts...)
Make a plan:
This contract did not have a plan that works. Some contracts cannot
be made against best defense. Maybe you'd be lucky and the opening
lead would be some other suit, not clubs. Then you could establish
more winners before your club stopper is gone.
Now let's change the hand just a little and see what happens.
example 23
Dummy
♠ QJT92
♥ K7
♦ AQJ72
♣8
You
♠ K4
♥ QJT4
♦ KT98
♣ AK5
Take inventory:
This is almost the same hand as above... I've given you the ♣K.
Now when the defense attacks clubs, you have a second stopper. You
might think this would increase your tricks by one, or maybe two (plus
one for you and minus one for them because we took away their ♣K).
But that's not what happens.
They drive out your first club stopper, and you drive out the ace that
gives you the most tricks.
They drive out your remaining club stopper, and you cash your tricks.
How many tricks will you have (in total)? show answer
• On the previous hand they established and cashed their
tricks first. You had to make discards on their club skaters.
• On this hand you cash yours first. They have to make
discards on your spades and diamonds.
That's why we say no trump contracts are a race.
The maximum number of tricks you might be able to establish is not as

important as being the first to cash the critical number for you to make
your contract, or for them to break it.
The Dangerous Opponent
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton

The concept of an opponent being "dangerous" or "safe" is related

to what might happen if he gets to lead. (Of course I mean dangerous
to your contract – he's not going to sneak away with your honey-filled
pastry.)
example 1
Dumm
y
♥ 94
West East
You
♥ A6
The defenders can drive out our ♥A to establish tricks in hearts.
Before they play hearts we consider both defenders to

be safe because they have not yet established their hearts as
winners. Neither opponent could put your contract in immediate
danger with the first lead of hearts.
As long as we can still capture either defender's lead with

our heart master card, we consider both of them to
be safe.
But after our ♥A is gone, both opponents would

become dangerous. Then either one could lead a heart and they
could cash as many heart winners as they were dealt.
example 2
Dumm
y
♥ 94
West East
You
♥ K6
In the previous example, both defenders started out safe because we

still had the master card in hearts. Then, when our ♥A was gone, both
became dangerous.
Now suppose we start with the ♥K instead of the ♥A.
In this case, West starts out safe and East starts out dangerous.
Why?
• West starts out safe because he cannot make a heart lead

that puts our contract in immediate danger. If West makes
the first heart lead, our ♥K will be promoted by playing last –
similar to having the ♥A. They would not be able to cash their
whole heart suit without giving up the lead to your ♥K. So
West starts out safe.
• But East starts out dangerous. He could indeed make a
heart lead that would put our contract in danger. With the
lead coming from our right, we might get our ♥K squished.
They could then cash all their hearts without giving up the
lead, which would be very bad for our contract. So East
is dangerous.
example 3
Dummy
♣ K8
West East
♣ J4 ♣ AQT752
You
♣ 963
East has a very threatening club suit. If Dummy's ♣K gets squished,

East could take 6 club tricks.
But that can only happen if West leads clubs. So West is

the dangerous opponent.
If East leads a club, Dummy's ♣K plays last and becomes a winner.

So we call the East hand safe.
Dummy
♣ K8
West East
You
♣ 963
Even if you can't see their cards (and you're not supposed to peek...)
you can tell which opponent is dangerous. Only West can lead through
your ♣K and possibly get it squished. He's dangerous.
Dummy
♣ K8
West East
♣ J4 ♣ AQT752
You
♣ 963
Curiously, if East is on lead, and he decides to play his ♣A and

another club (giving you a trick with your ♣K), the dangerous hand
switches.
After those two club plays, East would have 4 club skaters to cash.
That makes him dangerous.
How many clubs would West have left? show answer
Would West be dangerous or safe? show answer
Dummy
♣ K8
West East
♣ J4 ♣ AQT752
You
♣ 963
And now, our final variation. If East is on lead, and he leads a low
club, we must win the trick with our ♣K. Only one round of clubs has
been played.
Who's dangerous? show answer
example 4
Dumm
y
♠3
West East
You
♠ K762
West North East You
3♠ DBL P 3N
P P P
West leads a spade against your 3N contract. East plays the ♠J, and
you win with your ♠K.
Think about what the bidding tells you about the spade split before you
continue.
After you win the opening lead with your ♠K, are both opponents
dangerous? show answer
Dumm
y
♠3
West East
You
♠ K762
Now let's start over. West leads a small spade and East plays his
singleton ♠J.
Suppose you decide to let East win this first trick.
Is East safe or dangerous? show answer
Is West safe or dangerous? show answer

Summary:
• If you win the opening lead with your ♠K, you get a winner,
but West becomes dangerous.
• If you decide not to win the opening lead with your ♠K, you
may never get a spade winner, but West is safe.
Little Bear says, "I understand why you say the

opponents are either dangerous or safe. But I don't see how that helps
me."
"Actually, Little Bear, knowing about safe and dangerous hands may
show you which declarer plays are best.
Let's take the spades from example 4, put them in a whole hand, and
see how that works..."
example 5
Dummy
♠3
♥ KQ65
♦ K864
♣ AJ65
You
♠ K762
♥ A42
♦ A72
♣ KT3
Before playing to the opening lead, we count and plan.

Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N. LHO opened the bidding with 3♠ and his opening
lead is a spade.
You need nine winners to make 3N. How many do you have? show
answer
You have chances for a ninth winner in three different suits.... one of
which is guaranteed to develop a winner. Which suit has
a guaranteed future extra winner? show answer
Assess the threat:

After you win the first trick, West holds six spade winners. He is clearly
dangerous as you have no more spade stoppers. But East is out of
spades, so he is safe.
On some hands, East could lead a different suit and get the lead over
to his dangerous partner. However, on this hand you have master
cards in all the other suits, so there is no such danger.
Losing a trick to a safe opponent is like having an extra

stopper. They can't cash all their winners in the critical
suit when you have a stopper, and they can't cash all
their winners in the critical suit when you lose the lead to
a safe opponent.
Dummy
♠3
♥ KQ65
♦ K864
♣ AJ65
You
♠ K762
♥ A42
♦ A72
♣ KT3
Make a plan:
You can take the club finesse in either direction, arranging for either
East or West to play last to the finesse.
We know which hand is safe and which is dangerous. Let's look at two
different club finesses to see which finesse is safe.
Option 1: If you decide to play the club finesse by leading the ♣3

toward Dummy's ♣AJ, would it be a safe or dangerous finesse? show
answer
Option 2: If you decide to cross to the ♥Q and lead ♣5 toward

your ♣KT, would it be a safe or dangerous finesse? show answer
If you take this club finesse in the wrong direction, your

contract could fail. Your partner is too polite to say
anything while she watches the dangerous opponent
cash spade after spade. But she may wonder if the gift
jar of crystallized honey she has for you can be returned
for a refund.
example 6
Dummy
♥ 53
2
West East
You
♥ KQ6
Suppose you have reason to believe that West has at least a 5-card
heart suit. And you win West's opening lead with your ♥Q. (East must
not have the ♥A, or he would have played it.)
If East later gets to lead hearts, your ♥K would be finessed and

