Deal 39	♠   ♥   ♦   ♣		WEST   NORTH   EAST   SOUTH 1NT pass 2♣ pass  BID      The bidding has gone as shown. Decide what you would say, then click on BID above.
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2

 

Deal 39	♠   ♥   ♦   ♣		WEST   NORTH   EAST   SOUTH 1NT pass 2♣ pass 2♦ pass 2NT pass  BID    With no 4-card Major suit you respond 2♦ to partner's Stayman bid. Partner now bids 2NT. What do you say?
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2

 

Deal 39	♠ 7 4 ♥ K 7 5 2 ♦ 9 5 ♣ A Q 8 4 3		WEST   NORTH   EAST   SOUTH 1NT pass 2♣ pass 2♦ pass 2NT pass 3NT pass pass pass With no 4-card Major suit you respond 2♦ to partner's Stayman bid. Partner now bids 2NT. What do you say? With a full 17 points you accept partner's game invitation and bid 3NT. Click NEXT to continue.
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2

 

Deal 39   3NT OL: ♠6	♠ 7 4 ♥ K 7 5 2 ♦ 9 5 ♣ A Q 8 4 3		South plays 3NT. West leads the ♠6 on which East plays the ♠Q. Make a Plan, then click NEXT .
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2

 

Deal 39   3NT OL: ♠6	♠ 7 4 ♥ K 7 5 2 ♦ 9 5 ♣ A Q 8 4 3		Winner List: ♠ = 1 : ♥ = 2 : ♦ = 2 : ♣ = 1 :: Total = 6 You need 3 more tricks, obviously coming from the ♣ suit. But the burning question right now is what do you do at trick one. Do you win or hold up?  NEXT
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2

 

Deal 39   3NT OL: ♠6	♠ 7 4 ♥ K 7 5 2 ♦ 9 5 ♣ A Q 8 4 3		Winner List: ♠ = 1 : ♥ = 2 : ♦ = 2 : ♣ = 1 :: Total = 6 You need 3 more tricks, obviously coming from the ♣ suit. But the burning question right now is what do you do at trick one. Do you win or hold up? You should assume that West holds the ♠K. If you take the ♠A right now your ♠ J 5 will provide a second stopper if it is West who gets the lead. However, if East gets the lead he will play through your holding and you may lose 4 ♠ tricks. If you hold up you can expect East to play another ♠ through your ♠ A J and West will then establish the suit. However, in doing so he will remove any ♠ held by East. The answer key lies in the ♣ suit. You will be finessing through West, so East is the only defender who can get the lead in ♣s. Therefore you must hold up on ♠s until the third round. Click NEXT to see the full deal.
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2

 

Deal 39   3NT OL: ♠6	♠ 7 4 ♥ K 7 5 2 ♦ 9 5 ♣ A Q 8 4 3		If you win the first ♠ East will play a ♠ through your ♠ J 5 when he wins the ♣K. West will then swamp you with ♠s. But, if you hold up your ♠A until the third round, East will have no ♠ left when he wins the ♣K. Deal 40
♠ K 10 8 6 2 ♥ Q 10 4 ♦ J 8 4 3 ♣ 6		♠ Q 9 3 ♥ J 9 8 ♦ Q 10 7 2 ♣ K 7 5
	♠ A J 5 ♥ A 6 3 ♦ A K 6 ♣ J 10 9 2