ACES ON BRIDGE
The surest way to get a thing in life is to be prepared to do without it, to the exclusion even of hope. — Jane Welsh Carlyle
Many pairs bid to a small slam here, though generally they reached the inferior but slightly fortunate contracts of six hearts or six no-trump. One partnership reached the excellent six clubs, but the foul trump split proved too much for them.
After North showed a modicum of club support with his four-club call, a couple of cue-bids followed, then South signed off in six clubs.
Declarer won the diamond lead in dummy, unblocked the spade queen, came to the club 10 and ruffed a spade high. The club king was followed by the diamond king, then declarer drew trumps, only to find them splitting 5-1. If East had the fourth spade, declarer could still come home by cashing the spade ace-king and playing a fifth round, endplaying East when he ruffed it.
But as the cards lay, East ruffed the fourth spade and had to lead into the heart tenace, but South still had to concede trick 13 to the heart king.
While South was unlucky here, he missed a superior line: the cross-ruff. Declarer should take the diamond ace, unblock the spade queen and cross to the diamond king before throwing a diamond on the spade ace. He then ruffs a low spade with the seven. If everyone follows, he simply ruffs a heart with the club two and plays a high cross-ruff. If West shows out on the third spade, declarer will score the club seven, come what may, and if East can overruff, declarer may be able to fall back on hearts for an extra trick.
ANSWER: A three-no-trump rebid shows a hand with long hearts too good for a threeheart rebid, which is not appropriate for play in spades. Partner will convert to four hearts if he has heart support or a shapely hand with two hearts. My second choice would be to invent a jump shift in clubs rather than bidding two no-trump or jumping in hearts. No path is perfect, I admit!