squished. West would then cash his entire heart suit. That would be
bad for your contract.
So after you win the opening lead, would you consider East to be
dangerous or safe? show answer
After you win the opening lead, is West dangerous or safe? show
answer
Now let's put these hearts into a full hand.
example 7
Dummy
♠ AT984
♥ 532
♦ A86
♣ AQJ5
You
♠ KJ
♥ KQ6
♦ QJT9
♣ K732
West North East You
– – P
1♦
1♥ 1♠ P 1N
P 3N
East is the dealer and passes. You open the bidding with 1♦ . West
overcalls 1♥ and you end up declaring 3N.
West leads the ♥J (no surprise that he leads hearts...), and Partner
puts down a nice dummy. You offer the customary comment, "Thank
you, Partner," and begin your hand analysis.
Take inventory:
You need 9 winners. How many do you have? show answer
How many heart stoppers do you have? show answer
What is the split assumption for hearts, and do you believe it? show
answer
Dummy
♠ AT984
♥ 532
♦ A86
♣ AQJ5
You
♠ KJ
♥ KQ6
♦ QJT9
♣ K732
Assess the threat:
After your ♥Q wins the opening lead, West has 4 hearts remaining. If
East wins a trick in another suit and leads a heart, your ♥K will be
finessed and West will cash all 4 of his remaining hearts. That would
be one trick for East and 4 tricks for West, setting your contract. So it
would be very dangerous to lose a trick to East.
However, if West wins a trick in another suit, he could not cash his
entire heart suit because your ♥K plays last and would become a
stopper. So it would be safe to lose a trick to West.
Make a plan:
You need one more trick to make 3N. Where might you get the extra
trick you need? Look at each suit and decide what the possibilities are
before checking each answer.
♠♥♦♣
Dummy
♠ AT984
♥ 532
♦ A86
♣ AQJ5
You
♠ KJ
♥ KQ6
♦ QJT9
♣ K732
You must establish another trick without taking the risk of losing the
lead to dangerous East. There's only one suit where you can do that.
Which suit? show answer
The play will start with you winning the opening lead in your hand with
the ♥Q. What card will you lead next?
♠J ♥K ♦Q ♣2
A challenge question....
Dummy
♠ AT984
♥ 532
♦ A86
♣ AQJ5
You
♠ KJ
♥ KQ6
♦ QJT9
♣ K732
This is the exact same hand from example 7.
To review...
The hearts are 5-2. West has 5. East has 2. You need one more trick,
and you can't afford to let them cash their entire heart suit. The
opening lead is ♥J. Look at the diagram and try to remember how to
play this hand.
You are just finishing up your planning, when West leads ♥T at trick
two. Oops... It turns out, you accidentally played the ♥6 on the
opening lead, and lost the trick! You're embarrassed, but you win this
second trick with your ♥Q.
You can still make your 3N contract, but circumstances have changed.
The cards dealt to each player have not changed. But something very
important has indeed changed. (Hint: this page is about safe and
dangerous opponents.) What's different? show answer
What card will you lead from your hand after you win the ♥Q on
the second round?
♠J ♥K ♦Q ♣2
example 8
Dummy
♦ 532
West East
You
♦ AQ
West North East You
2♦ 2♥ P 3N
P P P
As expected from the bidding, West leads a diamond against your 3N

contract.
Take inventory:
You're pleased to have two diamond winners – 2 stoppers. (Your ♦Q

is promoted by playing last.)
You count the diamonds and do a split assumption. Then you reject
the assumption. How do you know the split assumption is
wrong? show answer
You win the opening lead with your ♦Q.
Dummy
♦ 532
West East
You
♦ AQ
Assess the threat:
Is West's hand safe or dangerous? show answer
After winning the opening lead with your ♦Q, is East's hand safe or
dangerous? show answer
Now suppose you lose the lead while developing tricks, and they lead
diamonds a second time. When your second diamond stopper is gone,
is West safe or dangerous? show answer
Is East now safe or dangerous? show answer
I hope you noticed that safe and dangerous hands can

change as the play progresses.
Now let's put these diamonds into a full hand so we can make a plan.
example 9
Dummy
♠ QJ7
♥ AQJ98
♦ 532
♣ Q5
You
♠ A82
♥ T32
♦ AQ
♣ KJT98
West North East You
2♦ 2♥ P 3N
P P P
Take inventory:
The opening lead against your 3N contract is a diamond, which you
win with your ♦Q.
The bidding tells you the diamonds split 6-2.
They have only one winner (♣A). They need 4 more to set your 3N
contract.
You have four winners (♠A, ♥A, ♦AQ). To make 3N, you need at least
5 more.
Assess the threat:
You will win the opening lead with your ♦Q. If you later lose the lead,
they will drive out your ♦A, establishing 4 diamond tricks. After that,
you must not lose the lead again to a dangerous opponent.
When both of your stoppers are gone, who will be dangerous and who
will be safe? show answer
Dummy
♠ QJ7
♥ AQJ98
♦ 532
♣ Q5
You
♠ A82
♥ T32
♦ AQ
♣ KJT98
Make a plan:
After you win the opening lead, you will need to develop 5 more
winners. You cannot get 5 additional winners from any one suit, so
you will have to develop 2 suits.
You can get 4 winners by driving out their ♣A. Does it matter which
opponent has the ♣A? show answer
Next the opponents will drive out your second diamond stopper.
You will still need one more winner. Think about safe and dangerous
hands... Will you lead the ♠Q from Dummy to finesse, or will you lead
the ♥T from your hand to finesse?
♠Q ♥T
Notice that it's risky to play hearts before clubs. If the heart finesse
loses while East still has a diamond, he will clear away your second
stopper, establishing West's diamonds as skaters. You still need
another trick, so you lead clubs. The problem is, West might have
the ♣A and cash all his diamond skaters.
Transferring the Lead

When you have a marginal card that would benefit from playing last,
you would like to pick which opponent is on lead. If the dangerous
opponent is on lead, you can sometimes arrange for the lead to be
passed over to his safe partner.
example 10
Dummy
♥ K4
3
West East
You
♥ 82
Take inventory:
What is the split assumption for hearts? show answer
Assess the threat:
East is safe. If he leads a heart, your ♥K will play last and be

promoted.
West is dangerous because he can lead through your ♥K. If your ♥K

gets squished, they could cash their entire heart suit. So you should
look for ways to avoid this bad result.
Make a plan:
Suppose West makes a 4th best opening lead of the ♥7. Rather than
risk your ♥K, you could play low from Dummy. Then East will play
third-hand-high to prevent you from winning the trick cheaply.
Dummy
♥ K43
West East
♥ QJ976 ♥ AT5
You
♥ 82
Let's take a peek at the East and West cards.
There's no realistic hope of winning the trick with your ♥8, but ducking
this first trick transfers the lead over to East, who is safe. If he
continues hearts, your ♥K will be promoted, which is often better than
risking it on the first round of hearts.
And if he switches to another suit, you may gain crucial time to

establish your tricks before they establish their hearts.
example 11
Dummy
♠ QJ72
♥ 74
♦ AT9
♣ AJT4
You
♠ A8
♥ AJ3
♦ KJ65
♣ K983
West North East You
2♥ DBL P 3N
West opens with a weak-two in hearts (a 6 card suit). Partner makes a

takeout double, and you jump to 3N.
The opening lead against your 3N contract is the ♥8, East plays
the ♥Q and you win with your ♥A. You expected West to have both
missing heart honors for his 2♥ opening, so you're disappointed not to
win this first trick with your ♥J.
Then you remember that you were supposed to do your count and
plan before you played to the first trick. Oh, well... you hope it's not too
late to stop and think now.
Take inventory:
Count winners for both sides. show answer
Dummy
♠ QJ72
♥ 74
♦ AT9
♣ AJT4
You
♠ A8
♥ AJ3
♦ KJ65
♣ K983
How many extra winners might you get in each suit?
♠♥♦♣
Even if all these finesses lose, you will have 3 additional winners –
just enough. Of course, you will not be playing hearts yourself, though
you will be happy if West leads hearts and presents you with the gift of
a second heart winner.
What is the heart split? show answer
Assess the threat:
Hearts is the only suit where the defense can establish enough tricks
to threaten your contract.
After the first trick, when you win the ♥A, is either opponent
safe? show answer
Dummy
♠ QJ72
♥ 74
♦ AT9
♣ AJT4
You
♠ A8
♥ AJ3
♦ KJ65
♣ K983
Something to be aware of...

After you win the first trick, suppose you lose the lead to West, and he
continues hearts. When your ♥J is gone, would the safe and
dangerous opponents be the same? show answer
Make a plan:
The first time you risk losing the lead, it must be to West's safe hand.
Which suit(s) have possible finesses that would be safe? show
answer
These three possible finesses are not equal. From worst to best...
• The spade finesse is least favorable because, even if it

"wins," the ♠Q will be covered and you will have only one
extra trick – one promoted lesser honor (♠J). You do not
have enough spades to hope for a skater.
• The diamond finesse is better because, if it wins, the ♦T will
be covered and you will have 2 extra tricks – 2 promoted
lesser honors (♦9 and ♦J). Unfortunately, your new winners
will be blocked, with no small diamond in the dummy to lead
to the ♦J in your hand. You can unblock them, but you will
have to be careful to do so before you run out of entries to
your hand.
• The club finesse is best because, if it wins, the ♣J will be
covered and you will have 2 extra tricks – 2 promoted lesser
honors (♣9 and ♣T). The suit will not be blocked and you will
have club winners in both hands to use to cross the lead for
future finesses into whichever hand is safe at that time.
Dummy
♠ QJ72
♥ 74
♦ AT9
♣ AJT4
You
♠ A8
♥ AJ3
♦ KJ65
♣ K983
Suppose you take the safe club finesse, it loses, and West returns a
heart. You will have 8 winners – ♠A, ♥AJ, ♦AK, and ♣AKT. You will
need another winner. So what will you do if West wins your club
finesse and returns a heart? show answer
Instead.... Suppose West wins your club finesse and does not return
a heart. Instead he returns a club. Then you will have only 7 winners –
1 spade, 1 heart, 2 diamonds, and 3 clubs. You will need two more.
West will remain the safe opponent because his hearts are still not
ready to cash. What will you do if West wins your club finesse and
returns a club? show answer
Keeping track of which opponent is safe as the play

