Lesson 21
  Check the Learning Lesson of the Day Training Test
Illustration Deal
  Advice of the Day Glossary Hand-out

The double finesse

Contract : 4
Lead : King of Spades

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

The bidding:

South open and North writes: (3, 3, 4, 3) with 12 H points.
South adds up: 14 H and 1 D, so 27 DH; so he bids 4.
The lead of King of Spades is normal, and the continuation with the Queen (after partner's 8) and the 6 to trump…

In addition to these two tricks already lost, the declarer finds two other losers in hand in Diamonds: those who fail will either already have led this suit first, or only tried the finesse once.

At the moment of the debrief, you must explain to them that, in this kind of situation, it is obligatory to attempt the finesse twice deciding that there is at least one well-placed honour (advice 21.3): this is the double finesse the principle of which is as follows:

When you are missing two honours in the two hands, you must play as if the player before the fork possesses at least one of them.