Lesson 20
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Defence: playing on dummy's weakness

Contract : 4
Lead : Queen of Hearts

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

The bidding:

South opens and receives the following information: (3, 2, 5, 3) with 10 H points; he counts 16 H points, 1 D point (Diamond doubleton), and 1D point in dummy (Heart Doubleton), so 28 DH points to play 4; he receives the lead of the Queen of Hearts …

Visit each table to see what card East has played on the lead and you will discover, without any great surprise, that there are numerous 3's (advice 20.6); the declarer will take with the King and joyously make eleven tricks …

In the debrief, don't forget to tell the declarer to thank the opponents for giving them an unwinnable contract!!

Re-play the hand with East taking with the Ace of Hearts and we will think about:

- what East knows: the King of Hearts is in South.
- what he can see: a string of Diamonds which tell him nothing nice….

Now is the moment to apply the principles developed in the presentation.

Ask the following questions:

1) What is East-West's contract: four tricks since South has the right to lose three.
2) How many certain tricks has East got: one, the Ace of Hearts which he has just taken! So there are three missing. Where can they be found?
  - not in Hearts: South has the King, we know, and dummy will be able to trump the rest (advice 20.7).
  - not in Diamonds either: only the King is missing in dummy. If South hasn't got it, he will make the finesse.

So there remain the Spades and the Clubs: if South must give a trump, so much the better, but East can do nothing for or against.

Starting from there, he must guess which would be the best lead back (advice 20.8), whilst considering that:

- he will not get the lead in East.
- his partner West plays after the declarer.

With all these thoughts in place, you should her a whisper of "Clubs" in the ranks… Then you should ask what he is expecting of his partner and, therefore, which card he should lead from East (advice 20.9).

Now give them the principle of the day:

When one is sitting after dummy it is, in general, into dummy's weakness that one must play to establish the missing tricks.