LESSON 10: Defense After the Lead

Defense

During the play, each participant at the bridge table can see two hands (his own and the dummy), which would seem to be an equitable arrangement. Declarer, however, can easily determine the number and location of the top tricks possessed by his side and the best place to develop additional winners, while the defenders are in the dark to a much greater extent regarding their combined partnership assets. For this reason, defense is generally regarded as the most challenging part of the game, and you should not be at all dismayed if you encounter some difficulty at first. In fact, it is best at this point in your bridge career to concentrate on mastering fundamental principles, and then acquire some valuable experience in actual play before moving on to the finer points of defensive play. This will be our goal in the present chapter.

Active vs. Passive Defense

One school of thought argues that the best defense is a good offense. Following this line of reasoning, you might choose to attack at every turn, ignoring risks in an attempt to build up winners. An alternative maxim states that all things come to those who wait, so you could resort to the strategy of making safe plays unlikely to lose tricks and not taking any chances. In bridge as in life, however, extremism is unquestionably a vice, and excessive reliance on either of these theories will prove foolhardy. Both have their uses (sometimes within the same hand); there are times when you must get busy in a hurry regardless of the possible consequences, and times when you should tread very softly and not give declarer anything that he does not already have nailed down. In general, you should adopt an active defense (attack) when declarer is likely to make his contract if left alone. For example:

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ A K ♥ J 8 ♦ K Q 10 ♣ A Q J 8 6 3
WEST ♦ 3 led		EAST (you) ♠ 9 4 3 ♥ Q 4 3 2 ♦ A 9 ♣ K 5 4 2
	SOUTH (declarer)

West leads the three of diamonds against South's three-notrump contract, dummy's king is played, and you win with the ace, declarer following with the four-spot. A diamond or spade return will not give declarer any undeserved tricks (partner cannot have more than five diamonds when he leads the three, so declarer can always finesse dummy's ten himself if he is missing the jack), but you don't have time to play safe. As soon as your king of clubs is driven out, declarer will have at least nine tricks (five clubs, two diamonds, and two spades). You must get active—rush to build winners before declarer wraps up the contract. Therefore, you should shift to hearts, the only suit that offers any promise of success. If declarer has A K 5, he will get an extra trick by playing low from his hand and winning with dummy's jack, but it will only be an overtrick, not the trick that cost the contract. As it happens, the heart shift sends declarer down to defeat, for the full deal is as follows:

	NORTH ♠ A K ♥ J 8 ♦ K Q 10 ♣ A Q J 8 6 3
WEST ♠ J 8 7 6 ♥ K 10 7 6 ♦ J 8 6 3 2 ♣ —		EAST ♠ 9 4 3 ♥ Q 4 3 2 ♦ A 9 ♣ K 5 4 2
	SOUTH ♠ Q 10 5 2 ♥ A 9 5 ♦ 7 5 4 ♣ 10 9 7

When you return the deuce of hearts, declarer is helpless. Suppose he ducks; West wins with the king and returns a heart, and your queen drives out the ace. South cannot make the hand without establishing the clubs, and when you gain the lead with your king you return a heart, allowing West to cash two more winners. This gives the defense three heart tricks, one diamond trick, and one club trick in all—just enough to set the contract.

If no serious threat is in the offing, it is often better to play passively and not give declarer any gifts:

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ K Q 3 2 ♥ 7 3 ♦ 6 5 ♣ 6 5 4 3 2
WEST (you) ♠ 5 ♥ A K Q J ♦ K J 9 7 ♣ K J 9 7

Against South's four-spade contract, you lead the king of hearts and cash a second heart winner, all players following suit. At this point, dummy is out of hearts and can ruff the next lead of the suit, so a third round of hearts has little to gain. A lead away from one of your kings may prove fatal if declarer has the A Q, and you are in no hurry; you can see from the dummy that declarer cannot avoid any minor-suit losers because there is no place to discard them. Take the absolutely safe play by leading a trump at trick three. The complete deal:

	NORTH ♠ K Q 3 2 ♥ 7 3 ♦ 6 5 ♣ 6 5 4 3 2
WEST ♠ 5 ♥ A K Q J ♦ K J 9 7 ♣ K J 9 7		EAST ♠ 6 4 ♥ 10 9 8 4 2 ♦ 10 8 3 2 ♣ 10 8
	SOUTH ♠ A J 10 9 8 7 ♥ 6 5 ♦ A Q 4 ♣ A Q

After the spade shift, South must lose a trick in each minor suit and will be set. With any other return, he makes his contract; a lead from one of your kings makes him a present of his tenth trick at once, and a heart lead allows him to ruff in dummy and discard the queen of clubs from his hand (a ruff and discard). Another example:

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ K Q 3 2 ♥ 7 3 ♦ 6 5 ♣ A K Q J 10
WEST (you) ♠ 5 4 ♥ A K Q J ♦ K J 9 7 ♣ 8 4 2

Once again, the contract is four spades, and you quickly cash two heart winners. This time, you cannot bide your time; a most menacing club suit is present in dummy and will provide a parking place for declarer's losers once trumps are drawn. Shift to the seven of diamonds, hoping that partner has the ace and you can take your tricks quickly. Your shift will also be successful if partner has the queen of diamonds and the ace of trumps, as he will regain the lead when declarer starts to draw trumps and return a diamond to your king. What if declarer has ace-queen of diamonds? Then you could not have defeated the contract anyway, and you have not even lost an overtrick because declarer could have thrown all his diamonds on dummy's clubs anyway. The complete deal:

	NORTH ♠ K Q 3 2 ♥ 7 3 ♦ 6 5 ♣ A K Q J 10
WEST ♠ 5 4 ♥ A K Q J ♦ K J 9 7 ♣ 8 4 2		EAST ♠ 8 6 ♥ 10 9 5 4 ♦ A 8 4 2 ♣ 9 6 5
	SOUTH ♠ A J 10 9 7 ♥ 8 6 2 ♦ Q 10 3 ♣ 7 3

A general principle that is often helpful recommends leading through strength and up to weakness. For example:

(a)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ 5 3 2
WEST (you) ♠ K 8 6		EAST ♠ J 10 9 7 4
	SOUTH ♠ A Q

(b)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A Q
WEST (you) ♠ K 8 6		EAST ♠ J 10 9 7 4
	SOUTH ♠ 5 3 2

In example (a), a spade lead by West is injudicious. Left to his own devices, declarer will probably finesse the queen and lose to your king; but if you lead a spade, your winner in the suit evaporates. In case (b), however, the spade lead is through dummy's strength and cannot cost, for declarer could always have taken the finesse by himself (assuming he has an entry to his hand). The problem is similar from the other side of the table:

(a)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ 5 3 2
WEST ♠ J 10 9 7 4		EAST (you) ♠ K 8 6
	SOUTH ♠ A Q

(b)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A Q
WEST ♠ J 10 9 7 4		EAST (you) ♠ K 8 6
	SOUTH ♠ 5 3 2

In case (a), leading up to dummy's weakness is quite acceptable, for declarer gains nothing that he could not have accomplished by himself. In example (b), however, the spade lead costs a trick, so you should lead some other suit and let declarer take the losing finesse.