progresses, lets you take safe finesses into his safe
hand, and make your contract.
Little Bear proudly declares, "I'm a dangerous Bear. My
declarer play used to be dangerous to my partners because I didn't
understand about safe and dangerous hands. Now I'm dangerous to
my opponents because I've learned about safe and dangerous
hands."
Me: You're a silly Bear. I like that. It's good to find things to smile
about!
example 12
Dummy
♠ AQ
7
West East
You
♠ J62
The opening lead is ♠5.
If you play the ♠Q from Dummy and the ♠K is on your left, your
finesse will win. But West's ♠K will remain poised to squish your ♠J so
you will only make two spade tricks.
If you play low in the dummy and the ♠K is on your left (as you
expect), you could win three spade tricks – first playing last with
the ♠J, then later finessing with your ♠Q. That would be great.
So you might be tempted to play the ♠7 from Dummy as soon as you

notice this opportunity to take advantage of the favorable spade lead.
But I must caution you not to play from
Dummy before you take inventory and assess the threat,
including who's safe and who's dangerous. Then decide
if playing low on the opening lead fits into your overall
plan for the hand.
Let's see how that works...
example 13
Dummy
♠ AQ7
♥ KQ76
♦ QT5
♣ 965
You
♠ J62
♥ A32
♦ KJ987
♣ A3
Your contract is 3N. The opening lead is the ♠5.
Little Bear says, "We just looked at these spades. I bet it's going to be
important to think before we play."
Me: "Yes, absolutely. Let's see what we can figure out."
Take inventory:
What is the split assumption for spades? show answer
You have 5 winners – ♠A, ♥AKQ, ♣A. They have one winner, the ♦A.
You need 4 more winners. You can get all 4 from the diamond suit.
Assess the threat:

You have two choices for what to play from Dummy on the opening
lead. You can play second hand low, or you can win with the ♠A.
• If you play second hand low, you might get 3 spade tricks
when the ♠K is on your left. But you will lose the first trick if
the ♠K is on your right.
• If you play the ace, you will get the lead immediately, but you
will never get 3 spade tricks.
Either way you would have at least 2 spade stoppers.

So you will win the race to establish and cash your
diamonds before they can establish and cash their
spades.
Dummy
♠ AQ7
♥ KQ76
♦ QT5
♣ 965
You
♠ J62
♥ A32
♦ KJ987
♣ A3
But there's another kind of danger...
Check all four suits. If East wins the opening lead with his ♠K, which
suit could he switch to that would create skaters for them (making
both opponents dangerous) while they still have the ♦A to regain the
lead? show answer
Make a plan:
You can win the opening lead and prevent the defenders from
switching to clubs before you dislodge the ♦A.
You could then start diamonds at trick two. But can you win 9
tricks before they win 5 tricks? show answer
The exact number of tricks you will be able to cash depends on which
suit they return when they play their ♦A, and if hearts split 3-3. Their
best play is to clear the clubs, but they may well give you an extra trick
by continuing spades.
Sometimes the danger is not in the suit that has been

led, but in a switch to another suit. If they haven't started
the danger suit, it's often correct to seize the lead
quickly and start your own long suit, getting ahead in the
race to establish the winners you need before they can
switch suits and establish the winners they need.
Little Bear asks, "Is it always good to win the lead as soon as possible
so I can establish my winners first?"
Me: "No, not always. Sometimes you need to delay winning your
stopper until one of the defenders runs out of the danger suit. This is
called a hold-up play. Then you can plan to lose the lead to that safe
hand. In such cases, they may be able to establish their skaters, but
they won't be able to cash them. It's OK for the safe hand to win the
lead because he has no cards left in the danger suit."
We'll see how to do that on the next page.
The whole-hand examples on this page have been long

and involved. If you found them difficult to follow, I
suggest you review them before moving on to the next
page.
The Hold-Up Play
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton

The hold-up play refers to ducking rather than playing a stopper,

usually in a dangerous suit.
An example of a hold-up play, and how it can help.

example 1
Dummy
♥ 74
You
♥ A62
They lead hearts against your no trump contract. If you play spot cards
from both hands, ducking your ♥A, that's a hold-up play.
If they continue hearts, and you duck again, that's a second hold-up.
On the third round you won't have any spot cards left, so you must
play your ace.
Little Bear says, "It's easy to see what a hold-up play is, but what good
does it do? I don't see any honey in holding up."
Me: Here's how holding up can help.

example 2
Dummy
♥ 74
West East
♥ KJ953 ♥ QT8
You
♥ A62
West's opening lead is the ♥5. The defenders will lead hearts until you
take your ♥A.
If you play your ♥A on the first or second round, both defenders

become dangerous... because they both have hearts left. If you then
lose the lead, either one can lead hearts, and West will cash his entire
heart suit. 4 heart winners for the bad guys.
If instead, you hold up your ♥A until the third round – when East plays
his last heart – the East hand becomes safe. He will no longer be able
to lead a heart for his partner to cash heart skaters.
Then you can try to establish your tricks while only losing the lead to
the safe East hand. If you succeed, West will never get to cash his
heart skaters.
Little Bear says, "Sweet! There IS honey in the hold-up

play."
The number of cards in the long hand (five cards for a 5-3 split, for
example) helps us figure out how many skaters are possible for them
to develop.
The number of cards in the short hand (three cards for a 5-3 split) tells
us how long to hold up so the short hand becomes safe.
Both can be important.

One stopper – Axx
example 3
Dummy
♥ 74
You
♥ A62
How long to hold up

If the split is 5-3, East can be made safe if you win your ♥A on the
trick when he plays his last heart – the third round.
If the split is 6-2, East can be made safe if you win your ♥A on the
second round.
If you are not sure whether the split is 5-3 or 6-2, you can hold up until
the third round so you will be certain that East is safe.
If the split is 4-4, neither opponent can be made safe because neither
one runs out of the suit before his partner. So there is no reason to
hold up.
A hold-up play isn't foolproof

example 4
Dummy
♠ T83
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ KQJ95
You
♠ AK5
♥ A62
♦ A965
♣ T82
Your contract is 3N. The opening lead is the ♥5.
Hmmm, these hearts look familiar...
Take inventory:
The split assumption for their 8 hearts is 5-3.
You have 5 winners – ♠AK, ♥A, ♦AK. You need 4 more from the club
suit to make your contract.
You have one heart stopper and they have one club stopper.
Assess the threat:

With equal numbers of stoppers, they win a simple race to cash their
hearts before you can cash your clubs.
Let's see how running that race would work out (with no hold up).
You play your ♥A on the first trick, and lead clubs. They win the club
lead and...
How many tricks can they cash? show answer
Make a plan:
When you know you can't win a race and your contract would fail, you
should look for ways to avoid racing. So...
Instead of racing to take your tricks, let's suppose you go more slowly
and hold up your ♥A until the third round to make East safe.
How might that help? show answer

It's very common for the best declarer plan to be based on something
that might be true but which is actually uncertain.
We do this often – such as when we take a finesse, make a split

assumption, cash top cards hoping for skaters, or when we hold up to
make one opponent safe.
Learning these techniques does not mean you will make all of your
contracts – just more of them.
A hold-up play before taking a finesse

example 5
Dummy
♠ T83
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ AQJ95
You
♠ AK5
♥ A62
♦ A965
♣ T82
This hand is almost the same as example 4. I've given you the ♣A,
and the defenders have the ♣K.
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N, and the opening lead is the ♥5. The split
assumption for their 8 hearts is 5-3.
You have 6 winners – ♠AK, ♥A, ♦AK, ♣A. You need 3 more from the
club suit to make your contract.
Assess the threat:

