Thursday, May 26, 2005 6:08 AM

Defensive Carding

PITBULLS:

Signaling methods should change when you know from the bidding the length of partners suit. This length is either openers suit or responders suit . As long as systemically you know the length different rules should apply. It does not matter whether you play upside down attitude or standard attitude when you have known length in your suit middle encourages. This is when partner holds the trick by cashing an honour in your suit on lead or in the middle of the hand. If you have overcalled 2♣, opened a weak two , pre-empted , opened or overcalled a 5 card major you have known length. Middle encourages and a high card or low card is suit preference. You can get away with this system because count is not important as partner already knows your count. You have known length so you have many spot cards you can utilize without being ambiguous. You open a weak 2♠ with KQ9872 xxx J10xx void . The opponents are in 4♥ and partner leads the spade Ace. Which card do you play ? You have known length so a middle card encourages . You would like to ruff a club so you play the spade deuce. Partner dutifully switches to a club and you ruff defeating the contract. OK same spade holding but this time they are in 3NT . You play the spade 8 saying lets keep the spades coming.

OK now in the middle of the hand after you opened the bidding 1♠ KQ1073 xx AQx J10x and the board is

♠ xx ♥ AJxxx ♦ xxx ♣ xxx with declarer in 3♥ . Declarer leads a heart and loses to partners King of hearts. Partner lays down the spade Ace so which spade do you play ? You play 5 card majors so partner knows that you have 5 or more. This is a “known count” situation. You play the spade 10 and a diamond comes back. Declarer has the diamond king and solid clubs so you lose you diamonds unless partner specifically switches to a diamond.

OK Tom and I have an understanding that a simple raise shows 3 trump. I have Axx J84 Q10xxxx x and partner opens 1♥ . I bid 2♥ and they bid 2♠ which gets raised to 4♠. Partner leads the heart Ace so I play the heart 4 . Partner knows I have 3 hearts so I would have played the 8 ( middle ) to encourage in this known count situation. He dutifully switches to a club. I get in with the Ace of trump and return a heart. Partner wins the king and gives me a club ruff for one down.

This works in the middle of the hand also. I raised to two hearts with xxx K72 QJ10xxx x and partner gets in with the trump King in their 4 spade contract. There are 4 baby hearts on the board and partner who opened a heart lays down the heart Ace. I play the heart two and hope he has the club Ace . Sure enough partner cashes the club ace and gives me a ruff. Remember middle encourage when from the bidding partner has some idea of the length of your suit . The other cards are suit preference. Its like cheating !!