HOW DO I GET ACROSS THE TABLE?

The dying words of Crowfoot, a leader of the Siksika First Nation, were, "What is life? It is a flash of a firefly in the night. It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset."

This deal revolves around declarer's trying to get across the baize of the card table to gain access to winners in the dummy. How should South play in three no-trump after West leads the spade jack?

Following West's modern weak two-bid, South doubled for takeout, hoping to find a heart fit. However, when North advanced with three clubs, South rebid three no-trump, showing a hand that had an interest in other strains. (Either South should assume that his partner has 6 or 7 points, or North-South should employ the Lebensohl convention.)

At first glance, this looks easy. Outside clubs, South has five winners, so four club tricks will be sufficient. Therefore, he takes the first trick in his hand and runs the club 10. It wins. Now he continues with the club queen, but West rudely discards a spade, and East unsportingly lets declarer hold the trick. How can South get back to the board once he has dislodged East's club king?

Declarer plays a club to the ace and leads another club, discarding his remaining top spade. East shifts to the diamond nine. West takes the trick and returns a heart. South wins and leads a low diamond.

bridge

West can take that trick, but now dummy's diamond jack is an entry, and the contract is safe.

Copyright United Feature Syndicate (Asia Features)