If they might win a finesse in a suit we need to establish, we count
their possible winner as a stopper when we're figuring out if we should
hold up.
You need to establish club tricks to make 3N, so you will finesse for
their ♣K. Your finesse could lose, so count the ♣K as a stopper.
Who wins the race between their hearts and your clubs? show answer
Let's see if we can avoid that bad result.
Make a plan:
You can make your contract (even though you are behind in the race)
if you make East safe before you take the club finesse.
How can you do that? show answer
If the ♣K turns out to be held by West instead of East, your club

finesse will win instead of losing. In that case the hold up play wasn't
necessary. Making East safe only helps if East later wins the lead. We
hold up on hands like this, even though we don't know where the ♣K
is hiding, to make East safe to protect our contract in case the finesse
loses.
Suppose you hold up until the third round and the 5-3 split assumption
turns out to be wrong – the actual heart split is 4-4. Then East will still
have a heart when he wins the club finesse.
Will your contract fail? show answer
Suppose you hold up until the third round and the actual heart spit
turns out to be 6-2.
Will your contract fail? show answer
Dummy
♠ T83
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ AQJ95
You
♠ AK5
♥ A62
♦ A965
♣ T82
Don't be tempted...
This is the same hand we just looked at...
Now let's go back to the opening lead, the ♥5.
If East plays a big honor on the opening lead – perhaps the ♥K – don't
be tempted to take the trick, even though you can crush his king.
You have no lesser honors to promote, so you are only going to win
one trick in hearts. Take your one trick on the third round, when East
becomes safe.
If you make the mistake of squishing their king on the first

trick instead of holding up, East won't be safe. And if he
wins your club finesse they will be able to win 4 heart
tricks and defeat your contract. So squishing their ♥K
doesn't help you, but holding up might save the day.
When NOT to hold up
example 6
Dummy
♠ T83
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ AKQJ9
You
♠ AK5
♥ A62
♦ A965
♣ T82
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N. You need 9 tricks; they need 5.
West's opening lead is the ♥5. The split assumption for their 8 hearts
is 5-3.
How many cashable tricks does each side have? show answer
How many stoppers does each side have? show answer
Assess the threat:

You have more stoppers than they do, so you are ahead in the race.
You already have enough tricks to make your contract, so you can
cash all your tricks before they can cash any of their soon-to-be-
established hearts.
Make a plan:
Do you need to hold up your ♥A? show answer
A hold up play interferes with their ability to cash their skaters by

making one opponent safe. Then losing the lead to that safe opponent
will gain time to establish and cash your own tricks first.
But on this hand you don't need to make an opponent safe because
you aren't going to lose the lead.
Your plan is simple:

Win the opening lead with your ♥A and cash all 10 of
your tricks. You'll even make an overtrick.
You don't need to hold up when you already have enough cashable
tricks to make your contract. But double-check to make sure you
counted right, especially in your long suits. Make sure a rotten split
wouldn't take away a skater you were relying on as a winner!
Two stoppers – AKx
example 7
Dummy
♥ 74
You
♥ AK2
When you have 2 stoppers, you may well be ahead in the race. Then
you won't need to hold up.
But if you must dislodge 2+ defensive stoppers, you are behind in

the race, so you should hold up. You only have one small card, so you
can only hold up once.
Play your spot card on the first round, even if your opponents play a
big honor. Don't be tempted to squish their honor. You have no lesser
honor(s) to promote, so there is no advantage to squishing their honor.
If you need to hold up with AKx, hold up on the first

round.
So far we've been talking about making one opponent safe by holding
up until he runs out of his partner's long suit.
To be clear... only one of your opponents can be made

safe by holding up. And that only works if you can win a
trick when he is safely out of the danger suit. In other
words, you need a stopper that you can hold up.
However, there's a time when both opponents are safe without

holding up – when you have an additional stopper. If you have a
second stopper, you can take the lead away from them a second time,
preventing them from cashing their long suit. The second stopper
works no matter who leads.
It's better still if you have a second stopper, AND you can hold up until
one opponent runs out of the danger suit.
Let's look at ♥AK2 in a full hand and see how that works.
example 8
Dummy
♠ A853
♥ 74
♦ A93
♣ QJT7
You
♠ K76
♥ AK2
♦ QJT
♣ K942
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N. You need 9 tricks; they need 5.
The opening lead is ♥5. The split assumption is 5-3.
You have 5 cashable tricks (♠AK, ♥AK, ♦A).
To get the 4 additional winners you need, you must play both minor
suits. You will have to drive out their ♣A (establishing 3 more club
winners), and take a finesse for their ♦K (even if the finesse loses, you
will establish 1 additional diamond winner).
How many stoppers does each side have? show answer
Assess the threat:

Who is ahead in the race? show answer
If they get to cash their two stoppers and their heart skaters, would
your contract be safe? show answer
Dummy
♠ A853
♥ 74
♦ A93
♣ QJT7
You
♠ K76
♥ AK2
♦ QJT
♣ K942
Make a plan:
You are behind in the race, so... Which heart will you plan to play from
your hand on the opening lead? show answer
A successful plan will include losing the lead to East when he is

safely out of hearts. When will he be out of hearts? show answer
You need to develop additional tricks in both clubs and diamonds.

Which suit can you play so only East can win? show answer
You must only take this diamond finesse when East is out
of hearts, so you must avoid playing diamonds until after
hearts have been played three times.
So our plan is:
1. Hold up on the first round of hearts. They will lead a second

round of hearts, which you will win with your first stopper, ♥K.
2. Drive out their ♣A. It doesn't matter which opponent holds
the ♣A. Both are safe because you still have your second
heart stopper.
3. Win the heart return with your second heart stopper, ♥A.
West will be dangerous because he has ready-to-cash heart
skaters, but East will be safely out of hearts because hearts
have been played three times and the split assumption is 5-3.
4. Take the diamond finesse into East's safe hand. If he wins
the finesse, he cannot lead hearts.
5. Win whatever suit East returns, and cash all 9 of your tricks.
The hold up play is used to make one of the opponents safe. We must
wait for him to play his last card in his partner's suit before he
becomes safe.
An extra stopper makes both opponents safe. But this safety goes
away when we play our extra stopper.
So we must be careful which suit to play while we still have a second

stopper, and which suit must be saved until a trick or two later, when a
hold up play has made a specific opponent safe.
example 9
Dummy
♠ A853
♥ 74
♦ QJT
♣ QJT7
You
♠ K76
♥ AK2
♦ A93
♣ K942
This hand is the same as the previous hand, except I have switched
the diamonds between your hand and Dummy's.
Everything else is the same.

As before, a successful plan will include losing the lead to East when
he is safe – after the third round of hearts.
Will you lead clubs or diamonds when East is safe? show answer
Let's see how that changes our plan.
1. Hold up on the first round of hearts. They will lead a second

round of hearts, which you will win with your first stopper, ♥K.
2. Take the diamond finesse. It doesn't matter that the hand
with the long hearts can win. West is safe because you still
have your second heart stopper.
3. Suppose West wins the finesse. He will return a third round
of hearts, which you win with your second heart stopper, ♥A.
East will now be safe because hearts have been played three
times and the split assumption is 5-3.
4. Lead clubs, and hope East is the one who holds the ♣A. If
East does win, he cannot lead hearts because he doesn't
have any hearts left.
5. Win whatever suit East returns, and cash all 9 of your tricks.
Little Bear speaks up, "You said to hope East has the ♣A, but if West
has it he could cash all his miserable hearts. Won't my partner be
upset with me?"
Me: I think your partner will be proud of you, Little Bear. She'll notice
that you held up in hearts, and you also played diamonds before
clubs. Both plays are necessary to make your 3N contract as often as
possible.
It turns out that nobody can make this contract when West holds all
the important cards. So I don't think she'll be upset.
Two stoppers – AQx

example 10
Dummy
♥ 74
You
♥ AQ2
You have 2 stoppers with ♥AQ2, because your ♥Q is promoted by

playing last.
There are 3 possibilities for how to play this combination:

1. As with all of our examples, if you are ahead in the race, you
don't need to even think about holding up. Just win the
opening lead as cheaply as you can, establish additional
tricks if you need them, then recapture the lead with your
second stopper, and cash your tricks.
2. If you are behind in the race, you will need to hold up. But be
careful. It may not be safe for you to hold up on the first
round. You might be wondering how it could be unsafe to
hold up.
Well... if you don't win the first trick, your ♥Q may never play
last to another heart trick, so you may lose the chance to
enjoy a second stopper. If you can win the first trick with
your ♥Q, that's the play to make. Then hold up on the second
round, saving your ♥A for the third round when East
becomes safe.
3. However, if you're behind in the race and East plays the ♥K

on the opening lead, your queen is permanently promoted
without needing to play last, so you can hold up on the first
round. It may feel odd to NOT squish East's ♥K, but once
your ♥Q is permanently promoted, you can play this holding
as if you started with ♥AKx. Hold up on the first round.
If you need to hold up with AQx, only hold up on the first round if the K
has been played. Otherwise win with your Q and hold up your ace on
the second round.
What counts as a stopper?
We count stoppers to see if we are ahead or behind in the race. Then

we hold up if we are behind. But what counts as a stopper?
Little Bear speaks up, "Aces are stoppers. So are kings if you also
have the ace. An A-K combination is 2 stoppers. Right?"
Me: Not necessarily. Let's think about the idea of a stopper.
What is it stopping?
It's stopping the other side from cashing newly established tricks in
that suit. So if you have these spades...
example 11
Dummy
♠ 643
You
♠ QJT9
...and if your plan for the hand includes establishing 2 spade tricks by
driving out their ♠AK, then they do indeed have two spade stoppers.
Those two big spades stop you from cashing your two future spade
winners.
Actually, the ♠AK only delays you from cashing your two future spade
winners. But nobody calls them "delayers."
We use the word "stopper" because it's simple and graphic. Bridge
players don't seem to mind that the word "stopper" is only literally
correct if you win the race. If you lose the race, any master card
"stoppers" you have are only delaying the inevitable.
Now we come to a key concept.
Suppose your plan to make your contract does not include

establishing and cashing any spade tricks. You plan to make all the
tricks you need in the other three suits.
Then your opponents' ♠AK don't stop you from doing anything at all.
Count their ♠AK as cashable defensive tricks, but do not count them
as stoppers.
How many stoppers?

