Part 4
_=Free Doubles=_ are opportunities to double when the declarer will go game anyhow if he makes his contract, but they should never be made if there is any chance that he may shift.
_=Free Bids=_ are anything better than a spade by the dealer, or anything that over-calls a previous bid, because no one is forced to bid on the first round. A _=Shout=_ is a bid that is a trick more than necessary to over-call the previous bid. It shows a solid suit, or five or six sure tricks in hand. In a losing suit it is a loud call for the partner to go no trumps if he can. A free bid in a losing suit shows the high cards; in a winning suit it shows the tricks in hand.
_=A Forced Bid=_ is one that is necessary to over-call, such as two diamonds over a heart. This does not mean that the caller would have bid two diamonds originally. A player who must indicate a lead against a no-trumper makes a forced bid.
_=The Original Lead.=_ The first card must be played before dummy’s hand is exposed.
_=OPENING LEADS.=_ The position which we have first to consider is that of the eldest hand, usually designated by the letter “A,” who sits on the declarer’s left.
_=Selecting the Suit to Lead.=_ If your partner has declared a suit, lead the best card you hold of it, regardless of number, unless you have an ace-king suit of your own, in which case lead the king first and have a look at dummy. If partner has not declared anything, lead your own suit. With high cards not in sequence, such as ace-queen, king-jack, or even queen-ten, in every suit but trumps, lead the trump.
There is a great difference between playing against a trump declaration and against no-trumpers; because in the first case the leader is opposed to unusual trump strength and his object must be to make what he can of his winning cards, before the declarer gets into the lead and discards his weak suits, so as to be ready to trump them. But in the second case, there being no trumps, the leader’s object should be to get a suit established against the dealer, if he can, and the longer the suit is, the better. The dealer’s strength in a no-trumper is usually scattered, and he may often be found with a weak or missing suit, which is generally the suit in which the eldest hand or his partner is long.
We shall first consider the leads against trump declarations, because they are more common and are also the more useful. If a player makes a trump-hand lead against a no-trump declaration, he will not do nearly so much harm as if he make a no-trump-hand lead against a trump declaration. For that reason, if a player cannot master both systems of leading, it is better for him to learn the leads against trumps than those against no-trumps.
_=Rules for Leading High Cards.=_ With such a suit as A K Q 2, no one need be told not to begin with the deuce. Whenever a player holds two or more of the best cards of a suit he should play one of them. If he holds both second and third best, playing one of them will force the best out of his way, leaving him with the commanding card.
The cards which are recognised by bridge players as high, are the A K Q J 10, and if we separate the various combinations from which a player should lead each of them, a study of the groups so formed will greatly facilitate our recollection of them.
In the first group are those containing two or more of the best cards. In this and all following notation, the exact size of any card below a Ten is immaterial.
So far as trick-taking is concerned, it is of no importance which of the winning cards is first led; but good players lead the _=King=_ from all these combinations in order that the partner may be informed, by its winning, that the leader holds the Ace also.
In the second group are those containing both the second and third best, but not the best.
The _=King=_ is the proper lead from these combinations. If it wins, the partner should have the Ace; if it loses, partner should know the leader holds at least the Queen.
Both these groups, which contain all the King leads, may be easily remembered by observing that the King is always led if accompanied by the Ace or Queen, or both. Beginners should follow this rule for leading the King, regardless of the number of small cards in the suit.
There is only one combination from which the _=Queen=_ is led,
when it is accompanied by the Jack, and there is no higher card of the suit in the hand. Whether the ten follows the Jack or not, does not matter. With any two high cards in sequence, the lead is a high card when playing against a declared trump.
The _=Jack=_ is never led except as a supporting card. It is always the top of the suit, and the suit is usually short. The object of making such an opening is to avoid leading suits headed by two honours which are not in sequence. These are good Jack leads:
The _=Ten=_ is led from one combination only:--
The _=Ace=_ should not be led if it can be avoided; but it is better to lead it from suits of more than four cards, so as to make it at once. If the Ace is accompanied by the King, the King is the card to lead, not the Ace. If the Ace is accompanied by other honours, such as the Queen or Jack, it is better to avoid opening the suit, unless you have five or more cards of it. But if you do lead a suit headed by the Ace, _=without the King=_, be sure that you lead the Ace, when playing against a trump declaration, or you may never make it.
All such combinations as the following should be avoided, if possible, as more can be made out of them by letting them alone:--
But with three honours, A Q J, the Ace should be led.
