WORK TO GET AN EXTRA TRICK

Charles Lamb, an English essayist, poet and antiquarian who died in 1834, said, “I arrive very late at work in the morning, but I make up for it by leaving very early in the afternoon.”

He must have been selfemployed. Otherwise, he would surely have been following Robert Frost’s observation that “by working faithfully eight hours a day, you may eventually get to be boss and work 12 hours a day.”

In today’s deal, East has to work hard to defeat South’s three-spade contract. Can he succeed?

It was reasonable for South to invite game with his three-spade rebid. But North, although he had 15 points, discounted the heart queen and passed.

West should lead the heart two, low from length, in partner's unsupported suit. East wins with the eight and cashes the heart king. But what does he do next?

He might continue with the ace and his other club. That would work well if South immediately tried the spade finesse, because East would receive a club ruff. But if declarer cautiously cashed the spade ace and led the spade queen, he would get home.

Here, it is stronger defense for East to play a third heart. If South ruffs on the board and takes a trump finesse, West can win with his king and lead a club to East's ace. Then a fourth heart promotes West's spade 10 as the setting trick.

If South guesses the distribution, he can still make the contract with a trump endplay on West, but it is complicated, and