Answers to Julian Pottage’s Defence Quiz

Source: Mr Bridge

You are West in the defensive positions below. It is your turn to play. Both sides are using a 12-14 1NT.

aa

You lead the 2, won by the A (5 from South). Partner returns the 4, covered by the J. What do you do?

This is an easy one to start with. From the bidding, you place declarer with only three spades; this means the suit is ready to run. Since partner has more spades than you do, you want to get your high spades out of the way. So take the Q cash the 10 and play a fourth round. If your partner had the K, it would not matter if you played the spades less efficiently – but there is no need to rely on that.


aa

You lead the 3. Partner wins with the K and returns the 5, on which South plays the J. What do you do?

A count of points tells you that partner can have at most a queen as well as the K. You had 10 points, dummy had 13 and declarer had 12-14, leaving at most 5 for partner. This being the case, declarer has nine top tricks: the A, the club suit A-K and six diamonds. To defeat the contract, your side needs to win the first five tricks. Partner’s return of the 5 is good news: it must be fourth highest, which means South has only one spade left. If you take the A and 10, you will make only four spade tricks because partner will have to win the fourth round. Instead, having taken the A, lead a low spade: the 2 and hope partner holds the 9.


aa

You lead the J. Partner wins with the A and returns the 4, covered by the 5. How do you defend?

This time, your side cannot run the spades straight away. For one thing, partner would have played the lower of touching honours at trick one if holding the A-K. For another, South needs the K to have 12+ points. Fortunately, as you have the K, you hope to enjoy the spades later. As the 2 is missing, partner may well have started with five spades. This being so, you want partner to win the fourth round. So win with the 9 (not the 6) and use the 10 to drive out the K, unblocking the suit.


aa

You lead the club suitQ. Partner plays the club suit7 (high encourages, low discourages) and South the club suit4. How do you continue?

Since the club suit6 and club suit3 are missing, you can reasonably assume the club suit7 is a high club, asking you to lead the suit again. While it may seem tempting to continue with the club suitJ to ‘squash’ dummy’s club suit10, you do not need to do that. Partner presumably holds the club suitA or club suitK and can beat the club suit10 anyway. If, mistakenly, you lead the club suitJ at trick two, declarer can block the clubs by taking the A and drive out your club suitA. Lead the club suit5.

MAS DEL MISMO AUTOR

Leyendo las Cartas

Una de las claves del buen juego de la carta es el proceso paso a paso por el cual el declarante aprende poco a poco cómo se distribuyen las cartas en manos de los adversarios y...

Una Mano Famosa por Goren y Sharif

Ella era indeterminada, casi tímida. Pero cuando hablaba de bridge se encendía una luz especial en los ojos de ese Cinco de Corazones... que la convertía en casi hermosa.

Eche una Ojeada

Adelantar un as para ver que...

European Teams Championships 2014

Formato: Los Campeonatos consisten de tres series: Open, Damas y Seniors

Leyendo las Cartas de los Opps (Soluciones)

Las soluciones al test para evaluar sus habilidades para detectar la ubicacion de las cartas de sus opps

Campeonato Sudamericano Buenos Aires 2026

El torneo mas prestigioso del continente tendrá una nueva...

Campeonato Sudamericano Cali 2025

Rizzo Completa la Hazaña! Se Corona Campeón Sudamericano de...

El Sudamericano que lo tiene todo – Bridge, Deporte, Baile y Amistad

La capital mundial de la salsa se prepara para...

Corazón sudamericano en la élite del Bridge

El equipo internacional "Shourie", con los argentinos Alejandro Bianchedi...

Franck Riehm elegido como Presidente de la WBF

La Federación Mundial de Bridge se complace en anunciar...

Festival Sudamericano Cali 2022 – Parejas

Desde el 21 al 28 de Mayo de 2022 se jugó el X sudamericano transnacional, la sede fue el Club Campestre de la ciudad de Cali Colombia y la organizacion estuvo a cargo de Doña Elsa de Castillo y su hijo Juan Carlos Castillo, ambos hicieron de este evento algo memorable que vivirá en el recuerdo de los participantes por siempre.

X Campeonato Sudamericano Transnacional Cali 2022 por Fernando Lema

Desde el 21 al 28 de Mayo de 2022 se jugó el X sudamericano transnacional, la sede fue el Club Campestre de la ciudad de Cali Colombia y la organizacion estuvo a cargo de Doña Elsa de Castillo y su hijo Juan Carlos Castillo, ambos hicieron de este evento algo memorable que vivirá en el recuerdo de los participantes por siempre.

Campeonato Zonal Sudamericano Juvenil 2022

30 de Mayo de 2022 Desde el 21 al 28...

RELACIONADOS

CATEGORIAS POPULARES