"PASS" is the word

The Doctor was depressed. For over more than 6 months he couldn't get a substitute to replace him in the clinic. Oh, how badly he needed a vacation...

One day an ad caught his eye in the Bridge magazine: "Last chance! A Bridge cruise to Iceland and the Norwegian fjords! Book now!" That was it. He decided he MUST go on that cruise or he'll fall apart right there. So he ran down one floor and knocked at his neighbor's door:
"I am going on a Bridge cruise tomorrow, and you are going to replace me in the clinic!"
"But... But I am not a doctor. I am a complete Nothing, I didn't even manage to finish high school. How can I possibly replace you at the clinic?", asked the astonished neighbor.
"Listen up! I am going to tell you a little secret. Being a doctor is the easiest profession on earth. Whoever comes to visit you - Just PASS them to another doctor. For example: If someone complains about his ears - PASS him to an ear doctor. If a pregnant woman enters the door - PASS her to a gynecologist. If someone has bones problems - PASS to an orthopedist, etc. Got it?!" and without even waiting for an answer he went home to pack, leaving the puzzled neighbor standing by his door speechless.

And so the doctor left. The cruise was great! Exactly what he needed. The Bridge was great too, and on the last session, he was the only one to make a grand slam!

Dealer North, N-S vulnerable

*New minor forcing ; ** 0 or 3 Key cards (out of 5)

No PASS, no hesitation before reaching the grand slam. West lead the ♠10. Most players won the lead, drew 4 rounds of trumps and tested the clubs. When clubs turned out to be 4-2, they tried the diamond finesse, intending to throw the club loser on the ♦A. But the finesse failed and they went 1 down.

Others played only 2 rounds of trump and then tried 3 top clubs: If clubs were 3-3, they would pull 2 more rounds of trumps and take that last club but if East had 4 clubs – They could try to ruff the last club in dummy. That did not work either, as East ruffed the 3rd round of clubs and down they went.

So how did our doctor made it?

Dear readers, try it out yourself, before reading the solution.

After winning the 1st trick with the ♠A, the doctor drew 2 high trumps from hand. Then he continued with the ♠KQ, throwing a club (!) from dummy. Then he played ♣AK and ruffed a low club with the ♥K. Back to hand with the ♦A and a diamond ruff, then 2 more rounds of heart, to pull out East's last trumps and the ♣Q is high. Great play!

On the flight back he thought a lot about the beautiful places he saw. And he thought some more about the great Bridge he played (especially that grand slam)... And a little bit about his clinic and his neighbor. When he finally came home, he went to the clinic to see how things were.

"Oh doctor, it was exactly as you said. The easiest profession on earth. I PASSED everyone who showed up to other doctors and there were no problems. Only one thing happened yesterday, and I'm not sure I did the right thing there", said the neighbor.
"What happened yesterday?", asked the doctor, not too concerned.
"Well, this lady came, and without saying what her problem was, she took off all her clothes, laid on the bed and said: "Dear doctor, I haven't seen a man in 2 months..."
"So, what did you do?", asked the doctor as his curiosity went up.
"Well, she said hasn't seen in two months... so I PASSED her to an eye doctor..."

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge - 19***

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge - 19***

You are playing 7♠. West leads the ♣Q. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!
---
*** Difficulty level: hard.

















Solution




Contract: 7♠. Lead: ♣Q. Difficulty: ***Hard.

Win in dummy, play ♠AK (West can throw a heart) and continue with the ♥A and a heart ruff. When you cash the ♠Q, West has a discard problem: he cannot afford to part with another heart, else declarer can ruff 2 more hearts and promote his 5th heart for the 13th trick. So, whatever West throws – You throw the same suit from dummy. Say he threw diamond. You throw a diamond too. Cash ♦AK, ruff a heart and play the spades to reach this ending:




On the final spade, West must keep the ♥J so he is forced to discard the ♣J. Throw the ♥7 from dummy and East is squeezed: If he throws the ♦Q – the ♦6 is high. If he throws club – The ♣3 becomes high. Same thing if West throws a club on the ♠Q: You throw a club too, cash the ♣A and the ♦K, ruff a heart and run the spades to reach the same situation as before, having this time ♦A3 in dummy.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Seeing Through Cards #10

* North's pass over 2♦ denies 3 spades

After some thought, you choose to lead the ♦A. Your partner plays the ♦2 and declarer the ♦5.

1. Where is the ♦T?
2. What will you play next?

Solution: 

1. Where is the ♦T?
   With South. If partner has a doubleton, he needs to play the high card first (there is no point in giving an attitude signal here, since all the high diamonds are in dummy, so East must give count).
   
2. What will you play next?
   Don't continue with another diamond. Ruffing a diamond can wait! Play first the ♥A and the ♥J. Declarer will win with the ♥K and will play spades. Win the trick with the ♠A and continue with the ♦9. Your partner will ruff, return a heart and you will ruff it with the ♠8. One down.
   If you play another diamond at trick 2, your partner will ruff it, but the defense will come to 4 tricks only, as you will not get your heart ruff.

