The Schnapsen Log

Who’s in Control? (solution)

Martin Tompa

Even though the threshold of 33 trick points is meaningless for you in this deal, since Polona has only one game point to go, it’s still very tempting to capture that juicy ♥T with your ace. That would bring you to 39 trick points, and cashing ♦A would bring you to at least 53. What would you draw from the stock? Either ♥K or ♦Q would give you a marriage, plenty of points to win. What about the remaining possibilities, ♠Q or ♣A or ♦T? Any of those would bring you no extra points and defeat.

If this is how you started your analysis, greedy to capture ♥T and salivating over those potential marriages, you didn’t start off on your best possible foot. What is the first thing you should consider when following to the last trick before the stock is exhausted? This was a lesson from long ago: you should first consider what happens if you duck. It’s much easier to analyze, since you know exactly what card you will draw from the stock. The obvious card to discard on ♥T is ♣K, leaving Polona on lead in this position:

Polona: (60 points)
♠ Q
♥ K
♣ A
♦ TQ

You: (18 points)
♠ —
♥ AQJ
♣ —
♦ AK

What can Polona lead now? Clearly not a diamond, because you would take all the remaining tricks. She has to lead either her trump or ♠Q. It doesn’t matter which one she chooses, because your next few leads are forced, more or less: you cannot afford to let Polona win a diamond trick, so you’ll be playing your other suit, trumps. Let’s suppose she leads ♠Q. You trump with ♥Q and pull her last trump with ♥A, resulting in this position:

Polona: (60 points)
♠ —
♥ —
♣ A
♦ TQ

You: (39 points)
♠ —
♥ J
♣ —
♦ AK

When you now lead your last trump, Polona is squeezed. If she discards a diamond, you take the remaining tricks. If she instead discards ♣A, that trick brings your trick point total to 52, and cashing ♦A brings it to 66 exactly.

“That was a beautifully executed duck and squeeze, dear,” your Uncle Hans tells you proudly. “You have become quite the master.”

© 2013 Martin Tompa. All rights reserved.

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