FRANK STEWART BRIDGE

PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT

I continue a series on helping your partner avoid mistakes.

Partners need not agree on everything, any more than all poetry must rhyme, but you must give your partner good information, and he must interpret it correctly.

In today’s deal, West led a club against four spades. Dummy’s ace won, East followed with the eight and South played the three. Declarer next let the jack of trumps ride, but when West took the king, he led another club. East’s king won, but South ruffed the next club, drew trumps and ran the diamonds. Making five. Heart Shift

“Shift to hearts when you take the king of trumps,” East complained.

“Your eight of clubs looked encouraging,” West shrugged.

East tried his best to discourage in clubs and, therefore, to encourage the obvious shift to hearts. Since West could see the five and four in dummy and declarer’s three, the eight was East’s lowest club.

The rank of the spot cards is relative, not absolute. West must lead a heart at Trick Three.

Daily Question

You hold: ♠ 852 ♥ A Q97 ♦ 65 ♣ K 10 9 8. Your partner opens one diamond. The next player jumps to two spades (preemptive). What do you say?

Answer: This case is close, but most experts would double (negative), suggesting heart length plus either club length or diamond support, with enough strength to compete at the three level. If the hand were weaker — make the queen a low heart — the values to act would be lacking.

South dealer N-S vulnerable