Can the mathematics always be trusted?

Albert Einstein wrote, “Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater.” Of course, that was only because he was trying to solve much more complicated problems than the rest of us. A bridge player needs to add and subtract numbers — the more he does it, the better he will play. How would counting help in this deal? South reaches four spades after West opened one club. West cashes the club ace and king, then shifts to a heart. How should South continue? In the auction, South’s two-club cue-bid in advance of his partner’s takeout double just showed 12 high-card points or more. It was purely a point-showing call. South can anticipate that the diamond finesse is losing — finesses never work in constructed deals. If so, then declarer must play the trump suit without loss. Yesterday, we learnt that with eight cards in the suit, the mathematicians strongly advise taking a second-round finesse of the jack. They would cash dummy’s king, then play low to their jack. But here, they will be disappointed — why? When you buy the contract after an opponent opened the bidding, always count the high-card points. Since dummy has 12 and declarer 16, that leaves only 12 for East and West. So West must have the spade queen (and diamond king). South should cash dummy’s spade king and play low to his ace, hoping that the queen falls. As Einstein also pointed out: Pure mathematics is, in its way, the poetry of logical ideas.