The dealer loses two odd tricks.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 27
Trick 2.—The dealer after taking the force leads trumps in order to bring in the established spade suit.
Trick 4.—This is the critical point in the hand. A can continue to force the strong trump hand, but as the trumps are evidently all established in the dealer’s hand, it would enable the dealer to take out the remaining trumps and make the spades.
This situation is interesting and deserves careful study. It is too late to force when the adversary holds an established suit against you. You must make what you can in the other suits before giving up the lead.
Trick 5.—A overtakes the queen of clubs in order to continue the lead.
Trick 7.—B discards his only spade.
Trick 8.—A gives B the opportunity to make his losing trump.
NOT FORCING
It is the first game, score love all. Z, the dealer, makes it hearts.
The dealer wins the odd trick.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 28
Trick 1.—Z false cards the ace of hearts to tempt A to again lead the suit.
Trick 3.—The correct play of third hand is high unless two or more honours are held in sequence, in which case the lower honour is played. B’s play of the jack denies the ten and the king. It would, therefore, be bad play for A to continue his suit. He must wait until his partner can lead through the dealer’s hand.
A’s best lead is through the strength of the dummy hand, and he leads the highest card of his sequence.
Trick 4.—B must wait until his partner can again lead through the king of diamonds, and so returns his partner’s original lead.
INFERENCE
It is the rubber game, score twenty-four to nothing against the dealer. Z, the dealer, makes it “no trumps.”
The dealer loses three odd tricks.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 29
Trick 1.—With three cards of re-entry in his hand A can afford to lead one of them in order to gain information as to the position of the cards in his long suit. Winning the first trick, A can clearly see the situation. The play of the two of hearts by B indicates that he cannot hold four cards in the heart suit. Should A continue leading hearts he must establish one or more cards in the dealer’s hand.
Trick 3.—A cannot afford to lead spades, as Y holds a double major tenace over his hand. As Z, the dealer, has passed the make, A can mark strength in the diamond suit with B. He, therefore, abandons his own suit and endeavours to help his partner by leading the singleton diamond. B overtakes the jack of diamonds and continues with the suit.
INFERENCE
It is the rubber game, score twenty to nothing against the dealer. Z, the dealer, passes the make. Y declares “no-trump.”
The dealer loses four odd tricks.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 30
Trick 1.—B’s play of the queen denies the jack, which A marks with the dealer.
Trick 2.—The dealer can lead his high spades, but this lead might establish a trick in the suit for his adversaries. His best play is to conceal the strength in this suit, and to establish the club suit.
Trick 3.—A is placed in a difficult position; if he continues with his diamonds the jack will make. He must place the lead with B so that the dealer’s hand may be led through. The heart suit is better than the spade suit, as dummy holds an honour to lead through.
Trick 4.—B must wait until his partner can again lead through the king of hearts, and so returns A’s original lead.
Should A continue with the lead of diamonds at trick two the dealer would win four odd tricks instead of losing that number.
INFERENCE
It is the rubber game, score sixteen to nothing against the dealer. Z, the dealer, makes it “no-trump.”
The dealer loses four odd tricks.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 31
Trick 2.—B’s return of the three of hearts shows the situation to A. It is the rule at “no-trump” to return partner’s suit with your highest card. A can mark Z with two cards in the suit higher than the three.
Trick 3.—It would be bad play for A to lead his king of hearts, as this would establish the queen for Z. A opens the low diamond, hoping that B can obtain the lead.
LEADING THROUGH
It is the rubber game, score love all. Z, the dealer, makes it “no-trump.”
The dealer wins the odd trick.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 32
Trick 1.—B’s play of the jack denies the ace, which must be with the dealer.
Trick 2.—Should A allow the queen of hearts to win this trick, his re-entry card would be taken out before his suit is cleared. He must overtake his partner’s card in order to establish the suit.
Trick 4.—The dealer hopes that the ace of clubs is with B, as this would shut out A’s heart suit.
OVERTAKING BY THE ADVERSARY
It is the second game, score twenty-four to nothing against the dealer. Z, the dealer, makes it “no-trump.”
The dealer wins the odd trick.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 33
Trick 2.—As A holds no card of re-entry except the ace of diamonds, he cannot afford to win this trick. He must trust B for a card of re-entry and a diamond to lead. The play can only lose one trick, and it may save the game.
Trick 3.—Z must establish the spade suit.
REFUSING TO PLAY THE HIGHCARD OF A LONG SUIT
It is the rubber game, score love all. Z, the dealer, makes it “no-trumps.”
The dealer wins two by cards.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 34
Trick 1.—B wins the first trick with his lower honour in sequence.
Trick 2.—The usual rule at “no-trump” is to return partner’s lead with your highest card. This is done to prevent blocking and in order not to mislead. To arrange the lead, B returns the low spade, knowing that he can neither deceive nor block his partner’s suit. He arranges the lead so that hearts may be led through the dealer’s hand.