Play by First Hand

If you are on lead for the defense at some point after the first trick, many of the opening lead principles still apply. For example, it is usually correct to lead the top of honor sequences such as Q J 10 2 and K Q 8 6 and to play the fourth-best card from four-card or longer suits containing one or more honors not forming a sequence. However, check the dummy to make sure that your play makes sense. If dummy has the singleton ace, there is no need to waste an honor, so play low from K Q 8 6 or Q J 10 2. Also, consider the following (advanced) situation:

	NORTH (dummy) ♦ 10 4
		EAST (you) ♦ K J 9 3

The contract is notrump, and declarer has not bid diamonds. You would like to take as many tricks in this suit as possible, and your correct lead is the jack. If declarer has ♦ Q 5 2, the customary fourth-best lead of the three will give him a trick in the suit, as he will simply play low from his hand and your partner will have to Put up the ace to top dummy's ten. The lead of the jack, however, will allow your side to run four tricks no matter what declarer does. If South has ♦ A Q 2, he scores three diamond tricks by playing low if you lead the three, but is held to two tricks if you lead the jack and play the king the next time. In situations such as this (where you surround dummy's honor), you should lead as though you yourself held dummy's honor; with K J 10 9, you would return the jack (top of an interior sequence).

The defender on lead has the opportunity to make use of two very valuable procedures for sending messages to his partner about his holding. These are:

1. Usually, the lead of a low spot card suggests that you hold an honor in the suit and would like partner to return it if he wins a trick. The lead of a high spot card denies an honor and tells partner not to count on you for anything of value in the suit. Thus, if you decide to shift to diamonds at some point, lead the 8 from 8 7 4 3 and the 3 from K 8 3 or K 7 4 3. Let's see hove looks from partner's viewpoint:

	NORTH (dummy) ♦ 8 6 3
WEST ♦ A J 7

East has obtained the lead in a different suit and shifts to the four of diamonds, declarer playing the king. The danger in winning with the ace and playing another diamond is that if declarer began with K Q 10, he will score an undeserved trick in the suit. However, partner's lead of a low spot, the four, suggests that he holds at least one honor, in which case it must be completely safe to win the ace and return the jack. The complete holding:

	NORTH ♦ 8 6 3
WEST ♦ A J 7		EAST ♦ Q 9 5 4 2
	SOUTH ♦ K 10

If you shift suits, declarer may be able to discard his losing ten of diamonds on a side suit before you can regain the lead. Had partner returned the nine of diamonds, you would play him for no honors (and declarer for ♦ K Q 10) and shift to another suit.

2. When returning a suit partner has led (which is often a good idea), lead the fourth-best card from an original holding of four or more cards and the highest card with fewer than four. For example, suppose partner leads a club against a notrump contract and you choose to win with your ace from A 8 5. If you return the suit, the correct card to play is the eight. With A 8 7 5 or A 8 7 5 2, you would return the five (original fourth-best card). Partner will be very grateful to you for providing this information in situations such as the following:

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ 6
WEST ♠ K Q 9 3 2

West leads the three of spades against a three-notrump contract and East wins with the ace, declarer following with the four. East returns the five, declarer plays the ten, and you win with the queen. How do you defend?

Assuming that South has not bid spades, he is unlikely to hold five cards in the suit, so you can dismiss the possibility that East began with A 5 doubleton. Therefore, the relevant holdings are:

(a)

	NORTH ♠ 6
WEST ♠ K Q 9 3 2		EAST ♠ A 8 5
	SOUTH ♠ J 10 7 4

(b)

	NORTH ♠ 6
WEST ♠ K Q 9 3 2		EAST ♠ A 8 7 5
	SOUTH ♠ J 10 4

In case (a), you will give declarer an undeserved trick (and a stopper) if you lead a third round of spades. If you have a certain entry (such as the ace in dummy's long suit) this may be a worthwhile investment, but in most cases you will do better to shift suits and wait until partner can gain the lead and play through declarer's jack. In case (b), however, declarer doesn't have the slightest semblance of a stopper and must hope that if he looks reasonably confident, you will assume that the situation is as described in (a) and shift to a different suit.

This is an impossible problem to resolve with no help from partner, and a wrong guess will prove very costly. However, partner's play of the five-spot solves your dilemma instantly. The five is the lowest outstanding spot (you have the three and two and declarer played the four on the first trick), and with only three spades East would play back his highest card, not his lowest. Therefore, he must have started with four cards in the suit and you can defeat the contract right away. Cash the spade king to extract declarer's last spade and run your length winners.