Things to remember:

• Timing is everything, also on defense. This is a perfect example where West should wait before giving a ruff to his partner. Why? Because that ruff is the only entry to East's hand, and East needs to win the hand at the right moment, when he can give West a heart ruff. Having the ♠A in hand gives West confidence that trumps cannot be pulled quickly and he should recognize the precious ♠8 over dummy's low trumps as being the setting trick.
• Support double is an important weapon you should adopt. It applies when you open, your left hand opponent passes, your partner bids a 1 level major suit (can be 4 cards) and your right hand opponent overcalls. Double now will show exactly 3 cards in partner's suit (a direct raise in his suit will show 4 cards). Furthermore: Any other bid (NT, other suit or pass) from you will deny 3 cards in partner's suit (meaning, showing 3 cards by doubling has priority over showing anything else)! That also means that South's 2♠ must show 6 cards as North denied 3-card support.
• Your bid of 2♦, being vulnerable against not, could have cost you dearly: If South (with a hand such as KJxxx Qxxx x Kxx) would have doubled it (reopening double), North would have gladly passed for penalty. You would be very poor... 2♦ doubled goes 3 down. The defense can take 2 clubs, club ruff, 3 diamonds, one heart and a spade.
• It seems that 3NT can be easily made (with an overtrick) by N-S, but it was not easy to reach it (4♠ could also make if East had doubleton diamond).

Bridge in Heaven

The man who entered the confession cabin looked shattered.
"My son, you didn’t pay any attention to mass today. Did you steal? Rob? Murder? What's on your mind?", asked the priest.
"Forgive me, father, for I have sinned", the man burst. "It's been years and years that I think of nothing but bridge. I must know: Is there Bridge in Heaven?"
"What is bridge?" asked the priest.
"Bridge is a card game... It fills my heart, body and soul and I think of nothing but this game all day and all night. Today, instead of listening to your words, all I could think of was how I went down so stupidly in a wonderful slam my partner has brought me to".

The priest tried to conceal his smile and said in a serious tone: "On such elevated matters I must pray for an answer. Wait here, I'll be back in 10 minutes".

During those 10 nerve wracking minutes, the man went through his play in slam once more:



West lead the ♠10. Declarer won with the ♠A, drew two rounds of trump and ruffed a spade. Next he played a diamond to the ♦J. West won the ♦K and continued with another diamond. When diamonds failed to split nicely and after the club finesse failed – he had to concede to 1 down.

"This must be divine punishment! Both finesses off and diamonds not splitting - god is punishing me for sinnning with bridge," he remembered saying after the hand was over. But his partner explained: "Quite the contrary. It is because he loves you, that he gives you these beautiful deals and you insist to play badly and go down. All you had to do, instead of finessing diamonds, was to play the ♦A first, come back to dummy with a trump and play another diamond to your ♦J. That line of play will improve your chances of making the contract and will guarantee your success in this deal: When West wins the trick with his ♦K, having no more red cards, he will either continue spades, giving you a ruff and discard, or play a club to your ♣KJx . Either way you will make your contract".

His partner's wise words were still resounding in the sinner's mind when the priest returned:

"I have good news and bad news..."
"The good news is: There is bridge in Heaven!"
"The bad news: God has reserved a table for you there tomorrow..."

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge #18****

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge - 18****

You are playing 6♠. West leads the ♣6. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!
---
**** Difficulty level: evil.

















Solution:




Contract: 6♠. Lead: ♣6. Difficulty: ****Evil.

Win the first trick with dummy's ♣Q. Ruff the ♦3 in hand. Draw ♠AKQ. Play a heart to the ♥A and continue with the ♦A (throwing a heart from hand), then with the ♦10 (throw another heart) to arrive at this position:




West must win with the ♦J (if he allows your ♦10 to win the trick, you simply continue with a heart, losing it to East, win the club return, ruff a heart and throw the last heart on the ♣K). When he plays another diamond – Ruff in hand and throw your heart from dummy. East is in trouble: If he throws the ♥Q – Ruff a heart, play club to the ♣A and the ♥J10 are high. If East throws a club - Play the ♣A first, ruff a heart, and the ♣K3 are high.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge - 17**

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge - 17**

You are playing 7♠. West leads the ♣K. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!
---
** Difficulty level: Medium.
















Solution: 







Contract: 7♠. Lead: ♣K. Difficulty: **Medium.

Win with the ♣A, finesse diamonds to the ♦J, cash the ♦K, play the ♥A, enter dummy with a trump, discard your last heart from hand on the ♦A, ruff a heart with a low trump, enter dummy with another trump and ruff a 3rd heart with the ♠A.

You have now reached this position:




Play another trump to dummy, drawing West's last spade on the way, throw your 2 club losers on dummy's ♥ K10 and ruff the last club in hand.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Seeing Through Cards #9

Dealer North, N-S vul


Against 4♠, West leads the ♥J.

