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Home > Declarer > Recognising when to play for the drop
 

 


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Recognising when to play for the drop 

We are sometimes faced with the decision-shall we finesse or shall we play for the drop ?

Consider these two cases:-

(1)

West

#

East
  A K J 4 3   6 5 2

 

(2)

West

#

East
  A K J 4 3   76 5 2

In this situation, whatever our eventual plan, if entries permit we would play the ace first just to see if the queen appears.

There is an old saying 'eight ever, nine never' meaning that with eight cards you will always (ever) finesse whilst with nine, you will play for the drop of the queen. The percentages for the two plays are very close, so don't let this be a major influence on your play !

So, unless you have information on defender's shape or point count ( not to be disregarded; can be very helpful) in (1) above, we would lead from the East hand and finesse the jack, while in (2) we would play the ace and the king and hope the queen falls.

How do you play these hands ?

Dummy
S 8 4 3
H 8 5 3
D A K J 7 4
C K 10

#

Declarer
S 10 6
H A K J 4 2
D 9 6 3 2
C A Q

The contract is four hearts and the defenders start with the ace, king and queen of spades. Carry on !

Play the ace of hearts, enter dummy with the king of clubs and finesse the jack of hearts. Having drawn trumps, play the ace and king of diamonds and run the rest of the diamonds. A lucky player will make eleven tricks. You need to be very unlucky not to make ten.

This one is similar.

Dummy
S K 5 4 3
H K 7 6
D K 7 6
C 5 4 3

#

Declarer
S A J 8 6 2
H A Q 2
D A 3
C 8 7 6

The contract is four spades and defenders take three club tricks before switching to a diamond. Everything depends upon the play of the trump suit. Do you play for the drop or finesse the jack ?

Well done ! If you've read the first part of this page, you'll know that the chance is marginally greater that the outstanding spades are 2:2 so you decline the finesse and play the ace and king of spades.

Your thoughts should follow similar lines if your holding is, say,

  A Q 10 7 6 5

#

   4 3 2

With nine cards, your best play is the ace. This will often fell a singleton king or jack. If not, you can still lead towards your Q 10 and with a favourable lie, lose only one trick.

With eight cards in such a suit ie

  A Q 10 7 6 5

#

   4 3

your best bet is to finesse the queen.

When you are ready, have a look at these practise hands which encompass concepts from all aspects of declarer play.
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 Historical Snippet

Dwight D Eisenhower was Supreme Allied Commander before the invasion in Normandy in 1944, and subsequently President of the United States. Throughout his service career and later, he had a keen interest in bridge, and indeed, during the nerve-racking time after the landings both in Casablanca and Normandy, he relaxed in a game with his fellow officers.

His skill has been described as "superior--capable of holding his own in the best club games below the most expert".