HOMEPAGE > QUIZ > HAMMAN'S TIPS > WEEK 18

Dealer : North
Vuln : Both
HAMMAN'S TIPS #18
by Bob Hamman
the world's #1 ranked player

Archives of all back
issues of all daily
columns are available
with Bridgetoday.com
membership (which
also includes 12
issues of Bridge
Today Magazine,
100 archive issues
of Bridge Today
Digest Online, and
one Bridge Today
University course).

Click here for
further details

     North You
    K J 8 6 4 3
    4 2
    Q 3
    8 6 4
West
Q 9 7
10 9 7 5
10 6 5 4
A 10
East
A 10 5 2
J 8 3
J 9 8
9 5 3
 

   South
   
    A K Q 6
    A K 7 2
    K Q J 7 2

You should pass 3NT. You do have a sixth spade
and you do have three-card support for partner,
but 3NT is always the most likely game contract
and you need a good reason to remove it. At the
table, North bid 4 and South bid 6. West led
the ace and 10 of trump. Declarer ruffed a heart
in dummy, ruffed a spade back to his hand and
played all his trumps. If East had held four
diamonds, he would have been squeezed in
spades and diamonds, but he didn't (as usual)
and the slam failed.

Yes, declarer could make the slam with a transfer
squeeze
, leading the king of spades off dummy,
forcing East to cover and then West is squeezed
later in spades and diamonds. This was not the
percentage play.

Here are two tips: (1) Be cautious about raising
partner with three small trumps; and (2) As always,
think 3NT.

South

2
3
3NT

West

pass
pass
pass

North
pass
2
3
pass

East
pass
pass
pass
pass


eMAGAZINE | NOVICES | BRIDGE COURSES

COLUMNS | QUIZZES |

BACK TO HOMEPAGE

Copyright ©2002-2024 by BridgeToday
Click here to contact us: bridgetoday.com@gmail.com