Playing
matchpoints, nobody vulnerable, you are the dealer.
♠ K Q J 10
x x ♥ -- ♦ K Q 10 x x ♣ Q x
|
S (you)
|
West
|
North
|
East
|
|
1 ♠
3 ♦
3 ♠
|
2 ♥
Pass
Pass
|
Pass
Pass
4 ♠
|
Pass
3 ♥
All pass
|
West leads the ♦7. Take a moment now to look at dummy
and plan your play.
|
North
|
|
♠ 9 8 x
♥ x x
♦ A 9 8 x x x
♣ x x
|
|
|
|
|
|
South (you)
|
|
♠ K Q J
10 x x
♥ --
♦ K Q 10 x x
♣ Q x
|
West leads the ♦7, you play low from dummy, East
plays the ♦J to your ♦K.
You lead a
small spade to West’s ♠A. She switches
to the ♣A – East
follows with ♣J (!) – and then
leads… Oh, stop, wait a minute. What did
you play to the ♣A?
ANSWER: I hope
you played the ♣Q smoothly, in
tempo without hesitation.
THE
PRINCIPLE: When you are declarer, be
alert for opportunities to sow doubt and confusion in the defenders’ minds. Your
♣Q is worthless –
it will never take a trick – so why not play it as if it were a singleton?
Maybe the defense will switch to hearts instead of continuing a second club, and
you’ll ruff and take the rest of the tricks. Maybe West won’t be fooled;
nothing ventured, nothing gained. Expert defenders are less likely to be fooled, but you'll at least gain some respect from them as a crafty opponent.
Just like
bluffing at the poker table, playing a falsecard at the bridge table demands a
straight face and your normal routine tempo. If you spend any extra time thinking
about whether to play the ♣Q, the defenders
will surely recognize your attempted deceit.
