Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Delightful Bridge
    Delightful Bridge
    Delightful Bridge
    Ebook161 pages1 hour

    Delightful Bridge

    By L. Subramanian

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    This book is aimed at improving the skill level of intermediate and advanced players to the next higher level in the ladder. The forty hands that follow are taken from actual play. The bidding is essentially Standard American or in some cases Precision.

    The deals are not meant to test your play, defense, or bidding skills in the game. Rather, they explain how the experts solved the problems as they arose at the table, by their experience and class. If you are able to understand and appreciate the different techniques adopted by the experts, you will certainly gain a new insight into their mind. This is bound to reflect in your performance too.

    There is nothing esoteric about the deals. Barring a few, most of the hands require straight-forward technique. They may be the bread and butter type, but you will find them contain many useful ideas. Some of the deals may even puzzle the experts and the world-class as well.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherL. Subramanian
    Release dateFeb 6, 2015
    ISBN9781311139436
    Delightful Bridge
    Author

    L. Subramanian

    A chemical engineer and a certified Energy Auditor. Has worked in the field of energy conservation, particularly on steam systems. Organized and participated in numerous seminars and conferences on energy.Has over four decades of experience in the game and has taught and coached many players in their formative years. A regular contributor of Bridge articles to Souvenirs, Bulletins, and Newspapers. Has won many regional championships in the country.

    Related to Delightful Bridge

    Related ebooks

    Card Games For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Bridge

      Nov 4, 2020

      THE three keys to improving your bridge are counting, counting and counting. Counting high-card points gave declarer the key to success on our first of two Five Diamond contracts. Plan the play on the nine of Spades lead to the Queen, King and your A

      2 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Feb 8, 2023

      I looked up the word ‘finesse’ in the dictionary: ‘impressive delicacy and skill’. It continues, ‘In bridge, an attempt to win a trick with a card that is not a certain winner, typically by playing it as the third card in the hope that any card that

      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Jun 29, 2022

      Bridge
      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Jun 1, 2022

      In most walks of life, one plus one equals two. Sometimes at the bridge table, one plus one can equal one. Dealer South Neither Vulnerable The bidding (1) Splinter bid looking for a heart slam, showing club shortage. In truth, a tad optimistic facing

      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Apr 6, 2022

      IN your quest to make all five tricks, contrast these two combinations: (i) AQ1032 facing K4 (ii) AQ432 facing K10. In (i), your best play is to cash the suit from the top—cash the king and lead across to Ace-Queen. You’ll succeed when the suit split

      2 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Dec 15, 2021

      Forced away from their beloved table and onto the internet, bridge players have fallen into three main categories. (A) ‘I’ll never play online.’ Their mind is as shut as Woolworths. (B) ‘I never thought I’d like it but I really do. I prefer the real

      1 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Dec 12, 2021

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      6 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Apr 30, 2023

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      6 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Oct 28, 2022

      Before reading on, cover the South and West hands on the deal below. Playing teams, South opens one spade. What do you respond with the North cards? Bid two notrumps, Jacoby, showing a game forcing raise in spades. South makes a jump rebid of four sp

      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Aug 25, 2021

      Say you hold as a defender ♥ J109 and you must follow suit twice. Being equals, they can be played in one of six ways: ♥9-then-♥10, ♥10- then-♥9, ♥9-then-♥J, ♥J-then-♥9, ♥10-then-♥J, ♥J-then-♥10. However, if instead your holding is ♥J10 doubleton, yo

      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Sep 21, 2022

      Bridge
      1 min read

    • Article

      Oh Hell

      Jul 9, 2020

      Oh Hell
      3 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Jan 30, 2022

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      6 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Nov 16, 2022

      When a professional bridge-playing friend of mine plays with a student, he has a code as dummy after his student has made a contract. ‘Well done’ means ‘You were successful but played it wrongly.’ ‘Well played’ means what it says: ‘You played it corr

      1 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Nov 27, 2022

      Diversions
      6 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Aug 18, 2021

      THIS week’s pair of deals focus on the battle to establish a long suit. Seemingly antithetical plays may be required. On our first, plan the play in Six Spades on the four of Diamonds lead. Dealer South Both Vulnerable (1) Fourth Suit Forcing. North

      2 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Feb 20, 2022

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      7 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Feb 5, 2023

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      6 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Nov 9, 2022

      THOSE nice people to your left and right may be your opponents. However, sometimes you can use them to your advantage. On our first deal, plan the play in Six Notrumps on the King of Hearts opening lead to your Ace, East discarding a Club. At the tab

      2 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Oct 2, 2022

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      6 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Nov 25, 2022

      Bridge
      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Sep 2, 2020

      WHETHER to focus on winners or losers when planning a hand is a subtle business. I would say the majority of the time, thinking about your winners is more helpful—after all, the aim of Bridge is to win tricks, not lose them. When establishing suits a