Had East returned the eight of spades, you would know that he held only three cards in the suit and that situation (a) was in fact the case, and would plan your defense accordingly.

Play by Second Hand

COVERING HONORS

Consider the following situations:

(a)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A 3 2
WEST (you) ♠ K J 5
	SOUTH ♠ Q led

(b)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A J 2
WEST (you) ♠ K 10 9
	SOUTH ♠ Q led

(c)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A J 2
WEST (you) ♠ K 6 5
	SOUTH ♠ Q led

In each case, you should cover the queen with the king. In example (a), you will immediately promote a trick for your jack once the ace is driven out. Declarer has misplayed the suit (with ♠ Q 7 6, he should cash dummy's ace and lead up to the queen), but will profit from his error if you play low and give him the chance to play low from dummy. In case (b), declarer has blundered again (with A J 2 opposite Q 5 4, his only legitimate chance for three tricks.is to lead low to the jack, cash the ace, and hope the doubleton king is in your hand). Covering will hold him to two tricks; play low and he will have the last laugh, for he can later finesse the jack to win three spade tricks. In case (c), partner may hold the 10, in which case covering will restrict declarer to two tricks. If declarer has the ten, he will be the proud owner of three tricks regardless of what you do.

NOT COVERING HONORS

Before you become addicted to covering with your honors, let's look at some situations in which it is wrong to cover.

(a)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A 8 5 4 3 2
WEST (you) ♠ K 6
	SOUTH ♠ Q led (spades are trumps)

(b)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ Q J 4
		EAST (you) ♠ K 3 2
	(notrump)

(c)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ Q J 10 9
		EAST (you) ♠ K 6 4 2
	(notrump)

(d)

	NORTH (dummy) ♠ A 5
WEST (you) ♠ K 4 3
	SOUTH ♠ Q led (notrump)

In case (a), you should play low. South must have quite a few spades because he is the declarer and must therefore have bid them somewhere along the line, and your partner cannot have more than a singleton. Therefore, covering cannot possibly gain. If declarer has Q J 10 9 7, he has eleven cards between the two hands and may well be planning to put up dummy's ace and play for the drop as was recommended in Chapter 3. However, he gives himself an extra chance by leading the queen; if you cover or hesitate, his problems are solved.

In case (b), you should refuse to cover the queen if it is led from dummy, but do cover when the jack is next played. Covering the first time will lose a trick if declarer has A 9 8, for he will win the ace and finesse against partner's ten to take three tricks; if you wait and cover the jack, partner must score a trick with his ten. (Had you held K 2 doubleton, you would cover lest declarer play small to his ace next time and pick up your king.)

In case (c), covering the queen has absolutely nothing to gain because only dummy's cards can possibly be promoted, and you should not even consider it. Covering at any point will lose a trick if declarer began with A 5 3, A 3, or A singleton.

In example (d), you should play low. Dummy's ace must be played on the second round of spades, and your king will survive to take a trick if withheld until the third round of the suit.

Deciding whether or not to cover with an honor lower than the king is often more difficult. Of course, if declarer should happen to lead the jack, you hold Q 10 5, and dummy has K 3 2, it is almost always correct to cover in order to promote your ten. However, the following is a well-known situation:

	DUMMY ♠ A 6 3
WEST (you) ♠ Q 5 2		EAST ♠ 8 7 4
	DECLARER ♠ K J 10 9

Declarer would like to take four spade tricks and can finesse against either opponent for the queen. To give himself an extra chance, he leads the jack from his hand. If you cover with the queen (or hesitate and look uncomfortable), his task is easy; if you play low smoothly, he will probably put up the ace and finesse on the way back. In such cases, it is usually a good policy to play low quickly and not give declarer any free information. However, don't confuse this with the following situation:

	DUMMY ♠ A J 3
WEST (you) ♠ Q 9 7 6		EAST ♠ K 8 5
	DECLARER ♠ 10 4 2

If declarer leads the ten from his hand, you must cover with the queen to hold him to one spade trick. If instead declarer first leads low to the jack and loses to East's king and later plays the ten, you also must cover.