example 12
Dummy
♦ 643
You
♦ AK752
The split assumption for their 5 diamonds is 3-2. If you plan to take
only 2 diamond tricks, they have no stoppers.
But if you plan to establish diamond skaters, you cannot prevent them
from winning a diamond trick before you can enjoy any skaters. So
count their ♦Q as a stopper.
In fact, there may be a 4-1 split, in which case they would have two
stoppers blocking you from cashing one fifth-round skater.
Be sure to pay attention to the first two rounds of

diamonds so you will know if the split is 3-2 (one
defensive stopper – two skaters) or 4-1 (two defensive
stoppers – one skater).
How many stoppers?.... and the Bridge Bear in the

corner
example 13
Dummy
♠ J832
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ KQJ9
You
♠ AK8
♥ AK2
♦ QJ65
♣ T82
West North East South
2♥ P P 2N
P 3N P
Your contract is 3N, and the opening lead is the ♥Q.
Take inventory:
The split assumption is 6-2, based on the bidding.
You have 4 winners – ♠AK and ♥AK. You need 5 more, so you will
need to develop tricks in both clubs and diamonds.
Next, we count stoppers to see who is winning the race.
When we count stoppers, why will we count their aces in two suits
(♣A, ♦A), but we will only count your ♥AK and not your ♠AK?
show answer
Assess the threat:

Who wins a simple race between their hearts and your minors? show
answer
When you can't win a race, it's wise not to start
running. By that I mean not to rush ahead with developing and cashing
tricks as if you are ahead, when you are in fact behind.
Especially when... well, do you see that Bear over in the corner of the
room – the one holding his phone up in your direction? He's getting
ready to stream a live video. By this time next week, every Bear in the
club will have seen you running a hopeless race. Tea and toast-with-
honey may not be enough to make you feel better.
It's far better to count winners and stoppers so you will know to avoid
running losing races. Then the Bear in the corner will have a video of
your successful hold-up play instead of a failed race. A Bear or two in
the club might even add you to their list of potential future partners.
Make a plan:
With two stoppers each, you are behind in the race, so you will need
to hold up.
Dummy
♠ J832
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ KQJ9
You
♠ AK8
♥ AK2
♦ QJ65
♣ T82
Remember, the opening lead is ♥Q.

If you hold up on the first round, West will lead his long suit again, and
you will then play the first of your 2 heart stoppers.
How many hearts will East have left? show answer
Now you must start developing your tricks. You have to lose the lead
twice, once in clubs and once in diamonds. Start with clubs because it
promotes more certain tricks (3) than diamonds (only 2 because they
may have a fourth round winner with their ♦T).
We don't know who has the ♣A...
• If East has the ♣A, that's good for you. Your hold-up play has
made him safe, so he won't be able to lead hearts and force
out your second heart stopper. Whatever he does lead, you
will win and drive out their ♦A while you still have your
second heart stopper. Then you will use that second heart
stopper to recapture the lead and cash all your tricks.
• If instead West has the ♣A, there's a potential problem to
consider. When you lead clubs, West can win and force out
your last heart stopper. That gives you the lead back. The
problem is, their hearts are ready to cash but you haven't
established your diamonds yet. And one of the defenders still
has the ♦A.
Which opponent would you hope holds the ♦A? show answer
So... if you hold up on the opening lead, you will make your contract
whenever East holds at least one of the minor suit aces.
Looking Deeper...
Let's figure out if West can hold both minor suit aces.
What do we know about West's hand? show answer
If West has both missing aces, how many hcp would he have? show
answer
With a 6-card heart suit and 11 hcp, including two side suit aces, most
Bears open 1♥, not 2♥. So West is very unlikely to have both missing
aces, and your hold-up play will indeed allow you to make 3N.
Can you hold up with Kxx?

example 14
Dummy
♣ 64
You
♣ K82
The opening lead is ♣7. The split assumption is 5-3.
Your ♣K is a stopper because it plays last.
Suppose East plays the ♣J on the opening lead.
Should you hold up with your ♣K? show answer
And besides, if you do hold up, you may have an unexpected problem
later...
After the game is over, the Bridge Bears will shuffle

around, looking over each other's shoulders, comparing
scorecards. You may get asked (by several Bears...) how
you managed to lose so many club tricks on this hand.
You'll have to admit that you missed the chance to win a
trick when your ♣K played last to the opening lead. Then
you'll wonder if the chuckling you hear behind your back
is about you and your squished king.
Little Bear speaks up, "That happened to me once. It felt un-bear-

able."
example 15
Dummy
♠ T83
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ AQJ95
You
♠ AK5
♥ K62
♦ A965
♣ T82
On this hand you don't have the master heart, so...
Take inventory:
The contract is 3N. The opening lead is ♥5. The split assumption is 5-
3. East plays the ♥Q.
What do you play on the opening lead? show answer
OK, now let's do the counting we were supposed to do before we

played from the dummy on the opening lead.
After you win the opening lead with your ♥K, how many winners does
each side have? show answer
Where can you get the additional tricks you need? show answer
Assess the threat:
What will happen if East has the ♣K and your finesse loses? show
answer
Was there any way to make East safe before taking the club
Make a plan:
Win the opening lead with your ♥K. Then take the club finesse, and
hope for luck.
example 16
Dummy
♠ T83
♥ 74
♦ K83
♣ AQJ95
You
♠ AK5
♥ K62
♦ A965
♣ T82
This is the same hand we just looked at.
Only this time I've borrowed a magic wand and I'm going to grant you
one wish.
Your contract is the same (3N). The split assumption (5-3) and the
opening lead (♥5) are the same.
You would like to be able to hold up until the third round to make East
safe. But you can't because your ♥K isn't a master card. If you try
holding up you might never win a trick with your poor disappointed
king.
You play low from Dummy on the first trick, and I wave my magic
wand (a twist and flick should do the trick...). What card would you
wish for East to play on this first trick?
Hint: There's only one card East could play that would make it OK for
you to hold up your ♥K until the third round... show answer
And now I'm going to return the magic wand to the wise old Bridge
Bear at the sign-in table... the one wearing the pointy wizard hat with
stars on it. Too bad. I would have liked to keep that wand. But at least
you're going to make your contract because East will be safe when
you take the club finesse.
When is holding up risky?

example 17
Dummy
♠ AQ75
♥ 74
♦ 9643
♣ A65
You
♠ K6
♥ A32
♦ KQJT2
♣ 842
When you are ahead in the race to make your contract you don't need
to hold up. In fact, it can be risky to hold up.
Take inventory:
Your contract is 3N. The opening lead is the ♥5.
What is the split assumption for hearts, and do you believe it? show
answer
Assess the threat:

Dummy
♠ AQ75
♥ 74
♦ 9643
♣ A65
You
♠ K6
♥ A32
♦ KQJT2
♣ 842
You have one heart stopper, and they have one diamond stopper.
Who wins the race to cash skaters first? show answer
When they cash their hearts, will they have enough tricks to set your
contract? show answer
When you cash your diamonds, will you have enough tricks to make
your contract? show answer
So... they win the race to cash their hearts before you can cash
diamonds, but they don't have enough winners to defeat your contract.
Little Bear is fully alert, "Wait a minute... you said that if I was behind
in the race, I need to hold up. But now you're saying something
different. What's a Bear to do?"
Me: Yes, there are some hands that don't follow that general guideline.
If your contract is safe, because they cannot establish enough tricks to
defeat it, then you don't need to hold up.
Make a plan:
Dummy
♠ AQ75
♥ 74
♦ 9643
♣ A65
You
♠ K6
♥ A32
♦ KQJT2
♣ 842
Your contract is not in danger after a heart lead, so...
What is your plan? show answer
When they cash their heart tricks, you will need to make two discards
from Dummy. What could you discard? show answer
When they cash their heart tricks, you will need to make one discard
from your hand. What could you discard? show answer
Little Bear asks a very good question, "I see that I don't
need to hold up. But you said that it could be risky to
hold up when you don't need to. I don't see any risk. They
only have 4 tricks and I can even let them cash their 4
tricks first. So, what's the risk in holding up?"
Me: What an interesting question... You impress me, Little Bear!
Dummy
♠ AQ75
♥ 74
♦ 9643
♣ A65
You
♠ K6
♥ A32
♦ KQJT2
♣ 842
So, here's the problem. Each time you hold up, they win a trick. And
they keep the lead, so they can switch to a different suit.
Suppose they win a heart trick (because you hold up) and switch to
clubs. The split assumption for their 7 clubs is 4-3, and (just like in
hearts) you only have one club stopper, so they can persist in clubs
and...
How many tricks (total) could they establish? show answer
It's risky to hold up when you can make your contract without holding
up.
On some hands a skilled declarer can figure out a way to make an

overtrick by holding up when she doesn't need to. But she has to be
prepared for whatever the defenders might do before she makes such
a play. Beginners should be extra careful before risking a secure
contract in hopes of making an overtrick.
Little Bear agrees, There's an old bear saying that comes

to mind, "When the honey is yours, just eat it."
A challenge problem... how many stoppers is KQx?

example 18
Dummy
♥ 74
You
♥ KQ2
Little Bear looks at his KQx, and tries to count stoppers:

"The ace is always a stopper, and I don't have it, so maybe I don't
have a stopper. But I've got big honors, so maybe I do have a stopper.
In fact, since I've got 2 big honors, maybe I have 2 stoppers."
Little Bear needs help.
Me: You have the advantage of playing last to the first trick, so...
If the ♥A is played on the opening lead, of course you will follow with
your ♥2. Then you will have 2 stoppers, no matter which opponent
later leads hearts. Who would be safe? show answer
But if the ♥A does not appear on the first trick, counting your heart
stoppers is not straightforward.
Suppose you hold up (playing the ♥2 on the opening lead). You will
have only one future stopper. Your 2 big honors will be played on the
second and third rounds of hearts. They have the ace to crush one of
your honors, and your other honor will be a stopper. You will have
your one stopper no matter which opponent leads to the second and
third rounds of hearts.
If you play this way, will West be safe? show answer
And if you play this way, what has to happen for East to become safe?
(Take your time... I told you this was a challenge problem.) show
answer
Now we go back to the beginning. What about winning the opening

lead with your ♥Q? That's one stopper. Do you have a second one?
You have to consider how the future play will go before you can
answer.
Let's see:
1. If West later leads for the second round of hearts, your

remaining ♥K2 will play last and be promoted into a second
stopper. This is an excellent result for you. You get two
winners and two stoppers from your ♥KQ2.
So... If you decide to win the opening lead with your ♥Q,
which opponent becomes safe? show answer
2. But if you win the opening lead with your ♥Q, and East later
leads for the second round of hearts, he will be leading
through your remaining ♥K2.
Is East safe or dangerous? show answer
So... how do you decide whether to win the opening lead, or

hold up?
1. As always... if you have enough cashable tricks to make your
contract, win the opening lead and cash your tricks.
2. If you don't have enough cashable tricks, check to see which
opponent might win the trick when you establish new
winners.
a. ...If you might lose a future trick to West, what will
you do?
show answer
b. ...But if you might lose a future trick to East, what

will you do?
show answer
Little Bear: "But I will only find out if East or West has the missing
honors after I play the suit. I can't tell who has them and who's going
to win a future trick when I'm making my plans. So it's all a 50-50
guess, right?"
Me: Usually, no, my sticky-fingered friend... When you take a finesse,

you know, without guessing, which one of your opponents will have a
chance to win the trick.
And when you're driving out a master card that either opponent might
have, an opponent who has promised more points in the bidding (and
the play) is more likely to have the missing honor than an opponent
who has promised less strength. So 50-50 guesses are unusual.
Let's look at a couple of example hands where there is no guessing
required.
The club finesse tells you to hold up, or not

example 19
Dummy
♠ AK42
♥ 74
♦ A64
♣ T642
You
♠ T64
♥ KQ2
♦ KQ2
♣ AQJ9
West North East South
2♥ P P 2N
P 3N P
West opens the bidding with a weak two in hearts. You overcall 2N,
and Partner raises to the 3N game.
Take inventory:
You need 9 tricks; they need 5.
The opening lead is a 4th-best ♥8. East plays the ♥J.

The split assumption for their 8 hearts is 5-3, but the bidding tells us to
reject 5-3 in favor of 6-2.
Your count of winners is 2 spades, 3 diamonds, 1 club, and at least

one heart – not enough. So you will need to develop tricks from clubs.
They have only one master card, their ♥A. but since we're going to
take the club finesse and we're supposed to assume it loses, we
should also count their ♣K as a winner (and a stopper).
Assess the threat:
They have one stopper, the ♣K.
Which opponent can win the lead when you take the club
If their hearts are ready to cash when you lose to West's ♣K, they will
set your 3N contract. A lot.
Make a plan:
You cannot stop West from winning the club finesse, but you can
make him safe before you take the finesse.
Do you make West safe by winning the opening lead with your ♥Q, or
by holding up? show answer
So our plan is:
1. Win the opening lead.

2. Cross the lead to the dummy and lead the ♣T for a finesse.
o If the finesse wins, the lead will be in the dummy to
repeat the finesse.
o If the finesse loses, West will go back to hearts. But
your ♥K2 plays last and provides a second heart

stopper. West has only one cashable trick (♥A). Win
whatever else West returns.
3. Cash your tricks.
Now let's see how our plan must change if the club finesse goes in the
other direction:
The club finesse goes in the other direction

example 19
Dummy
♠ KT42
♥ 74
♦ A64
♣ AT42
You
♠ A64
♥ KQ2
♦ KQ2
♣ QJ96
I've kept the same honors from the last example, but the club and
spade aces have traded places.
Take inventory:
The only inventory change from the last hand is the club finesse now
goes into the East hand.
Keep the 6-2 heart split in mind.
Assess the threat:

We assume the club finesse will lose. So we want East to be safely
out of hearts when the finesse loses.
Make a plan:
Do you make East safe by winning the opening lead with your ♥Q, or
by holding up? show answer
So our plan is:
1. Hold up on the opening lead. No matter what East plays, play

your ♥2.
2. They will continue hearts. One of your heart honors will win,
either the second or the third round of hearts.
3. Lead the ♣Q for a finesse.
a. If the ♣Q wins, the lead will be in your hand to
repeat the finesse.
b. If the finesse loses, East will be safely out of hearts.
Win whatever he returns.
4. Cash your 9 tricks. And quietly return your partner's smile.
That soft sound you hear is furry Bridge Bear paws clapping behind
your back. You didn't know you were being watched, did you?
Note that holding up with the ♥KQx is only certain to work when the
split is 6-2. If East has a third heart (a 5-3 split), West can can foil your
plans by allowing you to win the second round of hearts (West would
be using a defensive hold-up play!), forcing you to take your finesse
before East has played his third-and-last heart.
As a matter of good technique, it's actually better to win the opening
lead with your ♥K, not your ♥Q.
Little Bear looks puzzled, "But I always like to win tricks

as cheaply as I can. And my ♥K and ♥Q are equals, so
how can it matter?"
Well, Little Bear, it's about not giving away information to your
opponents.
When you win the trick with your ♥Q, West knows you have the ♥K.
His partner cannot have it because he would have played the king on
the opening lead (playing third hand high) if he held ♥K-J.
But if you win the first trick with your ♥K, West can't tell who has
the ♥Q. East would play the same ♥J (playing lowest of equals) if he
also held the ♥Q.
When a defender can't tell who has the honors he can't
see, he just might make the wrong choice about how to
defend the hand.
Summary for Holding Up

1. Count winners and stoppers carefully. If you are ahead in the
race, you don't need to hold up.
2. The goal of holding up is to make one opponent safe, so you
can succeed even when behind in the race.
3. If possible, manage your play so you only lose the lead to the
safe opponent.
4. Consider the advantage of playing last (now and later in the
play) when deciding whether or not to hold up, and how to
plan so only a safe opponent can win the lead.
5. Each time you hold up, you lose a trick. And they keep the
lead, so they can switch to another suit. Consider how
possible switches would affect your counting of the race
when deciding whether or not to hold up.
6. Don't expect to master hold up plays by reading this page
only once. Come back tomorrow! It's important.
Trumping Losers
♠♥♦♣
By Ralph Welton

