Compound squeeze

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A compound squeeze is a type of play in the game of contract bridge. In this squeeze one opponent is squeezed such that some form of other squeeze emerges involving either or both players. Usually this term is used to reference a pentagonal squeeze. In this form of squeeze both players guard two suits, and one player guards a third suit. On the play of a card the player guarding three suits must give up one of the shared guards (so as not to provide immediate winners). Now each opponent singly guards one suit, and there is a third suit that is jointly guarded. This means that a double squeeze matrix exists. Note that there are pseudo compound squeezes, where the triply squeezed opponent can select the 'correct' shared suit, such that the entry situation precludes the proper functioning of the double squeeze.

A squeeze play is a tactic, often occurring late in the hand, used in contract bridge and other trick-taking games in which the play of a card forces an opponent to discard a winner or the guard of a potential winner. Although numerous types of squeezes have been analyzed and catalogued in contract bridge, they were first discovered and described in whist.

Contract bridge card game

Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other around a table. Millions of people play bridge worldwide in clubs, tournaments, online and with friends at home, making it one of the world's most popular card games, particularly among seniors. The World Bridge Federation (WBF) is the governing body for international competitive bridge, with numerous other bodies governing bridge at the regional level.

Other variations of compound squeezes:

Example

A4
AJ92
K864
A73
J2

N

W               E

S

107
Q7653K108
Q953J102
104KQ852
KQ98653
4
A7
J96
AJ
K86
7

N

W               E

S

Q76K10
Q95J102
K
53
4
A7
J

South plays in 6, East having doubled the bid of 5. West leads the 10. Despite the potential defensive ruff, the declarer must duck the lead to East's queen in order to rectify the count. East returns a trump (a red card would reduce the situation to other sorts of squeeze ending). The declarer has 7 spade tricks, a heart, a club, and two diamonds. The twelfth trick can be obtained by compound squeeze: assuming only East guards clubs, he will have to ultimately unguard one of red suits on the first squeeze card; that suit will serve as the "common suit" for the latter double squeeze. The declarer draws trumps, cashing the A in the process for a Vienna coup. When declarer leads the sixth trump (5), the position as on the right diagram is reached.

In the card game of contract bridge, to duck means to play low to a trick to which one has led, losing it intentionally in order to set up a suit or to preserve a control or entry. While mechanically identical, a duck is a manoeuver in one's own suit, while a hold up is in a suit played by the opponents. Nevertheless, the terms are used interchangeably with duck or ducking more common.

The double squeeze is a type of squeeze play in the card game of Bridge.

The Vienna coup is an unblocking technique in contract bridge made in preparation for a squeeze play. It is so named because it was originally published by James Clay (1804-1873) after observing it being executed in the days of whist by "the greatest player in Vienna" — identity unknown.

West discards a heart, dummy a club, but East now has a problem, as he must discard one of red suits:

  • If he discards a diamond, declarer can now cash K and A. On the last spade, a classic double-squeeze position occurs, where both players cannot guard hearts.
  • If he discards a heart, declarer can now cash A and A. Again, a double-squeeze is executed, as both players cannot guard diamonds.

The motive is similar to the one in guard squeeze East is squeezed in three suits and forced to abandon the help to his partner in one of them.

A guard squeeze is a type of squeeze in contract bridge where a player is squeezed out of a card which prevents his partner from being finessed. The squeeze operates in three suits, where the squeezed player protects the menaces in two suits, but cannot help his partner anymore in the third suit after the squeeze is executed.

Related Research Articles

In contract bridge and similar games, a finesse is a card play technique which will enable a player to win an additional trick or tricks should there be a favorable position of one or more cards in the hands of the opponents.

In contract bridge, a simultaneous double squeeze is a double squeeze in which both opponents are squeezed by the same card, as opposed to non-simultaneous double squeeze where the two opponents are squeezed in different tricks.

The simple squeeze is the most basic form of a squeeze in contract bridge. When declarer plays a winner in one suit, an opponent is forced to discard a stopper in one of declarer's two threat suits.

