Try to picture the other hands

The Senior Life Master was sitting by the fire, sipping a hot toddy and chatting with a new member.

You have asked me (began the SLM) how to improve your game. Try to count every hand, especially concentrating on high-card points. Also, sometimes it helps to imagine sitting in an opponent’s seat. Visualize that player’s hand, and ask yourself what you would do. If you would make one play, but this player does something else, perhaps you have pictured his hand incorrectly.

On the deal in the diagram, West was Picabo Petersen, who did not need to peekaboo, her bridge game being almost as beautiful as she. Her fiance, Biggles Blinkerton, sat East. The auction was exciting. Biggles opted to bid his five-card major immediately, North cuebid two hearts to show a good hand with spade support, and Picabo loved to double her opponents.

Picabo led the club king and shifted to the heart four, East winning with the ace. Thinking his partner had led her singleton at trick one, Biggles returned the club four, hoping for a diamond ruff in return. However, declarer ruffed, drew trumps and claimed 10 tricks.

“Oh, Biggles!” wailed Picabo. “How can I have the singleton club king and king-third of hearts? With that, I would have bid two hearts immediately or supported hearts over three clubs, not bid three diamonds. My heart switch must be a singleton. Just return the heart 10 at trick three, and we collect an 800-point penalty.

“But next time,” she continued, “I will lead my singleton. Then you can’t go wrong.”