Trickery

by

Hi all

There have been some very local earthquakes (USGS). Raleigh’s and Café Intermezzo on Telegraph have been condemned and will probably have to be demolished after a big fire last Friday. And again I’m surprised how cold it can get in California during the rain season. It’s unreal.

Here’s a nice deal from a home knock-out series. Sitting South Geoff and I had a fast auction to the NT game.

North
K84
AK5
98764
98
South
AQ72
QT7
QJ
KQ74

West leads the 2 (4th best).

So looks like the suit to tackle. I win the in dummy and play a to my Jack, West winning the Ace. Another and I find myself in a bind. If I win in hand to play the Queen I’m basically depending on the Ten dropping or East having the Ten and the Ace (so that West never gets to collect the 13th ). Prospects are bleak at best.

I decide to go for a little swindle. See if my RHO is awake.

I win the in dummy and smoothly request another from dummy, playing towards my stiff Queen. East doesn’t look too concerned and my Queen wins the trick. When the break evenly I’m home.

South Dealer
NS Vul
North
K84
AK5
98764
98
West
J93
8632
AT5
AJ3
East
T65
J94
K32
J652
South
AQ72
QT7
QJ
KQ74

As it turns out there’s no legal way to 9 tricks. Sometimes I really feel like the Hideous Hog, taking the tricks I’m entitled to and a few that belong to the opponents, too.

4 thoughts on “Trickery”

    • Well, I played a to the Jack to make it look like I was finessing against the Queen, tempting West to duck the .

      What is your idea for playing the Queen instead?

      • When you play J and West wins A East has found Q and should know better than to duck the second round. If you had played Q it might be from QT5 and East can’t afford to fly K on the second round.

        I can’t construct a layout (with five diamonds in dummy) where anyone would ever duck J. Even 98764, KT52, QJ, A3 might, maybe, signalling aside, make West think the layout is 98764, Q52, KJT, A3 but I don’t see how the duck will help.

  2. Len,

    The QT5 holding is impossible, no sane person would ever play towards the Queen and then actually play it, too. Perhaps you were thinking of QJ5?

    And the spots in dummy make a finesse against the Ten feasible too. Maybe East thought I was hooking the Ten…

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