{"id":59772,"date":"2023-02-06T10:16:41","date_gmt":"2023-02-06T08:16:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/funbridge.com\/blog\/?p=59772"},"modified":"2023-02-06T10:49:17","modified_gmt":"2023-02-06T08:49:17","slug":"give-me-your-hand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/funbridge.com\/blog\/en\/give-me-your-hand\/","title":{"rendered":"Give me your hand!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Give<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s to a riddle of a particular kind…<\/strong> that you’re going to be facing here.It’s about discovering a bridge hand (that of South)<\/strong> thanks to a series of clues that enable you to find its distribution and the honours it contains. Have fun!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The clues<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1) The bidding<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

a)<\/strong> With this hand, you\u2019d use Stayman <\/strong>over 1NT, but over 2NT you\u2019d transfer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

b)<\/strong> With this hand, the following sequence is absolutely justified:<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"The
(*) Splinter.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

And this one also:<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"The<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

2) The lead and the defensive play<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

a)<\/strong> You would lead the Spade Jack<\/strong> after the sequence 1NT-3NT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

b)<\/strong> But the club 8<\/strong> after:<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"The<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

c)<\/strong> Now, if your partner leads the Club Ace <\/strong>and you see the Queen third in dummy, you\u2019d follow with the 9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You should know enough: now let\u2019s play!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Decrypting the clues<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

1) During the bidding<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

a)<\/strong> To justify the transfer over 2NT, the hand obviously contains five cards in Spades. But when do you bid Stayman over 1NT when you have a five-card major? With the “golden misere”, which is used to name a hand that is too strong to pass after a transfer and a little too weak to jump to game opposite 1NT. Therefore, South\u2019s hand includes five Spades and 7-8 points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

b)<\/strong> 4♥️ is a splinter and 5♠️ after 5♣️ denies a Diamond control. The second sequence shows that South has an Ace in a major<\/strong> (2♠️), a serious Diamond fit<\/strong> (4♠️), no King (5♣️ as an answer to 4NT, King asking<\/strong>, after the opening bid of 2♦️) and the Diamond Queen because 5♥️, the \u201cnext step\u201d, asks for the Queen of trumps<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2) During play<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

a)<\/strong> Spades are now precisely known: AJ10xx<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The singleton Heart was already discovered. The next clues will help you determine the distribution in the minors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

b) et c)<\/strong> Following with the Club 9<\/strong> when the Ace is led clearly indicates an even number of Clubs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lead of the Club 8 proves that South does not have two Clubs (98), but four. He cannot have 98xx<\/strong>, because he\u2019d play the 8 on the lead of the Club Ace (the second best with four cards.) Thus, he must have a card higher than the nine. This card cannot be the 10 because he\u2019d have led the ten with 1098x.<\/strong> It follows that it must be the Jack <\/strong>because else South had 9 points or more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n