Who Do You Trust?

In a rubber bridge game with some good players, you cut a new partner. The two of you have not played together before. With no partnership discussion other than "five card majors, weak twos, transfers" you are East and receive this unexciting collection.

♠ A 10 8 6 ♥ 6 4 3 ♦ 9 7 6 2 ♣ 7 3

West	North	YOU	South
	Pass	Pass	1 ♥
2 ♣	2 ♥	Pass	Pass
3 ♣	3 ♥	All pass

North Deals E-W Vul	♠ K J 3 ♥ K 10 2 ♦ J 10 8 4 ♣ J 10 5
	N W E S	♠ A 10 8 6 ♥ 6 4 3 ♦ 9 7 6 2 ♣ 7 3

Partner leads the ♦ A. What does your partnership normally lead from ace-king against a suit contract?

ANSWER: Good question! Don't you wish you had discussed that? Back when Eisenhower was President, leading the king from ace-king was considered standard. The ace might be the more common agreement nowadays, but not by a wide margin. Without an agreement, you'll just have to guess for now.

You play the ♦ 2 hoping that partner gets the message about your terrible diamond suit. Declarer follows suit with the ♦ 3. Alas, partner continues with the ♦ K and declarer plays the ♦ Q from her hand.

Partner cashes the ♣ A, you follow suit with the ♣ 7 and declarer plays the ♣ K. Then partner leads the ♠ 9 and declarer plays low from dummy.

What is going on?

ANSWER: Partner is screaming for a diamond ruff, so give it to her. Rise with your ♠ A and give partner the diamond ruff she worked so hard to get. Don't let declarer's ♦ Q talk you out of the winning play.

Partner deliberately set up declarer's diamond suit, ignoring the advice of your ♦ 2 signal. Then she cashed her ♣ A, dropping declarer's king and making it clear that a club return is wrong. If she wanted to force declarer in clubs, she could have continued clubs herself. But she eliminated clubs as a choice for you, and then -- only then -- did partner lead a spade to find you with the ♠ A.

But declarer played the ♦ Q, isn't declarer out of diamonds? There is still one diamond unaccounted for. Look at dummy's ♦ J 10 of diamonds. Dropping the ♦ Q wouldn't cost declarer anything.

THE PRINCIPLE: The opponents are out to get you. Partner is the one on your side. Trust your partner. 

	♠ K J 3 ♥ K 10 2 ♦ J 10 8 4 ♣ J 10 5
♠ 9 7 ♥ 9 7 ♦ A K ♣ A Q 9 8 6 4 2	N W E S	♠ A 10 8 6 ♥ 6 4 3 ♦ 9 7 6 2 ♣ 7 3
	♠ Q 5 4 2 ♥ A Q J 8 5 ♦ Q 5 3 ♣ K

Declarer's play of the ♦ Q on the second round of diamonds is an automatic play, though of course she must play it in tempo to have a chance of misleading anyone. If you don't play the ♠ A and return a diamond for partner to ruff, declarer will make her contract.

BONUS MINUTE: Which diamond did you play on the second trick, to partner's king? I hope you played the ♦ 9 as a suit-preference signal for spades. Partner knows you didn't have a doubleton diamond, since you didn't play high-low to her ace and king. Partner knows you don't have the queen, because you discouraged diamonds on the first trick. Partner knows you have a choice of which diamond to play at trick two. You aren't interested in a club ruff, because declarer will be ruffing behind you; partner certainly has at least six clubs for her bidding. So play a high diamond to suggest interest in the higher-ranking suit, spades.

-- Ray 
Better Bridge in 5 Minutes. Guaranteed! (or the next one is free)