_=Rules for Leading Short Suits.=_ It will sometimes happen that the only four-card suit in the leader’s hand will be trumps or a suit headed by honours not in sequence, which it is not desirable to lead. In such cases, if there is no high-card combination in any of the short suits, it is usual to lead the highest card, unless it is an Ace or King. Many good players will not lead the Queen from a three-card suit, unless it is accompanied by the Jack. All such leads are called _=forced=_, and are intended to assist the partner, by playing cards which may strengthen him, although of no use to the leader. The best card should be led from any such combinations as the following:--
_=Small-card Leads.=_ If the suit selected for the lead does not contain any combination of high cards from which it would be right to lead a high card, good players make it a rule to begin with the fourth-best, counting from the top of the suit. This is called the “card of uniformity,” because it indicates to the partner that there are remaining in the leader’s hand exactly three cards higher than the one led.
Should the player be forced to lead any of the undesirable combinations shown on the last page, he would begin with the Ace if he held it; otherwise he would lead the fourth-best. In each of the hands shown this would be the four, and this card would be led, even if there were five or six cards in the suit. From this hand, for instance, the five is the proper lead:--
_=Rules for Leading Second Round.=_ If the leader wins the first trick, having the best of the suit in his hand, he should follow with the winning card; but if he has several cards which are equally winning cards, he should lead the lowest of them. This is an indication to the partner that the card led is as good as the best; therefore the leader must hold the intermediate cards. When a King wins, your partner knows you have the Ace, if he does not hold it. Then tell him what he does not know, that you have the Queen also.
Suppose you have led the King from these combinations:--
Your partner knows you have the Ace, because your King wins. From the first, go on with the Jack, which is just as good as the Ace, but tells your partner you have not only the Ace but the Queen, still in your hand. From the second, go on with the Queen, the card your partner does not know, which tells him you still have the Ace, _=but not the Jack=_. If you have not the Queen, you will have to go on with the Ace, and your leading the Ace _=will deny the Queen=_.
If you have not the best, lead one of the second and third-best, if you hold both:--
From the first of these, having led the King, if it wins, go on with the ten, whether you have any smaller cards or not. From the second, if the King wins, go on with the Jack, which denies the ten, but tells your partner you still have the Queen. No mistake is more common among beginners than leading a low card on the second round, on the assumption that the partner must have the Ace. If you have led from King and Queen only, you must go on with the fourth-best; because you have not both the second and third-best. This fourth-best is the card that was the fourth-best originally. Having led the King from this:--
the card to follow the King is the six, if the King wins the first trick.
_=The Fourth-best.=_ From any combination of cards, if you have not the best, or both the second and third-best, in your hand for the second round, lead your original fourth-best. From all the following, the proper lead on the second round would be the fourth-best, in each case the four of the suit:
_=Leading Trumps.=_ A trump lead is sometimes adopted when all the plain suits are bad ones to lead away from, such as A Q, or A J, or K J in each and no length. If a player holds high cards which are not in sequence, such as the major tenace, ace and queen, it is very probable that the declarer holds the king. By refusing to lead such suits, and waiting for them to come up to the tenace, the declarer’s high card may be caught and a valuable trick saved. When a good player opens his hand with a trump, right up to the declaration, his partner should lead his best supporting cards boldly up to dummy’s weak suits.
_=The Pone’s Leads.=_ When the pone gets into the lead, if he does not return his partner’s suit, he should open his own suits according to the rules already given for all the high-card combinations. If he has no high-card combination, it is usually better for him to lead some card that will beat Dummy than to lead his fourth-best. Suppose he wishes to lead a diamond, in which he holds Q 10 8 4 3; Dummy having the 9 and 6 only. It is better to lead the ten of diamonds than the fourth-best, because if the declarer does not follow with an honour, your partner will not have to sacrifice an honour to keep Dummy from winning the trick with the 9.
After the opening lead, when Dummy’s cards are exposed, the knowledge of his cards may change the aspect of the game greatly; but the proper cards to lead to and through Dummy will be better understood in connection with the play against no-trumpers.
_=No-trump Leads.=_ The chief difference in the leads against no-trumpers is, that there is no hurry to make your aces and kings, the chief thing being to make some of the smaller cards good for tricks. When you are long in a suit, if you lead out the winning cards first, your partner may have none to lead you later on, and if you cannot make every trick in the suit before you lose the lead, you may never make anything but your one or two high cards.
The difference in the leads at no-trump is covered by a very simple rule; if you have only two honours in sequence, do not lead either of them, but begin with the fourth-best, even if your honours are the Ace and King. But if you have three honours in the suit, two of them in sequence, always lead an honour against a no-trumper.
The exception to this rule is, that when you are so long in the suit that you may catch some high cards with your high cards, you lead them first. With six or seven in suit to the A K, for instance, lead the King, on the chance of dropping the Queen. With seven in suit headed by the Ace, lead the Ace, but never with less than seven without the King. With six in suit, you may lead the King from K Q, without either Jack or 10; but with less than six in suit never lead the King from K Q unless you have the 10 or the J also.
