Jul 09 2008
Major Suit Squeeze
I’m playing in a club game and things are going pretty well. I’m playing playing a Polish Club & Canape system. I hold AT72 A3 K94 AK95. In our methods (and in most standard methods as well), I open 1C. LHO jumps in with 2D. Partner bids 2H, which is not forcing if I have a weak NT, but is forcing if I have a big hand. I have a big hand. I bid 2N, which alerts partner of that fact. He bids 3C, natural. And I bid 3N with my K9x of diamonds. 5C might be safer, but this is match points.
The bidding has been:
Me LHO CHO RHO
1C 2D 2H Pass
2NT Pass 3C Pass
3NT Pass Pass Pass
The opening lead is the QD and I see
K86
KJ964
8
QT84
AT72
A3
K94
AK95
I have 9 tricks if I bring in the clubs with 2 spades, 2 hearts, 1D and 4 clubs. A tenth trick may be available in hearts, though it might be too risky to take it since the diamond suit will be wide open.
Or will it? RHO goes up with the AD and continues diamonds. That’s odd. With Axx, she would generally duck, forcing me to win my King now or never get it, and still being able to get back to her partner to run the diamonds. RHO is pretty decent. I think i can conclude she’s got either four diamonds or two.
My suspicions are confirmed when I duck the second diamond, and RHO pitches a spade when the third diamond comes back. I pitch a spade and a heart from dummy. LHO bid 2D with 7 of them. LHO is a pretty weak player, while RHO is pretty strong. Why only 2D? She has a pretty weak suit, we know, QJTxxxx. She can’t have much in the way of points, but that doesn’t stop most people. Perhaps she has bad shape.
I need to bring in the clubs. With LHO having 7 diamonds, if anyone has 4 clubs it’s probably RHO. So I start with the C:A and a club to the QC. Both follow, so I abandon that suit for the nonce. I try AH and a heart to the J, fleetingly hoping that LHO had something outside. She follows with 5-2 and RHO wins the QH. She quickly exits the JC. Hmm – I wish i had cleared the clubs first – it would have forced RHO to lead a major suit, probably giving me a trick, though actually the location of the 9S is a tricky matter.
But wait, it doesn’t matter, the timing is right for a squeeze. I’ve still got my initially counted 9 top tricks and I’ve only lost 3. I have a threat in both hearts and spades. LHO has shown up with 7 diamonds, 2 clubs and 2 hearts. She has 2 unknown cards. If one is a heart, then the hearts will run, which isn’t a squeeze at all. (And she might have bid 3D with that shape.) If both her unknown cards are spades… RHO will be under pressure and won’t be able to keep both majors guarded.
I win the club in hand with the K and cash my last club, ending in dummy. On the 4th club, RHO is indeed squeezed. She pitched a spade, and the spade honors came tumbling down. This was the end position with RHO on lead to lead the last club:
| K8 K9 - T8 |
||
| Qx - Jxxx - |
Jxx Tx - J |
|
| ATxx - - K9 |
On the 4th round of clubs, RHO has to pitch a major. The whole hand was
| K8x KJ9xx 8 QT8x |
||
| Qx xx QJTxxxx xx |
J9xx QT8x Ax Jxx |
|
| AT72 Ax K9x AK9x |