The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1909-05-16
THE TACTICS OF HEARTS
POINTS WEIGH THE AVERAGE
PLAYER OFTEN OVEREOOKS.

One Source or Weakness In the Manage.
ment OF the Plain suits-Leads and
Dtsoards-Case OF q HopelessIy Bad
Hand-As to Calculating the Odds.
Any person who has given close atten-
ton to the game Of hearts must have
observed that the knowledge OF tactics
possessed by the average player is usually
limited to two things: He knows when it is
right to lead a plain suit or to lead hearts,
and he knows when to discard a plain
suit instead OF a heart.
But when 1t comes to the proper card
to play from certain combinations in plain
suits or In hearts it is either top or bottom
with him. and he has nc conception pf
the merits OF the intermediate lead. In
discarding 1t is usually an ace or a king
that he gets rid Of and he never dreams
OF the greater danger OF keeping an I'M
played suit Of three cards to a seven
The great weakness of the average
heart players game is in his management
Of the plain suits. His favorite lead is a
singleton. or failing that. a two card suit.
His theory is that when that. suit is led
for the second or third time he will get
rid OF q heart.
But in this he oyerlooks the personal
equation. II the sdverssries are sharp
they will at onoe suspect the nature of the
lead, especially II they know the leaders
habit, and they will avoid the suit on
general principles, al it is bad tactics to
play the other mans game.
1t Is much better to wait for other
players to lead your short suits, because
then there Is nothing to arouse their
suspicious that you are specially interested
in that suit and the one who opensi it will
very likely lead 1t twice himself. With
only two cards OF a suit II you put up the
higher and return the lower at onc with
the idea Of clearing your hand for a dis
card. which is a very common trick. do
not forget that every n at the table
knows what you do it for and that the
player who has the smaller cards knows
that he cannot load you II he leads them.
Never make the situation clear to a player
this way. Let Him figure it out for him
self.
The best plain suit leads are those in
which you are moderately long and safe,
having small cards enough to avoid win
ming a trick unless you want to. From
such suits the best opening leads are
interior cards, which put the other players
to a guess as 10 whether they should play
high or low. Such intermediate cards
are almost invariably covered, under
the impression that still higher cards will
follow.
A very little experience at hearts will
convince any one that it is best to play
the higher cards irst in the plain suits,
keeping the lower for later rounds: but
larger experience will teach any student
Of the finer points Of the game hat there
distinguished from low cards. and the
highest cards OF all. A ten is a high card.
but an ace ls a sure winner as well.
Every skat player knows that in a nullo,
which is very much like hearts in prin-
ciple, intermediate cards are the best
leads, because they put the player who is
trying not to win the trick into difficulties.
The only distinction necessary to make in
applying the science Of skat to hearts
is to allow for the greater number of cards
In the suits, thirteen instead of eight.
The average heart p layer, having
got the idea into his head that the chances
OF winning a trick and getting a heart
in it increase with the number Of times
the suit has been led, jumps into the
game with his highest cards or the first
round, no matter who leads the suit,
II Is % to 1. he will tell you. against his
getting a heart the first time II he has
only four of the suit led, so up goes his
ace.
On the second round it will be still
. to l in favor of getting off free. Sc he
chances it with his mex higher. With
him IL is anything to escape the deadly
.L.sl .z,,,l "a, u,hich IL iS = 70 4 that kn
will get loaded.
But In many cases eve % to 1 in your
is a needless risk. Suppose you
hold such a suit as A 10 7. 8 2. which
Is what is called a safe suit, because
II is very improbable that you will win
q trick in It, no matter how much it is
led.
II you have to lead such a suit or play
second hand 1t is taking quite an unneces-
sary risk to begin with the ace. Sup
pose il is IS to l against your getting
a heart on it when you have only five
Of the suit. why take even that
risk? 1t Ia just as bad policy to begin
the trey or deuce, although that is
probably the selection that would be
by nine players out of ten, because
you leave yourself open to being forced
10 win the second or third round, and
every heart player knows that a suit
possibly go three times if you
five Of it.
The correct lead from all suits in which
.ou can duck three rounds is an interior
,ard. From A 10 ! 3 , the best opening
Iesd or second hand play is the ten. AS
player you may want the lead and
play your ace, but in any other position
the risk, however small. of getting
, heart on the first round. a risk that is
always run when you put on the ace.
There is no greater mistake in playing
in which a single heart
shuts you out from the pool, than to
play high cards of a suit in which you
ire safe, because nc matter how small
he risk may be its consequences are
haodah Nv the ara