SPLITTING HONORS

If North has ♥ K 3 2, you are West with ♥ Q J 4, and South leads ♥ 10, you should certainly cover with the jack ("split" your honors). If you play low, declarer can gain an undeserved trick whether or not he has the ace by playing low from dummy. What about this situation?

(c)

	NORTH (dummy) ♥ K 10 2
WEST (you) ♥ Q J 6 3

If South cashes the ace and leads another heart, split your honors. South may not be planning to put in dummy's ten, but why take a chance? If instead South leads a low heart the first time, you have more of a problem. If he has the ace, you should split your honors to make sure your side gets the one trick it deserves; but if partner has the ace, declarer may put up the king if you play small (perhaps he needs one trick in a hurry), while splitting your honors will allow him to score a trick by covering the jack with the king and later leading up to the ten. There is no sure route to success in this situation; the recommended action is to split your honors if you need only one or two more tricks to set the contract or if you must gain the lead in a hurry, and to play low otherwise.

If dummy has three small hearts and you, over dummy, have ♥ Q J 2, play low if a heart is led from dummy. If declarer has ♥ A K 10, you are helpless anyway if he elects to finesse the ten; but he may be afraid to risk losing the lead and put up the king, hoping to establish a trick somewhere else. If you split your honors, you may well steer him into a winning finesse that he would not ordinarily take. With ♥ Q J 10 9 2, however, you are in no danger and can tell your partner the good news about your heart suit by putting up an honor.

Play by Third Hand

FINESSES AGAINST DUMMY

If partner leads a suit and dummy has an honor, it is frequently correct to retain your highest card until the honor is played. For example:

(a)

	NORTH (dummy) ♥ Q 6 3
4 ♥ led		EAST (you) ♥ K J 7

(b)

	NORTH (dummy) ♦ K 3 2
♦ 5 led		EAST (you) ♦ A J 10 6

(c)

	NORTH (dummy) ♦ Q 8 4
♦ 2 led		EAST (you) ♦ K 10 5

In example (a), put on the jack if dummy plays low; playing the king cannot conceivably be correct. In case (b), you should play the ten if dummy plays low. If declarer has ♦ Q 8 7, he will get two tricks if you put up your ace; when you play the ten, he cannot obtain more than one diamond trick. In example (c), play the ten unless declarer puts up dummy's queen. If declarer has ♦ A 7 6 or A J 2, he will get an extra trick if you play the king; if South has ♦ J 6 3 you have not lost anything because he was always entitled to one trick once West led the suit. With ♦ 9 7 6, South should have played the queen from dummy, but there is no reason to reward him for his bad play by going up with the king and giving him an undeserved trick (and stopper). (Since West would not underlead an ace against a suit contract, these last two possibilities could only occur at notrump.)

If dummy has no holding against which to finesse, however, you should usually play your highest card; with equals, play the lowest

(a)

	DUMMY ♠ 6 4 2
♠ 5 led		YOU ♠ Q 10 3 or ♠ K Q 10

(b)

	DUMMY ♠ A 4 2
♠ 5 led		YOU ♠ Q 10 3

In each case, put up the queen if the deuce is played from dummy; playing the ten would permit declarer to win an undeserved trick with the jack if he held A J 7 spades (case a) or J 7 6 spades (case b).

