Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I have a backlog of hands to write about. Mostly endplays—my favorites! They come in so many shapes and sizes and are always fun and satisfying to execute.

Here is an interesting one from a few weeks ago at an evening club team game. Sometimes it’s difficult to recall the exuberance that led you to bid game with sketchy values such as the following, but it undoubtedly had to do with vulnerability! 

I get a club lead at 3NT after a weak 2♠ overcall on my left and pause, as is my custom.

♠x
♥Q10xxx
♦Kxx
♣KJxx

♠AQxx
♥x
♦A10xx
♣A10xx

I don’t see a lot of  tricks, but I have been in plenty of worse contracts. I call for a low club, and to my shock, RHO discards a ♥! "Holy cannoli" (or something similar) I say to myself…"LHO is 6-5"! The opening lead reveals that LHO started with 5♣ and almost certainly has 6♠. This immediately gives me some ideas regarding how to play the hand. 

Let’s see…I have 4♣ tricks, 2♦ tricks and can surely get two spades on an endplay. Hearts are hopeless; maybe something good will happen in diamonds.

I take my 4 club tricks and play the ♦K. LHO follows with the J! A diamond to the 10 (restricted choice) wins as LHO shows out. 8 tricks--almost there. When executing an endplay you need to carefully watch the opponents’ discards so that you can strip them of exit cards as necessary.  As my plan is to throw in LHO at the appropriate time for him to give me a trick with my ♠Q, I next play a heart trick to strip him of his now known singleton ♥.  RHO wins and, apparently reluctant to cash hearts and give my a heart trick, exits with a diamond to my ace. Now the stage is set.

These are my remaining cards. RHO has discarded a ♠ early in the hand on the run of the clubs, so I know he has only 1 left.

♠AQxx
♥
♦ x
♣

I also know that LHO has only 1 ♣ and the all the rest spades in his hand, so I carefully cash the ♠A (removing any possible entry from RHO’s hand) and then exit with a low spade. LHO wins, cashes the 13^th ♣  (on which I pitch my ♦) and ♠K, then has to lead a spade to my ♠ Q—my 9^th trick!

We won imps. I love these hands that are so easy to count!

See you at the table!