End Plays in Contract and Duplicate Bridge

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If you have been following our series on End Plays, you appreciate that in some situations finesses and repeated finesses do not always generate the most tricks.

In Part 3 of our continuing saga on End Plays, we will generalize our understanding of similar hand patterns and principles.
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End Plays in Contract and Duplicate Bridge

In our previous episode, we learned side suit split “Quackers” (Queen-Jack) can be promoted to earn an much needed trick.  Also, it’s always nice to induce the opponents to help us so we do not have to guess a two-way finesse when missing the Queen.

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Throw-in plays on a side suit is powerful magic, but can it work on a trump suit, too?  And how about making non-working honors into a repeated finesse?  If you’re ready to become a magician, read on and view our commentary…

Introduction – Recap:

General methods to win extra tricks using avoidance, elimination and end plays:

– Temporarily ducking a winning trick.

– Choose when to throw opponents into the lead: finesses, ruffs and sluffs, etc.

– Allow non-dangerous opponent into the lead.

Review – Promotion:

– Holding J x x and Q x x, strip side suits so opponent must either lead to this holding or give you a ruff in one hand and a sluff in the other hand.

– Holding A J x and K 10 x, again strip side suits so opponent must lead to this holding, eliminating the need to guess a two-way finesse.

Contract Bridge: Avoidance, Elimination and End Plays

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In this series, we are going to teach you how to lose tricks.  Huh?  What’s that you say, “I can lose tricks just fine on my own, thank you very much!”  Okay, let’s rephrase that teaser with:

The purpose of the upcoming lessons will illustrate methods where the declarer may win extra tricks by forfeiting a trick or tricks at the appropriate time and/or in the appropriate suit (may be void where prohibited, such as playing against your loved ones). 

Seriously though, in life and in Bridge sometimes we find it beneficial to offer up a pawn to win a game of chess, to let an opponent take one of our checkers so we can take two or more, to entice an opponent to reveal their assets so we can discover their weaknesses.  And so it goes in Bridge, sometimes we gain by using tactics such as:

– Temporarily ducking a winning trick

– Waiting for the right time to deliberately make one or either opponent win a trick

– Offering a losing play to a “non-dangerous” opponent

For instance, we certainly should not attempt a 50-50 chance on a finesse when we have a 100 percent guarantee of making a trick using another tactic.  Of course opponents are all too happy to see us take try unsuccessful “practice finesse” – it’s just that partner prefers we discover the winning line of play.

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1430 RKC versus Classic Blackwood: Slams in Contract Bridge

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On Polling You #51, let’s compare the 1430 RKC Blackwood convention to the classic Blackwood bid.  No convention is flawless yet as the saying goes, “with great power comes great responsibility.”

So while it sounds cool to have a handy tool that discloses extra honor information for the same price, the cost of admission is increased complexity. And in the shadow of complexity lurks the opportunity for confusion.  So what’s an inspiring Bridge player to do?  For 1430 RKC types, it’s all about practice.  And for classic Blackwood bidders, focus on your bidding before launching into a 4 Notrump Ace asking sequence – much can be learned before the auction gets into thin air.   Okay, here’s your chance to share your thoughts on slam bidding and learn some easily overlooked factors to improve your bidding accuracy.

1430 Roman Keycard Blackwood Slam Bidding – Duplicate Bridge

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1430 Roman Keycard Blackwood Slam Bidding – Duplicate BridgeThe 1430 Roman Keycard Blackwood convention is designed to improve the accuracy of slam bidding.  Like regular Blackwood, the roots of the convention was based on the 4 Notrump Blackwood.  Yet with all its improvements, some Duplicate Bridge players have adopted the convention to “Minorwood” and other areas of slam bidding.

Before we begin, we should caution everyone that the 1430 RKC convention is not for everyone.   With a wide range of bids, responses, and rebids in addition to the subtleties of knowing when to use a given query, this lesson is primarily targeted for advanced Bridge players and partners yearning for more gadgets in their tool chest – you know who you are!   And if you and your partner are comfortable with your existing Blackwood methods, fine – you may wish to glance over this lesson, perhaps revisiting the advanced convention sometime in the future or at least have an inkling of what’s going on with opponents who play this convention.