ARRANGING THE LEAD
It is the first game, score love all. Z, the dealer, makes it “no-trump.”
The dealer loses two odd tricks.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 35
Trick 1.—With the ace and a small card, to your partner’s high card lead at “no-trumps,” the ace should usually be played, but B cannot afford to overtake his partner’s king, as it would eventually establish the ten of spades for Y.
Trick 3.—Unless A holds the king of hearts, the game is lost, no matter what B may lead. To make a possible re-entry for A, B sacrifices his queen of hearts. Z hopes that B has but two hearts and so refuses to win this trick.
It makes but little difference what Y now leads. A’s spades must make.
NOT UNBLOCKING.DESCHAPELLES COUP
It is the rubber game, score eighteen to twenty-four against the dealer. Z, the dealer, passes the make. Y declares “no-trump.”
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 36
Trick 2.—The dealer’s best play is undoubtedly to establish the club suit. A has little reason to pass this trick; taking the king with the ace may establish the jack in B’s hand.
Trick 3.—Players will so often play for their own suit, with little or no regard for their partner’s hand. If the high cards in your suit are against you, and your card of entry has been taken out, abandon the suit and endeavour to help your partner. A infers that his partner’s suit is diamonds and leads the supporting jack through the king.
ABANDONING A SUIT
It is the rubber game, score eighteen to nothing against the dealer. Z, the dealer, declares “no-trump.”
The dealer loses the odd trick.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 37
Trick 1.—The dealer’s first object should be to win the game. By playing the ace of spades, Z is assured of ten tricks—four in clubs, four in diamonds, one in spades, and one in hearts—whereas the play of a low spade or the queen might enable B to win the trick and establish the heart suit against the dealer; in this case, should A hold the king of clubs the game could not be won.
Trick 2.—In order to unblock the diamond suit the ace and king in Y’s hand must be led.
Trick 3.—Whether or not B covers is of minor importance, for the play of a low card does not alter the result of the hand.
Trick 5.—Z finds that his club suit is blocked by the two commanding cards in the dummy. The only possible way to make the balance of this suit is to discard the jack and ten of clubs on the two winning diamonds.
Trick 11.—Z takes out A’s king of spades, retaining the ace of hearts for re-entry.
“DISCARDING COMMANDING CARDS”
It is the first game, score love all. Z deals and passes the make. Y declares “no-trump.”
The dealer makes a small slam.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 38
Trick 1.—The jack of clubs must be played to the first trick, for otherwise the club suit would be blocked, and it is useless to lead through A’s hand. B’s best discard is a spade. As A’s lead indicates a four-card suit, B can count Z with six clubs.
Trick 2.—A cannot afford to win this trick, for if Z has an entry card the clubs will be made. B should not shorten his diamonds or hearts as Y has four cards of each. He cannot lose by discarding an honour in spades. The queen gives A information, and if necessary enables B to unblock.
Trick 4.—A’s lead may be from four spades; B must keep the low spade.
Trick 6.—B can now count all the cards in both A’s and Z’s hands. A has shown four spades, four clubs, and is marked with the queen of diamonds alone; he must, therefore, have three hearts. Z has three remaining clubs, two diamonds, one spade, and two hearts. B unblocks the spade suit.
Trick 8.—A can now count both B’s and Z’s hands; B must have four hearts and the ace of diamonds alone; Z has the remaining clubs, a diamond and two hearts.
Trick 9.—It is immaterial what Z now discards; if he discards a diamond, A leads the heart; if he discards a heart, A leads the ace of clubs, and forces Z to lead a diamond to B.
“COUNTING”
It is the rubber game, score eight to nothing against the dealer. Z passes the make. Y declares “no-trump.”
The dealer loses the odd trick.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 39
Trick 2.—A should not continue the lead of diamonds; the weak hand would “ruff.”
Trick 3.—Z can exhaust the trumps and make the club suit, but will then be left with two losing diamonds. Before attempting to get the trumps out, he must allow Y to trump these losing cards.
Trick 5.—Hasty play by the dealer at this point would incur a loss of four or five tricks. If Y trumps with the eight of hearts, the trump suit is blocked and Z has no way of obtaining the lead. Ruffing with the ace enables the dealer to unblock the trump suit and make the clubs.
ALLOWING THE WEAKER HANDTO “RUFF”
It is the first game, score sixteen to nothing against the dealer. Z deals and makes it hearts.
The dealer makes a small slam.
ILLUSTRATIVE HAND NO. 40
Trick 1.—It would be bad play to hold up the ace of hearts.
The adversary can only make the queen and jack, the nine being three times guarded in Z’s hand. The spade suit must be established at once.
Trick 5.—As A holds a possible card of re-entry in diamonds, he continues his own suit.
Tricks 7 and 8.—Clever play to unblock the club suit and to obtain the lead with the eight of spades. Z discards his losing diamonds.
NOT HOLDING UP AN ACE
It is the rubber game, score love all. Z, the dealer, makes it “no-trump.”
The dealer wins four odd tricks.