Squeeze-Trim-Endplay: Two Suits
There is a second type of squeeze-trim endplay. The basic situation is this:
Q --
AQ xx
xx KQJ
-- --
x
Kx
A
x
On the winning club, Lefty has no good discard. If Lefty blanks the ace of hearts, you can lead a heart and win three tricks. Lefty cannot pitch a spade, that gives up a spade trick. So Lefty has to pitch a diamond. Now you can cash the ace of diamonds, removing Lefty's last diamond, and then run the endplay.
The loser count is 3. When it works, you still lose a trick in the throw-in suit and the endplay suit.
By Any Other Name
If there is a good name for this type of squeeze-trim-endplay, it eludes me. Note that in the standard endplay, sometimes the opponent is thrown in on the same suit as the endplay (e.g., you lead towards AQ9), and sometimes the opponent is thrown in on a different suit. There is no difference in terminology there.
On this website, this variation is sometimes called the "two-suited" squeeze-trim-endplay.
Variation
Change the above example to give declarer a major tenace instead of a minor tenace. Now it is the simple, well-known, throw-in endplay. The club and diamond winners can be cashed in either order.
Q --
Kx xx
xx KQJ
-- --
x
AQ
A
x
But now add a card to each hand (below). Now the count is wrong for a throw-in endplay -- the loser count is supposed to be two, but instead it is three. If you cash a diamond and then a club, Lefty pitches a heart on the club. There is no way to rectify the count in this example.
Q --
Kxx xx
xx KQJx
-- --
x
AQx
A
x
However, the squeeze-trim-endplay comes to the rescue. If you cash the club first and Lefty discards a heart, you can set up a heart trick; if Lefty discards a diamond, the remaining diamond can be trimmed. For purposes of diagnosing this at the table, note that the loser count is right for the squeeze-trim-endplay.
Obscure Variation
In the above examples, one suit is the throw-in suit and another is the endplay suit. It is possible for each suit to potentially have both functions:
AQ --
AQ xx
xx KQJx
-- --
Kx
Kx
A
x
Occurrence
I would guess that this type of squeeze-trim-endplay is more common than the other type. However, the other type is far more commonly reported, at least in books. My guess is that the other type is simply more exotic, hence more likely to be reported or put in a book.
NEXT:
Variations
From actual play
Squeeze-Trim-Endplay Hands
|