Spades Strategy: Requesting a Trump Promotion

There are three scenarios when we are on lead and want to request a trump promotion from our partner.

The first scenario is when we want our partner to try and win an unsupported spade honor independently from our own.

An example:

Our partner has won their likely one and only trick.

Our team already has one overtrick on this 12 bid table, but it looks like our side has run out of tricks.

However, there is some hope for the setting trick if our partner has the J♠️.

If our partner does have it, it likely does not have enough other spades with it to win a natural spade trick, otherwise partner would have bid 2.

We must give partner a chance to win it before the opponents break and lead spades forcing us to overtake our partner's potential J♠️.

We can give partner a chance to win it via a trump promotion. To do that, we have to lead a suit our partner is void in, even if another opponent is also void.

Since we have led the 13th diamond, we are pleading to our partner "I know East may overruff you, but I want you to fight for this trick."

Our partner trumps with the highest spade he has and luckily it was the J♠️.

With a little luck, cooperation from our partner, and skillful decision making, our partner has won the setting trick as our AKQ♠️ are sure winners.

Note how this tactic might have even worked even if partner did not have the J♠️, but just the T♠️.

Going back to before...

If West were the player holding the J♠️ and held back from playing it, our partner's T♠️ would win the setting trick.

Going back one last time, notice how if spades were led even one time, any chance of an 8th trick for our side vanishes. This is why it was important for our partner to try and win his spade seperately from us.

Our top spades soaked up our partner's J♠️ before it could win trumping a side suit.

The second scenario we would want to request partner to trump high is to break open the spades suit and lead spades for us.

An example:

With this hand, we have a clear source of extra tricks in hearts if the opponents are not able to trump.

If our partner can ruff high for a trump promotion either winning the A♠️ or potentially forcing it out of the opponents, we have enough tricks to set the opponents.

Our partner should know that since we have a big bid, we must have an impressive spade suit. We would love spades broken and for partner to lead the suit.

We request partner's assistance and lead the 13th diamond, pleading partner to trump high.

Partner does precisely what we require, and now we pull the opponents spades.

With spades out of the way, the last thing to do is knock out the A♥️ and K♥️.

Knowing the opponents are set, we can either claim 3 or 4 tricks at this point if we want an extra bag or not.

The last scenario we would request a trump promotion from partner is if we are fighting for one last trick. However, we should only request a promotion in these situations if we have no other source of tricks in a sidesuit.

If we are one spade short of a natural spade trick (K, Qx, Jxx, Txxx), we can request a promotion from our partner.

This is especially true if our partner has been overruffed earlier in the hand since our partner's honors might be inadequately protected now, reducing any harm in asking for one.

In this example, we have no more tricks to win except one potential spade trick if our partner can help us.

Leading clubs or spades could be lethal as it might allow the opponents to gain the lead and pull the remaining spades from our side.

And our team is set.

But if we can get our partner to knock out the A♠️ or K♠️ by leading a sidesuit, we can salvage our team's bid.

Going back to before, we should lead a suit partner is void in - the 13th diamond.

Partner's J♠️ has fetched the A♠️ and our QT♠️ combination earns the last trick our team needed to secure our bids.

Here is one more example that emphasizes why we should only request a trump promotion once we have exhausted tricks in the other suits.

With this hand, we have a club trick left to win but also a spade trick if we can get a trump promotion. But it is often a mistake to ask for the trump promotion first!

This will work if West makes a mistake and trumps:

But let's go back, making West a formidabble opponent.

West has a clever play in this position.

If he discards a losing club, suddenly we have gained an immediate spade trick, but lose a club trick.

And our team is set.

This is why it is important to "cash out" (win all of your winning cards) before asking for a trump promotion.

Going back one last time, West is helpless after we cash out and ask for a trump promotion.

West does not have a loser to discard anymore and must either promote our spades or be overruffed.

And our team scrapes by with its two last tricks.

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