_=THIRD HAND PLAY.=_ The leader’s partner must do his best to inform his partner as to the distribution of his suit. The method of doing this is entirely different when there is a trump from that which is adopted when there is no trump. In the first case, all your partner wants to know is, who is going to trump his suit if he goes on with it. In the second case, what he wants to know is his chance for getting his suit cleared or established.
_=With a Trump.=_ When third hand makes no attempt to win the trick, either because his partner’s or Dummy’s card is better than any he need play, he plays the higher of two cards only, the lowest of three or more. This is called playing _=down and out=_. Suppose third hand holds 7 and 2 only, and the lead is a King. The 7 is played. The leader goes on with the Ace, denying the Queen, and the third hand plays the deuce. If the Queen is not in the Dummy, the declarer must have it. In any case, the leader knows that if he goes on, his partner, the third hand, can trump that suit.
With three cards, the lowest falling to the first round, followed by a higher card, will show the leader that the third hand still has another of that suit.
It is not necessary to play down and out with an honour, because the leader can read the situation without it. Suppose third hand holds the J 5. He plays the 5 to the first round, because one of his two cards is an honour. The leader goes on with the Ace, and the Jack falls. Now the third hand must have the Queen or no more, and no matter which it is he can win the third round, with the Queen or with a trump.
_=Against No-Trumpers.=_ When there is no trump, the third hand uses what is called the _=Foster echo=_. This consists in playing always the _=second-best=_ of the suit, when no attempt is made to win the trick. Suppose the leader begins with the King. Third hand holds 10 8 7 4, and plays the 8. This marks him with only one card higher than the 8, and is a great exposer of false cards played by the declarer.
On the second round, the rule is, always to keep the lowest card of the suit until the last. If third hand held four originally, 10 8 7 4, his play to the second round is the 7, keeping the 4. If he held 10 8 7 only, his play to the second round would be the 10, keeping the 7. This makes it clear to the leader how many and what he holds.
_=High Cards Third Hand.=_ When the third hand tries to win his partner’s lead, he does so as cheaply as possible. That is, holding both King and Queen, he plays the Queen, not the King. If his cards are not in sequence, he should always play the best he has. With Ace and Queen, for instance, he must play the Ace if the King is not in the Dummy. To play the Queen would be to throw it away if the declarer has the King. If the leader has the King, third hand gets out of his way by giving up the Ace.
_=FOSTER’S ELEVEN RULE.=_ In trying to win tricks as cheaply as possible, third hand may often be guided by the Eleven Rule, which can be applied to any lead of a small card.
By deducting from eleven the number of pips on any low card led by his partner, the pone may ascertain to a certainty how many cards there are _=higher than the one led=_, which are not in the leader’s hand. This rule, which was invented by R.F. Foster in 1881, in connection with the game of whist, is now used by everyone with any pretensions to being a bridge player. The rule itself is this:--
When the eldest hand leads any card which is not an honour, deduct the spots on it from eleven. From the remainder thus found, deduct the number of cards, _=higher than the one led=_, which are not in your own hand nor in Dummy’s in that suit. This final remainder is the number of cards which are in the declarer’s hand which are higher than the card led. The principal thing to remember is, that it is only the cards higher than the one led that you need trouble about. To illustrate:--
Suppose you are third hand, and your partner leads the seven of clubs, Dummy lays down the Q 9 2, and you hold A J 3, thus:--
Deducting seven from eleven, you find it leaves four. These four cards, higher than the one lead, are all in sight, Q 9 in Dummy; A J in your own hand, therefore the declarer cannot have any card higher than the seven. If he has, your partner’s lead is not his fourth-best, as you will see if you lay out the cards.
_=RETURNING SUITS.=_ When the third hand returns his partner’s suit, he should lead the higher of two cards, and the lowest of three, unless he has a card which will beat anything Dummy may hold in the suit, in which case he should _=always beat Dummy=_.
_=PLAYING AGAINST DUMMY.=_ Some of the fine points in bridge arise in situations which require a careful consideration of the Dummy’s cards.
There are three great principles in playing against Dummy:--
1st. Lead through the strong suits, and up to the weak.
2nd. Do not lead through a fourchette.
3rd. Do not lead up to a tenace.
These rules must not be blindly followed in every instance. They are simply general principles, and some of the prettiest _=coups=_ arise from the exceptional cases.
_=Leading Through Dummy.=_ The eldest hand, when he does not deem it advisable to go on with his own suit, may be guided in his choice by the strength or weakness of certain suits in Dummy’s hand. The play against Dummy is especially important at no trumps.
Suits which it is good policy to lead through are A x x x, K x x x, or any broken sequences of high cards.
