pm = new Array
pm[0]="Signaling at Spades is always ambiguous. It can't be helped. The early pitch of the heart queen might be interpreted by some as the start of a high-low signal asking for a heart lead. But I can call for hearts by tossing a low diamond."
pm[1]="Many players will keep track of the boss card in their long suit(s), since these suits are of most interest to them. It is the short suits -- those they are planning to cut -- that are treated lightly all too frequently."
pm[2]="The best possible result is a set. When this can no longer be achieved, strive for the best possible result, which is making you bid with no bags."
pm[3]="East-West did not handle their spades well at the end, but such misplays are more the rule than the exception. Don't be shy about taking advantage of the opponents' clumsiness."
pm[4]="You can always spot the weak players by their tendencies to throw queens and jacks at the first opportunity. Save those cards. They may be needed later to make your bid or to inflict a set."
pm[5]="Having an endless succession of bad hands is no excuse for making bids you know are bad. Nor can you afford to slough off in the play."
pm[6]="One of the strongest position in Spades is the overtrumping seat. Avoid leading a side suit which your partner must trump and the fourth hand is also void."
pm[7]="The manuever in the diamond suit was based on the assumption, or guess, that East had both the king and queen. His king-lead made that combination a likely probability."
pm[8]="When offered a ruff-and-sluff, the ruff should be taken by the partner with the shorter spades. This is the way to win extra tricks. Don't hesitate to trump from Kx of spades; you only count one trick from this combination."
pm[9]="Leading your long suit when covering a nil is a good idea when your partner can discard, but it can be fatal if the opponents can discard and your partner cannot."
pm[10]="How curious. When you won your heart ace you went set, but when you lost it you not only made your bid, you set the opponents! In general, it seldom pays to take an ace immediately."
pm[11]="This hand may seem trivial to the veteran spader, but I've seen too many players mess up in these situations. Either they play too few spades and allow the opponents to trump, or they pull too many and have no entry to their winners after giving up the lead."
pm[12]="No matter how feeble your spades, a long spade suit should be led. And if your partner leads an early spade, return the suit."
pm[13]="With a good 5-card spade suit, South's early trump lead is virtually automatic, as is North's spade return. At that point South had to judge the risk of a third spade lead. A 2-0 split would enable an opponent to win and draw South's last spade."
pm[14]="To stop a crossruff you must lead a spade. Each spade lead saves one trick if your lead is lost, and two tricks if your lead is won."
pm[15]="Leading the Ace of spades from Ax or Axx is generally a suicidal lead. But if you can read your partner for long spades, a spade lead may be essantial. On this deal it prevented East-West from scoring their spades separately to make their bid."
pm[16]="Whenever your side has the majority of spades, it is to your advantage to lead spades quickly to remove the oppositions spades. On such deals, the spades break itself is a key objective."
pm[17]="The Recipe of two rounds of spades applies when you believe your side has the majority of trumps. It is not a sure thing. Sometimes best results are obtained with one round, other times more. Two rounds works more often than other strategies."
pm[18]="Although South's early lead of a low spade looked risky (North may have had only a small trump), it was necessary to start spades that way. South gains if North has the ace or jack, and sometimes if he has neither as was the actual case."
pm[19]="It takes some convincing to persuade Spades players to lead trump, even when they have length and strength. Even more difficult is to persuade them of the value of a spade lead when they are very weak in trump."
pm[20]="An early low-spade lead from your partner asks for you to win it if you can and return the suit. You can overrule him, but you'd better have a damn good reason."
pm[21]="It took more than your three good guesses to beat the nil. West was faced with a guess on opening lead. His actual choice was reasonable, but turned out wrong."
pm[22]="The defender in front of the nil must be prepared to jettison his high cards early, before they can embarrass him. It won't always work, of course, and there is always the risk to his own bid. You pays yer money and takes yer chances."
pm[23]="Perhaps this deal was a bit unfair to the intermediate player. The 4-4-4-1 defense is easier to spot and to play when the defender behind the nil has the singleton. He can trump to his heart's delight."
pm[24]="Since you could not set the nil by direct means, you played in a manner that forced the cover hand to do so."
pm[25]="In this deal it became obvious as play progressed that there was no hope of setting the nil in the side suits. That left only the trump suit."
pm[26]="You and your partner have to work as a team. If your partner indicates a plan and you see nothing better, cooperate with your partner."
pm[27]="You have used the Forcing Strategy against this nil. Even though the cover hand began with a strong trump suit, two forces reduced it to rags and tatters. As long as you remembered to save your deuce of spades, the opponents were powerless."
pm[28]="This deal did not require guesswork; just sound technique. The Trump Sacrifice and Trump Reduction are two common defenses against nil bids. This deal permitted both defenses."