      2 min read

    • Article

      Bridge And Crossword

      Feb 7, 2024

      Bridge And Crossword
      3 min read

    • Article

      Crossword

      Mar 17, 2023

      Crossword
      3 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Feb 9, 2022

      It is natural to want to make your longest and strongest suit trumps. In 1956, one Felix Vondracek considered these two hands: Assuming 3-2 splits in both majors and the defence leading diamonds at you, you’ll lose trump control in 4 ♥ and go down. H

      1 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      Aug 3, 2022

      DEFENDERS must be on the look-out for the ‘cash-out’—when declarer has enough tricks for his contract. Take this pair of deals from the Online Contract Bridge League monthly event. West led the Queen of Hearts, declarer winning dummy’s King and at tr

      2 min read

    • Article

      Bridge

      May 4, 2022

      Two unshaven, out-of-work men stumbled out of the bar and fell on top of each other. That’s your clue to finding the correct line of play to make this month’s Six Clubs on West’s clever club lead. Dealer South Neither Vulnerable The bidding (1) Showi

      1 min read

    • Article

      Diversions

      Jul 23, 2023

      This issue of NZ Listener is published by Are Media Limited (Are Media). Are Media may use and disclose your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy, including to provide you with your requested products or services and to keep you informed

      6 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Delightful Bridge

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Delightful Bridge - L. Subramanian

      Contract: 4♠ by south. West leads the ♥2, lowest from odd. Plan the play.

      Initial play: RHO plays the queen and you duck. You win RHO’s continuation of ♥8 with the ace. When you test the spades, LHO shows up with ♠ Q-J-9. How do you continue?

      Initial assessment: You need to discard your heart loser on the ♣Q. So, your only chance lies in finding east with the club ace but without the jack.

      1) Let us say you play the ♣K from hand at trick five with the idea of finessing the 10 later and discarding the heart loser on the ♣Q. RHO wins with the ♣A and plays a diamond to dummy’s ace. You cash ♦K and try to enter hand by ruffing a diamond to take the club finesse. Alas! LHO over ruffs and cashes a heart trick to set the contract.

      2) Suppose you cross to the ♦A and play a club with the same idea as before. RHO steps up with the ♣A and returns a diamond. This blocking play upsets declarer’s plan as it prevents declarer from enjoying the ♣Q. Again down one.

      You may wonder if there is a solution to the problem. What did declarer do?

      Foreseeing the danger in the above plays, declarer played the small club from hand and inserted the ten in dummy at trick five! There was no way the defenders could defeat him. The complete hands are:

      As you want west to have the ♣J, why play the ♣K from hand or go to dummy and play a club towards your hand! In short, why beat about the bush?

      We gained 12 IMPs on the deal. Did you find the solution?

      As an aside, can declarer play club before touching trumps? That would be dangerous if west has the ♣A and the trumps are distributed Q-x and J-x in the two hands, as the defense can promote a trump trick for their side with the upper cut.

      2. Avoid mechanical play

      If it is important to make an overtrick as a declarer in match points, it is equally important for you as a defender to stop declarer’s overtrick, if you can. Let us take a look at a real-life hand.

      Contract: 4♠ by south. West leads ♥2. You win the trick with the ♥J as declarer follows with the ten. Plan your defense.

      Bidding comment: NS were playing constructive raises, i.e, a simple raise of the major showing 8-10 HCP and a three-card support. So, north had to fabricate a bid of 1NT, forcing. East’s double showed shortage in spades and at least the value of an opening bid. As south did not know about the spade fit in partner’s hand, he thought there may be a diamond fit in the combined hands and hence the 2♦ bid. South was not obliged to bid over the double. So, his bid of 2♦ showed a five-bagger. Sensing a two-suit fit, north raised his partner to game!

      Analysis: Let us reconstruct declarer’s hand. Declarer is likely to be 5-5 in pointed suits and his hand rates to be ♠ K-Q-J-x-x ♥ x ♦ K-x-x-x-x ♣ A-x.

      With the diamond honors in your hand about to fall like ninepins under the ace and king of diamonds, you can well see the danger if you mechanically play a second heart. Declarer will ruff and knock out the trump ace from your hand. Let us say you continue with a third heart. Declarer will ruff again, remove the adverse trumps, and pitch the three clubs from dummy on his good diamonds, making an overtrick.

      Solution: So, to stop the overtrick, you should switch to the ♣3 at trick two. The full deal is:

      Discussion: When the dummy goes down, you should reflect on the bidding and build a picture of the unseen hands (to quote many times World Champion Robert Hamman of the Dallas Aces). This will often lead you to the correct defense.

      Though you may say that a club shift is clearly indicated, only one east in the entire field found the shift at the table, the others simply continuing a second heart without thinking. We scored an absolute top on the board.

      3. Trumps can wait

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1