IMPROVE YOUR PLAY #11 with Larry Matheny
Do you wonder how the experts always seem to guess right against you?  The answer is the use of the basic techniques of counting, remembering the bidding, and taking proper inferences from the cards as they are played.  Sit in the South seat and see how you would have done with this hand.

East-West vulnerable at IMPs.

Hand #11
Dlr   W
Vul E-W
S K65
H 432
D Q1054
C K96
S Q1087
H K107
D AKJ83
C 5
    
S J943
H QJ95
D 9
C Q732

S A2
H A86
D 762
C AJ1084
West North
 East
 South
1D Pass  1H   2C
 2H 3C
 All Pass

         
   






BIDDING:  Sitting South, your bid of 2C would usually be made on a six card or longer suit, but your gamble pays off when your partner is able to raise. 

PLAY:  West played three rounds of diamonds with East ruffing the third.  East now switched to the queen of hearts and you stop to analyze your position.  You can pitch one heart loser on the queen of  diamonds but will have to lose the other. That means you cannot afford to lose a club.  All of the clues are present for you to know the exact distribution of the opponents' hands.

First you know West started with five diamonds.  West would not have raised hearts without three card support and East must have four of them.  The spades must be divided 4-4 or they would have been bid.  This leaves West with only one club so you lead to the club king in dummy and then the nine for a finesse. 

By simply COUNTING each suit, you discovered West started with 4-3-5-1 distribution. 

Copyright ©2007 Larry Matheny.