Let’s begin with a review of when not to bid any form of Blackwood:

Generally the player initiating the 4 Notrump ask should have a control in each suit.  Otherwise the opponents might quickly win a side-suit Ace and King to set the contract.  Controls include Aces, voids, King-Queen suit combinations, singletons, and King+ suit extras.

Avoid initiating the 4 Notrump Blackwood bid when you have a void.  The responder’s Aces (or keycards in 1430 RKC) will leave ambiguity as to which Ace/keycard is shown.  The control might be in a useful side suit (good) but could be an Ace in a suit where the initiator has a void (bad).   This could lead to a double counting disaster.

So holding either a void or a side suit without a control, we prefer to bid controls “up the line” (by suit rank) to show partner our controls.  Provided we are careful not to bid a control which cannot be interpreted as a signoff bid, cuebidding controls allow our partner the opportunity to initiate the 4 Notrump Ace/keycard asking sequence.

Occasional Shortcomings of Standard Blackwood:

Trump King – Status unknown at the 5 level

Trump Queen – Status always a mystery at any level

Double Count Quandary – Possible double counting on side suit, where it’s preferable to hold the trump King-Queen

Review of Blackwood Basics:

No worthless doubleton or void

Suit agreement – not a Notrump contract

Suit dominance – one player with a self-sustaining suit (jump, etc.)

Small slam – 12 tricks (3-4 Aces / controls), 33+ distribution points

Grandslam – 13 tricks ( Aces / controls), 3-4 Kings, 37+ distribution points

 
1430 Roman Keycard Blackwood – Introduction:

Revised Technique: 4 Notrump asks for 5 keycards (controls)

4 Noturmp response shows Aces plus Trump King

Aces = 1 control each (keycard)Trump King = 1 control (keycard)

Status of Trump Queen also determined at the 5 level

 

Do not bid 6 Hearts/Spades when off 1 keycards and the Trump Queen

Do not explore grandslam when off 1 keycard

Two Possible Methods to Play: 14-30 or 30-14 (RKC) Style of Initial Response:

Partnership     14 – 30 Style             30 – 14 Style (RKC)
Agreement
5 Clubs                1 or 4 keycards         3 or 0 keycards
5 Diamonds      3 or 0 keycards         1 or 4 keycards
5 Hearts               2 w/o Queen               2 w/o Queen
5 Spades              2 with Queen              2 with Queen

NOTE: IN OUR TRAINING SESSION WE WILL USE THE POPULAR 14-30 STYLE OF RESPONSES.

The 4 Notrump initiator should always be aware of the correct number of keycards giving by the responder based on prior bidding.  Since the responses are separated by 3 steps, the variance in keycard response is 11-12 points (2-3 Aces/King).

Incidentally, when responding to keycards with a void, we use a similar approach to traditional Blackwood:

With 2 or 4 keycards and a useful void (suit not bid by partner), we bid 5 Notrump.  Memory aid – with an even number of keys, bid evenly (5 Notrump).   With 1 or 3 keycards and a useful void beneath the rank of our trump suit, bid the void suit at the 6 level.  Memory aid – with an odd number of keys, bid oddly (6C, 6D, 6H if trump is Spades).

 
1430 Blackwood – Examples After 4 Notrump Response:

1S – 4N; 5D – 5S;    Signoff bid

1H – 4N; 5C – 5D    1^st step after response asks, “Do you have the Trump Queen?”

 Rebid responses:   5 Hearts = No (1^st step), 5 Spades = Yes (2^nd step)

1S – 4N; 5S – 5N;    Promises all 5 keycards possessed by partnership, now bid Kings “up the line” to explore grandslam

1S = 4N; 5S -5N; 6C / 6D …

1S – 4N; 5S – 5N; 6S small slam signoff, denying Kings (4N was questionable – why ask missing 2 keycards + 4 Kings?)

With 4 keycards and the Trump Queen, bid a small slam

With 5 keycards, the Trump Queen and Kings/length, bid grandslam

 

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Happy Bridge Trails and Tales,

BridgeHands