Follow the Leader

You are on defense and hold an honor sequence in a suit: two or more cards "touching" or equal in rank. For example, the K-Q  or the J-10-9 . Since they all have the same practical effect toward winning a trick, does it matter which one you play? Does it matter whether you are on lead or following suit?

ANSWER: Yes, yes, it matters a lot to partner! Which card you play from equal honors gives your partner (and okay, yes, declarer too) some important clues about the other cards you hold in that suit. There is a very standard way of playing honor sequences:

1. Lead from the top of the sequence. The standard opening leads we all learned are the K from K-Q-whatever, the Q from Q-J-whatever, and so on. In general, the lead of an honor promises the next-lower honor (or a void) and denies the next-higher. Most experts today prefer A from A-K against suit contracts, although this is not universal; you and your partner should discuss how your partnership will lead from A-K. Note that this applies throughout the hand, not just on opening lead.
    
2. Follow from the bottom of the sequence. In general, try to win the trick as cheaply as possible. The card you play denies the next lowest card. For example, if you follow suit with the Q you have denied holding the J; you haven't promised the K, but partner will know that you don't have the J. As with leading from the top, this rule applies throughout the hand.
    
3. Discard (signal) from the top of the sequence. Discarding an honor promises the next-lower honor (or a void) and denies the next-higher. For example, discarding the Q promises the J and denies the K. 

There are, of course, some important exceptions:

• With doubleton honors (no other cards in the suit), reverse the above rules. For example, with K-Q doubleton, lead the Q; when you later play the K, partner will realize why you "broke the rule" of leading from the top.
• With three or more, lead from the top and then lead next from the bottom. For example, with K-Q-J you'll lead the K and then next lead the J; partner will realize that you have the Q but not the 10.
• When splitting honors in second or fourth seat I suggest "follow low" just for simplicity, but you should discuss this with your partner. Expert agreements vary in this situation, often depending on how many cards are in the sequence.

So how to remember this? Here are some mnemonic ideas:

• The leaders in an organization are at the top of the organization chart (sequence) and the followers are at the bottom. 
• The leaders are at the head of the parade (sequence) and the followers at the end
• "folLOW" (follow low)
• For signaling, think of smoke signals from the top of the mountain (sequence).

BONUS MINUTE: When you have the doubleton Q-J in a suit that declarer controls, it is best to follow suit randomly; play the Q first 50% of the time, and play the J first 50% of the time. Note that you'll have to make your decision before declarer plays the suit, otherwise declarer will read your hesitation like a book. The reasons for the randomized play are too complicated to explain here; you can Google "restricted choice in bridge" for more details.

answering partner's plea

Some hands are just plain hard to bid, with no clear-cut correct answer. That is partly why bridge is such a fascinating game.

The opponents are vulnerable, you are North, and the auction gets crowded. I'll show you your hand in a moment...

West	North	East	South
	1 ♣	2 ♦	2 ♥
3 ♦	3 ♠	Pass	4 ♦
Pass	??

ANSWER: Clearly you must bid. Partner's 4 ♦ bid can't possibly be to play, since the opponents bid and raised diamonds. And, of course, a new suit by an unpassed hand is forcing.

It's not clear whether partner is fishing for heart support, or has slam interest in one of your black suits, or is fishing for a diamond stopper, or wants to find out which black suit is the least-worst option. Maybe several of those cases apply! Your objective here is to clarify as much as you can, without repeating what you've already told her about your hand. Don't tell the same story twice!.

So, what do you know about partner's hand?

• Partner has at least five good hearts, and at least 10 points, for her 2 ♥ bid.
• Partner is unwilling to pass 3 ♠ or simply sign off somewhere (3 NT, 4 ♣, 4 ♥, 4 ♠, or 5 ♣), so she likely has more than the minimum for her 2 ♥ bid.
• Partner is not just interested in how many aces you have, else she would have bid 4 NT Blackwood.

What does partner already know about your hand?