Suits in which Dummy is long, or holds any of the regular high-card combinations, should be avoided; winning or high sequences being especially dangerous. To lead such suits through Dummy’s strength is an invitation to partner to force you in the suit led.
It is not necessary for you to be strong in a suit which you lead through Dummy; and if you are both weak, is often advantageous; especially if it avoids leading one of his strong suits.
With A Q 10 x; Dummy having J x x x; play the 10. If partner has the King you make every trick in the suit.
With A Q 10 x; Dummy having K x x; play the Q. If Dummy passes, you make two tricks; if he covers, you have tenace over the Jack.
With A 10 9 x; Dummy having J x x x; play the 10. If partner has the K, your A 9 is tenace over the Q.
With A J 10 x; Dummy having Q x x x; if the suit must be led, play the Jack; but such positions should be avoided, except in the end game, or when you play for every trick.
With A J 10 x; Dummy having no honour in the suit; if you must lead the suit, play the 10.
In trumps, with K Q x x; Dummy having A J x x; play the Queen. If Dummy wins with A, play a small card for the second round, and he may refuse to put on the J. The declarer not having the 10, would make Dummy cover; but nothing is lost if he does, and it marks the 10 with your partner.
With King and others of a suit in which Dummy has not the Ace; avoid leading the suit until the Ace has fallen.
With King alone, play it if Dummy has the Ace; keep it if he has not.
_=Trumps.=_ If a player in this position is strong in trumps, he should keep quiet about it and let the maker of the trumps develop the suit. False-carding is perfectly legitimate in trumps, and will deceive the declarer more than your partner.
_=End Games.=_ There are cases in which it is necessary to play as if partner was known to possess a certain card, for unless he has it the game is lost. For instance: You want one trick, and have Q 10 x x, Dummy having K x x, of an unplayed suit. The Queen is the best play; for if partner has any honour you must get a trick; otherwise it is impossible.
You have K x in one suit, a losing card in another, and a winning card. You want all four tricks to save the game. Play the King, and then the small card; for if your partner has not the Ace and another winning card you must lose the game.
You have a losing trump, and Q x x of a suit in which Dummy has K 10 x. If you want one trick, play the losing trump, counting on partner for an honour in the plain suit. If you must have two tricks, lead the Queen, trusting your partner to hold Ace.
_=Leading up to Dummy.=_ The best thing for the third hand, or pone, to do, when he does not return his partner’s suit, and has no very strong suit of his own, is to lead up to Dummy’s weak suits, and to lead a card that Dummy cannot beat, if possible.
The general principle of leading up to weakness suggests that we should know what weakness is. Dummy may be considered weak in suits of which he holds three or four small cards, none higher than an 8; Ace and one or two small cards; or King and one or two small cards. In leading up to such suits, your object should be to give your partner a finesse, if possible; and in calculating the probabilities of success it must be remembered that there are only two unknown hands, so that it is an equal chance that he holds either of two unknown cards. It is 3 to 1 against his holding both, or against his holding neither. Of three unknown cards, it is 7 to 1 against his holding all three, or none of them; or about an equal chance that he holds two of the three; or one only.
If Dummy holds any of the weak suits just given, you holding nothing higher than the Ten, you should lead it. Suppose you have 10 9 6; Dummy having A 3 2. The K Q J may be distributed in eight different ways, in any of which your partner will pass your Ten if second hand does not cover. In four cases, second hand would cover with the King, and in one with the Queen and Jack. In the remaining three your partner’s hand would be benefited.
If Dummy has King and one or two small cards, it is not so disadvantageous to lead up to the King as would at first appear; because it is forced out of his hand on the first round, unless declarer plays Ace, and it is usually good policy to force out Dummy’s cards of re-entry early in the hand.
In leading from high-card combinations, the usual bridge leads should be followed; but exceptions must be made on the second round when certain cards are in Dummy’s hand. For instance: With A K J and others, it is usual to stop after the first round, and wait for the finesse of the Jack. This is obviously useless if the Queen is not in Dummy’s hand. So with K Q 10, unless Dummy has the Jack; or K Q 9, unless Dummy has the 10. The lead from A Q J should be avoided if Dummy has the King.
With A Q 10 and others, J in Dummy’s hand, begin with the Queen.
With A J 9 and others, 10 in Dummy’s hand, lead the Jack.
With A J 10, Dummy having K Q x, play the Jack, and do not lead the suit again.
In trumps, with K Q and others, if Dummy has the J singly guarded, begin with the King as usual, but follow it with the Queen instead of the smallest; for declarer may have passed in the hope of making a Bath coup with both Ace and Jack. In plain suits this is a dangerous lead, as declarer having Ace, and wishing to force Dummy, would hold his Ace as a matter of course.