HEARTS PARTNER STRATEGY


Compiled by FOCUSER: Revised August 2008
Please send comments to focuser@focusers.com

Many top rated partners players play together frequently and they have the opportunity to experiment with strategy, and signals. However, if you meet your partner for the first time at the table, some basic protocals will improve your score. The suggestions discussed below are not the only strategies for winning in Hearts Partners games, but they will work fine for you over the long haul. In real life, when your partner is in the same room as you, there is ample time to set strategy before the game and during breaks. When you play on-line, you may not write messages concerning strategy or the hand in the midst of a game. Therefore, you need a way to communicate the basics. One way is to ask about spades before a partner's pass hand is dealt. For those who have read this website, you can signal advanced strategy by simply writing 2/1 (see the discussion, below)>

If you fear that agreeing in advance to a regulated partner pass of spades is a form of cheating, you should rest assured it is part of the game for partners to communicate before hand what system they want to use. If you want proof of this, read "THE COMPLETE WIN AT HEARTS" by Joseph D. Andrews (Published by Bonus Books, 1998) where at page 64 he discusses the various types of agreed strategies hearts partners deploy.

On The Partner Pass:     

  • Arrange for one partner to pass as many spades as he/she can every time, and if you are the passer, pass your highest spades.
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  • If you are receiving Spades: If you are dealt the Jack of Diamonds, but no Ace of Diamonds, pass the Jack and as many diamonds as you can.
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  • If you were dealt more than 2 hearts or more, pass your partner your higest 2 hearts, and one diamond; if you were dealt one heart, pass all diamonds to your partne. The logic of this is that by keeping a heart, you may be able to use it to stop a moon if your partner has a weak hand and low value, or a small number of hearts. By passing a diamond, you provide some security if your partner has the Jack of Diamonds, but fewer than 3 other diamnds (to counter the Ace, King and Queen of Diamonds.

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  • Regardless of whether you are passing or receiving Spades: If you have the Jack of Diamonds, as well as the Ace of Diamonds, pass the Ace of Diamonds.
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  • If you are passing Spades: If your partner starts with low spades, you should throw hearts right away (but saving the highest hearts to stop a moon).
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  • If your teammate will not agree to pass you spades,or to accept spades you can nonetheless minimize the harm. You can do this by ignoring your partner's stuborness and forcing the issue by always passing him 3 spades regardless of what he passes you. The 3 spades you pass should include the Queen if you were dealt it. Partners who will not agree to your request nonetheless will rarely pass you the Queen of Spades once he/she observes that you are passing him/her 3 Spades on every partner's pass, and you will minimize the harm that of your partner's unenlightened strategy of not aggregating spades in the hand of one of the partners.

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  • Advanced players can surprise opponents by a 2/1 Spade-pass strategy. The partner who normally receives Spades will get them on the firsat and second pass, but on the third pass, the other partner will get the spades. On the fourth hand, you restart, and the original partner who is to get spades on the pass gets them for the next two passes. If the game lasts for a 6th partner pass, the other partner would get the spades. That is the meaning of 2/1: every third partner pass results in reversal of who gets the spades for that hand.
    • On The Regular Pass:   
  • Protect against a MOON by keeping either the Ace of Hearts or one low and one high heart.
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  • Unless you are dealt only the Ace or King of Hearts, always pass at least one Heart to your opponent.   
  • If possible, when passing, keep one or more of your highest clubs.
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  • Pass 2 -9 of diamonds and keep JKQA of diamonds (and do not fear the Queen of Spades).
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  • If you are dealt the Queen of Spades and fewer than 2 other spades (a total of 2 or 1, with the queen), you must pass the queen unoless your hand is has more than 8 cards in diamonds or clubs or if you have AKQJ of hearts. The logic is that unless you can moon with one of the extraordianary hands that such as those described, you will surely end up eating the Queen of Spades.
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  • If you have 3 or more spades, and either were dealt the Queen of SPades or received it in a pass, you must try to get rid of all of your diamonds or clubs to position yourself to be able to throw the Queen of Spades on the other team. Because players often tend to play out clubs quickly, unless you have only 2 or fewer clubs, you probably will not be able to throw the Queen of SPades on the other team's high club. Therefore, you should plan to eliminate all of your diamonds quickly to be able to then throw the Queen of Spades on the other team's diamond card. If you have the Ace or King of diamonds, throw them last or until the Jack of Diamonds has been won. But if you have the Queen of Diamonds, throw it first since it rarely is the high diamond that will win the Jack.
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    Game Play:     
  • Unless you are sure your opponents will not MOON, avoid giving them a heart until either your team has at least one Heart.
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  • Keep a high club in reserve to either stop a moon, or catch a jack.
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  • If you do not have the Jack of Diamonds, watch to see if your partner runs out of cards in Clubs, Diamonds, Spades or Hearts, and when you are the 2nd to throw in the suit that your partner ran out, throw a high card to try to catch the Jack of Diamonds.
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  • If you have the Jack of Diamonds, on your first lead that you can, throw a low diamond (unless you have only 3 or fewer diamonds including the jack).
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  • If you have the Jack of Diamonds and run out of another suit, if you have it, throw the A, K or Q of Diamonds to signal to your partner you have the Jack.
    • HOW TO INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF SHOOTING THE MOON   
  • You can rarely shoot if you have more than one low diamond. If you do not have the Jack of Diamonds, do not assume your partner has it if you plan to moon. In other words, do not begin to take on points until you know your team will win the Jack of Diamonds.
  • If you have high cards in any suit, and get the lead, throw those high cards until depleted, starting with the highest.
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  • ( If your partner his running out of a suit and it looks as if he/she is trying to Shoot the Moon, feed your partner your hearts, starting at the lowest hearts you have.