1. How is the heart suit divided?
2. Where is the ♥K?
3. Where is the ♥10?
4. What is the only chance to make the contract?

Solution:

1. How is the heart suit divided?
   5 with East, 3 with West, according to the bidding.
2. Where is the ♥K?
   With East. East would not have overcalled without at least 1 honor (normally 2 honors required).
3. Where is the ♥10?
   With West. With Jxx, and without the ♥10, West would have lead a low heart.
4. What is the only chance to make the contract?
   You have 4 immediate losers and if you will lose a trick, your opponents will be wise enough to cash 3 diamonds and the ♣A. So you need to find a way to get rid of 1 of them. If you ruff 2 hearts, you will drop the ♥10 from West's hand. There is a chance to promote your ♥9 but for that you will need another 2 entries to dummy:
   
   Win the ♥A and ruff a heart. Continue with spade and when West will play low , try the ♠9 (!) to finesse his ♠10. That is your only chance! When the ♠9 wins, play the ♥Q and ruff it when East covers with his ♥K. The ♥10 falls from West's hand and your ♥9 is high now. Enter dummy with the ♠A and throw 1 diamond loser on your high ♥9. You will lose 2 diamonds and the ♣A.

Things to remember:

• When you lead to a suit your partner bid:
  
  • XX: With a doubleton , lead the high card first.
  • J10X: With a sequence of 2 or more - lead top of sequence.
  • XXX / XXXX : With 3 or more low cards - lead the 2nd high card.
  • KXX / KXXX : With 3 or more cards which include an honor - lead the lowest card.
• South's 1♠ bid (after a 1♥ overcall) shows 5 cards. With 4 spades he should've doubled (negative double) .
• Never bid an overcall with a poor suit. If you are finally on defense , your partner would normally lead your suit. Bidding it with a bad suit, might cause damage for the defense (also here, the heart suit was not good, and defenders can set the contract with another lead).
• When you play a contract and you see only 1 chance to make it - Go for it, even if your chances are low and even if it might cause you to lose another trick. (Sure thing at IMPs. At MPs, you need to reconsider.) Like here, if the spade finesse will fail, you will go 2 down.
• Always think about the timing of the hand: When to play which suit, when to win/give up a trick and how many entries are needed.

Seeing Through Cards #8

South dealer, N-S vul


West leads the ♠5. East wins your ♠Q with his ♠A and returns the ♠J. West discards and you win with the ♠K.

1. How does the Diamond suit split?
2. Who has the ♦Q?
3. How will you play?

Solution:

1. How does the Diamond suit split?
   Unknown. Can be either 2-2, 3-1 or 4-0.
2. Who has the ♦Q?
   Unknown. Can be with East or West.
3. How will you play?
   You need to investigate. Count East's hand: East has 7 spades. In order to find the diamond split you need to play the club and heart suits first:
   Say you play 3 rounds of clubs first to find East discards on the 3rd round. So, East has 7 spades and 2 clubs. Now play the Hearts: If East follows only once, it means he has 3 diamonds (and West has a singleton). So play the ♦A, and if the ♦Q doesn't fall single from West's hand, play another Diamond and finesse to the ♦J to capture East's ♦Q. If East follows to 2 rounds of Hearts (and shows out on 3rd), it means that Diamonds are 2-2 and you just need to cash ♦AK to drop the ♦Q, wherever it is.
   In this particular deal, East shows out only on the 4th round of Hearts, meaning he has a singleton Diamond. That is not good news as if West's Diamonds are ♦QTx, the contract cannot be made. You can make the contract only if East has a stiff ♦Q or ♦10. Play the ♦K. When East shows up with the ♦10, play a 2nd Diamond and finesse to the ♦9 to capture West's ♦Q.

Things to remember:

• Counting is very important: You can count tricks, losers, points and distributions. Notice the bidding! East revealed more than half of his cards by bidding 3♠. You only need a little investigation to complete the full layout of his hand.
• Notice South's bid after East's 3♠. He cannot bid 3NT without a spade stopper, he doesn't have 4 Hearts to bid 4♥ but he can Pass, showing just that (no 4 card heart and no stopper in spades), leaving the decision to North.

Double Dummy Challenge #16***

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Oren's Double Dummy Challenge - 16***

You are playing 7♥. West leads the ♦K. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!
---
*** Difficulty level: Hard.
















Solution: 





Contract: 7♥. Lead: ♦K. Difficulty: ***Hard.

Throw a club form dummy and win with the ♦A. Finesse heart as cheaply as possible and ruff a low spade with the ♥J. Finesse heart again and ruff another low spade with the ♥Q. Finesse heart once more to reach this ending:




Play the ♥A and the ♠AK and discard the ♣AKQ from your hand. Dummy's clubs are high.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

A Bridge Tale

If you seek a happy ending – do not read this tale...

