ACES ON BRIDGE

Continuing our theme of avoiding ruffs, declarer must go against his natural instincts and break the rules of thumb by potentially creating extra losers for himself on today’s hand.

South competes to three hearts after East’s spade overcall, knowing of at least a nine-card heart fit. North had always intended to push on to game even if his partner had not taken that action, but here he knows to play hearts as opposed to no-trump.

West’s lead of the spade two must be a singleton, so declarer is staring four losers in the face: two clubs, a heart, and a spade ruff. It would be optimistic to play a trump in the hope that West began with singletons in both majors, or in the expectation that East might duck his heart ace. East knows as well as anyone that his partner has a singleton spade, and even if East has only one top club, the contract will be doomed.

Declarer must play to discard dummy’s spade winners instead, to prevent the ruff. His best chance by far is to win the spade lead in dummy and make the dangerous-looking move of finessing the diamond jack next. When it holds, he cashes the diamond aceking, discarding dummy’s spade six and queen.

He can subsequently draw trumps, ruffing one of dummy’s clubs in hand and discarding the other on the spade king. If East continues spades upon taking the heart ace, declarer should play low from hand to preserve his king, poised to overruff West if necessary. Even a 4-0 trump break might be surmountable.

ANSWER: It could be wrong to bid with three likely defensive tricks against four hearts, but the upside of bidding four spades is very large. It might make if partner has a fit for you. Otherwise, this might be a good save, or West might misjudge by bidding on to five hearts. You can imagine that both games might come close to making if partner has moderate spade length.

Work without Hope draws nectar in a sieve, And Hope without an object cannot live.

— Samuel Taylor Coleridge