• You have a very good hand with game-going values (at least 16 points), because you bid 3 ♠ freely rather than just passing over 3 ♦.
• You don't have a 1 NT opener or a 2 NT opener; your hand is probably unbalanced.
• You probably don't have three hearts, because you didn't raise hearts right away.
• You have at least four spades and longer clubs; otherwise you would have bid spades first.

Here are some hands that you might hold in this auction.

West	North	East	South
	1 ♣	2 ♦	2 ♥
3 ♦	3 ♠	Pass	4 ♦
Pass	??

♠ A Q x x ♥ K x ♦ x x ♣ A K J 10 x
Bid 4♥. Partner already knows you don't have three hearts.

♠ A Q x x x ♥ x x ♦ -- ♣ A K J 10 x x
Bid 4♠ promising a five-card suit, and therefore at least six clubs.

♠ A Q x x ♥ x ♦ A x ♣ A K J 10 x x
Bid 5♣, denying a five-card spade suit, and suggesting six clubs.

♠ A Q x x ♥ x x ♦ K x ♣ A K J 10 x
Bid 4 NT to play?? Don't you wish you had bid 3 NT at your previous turn?

♠ A K J x ♥ Q x ♦ x x x ♣ A K Q x
Bid 4♥. This hand (18-19 balanced) is the exception where your clubs are not longer than your spades. Partner already knows you don't have three hearts.

In ambiguous situations like this, take a moment to review the auction. What do you know about partner's hand? What does partner already know about your hand? What does partner not know about your hand? Partner is sending us a plea for help; how can you best clarify your hand for her?

Dearest Partner...

[This is a duplicate of a previous article that encountered email distribution problems. Stop me if you've already heard this...]

Some hands are just plain hard to bid, with no clear-cut correct answer. That is partly why bridge is such a fascinating game.

Here’s a hand from a couple weeks ago. I wasn’t satisfied with my choice at the table, and even less so the more I thought about it later. I posted this hand as an online bidding poll at BridgeWinners.com to get some expert opinions.

Matchpoints, E-W vulnerable, you are South.
♠ K 8 6 2   ♥ A K J 8 7 6 5   ♦ 2   ♣ 5

North 1 ♣ 3 ♠

East 2 ♦ Pass

You 2 ♥ ??

West 3 ♦

What do you bid over 3 ♠? What do you think the experts bid?

ANSWER: Half of the experts chose 4♦. The rest of the votes were split between 4♠ and 4NT, with just a few votes for other bids.

I am chagrined to admit that I didn’t think of 4♦ at the time, but I believe it is by far the best choice. It isn’t clear whether partner started with 5 spades and 6 clubs, or only 4 spades and 5 (or 6) clubs. While spades will be at least an 8-card trump suit, playing a spade slam could be tricky if partner holds only honor-fourth in the suit. We would like to know more about partner’s hand rather than acting unilaterally.

What does a 4♦ bid mean here? It is forcing; it means “partner, you must bid again”. With a diamond overcall and raise by the opponents, it can’t possibly be to play in diamonds. It may or may not show a diamond control. It doesn’t necessarily show spade support. It implies a hand that is unwilling to just sign off in 4♥ or 4♠. It doesn’t show something in particular; it asks partner for more information. Partner should notice that it is the only forcing call available short of 4♥ or 4♠, either of which would likely end the auction.

An expert player from the UK, Ian Grant, once wrote a lovely eloquent description of this kind of ambiguous bid. I’ll quote it in entirety:

"I think of it as sending a memo: 

Dearest Partner,

Once again I find myself faced with the prospect of a difficult decision in the near future. Since you are at least partially responsible for this unfortunate state of affairs I have no hesitation in requesting your help. Any further information you can provide regarding the cards you are holding would, I am sure, be of great assistance. 

your long suffering friend,

Ian"

Bridge is a partnership game, so get partner involved.

BONUS MINUTE: Spades, not hearts, should almost always be trump here; but you probably knew that already. The spade suit will have the same losers regardless of what's trump. But if there are any heart losers, declarer can most likely ruff them if spades are trump and then use the established hearts to pitch minor suit losers. If hearts are trump, there's no way to get rid of any heart losers.

Dear Partner...