Once upon a time there lived four bridge players: The Wise, the Evil, the Victim and The-one-who-can't-bid. They were all seated North and given the same bridge deal, with a huge prize in case they solve it successfully.



Let's listen to them explaining how they solved the problem:

The Wise: In bridge, what matter most is trump length. Therefore, after finding out we have 9 hearts together, I bid the correct slam in hearts.



The Evil: In bridge, what matters most is... ME! Therefore, I bid the slam in spades so that I get to play the hand.



The Victim: In bridge, you should always try to play in NT. Each time I play in a suit contract, I end up getting cross-ruffed by my opponents!



The-one-who-can't-bid: I don't know how to bid. Therefore, when my partner bid 2♣, 5♣ and 6♣, I passed his last bid, thinking he has at least 6 cards in clubs.



Can't-bid's partner got ♦A lead, followed by another diamond. He won with the ♦K, cashed ♣QJ, came back to hand on the ♥A, cashed ♣AK (discarding hearts from dummy), finessed spades and threw all his heart losers on the good spades.

The Victim also got a diamond lead from East. After winning the 2nd diamond trick, he played exactly as Can't-bid's partner and made 12 tricks.

The Evil received the same diamond lead. He unblocked his ♦K on West's ♦A and won the 2nd diamond with dummy's ♦Q. He continued with a spade finesse, played two more rounds of spade, cashed ♣QJ , came to dummy on the ♥A , threw his 2 heart losers on dummy's ♣AK and claimed.

And what happened to The Wise's partner? He also got a diamond lead and had to go down after losing a trump trick later, on the trump suit chosen by his wise partner. "Why does my partner need to be so wise?", he cried.

Double Dummy Challenge #15**

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Challenge - 15**

You are playing 5♦. West leads the ♠T. East wins with ♠A and continues with the ♠Q. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!
---
** Difficulty level: Medium.
















Solution:



Contract: 5♦. Lead: ♠10. Difficulty: **Medium.

East wins the ♠A and plays back another spade. Win the ♠K, enter dummy with a club and play a low diamond to the ♦Q. Play a 2nd club towards dummy and another low diamond to the ♦10. Get back to dummy on a 3rd club and ruff the last spade with the ♦4. Now play ♥AK and a 3rd heart to West's ♥Q. You have reached this position:



West will play one of his black cards and you will ruff it with the ♦8. If East overruffs with his ♦K – Play the ♦A and the ♦9 is high. If he underruffs with his ♦7 – discard the ♥7 and the ♦A will be your last trick.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Seeing Through Cards #7

*3♦ is a splinter, showing good heart support, singleton ♦
and slam interest vs suitable hand
Note: This is an intermediate level problem.

You lead the ♠A and your partner plays the ♠9.

1. Can partner have a singleton spade?
2. What does the ♠9 signal?
3. What will you hope to find partner with, in order to set the game?
4. How will you continue?

Solution:

1. Can partner have a singleton spade?
   No, this would mean South holds 5 spades and in that case he would have bid 1♠ instead of 1♥.
2. What does the ♠9 signal?
   Your Ace lead asks partner to signal attitude (encourage/discourage). Partner signaled high, showing interest in your suit. Therefore he either has a doubleton or he might hold the ♠Q.
3. What will you hope to find partner with, in order to set the game?
   Doubleton spade, ♦A and ♥Qx. (If partner has doubleton spade, it's unlikely he holds ♥Qxx or Jxx because with 4-4 in the majors South would double, showing both majors, and not bid 1♥.) A reasonable assumption given his bidding and signaling (and also taking into account that South refused his partner's slam invite, suggesting a weaker hand and values in diamonds).
4. How will you continue?
   With the ♦9!
   If partner has indeed what you hope he has, you might help him to promote a trump trick by continuing ♠K and a 3rd spade. The defense will win 2 spade tricks, the ♦A and a heart trick. Right?
   Wrong! Declarer can still make his contract if, on the 3rd spade, he will throw his diamond loser from dummy (loser on loser) instead of ruffing. Partner will be able to ruff but that will be the last trick for the defense. So, don't continue spades at trick 2. Play the ♦9 (negative + showing spade preference). Your partner will win the ♦A, continue with his 2nd spade to your ♠K and you will continue now with a 3rd spade, promoting partner's ♥Q.

