A LOT OF POINTS RESTING ON TRUMPS

Edward Hodnett, in The Art of Problem Solving wrote, “If you don't ask the right questions, you don’t get the right answers. A question asked in the right way often points to its own answer. Asking questions is the ABC of diagnosis. Only the inquiring mind solves problems.”

Good bridge players ask themselves the right questions and work out the right answers. In today’s deal, how should South plan the play in six hearts after the given auction, or if East-West pass throughout? In both cases, West leads a club.

The auction was difficult. North was torn between responding two clubs and cue-bidding two spades to show his heart support. Then South was endplayed into rebidding three no-trump, which took up a lot of bidding space with such a strong hand. Finally, North bid what he hoped his partner could make.

South had his eyes on these 12 tricks: one spade, two diamonds, five clubs and four hearts. So, he could afford one trump loser but not two. What was the right approach?

In this instance, declarer was confident that West had the heart king because he overcalled one spade vulnerable, and there were only 10 highcard points missing. For that reason alone, South cashed the heart ace and, when the king did not appear, continued with a low heart.

If the opponents had not bid, though, the right play would have been low to the nine on the first

bridge

round. If that lost to the 10 or jack, declarer would have led low to his queen next (unless East played the king, of course).

South would have won when East had either the king or the jack and 10.

Copyright United Feature Syndicate (Asia Features)