Beginner's Corner
What is your best chance for making nine tricks in hearts?
Contract: 3*H*
Dealer: West
Opening Lead: *C*J
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♠ 5 3 |
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♥ A 6 3 2 |
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♦ Q 8 7 |
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♣ A K 7 6 |
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♠ A K 6 2 |
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♥ K J 8 5 |
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♦ 9 6 5 |
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♣ 5 4 |
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Click here to see the solution
If you go through your PLAN, your objective is to lose no more than 4 tricks. You have two spade losers, 3 diamond losers and 1 heart loser. You will need to eliminate two of those losers in order to make your contract. You could try to avoid a loser in hearts by finessing the ♥Q. This would beat the percentage of playing the ♥A and ♥K in the hopes that the ♥Q would fall. However, this is not the best plan. If the finesse lost and the opponents returned another heart, you would be left with only one heart in each hand and you would not have eliminated any losers. Since, it is also unlikely that you will get a diamond trick with this holding, your best bet is to ruff two spades in the dummy. That requires you to have two trumps in the dummy! Therefore your best play is to win the opening lead and play the ♥A and ♥K on the next two tricks. Now, assuming the ♥Q has not fallen, you have the time to ruff both of your small spades in the dummy. You can let the opponent with the ♥Q have it whenever he wishes to take it. Note that if the ♥Q falls under the ♥K or ♥A, you can then play the ♥J to pull the last trump. This will then leave you with no trump losers, but you will no longer be able to ruff both of the spades in the dummy. You will still end up with nine tricks or four losers.