If he must have it, play him for it

By Phillip Alder

Aristotle Onassis said, “After a certain point, money is meaningless. It ceases to be the goal. The game is what counts.”

For bridge players, it is the game that counts, even though we will never experience Onassis’ level of wealth. But another word in his observation is relevant in this week’s and next week’s deals.

South is in four spades after West opened one heart. West cashes his two top hearts, then shifts to a club. How should South proceed?

In the auction, South correctly jumped to two spades to show four or five spades and 9-11 points. (Remember, after East passed, South had to do something, even with 0 points, unless long and strong in hearts. Also, with 12-plus points, South would have cue-bid two hearts, unless his hand was suitable for no-trump.) North aggressively invited game, but he knew that his partner would be able to place the missing key cards accurately based on the auction. South, with two aces, was happy to accept.

Declarer can afford one trump loser, not two. Normally, he would take a finesse, hoping to find a 3-2 break and East with the king. To play West for kingdoubleton would be against the odds. However, South should pause to count the high-card points. Dummy has 17, and he has 10. That leaves only 13 for the opponents. West, therefore, must have the spade king to justify his opening bid. So, ignoring the a priori odds, declarer cashes his spade ace and continues with a low spade. When the king drops, South can claim.