ACES ON BRIDGE

Thou art not for the fashion of these times, Where none will sweat but for promotion.

— William Shakespeare

All this week’s deals share a theme of the defenders utilizing their trumps to unusually good effect. Two of the maneuvers available to the defense in trumps are the ruff and the uppercut. Logic argues that if one defender takes ruffs, his partner will be the one to obtain the promotions, but today’s deal shows East-West scoring well on defense with the defender who had taken the ruff also being the one who ended up with the promoted trump.

At just about every table, South in third seat opened a lead-directing one spade on his four-card major. West risked a two-heart overcall, and North ended the auction with a two-spade call. I’m sure North was probably happy when he put down his dummy, but that didn’t last long.

After a diamond lead to the 10 and queen, East cashed his ace and gave West a ruff.

Now came the heart ace and a heart to dummy’s king, after which declarer ran the club jack to

West’s king. That player cashed the heart queen, then led another heart.

Dummy ruffed with the six, and East overruffed with the 10, forcing declarer’s jack.

South next cashed the club ace and ruffed the queen in dummy, then led dummy’s last trump to the queen and West’s ace. When West led his last heart at trick 12, East ruffed in with the eight, forcing the overruff. The spade nine represented the third undertrick for plus 300 and a 90% board.

Two down would have been virtually an average board; maybe there is a message for all those third-in-hand openers!

ANSWER: I’d lead the heart eight. It feels as if partner has at least four hearts, so leading our side’s long suit should give us a decent chance to set up an extra trump trick one way or another. A club lead might achieve the same result, but that is more likely to cost a trick if it is doesn’t hit an honor in partner’s hand.