LAST YEAR’S BEST HIGHLIGHTED NOW

Every year, the International Bridge Press Association selects prize winners in various categories. (I am one of the voting panel.) The best-playedSS deal of the year is unfortunately far too complicated for this column.

The strongest group, in my opinion, was defense. There were six entries worthy of winning, with one theme that occurred a few times — see if you can spot it as the week progresses. In this deal, Frederic Volcker (East) and Thomas Bessis from France were defending against three no-trump. West led his spade, and East covered with the 10. What happened after that? South had seven top tricks: two spades, three diamonds and two clubs. Keeping a club miracle for later if necessary, declarer sensibly decided to play on hearts. He ducked the first trick, won the second with his spade queen (West discarded a diamond), played a diamond to dummy’s jack and led a heart to his queen. You or I would have taken that trick and, probably, returned a diamond. But Bessis played low smoothly, as if he had never heard of the ace. So u t h , suitably deceived, now led a low heart from his hand and played low from the board. East won with his jack and drove out the spade ace. South, still convinced that East had the heart ace, tried the club finesse, but East took that trick and cashed his spades for down two. A clever, no-cost defense, but South should have realized that if East had king-jack-10-seventh of spades and the ace-jack of hearts, surely, even at unfavorable vulnerability, he would have opened one spade or three spades.