Things to remember:

• Timing is everything, not only for the play of hand, but also in defense. If you play 3 rounds of spade at once, declarer will throw his diamond loser. If you start with ♠AK and then play diamond, your partner will win his ♦A but you have no entry to your hand to promote your partner's ♥Q. Whatever he continues, declarer will win, pull out the ♥AK, and claim when your partner's ♥Q falls.
• Notice that a splinter is 1 bid higher than the strongest natural bid. In our example, 2♦ by North (without East's overcall) is a reverse bid (and a cue bid with East's overcall) and it’s the strongest natural bid (showing an unbalanced hand, normally at least 5-4, and 17+ points), so 3♦ must be splinter. If North's opening would have been 1♦ and South would have responded 1♥, then 4♣ would be a splinter (heart support, singleton club and slam interest), as 3♣ is the strongest natural bid.
• When to accept a splinter invitation? Your hand is:
  

  (1)	(2)

  
  Your partner opens 1♣, you bid 1♠ and he bids 3♦ (splinter). How do you evaluate your hand in (1) and (2)?
  • In (1) you hold extra trump length, an Ace in an unbid side suit (♥A) and an honor in partner's long suit (♣Q). You have no wasted values in diamonds, which makes your partner's ♦ shortness precious. Accept his invitation and ask aces (or cue-bid).
  • In (2) you have wasted values in diamonds, 3 heart losers, short trumps, and no help in partner's long suit. Bid 3♥.
  
  Partner's hand is:
  
  
  
  Notice that if you are (1), 12 tricks are laydown (5 spades, heart, 5 clubs and a diamond ruff – even on a heart lead).
  If you are are (2), you might go down even in 3♥ on a sharp defense.

Humor on 6 legs

This story comes from Mr A who once came to ask me for advice after a domestic fight:

"My wife hasn't been talking to me in two weeks. So far we always got along fine..."
"Because so far you always decided for the both of you..." I thought to myself.
"Even in bridge we got along just fine!"
"You're always right and she's always wrong," I added.
"It all began when she started to nag me to get someone to spray at home against insects. I told her we don't need to spray anything, but she really insisted. The truth is I don't remember her ever insisting so much on something," he continued, ignoring my sarcastic reply.
(That's true, Mrs A is always gentle, charming and forgiving.)
"So I gave in, I checked prices and ordered the cheapest. It still cost me $200! What a ripoff! The exterminators came on a Thursday afternoon and ruined my bridge day, by the way..."

Here's an example of cooperation between the couple, from the previous week:



After going 3 down, Mr A turns to his wife:
"You should have passed my 2♠. Why did you bid 3♣?"
"And after insisting on clubs, why didn't you save me with 5♣?"
(Maybe she didn't want to hear 5♠?)

But let's get back to the cockroaches:

"Anyway, one day after having the house sprayed, I suddenly woke up in the middle of the night when a huge cockroach jumped on my face. I got so pissed! What did I pay $200 for?"
"Perhaps next time you won't get the cheapest deal, to guarantee the job is properly done?" I dared to suggest.
Ignoring me, he continued "So, I stayed up all night, hunting all the roaches I could find, killed them with my slipper and lined them up in front of my wife's bed, from biggest to smallest, and went back to bed at 6AM. My wife woke up screaming. She didn't stop screaming for more than half an hour. She hasn't been speaking to me ever since. I tried to talk to her, explaining I was only trying to show her I was right and she was wrong..."
"Don't you already do it during your bridge games?" I couldn't help commenting.
"What can I do, this is my humor! And besides, what's wrong with her to not talk to me for two whole weeks? She isn't cooking for me, she refuses to play bridge with me! I have my limits, how much does she think I can take? I do not deserve such treatment."
"That's right, you deserve much worse!" I replied, sympathizing with Mrs A.
"I'll just wait until she apologizes..."
"Not gonna happen, I'm pretty sure of that!"
"Help me! I'm desperate!"
"Well, I'm no Dr Ruth, but running a bridge club, I know a thing or two about people... Normally I would say that a bunch of flowers and a 'Sorry my love, I'll never do it again,' should do the job. But in your case it'll take 2 tickets to an exotic location, in a 5-star hotel. Time works against you, A. Do it now, or it will cost you much more!"

Seeing Through Cards #6

Note: This is an intermediate level problem.

West leads the ♣4 against 3NT. Declarer plays low from dummy.

1. Where is the ♣A?
2. Where is the ♣J?
3. How will you play?

Solution:

1. Where is the ♣A?
   With partner! He led a low club so he must have at least 1 honor. So declarer cannot have ♣AJ. If partner would have the ♣J and declarer the ♣A, declarer would surely play the ♣Q at trick 1, hoping that the ♣K is with West. With Qx you need to play the Q most of the times, also as 2nd hand.
2. Where is the ♣J?
   With South. West's lead (4th best) suggest he has 4 or 5 (if he has the ♣3) cards in club. If declarer doesn't hold the ♣J he would surely try to play the ♣Q. His only hope would be to find West with AKxxx (or AKxx). So declarer has ♣Jx or ♣Jx3 and he hopes that either West has both high honors (and then he wins with the ♣J) or you have 1 of them and... you might make a mistake, playing the 10 or the 9, in an attempt to spare your ♣K seeing ♣Q in dummy.
3. How will you play?
   Win the ♣K and continue with the ♣10 to prevent blocking the suit. Partner will win South's ♣J with his ♣A, continue with his ♣3 (and by that will confirm he started with 5 cards) to your ♣9 and you will continue with your ♣7 to his ♣8. His last club (the ♣6) sets the contract. If you try to play in any other way you will block the suit and West will not be able to cash his last club.

