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Hand played on |
November 6th 2008 |
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Board number |
Board 11 |
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Dealer |
South |
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Vulnerability |
Love all |
|
Submitted by |
Ian Moss |
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North ♠Q3 ♥7 ♦JT72 ♣KJ8753 |
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|||
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West ♠J842 ♥AQT4 ♦A93 ♣A6 |
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East ♠AK5 ♥85 ♦KQ84 ♣QT42 |
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North |
Bidding:
East |
South |
West |
|
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South ♠T976 ♥KJ9632 ♦65 ♣9 |
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|
No |
3NT
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No End |
1NT
|
Ian writes:
Most squeezes
are simple in that one opponent has to make a fatal discard from one of the two
suits he guards. Occasionally a defender is squeezed in three suits-the triple
squeeze. Sometimes both defenders are squeezed when they both guard one suit and
each guards a second but different suit - the double squeeze*.
Board 11 on 6th
November 2008 produced a situation where, depending on the precise sequence of
play, one defender could be squeezed in Spades and Hearts and the other in Clubs
and Diamonds - all four suits were squeezable - not all at the same time or in the
same hand of course!
West opened a
15-17 no-trump and East raised to game.
North led Club
7 which ran to the Ace and West immediately returned a Club.
North took the King and noting South’s Diamond discard switched to a
Heart to the King and Ace.
West cashed
dummy’s high Spades and was pleased to see the Queen drop.
Even so the exact position of the red suits was not clear.
West decided to combine his chances for maximum overtricks without
risking losing the lead. A heart to the Queen revealed nearly the whole story. The
remaining question was did South now hold a bare Diamond Jack or Ten.
West led Diamond 9 and North covered with the Ten thereby creating a
third round finesse against the Jack. Even
if North had not covered, West had a good case for running the Nine at that
stage as South’s original shape was known to be 4-6-2-1.
After four rounds of Diamonds the Club Queen was cashed and South was
squeezed in the Majors, the Spade Jack provided entry to West who kept whatever
suit South discarded on the Club Queen. Twelve
tricks made.
You will have
observed that when North won the Club King he effectively rectified the count*
for the squeeze. Withholding the
King is a better play but declarer can counter.
Using the Spade
Ace and King as entries declarer can take two finesses in Hearts, cash Diamond
King and Ace to reveal the split then exit with his low Heart.
This has the effect of rectifying the count so that when the Heart Ace
and the Spade Jack are cashed North is squeezed in Diamond and Clubs.
It is
interesting to note that in the actual play cashing the Heart Queen did not
disadvantage declarer and may have created a squeeze position against either
defender. Of course double-dummy
declarer could have arrived at twelve tricks by taking two deep finesses in
Diamonds and finessing twice in Hearts but that required X-ray vision.
* For a
comprehensive description of squeeze plays see “Bridge Squeezes Complete” by
Clyde E. Love - the squeezologists’ bible.