In trick-taking games, to ruff means to play a trump card to a trick. According to the rules of most games, a player must have no cards left in the suit led in order to ruff. Since the other players are constrained to follow suit if they can, even a low trump can win a trick. In some games, like Pinochle and Preferans, the player who cannot follow suit is required to ruff. In others, like Bridge and Whist, he may instead discard. Normally, ruffing will win a trick. But it is also possible that a subsequent player will overruff. This is not always a bad thing—see uppercut below.

An endplay, in bridge and similar games, is a tactical play where a defender is put on lead at a strategic moment, and then has to make a play that loses one or more tricks. Most commonly the losing play either constitutes a free finesse, or else it gives declarer a ruff and discard. In a case where declarer has no entries to dummy, the defender may also be endplayed into leading a suit which can be won in that hand.

A strip squeeze is a declarer technique at contract bridge combining elements of squeeze and endplay.

In contract bridge, the trump squeeze is a variant of the simple squeeze. In a trump squeeze, declarer has a suit that can be established by ruffing, but the defender being squeezed is guarding that suit. However, if he happens to also guard another suit, the squeeze card will force him to unguard one.

Pseudo-squeeze is a type of deceptive play in contract bridge. The declarer goes through the motions of executing a genuine squeeze where none exists, in the hope that a defender misreads the actual position and misdefends. The pseudo-squeeze simply gives the defender able to recognize the possibility of a squeezed position a chance to go wrong.

The trump coup is a contract bridge coup used when the hand on lead has no trumps remaining, while the next hand in rotation has only trumps, including a high one that would have been onside for a direct finesse if a trump could have been led. The play involves forcing that hand to ruff, only to be overruffed. A similar motive is met in coup en passant, where indirect finesse is used instead of direct.

A triple squeeze is a squeeze against one player, in three suits; a more explicit definition is "three simple squeezes against the same player."

Loser on loser play is a type of declarer's play in contract bridge, usually in trump contracts, where the declarer discards a loser card on an opponent's winner, instead of ruffing.

In trick-taking card games like bridge, the beer card is the seven of diamonds playing card when it is agreed that, if a player wins the last trick of a hand with the 7, his partner must buy him a beer. It is not considered as part of the rules of these games, but an optional and informal side-bet between players. This practice is likely originated from Danish Tarot or Skat in the middle of the 20th century.

Backwash squeeze is a rare squeeze which involves squeezing an opponent which lies behind declarer's menace. A variation of this, known as the "Sydney Squeeze" or "Seres Squeeze", was discovered in play at a rubber bridge game in Sydney, Australia in 1965, by the Australian great Tim Seres; it was later attested by famous bridge theorist Géza Ottlik in an article in The Bridge World in 1974, as well as in his famous book Adventures in Card Play, co-authored with Hugh Kelsey.

A clash squeeze is a three suit bridge squeeze with a special kind of menace, referred to as clash menace. The clash menace is one that might fall under a winner in the opposite hand, because it can be covered by another card in an opponent's hand. If the clash squeeze can force the opponent to discard his guard, then the clash menace can be cashed separately from the winner opposite. For example, consider this layout of the spade suit:

An entry squeeze exerts pressure by threatening the length of a defender's holding in a side suit. In many familiar squeezed positions, such as a simple or double squeeze, the rank of a defender's holding prevents declarer from cashing a threat until the squeeze has matured. This situation is also present in entry squeezes, but in addition a defensive holding interferes with declarer's entries, preventing declarer from effectively going back and forth between his hand and dummy.

A knockout squeeze is a squeeze in three suits, one of which is the trump suit. The defender's trump holding is needed to prevent declarer from making a successful play involving trumps, including one as prosaic as ruffing a loser. Because the knockout squeeze does not threaten to promote declarer's trumps to winners it is termed a non-material squeeze. Other non-material squeezes include entry squeezes, single-suit squeezes and winkles.

The saturated squeeze is a type of squeeze play in the card game of Bridge.