Scissors coup
Encyclopedia
Scissors coup is a type of coup
, named so because it cuts communications between defenders, most commonly by discarding a key card from either the declarer's own hand or dummy. This enables declarer to prevent the defenders transferring the lead, usually for a defensive ruff.
Consider this hand and auction with an opening lead of the eight of hearts.
Superficially, it looks like there are only two losers: a heart and a diamond. However, if East plays the queen on the opening lead so South must win with the king, he can next get in with the ace of hearts and lead a third round to give his partner a trump promotion
. The solution is elegant; upon winning the king of hearts cross to the king of spades and lead the king of clubs, throwing the jack of hearts. This Scissors coup has negated the heart entry to East's hand by enabling South to ruff on the second round of hearts and thereby eliminate the threat of a trump promotion.
Coup (bridge)
In contract bridge, coup is a generic name for various techniques in play, denoting a specific pattern in the lie and the play of cards; it is a special play maneuver by declarer.There are various types of coup which can be effected.- Pure Coups :...
, named so because it cuts communications between defenders, most commonly by discarding a key card from either the declarer's own hand or dummy. This enables declarer to prevent the defenders transferring the lead, usually for a defensive ruff.
Consider this hand and auction with an opening lead of the eight of hearts.
| West | North | East | South |
|---|---|---|---|
| |3 | 5 | ||
| Pass | Pass | Pass |
Trump promotion
Trump promotion is a technique in contract bridge where the defenders create an otherwise non-existing trump trick for themselves. The most common type of trump promotion occurs when one defender plays a side suit through, in which both the declarer's hand and the other defender are void: Spades...
. The solution is elegant; upon winning the king of hearts cross to the king of spades and lead the king of clubs, throwing the jack of hearts. This Scissors coup has negated the heart entry to East's hand by enabling South to ruff on the second round of hearts and thereby eliminate the threat of a trump promotion.