pm[29]="First, note the caution about stretching a bid when you have 4-3-3-3 distribution. "
pm[30]="Defend against double nils the same way as you defend against the ordinary types. On this deal, keeping track of hearts and spades provides you with a roadmap."
pm[31]="This deal should prove it is not that difficult to place key cards or even to read a hand. When West showed the cards for his 2-bid, the rest of them had to be with East."
pm[32]="By now it is clear that the key to the nil success on this deal is to keep track of your partner's count cards. When it shown early enough, that North cannot have a spade honor, South MUST keep some backers for his spade jack."
pm[33]="When West played his three count cards at Tricks 1-3, and North turned up later with the KQ of hearts, you could easily place East with everything else of value. The idea then was to persuade him to lead from his diamond king."
pm[34]="First, a word about the bidding: when you have trump length, be bold. Also consider your partner's bid. If your spade suit was Qxxxx or if Pard had bid only, take a conservative approach to your bid."
pm[35]="The first spade lead should come from the South hand, forcing West to go up with the ace. If North starts spades, West can hang on to his ace. Not brought out in the narrative was the fact that South leads the four of spades, retaining the deuce."
pm[36]="As soon as East played to the first trick, you could mark his hand for zero additional tricks. Even at this point you should be planning to help partner with a heart finesse, if the cards were right."
pm[37]="There were several ways to read this hand. West and South each bid 2. Early on, West showed a ruffing value and the spade king. North revealed the AKQ of hearts. Who else but East could have the ace of clubs?"
pm[38]="The deal points out both the value and the limitations of the Count Card Principle.  South could place high hearts with both North and East but could not distinguish between the ace and the king.  But often this is good enough."
pm[39]="The key to your analysis was East's discard of the small diamond at Trick 2. Had he thrown a high heart instead you would have no clue how to succeed."
pm[40]="Your partner may have aggressively, but your troubles were caused by foul distribution. Still with proper card reading, timing, and planning, you could have known at Trick 7 the bid was in the bag."


pm1 = new Array
pm1[0]="Your partner's early discard in a 12-bid (or higher) is usually a worthless card in a suit he DOESN'T want you to lead. Choose between giving him a cut or playing the other side suit. If the total bid were lower, treat the discard as a bag/set signal."
pm1[1]="You must keep track of the top card in ALL suits.\r\rAnd I need not mention that at nil bids you must keep track of the top AND bottom cards."
pm1[2]="Counting the spades that have been played and relating your partner's bid to his tricks taken can locate the last spade for you. You will know if your bid is assured or not."
pm1[3]="If East, on your right, had won the 11th trick and led a spade (you had only the Q9 left),you would go in with the 9 as your best hope of winning the remaining tricks."
pm1[4]="Pay attention to the order of your partner's plays. When he can't win the trick, high/low throws suggest he wants to bag. Low/high means he is still fighting."
pm1[5]="Once you think you have gained an advantage in the early skirmishing, turn sharply aggressive. Take deep finesses. Even if they fail you are still going to make your bid. If they win, you may even set."
pm1[6]="If you must lead from a Kx holding, expecting your partner to have strength in that suit, the king is the card to lead. This will enable your partner to win the important second round if he has either the ace or queen."
pm1[7]="Also, note the importance of not cashing the ace of diamonds at your first opportunity. It would have been your side's last trick."
pm1[8]="It is not always easy, I admit, to know if your partner can trump or to determine whose spades are longer or shorter. Some guesswork is usually required, but always be aware of the principle."
pm1[9]="On this deal you could not know if North had a third club. West could have defeated the nil by trumping your third round of clubs. The low-club lead had deceptive value, giving West a losing option."
pm1[10]="Of course, there are times when the loss of your ace, a count card, is disastrous. But you cannot know. Continue playing second-hand low. You'll come out ahead in the long run."
pm1[11]="Keep count of the spades that have been played or the ones that remain. Then you will know whether or not it's time to play on your side suit."
pm1[12]="On this deal, East had a tough decision when North led his last diamond. He knew if he trumped he'd be overtrumped. His decision to discard was a poor one; trumping saves his side's bid."
pm1[13]="South was lucky on this hand to find a good spade split, but the odds were in his favor. (North might have had one of the missing spades.) Take such risks in the early stages of the game, or when you are trailing badly. Play safe with a good lead."
pm1[14]="Spades is a game that requires heavy-duty concentration. Do not let bickering opponents distract you."
pm1[15]="You deduced your partner had spades because you had already seen all the side suit ace-kings. You've used an application of the Count Card Principle."
pm1[16]="Not brought out in the narrative is that South's recommended third lead, a low heart, is predicated by the presence of a side entry, the club ace. Without a sure entry, South would consider continuing with a high heart."
