ACES ON BRIDGE

“Avoidance is paying forward that which I would be much wiser to pay off.” -- Craig D. Lounsbrough

Against four hearts, West leads a low spade to East’s jack. As South, what is your plan to make 10 tricks?

In order to make four hearts, you need two club tricks. So, unless East has a singleton club ace, you will need clubs to be 3-2. Your best play is to win the spade king, cash the spade ace and ruff a spade low. Next, you should lead a club from dummy. When the club ace fails to appear from East, your club king will win the trick.

Be careful! There is a winning defense if you continue with a low club next. West will win the trick with the jack and switch to the diamond jack. You must ruff the second round of diamonds and play a club, but East will win and force you again with the diamond ace. You must ruff again, and now West will eventually score a trump trick to set the contract.

The way around this disagreeable outcome is to continue with the club queen instead of a low club at trick five. East will win the club ace and does best to cash the diamond ace, but will probably exit with a spade, hoping that he can promote a trump trick in West’s hand. Instead, you will throw a diamond from hand and ruff with dummy’s trump nine. You will then draw trumps and give up a club.

If East instead plays back a trump rather than the fourth spade, you draw trumps and give up a club, having retained control.

ANSWER:

Where you are playing two-over-one game-forcing, you have enough for a cue-bid of four clubs. You have great controls and plan to bid four hearts if partner cooperates with four diamonds. If you play that this sequence is only invitational to game, then you have more than enough to bid four spades, but not enough to cue-bid for slam.