BRIDGE MASTERCLASS

WeSt opened the bidding with 1 ♠ , after which South becomes declarer in 4 ♥ . West leads the

♠ K. Plan the play. THis is the sort of hand on which you could very easily lose control — you’ve got to establish your clubs straight away, of which you are missing the ace as, if hearts break badly, you could be in real trouble. Win the opening lead with the ♠ A and cash the ♥ A only. Next, cash the ♦ K and cross to dummy’s ♦ A and discard your ♠ 6 on the ♦ Q.

if by any chance West discards on the third diamond, you must still refuse to take a second round of trumps, but play on clubs. in this way, even if (as happened at the time) West has started with the ♥ Q- J-10-x, you will lose only the ♣ A and two trumps.