Trumping is an advantage for declarer

In theory both sides can win tricks by trumping. But in practice the
defenders rarely make extra tricks by trumping. Let's consider some of
declarer's advantages allowing him to trump far more often than
defenders.
1. Declarer and Dummy have more trump cards than the

defenders. Normally we consider an 8-card fit to be the
minimum for choosing trumps, leaving a maximum of 5
trumps for the defenders. That's a big advantage for declarer.
A trump fit of 9+ cards is even better.
2. Having more trumps means declarer has fewer non-trump
cards making up his and Dummy's 13 card hands. So he will
run out of other suits and be able to trump them sooner than
the defenders. That's another advantage for declarer.
3. The declaring partnership outbid the other side, so they
almost always have more high cards than the defenders.
That makes it more difficult for the defenders to win the first
round or two of a suit to clear the way for trumping. Again,
advantage declarer.
4. When your partnership found a trump fit in the bidding, you
counted extra points for short suits. So you had enough total
points to outbid the defenders and choose the trump suit on
exactly the deals where you have short suits and can trump
before they can. Advantage declarer.
5. And finally, declarer can lead trump until the defenders run
out, while he still has trump cards left. We call this tactic
"pulling trump." It prevents the defense from trumping any of
your winners, while you can still use your remaining trumps to
advantage.
example 1
Dummy
♠ AJ52
♦ 86
You
♠ KQT94
♦ 754
Spades are trump. You expect a 3-1 or 2-2 split, so you can pull all
their trump in two or three rounds, while still having a trump in Dummy
to trump the third round of diamonds.
After pulling trump, there's no rush to trump that third diamond. You
can turn your attention to whatever you need to do in clubs and hearts.
Just don't play a fourth round of spades. That would pull Dummy's last
trump, spoiling your ability to trump the third round of diamonds, and
allowing the defenders to cash three diamond tricks instead of only
two.
Taking inventory in trump contracts

Taking inventory for trump contracts (suit contracts) is very different
from no trump contracts.
To begin with, you don't need to worry about the defense establishing
and cashing a long suit. If they try to cash skaters, you can just trump
them.
The same is true for the defenders' high card "winners." If you are
short in their suit, either in your own hand or in the dummy, you can
trump their high cards. Even their aces and kings might get trumped.
So it's important to note how many cards declarer has in each suit,
which determines how many times he must follow suit before he can
start trumping.
For example, if you have only ♦5 4 in your hand, then the defenders
can only take two diamond tricks before you start trumping diamonds.
Even if the defenders have ♦A K Q J, they will only get two winners
before you start trumping. In no trump we would indeed count ♦A K Q
J as four defensive winners, but in a trump contract, we look at how
many losers declarer has in the suit.
example 2
Dummy
♦ 862
You
♦ 54
When we take inventory in a trump contract, we count only 2 diamond

losers. Counting losers in your own hand is a more accurate way of
counting what's actually going to happen on a trump deal than trying to
count how many diamond winners they would have in no trump.
example 3
Dummy
♦ 54
You
♦ 862
I've switched your hand with Dummy's.
Now, when taking inventory, we count 3 diamond losers in your own

hand.
It's likely that you will be able to turn the third one into a winner by
trumping it in the dummy.
That assumes Dummy will still have a trump when the third round of
diamonds is played. But let's not get ahead of ourselves... what you're
going to do with that third diamond belongs as part of the planning
stage.
When taking inventory, you have three diamond losers. In the planning
stage we'll look at ways to reduce your diamond losers from 3 to 2, or
sometimes even fewer.
example 4
Dummy
♦ A5
You
♦ QJT
When taking inventory we'll use the number of cards in your hand. You
have 3 diamonds, so we will evaluate 3 rounds of the suit.
Unlike examples 2 and 3, this example has high cards that might be
winners. So our inventory will include winners as well as losers in 3
rounds of the suit.
We'll use high cards from both hands to assess winners. Our 3 best
cards to play for three rounds of diamonds are the ♦A, ♦Q, and ♦J.
When taking inventory, our goal is to identify all possible losers so

we can make a plan to turn some of them into winners. To do this we'll
assume all finesses lose, there will be no lucky splits, and the defense
will make no errors.
So, what are the winners and losers in this suit? The ♦A
wins, your ♦Q loses to their ♦K, and (with the ♦AKQ all
played) your ♦J wins. That's three rounds of diamonds.
Two winners and one loser.
example 5
Dummy
♠ A65
♥ K643
♦ 54
♣ QJ83
You
♠ QJT
♥ Q8
♦ 862
♣ KT942
On this deal, clubs are trump.
Taking inventory
Your hand has 3 spades, 2 hearts, 3 diamonds, and 5 clubs. This is

often referred to as 3-2-3-5 distribution. We call the hand we use to
take inventory the "master" hand.
Using your hand as the master, let's see how many winners and losers
you have in each suit.
For your three spades, 2 are winners, 1 is a loser (The ♦A wins,

the ♦Q loses to their ♦K, then, with the ♦AKQ gone, your ♦J wins.)
Little Bear says, "That sounds just like the diamonds in example 4."
You have two hearts in your master hand. 1 winner, 1 loser (one of
your heart honors loses to their ace; the other one wins).
You have three diamonds. 0 winners, 3 losers (as we discussed in

example 3)
You have five clubs. 4 winners, 1 loser
Dummy
♠ A65
♥ K643
♦ 54
♣ QJ83
You
♠ QJT
♥ Q8
♦ 862
♣ KT942
It's possible to use Dummy's hand as the master (using Dummy's 3-

4-2-4 distribution), but most declarers prefer to use their own hand.
Let's take inventory again, using Dummy as the master. Now how
many winners and losers are there in each suit?
♠♥♦♣
example 6
Dummy
♠ 765
♥ QJ74
♦ AJ83
♣ 97
You
♠ KJ4
♥ AT96
♦ 84
♣ AK72
Your contract is 2♥.
Let's count winners and losers, using your 3-4-2-4 hand as the master:
♠♥♦♣
The four suits add up to 6 winners and 7 losers. To make your
contract, you'll have to turn two of your losers into winners.
Just for practice, let's take inventory again, using Dummy's 3-4-4-2
hand as the master:
♠♥♦♣
Making a plan to reduce losers

example 7
Dummy
♠ A87
♦ 54
You
♠ KQJT3
♦ 862
Spades are trump.
Take inventory:
The split assumption for spades is 3-2.
How many losers in the two suits? show answer
Make a plan:
What can be done to reduce your diamond losers? show answer
Can you pull trump before trumping your diamond loser? show answer
Dummy
♠ A87
♦ 54
You
♠ KQJT3
♦ 862
This is the best way to reduce your diamond losers:
1. You lead diamonds, and lose the trick.

2. They see that you are trying to clear diamonds
in the dummy, preparing to trump. They can't
tell how many diamond losers you want to
trump, and they don't want you to succeed. So
they lead spades, hoping to get rid of as many
of Dummy's spades as they can before you can
do the trumping you want.
3. You win their spade lead, and lead a second round of
diamonds. Dummy is now out of diamonds.
4. They win this second diamond, and lead another spade. How
many spades does Dummy have left? show answer
5. You win this second spade lead in your hand so the lead is in
your hand where you want it.
6. You lead a third diamond and trump it in the dummy.
Success!
Do they have any trump left? show answer
How many unplayed trumps are left in your hand. show answer
Little Bear says, "I like having the only trump left. It's like having an
extra jar of crystalized honey saved for a special occasion. But I'm
wondering, which is better, squishing one of their "winners," or taking
the lead away from them?"
Well, my crazy-for-honey Friend, when you trump something the

defense leads, you get both!
example 8
Dummy
♠ KJ84
♥ 74
You
♠ AQ75
♥ A62
Spades are trump. The opening lead is the ♥K.
If we were declaring this hand in no trump....

...we would do a split assumption for hearts (5-3). Then we would look
at the opening lead and review the bidding to see if we should adjust
the assumption. Split assumptions help us count the potential
defensive winners.
In a no trump contract, how many heart winners would you count for
the defense? show answer
In a no trump contract, we would very likely hold up the ♥A until the

third round, hoping to make one opponent safe when he runs out of
hearts and cannot lead his partner's suit.
But in a trump contract...

