Ruffing in declarer's own hand

This page deals with a trump holding where declarer has more than dummy. The most common situation is where declarer has five and dummy has three, but the same arguments would apply if the holding was 5:4, 6:3, 6:4, 6:5 etc.

We have seen from the page on ruffing in dummy that extra tricks are generated by ruffing in the hand with fewer trumps (the short hand; usually dummy). It is important to realise that extra tricks are not generated by ruffing in the hand with the majority of trumps (the longer hand; usually declarer).

In a contract of four spades, declarer gains nothing by ruffing clubs in her own hand. If trumps break 3:2, the eight top tricks here will be topped up by at least an extra two in diamonds.

Ten tricks are on top here in a contract of four spades. While there is no gain in ruffing clubs, if this suit is attacked from the opening lead, you would, of course, ruff the second round, purely to stop the rot.

The apparent exception : There is only one occasion when declarer would deliberately set out to ruff in the long hand, and this is not for extra tricks, but to set up small cards in a suit in dummy by ruffing out the rest of the suit. See the page on ruffing out a suit.

Before I am inundated with emails telling me about 'dummy reversal', yes,  I am aware of it and hope to put a page in on that rare topic around 2006.

The contrast between the value of ruffing in the short hand versus ruffing in the long hand is one of the most important principles in the game. It affects declarer play, the bidding and defence.

Declarer play: We have already laboured the point that ruffing in the short hand gives extra tricks while ruffing in the long hand does not. The associated problem is that setting up a ruff in the long hand often uses up one of dummy's precious entries and perhaps wastes the opportunity of a finesse.

The bidding: We should give extra credit to shortages in the hand with fewer trumps--three points for a void, two for a singleton and one for a doubleton. We should not give extra credit to shortages in the hand with the majority of trumps; this can be a liability rather than an advantage. 

Defence: If it looks as if declarer is taking advantage of a shortage in dummy, the defender's job is to lead trumps, thus reducing dummy's ruffing potential. If declarer is ruffing in her own hand (usually the long hand), you can lead this suit as a defender quite happily. At worst it does no harm, and at best it may embarrass declarer who may find she has insufficient trumps to ruff in and draw the opponents trumps             (the forcing defence).  

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