Author Archives: Julian Foster

One defender found a killing lead on today’s hand and it was possible by listening to the auction. Sadly her partner didn’t also find the killing play! But there were several interesting points to learn from the hand. For East … Continue reading →

This recent hand from a pairs session showed again the vagaries of matchpoint scoring. At most tables the auction began 1♦ 1♥. South competed to 3♦ and East West usually bid onto 3♥. That contract just had a trick in … Continue reading →

On this hand from a recent duplicate East had an extraordinary 9400 shape. But at one table there was another most unusual scenario where declarer could have made literally any number of tricks and it made no difference to the … Continue reading →

A splinter is a bid showing shortage in one suit while agreeing another. It is a very descriptive bid and often helps evaluate whether two hands fit together well or not. This hand from a recent pairs duplicate session was … Continue reading →

This hand is taken from a recent duplicate pairs session and shows how the vulnerability can make such a huge difference at that scoring format. South opened 1♣ and West overcalled 1♠. Although some might frown at overcalling with only … Continue reading →