| The Deprivation Play
The term "cutthroat" has been applied to the game of Hearts since the early 1900s. It is an apt description of the game, as each combatant is playing individually ("every man for himself") and trying to mortally wound his or her opponents. A truly wonderful Zone.com Player is LadyLauren of Sacramento, CA. She is a regular participant in the many Tournaments offered every week, and has become an expert in the Partnership variation of the game, as well.
Lauren describes the maneuver featured in this month's hand as the "Deprivation Play." See what you think!
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| This was a close game after 3 deals, as West held a ten-point lead, and East was in second place. It was another "keeper" (hold) hand, and West could not believe his eyes! The singleton Diamond posed no threat, and if the King of Clubs appeared early, the "Moon" was a strong possibility. South loved his hand, too. There were lots of Spade "backers" for his Queen, and the minor suits were rock-solid safe. Thus, we had two rather happy campers!
North led the required deuce of Clubs, and East tabled the King, as South dropped the Eight spot. West strained to conceal his joy, as he ducked with the Ten spot. The Spade Eight was trotted out, and South dropped the Jack, and West was in with the King. The Five of Diamonds was led with great anticipation. North rose with the Ace, catching the Jack and Ten. He then pushed his last Spade, and everyone was treated to West's "dog and pony" show.
The first utterance was, "I am good," as West took the spade Ace, and cashed his two high Clubs. The next comment was "Hold on everyone -- it's going to be a bumpy ride." Down came the Heart Ace, and a loose reference to NASA and the Apollo Moon Missions of the late 1960's/early 1970's was heard. South dumped a low Diamond, as North and East produced low Hearts. The King of Hearts was accompanied by the observation "We have lift off, Houston," and two more low Hearts appeared. South decided to hold the Spade Queen for some unknown reason (West was clearly all Hearts, and the Spade Queen was not going to stop anything). In the meantime, North wondered why the nasty lady had not been tossed -- especially since West had the low score. The Queen of Hearts was next, and North stubbornly held on to his Jack, anguished to see minor suit discards. Finally, the Heart Ten was covered by the "saving" Jack, and East complimented North on his "great save." South NOW released the Spade Queen with total glee and lots of body language, as he proclaimed "Congratulations -- it's a girl!"
I cannot quote verbatim the comments from North. Zone.com is a "family" place, after all. Let's just say that the North player immediately left the room, and East followed soon thereafter. It is not very nice to punish the player who stops a Moon. That player is helping YOU as well. Considering the fact the West had the low score in this hand, holding the Spade Queen was inappropriate. The "Deprivation Play: might be worth a few laughs, but that is about all there is to be said which is positive. Hearts is a vicious game, to be sure. However, there are standards and ethics. South's antics were totally unjustified, and his sarcastic comment at the end of the hand was unacceptable. Most players will not tolerate such behavior, and the offending person will rarely find himself or herself invited to another game. Winning is nice, but sportsmanship and fair play also count for an awful lot of points. | |