THE RULE OF ELEVEN

If partner leads a card that you can assume to be from a long suit (as is often the case against notrump contracts), you may be able to make good use of the rule of eleven. This rule, which is much easier to apply than to state, is best illustrated by an example:

	DUMMY ♠ K 6 4
♠ 7 led		YOU ♠ A J 9 2

If partner is leading from a long suit, the seven is his fourth-best card. Subtracting 7 (the card led) from 11 (from the "rule of eleven") will tell you how many higher cards are in existence outside of your partner's hand. In this case, seven from eleven leaves four. Why is this valuable? Because you can see all four of them—dummy's king and your ace, jack, and nine—so you know that declarer cannot beat partner's seven. If the four is played from dummy, you should play the deuce! The complete holding:

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ K 6 4
WEST ♠ Q 10 8 7		EAST ♠ A J 9 2
	SOUTH ♠ 5 3

At notrumps, declarer has nothing to lose by playing dummy's four; he can always try the king the next time, and perhaps you will commit an error that will prevent your side from quickly running four tricks. The rule of eleven, however, will save you from an egregious blunder. What if West is leading the seven from 7 5 3? Then declarer has Q 10 8 and will get two tricks regardless of what you play.

Particularly against notrump contracts, applying the rule of eleven will often prove helpful, and you should make this simple calculation before playing to the trick and then check to see how many of the missing higher cards are accounted for between your own hand and dummy. You may well find that a play that looks absurd on the surface is actually correct.

Signalling

It is completely unethical to encourage partner to continue playing a suit that you like by beaming broadly or applauding. It is perfectly legal, however, to convey information by the card that you play, and you should do so whenever possible. For example:

	DUMMY ♦ 7 5 3
WEST ♦ K led		EAST (you) ♦ Q 8 4
	DECLARER

When partner leads the king, you know that he also has the ace, so you might routinely play your four and wait eagerly for him to play more diamonds. Partner, however, does not know that you have the queen, and may well shift suits to avoid losing a trick if declarer has the queen.

To prevent this calamity, you should signal with your eight-spot. The play of an unnecessarily high spot shows encouragement and asks partner to continue the suit, and when you play your eight West will cash his ace and continue with a diamond to your queen. Holding 9 8 4, you would discourage by playing the four (a low spot).

Against a suit contract, you should also signal encouragement by playing the highest card from a doubleton when partner leads the king (provided that dummy has at least three cards in the suit). For example, if you have 7 3, you would like partner to continue with the ace and play another round so that you can ruff. Let partner know by playing the seven. With 7 4 3 or 7 6 4 3, play the three. (If partner has A K Q, he will continue the suit anyway.)

You can also signal when you are out of a suit by making an appropriate discard. Suppose that declarer is running some length winners in diamonds at a notrump contract. You can announce weakness in a suit to your partner by discarding a low spot; if there is some suit you would very much like him to lead, discard the highest spot you can afford. Signalling in this way can accomplish several objectives. You can avoid the ignominy of discarding the wrong suit and giving declarer undeserved tricks; if partner signals discouragement with a low spot, it will usually be up to you to protect that suit as best you can, and if he signals with a high spot you can afford to part with your cards in that suit and protect something else. Also, declarer may need a favorable lead from you to make his contract. Signals will help your side play the suits in which you have strength.

Capsule Summary: Defense

I. Adopt an active defense—taking risks if necessary—if declarer, given time, will be able to build up enough winners to make his contract. Be willing to make declarer a present of some overtricks in return for a chance to set the contract. However, go passive if declarer is not threatening to run off enough winners to land the contract; don't give him the fulfilling trick.

II. When in doubt, lead through strength on your left and up to weakness on your right.

III. Play by first hand:
   1. When returning partner's suit, lead back the top card with an original holding of two or three cards in the suit and lead back the (original) fourth-best card from an original four-card or longer suit.
   2. When playing a new suit, lead low to suggest an honor (but lead the top of sequences such as Q J 6 or J 10 9 7); lead a high spot to deny an honor.
   3. Study dummy carefully to see if the usual play should be abandoned.

IV. Play by second hand: Cover an honor when you are likely to promote tricks for your side. Do not cover when promotion is unlikely (for example, the opponents have a long suit, or you can see all the promotable spots in dummy).

