| Beginner's Korner: Hand of the Month – “When will they ever learn?”
Last month's column featured a hand with a theme. Let's look at layout once again.
In a close middle game, and after an across pass, South looked at his hand. He determined that if the Spade Queen was driven out, he would be stuck with 8 points thanks to those two big Hearts. Perhaps, he could sneak his ratty little Diamond through, grab any Club lead on the second round, and then lead those nice, juicy Spades. Maybe the first Diamond would be won high, and a Diamond continued. Then it would be sayonara to the Queen of Hearts (and 4 points saved). It was a good plan and deserved a better fate. After all, the 4 of Diamonds sure looked like an "out card." Our hero won the Ace of Clubs (the King of spades was discarded by North) and, sure enough, led that lowly (and lonely) Diamond. Her Royal Majesty -- The Evil Lady -- made a majestic appearance, as well as the 3 and Deuce of Diamonds. South also won two later Heart tricks and was toasted for 21 crispy, well-done, well-deserved points.
Was there a better way? You have the advantage of seeing all four hands. How would you have played it without this advantage?
Let's look at this solution by Mike Rawlings, a Zone Hearts regular.
"I’ll tell you what I think: Take control of the first trick (with -the King of clubs), and (especially after seeing -the King of Spades-) and drive those nice spades (top to bottom). In the unusual hand that this is, the Queen gets stranded, but not smoked out. Eventually, the -Queen's- holder will be on lead. By putting the Queen-holder on lead (with the Ace of spades), your own safety is greatly improved, as the lead is now in the perfect place. In a close middle game, this is a very sound plan. As for the diamonds scenario, there is a chance that two diamond tricks may come before the first heart trick making an early diamond dump somewhat redundant. I won’t speculate about how other players will play, because normally we wouldn’t see those cards. I would also like to say that it’s possible to bluff a moon by leading -A of hearts followed by -Queen of hearts.-. This helps the hearts suit in a situation where hearts are broken to you on your nice of spades - while trying to drive her majesty out. In summary, I’d be taking advantage of strong spades, and hoping for some diamond leads by other players to dump -Queen of hearts- onto.”
Note - North can still croak you by taking the King of hearts and playing his low diamond. A stronger line is an early strip of the clubs from the West hand. However, this is a "double dummy" approach based on observing of all four hands. And split decisions must be made while looking at your hand (only). Still, this is a nice approach. . . . Well done, Mike!
Beginner's Korner: The Heart Suit - Part II - Quiz
The previous column examined the heart suit and various combinations which were potential "stoppers" against the Moon. Now we examine heart suits holdings, with an eye of possibly "shooting the Moon." Assume that you hold in spades A K Q J 2, and very safe clubs or diamonds. Spades are breaking 5-3-3-2 in your favor. Which of these hearts suits is favorable for a Moonshot attempt, and which is not?
a. A K Q 2 b. A K Q 10 c. A K Q J d. A K Q 3 2
e. A K J 3 2 f. A K J 10 8 g. A K Q 10 9 h. A K Q J 2
i. A K Q 5 4 3 2 j. A K Q 10 9 7 6 k. A K J 10 6 3 2
In the first three examples (a, b, and c), you hold four hearts, five spades, and the 3 , 4, 5, 6 of clubs. In the next five examples (d, e, f, g, and h), you hold five hearts, five spades, and the 3 , 4, and 5 of clubs. In the latter three examples, (i, j, and k), you hold the singleton four of clubs, seven hearts, and five spades. Assume on every hand that someone wins a high club and immediately plays a middle spade. You are also playing the Rule that the Queen of spades "breaks" hearts. What is your plan for each hand?
I will help you get started. In hand (a), the odds are clearly against you, as the likelihood of a 4-3-3-3 distribution of hearts is very unlikely. (In the game of Bridge, the 4-3-3-3 distribution of any one given suit is less than 40%). In the game of Hearts, the passing will alter three out of four hands. Thus, assume all of the above examples are "keeper" or hold hands, without a pass. Still, you may rest assured that your bizarre suit distribution in most of these hands, indicates that the other hands probably have unusual shapes, too.
Back to hand (a). You must hope for a diamond shift, in order to unload your spade Queen. However, if spades are led, you will take the first two rounds high and exit with the deuce (and hope for a diamond lead). If the ops are brutal, strip out your clubs, toss a heart on someone else, AND a heart is led, you must rise with the Ace and hope for a favorable break. I also like the idea of cashing out an extra spade, hoping for a heart discard. Now, you get to test the hearts and can still escape with a club. Whew!
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