pm1[17]="You can be a strong Spades player without good manners, but you will have trouble finding equally strong players willing to pard you. Conduct yourself with class at all times."
pm1[18]="Had the spades been distributed 5-3-3-2, South could have trumped freely and had an easy time of it. Discarding losers until your side can gain the lead in a side suit is the way to counter the opponents' forcing strategy."
pm1[19]="The idea behind the spade lead, in this case, is one we have seen before. Lead spades to cut down on the enemy crossruff. South gave up nothing with his spade lead. If East wanted to play a third round he could always do so himself."
pm1[20]="East could have ensured her side's bid on several occasions by leading a diamond for West to trump. But with a doubleton herself, East could hardly be blamed for discounting a singleton in the East hand. Leading spades is the only way to deny West the diamond ruff."
pm1[21]="So what is the purpose of this deal? It is to emphasize the guesswork aspect of nil play. It can't be helped. Still, there are correct and incorrect techniques and you can only guess whether or not they will succeed. Finally, never yell at your partner for a misguess."
pm1[22]="Sacrificing one's winners is often necessary to defeat a nil. That's the main reason for not jacking up the bid after an opponent's nil. By the way, give credit to your partner for NOT sacrificing tricks willy-nilly. The defender behind the nil must try to win back your lost tricks."
pm1[23]="When the singleton is in front of the nil, It is tempting to cut, especially when a trump sacrifice appears necessary. This will ruin a pretty defense. The defender must be aware of the 4-4-4-1 defense and give it his best guess."
pm1[24]="In this case you had a clue. Whenver the cover hand makes a high bid, at least 5 or 6, it is often based on a long trump suit. You should avoid breaking spades. This is yet another reason why it doesn't pay to push one's bid after a nil."
pm1[25]="Because of your high spades it was apparent the only possible weakness the nil player could have is a 4-card spade suit. Beat a 4-spade nil by leading trump, and hope the cards are right."
pm1[26]="North wanted to reduce his spade length. His plan was to cut as often as possible. That's why you did not duck diamonds -- you needed the entries to give North club ruffs. North could not know if his plan would work, but even a faulty plan is better than none at all."
pm1[27]="If you study East's cards you see that he went wrong it Trick 1. Saving those deuces at nilis crucial for both sides. Even though East erred, the mark of a strong player is to take full advantage of such opportunities."
pm1[28]="Once again you got a little help from an opponent when West pushed diamonds once too often. You must be too sporting about taking advantage of such mistakes. That's Spades as it is played."
pm1[29]="Stay alert during play. Always count spades. On this deal you should have been able to place East with the bare king of spades at the critical point. Drop it, and you have a chance for the nil set on your next lead."
pm1[30]="More important is recognizing your own signs of fatigue and stress. They can cost you. Learn how to demand a break and go unwind."
pm1[31]="Your final play, leading the deuce from AQ2, surely went against the grain. But as long as you could place the club king with East you knew it was perfectly sound to do so."
pm1[32]="This deal first appeared on this website as You Be The Judge #8b. Even though all 52 cards were visible, one panelist saw the full solution. Could it be even easier when you see only 13 cards?"
pm1[33]="You couldn't know if he had any exit cards in other suits, nor could you tell whether your partner had the queen of diamonds. But giving East the lead at the critical point was a no-lose play."
pm1[34]="Next, note how you imagined the spade distribution. On many distributions your lead won't matter. You try to play for a distribution for which it will. (And you hope Pard is also on his toes.)"
pm1[35]="The ability to place the nine of spades in West's hand enabled to South to finish the spade suit correctly, leading the jack followed by the deuce. Naturally, South could not know his plan would work. All one can do is play correctly and hope the cards are right."
pm1[36]="Let's reexamine the bidding. Was West too aggressive with his 5-bid? Probably, yes. With a 90-point lead and knocking on the winner's door, he likely should have played safe. But... he didn't. That's Spades As It Is Played!"
pm1[37]="In general, watch closely the cards of the low bidder(s). When they play their count cards early, their hands are now empty. If you don't see their count cards early, their values must be in the spade suit."
pm1[38]="In this deal, if South absolutely needed his partner to have the heart ace he would have assumed North’s heart honor was indeed the ace.  Since the heart king would be sufficient for the bid, South chose the play that would work in either case."
pm1[39]="East's play was intended to provide information for his partner. This is sound strategy in general. Even if it occasionally backfires, as it did here, it is still the recommended way to play Spades."
pm1[40]="I posted this deal (also showing only South's hand) in a Spades message board about a year ago. I gave the same information as you saw. Some clown named Ruffkid solved it almost immediately. And so, dear friends, that is Spades As It Is Played!"