Things to remember:

• When you lead 4th best and your suit is longer than 4 cards, it is important to play the 5th card later to help parter understand you hold at least 5 cards.
• As declarer (and sometimes as defender), you sometimes need to play an honor as 2nd hand, if it's doubleton. For example:
  
  

  a	b	c	d	e
  Qx	Jx	Qx	Qx	Qx
  Kxx	AKx	KTx	Axx	ATx

  • a) Play the Q as 2nd hand. If you play low, East will play the T or J. You will win your K, but your Q is now singleton and will fall to the Ace next round.
  • b) Play the J, hoping that West underlead his Q. If you have AK9, pay attention to the lead! If West has lead a low card (promising an honor) - play the J. If West lead the 8 (2nd, denying honor but promising the T) - play low, capturing East's Q.
  • c) Play low. Your precious T will guarantee two tricks no matter what East plays.
  • d) Play the Q, hoping that West had underled his K.
  • e) Play low. The T guarantees two tricks.
• If dummy's clubs are ♣Qxx and dummy plays low, play the ♣9. (Even if partner has the ♣A, it's useless to play the ♣K as the ♣Q will get promoted.
• What will you do if West leads the ♣6 and dummy plays low from ♣Qx? Partner's lead is probably from ♣8643 (unlikelt from ♣AJ86, because in that case declarer would probably try the ♣Q) so you need to play the ♣9 to prevent declarer from establishing 3 tricks in the suit. (Declarer will win his ♣J but later you win his ♣Q with the ♣K and promote your ♣T).

Double Dummy Challenge #14**

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Challenge - 14 (Difficulty : Medium)

You are playing 7♠. West leads the ♠Q. You must make your contract against any defense. Good Luck!
















Solution:

Win the ♠A, come back to hand on the ♠K and finesse to the ♦10. Cash the ♦K, return to hand with ♥A and throw the last 2 hearts from dummy on the ♦AJ. Ruff a heart with your last spade in dummy and come back to hand on the ♣K. Draw the last 2 trumps. This is the ending situation:



On the last spade West is squeezed: If he throws the ♥K - your ♥3 becomes high, and if he throws the ♣J - your ♣A8 are high.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Double Dummy Challenge #13****

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Challenge #13 (difficulty: evil)

Note that this week's DD is truly "evil"! Good Luck!

You are playing 7♥. West leads the ♣Q. You must make your contract against any defense.















Solution: 



Contract: 7 ♥. Lead: ♣Q. Difficulty: Evil.

Win the ♣A, discarding diamond from hand, and play the ♣K. East cannot afford to ruff. So, the problem is divided now to 2 options:

a) East discards a diamond: Throw a spade from hand and finesse hearts toward the ♥10 at trick 3. Go back to dummy with the ♦K and play another heart to the ♥J. Continue playing ♥AK and a 5th heart to reach this position:



On the last heart West is in trouble. He cannot throw a spade, nor can he throw a club, else he will promote 2 tricks in that black suit. So he must throw a diamond. Throw a club from dummy and continue with diamond to the ♦A. Play the last high diamond from dummy, throw a spade from hand and West is doomed:
- If he throws a spade, your ♠A will drop West's ♠K and the ♠Q is high.
- If he throws the ♣J, you will be able to throw the ♠Q on dummy's last club.

b) East discards spade: Ruff the ♣K(!) and continue with the ♠A and the ♠Q, ruffing it when West will cover with his ♠K. Play a heart to the ♥10 and continue with the ♠J9 (West's ♠10 falls on the ♠J), throwing 2 clubs from dummy. Continue now with a diamond to the ♦K arriving to this situation:



When you play now club from dummy, East will discard a diamond. Ruff it low, enter the table with the ♦A and play another club to capture East ♥Qxx with your ♥AKJ via a trump coup.

Well done to all the solvers!

Gustav

I couldn't say no to this. Meeting my old university friends after more than 20 years was really nostalgic.
"Join us on Friday. We all are going to be there. We actually found a 4th and we play every week since you disappeared from our life," said Ariel when I accidently met him on the street, then he continued: "I still live at the same place.  Do you remember where it is?"
Sure I remembered. 4 of us studied together for all the exams for 3 years, mostly at Ariel's big house. We used to study for about 2 hours, and then play bridge all night. So... I said yes, and was really looking forward to reuniting with my old friends.

Ariel opened the door. Next to him stood a huge threatening Schnauzer dog. He stood there like a statue, not moving, his eyes fixed on me.
"Hi Oren, great to see you! Oh... this is Gustav", he said noticing my worried look.
"I never saw such a behaviour in a dog. My dogs are always barking at strangers. He seems very disciplined. Is it safe to pass?" I asked, as Gustav made no attempt to move from his position.
Ariel wanted to say something, but then changed his mind and said with a smile: "Sure! Come in. All the others are already waiting."

