In the age of advanced electronics, sometimes I am overwhelmed by all the data available! Today, I had two surprises. First, some last-day-of-the-Gopher Regional photos popped up in my digital camera. Second, while combing through my enormous pile of saved emails, I found an email about a clever falsecard, signed: "Jack Rhatigan; Victim"!
My thanks to Jack and to all those who posed for me at the Gopher. Enjoy!
I offer this as an example of a false card that cannot hurt, and may cause your opponents great concern. At pairs, North held: 2, KQJ, J86432, 832. South opened 1 spade with: AQ876, A10872, 9, J10, everyone vul. West bid 1NT with KJ95, 53, AKQ, A765, and all passed.
South won the opening lead of the spade deuce with the ace, and declarer played the jack! Now south (yours truly) started to think. "Would LHO overcall 1NT with KJ doubleton of spades?" Perhaps West just made a poor bid. Would north lead a singleton spade instead of searching elsewhere? Yes, sometimes.
Finally, after soul searching, I continued spades - losing three of the tricks our side could have taken. All this was because declarer - a bridge player and not a "card pusher" - played the spade jack. West offered me the hook; it got firmly imbedded and I took the bait. Really a great falsecard.
Declarer made 4NT instead of the 1NT he would have made had he played a small spade and received a heart shift.
Jack Rhatigan, Victim
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