Extra Tricks from Length

If you have more cards in a suit than the other side, you can play it until they run out. Once they can only discard, your remaining cards are all good. For example:

Since you have high cards and length, you can establish both at the same time. Lead a small card from the board and put in the Queen. If flanker wins this trick, lead the suit from your hand on the second trip. No matter what flanker plays, you play low. You must lose one more trick no matter what you do. If both opposing players follow suit the second round, playing the King from the table on the third round will clear the suit. The two small cards remaining in dummy are now ready tricks.

Keeping the Lanes Open

Your play will go smoothly if you keep the lanes open between your own hand and dummy as declarer, and between you and your partner if you are defending. We have already seen two ways to keep the lanes open, playing honors from the short hand first, and declining to win an early trick to preserve a small card for later.

Sometimes the need is so critical that you must overplay a high card. For example:

First play the Ace, then an honor from dummy, playing low from your hand. On the third trip, overtake the remaining honor with your King. Now you can run the suit with no awkward interruption.