Monday, April 16, 2007 8:09 PM
Hand Evaluation - The Translation Process
PITBULLS:
You
can never be an expert Bridge player unless
you learn the translation
process. Just like a translator
at the U.N. who translates one language into another ,
a Bridge player must develop translation skills. Lacking this skill is just not an option to
become an expert player or even a good
player for that matter. Of course , I am
referring to translating
information into hand patterns. To what information am I referring ?
The simple act of anybody showing out of a suit needs to be translated into a hand pattern. The bidding needs to be translated into hand
patterns. An opening lead needs to
be translated into a hand pattern. A discard
showing count needs to be translated in to a hand pattern. Weak twos , pre-empts
and systemic toys are automatic triggers to begin the
translation process .
The
translation process is not just patterns.
Before you lead , you also translate the bidding into HCP’s.
Where is the big hand ? What is a tentative HCP count
of partner’s hand based on the auction. With the
bidding & the 40 HCP in the deck rule , you know
how many HCP’s partner should contribute to the defense. By counting the HCP’s in your hand , means whether
you go passive or active on the opening lead & subsequent defense. This mental
preparation is done before you make your opening lead.
Having
this skill
improves your opening leads ,
defense ,
bidding and
declarer play.
This skill allows squeezes , endplays and defensive
techniques to be mastered. Knowing how many trump declarer has
, allows the tapping defense to work. This translation skill is not
rocket science. By now , you must have the basic hand patterns memorized.
Just take the time to take the next step and apply them when something in Bridge
triggers this translation process to commence.
What
should trigger applying these hand patterns ? The opponents bidding is the first “trigger” . Based on their bidding ,
apply a tentative pattern. The
100 % trigger to apply a pattern is somebody showing out of a suit. Just like
Pavlov’s dog this should be an automatic stimuli –
response. An opening lead or a count signal are both
triggers to apply patterns. Not applying patterns means you are home but the lights are out.
Recently
my partner & I overbid to 4♠ . The auction
went 1♦-4♠-P-P , LHO led a diamond. Partner tabled this collection as
dummy. ♠Q10x ♥Jxxxx ♦xx ♣Q10x . The Tormentee had 150 honours in
diamonds so she won her queen. Looking at the dummy , Kantars
LSD comes to mind so with the
diamond shortness you might switch to a trump as declarer will probably ruff diamonds as a source of tricks. OK ,
assume you do not do that & cash a 2ND diamond , partner shows
out ! This is a trigger to apply a pattern which is 5-5-2-1 .
Declarer has 5 diamonds along with his 7 spades , so
his hand is virtually completely counted.
So you now switch to your trump. No , you switch to a
heart so I get all 3 diamond ruffs on the board for +420. Open up the slip
& the field is in 3♠ going down 1 or 3♠ making. The Tormentee turns to me & says how could we have beaten
this contract ? L
Here are a couple of hands where applying patterns by Tom Gandolfo resulted in maximum penalty extractions. The opponents were in 1♥X vul vrs not . Tom opened 1♣ , they overcalled 1♥ . I held ♠Qxx ♥KJ987 ♦A10xx ♣x so I passed & converted Tom’s double. The board was ♠J109xx ♥10xx ♦xxxx ♣x . I led a club against 1♥X . Tom held ♠Ax ♥x ♦KQxx ♣AK109xx , won the club & returned a heart. Declarer let the heart ride around to my jack so I returned a trump which declarer won with in his hand. Declarer now led a club to ruff so I discarded a spade. Declarer won the trick with the trump on the dummy & lead a spade which Tom ducked & I won the queen. I returned a trump for the 3rd time which declarer won & lead the queen of clubs which Tom won. Tom knows that declarer has 5 clubs ( I showed out ) so has a good tentative count on his hand. 5-5-2-1 or 5-4-3-1 . He knows the last thing I want is a club ruff as that returns trump control to declarer. Accordingly Tom starts diamonds & declarer goes for –800 at the one level. Nice work , Tom !
A pre-empt is an automatic trigger for applying a hand pattern. Here is Tom in
action again defending a heart sacrifice against our 4♠
game we bid. ♠AKJxxx ♥x ♦A109 ♣AJ10 . They opened 2♥ to Tom’s right &
sacrificed in 5♥X. The board was ♠Qx ♥AJxx ♦Kxxxx ♣xx , Tom lead the spade
king. Tom & I play “known count” Gartaganis
signals. Since Tom knows my spade count from the bidding ,
suit preference applies. I play a
middle spade saying that I have no
suit preference. Tom cashes the spade Ace , I follow
with the deuce & declarer follows. Tom now knows for sure that I do not have a high club honour
or else I would have played the spade deuce at trick one. OK
, Tom now applies
the “6 series” of hand patterns . He has the good start of
knowing the pattern is 6-2-?-? so he just exits a
heart. Declarer draws two rounds of trump & leads the diamond jack . Tom wins his Ace so I show 2 or 4 diamonds. If I have
4 diamonds , declarer is 2-6-1-4 and Tom will never
lose our two club tricks as one club goes on the diamond king & the other
on the 5th established diamond but declarer still must lose two
clubs. Since I can not have the club king ,
Tom makes the good play of returning a diamond so we beat the sacrifice for
+500.
Here
is a hand from Calgary . If partner did not translate the bidding into a hand pattern , they steal a vul
3NT bid. Partner held ♠AJxx ♥KJx ♦QJ10 ♣xxx & LHO opened 1♠ & rebid clubs.
Responder bid diamonds & hearts so partner elects to lead the ♦Q . The board comes down
with ♠x ♥AQ10xx ♦Axxxx ♣xx declarer ducks the
diamond & I overtake the diamond & return one so everybody follows.
From my diamond play , partner knows the diamonds are 5-3-3-2 so that makes declarers hand
pattern complete from the bidding & the opening lead , 5-4-3-1. Knowing
declarer has a singleton heart , partner leads a heart
to kill the board & not assist declarer by attacking her black suits. Declarer now goes down two
, if she does not finesse the heart & goes down one if she does .
Declarer has 3 diamond tricks , 1 or 2 hearts &
must come to us in the black suits with the dummy
dead.
Translating
the bidding into patterns & HCP’s
, then defend accordingly – do it !!!