V. Play by third hand: Play high (but lowest of equals) if there is no card to trap in the dummy. If dummy has an honor that you have surrounded, it is frequently correct to play your second-highest card ("finesse against dummy").

VI. Signalling: The play or discard of a high spot-card shows strength in the suit and asks partner to lead (or continue) it; the play or discard of a low spot shows weakness and suggests that partner look elsewhere for a lead.

REVIEW QUIZ

(1)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♥ 6 4
WEST (you) ♥ A J 9 5 3

Against a three-notrump contract you lead the heart five and partner's king wins, declarer playing the seven. Partner returns the deuce of hearts, declarer plays the ten, and your jack wins. How is the suit divided in the unseen hands, and how might this influence your defense?

(2)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ Q 3 2 ♥ A K Q ♦ K Q J 9 8 ♣ A 4
		EAST (you) ♠ K J 6 4 ♥ 8 3 2 ♦ A 10 ♣ 6 5 3 2

West leads the four of hearts against South's three-notrump contract; dummy wins and leads the king of diamonds. How do you defend?

(3)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ Q 3 2 ♥ K J 6 ♦ K 7 3 ♣ A 9 6 5
		EAST (you) ♠ K J 6 4 ♥ Q 10 8 2 ♦ Q 8 2 ♣ 8 4

South is declarer at three notrump and West leads the five of diamonds. Dummy's three is played and you properly put up the queen, winning the trick when South plays the six. How do you defend?

(4)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ Q 6 3 ♥ 8 5 2 ♦ A K Q J 2 ♣ 4 3
		EAST (you) ♠ A 10 2 ♥ 7 4 ♦ 6 5 4 3 ♣ A K 6 2

South is declarer at four hearts. West leads the spade four and dummy plays low. How do you defend?

(5)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ K Q 10 8 ♥ Q J 10 ♦ Q 8 2 ♣ Q J 8
		EAST (you) ♠ 5 3 2 ♥ K 6 4 2 ♦ K 6 3 ♣ K 4 2

South is declarer at four spades and West leads the three of hearts.

(a) What do you play at trick one?

(b) If declarer wins the first trick, draws trumps ending in dummy, and leads the queen of diamonds, do you cover?

(c) If instead declarer leads the queen of clubs from dummy after drawing trumps, do you cover?

(6)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ Q J 6 ♥ K 8 3 2 ♦ K 4 3 2 ♣ A 2
WEST (you) ♠ A K 8 5 3 ♥ 7 4 ♦ A Q J ♣ 6 4 3

South is attempting to make a four-heart contract and you lead the king of spades.

(a) East plays the nine and declarer the deuce. How do you defend?

(b) East plays the deuce and declarer the seven. How do you defend?

(7)

	NORTH (Dummy) ♠ A K 8 ♥ K Q J 8 5 3 ♦ Q J ♣ A Q
		EAST (you) ♠ 5 ♥ A 10 6 4 ♦ A 9 7 6 4 ♣ 8 6 2

West leads the two of hearts against South's contract of six spades. Dummy's king is played, and your ace wins, declarer playing the nine. How do you defend?

Solutions

1. Partner must have begun with K 2 and declarer Q 10 8 7. Partner's return of the deuce shows an original holding of either two or four cards in the suit (with three, he would not return his lowest spot). If East began with four hearts declarer is now out of the suit (partner started with K Q 8 2). Is this possible? No, for with king-queen partner's correct play on the first trick is the queen (lowest equal). Therefore, you know that partner has no more hearts. With a sure entry (such as the ace in dummy's long suit), cash the ace of hearts and drive out declarer's queen, allowing you to take four heart tricks plus your side entry—just enough to set the contract. Otherwise, shift suits to avoid giving declarer an undeserved trick with the queen of hearts.

