Positive thinking

“YOU say that a defender must often assume the cards lie a certain way,” a club player remarked. “He must give declarer a hand that will let the defence win out.”

“Positive thinking is helpful,” I nodded.

“Well, there are days when I’m not positive I’m thinking.”

My friend was today’s West. Against three hearts, he cashed the K-A of clubs, shrugged and got out with a diamond. Declarer forced out East’s ace of trumps, won the diamond return, drew trumps and conceded a spade. Making three.

“I’m positive I’d never find the winning defence,” West said.

ACE OF TRUMPS

West must assume that East has the ace of trumps. If East has A-10-x-x, South will fail, but otherwise, West’s best defence is to lead another club at Trick Three, attacking declarer’s trump holding. Declarer gets a ruffand-discard but has no useful discard to take.

As it happens, East can pitch a spade. South ruffs, but when he leads a trump, East wins, leads his last spade and ruffs the next spade.

DAILY QUESTION: You hold: ♠ KQ9 5 3 ♥KQ J 5 ♦ A K ♣ J 5. You open one spade, and your partner bids two clubs. What do you say?

ANSWER: Since you have 19 points, you might be tempted to jump, but partner’s two-level response promises another bid, so you need not crowd your own auction. Bid two hearts. In fact, many pairs would treat a jump to three hearts as showing extra length in hearts, or as a “splinter bid” to show club support and heart shortness.

West dealer Both sides vulnerable