Frank Morgan

I just spent four enjoyable days at the ACBL Bridge Nationals in Philadelphia, playing with five pick-up partners from the partnership desk and one old friend. The most memorable hand for me involved a squeeze play for a small slam in Notrump. I was North. When the dummy came down, it looked like the contract depended on the Club finesse, but East was looking suspicious. I asked myself if there was any way to make it if East had the Club King, and I realized he could be squeezed. To keep that option open and rectify the count, I let the Spade King take the trick. He puzzled over the continuation, convincing me he had the Club King. When he finally led a red card, I ran the nine red winners, ending with Spade A and Clubs Q 3 in dummy and Spades J 8 and Club A in hand. On the ninth trick, East, holding Spades Q 10 and Clubs K 6 agonized over the discard as hoped. I turned to him and mumbled quietly, it doesn’t matter. When he finally discarded the Club 6, I came to the Club A in hand and watched him play his Club King under my Ace, leaving the dummy’s Spade A and Club Q good for the last two tricks. Of course if he had discarded the Spade 10, I would have played the Spade Ace dropping his Q, leaving the Club A and Spade J in my hand good. What he should have done was discard the Club 6 2 early on, leaving some doubt when he could have discarded the Spade 10 at the end, keeping the Spade 6 with his Q.

It could have been easier. At other tables East bid, pegging him for all the missing cards. And of course if he doesn’t lead the Spade, it is easy to set up a Club trick even if the finesse loses. At one table East discarded so poorly (all his Clubs) that North made 7 without any squeeze.