Bridge has a few well known maxims to cater to some typically common situations that occur during play. Of course this is a game where nothing fixed can be sacrosanct all the time. The probability of cards distributed in different formations can only be measured for better percentage odds and can never be accurately gauged all the time by even the top most experts in Bridge.
So players are made aware of these probability tables and it is left to their imagination, skill, tactful considerations of playing a hand wherein a situation develops that calls for a solution which has an alternate choice available. Amongst the most common is the dilemma of a declarer as to whether he should play for a drop of the queen in a 9 card combined holding or finesse if that option is available? The maxim of Bridge nine never, over rules the otherwise slightly better odds of percentage that tell us that with 4 cards out, the even suit break has a lesser chance than a 3-1 break, which has a slight edge in probability. But as I said, there is more to it in Bridge than meets the eye. Everything is not just judgement, intuition. There are the other factors like safety play depending on how many tricks one can afford to lose to ensure his remaining tricks. Tactical considerations play an important role in declarer play. Our illustration for today is based on the above and reflects the strategy that should be adopted on the particular requirement of the contract to ensure its safety.
North south are in 4H, as per the following hand:
The bidding has been as under:
The opening lead is AD, which south ruffs in hand. How do you proceed as south to ensure your contract of 4H?
Let us see where our possible losers could be. We have none in diamonds and none in spades. So the only danger could be 2 club losers and 2 trump losers. This is a hand, which can be tricky because the opponents have kept silent in the bidding. The only inference that can be gathered is that west probably has the longer diamonds headed by two top honours. Does this give you any help in the tackling of the trump suit? Since Bridge is a game of reasonable assumptions, you can be almost certain that east with a holding of AK in diamonds 5 times is not likely to have the ace of trumps, for otherwise he would have surely been tempted to overcall the bidding after south had opened 1H.
This is in fact not too difficult a hand, once we place AH with east. But the basic problem is not the ace but the jack of trumps and the break of the trump suit with 9 cards between north and south. A 2-2 break poses no problem but a 3-1 could make or break the contract. So what are your plans for the trump suit? Do you lead low towards the queen or are you inclined to get in with KS to play trumps from the dummy. The Bridge maxim says place trump split 2-2, the percentage break forewarns a 3-1 distribution with the AJ probably in the same hand most likely to be east. In any case when you lead to the QH west follows with the 5 and east hops up with the ace of trumps to return a diamond which you ruff again. You now play to the king of spades and lead a trump from dummy. East follows with the 9H. The vital moment of decision rests with you. Do you finesse or play KH. In actual play south played the KH. West blanked out. Declarer tried valiantly to discard 3 clubs from dummy on AQJ spades and hoped AC lay with west. So that dummy's trump could take care of the third club. But alas it was east who had the AC. Declarer had to settle for one extra club loser and go down.
The point is did he err in judgement or was it a genuine error on his part for not taking the finesse of the 10H? Yes, it was. For you see 10H finesse was the tactical thing to the play to ensure complete safety for the contact. For even it had lost to the JH, then the dummy would have that extra trump to ruff declarer's losing club. Hence the priority no one in Bridge calls for safety first.
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North South
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K AQJ4
Q72 K108643
J742 -
KQ963 875
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S W N E
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1H P 2C P
2H P 4 HALL
PASS
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