Some hands are just plain hard to bid, with no clear-cut correct answer. That is partly why bridge is such a fascinating game.

Here’s a hand from last week. I wasn’t satisfied with my choice at the table, and even less so the more I thought about it later. I posted this hand as an online bidding poll at BridgeWinners.com to get some expert opinions.

Matchpoints, E-W vulnerable, you are South.
♠ K 8 6 2   ♥ A K J 8 7 6 5   ♦ 2   ♣ 5

North 1 ♣ 3 ♠

East 2 ♦ Pass

You 2 ♥ ??

West 3 ♦

What do you bid over 3 ♠? What do you think the experts bid?

ANSWER: Half of the experts chose 4♦. The rest of the votes were split between 4♠ and 4NT, with just a few votes for other bids.

I am chagrined to admit that I didn’t think of 4♦ at the time, but I believe it is by far the best choice. It isn’t clear whether partner started with 5 spades and 6 clubs, or only 4 spades and 5 (or 6) clubs. While spades will be at least an 8-card trump suit, playing a spade slam could be tricky if partner holds only honor-fourth in the suit. We would like to know more about partner’s hand rather than acting unilaterally.

What does a 4♦ bid mean here? It is forcing; it means “partner, you must bid again”. With a diamond overcall and raise by the opponents, it can’t possibly be to play in diamonds. It may or may not show a diamond control. It doesn’t necessarily show spade support. It implies a hand that is unwilling to just sign off in 4♥ or 4♠. It doesn’t show something in particular; it asks partner for more information. Partner should notice that it is the only forcing call available short of 4♥ or 4♠, either of which would likely end the auction.

An expert player from the UK, Ian Grant, once wrote a lovely eloquent description of this kind of ambiguous bid. I’ll quote it in entirety:

"I think of it as sending a memo: 

Dearest Partner,

Once again I find myself faced with the prospect of a difficult decision in the near future. Since you are at least partially responsible for this unfortunate state of affairs I have no hesitation in requesting your help. Any further information you can provide regarding the cards you are holding would, I am sure, be of great assistance. 

your long suffering friend,

Ian"

Bridge is a partnership game, so get partner involved.

BONUS MINUTE: Spades, not hearts, should almost always be trump here; but you probably knew that already. The spade suit will have the same losers regardless of what's trump. But if there are any heart losers, declarer can most likely ruff them if spades are trump and then use the established hearts to pitch minor suit losers. If hearts are trump, there's no way to get rid of any heart losers.

(minor update 7 Nov)

Well, that was unnecessary...

You’ve done your best in the auction to make life difficult for the opponents, and they have bid a small slam. Now for the next part of the exam.

Matchpoints, S deals, N-S Vulnerable 

South 1 ♦ Pass

West Pass Pass

North 1 ♠ 6 ♦

East (you) 5 ♣ All Pass

Dummy ♠ A K 7 2 ♥ K J 5 ♦ K 9 5 4 ♣ A 10
	You ♠ --- ♥ 9 7 6 ♦ 10 3 ♣ K J 9 8 6 5 3 2

Partner led the ♣Q, declarer played the ♣A from dummy. Your play?

ANSWER: Play the ♣K to request a spade lead!

THE PRINCIPLE: When following suit, an unnecessarily high card (or low card, in some cases) is not an attitude signal encouraging continuation of the suit. It is a suit preference signal, asking for a lead in the higher-ranking of the other suits.

From your hand it looks like the only chance to defeat 6♦ is if partner holds the ♦A. If she wins the first round of trump, she can then lead a spade so you can ruff. With only two clubs unaccounted for at this point, your club suit is all winners; you could play any high club to encourage a club continuation. But partner would probably continue clubs anyway, if she has one. By playing the ♣K, an unusual-looking play, you’ll get her attention and maybe a spade lead too. NOTE: Most experts treat this as a situation to signal suit-preference rather than attitude, with the default being just continue clubs.

The complete hand is below. Partner must win the first round of trumps and lead a spade to defeat the contract. If partner doesn’t hold the diamond ace, maybe you just helped declarer by alerting her to the bad spade break; but maybe the spade suit plays itself, so it is a risk worth taking.