After talking for an hour about old days and new days we started to play (we were 5, so we changed every few deals). Ariel became declarer on this deal:



I was West and I lead the ♥6. Ariel won the trick with his ♥10 and played on clubs. I took the ♣A on the 2nd round of clubs and switched to the ♦3.
Ariel tried the ♦J but East covered with his ♦Q and lost to South's ♦A. Stuck in hand, declarer tried to play spade to dummy's ♠K , but East took it with the ♠A and returned his 2nd heart. Ariel played low but I won with the ♥K and played a 3rd heart forcing declarer to win in hand once more with the ♥A and promoting 2 heart tricks. 
When Ariel tried his ♠J , I won the ♠Q, cashed my hearts (East guarded his spades and threw diamonds so on the last heart declarer threw spade) and continued with another diamond. Declarer won East's ♦10 with the ♦K, cashed the ♠10 but lost the final trick to my ♦7. 3 down! 

"Killing defense", murmured Ariel. "I should have tried to run my ♠10 instead of playing to the ♠K".
"Then I would allow you to win and keep my ♠A to your ♠K", said my partner.
"You could have made it if you win the 1st trick with the ♥A", I said. "Now you keep 2 low hearts in hand and guarantee an entry with heart after your clubs are promoted". 

All this time Gustav was laying calmly next to us but when we all got up, saying noisy words to one another, he jumped from his position and stood by the door. I made a big  mistake, trying to go to the door first, and saw Gustav exposing his teeth with a threatening noise and make a fast move towards me. I withdrew immediately and threw Ariel a questioning look.

"Yes Oren , I wanted to tell you before... Gustav has a separation anxiety", said Ariel. When he saw that my puzzled expression did not change, he continued:
"He is afraid to be left alone. We actually caught a thief once due to that. The poor man  was allowed to enter our house with no interference and only noticed Gustav when he wanted to leave... Gustav wouldn't let him go and he had to call the police himself to rescue him from the dog."

I smiled and said : "So... What now? Are we to stay here till the end of times, playing bridge?"
"Oh no, there is a practical solution to that", said Ariel and went to the kitchen, coming back after few seconds with a cheese cube. He showed the cheese to the dog and threw it to the kitchen. Gustav raised his ears and ran quickly to the kitchen while Ariel closed the door after him.
"You see? It's easy. The coast is clear now".

I reached the door and turned back to him: "He is not very smart, is he? I mean, after all these times, doesn't he realize that whenever you offer cheese to him it means that people are leaving?"
"Well I thought about it myself for a long time and came to the conclusion that Gustav thinks the same way about us... They are not very smart those humans, are they? After all these times, didn’t they figure out that all I want is that little piece of cheese?".

Double Dummy Challenge #12**

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Challenge #12 (difficulty: medium)

You are playing 4♠. West leads the ♣Q. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!















Solution:
Win the ♣A, draw 3 rounds of trump and play the ♣2, discarding a diamond from hand. West will win and continue clubs. Allow him to win 2 more rounds, discarding 2 hearts from dummy and 2 more diamonds from hand, to arrive at this position:



Ruff the next club in hand, discarding the last heart form dummy. East is squeezed: If he throws a heart – Ruff heart in dummy, come back to hand with the ♦A, ruff another heart in dummy, ruff diamond in hand, and the last heart is high. If he throws a diamond – Win the ♦A, ruff a heart in dummy, ruff diamond in hand, ruff heart in dummy and the final diamond in dummy is high.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Double Dummy Challenge #11**

The rules are simple. You get the contract and the lead. You may look at all cards and play accordingly (you are always South). However, the defense can do the same, and they never make mistakes. You must find a way to make the contract against any defense.

Challenge #11 (difficulty: medium)



You are playing 7♠. West leads the ♦J. You must make your contract against any defense. Good luck!















Solution:
Win the ♦K, ruff a heart, play the ♣Q and when West covers, win it with the ♣A. Ruff a 2nd heart , return to dummy with the ♦A and ruff another heart. Play the ♦Q and 2 more rounds of club and ruff a 4th heart in hand. You will reach this position:



When you play the ♦8, West will ruff. If he ruffs low, you will overruff with the ♠9 and make the last 2 tricks with the ♠AK. If he ruffs with the ♠J, you will overruff with ♠K and run the ♠9 to finesse East's ♠Q.

Well done to everyone who solved the problem!

Just bid what you’ve got!

Today you will hear a story about 8 couples (husbands and wives) who play "kitchen bridge" every Saturday. Each week another couple hosts. Bridge at home is nothing like tournaments in bridge clubs: gossip, buffet full of goodies, wine, light (and heavy!) drinks and also... a little bit of bridge. Needless to say that all refreshments are on the hosting couple.

But this Saturday one of the men couldn't make it. "He wasn't feeling well," twitted his wife and went without any guilty feelings to her regular table. The ladies and the men sat at different tables – how else can you gossip effectively?

