Hand XVIII
Underplay.
The Play
Remark (Trick 4).—Y has led from ace, queen, knave, ten; and B, the weak trump hand, has no more clubs.
Remark (Trick 5).—Z underplays in trumps. To continue hearts, with queen, king marked against him (see Trick 2), or to open diamonds, would be very disadvantageous, so a trump lead is forced, more especially as Y has command of clubs, and B is about to trump that suit. The lead of ace or king of trumps would leave the lead with Z, who would then still be in a difficulty as to his next lead. Further, it is of importance to endeavour to place the lead in Y’s hand, that he may continue clubs. Also, if the underplay succeeds, it is not at all unlikely that YZ will win the game.
Tricks 8 to 13.—Z makes ace, king of trumps, and
YZ win the game.
The Hands
(Z’s hand is given above.)
| A’s Hand. | Y’s Hand. | B’s Hand. | |||
| Qn, 7, 5, 3, 2 | ♠ | Knv, 8 | ♠ | 9, 4 | ♠ |
| Kg, 6 | ♥ | Ace, 2 | ♥ | Qn, 9, 8, 7 | ♥ |
| 8, 5, 4, 2 | ♣ | Ace, Qn, Knv, 10, 3 | ♣ | 9, 6 | ♣ |
| Ace, Qn | ♦ | 10, 5, 4, 3 | ♦ | Knv, 9 8, 7, 2 | ♦ |
At Trick 5, if A puts on queen of spades, second hand, he saves the game. May be, a very shrewd player would have seen through the position, including the importance of preventing Y from getting the lead if possible; but A can hardly be blamed for passing, as it is unlikely that both ace and king of spades are in Z’s hand.