Protecting your masters from the ruff
Updated
An ace or ten that gets ruffed hands a big pile of points to the opponents. So protecting your masters is a card-play priority.
Draw trumps first
The best protection is often to knock out the opponents' trumps before cashing your side suits. With no trumps, opponents must follow: your ace runs. That's the whole point of drawing trumps when you have a long, strong suit to cash.
Spot the short suits
Beware suits where an opponent is likely short or void (from bids, discards, an earlier ruff). Leading that suit risks the ruff. Better to attack a suit where everyone still holds cards.
Mind the order of tricks
- Make sure the opponents can no longer ruff before cashing a side master.
- If you can't draw trumps, cash quickly before the suit becomes ruffable.
- Keep an entry so you don't get stranded.
Example: protecting the ace of clubs
You took 110 in diamonds with J♦ 9♦ A♦ K♦ 8♦, A♣ 10♣ and A♠. Three trumps are missing: the 10, the queen and the 7.
- Round 1, the jack. If the other three all follow: 4 trumps gone, 4 in your hand, 8 - 4 - 4 = 0. Nobody can ruff anymore.
- If someone discards, one trump remains outside. The 9 will pull it, since the 10, queen and 7 are all lower.
- Only then: A♣, then 10♣ (the master once the ace has gone), then A♠. No ruff possible.
Had you played the A♣ and then the 10♣ before drawing trumps, the ten would have been at real risk: after a first round of clubs where everyone follows, 3 clubs remain outside for three players, and it only takes one of them to be out.
The risk grows every round
On the first round of a suit, an opponent can only ruff if they were void from the start. On the second round, a singleton is enough. On the third, a doubleton will do. The more a suit has been played, the more likely a ruff becomes. Key guidelines:
- Cash your aces in fresh suits rather than in suits already played twice.
- On defence you can't draw trumps: take your points while the suit is fresh.
- A ten is only a master once the ace has fallen: don't expose it before.
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FAQ
How do you avoid getting your ace ruffed?
Usually by drawing the opponents' trumps first: with none, they must follow and your ace runs. Otherwise cash it early before the suit becomes ruffable.
How do you know if a suit risks being ruffed?
By cross-checking clues: an opponent who bid short, discarded, or already ruffed that suit is probably out of it.
How do you protect a ten without the ace?
Wait for the ace to fall: your ten then becomes the highest card in the suit. You can also lead a small card in the suit to force the ace out, then cash your ten, provided nobody can ruff it.