ACES ON BRIDGE

“He calls his extravagance generosity; and his trusting everybody, universal benevolence.” — Oliver Goldsmith In today’s deal from the annals of the Dyspeptics Club, four spades seems like a very good contract, doesn’t it? Indeed, there would appear to be 10 top tricks in the form of nine side winners and a ruff in dummy.

However, West found the best start for the defense when he hit upon the spade-five lead. Dummy played low, and declarer won cheaply in hand. He unblocked clubs and led a low heart from hand, won the trump return with the ace, finding the bad break in trumps, then cashed the club ace to pitch his diamond loser, and led a second heart. East thoughtfully ducked his ace, and West won the trick to play a third trump. Now declarer was left with two inevitable heart losers at the end.

North pointed out that South had needed to be less mean and more forward-looking. Say South wins the opening lead with the trump eight or higher. As before, he can judge that he has nine top tricks and he should hope the 10th will come from either a heart ruff or a long club.

Again, declarer cashes the club king and leads a heart, but this time, when West wins and leads a second trump, dummy’s seven will win the trick. (If East can cover the seven, spades will be breaking, and there will be a heart ruff in dummy.) Then South takes the club ace, ruffs a club high, leads a spade to the ace, ruffs another club, and crosses to the diamond ace to cash the long club for his 10th trick.

ANSWER: Since your partner will often be obliged to rebid two hearts on a five-card suit here, you cannot guarantee an eight-card fit. It feels right to make a non-forcing call of two no-trump rather than raising to three hearts. You are likely to be able to get back to hearts if that is where you belong.