KING ME!
(OR THE JESSEE JACKSON RULE)
LAST MONTH WE LEARNED HOW NOT TO KILL OUR TEAM'S KINGS WHEN PLAYING SETTING HANDS.....WITH THE TWO BASIC RULES BEING:
NEVER LEAD AWAY FROM A KING, AND
NEVER LEAD A SUIT THAT HASN'T BEEN PLAYED
SOMETIMES, HOWEVER, YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO BREAK ONE OF THESE RULES. IN THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLE, WHAT CARD SHOULD YOU LEAD AS THE FIRST PLAYER ON THIS 13 BID HAND?
North 3
West 4
East 4
South 2
2 4 5 9 10
3 6 9
4 8 Q
5 8
IN THIS SITUATION, IF YOU LEAD ANYTHING BUT A LOW DIAMOND YOU ARE MAKING A MISTAKE (THE CORRECT DIAMOND IS THE 8 .... TO SEE WHY, PLEASE READ MY ARTICLE ON THE FAUX HILO IN THE ZONE SPADES COLUMN OF THE MONTH FOR OCTOBER, 2001).
MISTAKE
ON HIGH BID HANDS, WHEN YOU MUST LEAD LOW IN A SUIT THAT HAS NOT YET BEEN PLAYED, IF YOU DO NOT, WHEN POSSIBLE, LEAD FROM A SUIT IN WHICH YOU HOLD THE QUEEN, YOU ARE OCCASIONALLY KILLING YOUR PARTNER’S KINGS AND GETTING SET AS A RESULT, AND YOU AND YOUR PARD ARE LOSING MORE SPADES GAMES THAN YOU SHOULD.
ON THE 13 BID HAND IN THIS EXAMPLE, YOUR TEAM NEEDS EVERY TRICK THAT IT CAN TAKE. EVEN THOUGH YOU KNOW THAT YOU SHOULD NOT LEAD LOW IN A NEW SUIT DUE TO THE CHANCE OF KILLING YOUR PARTNER’S KING, YOU HAVE NO ACES AND HAVE NO OTHER OPTIONS.
YOU DO, HOWEVER, HAVE THE QUEEN OF DIAMONDS IN YOUR HAND. IF YOU LEAD A LOW DIAMOND AND YOUR PARTNER DOES HAPPEN TO HAVE THE KING, AND LOSES IT TO EAST’S ACE, YOUR QUEEN WILL BE PROMOTED TO HIGH CARD IN THAT SUIT. AS LONG AS THE SECOND ROUND OF DIAMONDS IS NOT TRUMPED BY ONE OF THE OPPONENTS, YOUR QUEEN WILL WIN A TRICK IN PLACE OF YOUR PARTNER’S KING, AND YOUR TEAM WILL BE NO WORSE OFF FOR HAVING LOST YOUR PARD’S PLANNED WINNER IN THE SUIT.
LEADING FROM QUEENS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT TECHNIQUES FOR AVOIDING GETTING SET ON HIGH BID HANDS. SUCCESSFUL TEAMS WILL HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN PARTNERS THAT, WHENEVER POSSIBLE, THIS APPROACH WILL BE USED IN ORDER TO BACK UP THE PARTNER PLAYING THIRD WHEN HE MAKES THE RECOMMENDED “THIRD HAND HIGH” PLAY AND PLAYS HIS KING WHEN NECESSARY IN ORDER TO KEEP THE OPPONENTS FROM STEALING A TRICK WITH A LOW CARD ON THE FIRST ROUND OF A SUIT.
IT IS NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE TO PROTECT YOUR PARTNER FROM LOSING A KING WHEN YOU MUST LEAD A NEW SUIT IN HIS DIRECTION. BY MAKING SURE, HOWEVER, TO LEAD NEW SUITS AWAY FROM QUEENS WHENEVER POSSIBLE, YOU WILL MINIMIZE THE EXTENT TO WHICH YOUR TEAM GETS SET AND EVENTUALLY LOSES GAMES AS A RESULT OF YOUR HAVING TO RUN THIS RISK.
NOW, WHY JESSEE JACKSON?
JUST AS THE VICE PRESIDENT IS ALWAYS PREPARED TO STEP UP IN CASE THE PRESIDENT SHOULD MEET HIS UNTIMELY DEMISE, YOU SHOULD THINK OF EVERY QUEEN AS A KING IN DISGUISE, WAITING TO TAKE POWER IF THE NEED SHOULD ARISE (NOBODY FORCED YOU TO READ THIS).
IF YOU ALWAYS THINK OF YOUR QUEEN AS A POTENTIAL RULER, YOU OFTEN WILL BE ABLE TO CHECKER OUT IN HER NEW CROWN WHEN SHE SAYS
KING ME!
GOOD LUCK AND HAPPY SPADING!
Tiger_Galt
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