"What are we gonna do now?" said the three widowed men together, feeling miserable for themselves.
"I have a neighbor who used to play, but I think he hasn't touched cards for the past 20 years," said the host.
"Just bring him here," demanded the others.
So they showed up at the neighbor's door, dragged him over in his pyjamas to ask him to be their fourth.
"Guys, I haven't played in ages... I'm going back home," said the neighbor obviously feeling uncomfortable "miles away" from his safe place.
"Oh, come one! Sit down! Just follow suit, and it will all be OK," said his left hand opponent.
"OK , just remind me - what am I supposed to bid if I get a hand with 13 spades?
"Ha, didn't play 20 years and now he wants 13 spades. It never happened and never will happen!" laughed RHO. "If you get such a hand, I'll give you my wife as a present," whispered LHO, throwing a worried glance to the ladies' table just to make sure she didn't overhear his comment (he'd be in big trouble if she did...).
"Just bid what you've got!" said his partner with a warm smile.

So they dealt the first board and here's how the bidding went. Dear readers, have you ever seen such a bizarre auction?






West smiled widely at the bidding and lead the ♣K. Declarer won the ♣A, drew trumps, played 2 rounds of spade, ruffed his spade loser in dummy and claimed.
"What sort of a bidding is that?", shouted the opponents losing their condescendent smile.
"I just followed my partner's advice and bid what I had... I had one club so I bid 1♣... next I bid my two hearts, the three spades and the seven diamonds. I bid them all!" said the neighbor pleased with himself.
"I wonder what you'd bid with 13 spades then?" said LHO mad at this uncanny logic.
"Which of the nice ladies here is your wife?" asked the neighbor.
"Last seat on the left," came the answer.
"Hmm, in that case, with 13 spades, I would surely pass," laughed the neighbor and got up to fill his plate from the rich buffet.

A Search For All The Cards

* Good hand with spade support

Note: This is an intermediate level problem.

West leads the ♣4 and East plays the ♣K.

1. Where is the ♦A?
2. Where is the ♣Q?
3. Where is the ♣J?
4. Where is the ♦Q?
5. Where is the ♠K?
6. Should you win the first trick, duck, or it doesn't matter?

Solution:

1. Where is the ♦A?
   With East. Otherwise he will not have enough to open.
2. Where is the ♣Q?
   With West. If East had the ♣Q he would have played it: 3rd hand is playing a low card from a sequence.
3. Where is the ♣J?
   With East. If the ♣J was with West, he would have lead the ♣Q and not a low club.
4. Where is the ♦Q?
   With East, otherwise he wouldn't have enough to open.
5. Where is the ♠K?
   With East, otherwise he wouldn't have enough to open.
6. Should you win the first trick, duck, or it doesn't matter?
   Don't win the ♣A! As the cards lay open in front of you, should you win it and play the spade finesse (you must draw trumps first to enjoy your long heart suit later), East will take the ♠K, play a club to West's ♣Q and West will continue with a diamond to East's ♦AQ for 1 down. If you duck the first club, West will no longer be able to win the hand to play a diamond. Say East wins and plays another club. Win your ♣A and lose a spade to East's ♠K. East has no defense. Whatever he does, you will be able to draw the rest of the trumps and throw 2 diamond losers on the good hearts.

Things to remember:

• Sometimes you should refuse winning a trick to cut communication between your opponents.
• As a declarer, when you have a good side suit, you must draw trumps first.
• 3rd hand plays high? Not always: when dummy has a high card but you, after dummy, hold a higher card, you should consider saving it in order to not establish dummy's high card.
  Also, when the player on 3rd hand holds a sequence in a suit, he must play the lowest card of the sequence.
  
  Examples:
  
  

  1. 	543				543
     K8762		J		KT762		Q
     	A				A

     
     You lead the 6, your partner plays the J and declarer wins with the Ace. Now you know that the Q is with your partner (else declarer could have won with the Q), and you will play a low card to his Q next .
     
     If your partner is playing the Q , you realize he doesn't have the J (else he should play it) . You will try to put your partner on lead to capture declarer's J.
  
  

  2. 	AJT				AJT
     972		Q		972		K
     	3				3

     
     When your partner wins with the Q, you realize he also has the K so if you regain the lead you will play that suit again. If your partner plays the K, he denies holding the Q.
  
  

  3. 	43
     AJ652		8
     	Q

     
     After the first trick you can place all the cards! Declarer has the K (else partner must play it), Partner has T98 (else declarer could win cheep with the 9 or 10) and declarer has the 7 (else partner plays it as lowest from sequence).
  
  

  4. 	543				Q43
     X		KJT		X		KJT

     
     As East, play the K if dummy holds only low cards. 3rd hand plays high.
     But if dummy has the Q and plays low – then you must play the 10. Dummy's Q completes the sequence in your hand and as 3rd you should play a low from the sequence. Your 10 is high enough to win the trick if the Ace is with your partner and it's high enough to pull out the Ace if declarer has it.