	North ♠ A K 7 2 ♥ K J 5 ♦ K 9 5 4 ♣ A 10
West ♠ 10 9 6 5 4 ♥ 10 8 4 3 ♦ A 5 ♣ Q 4		East (you) ♠ --- ♥ 9 7 6 ♦ 10 3 ♣ K J 9 8 6 5 3 2
	South ♠ Q J 8 3 ♥ A Q 2 ♦ Q J 8 7 6 ♣ 7

BONUS MINUTE: In the auction, you might be tempted to make a Lightner double to get an unusual lead of spades. But from your hand, it looks like they could run to 6♠ instead. Also, even if you get a spade ruff you’ll need another trick somewhere to set the contract; more likely is that they’ll make 6♦ doubled, ouch! It’s essential to wish for the ♦A in the play, but doubling on the speculation that partner has a trick somewhere is way too risky.

Who ya gonna trust?

This hand is from last Friday’s Common Game, an event where bridge clubs around the country can play the same hands and compare scores. You know enough about bridge to get this one right, trust me!

South 2 NT

West Pass

North 3 NT

East (you) All pass

An auction like that fairly screams for an opening lead in a major suit; sure enough, partner leads the ♥5. Your partnership leads are top of nothing, and fourth best from length. It is a matchpoint (pairs) event, so every trick matters.

North (dummy) ♠ 9 ♥ Q J 9 ♦ 9 4 3 ♣ A Q 9 4 3 2
	East (you) ♠ Q J 7 ♥ K 7 6 4 ♦ J 10 8 ♣ 8 7 6

After the ♥5 lead, declarer plays the ♥9. Now what?

We all learned the beginners' rule of thumb “third hand high”, but the expert instinct is to duck: a 2NT opening normally has a heart stopper, likely the ♥A. If partner’s lead is fourth best, declarer holds ace-doubleton and you should signal encouragement with the ♥7, keeping the ♥K in place over dummy’s ♥QJ.

How many high-card points does partner have? With your 7 HCP, and 9 in dummy, and declarer’s 20-21 for the 2NT opening, that leaves partner with 3 or 4 points.

By the way, did you notice that the club suit should produce six tricks for declarer with no need for an outside entry?

Okay, enough time for thought. ♥5 was led, and the ♥9 from dummy. What do you play?

ANSWER: Play the ♥K. Partner must have the ♥A in order for her ♥5 to be fourth-best. Using the Rule of Eleven – or simply by examining the heart spots that you can see – if the ♥5 is fourth-best, her only possible holding is ♥ A 10 8 5.

Okay, it is possible that partner’s lead was top of three small (♥5 3 2). That gives declarer ♥A 10 8 and it doesn't matter which heart you play (except in one very specific and unlikely situation). Ditto if partner led from only two hearts. Since it doesn’t matter what you play then, ignore those cases. ADDED CLARIFICATION: It doesn't matter because the declarer can score six club tricks here without an outside entry to dummy. If declarer will need an entry to dummy, then keeping your ♥K in hand is the right play.

If partner’s lead was fourth best from four hearts, then declarer has at most two hearts. If declarer holds ace-doubleton, that means partner led the 5 from 10 8 5 x, or 10 5 3 2, or even 8 5 3 2.

If partner’s lead was fourth best from a five-card suit, then declarer almost certainly has the singleton ♥A. (Opening 2NT with a singleton ace is pretty much routine.)  But that would imply that partner led the 5 from 10 8 5 3 2.

There is a slight chance that partner led low from ace-third, in which case playing the king is the winning choice.

So the challenge for this hand is who do you trust?

-          Does declarer have a heart stopper, and partner led second- or third-best, or

-          Did partner lead correctly, and declarer is missing a heart stopper.

THE PRINCIPLE: When in doubt, trust your partner, not the opponents. Partner is your only friend at the table. What if partner is wrong? Trust partner regardless. Really. Unless you’re 200% positive that partner has made an error, trust her anyway. The benefits to partnership harmony, knowing that you’re both paying attention and trusting each other, far outweigh any short-term gain of maybe being right this time.