Take inventory:
The ♥A is obviously a winner. And the second round of hearts is a

loser.
But what about the third round? When taking inventory, should we
count the ♥6 as a winner or a loser? show answer
LIttle Bear objects, "I'm not going to let them win that third
round of hearts!"
That's good, Little Bear. You're thinking ahead to the planning stage.
But when taking inventory, the ♥6 is a loser, and if Dummy runs out of
trump, it may stay a loser.
Let's see if we can make a plan so the dummy won't run out of trump
too soon.
Dummy
♠ KJ84
♥ 74
You
♠ AQ75
♥ A62
Making a plan in a trump contract:
The question is, should we pull trump first (and ruff the ♥6 later), or
ruff the ♥6 first (and pull trump later)?
If trumps split 3-2, we can pull them first and the dummy will still have
a trump left.
But if the split is 4-1, we must ruff the ♥6 first because pulling all their
trump would also pull all of Dummy's trump.
We don't want to guess, so we need to know how their trumps split.
Little Bear looks puzzled, "You said we don't want to

guess. But you've also said that a split assumption is
just a smart guess that's wrong part of the time. So,
what's a Bear to do?"
That's right Little Guy, we're not going to rely on a split

assumption. We're going to figure out the actual split
by testing the spades.
Pull only 2 rounds of trump. If there is no defensive discard, what's the

split and what will you do? show answer
But if you see a defensive discard on the second round of trump,

what's the split and what will you do? show answer
Little Bear smiles, "This is the same as lots of other declarer stuff. We
have to watch spot cards and count! "
Correct, my Fuzzy Friend.
One last question before we move on to a new example: Why won't

we hold up the ♥A until the third round? show answer
example 9
Dummy
♠ K732
♥ 74
♦ A652
♣ KQ3
You
♠ AQ4
♥ A62
♦ K7
♣ AJT42
Your contract is 6♣ . The opening lead is the ♦Q.
Take inventory:
♠♥♦♣
Make a plan:
You have 11 winners, and 2 losers. You can get your needed 12th
winner by trumping the third round of hearts in the dummy.
Count how many trumps they have. If you pull their trump, will Dummy
still have a trump left to trump your third heart? show answer
That conclusion gives us our plan:
1. Win the opening diamond lead.

2. Cash the ♥A and lead a second heart to clear away both of
Dummy's small hearts. They win your second heart lead.
3. Win whatever suit they lead next.
4. Lead your third heart and trump it in the dummy.
5. Pull all their trump.
6. Cash your winners.
A defensive counter-measure
example 10
Dummy
♠K
♥ Q92
♦ QJ73
♣ 87542
You
♠ T84
♥ AKJT2
♦ K64
♣ KQ
Your contract is an ambitious 4♥.
Take inventory:
♠♥♦♣
There's nothing you can do about the three aces you are missing.
But if you could reduce your spade losers from 3 to 1, you could make
the 10 tricks you need. Dummy seems to have enough trump, as long
as you delay pulling them.
You imagine leading spades once to clear the suit, then trumping the
next two rounds. Except, there are problems with the execution...
The opening lead is a spade. That seems to help you, because you
want to clear spades from the dummy so you can trump your spade
losers.
How will the play go?
Dummy
♠K
♥ Q92
♦ QJ73
♣ 87542
You
♠ T84
♥ AKJT2
♦ K64
♣ KQ
1. They win the first trick with their ♠A, and notice
that Dummy has no more spades. They don't
want you to trump all your spade losers. So
they begin their counter-measures immediately
– they shift to a trump lead.
2. You win this second trick in your hand, and
play a second round of spades, trumping in the
dummy.
How many trump does the dummy have

left? show answer
3. You would like to lead another spade loser to trump it, but
you won the last trick in the dummy so you cannot lead from
your hand. Whichever minor suit you try, they win with their
ace, and lead another trump.
4. Dummy has no more trump to ruff your last spade.
When declarer plans to trump losers in the dummy, the

defensive counter-measure is to lead trump as often as
possible. Sometimes this is described as, "Lead trump,
lead trump, lead trump."
The cross-ruff
example 11
Dummy
♠ A843
♥3
♦ JT93
♣ 97542
You
♠6
♥ A8764
♦ AKQ6
♣ 863
A cross-ruff is trumping (ruffing) in both hands alternately.
Your contract is 2♦
Take inventory:
♠♥♦♣
Totals: 6 winners; 7 losers. That's a lot of losers!
Make a plan:
Let's consider three possible plans for your 2♦ contract:
Plan #1: Pulling trump.
A 3-2 split would allow you to pull trump in three rounds, and still
have a trump left in each hand. Then you could cash your two
major suit aces to clear the way for trumping with the two trump
you have left. How many winners is that? show answer
Plan #2: Suppose you don't pull trump, and start cross-
ruffing right away.
Start with cashing ♠A and ♥A. Then lead a small heart and ruff
in the dummy. Dummy leads a small spade, which you ruff in
your hand. Continue alternating between heart and spade leads,
each time ruffing. You have four small hearts in your hand and
four trumps in dummy to ruff all of them. You have 3 small
spades in Dummy and can easily ruff all of them in your hand.
When all the ruffing is done, you will still have the ♦A left in your
hand for one more sure trick.
How many tricks will you win? show answer
Plan #3: Finally, suppose the defenders lead a trump on

the opening lead.
Suppose the dastardly defenders decide to take counter

measures, and lead a trump on the opening lead. That makes
you play two of your trump on the same trick.
You would win that trick and start cross-ruffing the same way as
for Plan #2. How many tricks will you win? show answer
Note: when you cross-ruff, you want high trumps so they cannot
overtrump and switch to the defensive counter measure of leading
trump.
If you must make some of your ruffs with low trumps, use them first,
before the defense runs out of the suit you are trumping. You will need
to ruff with high trumps later when the defense is also out of the suit.
On this hand, we ruff with the ♦3 and ♦6 first. All the rest of our trumps
are high.
Summary
• In trump contracts we take inventory by counting winners and
losers in our master hand.
• Then we make a plan to reduce losers.
• On this page we have seen how to reduce losers by trumping
them in dummy.
• When we plan to trump losers in the dummy, we evaluate
whether to do this before or after pulling trump.
• Sometimes we must hurry to ruff a loser in dummy, before
the defense has the chance to start leading trumps
themselves. If trumps are led too many times, Dummy will
run out and we will not be able to ruff our loser.
• Cross-ruffing is an alternative to pulling trump, but only for
hands where there are short suits in both your hand and the
dummy.
On the next several pages we will look at other ways to reduce losers.
Go to the next topic:

Bridge Play of Cards

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Bridge Play of Cards

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How To Win Tricks | Bridge Bears

Welcome to my series of Declarer Play articles. These

♣ Count winners for no trump

♥ Count defensive winners

♣ Review the bidding

♣ The dangerous opponent

This is one of a series of Declarer Play articles. These

Bridge is a thinking game. You are allowed to take a few

So both sides will work to develop more.

Similarly, if the defense cashes enough tricks to set your contract,

That's why no trump is often described as a race. You have to develop

Much of no trump declarer play is about counting. We count to

The counting we need to do isn't particularly difficult, though there will

Let's get started.

When the dummy comes down, count

When counting winners, combine your high cards with Dummy's.

Master cards are usually winners. But not always.

In this example, you have 12 master cards:

♠AKQJ, ♥AKQJ, ♦AKQJ

How many winners do you have? show answer

How many winners do you have in each suit?

You have 10 clubs, so they have only 3.

So you can count 6 winners.

However, there are three reasons not to do this:

1. First, and by far the most important reason, it can become a

You have 8 diamonds.

How many diamonds do they have? show answer

How many diamond winners do you have? 3 5

A simple declarer's plan for a no trump contract

The opening lead is the ♣5.

How many winners do you have? show answer

Where might you get more tricks? show answer

Now we're ready to make a plan.

1. Win the club opening lead with your ♣K.

The plan for this hand is very straightforward. It could be

Meanwhile, the defense started with 3 winners (♠A, ♥AK) and

That is the essence of a good plan – a logical sequence

This hand is another example of the importance of cashing your tricks

Again you are declaring a contract of 3N.

The opening lead is ♣3.

How many winners do you have? show answer

You need two more winners to make your contract.

1. You can finesse in spades. If the ♠Q is on your left, you can

Which brings us to a critical point: YOU MUST COUNT their diamonds

Little Bear speaks up, "Uncle Smokey uses binoculars to

example 10, repeated

Summary of the plan:

The main skill for good declarer play is counting.

This is one of a series of Declarer Play articles. These

One of the first things we do as declarer is count winners. Most hands

Testing for Skaters

How many winners? 3 6

When you start playing your masters, watch to see when

If someone discards on the second round, what is the split? show

How many winners? show answer

Is there any hope for a skater? show answer

In example 3, the defenders have 5 diamonds. If both follow suit when

Dummy has a nice club suit – 4 winners.

Losing Tricks to Create Skaters

A very weak heart suit.

No honey in this suit... or is there?

Is there any chance you could develop a skater? show answer

Can you test for skaters?