BRIDgE

In isolation, playing to find at least one of two missing honour cards in a suit onside is a good approach with an expectation of succeeding 75% of the time, failing only when both key honours are offside.

Looking only at the North-South diamond holding on this layout, you’d expect South could take two finesses through West and land his five club contract fully three-quarters of the time.

A good play strategy for sure but even practitioners of the “New Math” will allow that 100% is better than 75% and there is an approach here that will work whenever trumps split 2-2.

North-South had reached five clubs instead of the laydown three notrump in the pursuit of a possible club slam. North’s initial response was a game-forcing variant of Stayman, the club fit was found but when South skipped over diamonds (=no control) to cuebid hearts, North closed up shop in game.

West’s lead of the top of his heart sequence may have seemed modestly threatening but South showed that was an illusion as he won to draw two rounds of trumps.

Discovering the 2-2 split meant he wouldn’t have to resort to taking two diamond finesses as there was a sure-trick line available.

Ace of spades and a spade ruff in dummy followed by cashing the second high heart and exiting in the same suit to leave West in a no-win position: if he played back either major, declarer could ruff (in dummy) while discarding a diamond from hand. And the alternative of a diamond exit would fare no better as South would simply play low from dummy to leave East thoroughly endplayed.