Bridge | 28 October 2023

It’s surprising how many bridge players seem to think they’ll never be able to execute a squeeze. They talk as though squeezes are the preserve of experts – a view no doubt reinforced by all those technical terms like ‘rectifying the count’ and ‘isolating the menace’. But there are plenty of books to guide people through simple squeezes, putting them within anyone’s grasp. And in any case, even beginners sometimes manage to catch their opponents in a vice simply by cashing all their winners. One of my favourite examples comes from a friend who’s a professional, and was partnering an inexperienced client (South):West led the ♦️3 to East’s ♦️K and South’s ♦️A. When trumps split 4-1, South could count only 11 tricks – the ♠️K was stranded. However, she cashed her winners, coming down to ♠️Q♦️109 opposite ♠️K3♦️5. Little did she know that a ‘stepping-stone’ squeeze was about to take place.