Jul 19 2009
En Passant
I’m playing in the local club game with a new and promising partner. We’re having a decent game when a condescending local bridge teacher heads our way. We sit down and i pick up in first chair: J86 J8652 K3 AKJ. With a bad taste in my mouth, i open 1H and the auction proceeds fairly quickly to game. The lead is the 7C and i buy:
 932
|
 |
| J86
|
AK9
AJT74
T2| me | LHO | CHO | RHO |
| 1H | Pass | 2D | 2N |
| 3H | Pass | 4H | Pass |
| Pass | Pass |
The club lead is favorable. RHO plays a high spot, so it appears LHO has underled the QC. I go ahead and play three rounds of clubs, pitching a spade from dummy. I consider the play – I could try to ruff a spade in dummy, but this is matchpoints. If good things are happening in both hearts and diamonds, i could potentially take 12 tricks, and playing a spade gives up on that possibility. However, i have escaped a spade lead… so perhaps i am ahead already. I find it hard to judge what to do in these situations.
I put off the decision on whether to ruff a spade. It is wrong to play trumps, because i may need the entries, and i might need to ruff a spade later after all. So i test the diamonds with the King and a diamond to the Ace. Both defenders play high-low, standard, and i think they’re being honest. So much for good things happening in diamonds.
I try the JD, wondering if RHO will err and cover if she started with four, but it turns out she’s the one with the doubleton, and she pitches a club after some thought. I abandon the plan to set up the diamonds – making 6 is no longer an option. If the QH is doubleton, there may be a way to make 5, but i don’t think it is – RHO’s hesitation on the JD, which should be a routine pitch, makes me think she has an interesting trump holding. So instead i decide to try for a dummy reversal.
I ruff the JD low and lead a heart to the Ace, both following. I play another diamond. RHO thinks again before pitching a spade. Yeah, i think she’s got some trumps. I ruff with the 6H felling LHO’s QD. I lead my penultimate trump to the King and note LHO shows out. Confirmation, RHO had QT7x of trumps. I now lead the good TD to score my now stiff JH en passant. This is the position as i’m about to lead the last diamond:
| 93
|
|
|
AT
|
| J86
|
RHO is in a tizzy about how i have played the hand. She condescends to say, “Well, you have just played this hand really well,” as if it were an accident.
It turns out ruffing a spade would have resulted in a similar end position as long as i keep my high hearts as entries and don’t try to pull trumps.
This is the full hand:
| 932
|
||
| KQ74
|
|
AT5
|
| J86
|