2. Win with the ace of diamonds and shift to the four of spades. Declarer is odds on to be able to cash nine tricks when he regains the lead, so you must get busy in a hurry. The only chance is to find partner with at least three spades including the ace, so that you can run four spade tricks. If declarer has the spade ace, the lead will cost a trick but not the contract, as he will have nine top tricks. Declarer's hand:

♠ 10 7 5    ♥ 9 7 6    ♦ 7 4 2    ♣ K Q J 8

3. Return the eight of diamonds. There is no reason to suspect that declarer has anywhere near nine tricks at the moment, so adopt the normal play of returning the suit led by your partner. Return the higher of your two remaining cards; the play of the deuce would tell partner that you originally began with two or four diamonds.

4. This is a very bad time to play the ten and finesse against dummy! With that long diamond suit in dummy ready to provide discards, you had better grab your winners while you can; giving declarer an extra spade trick by playing the ace is irrelevant because he could always discard his spade losers on dummy's diamonds. Win the ace, cash the ace and king of clubs, and play back the spade ten in case partner has the king. As it happens, declarer has the spade king, but your defense defeats the contract anyway because his hand is

♠ K 5 4    ♥ A Q J 10 9 6    ♦ 8    ♣ 10 7 5

and partner's heart king provides the setting trick. If you play the ten of spades at the first trick, South wins, plays three rounds of diamonds and discards his other two spades, and loses only one heart and two clubs (the third club is ruffed in dummy).

5. (a) The deuce. Don't cover when there is nothing to promote.

(b) Yes. Partner may well have the ten, and if he doesn't there is nothing you can do.

(c) No. Covering will cost a trick if declarer has club ♣ A 9 3, because he will win the ace and finesse against partner's ten. Wait and cover the jack next time.

6. (a) East is encouraging you to continue spades; since you can see all the honors, the only reasonable possibility is that he has a doubleton (or singleton) and wishes to ruff. Cash the ace of spades and play another round (you may cash the diamond ace first if you wish). Declarer's hand:

♠ 10 9 2    ♥ A Q J 6 5    ♦ 6    ♣ K Q 8 5

If you shift, declarer makes his contract easily by drawing trumps, losing only two spades and the ace of diamonds.

(b) East could conceivably have a singleton spade, but it is more likely that he is discouraging a spade continuation with three or four cards in the suit. You can see a ready source of tricks elsewhere; switch to the ace of diamonds and follow with the queen. Declarer's hand:

♠ 10 7    ♥ A Q J 6 5    ♦ 8 6 5    ♣ K Q 8

If you continue spades, declarer will discard a losing diamond on dummy's spade queen and make his contract, losing only two spades and one diamond. The diamond switch puts time on your side and sets the contract, for you score two diamond tricks and two spade tricks. Even without an attractive shift, however, you should still not continue spades, for if declarer began with a singleton spade he will ruff the second lead and obtain a free trick with dummy's queen.

7. Since you need only two tricks to defeat the contract, it is tempting to lay down the ace of diamonds. If you have a trustworthy partner, however, you must return a heart! Partner would not lead the deuce from a doubleton. Therefore, partner's heart lead was a singleton and he can ruff the heart return to set the contract. In fact, any other play gives declarer the slam, for his hand is:

♠ Q J 10 9 6 4    ♥ 9 7    ♦ —    ♣ K J 10 9 7

In actual play, you would probably have additional clues from the bidding in this problem (and others), but you get so much information from partner's lead of the deuce that (in this case at least) you should not need any additional facts. Nor should you be confused by declarer's small deception of playing the nine (there is no rule that he must play his lowest card when he cannot win a trick!).

This article is an adapted excerpt from "Bridge for Beginners" by Alvin Roth and Jeff Rubens.
Copyright 1970. Used by permission.

Our learning center web pages are dedicated to teaching the game of bridge. There are lessons for first-time players, as well as for those at the elementary and intermediate levels. You can find the appropriate section, and proceed through the lessons.

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