RETURNING PARTNER’S LEAD
To return partner’s lead, or to play for your own long suit? At times you will find this a most difficult question to decide. It can be stated that ordinarily it is better play to return your partner’s original lead, for rarely are two suits made against a “no-trump” declaration. In fact, it is hard enough to bring in one suit.... It will assist you to settle this difficulty if you notice carefully the card led by your partner, and infer from it the length of his suit. You can often tell how many cards of that suit are in the dealer’s hand. If, for instance, your partner’s lead indicates four cards and there are three cards of that suit in dummy and two cards in your own hand, it is evident that the dealer must hold four, and the chances are, if the lead is returned, he will eventually be left with the master card. As it is, of course, your purpose to avoid making cards good for the adversary, should you hold a good suit under these circumstances and a sure re-entry card, abandon your partner’s lead by all means and play for your own hand.
When dummy holds four cards in your partner’s suit, hesitate to return the lead, if by so doing you may establish the suit for your opponent; but when dummy is weak in the suit, lead at the first opportunity, through the dealer’s hand. Sometimes, if your own long suit is headed by ace and king, it is well to lead the king before returning your partner’s lead. This should always be done if the queen is on the table, to make sure that your suit will eventually be led through dummy’s queen. If you hold ace queen or ace queen jack over the king in dummy, you would naturally prefer that your partner lead the suit; but with a hand containing a sure re-entry card in another suit, particularly when you hold the commanding card of the adversaries’ suit, do not wait for your partner to lead; establish the suit yourself. If, with no re-entry card, you intend playing for your own long suit, do not draw all the cards of your suit from your partner’s hand. If your partner has a card of your suit as well as a card of re-entry, your suit will make; otherwise it is useless.
With four cards or fewer of your partner’s suit, the highest card should always be returned. This is done in order that the suit may not be blocked, and also to show your partner what high cards are held by the dealer. When it is evident that you and your partner hold an entire suit with the same number of cards in each hand, it is well to arrange the lead on the last round of the suit according to whether you would prefer to lead up to weakness or to have your partner lead through dummy’s strength.
With five cards of your partner’s suit, especially if his lead indicates but four, it is very difficult to decide how the suit should be returned. If a low card is returned, it may lead your partner to believe that all the high cards are in the dealer’s hand, and induce him to discontinue the suit. On the other hand, the return of a high card may block the suit so that you will be left with a card which may never make. No rule can be given for this situation. It must be left to the judgment of the player.