ACES ON BRIDGE

I think the necessity of being ready increases. Look to it.

— Abraham Lincoln North’s two-club response as a passed hand was Drury, indicating a sound three-card raise. South would have bid two diamonds with any invitation to game (two hearts would show that he had opened light), so his two-spade rebid was slammish. North sensibly signed off in four hearts.

Declarer won the diamond lead and finessed the heart 10 at trick two, East winning with the queen. Back came the club jack, which held, after which East mysteriously led a trump. Further club leads would have scuttled the contract since declarer would have found himself unable to pick up East’s heart nine.

As it was, South had a chance. When he ran the spade jack, West won with his spade king. Back came another spade to dummy’s 10, and declarer had reached the crossroads. Alas, he tried to cash a third spade, and the contract failed.

Knowing of the 4-1 trump division, declarer should have tried to pick up East’s heart nine rather than hoping for an unlikely crossruff.

The best line was to cash the diamond king for a club discard and then ruff a diamond. This would establish dummy’s long cards while reaching trump parity with East. Declarer could then ruff his last club with the heart ace before leading winning diamonds through East as trump substitutes.

East could either ruff in to see declarer overruff and draw trumps, or he could discard. That would allow declarer to run the diamonds to establish a trump coup, with the lead still in dummy at trick 12.

ANSWER: Even though your partner is likely to have three clubs, giving you a chance to establish that suit, I do not quite see this hand as worth an invitation to game, so I would pass. A 10-count should not invite game facing the equivalent of a weak no-trump, especially where there is no obvious source of tricks. The club jack or 10 would make a big difference.