The complete hand:

	North ♠ 9 ♥ Q J 9 ♦ 9 4 3 ♣ A Q 9 4 3 2
West ♠ 10 8 6 5 3 ♥ A 10 8 5 ♦ 7 6 5 ♣ 10		East (you) ♠ Q J 7 ♥ K 7 6 4 ♦ J 10 8 ♣ 8 7 6
	South ♠ A K 4 2 ♥ 3 2 ♦ A K Q 2 ♣ K J 5

This is your only chance to cash two heart tricks; declarer has the rest of the tricks. If you play the ♥K you’ll get an average-plus result. If you duck the first trick, you’ll be bottom-fishing for matchpoints.

BONUS MINUTE: The choice on this hand is clear because of the heart spots that are showing; you can account for every relevant card. Re-arrange the spot cards slightly – give declarer the ♥ 7 6 and yourself the ♥ K 4 3 2 – and it’s a more difficult problem. I think you still have to trust partner and play your ♥K , but in this case trust partner to not have led fourth-best from ten-fourth, an unappealing lead from a hand that holds at most one entry.

Bidding Fast and Slow

This isn’t about how long you take to bid; that’s a different article. Let’s talk instead about how rapidly the auction progresses to its conclusion. Does it matter whether we take the most direct route or not?

  ♠ K Q 8    ♥ 5 4   ♦ J 10 6 5    ♣ 7 4 3 2

South 2 ♣ 3 ♦

North (you) 2 ♦ ?

Partner’s 2♣ opening is, of course, forcing to game unless she simply rebids 2NT. Your 2♦ bid is an artificial “waiting” bid that doesn’t say anything about a diamond suit. Partner’s 3♦ bid is natural, showing at least 5 diamonds.

With only one of the other three suits stopped, you don’t dare bid notrump. You don’t have another suit to bid, so you must perforce raise diamonds. “Support with support,” as the saying goes. Your choices then are 4♦ or 5♦. Which do you bid?

ANSWER: Bid 4♦, implying some extra values. A 5♦ bid would be the weakest possible bid, something you would bid without those lovely spade honors. Since we are in a game-forcing auction, partner is not going to pass; at the very least, she’ll bid 5♦.

THE PRINCIPLE: When there is more than one route to the same end contract, the “slower” (less direct) route shows some extra values. This is known as the Principle of Fast Arrival. In a slower auction, you leave partner some bidding space to explore the hand in more depth, perhaps by introducing a second suit or starting a cue-bid sequence. At the very least, the slow bidding route tells partner that you have a little something extra; maybe that’s just the encouragement she’ll need to investigate slam possibilities. On the other hand, the fast bidding route warns partner that you don’t have anything to spare.

One way to remember this slow/fast business is the mnemonic “slow shows and fast denies”.

Here are a few example auctions that will be familiar, and you’ll recognize the Principle of Fast Arrival at work.

South 1♠

North 4♠

Can’t go any faster than that! North shows a weak hand with long spades.

South 1♠ 2♥

North 2♦ 4♠

A slower road to game, North showing at least an opening hand with spade support and a diamond suit.

South 1 NT 2♠

North 2♥ 4♠

Going slow with a Jacoby transfer at the two level, then bidding game to show at least six spades and a hand worth at least 10 points.

South 1 NT 4♠

North 4♥ Pass

A similar situation but fast this time, a Texas transfer at the four level to show at least six spades but a definitely weaker hand than in the previous example.

By considering whether you took the slow route or the fast route, partner can draw appropriate inferences about your hand to decide whether to investigate bidding further, or to more accurately judge what to do if the opponents compete in your auction.

BONUS MINUTE (not bridge-related): Perhaps the most fascinating book I’ve read in quite some time is Daniel Kahneman’s Thinking Fast and Slow. For the last fifty years, Kahneman has been one of the world’s leading researchers in the psychology of human decision-making. The book is a very readable explanation of our current understanding of human decision processes, and how Kahneman’s past research contributed to that understanding. Highly recommended!