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Lesser Known Bridge Coups


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I stumbled across this humouristic list of lesser known bridge coups. I've posted it here for you to chuckle as well.

 

How many of your own "lesser known bridge coups" can you add to this list?

 

I call two plays - defensive errors - affectionately by the name "coup".

 

1. The Easter Coup - He has risen.

 

When a defender goes up with the ace in error.

 

2. The Elvis Presley Coup - the king is not dead

 

When with an king sitting under an ace the defender cashes the ace.

 

I suppose these could also be applied to declarer errors

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I got Grovenored this weekend. I didn't think it really happened in real life. I had AQ9x of spades in dummy and 8x in my hand. Spades are led. I play small to see what happens. RHO wins the king and switches. Later on as I am playing off long suits, LHO discards the jack. This is quite suspicious, cause if he hangs onto both the jack and ten, he can stick one in when I play the suit to keep me to two tricks (he'll have J7 and I'll have 9x with no more smalls to lead towards it). When I lead a spade, he follows small, and I play the ace, expecting the ten to drop (this is why you should pay attention to the opening lead spot, so you can use rule of eleven later!). But it doesn't. Grr!
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Thought I may as well list all the other better known coups as well. If I’ve missed any, please add them to this list.

 

Definition: a highly successful, unexpected stroke, act, or move; a clever action or accomplishment.

 

Alcatraz Coup

Bath Coup

Belladonna Coup

Coup En Passant

Crocodile Coup

Dentists Coup: This term refers to the extraction of a safe exit card from the hand of the opponent, and, by inference, the removal of a card that allows an opponent a safe play.

Deschapelles Coup

Devils Coup

Galileo Coup: The Galileo coup is so named because Galileo Galilei is usually credited with the invention of the telescope; this coup arises when the contract is in a suit in which the declaring side is missing both the Ace and King; if successful, the defenders end up being forced to play the Ace and King of trumps to the same trick, thus "telescoping" their two trump tricks into one.

Grand Coup (Trump Coup)

Merrimac Coup

Mortons Fork Coup

Pitt Coup

Robert Coup

Scissors Coup

Serpents Coup

Superglue Coup: The Superglue Coup is where a defender pulls out two cards together (as if they were superglued together). Declarer sees the cards and assumes they are adjacent in rank in the defender's hand. For example if declarer is missing K103 and one defender pulls the K and 3 out together declarer can assume that the defender does not have the 10.

Trump Coup

Vienna Coup

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Alcatraz Coup

Superglue Coup: The Superglue Coup is where a defender pulls out two cards together (as if they were superglued together). Declarer sees the cards and assumes they are adjacent in rank in the defender's hand. For example if declarer is missing K103 and one defender pulls the K and 3 out together declarer can assume that the defender does not have the 10.

If you are going to include stuff like this then you should also include other dodgy things like running a long suit quickly and throwing in a trick of the suit of the same colour somewhere in the middle in order to try and provoke a revoke.

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If you are going to include stuff like this then you should also include other dodgy things like running a long suit quickly and throwing in a trick of the suit of the same colour somewhere in the middle in order to try and provoke a revoke.

Anyone enjoying reading about that sort of thing should read www.poorbridge.com. It has loads of cool (but illegal) coups.

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I got Grovenored this weekend. I didn't think it really happened in real life. I had AQ9x of spades in dummy and 8x in my hand. Spades are led. I play small to see what happens. RHO wins the king and switches. Later on as I am playing off long suits, LHO discards the jack. This is quite suspicious, cause if he hangs onto both the jack and ten, he can stick one in when I play the suit to keep me to two tricks (he'll have J7 and I'll have 9x with no more smalls to lead towards it). When I lead a spade, he follows small, and I play the ace, expecting the ten to drop (this is why you should pay attention to the opening lead spot, so you can use rule of eleven later!). But it doesn't. Grr!

 

Of course it happens in real life. A common one is for a player not to split honors when it can't hurt to do so.

 

Simple example:

 

Dummy: K10xx

 

QJxx .............. Axx

 

Declarer: xx

 

Not splitting as West is really bad,* but it happens. You'll almost never be called on it. I recall this one in particular because a while ago when I was starting out I failed to split in this situation. Declarer then sat there staring at me, apparently having picked up some tell. He even said something like "did you just fail to split"? He eventually went with the K, but it was quite memorable.

 

* Assume it's some trump contract and it's clear that declarer can't get or won't ever need a second trick in this suit.

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If you are going to include stuff like this then you should also include other dodgy things like running a long suit quickly and throwing in a trick of the suit of the same colour somewhere in the middle in order to try and provoke a revoke.

That's called a "Color coup" -- they don't always get really clever names.

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If you are going to include stuff like this then you should also include other dodgy things like running a long suit quickly and throwing in a trick of the suit of the same colour somewhere in the middle in order to try and provoke a revoke.

 

Apologies Zel, but you're spot on here. Alcatraz and Superglue should have been excluded.

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In last nights English Premier League, Round 3 of 3, Robson as declarer on board 6 successfully executed the Galileo Coup. In doing so he gained an IMP for his side. Check-out what happened on trick 3.

Tried the link but all I got was a blank hand record?

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The coup most likely to backfire.

 

This one actually worked on me back when I was a guppy.

 

4 doubled, they knocked out my stopper in their suit at trick 1 and when I led a to JTxx the AKQx ducked.

 

They were getting in later anyway but I led them again and went quite a few extra in the glue.

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  • 5 months later...

I call two plays - defensive errors - affectionately by the name "coup".

 

1. The Easter Coup - He has risen.

 

When a defender goes up with the ace in error.

 

2. The Elvis Presley Coup - the king is not dead

 

When with an king sitting under an ace the defender cashes the ace.

 

I suppose these could also be applied to declarer errors

 

Do you know why the Elvis Presley coup was named?

Thanks.

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How about this one, called the Idiot Coup?

Seems similar to the Grosvenor Gambit.

 

Maybe they are similar in a sense but I think that the idiot coup and Grosvenor are distinguishable.

With the idiot coup, you are giving declarer a losing option which he should not take. That is just good bridge.

With the grosvenor, you are giving him a winning option which he should not take.

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I performed a kind of idiot cup yesterday

 

Jx

7xx

AKxxx

542

 

A9xx

J10

-

AKQJ1063

 

I read from the bidding that neither opponent had 5 hearts despite bidding and raisng them, so I went for 3NT hoping partner would have Q or A. All true but wrong, there is no way to cash 9th trick as there is no way to reach dummy AND hand later.

 

On the 4th heart I pitched K from dummy, LHO returned a diamond not really sure why.

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Do you know why the Elvis Presley coup was named?

Thanks.

 

Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. A cultural icon, he is commonly known by the single name Elvis. One of the most popular musicians of the 20th century, he is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or "the King".

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