Study 4R29   Main

Endplays Are Fun!

by Richard Pavlicek

Each of these contracts can be made only with the endplay described.
Arrange a deck of cards and play out each deal.

1.	A J 9 5 4			Trick	Lead	2nd	3rd	4th
None Vul	K 9 6 3			1 W	10	J	K	2
	Q J 4			2 E	5	A	4	6
	6			3 S	K	2	4	Q
10 2			Q	4 S	3!	2	J	7
J 4			A Q 10 8	5 N	A	8	6	10
10 9 8 5 3			A K 7 6	6 N	4	6	7	3
Q 10 4 2			9 8 7 5	7 S	K	10	3	8
	K 8 7 6 3			8 S	J!	Q	9	9
	7 5 2			9 N	Q	A	2!	5
	2			East is endplayed, lose 1
4 South	A K J 3

East’s opening bid marks him with the A, so any attempt to lead toward the K is destined to fail. Hooray for endplays! With proper timing declarer is able to put East on lead with a diamond and force him to lead hearts from his A-Q (else concede a ruff and a discard).

Note that the J is totally unnecessary to succeed; it’s just a red herring to try to tempt someone into taking a club finesse — ouch!

Study 4R29   Main

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2.	K Q 3 2			Trick	Lead	2nd	3rd	4th
N-S Vul	A Q 9			1 W	Q	3!	6	2
	K 3			2 W	5!	A!	8	2
	7 5 3 2			3 N	2	7	J	9
9			10 7	4 S	A!	6	2	4
10 7 6 5			K J 8	5 S	K	8	3	10
Q J 10 7			A 9 6 5 4	6 S	4	6	K	10
Q 9 8 6			J 10 4	7 N	5	J	5	9
	A J 8 6 5 4			8 S	6	7	Q	4
	4 3 2			9 N	7	5	8	Q
	8 2			10 S	8!	10	K	A
4 South	A K			East is endplayed, lose 1

A careless player would play the K at trick one, allowing East to win the ace and return a diamond; then a heart shift by West destroys the endplay and declarer must fail. The key is to realize that East is marked for the A by West’s lead, so retaining the king keeps your endplay chances alive.

Note the key play at trick two. If West’s heart shift is ducked, East could win the J, cash his A, and exit with either black suit to avoid the endplay.

Study 4R29   Main

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© 2012 Richard Pavlicek